Young Justice comic series artist Christopher Jones provides The World’s Finest with a closer look at Young Justice issue #8, the latest issue of the monthly series published by DC Comics now available to own. Jones breaks down the issue, providing his thoughts and taking a looking closer at certain aspects of the issue. Click on the images below to check out the special comic breakdown, available exclusively at The World’s Finest. Young Justice #8 is now available both in print and digitally.
Further details on Young Justice #8 are available here. Additionally, Click here for more with Young Justice comic series artist Christopher Jones.
Additionally, an all-new episode of Young Justice debuts tonight at 6:30pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. The details for the episode are as follows below.
Young Justice Friday, September 30th, 2011 at 6:30pm (ET) – “#12 Home Front” When The Cave itself is attacked, can Artemis and Robin the two teens without super-powers save the Team (or even themselves) from the unknown invaders?
A new episode of Batman: The Brave and The Bold also debuts tonight at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. Details on the new episode, “Sword of the Atom!,” can be found here.
Stay tuned for further updates and content, including exclusive new interviews with Young Justice‘s Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti, here soon at The World’s Finest.
The World’s Finest caught up with Batman: The Brave and The Bold Producer James Tucker to discuss the latest episode of the acclaimed animated series, “Sword of the Atom!” The all-new episode debuts Friday, September 30th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. The episode spotlights Aquaman, Ray Palmer, and Ryan Choi. Continue below for the all-new Batman: The Brave and The Bold Q & A.
The World’s Finest: Aquaman returns to the spotlight in “Sword of the Atom!” Were you surprised by the reaction by how this interpretation of Aquaman has been received? Why do you think its caught on so much with the fanbase?
James Tucker: I wasnt that surprised by the fan reaction to Aquaman because I knew when John DiMaggio first voiced the part as written by Joe Kuhr that we had cracked the code on what made this version of Aquaman work. We werent trying to make him a bad-ass, we just wanted him to be a likeable, good-humored, warm-hearted, big lug but who was also a dedicated father, king and hero. In other words, we made him a real person and gave him a strong and distinct personality that audiences could relate to . The other great thing about Aquaman is hes a superhero that knows hes a superhero. Hes not ashamed of wearing tights and standing with his arms akimbo. He knows thats just part of the job description and I think audiences were ready for a superhero character who wasnt all gray morally and complicated. I always wanted our show to kind of feel like comfort food for a world going through hard times, in the best tradition of real family shows with simple, easy to know characters that you want to spend a half hour with in your home.
WF: Sword of the Atom! features a new musical number. Can you give us a rundown of the song, where the inspiration comes from? Will this be the last musical number we see?
JT: Michael Jelenic,the shows co-producer, wanted to do a teaser that was based around an old school 60s-70s sitcom featuring Aquaman and family. I thought it was a nutty idea (like many of Michaels ideas!) but then I realized that every old school sitcom had a theme song, so then I got on board with the idea. The song was a parody of the openings to The Addams Family and a short lived sitcom called The Pruitts of South Hampton with a touch of McHales Navy thrown in. I wrote it and then Michael McCuistion came up with the music for it that gave it the proper nautical feel. I think it turned out to be a hummable hoot!
WF: The episode features both the original Atom Ray Palmer and the new one Ryan Choi. What is distinctly different about these two Atoms?
JT: Ryan is different from Ray in our universe because we imply that he was recruited to be a superhero whereas Ray chose to be The Atom. Ray is a very standard do-gooder type hero, Ryan thinks of himself as a scientist first and a very reluctant hero second. One of the things I loved about working on this show was being able to present the legacy aspect of DC Comics in a coherent way to non comic book fans. The fact that these superheroes are often the family and friends of superheroes that came before them and that theres honor in carrying on the legacy of a superhero name really appealed to me. I think we managed to do it in an understandable and hopefully entertaining way.
WF: Palmer finds himself in a rather strange adventure without spoiling too much, are there any specific inspirations for Palmers miniature-sized adventures? What about the montage of Batman/Atom cases?
JT: The only thing I can say that isnt too spoilery is that the inspiration is loosely based on the Sword of the Atom story from a while ago where Ray Palmer goes native. We took a lot of liberties with it but I think we kept the tone intact. The montage of Batman/Atom cases at the start of the episode helps contextualize the new hero were introducing to audiences who arent familiar with. Its something we also did in the Barry Allen Flash centered episode that worked really nicely. The main reason though is that we get to throw in a bunch of easter eggs in the form of villains and it was just a lot of fun for us personally to be able to fit all those characters into an episode.
WF: So, to wrap this up, what type of challenges do our heroes face in this episode? Give us a couple teases as we head into the latest adventure!
JT: The episode is basically about a hero lost, a hero being found and a hero finding himself. Basically Heart of Darkness with giant spiders! Its chock full of the usual Batman: The Brave and the Bold action and laughs courtesy of the comedy gold that Ryan Choi and Aquaman team!
The all-new Batman: The Brave and The Bold episode “Sword of the Atom!” debuts Friday, September 30th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. Continue to the Batman: The Brave and The Bold subsite for further details and media for this episode, including hi-res images and clips. Batman: The Brave and The Bold airs on Cartoon Network every Friday at 6:00pm (ET).
Stay tuned for further Batman: The Brave and The Bold updates, including exclusive updates, here soon at The World’s Finest.
Continue below for a new press release from Warner Home Video officially announcing the voice cast for the upcoming Justice League: Doom animated feature. Two accompanying images are also included. Justice League: Doom, the first 2012 entry in the acclaimed DC Universe Animated Original Movie, features an all-star cast.
Primetime Television Stars Nathan Fillion & Tim Daly Join heroic cast of Justice League: Doom Warner Home Video to distribute DC Universe Animated Original Movie in early 2012; Eight Justice League TV series alums featured in voice cast
Primetime television stars Nathan Fillion and Tim Daly, the reigning voices of Green Lantern and Superman, respectively, join an exciting group of actors reprising their famed cartoon roles in Justice League: Doom, an all-new entry in the popular series of DC Universe Animated Original Movies due in early 2012 from Warner Home Video.
Justice League: Doom finds Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Cyborg and Batman on their heels when a team of super villains discover and implement the Dark Knights contingency plans for stopping any rogue Justice League member. The story is inspired by Mark Waids much-heralded JLA: Tower of Babel.
Fillion, the star of ABCs hit TV drama Castle, made his debut as Green Lantern/Hal Jordan in the recent Green Lantern: Emerald Knights. Fillion made his initial DCU bow as the voice of Steve Trevor in the 2008 hit Wonder Woman.
Currently headlining the cast of ABCs popular Private Practice, Daly originated the title characters voice in the landmark cartoon, Superman: The Animated Series. He has reprised the role in two DCU films: the 2009 extravaganza Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and the 2010 thriller Superman/Batman: Apocalypse.
In addition to current primetime stars Fillion and Daly, the cast is a grand reunion of the original group of actors who provided the voices of the Justice League for the cartoon of the same name and its follow-up, Justice League Unlimited. Reprising their roles are Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series) as Batman, Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville, Breaking In) as Flash, Susan Eisenberg (Superman/Batman: Apocalypse) as Wonder Woman and Carl Lumbly (Alias) as Jonn Jonzz/Martian Manhunter. Bumper Robinson (A Different World, Transformers: Animated) joins the cast as Cyborg.
The Justice League faces two sets of villainous teams in the film The Royal Flush Gang and a sextet of notable evildoers. The latter group includes three voice acting alumni of the Justice League animated series: Phil Morris (Smallville, Seinfeld) as Vandal Savage, Olivia dAbo (The Wonder Years) as Star Sapphire, and Alexis Denisof (Angel) as Mirror Master. Also opposing our heroes are Carlos Alazraqui (Reno 911) as Bane, Paul Blackthorne (The Dresden Files) as Metallo, and Claudia Black (Farscape, Stargate SG-1) as Cheetah.
David Kaufman (Danny Phantom) also reprises his Justice League role of Jimmy Olsen.
The film is executive produced by Bruce Timm (Batman: Year One), and directed by Lauren Montgomery (Batman: Year One), who is also credited as producer alongside Alan Burnett (Batman: The Animated Series). Justice League: Doom is the final script from the late Dwayne McDuffie (All-Star Superman, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths). Casting and dialogue direction is once again in the capable hands of Andrea Romano (Batman: Year One, SpongeBob SquarePants).
Warner Home Video will premiere the Justice League: Doom trailer during its presentation at New York Comic Con on Friday, October 14 from 3:00-4:00 p.m. in the IGN Theater. Also premiering during that session will be the Catwoman animated short that is attached to Batman: Year One, the next DC Universe Animated Movie (streeting October 18).
A co-production of Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation, the direct-to-video Justice League: Doom animated feature debuts Early 2012 on Blu-ray, DVD, OnDemand and for Download from Warner Home Video. Stay tuned for further updates here soon at The Worlds Finest.
New episodes of the acclaimed animated series Batman: The Brave and The Bold and Young Justice will continue airing on Cartoon Network for the month of October 2011. The network has provided specific episode details for both fan-favorite shows. Both Young Justice and Batman: The Brave and The Bold will debut three new episodes during the month. Schedule details for upcoming episodes are available below, with unaltered episode descriptions directly from Cartoon Network.
Batman: The Brave and The Bold Friday, October 7th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) – “#60 Triumvirate of Terror!” Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman face off against their arch nemesis Lex Luthor, Joker and Cheetah who gain the upper hand by switching opponents.
Batman: The Brave and The Bold Friday, October 14th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) – “#61 Bold Beginnings!” Green Arrow, Aquaman and Plastic Man remember their early team ups with the Caped Crusader.
Batman: The Brave and The Bold Friday, October 21st, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) – “#62 Powerless!” Batmans team, the JLI, lose their powers!
Cartoon Network has also scheduled the new Batman: The Brave and The Bold episode “#63 Crisis 22,300 Miles Above Earth!” to air Friday, November 4th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET).
Please note schedule details are subject to change without notice. Batman: The Brave and The Bold airs Fridays at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. An updated episode guide for the series can be found at The World’s Finest Batman: The Brave and The Bold subsite.
Batman: The Brave and The Bold will be pre-empted on October 28th, 2011 due to a special airing of the animated feature The Batman Versus Dracula.
Cartoon Network has also released episode details for the October 2011 installments of the acclaimed Young Justice animated series. All episodes of Young Justice airing in October 2011 will feature the appearances of DC Comics characters new to the series. The episode breakdowns are provided below.
Young Justice Friday, October 7th, 2011 at 6:30pm (ET) – “#13 Alpha Male” Already exhausted and rattled after a home turf invasion of The Cave, The Team learns that Aqualad their friend and leader withheld vital information that put them all at risk. When Batman sends the Team and new den-mother Captain Marvel to India to investigate bizarre reports of armed animals attacking human beings, can Aqualad pull his fractured Team together?
Young Justice Friday, October 14, 2011 at 6:30pm (ET) – “#14 Revelation” When Plant Creatures attack major cities around the world, The Team is eager to join the fight alongside the Justice League. Instead, Batman assigns them a still more dangerous task taking out the plants masters: a secret society of super- villains: the Injustice League!
Young Justice Friday, October 21st, 2011 at 6:30pm (ET) – “#15 Humanity” The Team is on the hunt for Red Tornado, determined to find out once and for all whether the robot was the mole even if it means kidnapping new friend Zatanna and dragging her along on their quest!
Cartoon Network has also scheduled the new Young Justice episode “#16 Failsafe” to air Friday, November 4th, 2011 at 6:30pm (ET).
Young Justice will be pre-empted on October 28th, 2011 due to a special airing of the animated feature The Batman Versus Dracula.
Stay tuned for further schedule updates and coverage on both Batman: The Brave and The Bold and Young Justice, including exclusive content and more, here soon at The World’s Finest.
The World’s Finest caught up with Batman: The Brave and The Bold producer James Tucker to discuss the recent episode of the acclaimed animated series, “Time Out for Vengeance!” The episode aired last Friday, September 23rd, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. Continue below for Tucker’s thoughts on the recently-aired episode.
The World’s Finest: “Time Out for Vengeance!” features an enormous cast of both heroes and Batmen! How did you settle on using specific versions of Batman and then pairing them up with specific heroes, such as Blue Beetle and Green Lantern with the Pirate Batman?
James Tucker: J.M. DeMatteis, the writer of the episode, came in and sat with me and Michael Jelenic and we just kind of beat out the story on the spot. We knew we wanted a Caveman version and a Pirate version based on the Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne storyline that Grant Morrison was doing in the comics at the time. Those seemed like the most ripe for fun scenarios to play the JLI against and I believe Jelenic came up with the idea of a Roman Batman. We improvised the name, Batmanicus, at the record because I was a huge fan of the Spartacus TV show. As far as deciding the team-ups, we knew we wanted to tease a relationship with Guy and Ice, so they made a natural pairing, and of course Beetle and Booster have to be teamed up. Aquaman and Fire made comedic sense together because wed established that Fire doesnt think too much of Aquaman in the episode “Shadow of the Bat” from earlier in the season, so theyd have an interesting chemistry that was different than the other pairings. I think we were more concerned about how the two heroes played off of each other more than how they played off of the different Batmen, though Aquaman in a Roman setting was definitely an idea we enjoyed playing around with and probably could have done a whole episode on.
WF: Do you have a favorite among these different Batmen? What were your inspirations behind them?
JT: I enjoyed using all of them but my favorite was Batmanicus, the Roman Gladiator Batman, because we kind of invented him for the show. However, theres Silver Age Batman story called “Batmans Roman Holiday” where Batman time travels back to Ancient Rome, so that may have something to do with my preferring him as well. Diedrich Bader really got into voicing the different versions of Batman in this episode, but I particularly enjoyed what he did with the Batmanicus voice.
WF: As a follow-up, were there any different versions of Batman you were considering for this episode (like Puritan Batman from Batman: The Return of the Bruce Wayne, for example)?
JT: We toyed with doing a western version of Batman, but decided on the scenarios we ended up with because we hadnt used Batman before in those settings, whereas wed had Batman go to the old west in a Jonah Hex teaser in the first season. Puritan Batman didnt come up because we agreed that just didnt seem as easy to translate as the other scenarios, especially for our younger audience members.
WF: Batman: The Brave and The Bold allows you and your team to tell some very…far out tales, including ones like this one. How are you able to go from one epic such as a very straightforward action episode like Scorn of the Star Sapphire! to an episode like this that involves time-travel and an assortment of different Dark Knights?
JT: I really wanted to set up this series as a show where anything can happen and not have it locked down to any specific tone besides one of action and humor. Luckily, our boss, Sam Register, pushed us in that direction from the very beginning. On Justice League we initially ran into some criticism about putting Batman in certain super-hero settings that he seemed out of place in, which is pretty silly to me. Batman fits in anywhere! Michael and I agreed from the start that we wouldnt limit ourselves or Batman because frankly, the show wouldnt have worked if we had grounded it like that. It would have been a series where every hero would have to have happened to be in Gotham for Batman to interact with them, and thats been done before. Michael and I had worked on more structured Batman series and we had no real interest in doing yet another one. Once we committed to the direction it became a lot of fun to produce and actually was kind of effortless (not accounting for the incredible amount of extra work that goes into a series where anything can happen!).
WF: The Creeper is featured in the opening teaser of this episode. Care to run us through why you chose to use the character, and how this version differs from other versions (such as the one who appeared on Batman: The Animated Series)?
JT: The Creeper was always on our list of characters we wanted to use and I specifically was remembering the original Batman and Creeper team up from the old the The Brave and the Bold comic where they fought Hellgrammite. It was kind of a no-brainer. As far as differing from the Batman: The Animated Series Creeper, he doesnt differ at all really apart from the fact that Brian Bloom voiced him and not Jeff Bennett who did it originally on Batman: The Animated Series. But its the same character basically. If I had had more episodes, I wanted to use a few other Steve Ditko drawn characters like Shade, The Changing Man and Odd Man.
WF: Finally, any last thoughts on the episode? Any in-jokes or easter eggs fans might want to try and catch?
JT: This episode was a lot of fun and I think the highlight of it was the opportunity to bring back the JLI again. We really fell in love with this particular group of heroes and if wed been able to spin-off a show from from Batman: The Brave and The Bold, it probably would have been one featuring the JLI. As far as Easter eggs, the final Batman that is revealed in the episode is based on a very unique version of Batman that appeared (where else) in a Silver-Age story entitled “Robins 50 Batman Partners.” Dont Google it until after youve seen the episode (if you haven’t already) if you dont want to be spoiled!
The recent episode “Time Out for Vengeance!” is now readily available for download through iTunes and other similar channels. Further details on the episode are available here.
The next all-new Batman: The Brave and The Bold episode, titled “Sword of the Atom!” debuts Friday, September 30th, 2011 at 6:00pm (ET) on Cartoon Network. Continue to the Batman: The Brave and The Bold subsite for further details and media for this episode. Batman: The Brave and The Bold airs on Cartoon Network every Friday at 6:00pm (ET).
Stay tuned for further Batman: The Brave and The Bold updates, including exclusive updates, here soon at The World’s Finest.