Where have we been? We’ve been missing episodes of Fabulous Beasts (aka There Are Beasts), which started streaming back in April. There’s a detailed preview over at Yu-Alexius. “Known in Chinese as You Shou Yan, the donghua promises to deliver another adorable experience for Chinese animation viewers, especially to the fans of Non-Human (Fei Ren Zai), and All Saint’s Street (Wan Sheng Jie) since both shows feature mythological and supernatural creatures living in the modern day world.” [There’s even more we need to check out! — ye ed-otter] “Based on the popular manhua by Xue Xia Mao Yao Zi, There Are Beasts is produced by Bilibili and animated by Studio FENZ. [The show] follows Sibuxiang, a mythological animal who descends to the mortal world to help his fellow creatures survive in a time of scientific advancement. As Sibuxiang encounters a range of fascinating characters, including Pixiu, Tuye, and the Jue brothers, viewers will be treated to a thrilling blend of mythology and modernity, filled with exciting stories and characters that are sure to capture the imagination.” All of which fails to capture the essence of just how cute these characters and their adventures are. See what we mean over on YouTube.
TV Series
Light The Lights
More interesting stuff showing up at MIP-COM and MIP-Junior. This time we came across a press release from The Jim Henson Company, talking about several new shows they’re offering for young viewers — at least two of which are especially furry-friendly. First off there’s Wowsabout: “Roxy the Hedgehog and Ronald the Piglet are on a walking-adventure to find the ‘Wows’ on this gorgeous planet they call home… Our heroes will experience the beauty of the northern lights, a hot air balloon festival, the magnificence of the world’s tallest building, and so much more!” And maybe not as quiet, there’s Monster Jam: “Get ready to stomp and roar! Right here on the dance floor! At the grooviest, funkiest, most monstrous club around. Everyone is invited to the Monster Jam – a safe place for kids to express their big emotions through physical movement, creative expression, and by letting their inner monster out!” Let’s hope they have good luck finding good markets — especially here in North America!
Journey ’round the Horn
It’s MIP-COM time again, and that means all sorts of interesting animated TV series showing up and showing off — from all around the world. In this case, it’s a new series out of Lithuania called Stomp! Stomp! Rhinos! Here’s an article from Animation Magazine: “A new animated series about a family of rhinos is ready to teach children how to control their emotions… The series centers on the Rhino family (mom, dad and their three kids who live in a cozy home with their pet tortoise, Bobo) as they navigate life’s little challenges and learn how to manage emotions such as anger, frustration, jealousy, loneliness, etc.” Originally intended as a CGI show, the producers eventually decided that a 2D approach would get their message across better. See? It still works!
Him and All His Furry… Friends?
Lots of people have been talking about the new anime-style TV series that just recently started streaming on Netflix. “Captain Laserhawk: A Blood Dragon Remix is an original animated series mixing alternative Ubisoft characters from beloved franchises such as Assassin’s Creed, Rayman, and Far Cry in a highly-referenced homage to the early 90s.” The story? “Set in the year 1992, the country formerly known as the USA is now called Eden, a technocracy ruled by propaganda and corruption. Super-soldier Dolph Laserhawk has just been betrayed by the love of his life, his boyfriend Alex Taylor, and locked up in Eden’s off-the-grid maximum security prison, Supermaxx. Dolph is forced to lead a team of rebel outcasts on risky undercover missions under the order of the prison’s shadowy Warden.” What that description fails to convey is that there are lots and lots of anthropomorphic characters throughout the series, mostly bad folks but a few good-ish ones. Check out the trailer over at Animation World Network.
Warriors of the Night Return?
Amazing news out of Disney is making the rounds. We got this report from Variety: “Gargoyles could finally be returning to television, with a live-action reboot series currently in the works at Disney+. Variety has confirmed that the Disney streaming service is working with writer Gary Dauberman and James Wan‘s Atomic Monster to develop a live-action version of the beloved animated show. Dauberman would serve as writer and executive producer with Wan also executive producing. Disney Branded Television is the studio. The current logline for the project reads: ‘Based on the cult classic Disney animated series, Goliath is the last of a heroic race of gargoyle warriors who once lived among mankind. Free from a centuries long curse that turned him into stone, Goliath struggles to solve the mystery of his past while watching over modern-day New York City alongside police detective Elisa Maza.’ ” Here’s hoping that doesn’t mean the rest of the gargoyle crew won’t be taking part in the new project!
A Continental First
We found this over at Cartoon Brew: “Pan-African SVOD platform Showmax has released the trailer for its new animated series Twende, the first 2D animated Showmax Original. The producers of the series are touting this as the first 2D animated show of this scale and quality made almost entirely in Africa.” They go on to describe the new series like this: “Twende’s titular protagonist is a pangolin, an endangered species which is one of the slowest-moving animals of the savannah. He works as boda boda (motorcycle taxi) driver in a fictional East African city where his incongruous career choice and belief that life is about the journey and not the destination often cause friction with riders who just want to get where they’re going quickly.” There’s a trailer up on line as well. Showmax plans to premiere Twende across Africa this December, and they’re shopping the series around at MIPCOM and the like to try and find international distribution.
Gotta See ’em All
We came across an article at The Nerdist about the artist Joshua Dunlop. He’s been working on a project he calls Pokemon Zoology, trying to create realistic portrayals of what various well-known pokemon might look like out here in this world. To that end he’s set up a Kickstarter campaign — which has already surpassed its goal, even though it’s running through the end of this month. “My name is Joshua Dunlop; I’m a Senior Freelance Concept Artist from the UK. I’ve had the pleasure of working with some amazing companies such as Disney and Netflix, and I’ve had amazing success over the last 7 years with my personal project, Pokemon Zoology! And now I’m thrilled to present this unofficial collection of 151 realistic digital concept art pieces depicting the iconic original Pokemon from Generation 1.” Looks like it’ll be available in hardcover real soon.
She’s Not From Kansas
Found this thanks to our friends at Animation World Network: “Jellyfish Pictures’ kids and family content division, Jellyfish Originals, has acquired rights to adapt Dermot O’Leary’s book series Toto the Ninja Cat into an animated series. The book series, illustrated by Nick East, is inspired by Dermot’s own cats. The show will be based on Toto, a partially sighted cat with razor-sharp senses, a nose for danger and a crime-busting spirit of adventure, incorporating themes of friendship, inclusivity, and winning in the face of adversity.” No word yet on when and where we’ll see it, as production has only just begun.
He is the Screeching Fingernail on the Chalkboard of Justice
More Disney daring-do from Dynamite Entertainment: The new Negaduck spin-off comic series, written by Jeff Parker and illustrated by Ciro Cangialosi. “He’s the exact opposite of Darkwing Duck in every way… Evil, nefarious, dedicated to stealing lollipops from kids and not helping grandmas across the street! And now, he’s ready to begin a reign of crime and terror the likes of which St. Canard has never seen — except, dang it, all of the other villains are ripping off his ideas! What’s a criminal mastermind to do when the city’s thick with other criminals, stealing his shine? Why, take his villainy on the road, of course!” The first issue hit the shelves this month, with a variety of covers.