In the past we’ve told you about Firebreather, the comic book series created by Phil Hester and Andy Kuhn, published by Image Comics. Now it seems that Cartoon Network has gone and snuck out a CGI movie based on it! The story is the same as the comic, described here from Firebreather’s Wikipedia entry: “High school teen Duncan Rosenblatt is the son of divorced parents — a typical suburban soccer mom who wants him to get into a good college, and a 300-foot fire-breathing dragon who wants him to follow in the family business — conquering the Earth and inheriting the throne of King of Monsters; they share custody. Like every other teenager, he struggles to fit in with his peers. His being half-dragon further complicates matters.” The movie comes to Cartoon Network on November 24th. Check out the trailer on YouTube, too.
Dragons
Upcoming Dreamworks Sequels and Spin-offs
DreamWorks Animation CEO Jeffrey Katzenberg spoke with The Hollywood Reporter recently about current and future film projects. According to him, How to Train Your Dragon has reached that magical turning point where it will definitely have a sequel — currently scheduled for release in the summer of 2013. There is also a TV series, a virtual game environment, and a live stadium show similar to Walking with Dinosaurs (!) in the works. In addition there’s Scared Shrekless, a Halloween special coming this fall, to be followed by a Kung Fu Panda TV special sometime after Thanksgiving — but don’t, says Mr. Katzenberg, call it a Christmas special.
The Power of the Viewing Public…
We can’t put this any better, so we’re lifting this verbatim from Box Office Guru:
“The big story this weekend came in third place [behind Date Night and Clash of the Titans — ye ed-otter] where the 3D animated film How To Train Your Dragon witnessed a remarkably low 13% decline in its third round for an estimated $25.4M gross boosting the 17-day total to a terrific $133.9M. Short-sighted film industry watchers and impatient Wall Street investors prematurely dismissed Dragon and DreamWorks Animation after its less-than-stellar opening weekend two weeks ago. The company’s stock dropped 8% on the first trading day after the debut with analysts lowering their estimates for the final domestic take to just $152M. Dragon will now crush that mark next weekend and looks on course to break the $200M barrier too becoming the second biggest 3D toon of all-time behind just the $293M of Up. Beating Pixar’s Oscar winner may not be possible, but outgrossing other competitors like Monsters vs. Aliens, Ice Age 3, and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs makes Dragon a powerful performer. The PG-rated film was indeed slow out of the gate, but amazing word-of-mouth coupled with school holidays for spring have made Dragon the must-see film for kids and parents. Competition for families and 3D screens remains extremely light for the next five weeks so the Viking pic’s strong run should continue. Reaching $250M cannot be ruled out at this point given the road ahead since Dragon will be able to earn at least five times its opening figure, if not more.”
In other words, keep spreading that amazing word-of-mouth, people!
Training Dragons
Anticipations are running high for Dreamworks Animation’s How To Train Your Dragon, which hits movie screens this Friday, March 26th. As of this writing the film has a 100% “fresh” / 0% “rotten” rating at Rotten Tomatoes.com — likely to go down as more reviews come in, of course, but still one heck of a high to be starting from. Many critics have noted the flying sequences in this 3D CGI film to be especially exciting. If you’ve not heard, the story follows the adventures of Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel), a young viking in a land constantly at war with various species of fire-breathing dragon. When Hiccup’s new invention — a sort of bolo-catapult — injures a young dragon, the human is surprised to find himself befriending the beast (he names it “Toothless”). In the process, Hiccup finds out far more about dragons and his own people than he ever expected. Of course, getting humans together with unusual non-human friends is nothing new for directors Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders: They’re the team that gave us Disney’s Lilo and Stitch.
Fafnir the Dragon
Aracana Studio describe their new full-color graphic novel, Fafnir the Dragon, like this: “Mightier than a god, dumber than a rock. While searching for his stolen treasure, history’s greatest dragon is hurled into an apocalyptic future where he and talk-show host Jon Stewart must battle hordes of slavering mutants, prevent the assassination of Barack Obama, and save earth from an Al-Qaeda super-virus!” Do tell. Based on a popular web comic by Thormond Skald and Asta Gunn, this new graphic novel (also described as “South Park meets Jurassic Park“) goes on sale this April. You can find out more about it at Aracana’s web site.
Dragons Need Their Help…
Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb (in hardcover, from Eos) begins the new Rain Wilds Chronicles — set in the same world as Hobb’s Realm of the Elderling series. In this new book, humans celebrate as dragons are once again born in the city of Cassarick. But something is wrong… This is from the Publisher’s Weekly: “Here be dragons—but debilitated, deformed, damaged dragons, hatched too soon, sick and starving, into a world that has mostly forgotten them. The first of Hobb’s Rain Wild Chronicles, an absorbing extension of her Liveship and Tawny Man trilogies, introduces 15 young dragons who struggle to survive with the grudging help of mutant Rain Wilders. Eventually driven out by the Traders Council, the hatchlings decide to seek Kelsingra, their ancient home. Caught up by the dragons’ plight and longing to escape unhappy families and the stifling Rain Wild culture, self-taught dragon scholar Alise Kincannon and teenage tree-dwelling mutant Thymara volunteer to accompany them on the quest, with the help of magnetic liveship captain Leftrin and a host of colorful characters. Hobb’s meticulously realized fantasy tale is a welcome addition to contemporary dragon lore.” It’s on the shelves now.
From the Magical Land of Dragon Riders
Fans of Christopher Paolini’s Inheritance series of books (Eragon, Eldest, and Brisingr), as well as fans of fantasy with talking dragons, might want to find Eragon’s Guide to Alagaesia, available now in hardcover from Knopf Books for Young Readers. This illustrated book was created by Christopher Paolini himself, with ample assistance from the creators of the bestselling books Dragonology, Egyptology, Piratelogy, and so forth. “From elves, dwarves, Urgals, humans, and dragons, to the natural landscape and the magic it contains, Eragon himself offers the reader an unsurpassed tour. This oversized, full-color book provides 15 spreads chock full of spectacular artwork, engaging novelty elements, and fascinating insights into Eragon’s home.” While you’re at it, you might also check out The Ultimate Unauthorized Eragon Guide: The Hidden Facts Behind the World of Alagaesia (whew, what a title!) by Lois H. Gresh, available in paperback from St. Martin’s Griffin Press.
The Dragon Book
Happy Friday the 13th! The last one for 2009, in fact…
New for the holidays is The Dragon Book, edited by Jack Dan and Gardner Dozois and published in hardcover by Ace. This is from the publisher’s notes on Amazon.com: “Whether portrayed as fire-breathing reptilian beasts at war with humanity or as noble creatures capable of speech and mystically bonded to the warriors who ride them, dragons have been found in nearly every culture’s mythology. In modern times, they can be found far from their medieval settings in locales as mundane as suburbia or as barren as post-apocalyptic landscapes-and in The Dragon Book, today’s greatest fantasists reignite the fire with legendary tales that will consume readers’ imaginations. With original stories by New York Times bestselling authors Jonathan Stroud, Gregory Maguire, Garth Nix, Diana Gabaldon, Tamora Pierce, Harry Turtledove, Sean Williams, and Tad Williams as well as tales by Naomi Novik, Peter Beagle, Jane Yolen, Adam Stemple, Cecelia Holland, Kage Baker, Samuel Sykes, Diana Wynne Jones, Mary Rosenblum, Tanith Lee, Andy Duncan, and Bruce Coville.” It’s on the shelves now.
Train Your Dragon in 2010
The directing team that brought you Disney’s Lilo & Stitch, Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders, now returns to bring us the new Dreamworks CGI animated film How to Train Your Dragon, set to be released to theaters (in 3D) this coming March, 2010. The script was written by Mr. DeBlois, based on a popular book by author Cressida Cowell. An extended preview trailer is up for viewing on YouTube and other places on-line.
The story follows a young viking named Hiccup — whom you can guess, with a name like that, isn’t the strongest or boldest of vikings. Determined to prove his worth and manhood, young Hiccup strives to find a solution to the plague of dragons that have besieged his homeland. What he ends up doing, however, is befriending a young injured dragon… and making a discovery that just may change his whole tribe forever.
