Tag: ABC

Geekscape Reviews: ABC’s ‘Ten Days In The Valley’ Premiere

by Alexandra Gallarza

It’s been six years since Kyra Sedgwick signed off as Brenda Leigh Johnson from her Emmy Award winning run on TNT’s The Closer. Viewers could be finding themselves asking, “Brenda Leigh Johnson, who?”

ABC’s Ten Days In The Valley, stars Emmy Award winning actress Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”) as Jane Sadler, an overworked TV producer and a single mother. It’s a parent’s worst nightmare to have their kid disappear on them at any time of day, let alone in the middle of the night. When Lake, Jane’s 8-year-old daughter disappears, Jane’s life, which includes her family and controversial TV show family, begins to slowly collapse.

On Sunday night’s premiere, Sedgwick steps back into the police force. While Jane is at the forefront of a police investigation, she is not the one leading it. She is in the middle of all of it. Which is a nice step away for Kyra Sedgwick, who spent 7 years as Deputy Chief of the LAPD on The Closer. 

At the beginning, it’s a slow roll out. For Jane, everything seems perfect. She is the show runner of a Police Drama TV show, she is a single mother raising Lake who is 8. Pretty perfect, right? That peaceful, perfect, life unravels immediately when Jane finds her house locked, broken into, and her daughter missing from her bed.

Viewers are quickly introduced to key players in the potential ten day search for Lake.  Jane’s sister Ali, (NBC Parenthood’s Erika Christensen) comes to her sister’s aid to help search for Lake and provide some comfort. Jane’s estranged husband, Pete (Kick Gurry) is the first-person Jane blames, but Detective Bird of LAPD’s Robbery Homicide Division (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, ABC’s Lost) rules him out as a suspect. The people of Jane’s staff, including her head writer Matt, ( Malcom- Jamal Warner, TNT’s Major Crimes) and assistant Casey, (Emily Kinney) who idolizes Jane, find it difficult to continue with their show when Jane is not in the office.

With talk of suicide and drugs at the top of the show, how Lake disappeared remains the main mystery of the show. Why Lake was taken, who she was taken by, are additional questions that the Robbery Homicide Division of the LAPD want to have answers to. For Jane, suddenly, life is imitating art. Her show is becoming her life. No one can be trusted. Everyone has something to hide. Everything is shrouded in mystery.

Ten Days In The Valley, airs at 10PM, on ABC.

Have you seen the episode? Let us know what you think? If not, take a look at the trailer below and see if Ten Days In The Valley is something you want to immerse yourself in.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GbQLFRVuDk8

Take A Better Look At ‘Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Ghost Rider In New TV Spot And Image!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: As cool as the Nicolas Cage rendition of Ghost Rider was… we’ve been ready for another attempt at the character for what feels like forever.

This Fall, our wishes will (hopefully) be granted when the Robbie Reyes version of the character hits Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Pre-fiery Reyes was a mechanic, and instead of the classic motorcycle, he’ll be driving a slick looking 1969 Dodge Charger (that’s on fire of course), and from what we’ve seen so far, this looks to be a cool, modern take on the classic character.

So, as much as we’ll miss Nic Cage, this newly released TV Spot and image of the character definitely get us excited for this new portrayal (even if the CG is a little bad). Take a look below, and let us know if you’re ready for the Rider, as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returns on September 20th.

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Source: Yahoo!

ABC’s ‘Agent Carter’ Cancelled

by jake108

In a sad turn of events, it would seem Peggy’s adventures have ended, both in her prime in Agent Carter, and as Captain America’s last tie to his old life in Captain America: Civil War. I think it would be fair to state that Agent Carter wasn’t treated as well as it could have been.

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For now, the only surviving Marvel television show is Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. If we are to believe reports for the upcoming Agents spin-off show, we could expect some incoming news on Marvel’s Most Wanted this summer. Fans of Hayley Atwell will be delighted to hear that she has already signed onto a new show, Conviction, which is also set to premier on ABC.

Meghan Ory Returning as Ruby in ‘Once Upon a Time’ Season 5

by Eric Francisco

Where the hell has Ruby been? I totally forgot. This season of Once Upon a Time will answer that.

TVLine has just confirmed that actress Meghan Ory is returning to the ABC fantasy series this fall, reprising her role as Ruby, aka the Little Red Riding Hood (she ain’t so little in Storybrooke). It’s unknown whether she’s back as a regular or it’s some one-time appearance.

The actress originally took a hiatus from the series to star in CBS’ Intelligence a few years ago, but returned briefly during the season three finale. She’s been gone since, but now she’s on her way back to Maine for who knows what. They’re doing Brave this season. Maybe Merida will shoot an arrow into her.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg13Cs-2O44

New Posters for ABC’s ‘The Muppets’

by Karson

Five new promotional posters have been released for ABC’s The Muppets. The new television series will take you behind the scenes of Miss Piggy’s late-night talk show on which Kermit is the executive producer, Fozzie is her sidekick, and Gonzo is the head writer. It will be a more adult take on the Muppets and make use of The Office style cut-aways and witty pop culture references that we’ve grown to expect from the franchise.

The Muppets premieres Tuesday, Sept. 22 on ABC.

Check out the posters below:

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Are you excited to see the Muppets on television again? Do you like the new posters? Let us know in the comments below.

 

Watch The Pitch That Started ABC’s ‘The Muppets’!

by Bigyanks

ABC today released the first look presentation of the upcoming The Muppets. This presentation first screened back at Comic-Con, and is said to be the pitch that convinced ABC to bring The Muppets to series.

This time around, the show has been given a more adult theme, as evident with the topic of interspecies children between Fozzy Bear and his human girlfriend. The format of the clip was the camera crew/interview style reminiscent of The Office and 30 Rock, which was hilariously mocked by Gonzo. The 10 minute clip was also featured guest stars Topher Grace and Elizabeth Banks. It’s not clear if the show will include skits or musical numbers from the original Muppet Show, but here’s hoping for some Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem covers.

As a Muppets fan, I hope this is successful. I know Muppets Most Wanted couldn’t compare to Jason Segel’s The Muppets, but it still had some charm and catchy songs. I felt that it strayed so far from that first film that interest dropped, and didn’t carry the same fever to to go watch and keep them relevant. The show seems to bring it a bit back to the meta and self awareness of the first movie.

The Muppets is set to premiere this Fall!

https://youtu.be/x2B5d-8H588

‘The Muppets’ Return to ABC With a Wonderful Trailer

by Eric Francisco

Anything great about Jim Henson’s creations have already been said, especially with the incredible The Muppets film from 2011. But now the gang is returning to television with a brand new series coming this fall to ABC, along with a trailer you’ll have on repeat until the premiere.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfJkusicBa4

I admit I didn’t keep up on the developments of this show, but did they change Kermit’s voice? It doesn’t sound like Steve Whitmire.

The iconic The Muppet Show was always a show about putting on a variety show, but the visual language in TV has evolved since the Muppets were last on air. The faux-documentary style of The Office and Parks & Recreation are the new norm in serial comedy, and it’s clear that The Muppets, in using this language, are aiming for an older audience. It looks almost like Modern Family.

I’m not sure how much of that is a good or bad thing, and kids can and totally will watch this show. But barely a minute into this trailer and already they’ve made jokes about having sex with a sock puppet that looks like a bear.

I know it’s bad to admit this, but I’m excited. They poke fun at the documentary style in the cheapest way and actually saying you’re aiming for adults is a little off-putting, but that it’s all coming from the flapping mouths of sock puppets makes me smile. It may feel like your grandpa is making internet memes, but he spent a lot of time researching this stuff just to make you laugh and like him. There’s a charm to this show, no matter how much posturing it might come off as. I do hope this show will ensure these characters will stay fresh for the generations to come, and not become dated relics that even our parents find corny.

Are you excited for The Muppets too? Tell us in the comments below.

‘Agent’s Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Spinoff In The Works!

by Shane O'Hare

Looks like ABC and Marvel want to keep the Agent’s of S.H.I.E.L.D. money train a going.

Deadline reported just moments ago that the spinoff series will star Adrianne Palicki & Nick Blood. They will be reprising their repsective roles as Mockingbird and Lance Hunter.

According to Deadline, the spinoff series will be setup by events in the current season of Agent’s of S.H.I.E.L.D. It’s still speculation whether it has anything to do with the teased hidden plot we’ve been given.

More details will be released once a script has been given as ABC says they will not be giving a greenlight until they have one in hand.

What are you thoughts on this possible spinoff series? Do you think Marvel is fragmenting their universe too much or spreading their creative talent too thin with all of these projects? We’d love to hear your opinion!

Marvel & ABC Studios Announce New ‘Once Upon A Time: Out of the Past’ Graphic Novel

by Eric Francisco

After a few days of teaser images on Facebook this past week, ABC Studios have announced a Once Upon A Time graphic novel to be published under the Marvel label. Enter Once Upon A Time: Out of the Past.

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From the press release:

Marvel Entertainment and ABC Studios are proud to announce the follow up graphic novel to the massively successful Once Upon A Time: Shadow of the Queen.  ONCE UPON A TIME: OUT OF THE PAST is an all new graphic novel inspired by ABC’s popular television series “Once Upon a Time.”  This 112-page hardcover hits comic shops and bookstores everywhere on April 1st, 2015.

Welcome to Storybrooke, a small New England town where seemingly regular people go about their everyday lives with no idea who they really are – the fabled storybook characters we all grew up with! But Fairy Tale Land is not the “happily ever after” you may have read about – their stories continue, and the Evil Queen has set a dark curse upon their homeland.

 

Travel back in ONCE UPON A TIME: OUT OF THE PAST to the origin stories of your favorite characters from the show!

 

ONCE UPON A TIME: OUT OF THE PAST brings together the best graphic novel creators in the industry, including “Once” series writer Kalinda Vazquez, returning writer Corinna Bechko (ONCE UPON A TIME: SHADOW OF THE QUEEN, PLANET OF THE APES), and featuring the lush art of Eisner award winning Janet Lee (DAPPER MEN, EMMA), Pascal Campion (PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR, SHERMAN AND PEABODY), Vanesa Del Rey (HIT,SINATORO), and Betsy Peterschmidt (BOYS WITH WINGS) with cover artist Stacey Lee (SILK).

Okay, real talk. I love Once Upon A Time despite being all levels of terrible. When this season of Game of Thrones ended I was jonesing for more fantasy TV and didn’t feel like watching The Lord of the Rings again, so I hopped on Netflix and checked out Once based on word of mouth. I finished the first two seasons within a week.

But I admit I’m slightly confused by the concept. It’s a book of origin stories? Viewers of the show know how much the writers make use of flashbacks and origin stories, almost ad nauseam. What else is there to tell? I guess I have to find out by buying the book, don’t I?

The real synergy I’m hoping for between Disney and Marvel is an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D/Once Upon A Time crossover. It would make absolutely no sense, but I want it. I can’t be the only one who wants to see Coulson drive Lola around Storybrooke.

He could pick up Emma and they can make jokes about her jacket matching Lola’s coat.

Then Coulson could meet Rumple and be all like “I’ve dealt with tricksters like you,” BECAUSE REMEMBER HIM AND LOKI?

Now I can’t think about anything else.

‘The Flash’, ‘Constantine’, ‘Agent Carter’, ‘iZombie’ Ordered To Series, ‘Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Renewed

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: Big news for comic book fans on the TV front today.

First up, even though it hasn’t been performing as well as anticipated, it’s no surprise that the kinda-sucked-but-now-is-pretty-sweet Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been renewed for a second season over at ABC.

Next, an Agent Carter series has officially been ordered to series. Hayley Atwell will star, and here’s the first official description:

‘Marvel’s Agent Carter,’ starring ‘Captain America’’s Hayley Atwell, follows the story of Peggy Carter. It’s 1946, and peace has dealt Peggy Carter a serious blow as she finds herself marginalized when the men return home from fighting abroad. Working for the covert SSR (Strategic Scientific Reserve), Peggy must balance doing administrative work and going on secret missions for Howard Stark all while trying to navigate life as a single woman in America, in the wake of losing the love of her life – Steve Rogers.

 

Inspired by the feature films ‘Captain America: The First Avenger‘ and ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier,’ along with the short ‘Marvel One-Shot: Agent Carter.’ ‘Marvel’s Agent Carter’ stars Hayley Atwell as Agent Peggy Carter. Executive producers are Michele Fazekas & Tara Butters, Steve McFeely & Christopher Marcus, and Jeph Loeb.

On the CW front, along with renewing Arrow, the network has picked up The Flash for a full season, as well as an adaptation of Vertigo’s iZombie. Here’s the synopsis for iZombie:

“A med student-turned-zombie takes a job in the coroner’s office to gain access to the brains she must reluctantly eat to maintain her humanity, but with each brain she consumes, she inherits the corpse’s memories. With the help of her medical examiner boss and a police detective, she solves homicide cases in order to quiet the disturbing voices in her head. Based on the characters created by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, and published by DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint. Cast: Rose McIver (Liv).”

and The Flash (plus that shot of star Grant Gustin in costume… again):

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Based upon characters published by DC Comics. Through a freak accident, scientist Barry Allen is given the power of super speed that transforms him into the Fastest Man Alive. Cast: Grant Gustin (Barry Allen); Jesse L. Martin (Det. West); Tom Cavanaugh (Harrison Wells).

Over at NBC, Constantine has been picked up for a full season. Look below for the shot of Matt Ryan as, well, John Constantine. The synopsis for this one has also been revealed.

Constantine

Based on the wildly popular comic book series “Hellblazer” from DC Comics, seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult John Constantine (Matt Ryan, “Criminal Minds”) specializes in giving hell… hell. Armed with a ferocious knowledge of the dark arts and his wickedly naughty wit, he fights the good fight — or at least he did. With his soul already damned to hell, he’s decided to leave his do-gooder life behind, but when demons target Liv (Lucy Griffiths, “True Blood”), the daughter of one of Constantine’s oldest friends, he’s reluctantly thrust back into the fray – and he’ll do whatever it takes to save her. Before long, it’s revealed that Liv’s “second sight” — an ability to see the worlds behind our world and predict supernatural occurrences — is a threat to a mysterious new evil that’s rising in the shadows. Now it’s not just Liv who needs protection; the angels are starting to get worried too. So, together, Constantine and Liv must use her power and his skills to travel the country, find the demons that threaten our world and send them back where they belong. After that, who knows… maybe there’s hope for him and his soul after all.

That’s a lot of news for one day. What are you excited for? What are you planning to skip? Be sure to let us know! We’ll be sure to fill you in on episode numbers and premiere dates as soon as they’re announced!

The SHIELD Debrief: Season 1, Episode 4 – “Eye Spy”

by CJC

“Maybe I should learn to fly.”

A fitting opening to an episode that proved that “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is hitting its stride in its fourth episode, with an offering of mix-it-up action with emotional and humorous beats peppered around where you’d like them. What “Eye Spy” did well was set up what we were going to see (SEE what I did there? AND THERE?) while still making it entertaining to watch. With our eye… balls… No, I’m not gonna do that. We’re done now.

We knew that Coulson was probably right about his wayward agent Akela Amador. We knew that Ward’s mention of Skye’s training would come back as a beat later. We knew that the feed was looking at the van before they did. All this, but the storytelling rhythm managed to make us still want to see what would come of it. Especially noteworthy was the very ending shot (not THAT ending shot, but the story end), with the voice-over on Akela Amador finally getting her first uninterrupted, unwatched, sleep in years. From the emotionless, inhuman faces of the opening shot to this very vulnerable idea of someone closing their eyes to sleep, it was an inspired arc.

Agent Coulson had something of an Obi-Wan Kenobi moment this episode, getting to delve into his regrets of the past with former agent Akela Amador. The concept that his trainee had gone to the dark side did not sit well with him — or at all — and he clung to the thought that there was another explanation. This shows a certain vulnerability in Coulson, as he reenacts his own resurrection through the thought-to-be-dead rogue agent. Unlike the agent we saw making the hard choice with Dr. Hall in the previous episode, this was a Coulson not quite willing to take that commitment. Though it remained firmly in the line of saving everyone, even one person doing wrong, if you can.

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“Go for short bus.”

Even Ward got to participate in this episode’s speckling of humorous lines, proving that, despite Skye’s running joke, he is not a robot. He continues to break out of his shell at a similar pace as the show itself. Even though he’s not as much a vehicle for the audience as Skye intends to be, it’s important for us to emphasize with him as much as anyone else, as he was the character we started with. There is more to Ward (hopefully), and as he peels back, he may prove to be one of the more interesting characters. Fitzsimmons were regulated to their usual background science chatter, but their participation in the entire scene in the van was precious enough to save them this episode from what otherwise would’ve been their descent into obscurity and uselessness.

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“You value me.”

Our lady spy Skye is developing: she still hasn’t learned how to use a gun quite properly but that’s a note I appreciate. Showing her learning, and failing, instead of just becoming badass overnight is a smart choice and keeps her from teetering over the edge into truly annoying. She’s also showing signs of being subtly (and sometimes not so subtly) overwhelmed by what’s been going on, which is another thing to remember: she used to live in a van down by the river. It’s reasonable for her to be in over her head right now, and it’s a note to appreciate when that comes out in the character, even if some may find her quips obnoxious.

Skye has also developed as far as her relationships, as clearly Ward is giving her more responsibility — you don’t let just anybody see through your eyes these days — and she’s developing a possible two-way fondness for Agent Coulson. Something that’s going to bite her in the ass when her continuing Riding Tide connections surface (possibly even in the next episode, if our preview is any indication. But don’t trust previews. I mean it. I know.) Skye and Coulson’s moments in the van allow us to remember that she’s a little girl out of her depth and he’s just a human beneath that suit (or is he) fighting daily against the superhuman. It’s the taste of humanity that we crave, and have come to expect, in Whedon pieces and I’m hoping that the next episode doesn’t split that open too soon.

We also saw Melinda’s value continue to rise. She sure does not go slowly into that good fieldwork. Kicking it into high gear, she proved that she was going to protect Coulson, even if that potentially meant from himself and his emotional decisions. Though they seemed to smooth things out by the end, I don’t expect this will be their last disagreement on how to run matters.

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“That’s not me anymore.”

A telling line for Agent Coulson tonight, whose changes are beginning to wear on those who knew him best before. It’s possible that his and Melinda’s fight is a result of his new and possibly not improved (for SHIELD) loose attitude, but we also know this his former protege noticed it — and something else? Did she close her eyes and see that Coulson is not truly Coulson? SHIELD strings us along for another episode with the promise of a development in that direction. With Melinda on the case, I think we are guaranteed to see more and more of this mystery unravel.

Theories are, naturally, bouncing all over the internet. He’s a robot. He’s Vision; that’s a popular one. What do you think? Let me know, or I’ll assume that you’re all the robots instead.

Jeez. You’d think a robot would have something more productive to do with its time.

‘Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Picked Up For Full Season!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: ABC surprised absolutely no-one today when they announced that Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has received a full season order.

Sure, ratings fell substantially after the series premiere’s MASSIVE 20 million viewers, but the show is still more than popular enough to warrant more episodes. According to Deadline, Agents is still ranked the  #1 series in the 2013-14 season among adults 18-49, and boasts solid DVR gains weekly.

The full season order brings the total episode count to 22, which should be more than enough to please fans until a second season is inevitably (probably) announced.

What do you think of the series so far? I’m not much of a fan of the villain-of-the-week formula, so I sure hope that something about S.H.I.E.L.D. changes soon, or I can sure see things getting stale fast. In any case, I’d probably keep watching just to see agent Coulson’s weekly quips. That dude’s wonderful.

The SHIELD Debrief: Season 1, Episode 3 – “The Asset”

by CJC

“We don’t have truth serum.”

DAVID CONRAD, CHLOE BENNET

After last week’s episode, I went into “The Asset” hesitantly, to be sure, but this week’s fare delivered more on par with the first episode: not spectacular, but very entertaining. It’s quick, witty, action-packed stuff, and if Agents of SHIELD can stay in this realm, then it’ll be on a fairly good leg, but still with room for improvement. It’s notable that in the episode not meant to bring the characters together, it did a better job of it, and without being quite as obvious. Though, it’s arguable that EVERY episode has the purpose of bringing the characters closer together, so there’s that. There was progress with Melinda, who decided that she needed to be back in combat if she was going to continue with the team — partially in order to save Coulson’s butt. There was a defining moment for Coulson himself, when he had to make the hard choice during the fight from Inception to either save some lives or potentially save a lot of lives. Coulson choosing to live in the moment and save those who were present, as well as Hall’s argument that these were decisions SHIELD made all the time, was a nice hark back to my complaint last week that SHIELD was too “white knight”. Two for you, Agents of SHIELD.

We also saw Skye progress as a potential field agent, rather than just a nerd at a computer, which left her hacking to a small cameo, but not her background: villain of the week, Tamoh Penikett lookalike David Conrad attempted to lure our Rising Tide undercover while she was… undercover (but kinda not?) into working for him. Skye chose her new SHIELD family, partially thanks to some personal sharing by Ward (anyone else really enjoy the flip they pulled on ‘Big Brother’?), but that doesn’t quite resolve how we saw her answer the Rising Tide query in the previous episode. So, surely, we have more testing of the loyalties to come in the future.

This week’s episode also played out like a small movie — giving us the origin story of a potential reoccurring character that ties into Marvel legend but remained accessible to casual viewers (like me). While anticipating the “end credits” scene to be exactly what it was, I still enjoyed the potential for growth, and for that decision to come back to bite Coulson in the ass. Hard decisions are about consequences, and good storytelling doesn’t make things easy for the characters.

“I saw plenty of action with the Avengers.” “… And you died.”

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More importantly, really: Coulson still wears his suit when coming in from a water approach and climbing a beach full of patrols. Notice how Ward went all Mission Impossible, but Coulson was having none of that.

We got to see more combinations of characters like that, and the quote above, as relationships progressed. Fitzsimmons even managed to perform jobs separated from each other, giving them slightly more defining characteristics. Though, anyone else catch that even Coulson calls them by their shipper name? And speaking of ships, hopefully male! Fitzsimmons will find more personality than just trying to impress Skye in the next episode. They deserve their own moment to shine so that Skye and Ward don’t overtake them as far as personal sharing goes. It’d be nice to see someone else take an interest in the geeks, or for them to step forward, so that it doesn’t become too overloaded with certain characters over another. Balance is important with an ensemble cast, lest some become extraneous or just there to make the others look cool.

Other things of note: Melinda handed over ALL Headquarters’ communications to a known terrorist hacker? All of them?! What happened to not trusting her? This certainly seems like a step. Though I suppose we might imagine that HQ’s communications aren’t exactly in lay terms, but that doesn’t mean that Skye couldn’t do some damage with that information if she wanted to. Also, shouldn’t they wear more protective shielding than they do when handling unknown, dangerous artifacts? Everyone’s just standing around in their civvies. It seems vaguely irresponsible, if you ask me. Which you didn’t. But this is my review and you clicked it, so nyeh.

“Saying his name repeatedly does not increase productivity. Or… maybe it does.”

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Lampshades! Don’t know what I’m talking about? Go drown yourself in TV Tropes and come back here after a year. No? Okay, well, lampshading involves clicking the light on a usual cliche — turning it upside-down. When Agents of SHIELD has Fitzsimmons call Coulson out for doing the typical frantic shouting of names during a countdown, it’s the pointing out of a cliche. Of course, then it works, so that’s a whole other layer of humor. It’s important to have layers, which is often what saves SHIELD — well, the show, not the organization, as most of them seem to lack in certain variations of humor the higher up you go. Skye’s finding out the hard way that making quips during a briefing is not exactly the go-to reaction. Though, hopefully, she’ll learn the lesson and not be “that person” every time or we’ll be back in cliche town.

Another example is Fitzsimmons miming Skye’s breasts and then ending up just saying “boobs” after all.

This episode also did well with tie-ins that while not perfectly subtle were also not stupidly in your face — like the PSA message of last week. Most importantly, the comment about creating muscle memory harkening to Coulson’s being “rusty”.

As a parting thought: what do you think about Coulson’s lack of muscle memory? Are those not his muscles? Is it not Coulson? And how many episodes do you think will go by before we see villain Hall (back as Graviton, of course)?

The S.H.I.E.L.D. Debrief: Season 1, Episode 01 – ‘Pilot’

by CJC

“The world is full of wonders.”

On the surface, Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD treads where Heroes, Alphas, and even the 70s’ Tomorrow People have dared. In practice, it’s a gleaming hour of pure fun tumbling through the fully realized Marvel universe to bring to life the potential of a new and exciting corner of superheroes. Only these heroes are less super, and more suited, as the premise (and all the ads) points out. It’s about the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division, which has been seen in glimpses in previous movies and at the forefront of The Avengers. The concept itself — a ragtag team of ‘who would’ve thought it’ agents and non-agents working together to fight the odds — does not blow away on its own. It will be the cases and the characters that make it.

However, peppered with quick one-liners and quiet visual gags, Agents of SHIELD redeems its flagging concept with its unending sense of humor and the subtle delivery of twists. Rather than throw them in your face with act breaks and music of impending doom, SHIELD chooses to roll just as naturally into its secrets as it does into everything else, helping you roll with the flow instead of be distracted by gags.

“This is the new world.”

In the realm of tie-ins, SHIELD does a complete job fitting itself into the niche of Marvel movie-verse. From direct references to billionaires in flying suits (said in the show as if it’s not crazy at all) to super-soldier serum to the ultimate question of is this team going to be able to act like a team: SHIELD delivers a Marvel super rollercoaster. Add in references to “with great power” and a Clean Slate concept, and the show’s not only self-referential but gleefully self-aware (as well as rival-aware). It’s grounded in both our world and theirs, when Ward mentions cosplay girls surrounding Stark Tower, allowing us to experience what would be an extraordinary thing (superheroes!) in a way we can understand (geekery and fanning!).

How is Coulson alive? Will the show ever solve that mystery?
How is Coulson alive? Will the show ever solve that mystery?

It’s interesting to note that the superheroes — the crowning Heroes of New York! — are considered to be at a security level unequal to knowing that their beloved Coulson is alive. This is highly indicative of the kind of operation Nick Fury runs. People only know what he believes they should know, and it casts an intriguing, darker light when you remember that this is an operation run by humans deciding what’s best, and they use the superheroes like tools; assets to be respected, but ultimately steered. Behavior like this has gotten villains in the past in trouble, and it would be glorious to see its effect on SHIELD in the future.

“We’re not exactly a team.”

It’s not uncommon for the Whedons to turn typical concepts on their heads, but SHIELD is only halfway there due to a slightly underdeveloped cast of team members and a lukewarm plot that’s a mix of Luke Cage’s origin story and Iron Man’s Extemis storyline. The strong members of the cast naturally include Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson, whose consummately overworked everyman is tempered perfectly by his quick and quiet delivery of wit. He can stand his own against superheroes and unruly teammates alike, with the occasional splash of badassery — like his ability to duck like a mofo; though, really, who didn’t expect those car doors to come flying off? Ming-Na Wen follows, as Melinda May, and Coulson’s second-in-command (they don’t say as much, but come on). Her quiet no-nonsense attitude is different than Coulson’s half-smile pleasantness, but she harbors the same ‘this is why I’m in SHIELD’ skills beneath. She was also introduced with the best possible hook: a seemingly uninjured, and capable, agent choosing a desk — something Coulson or Maria Hill would kill to get away from. We look forward to knowing more about her simply from that.

Melinda May was a great contrast to Coulson.
Melinda May was a great contrast to Coulson.

The rest of the crew suffers from less introduction — or too much introduction. Brett Dalton as Agent Ward is brought in as our point-of-view, letting us see him in action before he’s introduced to the story. At first, he’s the typical vigilante-type agent: the lone-wolf who’s too cool for the world. However, in getting to see Coulson systematically break him down with his differing tactics is pleasant enough to hopefully keep him from becoming just impossibly annoying with his snobbery and disagreeing. He might be an effective foil for Coulson, should he learn to operate on his level, but, for now, we can hope he just won’t get in his own way and that any reveals for him in the future, though not hinted at yet, are intriguing.

Chloe Bennet plays Skye. Let’s pause on that for a moment because… Skye. Also, because I originally mistyped it as ‘Skype’. Skype suffers the most from unflagging tropes: the sassy, overly skilled hacker, who has a quip for everything and nobody can possibly be better than her. It takes a certain kind of person to let you feel okay watching your favorites get taken down a notch, and Skye doesn’t quite fulfill that before besting Coulson, and SHIELD, at encryption. Luckily, Coulson has a few other things up his sleeve, but Skye, though she possesses a few quality lines (including that cough-and-miss-it comment about cosplay), trends dangerously towards the cliche. The hope for her is that now that her ‘recruitment’ is out of the way, she can begin to blossom. And hopefully not into some kind of double-crosser, thanks to whatever techno-gadget she shoved into her bra.

Yep, Skype was pretty annoying.
Yep, Skye was pretty annoying.

Ian de Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge play Fitzsimmons. Yes, Fitzsimmons the unit. This joke is made early on, but it’s unfortunately prophetic, as the two don’t manage to separate from each other much in terms of character development or usefulness. The power of bickering accents aside, they are also cloaked in a sense of typical characterization they must shed — and likely will, if Whedon’s past is any indication. So we’ll give them another episode or two before any full analysis.

We’ll end with a shout-out to Ron Glass, and the opening of the floor to you, to agree, disagree, or just do what internet commentators do.

Let’s all just agree on one thing: Lola’s not making it through the season.

Don't touch her.
Don’t touch her.

You’ve Seen The Premiere, Now See What’s Next On ‘Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premiered last night to a whopping 11.9 million viewers, making it the LARGEST television drama premiere in almost four years (surpassed only by ABC’s own V a few years back).

As it turns out, most of the footage we’d seen up to last night was contained within the explosive (and sometimes dry) premiere episode, leaving all of us wondering what would come next for the newly assembled don’t-call-it-a-team.

Fear not! ABC has debuted a new trailer for the series, showing off some of the action that’s set to hit in subsequent episodes. It looks like a lot of fun, but hopefully the show can solve some of the issues present with the pilot episode.

Take a look at the new trailer below, and let us know what you thought of last night’s premiere!

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

‘Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Premieres Tonight, Watch A New Trailer!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: The day is finally here folks. Marvel tonight steps into live-action television in a post-Avengers world with Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and we couldn’t be more excited.

Neither could the rest of the world, apparently. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. already has over one million fans on Facebook, and that number is sure to grow after tonight’s Joss Whedon directed premiere. Late last night, ABC debuted a new trailer for the series, fresh with some new footage that should get everyone hot and bothered for tonight’s episode.

Take a look at the preview below and let us know if you’re excited! Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premieres at 8PM! Coulson LIVES!

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

Geekscape’s Guide To The 2013-2014 TV Season

by S.J. Borger

Below is the definitive list of new and returning shows on network and cable (excluding the smaller niche channels such as Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon) that could possibly have a fandom, be near a fandom, or be fandom adjacent…

Peruse through the list, watch some trailers (though not every show has a trailer yet), and have fun!

So. Alphabetical order. Nice and neutral.

Starting with:

abc-logo

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D

ABC, Tues, 8 to 9 p.m. Air Date: 9/24

Whedon’s back on the small screen, folks, and he’s brought Coulson. And Lola. While not necessarily a super-hero show (Coulson runs a small team of normal, if talented, people who track and contain—if needed—new superhuman talent), it lives and breathes at the intersection of Marvel and Whedon so really, anything could happen. Whedon has said that the new series is Avengers adjacent, taking place after the events of The Avengers, but focusing on the normal people on the peripheral of the super-hero action. It is expected that the show will interact with both Captain America: The Winter Soldier as well as the upcoming Avengers sequel.

Clark Gregg reprises his role as Phil Coulson (you could hear the screams of joy as far as Montana when he was revealed as being alive at the 2013 South by Southwest Festival this year). He is joined by Ming-Na Wen (Mulan, Stargate Universe, Eureka), fan favorite J. August Richards (Angel), Cobie Smulders (How I Met Your Mother, Avengers), and Ron Glass (Firefly, Serenity) along with a host of new, interesting characters that round out the team of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Quite possibly the most anticipated show airing this season—the pilot has gotten high scores at IGN as well as positive reaction from the San Diego Comic Con crowd—its pedigree and fan base should guarantee significant support—the question is will it appeal to a larger audience? Hopefully its adventure-of-the-week, underdog format will make it accessible enough for both the fans and the soon-to-be fans.

Once Upon A Time in Wonderland

http://youtu.be/vqOwV-2B5_w

ABC, Thurs, 8 to 9 p.m., 10/10

A spin-off of ABC’s hit Once Upon a Time, now in its third season, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland follows a now grown-up Alice, almost convinced her adventures were the ravings of an insane mind,  as she escapes from a Victorian London insane asylum and goes back down the rabbit hole.

Wonderland, however, is also a victim of the same curse as the residents of Storybook, Maine, prompting Alice into new and—hopefully— thrilling adventures.

The show is expected to cross over with Once Upon A Time and share characters and settings, as well as having the blending of ABC/Disney mythology that Once Upon a Time is known for (Once Upon A Time deals entirely with the Disney version of fairytales, stretching the premise as far as possible to include other characters, such as Mulan, Peter Pan, etc.).

Once Upon A Time had a similarly exciting premise that was never fulfilled, stuck instead in a mire of bad dialogue, over-exposition, predictable ‘twists’ and flashbacks with painfully obvious ‘lessons’ (only Rumpelstiltskin, played by Robert Carlyle, was ever able to convincingly play both sides of his characters). Hopefully Alice will not be plagued by the same issues.

Created by the same team as Once Upon a Time, Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz (who were also responsible for Tron: Legacy),  Alice stars newcomer Sophie Lowe as Alice, with Emma Rigby (Hollyoaks, Prisoners Wives) as The Red Queen, John Lithgow (Third Rock from the Sun to name one….) as the voice of the White Rabbit, and Naveen Andrews (The English Patient, Lost, The Adventures of Sinbad) as Jafar.

Mind Games is slated for a midseason release on ABC.
Mind Games is slated for a midseason release on ABC.

Midseason

ABC also has two shows slated for a midseason premiere which skate along the borderline of geekdom:

Mind Games

http://youtu.be/s2P9Qc5tgzo

ABC, Sundays, 10 to 11 p.m., 3/9/14

 From Kyle Killen (Lone Star, Awake), Mind Games stars Christian Slater and Steve Zahn as brothers who use psychological manipulation to help their clients solve problems; from the preview it looks a little like Franklin and Bash meets Leverage with some Lie to Me thrown in for good measure.

Resurrection

http://youtu.be/8MFrquHzlWA

ABC, Sunday, 10 to 11 p.m., Limited Series, 2/24/13

Based on Jason Mott’s novel The Returned,  and co-produced by a long list of people including Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, Resurrection stars Omar Epps (House), Francis Fisher (Eureka, Sons of Anarchy, Torchwood: Miracle Day) and Kurtwood Smith (That ‘70’s Show, Star Trek IV, 24). The show follows the lives of the citizens of Arcadia, Missouri as their loved ones begin returning from the dead—not as zombies, but as living, breathing, alive people the same age as they were when they died.

Castle returns to ABC on Monday, Sept. 23rd.
Castle returns to ABC on Monday, Sept. 23rd.

Returning Shows:

With renewals for both Once Upon a Time (Sun 8 to 9 p.m., 9/29) for its third season, and Castle (Mon, 10 to 11 p.m., 9/23) for its sixth season, ABC is a strong second among the networks for geek friendly fare.

 tumblr_ma7sj5lfJI1r5mzd8

BBC America—known for quality geekfare such as Merlin, Torchwood, Orphan Black, Being Human, Misfits, Vex, Spaced, Black Books and, of course, Doctor Who, Red Dwarf and Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy—only has one new offering for the Fall 2013 season.

Atlantis

BBC America, Saturday, 11/23, Time TBA

Atlantis is a fantasy adventure program created and written by Howard Overman (Misfits and Vexed) and Johnny Capps (Merlin). The show’s main cast reads like a Guide to Greek Myths (Jason, Hercules, Medusa, The Oracle) and the series is set to be one of the most expensive projects on the BBC Wales studio. There is no official preview/trailer yet, but numerous six-second teasers can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/bbcatlantis

Atlantis looks to be very much in the BBC Sword-and-Sandals adventure genre, and we can safely expect well written, well-acted episodes with the occasional extremely cheesy special effect.

The Musketeers debuts on BBC America midseason 2014.
The Musketeers debuts on BBC America midseason 2014.

Midseason

The Musketeers is slated for midseason debut, but there is little information on it other than the newest incarnation of the Doctor, Peter Capaldi, was filming the show (he’s Cardinal Richelieu) when he was offered the role of the Doctor. Also starring Santiago Cabrera (Heroes, Merlin) and Luke Pasqualino (Skins).

The Doctor Who 50th Anniversary is slated for 11/23/13
The Doctor Who 50th Anniversary is slated for 11/23/13

Returning Shows

While disappointingly low on the new shows slate this season, the returning shows more than make up for it. With the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary special on 11/23/13, as well as season 8 coming up (and a new Doctor), Orphan Black returning midseason (March 2014), and of course, the ubiquitous Top Gear (I won’t say which season, its re-run so much it’s nearly impossible to tell).

Sherlock Holmes will return for its third season as well, but will air in America on PBS.

cbs

CBS is next in our little alphabetical list…and they have nothing. Not the geek-friendliest network, CBS. Mid-season has a new show coming out called Intelligence (Mon, 10 to 11 p.m., air date 2/24/14), which basically looks like a not-as-funny Chuck. Which makes sense for the network that also has The Mentalist, which is basically a not-as-funny Psych.

 

new-cw-logo_613x345
Just to be clear, this is The CW’s logo, unedited, pulled straight from the internet.

Ah, the CW.  Where else could we find such unabashedly sexy fare?  As well as very, very, very geek friendly. And quantity, one might say, over quality. We have to at least give them credit for trying: of all the networks, the CW continuously has the most fantasy/sci-fi/speculative/comic-book based shows every season. And they don’t even require proficient storytelling or decent ratings when it comes to renewing them. This throw-it-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks approach has brought us Arrow and Beauty and the Beast; but it also brought us Supernatural and Nikita.

However, it has to be said that most CW shows can be boiled down to “pretty (mostly white) people with  (Insert bad guy/thing here) problems hook up with each other while maintaining bouncy, shiny hair and flawless skin.”

This year the CW gives us five—that’s right, five—sci-fi/fantasy shows. Three premiere this fall, the other two have mid-season dates.  True to mold, they all have a large cast of young, nubile and extremely good looking people who seem to spend a lot of time with their shirts either off or unbuttoned. Not to complain: sometimes it’s nice to sit back and watch the pretty.

The Originals

http://youtu.be/WTKj52BUEeU

CW, Sneak Peek: Thurs, 9 to 10 p.m., 10/3; Regular Timeslot: Tues, 8 to 9 p.m., 10/8

A spin off of the popular Vampire Diaries, The Originals follows the lives of various supernatural characters (vampires, witches, werewolves, half vamp/half wolves…) in hot, steamy New Orleans. For some reason that sounds really familiar…but we just can’t place where we’ve seen something like that before.

The series focuses on the Klaus (Joseph Morgan), Elijah (Daniel Gillies) and Rebekah (Claire Rhiannon Holt) Mikaelson, vampire siblings–and the world’s original vampires–as they return to New Orleans—a town Klaus founded, centuries before—and enter a power struggle with the local supernaturals to reclaim to city.

The Originals has a sneak peek immediately after the season premiere of The Vampire Diaries before it moves to its normal timeslot on Tuesdays, leading into Supernatural. 

Reign

CW, Thursdays, 9 to 10 p.m., 10/17

CW’s attempt at The Tudors; Reign follows the young Mary, Queen of Scots, as she is courted by rival princes: the French (Catholic) and English (not-so-Catholic). The history of Queen Mary is fascinating. She had a legitimate claim to the English throne and was backed by English Catholics; she was married three times and was viewed as a powerful player in the socio-religious politics of the time; she survived multiple assassination attempts and was put under house arrest by Elizabeth I of England for eighteen years before eventually being executed for treason.

Unsurprisingly, the CW’s version is about high school age girls being flirted with by high school age boys who all just happen to be princes and princesses. Lots of pretty costumes and slow motion while a song that sounds a whole lot like Bones from MS MR plays underneath (clearly a lot of people saw the Game of Thrones season three preview and said, wow, we should make ours look just like that).

Oh, and Nostradamus as an articulate, court-going prophet. Who knew?

That’s not to say it couldn’t be the surprise hit of the season. Stranger things have happened.

The Bible, airing on the History Channel, was the surprise hit of the 2012-2013 season.
The Bible, airing on the History Channel, was the surprise hit of the 2012-2013 season.

The Tomorrow People

http://youtu.be/3wi0PnEIdjc

CW., Weds., 9 to 10 p.m., 10/9

A remake of the popular 1970’s BBC show of the same name, The Tomorrow People follows a group of young, pretty people who are the next stage in human evolution. The Tomorrow People have psi powers that ran the usual gamut of telepathy, teleportation, telekinesis, etc., and the use them to fight the good fight against evil, bigoted humans.

It’s unclear how closely it will follow the BBC show, where the group was not only involved in saving humanity from threats on a weekly basis but also part of a galactic organization that monitored and assisted telepaths—the trailer features a lot of Mark Pellegrino (Lucifer from Supernatural)–random trivia, he’s the uncle of Stephen Amell, aka Arrow–as Jedikiah Price chasing down our super-evolved heroes because, as Price says,: “I’m systematically rounding up your kind and wiping you out, because I am evil.”

While the shows seems to be gleefully stealing from all manner of sci-fi before it (the teleporting looks a lot like Jumper, at one point there is a force lift, followed by a frost-shock, followed by a force choke, and the hidden subway station HQ has been seen, well, everywhere) and there are clear parallels to Alphas as well as X-Men (Marvel even used the term Tomorrow People, starting in 1963, as a taxonomic designation for the X-Men and other Mutants in the Marvel Universe).

The Tomorrow People was created by Phil Klemmer (Chuck, Veronica Mars) and stars Robbie Amell (cousin to Stephen Amell of previously mentioned Arrow fame) as Stephen Jameson, Luke Mitchell as John Young and Peyton List as Cara Coburn. 

Star Crossed premieres midseason 2014 on The CW.
Star Crossed premieres midseason 2014 on The CW.

 Midseason

Not content with just three new casts of incredibly good-looking people with powers, The CW has The 100 and Star Crossed set to premiere midseason.

The 100 is based on the book of the same name by Kass Morgan, and it centers on 100 petty thieves and criminals (all young and pretty, with excellent muscle tone for people born and raised on a space station) who are sent from their space station homes to post-apocalyptic Earth to see if mankind can survive on the harsh surface.

Star Crossed looks rather like District 9, if the aliens were all super-hot models who were trying to integrate into all-human US High Schools. The trailer seems to have a lot of imagery that’s set to invoke the civil rights battle of the 1960s, which doesn’t quite ring true as the only seemingly physical difference between humans and aliens are an abundance of six-packs and some tattoos. There’s also a Romeo and Juliet plot between a human girl and an alien boy. Because why else would you travel light years across galaxies if not for true love?

Supernatural returns for season 9 on The CW in October.
Supernatural returns for season 9 on The CW in October.

Returning Shows

The CW has renewed The Vampire Diaries (Thurs, 8 to 9 p.m., 10/3), Beauty and The Beast (Mon, 9 to 10 p.m., 10/7), Supernatural (Tues, 9 to 10 p.m., 10/8), The Arrow (Weds, 8 to 0 p.m., 10/9) and Nikita (Fall 2014, no air date as of yet).

 Fox-Logo

 FOX, which seems to be aware that it will never, ever, ever make up for cancelling Firefly, is trying to retain some geek cache with two new shows this Fall.

Sleepy Hollow

FOX, Monday, 9 to 10 p.m., 9/16

The second most anticipated show of the Fall, directly behind Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Sleepy Hollow is created by Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (Fringe, Transformers, Star Trek) and is based on the short story, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, by Washington Irving.

Sleepy Hollow follows Ichabod Crane (Tom Mison from Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, One Day, Parade’s End) as he is mysteriously transported to modern day Sleepy Hollow, and attempts to hunt down and stop the Headless Horseman (in the original story the Horseman is an 18th century German mercenary brought in by the English to fight during the revolutionary war) who was brought to the future as well.

Ichabod must join forces with local Sheriff Abbie Mills (Nicole Beharie, Shame, 42) and adjust to cultural, societal and technological difference of the 21st century (including radically changing his racial and gender stereotypes) in order to stop the Horseman’s nightly killing spree.

With a strong cast and an all-star writing team, expectations are high the Sleepy Hollow will be the show to watch this Fall.

Sleepy Hollow rounds out its cast with Orlando Jones (Godzilla, Evolution, MadTV) as Captain Frank Irving and John Cho (Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, Go On) as Andy Dunn.

2013-2014_UpFronts_r3_Crop

Almost Human

http://youtu.be/ykwxg534yAw

Fox, Mon, 8 to 9 p.m., 11/4

JJ Abrams—who doesn’t seem to be content unless he has four or five projects going—is producing this sci-fi procedural starring Karl Urban (Star Trek, RED, Chronicles of Riddick, Riddick, Doom) and Michael Ealy (Sleeper Cell, Flash Forward, Underworld: Awakening) as unwilling partners in the LAPD thirty-five years in the future.

It’s typical buddy cop formula: an off couple forced to work together and eventually growing to trust and even like each other.

The twist? Karl Urban’s tough-as-nails cop, John Kennex, doesn’t trust Michael Ealy’s Dorian for one good reason: Dorian is a robot. And not just a normal, super-efficient robot, but a slightly malfunctioning one.

While the trailer gives a Deus Ex meets I, Robot vibe, and doesn’t really introduce any new themes or arguments that sci-fi fans won’t already be thoroughly versed in, both Urban and Ealy are worth watching and the trailer certainly captivated interest.

Almost Human was created by J.H. Wyman (Keen Eddie, Fringe) and J.J. Abrams is one of the executive producers, so hopes are high.

With Neil deGrasse Tyson hosting, Cosmos is set for Jan 2014 debut.
With Neil deGrasse Tyson hosting, Cosmos is set for Jan 2014 debut.

Midseason

Midseason has two more shows set to debut; Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey and Wayward Pines, though the air dates are still not announced.

Cosmos will star Neil deGrasse Tyson and was produced by Seth McFarlane and Carl Sagan’s widow (the original show was hosted by Sagan and aired on PBS). When it does air, it will air simultaneously on Fox and the NatGeo channel, expecting to launch in 48 countries in over 140 languages. Also, the bridge of Tyson’s ship looks almost exactly like the Illusive Man’s from Mass Effect. Just saying.

Wayward Pines brings Blake Crouch’s mystery/thriller novel of the same name to the small screen. M. Night Shyamalan has developed it as a multi-part series for Fox. It has been compared to Twin Peaks by just about everybody, and Fox hasn’t released very much information other than a 2014 release.

24--and Jack Bauer--are back on Fox in May 2014.
24–and Jack Bauer–are back on Fox in May 2014.

Returning Shows

Fox does not have much in the way of the Geek returning; The Following is set for a midseason premiere on Mondays, 9 to 10 p.m.; and under the heading of old-shows-don’t-die-they-go-to-mini-series, 24 is slated to return as a limited run in the Spring.

 

Print

NBC is not offering much this year for us geeks, with only one offering in the Fall. We’re hoping this is an improvement; previous years, which have had a glut of nerd-tastic shows, perhaps in some desperate attempt by NBC to gain some geek-cred (The Cape, The Event, Flash Forward, V, Bionic Women, Journeyman). This make anything with a slightly Lost-like feel strategy hasn’t fared well for the Peacock, so maybe just one new show means NBC knows it has a hit. And it case it doesn’t, it has two midseason shows ready to wash the taste from your mouth.

Dracula

http://youtu.be/Z1jVcmDH43Y

NBC, Friday, 10 to 11 p.m., 10/25

A limited series with only a ten episode run, Dracula is a retelling of the classic tale by Bram Stoker. Created by Cole Hadden, with Daniel Knauf (Carnivale) as showrunner, Dracula stars Jonathon Rhys Meyers (The Tudors, Mission Impossible III) as Dracula, who returns to Victorian London to seek revenge for a betrayal years before. This is another show whose trailer draws heavy inspiration from Game of Thrones.

The plot stays somewhat in line with the book; Dracula falls for the lovely Mina, there’s a Van Helsing on hand to fight him…there’s a lot of pretty people in period clothing walking around dark London streets. If they weren’t all in their thirties it’d be a CW show.

Dracula stars Katie McGrath (Merlin), Nonso Anozie (Ender’s Game, Game of Thrones) and Thomas Kretschmann (King Kong, The Pianist, Blade II, 24). 

Believe, produced by J.J. Abrams and directed by Alfonso Cuaran, is slated for a midseason debut.
Believe, produced by J.J. Abrams and directed by Alfonso Cuaran, is slated for a midseason debut.

Midseason

Two shows are slated for a midseason release: Believe, another J.J. Abrams produced show, directed by Alfonso Cuaran (Harry Potter) about a little girl with special powers and the ex-con who has been tasked to protect her (Sundays, 9 to 10 p.m.); and Crossbones, created by Neil Cross (Luther) and starring John Malkovich as the pirate Blackbird. Slated to air in 2014 on Sundays, from 10 to 11 p.m., there is little other information out there as of yet.

NBC also recently announced a mini-series adaptation of Stephen King’s Tommyknockers in 2014, but no dates or casting information has been forthcoming.

Grimm
Grimm, the best show people aren’t watching, premieres on NBC Friday, 10/25, at 9 p.m.

Returning

Returning to the Peacock this Fall are Revolution (Weds, 8 to 9 p.m., 9/25) and Grimm, Fridays, 9 to 10 p.m., which if you are not watching, start—there’s still time to catch up before the new season airs on 10/25. Community is slated for a midseason release.

Black Sails is set to debut on Starz in 2014.
Black Sails is set to debut on Starz in 2014.

 

Networks Waiting for Midseason to Debut All Their Geekery

Not every network has new content slated for the Fall, but midseason will serve up some highly anticipate premieres:

SyFy announced Helix with a premiere date of Jan, 2014. Ronald D. Moore (BattleStar Galactica) created the series about a group of CDC scientists sent to the Artic only to discover the fate of mankind may rest in their hands. Starring Billy Campbell (Eureka, The Killing, The 4400) and Hiroyuki Sanada (Speed Racer, Lost, The Wolverine).

TNT is bringing two shows that may not deal with a fandom in their content but certainly do with their talent: Mob City (formerly Lost Angels) stars Simon Pegg and is written and directed by Frank Darabont. The series follows the LAPD/Mob wars in Los Angeles in the 1940’s.; and Legends with Sean Bean as the best-of-the-best undercover agent who is struggling to find where his cover ends and he begins. Both shows are slated for 2014 premiere.

Simon Pegg in Frank Darabont's new cable drama, Mob City, on TNT.
Simon Pegg in Frank Darabont’s new cable drama, Mob City, on TNT.

The Last Ship isn’t set to premiere on TBS until Summer 2014, but this Michael Bay produced end-of-the-world-via-virus show looks to be next summer’s big cable hit. The show stars Adam Baldwin (Firefly, Serenity, Chuck) and Eric Dane (Grey’s Anatomy).

Penny Dreadful is set to premiere on Showtime in 2014. Called a pschyo-sexual horror series, produced by John Logan (writer: Rango, Gladiator, Skyfall) and Sam Mendes (director: Skyfall, American Beauty) it stars Josh Hartnett, Eva Green and Billie Piper. The series will be set in turn-of-the century London and will deal with the origins of literary horror monsters such as Dorian Gray, Dracula and Frankenstein’s Monster.

Starz has Black Sails set to debut in January 2014. It is a prequel to Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, Treasure Island, set twenty years before the events in the book. Fan reaction at the San Diego Comic Con was so strong Starz has already ordered a second season. It’s got pirates, islands, beaches and rum, so all things point to a hit.

The Outlander is also set to premiere in 2014 on Starz. Based upon the bestselling novels by Diana Gabaldon, the series follows the adventures of time-traveler Claire and her Scottish husband, Jamie Fraser, as they live through historical events from the Scottish revolt under Bonnie Prince Charlie to the revolutionary war. Lots of adventure, lots of romance (and sex, to be clear) and a great deal of historically accurate details made the books a must-read; if Starz follows HBO’s example and lets the novels guide the show than expectations should remain high.

This image--and a short clip--have been teasing the internet about J.J. Abrams new show for weeks now.
This image–and a short clip–have been teasing the internet about J.J. Abrams’ new show for weeks now.

Rounding off our report are two shows which are nothing more than whisper and rumor at the moment:

The Stranger, J.J. Abrams’ bit of marketing masterpiece: just a grainy black and white video with no information at all.

The Sector is a Ridley Scott produced, sci-fi procedural a la Blade Runner. Originally picked up by Cinemax, it was dropped in 2011 but the Science Channel recently announced it is picking up the series.

American Horror Story: Coven premieres on Oct 23rd.

Returning Shows to Keep An Eye Out For

The Walking Dead returns to AMC on Sunday, Oct. 13th at 10 p.m. Season four has yet another new showrunner in Scott Gimple, who will guide the show through a season set to introduce a host of new characters joining our ragged crew in the prison as they attempt to shore up and defend against walkers and humans alike.

The American Horror Story: Coven will be returning to F/X on Weds., October 9th, at 9 pm. Continuing the tradition set in season 2, season 3 will have returning actors but a completely different st of characters and plot. Returning this season are  Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Francis Conroy and Dermot Mulroney; Kathy Bates, Patti Lupone and Angela Bassatt round out an all star cast. Coven focuses on the secret society of witches and an outside evil which is attacking them. The season will flash between modern day and 1830’s.

http://youtu.be/TkPwDPt4JOA

HBO will be bringing back Game of Thrones in the Spring of 2014. Be prepared, the show’s finished seasons are now more numerous then the remaining books…R.R. Marting better write fast.

SyFy is bringing back three shows this season: Being Human, slated for a Jan. 2014 premiere; Warehouse 13 will come back (if only for  six episodes) for its fifth and final season in 2014; and Haven premieres its fourth season on September 13 at 10 p.m. (with a guest star stint from everybody’s favorite Sheriff, Colin Ferguson).

Haven returns for season 4 on Sept 23rd. Catch up on all the episodes on Chiller.

 Starz has renewed Da Vinci’s Demons for a 2014 premiere. If you didn’t see season one, now’s the time to go back and watch (the complete season can be pre-ordered on iTunes). Created by David S. Goyer, co-writer of the The Dark Knight Trilogy, Da Vinci’s Demons is a solid show steeped in mythology and renaissance Italian/Catholic politics.

TNT is bringing Falling Skies Back for a fourth season in late Spring/Summer 2014, so check back for more information on what will happen to Mason and his regiment later.

That’s it! We hope you enjoyed our guide, and be sure to let us know if there are any titles that we missed!

New Poster Unveiled For ‘Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Briefly: After an interesting twitter campaign yesterday that had fans retweeting by the thousands, ABC has debuted a flashy new poster for their upcoming series, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (that title is never going to get shorter, is it?).

The poster really doesn’t reveal anything new about the series, or better prepare us for the September 24th premiere, but seeing as the series begins in just over a month, it’s definitely time for ABC to get marketing. This poster game definitely did its duty too, as Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was one of yesterday’s top trending topics.

Take a look at the new poster below, and let us know if you’re looking forward to the show! Again, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premieres on September 24th!

agents-of-shield-poster-1

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

Watch A New TV Spot For ‘Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’

by Derek Kraneveldt

Following the first full trailer released last month, ABC has debuted a new TV spot for Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. This spot aired during last night’s NBA finals, and has now been released online.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is still without a premiere date, but the series will air on Tuesdays this Fall. Watch the new spot below, and let us know if you’re excited!

http://youtu.be/M9KdHLq-yfs

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

‘Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ To Air On Tuesdays, Watch A New Teaser! Update: Full Trailer!

by Derek Kraneveldt

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was just ordered to series last week, and ABC is not wasting any time buiding anticipation for it.

First, we saw a neat first teaser during Sunday’s Once Upon A Time season finale. Shortly afterwards, a mysterious viral marketing site popped up online. Now, it’s time for more footage. The newest teaser clocks in at just seven seconds (I’m guessing we’re going to see a lot of these…), and is titled ‘Welcome to Level 7’. Take a look below, and let us know what you think!

The network has also released their Fall schedule, and while no premiere date or episode count has been revealed, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will air on Tuesday nights at 8pm. With just months to go until we finally get to see the show, how freaking excited are you?

UPDATE: Just seconds after this article was published, ABC released the full trailer for Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The preview clocks in at just under 3 minutes, and it looks amazing. Watch it below!

agents_of_shield

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

‘Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Viral Marketing Begins!

by Derek Kraneveldt

ABC is sure going full force with this one.

Along with the first teaser for Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (damn that’s a lot to type), the network has also launched the first piece of viral marketing for the anticipated series with a blog named The Rising Tide.

The site appears to be run by an anti-S.H.I.E.L.D. organization, as the top of the homepage states “WHO IS S.H.I.E.L.D.? WHAT ARE THEY HIDING? SUPER-POWERS ARE REAL. ALIENS EXIST. WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE? WE WILL UNCOVER THE TRUTH. WE WILL NOT REMAIN SILENT ANY LONGER.”

It’ll certainly be interesting to see what The Rising Tide comes up with as Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. approaches. Currently the site features a series of short conspiracy videos tying S.H.I.E.L.D. to a plethora of disastrous (and Marvel related) events. Check out the videos below, and let us know what you think!

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

Full First Look At ‘Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’

by Derek Kraneveldt

Earlier today we showed you a quick first look at Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.; while that first preview was just a few seconds long, it skyrocketed anticipation for tonight’s longer look.

That longer look premiered during tonight’s season finale of Once Upon A Time, and it’s now available online for your viewing pleasure. It’s an unreal first tease at what is set to be one of the coolest television premieres of the year! I don’t want to spoil anything, so simply watch the video below, and let us know what you think!

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of 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 and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series. “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.

J. August Richards Lands Secret Role In Marvel’s ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Pilot

by Shawn Madden

Even though filming has already wrapped on Marvel’s S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot it appears that we’ve got another confirmed cast member. It has been revealed that Joss Whedon has cast J. August Richards, who he has worked with in the past on Angel, in what is being called a “super top-secret role.” Let the speculation commence! Richards will join Clark Gregg, Ming-Na, Chloe Bennet, Elizabeth Henstridge Iain De Caestecker and Brett Dalton in the series pilot which is set to air sometime in August.

 

Source: TV Line

Cobie Smulders Could Appear As Maria Hill On Marvel & ABC’s ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’

by Shawn Madden

Clark Gregg may not be the only member of the Marvel Cinematic universe that could be appearing in Marvel and ABC’s S.H.I.E.L.D. series. There’s a chance that Cobie Smulders could possibly appear in the series as S.H.I.E.L.D. operative Maria Hill. When asked about the possibility the actress told website IAmRogue:

 

maria-hill-2

 

“The commitments to [How I Met Your Mother] don’t affect it and I can’t really say but there are definite talks about it.”

 

With her other series, the long-running CBS comedy How I Met Your Mother, coming to a wrap there’s a definite chance that we could see Smulders appear alongside The Avengers alumni Clark Gregg in the series if it gets picked up. Oh, who are we kidding? We meant when it gets picked up. The series pilot is currently rumored to air sometime in August.

 

Source: IAmRogue

Live-Action ‘Star Wars’ Television Series May Be Coming To ABC

by Shawn Madden

The last time that there was word about a live-action Star Wars television series it was said that there was plenty of material for the series, but the issue was the cost. It now appears that ABC (a Disney subsidiary) is taking another look, with the network’s president Paul Lee trying to work out the best route to bring a Star Wars series to television.

 

“We’re going to look at [the live-action series], we’re going to look at all of them, and see what’s right”.

 

Apparently the live-action series centers on the story of rival families who are struggling over the control of the seedy underside of the Star Wars universe. The series will take place withing the subterranean level and air shafts of the metropolis planet Coruscant. Quite similar to the story of the upcoming Star Wars videogame 1313.

 

We may see a bounty hunter as the main character of the series set in a time period that would allow the potential appearances from classic characters from the Star Wars universe. However, don’t get your hopes up yet because the new live-action films may see the series continue to sit on the backburner for awhile longer. Lee makes no guarantees of the series going forward on ABC and says it would be tricky to juggle a television show and a feature film franchise set within the same universe.

 

“It’s going to be very much up to the Lucasfilm brands how they want to play it. We got to a point here with Marvel, a very special point, where we’re in the Marvel universe, and very relevantly so, but we’re not doing The Avengers. But S.H.I.E.L.D. is part of The Avengers. So maybe something oblique is the way to [approach the Star Wars universe] rather than going straight head-on at it.”

 

Could they be waiting to see how Marvel’s S.H.I.E.L.D. series works before moving forward?

 

Source: EW

Chloe Bennett-Wang Joins The Cast Of Marvel & ABC’s ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.

by Shawn Madden

Production is set to begin next month on Marvel and ABC’s S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot and they’ve now found the final addition to their cast. Nashville actress Chloe Bennett-Wang has joined the prospective TV series as Agent Skye.

The Agent is being described as “a confident woman who is slightly obsessed with superhero culture and the shadow organizations that exist within it. She’s edgy and can out-talk anyone with her unflappable nature.”

The relatively unknown actress will join Ming-Na, Clark Gregg, Brett Dalton, Elizabeth Henstridge, and Ian De Caestecker for the Marvel’s S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot, which looks to premire as part of ABC’s Fall of 2013 line-up.

Source: THR

 

Marvel’s ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Pilot Gets Another Agent!

by Shawn Madden

Brett Dalton (Army Wives) is the latest cast addition to Marvel’s S.H.I.E.L.D. pilot. Dalton will play “Agent Grant” in the ABC pilot, who is being described as “one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s highly-skilled rising stars – he’s deadly, precise, and cool under fire — but not so great with the people skills”.

The series will focus on the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. Dalton will be joining Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Iain De Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge in the Joss Whedon helmed pilot for the series.

Source: TV Line

ABC’s ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Agents Revealed!

by Shawn Madden

Around a month ago it was revealed that Marvel and Joss Whedon would be bringing S.H.I.E.L.D. to ABC. Not much has been revealed as far as details about the show up until now. We now have some character descriptions for some of the agents. None of them are familiar characters to Marvelites but they definitely sound very Whedonesque.

SKYE: This late-20s woman sounds like a dream: fun, smart, caring and confident – with an ability to get the upper hand by using her wit and charm.

AGENT GRANT WARD: Quite the physical specimen and “cool under fire,” he sometimes botches interpersonal relations. He’s a quiet one with a bit of a temper, but he’s the kind of guy that grows on you.

AGENT ALTHEA RICE: Also known as “The Calvary,” this hard-core soldier has crazy  skills when it comes to weapons and being a pilot. But her experiences have left her very quiet and a little damaged.

AGENT LEO FITZ and AGENT JEMMA SIMMONS: These two came through training together and still choose to spend most of their time in each other’s company. Their sibling-like relationship is reinforced by their shared nerd tendencies – she deals with biology and chemistry, he’s a whiz at the technical side of weaponry.

There are plenty of fan-favorite agents of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division that it’s highly probable will appear but the looks of it this may be the central cast. Whedon may be creating new characters and bringing in fan favorites in to test out their response possibly. Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen are set to serve as executive producers and showrunners on S.H.I.E.L.D. in addition to co-writing the pilot with Joss Whedon. We should definitely expect some casting announcements in the coming weeks.

Source: TV Line

Jesse Bradford Is A Big Deal! The Geekscapepod For August 28th, 2012!

by Jonathan

Geekscape writer Shawn Madden joins me on this Geekscapepod as we talk about potential directors for Warner Bros planned ‘JLA’ movie. Marvel, Joss Whedon and ABC put a S.H.I.E.L.D. series into production! Kick Ass 2 is putting together quite the cast. Rob Liefeld has lost his damn mind! A new team is taking on The Man of Steel for DC and the leaked Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles script sounds awful! PLUS! Jesse Bradford is a big deal and my neighbor has a mid-life crisis!

Subscribe to the show on iTunes!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 30:58 — 18.7MB)

Joss Whedon Reveals First Details For ‘S.H.I.E.L.D’!

by Shawn Madden

Just hours ago news broke that ABC has green lit the live-action TV series based on Marvel’s peacekeeping organization, S.H.I.E.L.D. and now the first details have been revealed straight from the mouth of the pilot’s co-writer & director Joss Whedon. Variety snagged a quote from Whedon earlier today:

“The storyline for the proposed series will be largely “autonomous” from the “Avengers” sequel feature. The series will revolve around the activities of the SHIELD org governing body for the superheroes featured in  The Avengers.”

As we reported earlier, Whedon will be directing the pilot as well as writing alongside his brother, Jed Whedon & his wife Maurissa Tancharoen. There is a high possibility we could see many of the cast of the Marvel One-Shot Item 47, which included Jesse Bradford and Lizzy Caplan, Maximiliano Hernández, Titus Welliver, as possible recurring cast members. And let’s cross our fingers for an Agent Coulson cameo/flashback…or two.

Source: Variety