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King of… TV?

Interesting Disney news we got from Animation World Network: “Disney+ has begun development on a new live-action series based on the famous 1933 King Kong film, Deadline reports. Disney Branded Television is producing, with Paper Girls creator Stephany Folsom on board as writer and executive producer… According to Deadline, the series will be an ‘action-adventure drama that brings the classic monster story into the modern age, with a return to Skull Island and the dawn of a new Kong.’  The show will be based on Merian C. Cooper’s original films as well as the newer King Kong novelizations by Joe DeVito, digging deeper into Kong’s origin story and mysterious home.” Important side note: “This new King Kong series is not related to the Monsterverse movies from Legendary Entertainment, which, due to a complicated, tangled web of rights, could only use the name ‘Kong’ to refer to their giant ape in the films Kong: Skull Island and Godzilla vs. Kong.  We’ll next see a Monsterverse Kong on the small screen with the animated series Skull Island via Netflix.” Big news on the big ape front.

image c. 2022 Universal Studios

And Speaking of Animal Super Heroes…

… and DC Comics, which we were, of course the DC League of Super-Pets animated feature is out in theaters and doing very well. So of course DC is right there with some brand-new tie-in material! DC League of Super-Pets: The Great Mxy-Up is a new graphic novel written by Heath Corson and illustrated by Bobby Timony. “There is nothing the Super Pets love more than spending time with their heroes, but they are finding it difficult to be taken seriously as members of the team when their humans just don’t understand them… When Mr. Mxyzptlk, a magical imp from the fifth dimension, arrives in Metropolis with a plan to wreak a little chaos and destruction, the Justice League is caught in his trap! The Super Pets will need to come up with a plan to prevent Mxy’s mischief from destroying the city—while somehow trying to rescue their human counterparts. The only problem is, they may need to team up with their greatest enemy to succeed, and they aren’t sure if they can trust her… ” Meanwhile, if you’d like to check out some of the original vintage Super-Pet stories, DC has been kind enough to put many of them together in the new Tails of the Super-Pets collection.

image c. 2022 DC Comics

He’s IN The West!

If we’re being honest, that great superstar of Chinese myth and legend known as the Monkey King is basically a superhero. Well now, none other than DC Comics have taken that thought quite literally and given us The Monkey Prince — a new continuing series, which is part of their celebration of Asian-American creators. “Introducing the newest hero in the DCU, the great sage, equal to the heavens, better than his predecessor the legendary Monkey King, even better than the Justice League — and definitely the Teen Titans — (actually, all the heroes combined), everyone put your hands together for…the Monkey Prince! Marcus Sun moves around a lot because his adoptive parents are freelance henchpeople, so this month he finds himself as the new kid at Gotham City High School, where a mysterious man with pig features asks Marcus to walk through a water curtain to reveal himself as who Marcus really is…someone who has adventured through The Journey to the West, can transform into 72 different formations, can clone himself using his hairs, and is called… the Monkey Prince!” Written by Gene Luen Yang and illustrated by Bernard Chang, it’s out now.

image c. 2022 DC Comics

 

Deliveries, Dragons, and Determination

Wonderbound is a new imprint for young readers. Among their offerings is a new trade paperback called Poiko: Quests & Stuff. “Have you ever had to deliver a care package to a dragon with allergies? Have you ever been waylaid by a school of space fish? That’s just an average day for Poiko, the kingdom’s most reliable courier. The world can be a big, scary place, but it can also be wondrous. Sad things can happen, but there are always good friends to turn to, or new friends to make. And no matter what, there is always, always someone who could use your help. Poiko learns all these lessons and more every time he brushes his tail, pulls on his hoodie, and steps out into a new adventure. The philosophical whimsicality of Calvin & Hobbes meets the fantasy-scapes of Adventure Time in this modern-day classic.” Big shoes to fill! Written and illustrated by Brian Middleton, Poiko is distributed by Simon & Schuster.

image c. 2022 Wonderbound

They Call 911 FOR You!

Seems we’re never far away from more anthropomorphic vehicles. Got this from Animation World Network: “Disney Branded Television’s new musical animated comedy-adventure series, Firebuds, follows a team of young first responders who embark on adventures with their talking sidekick vehicles to help their community and learn what it truly means to be a hero… Set in a world where talking vehicles live, work, and play with the humans who drive them, Firebuds follows a boy named Bo and his fire engine best friend Flash as they team up with their first responder friends to help others in their community with problems, big and small.” Various episodes feature musical performances by the likes of Weird Al Yankovic, Lisa Loeb, and Patton Oswalt. Coming this fall to Disney Channel, Disney Junior, and various Disney streams on September 21st.

image c. 2022 Disney Junior

Monsters vs. Meow

More comic-book type adventures for young readers in Housecat Trouble Volume 1, a new hardcover graphic novel by Mason Dickerson. “One house, three cats, and a lot of trouble! Buster has only one job: Keep the house safe. Too bad he is a massive scaredy-cat. When his owner goes away and he suddenly finds his home filled with monsters, Buster has the biggest challenge he’s ever faced. Can he learn to be brave before his owner gets back?” Find out over at Penguin Random House, and look for more volumes too.

image c. 2022 Penguin Random House

My Pet Be-Anything

We really need to get caught up on our YouTube phenoms. We found this at Animation World Network: “Guru Studio is ramping up production on Moonbug Entertainment’s newest CG animated series based on their popular YouTube hit, My Magic Pet Morphle… The show follows Mila and her stepbrother, Jordie, as they leap into a world of adventure with the help of Morphle, Mila’s magical and loyal pet, who has the power to change into whatever she needs.” Morphle is scheduled to hit Disney + and Disney Junior in 2024.

image c. 2022 Moonbug Entertainment

That Special Honey

Recently we came across this at Cartoon Brew: “Tubi, a division of Fox Entertainment, adds to its growing roster of adult-focused animation with Breaking Bear, a new animal-based mobster parody series created by Julien Nitzberg… The show, described as Yogi-Bear-meets-The-Sopranos, follows the escapades of three bear siblings who decide they have to start selling drugs in order to raise money and save their home after gas companies start fracking next to their cave. The bears soon enlist other forest animals in a scheme that will pit them against oil companies, The Russian Mafia, local Hell’s Angels, and polar bears who hate anything that isn’t white.” Oh is that all? Well…

image c. 2022 Tubi

She’s For The Birds… Literally

Wingbearer is a new full-color graphic novel written by Marjorie Liu, with illustration by Teny Issakhanian. “Zuli is extraordinary — she just doesn’t realize it yet. Raised by mystical bird spirits in the branches of the Great Tree, she’s never ventured beyond this safe haven. She’s never had to. Until now… When a sinister force threatens the life-giving magic of the tree, Zuli, along with her guardian owl, Frowly, must get to the root of it. So begins an adventure bigger than anything Zuli could’ve ever imagined — one that will bring her, along with some newfound friends, face-to-face with an ancient dragon, the so-called Witch-Queen, and most surprisingly of all: Her true identity.”

image c. 2022 Quill Tree Books