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Fantasy

A New Fantasy Series

Jan 20th, 2012
by rodney.
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Here’s an e-book we recently stumbled across: Legacy by Hugo Jackson is the author’s first book, and also the start of “The Resonance Tetralogy”, which presumably means there will be three books to follow. “Faria Phiraco [a fox ] is a ‘resonator’, a manipulator of crystals from the moon who wields control of the elements. It is a rare and secret power which she and her father, the Emperor of Xayall, guard with their lives. But they are not alone… The Dhraka, malicious red-scaled dragons, have discovered an ancient artefact, a mysterious relic from the mythical, aeons-lost city of Nazreal. Their plan already in motion, they besiege Xayall, launching upon the city to find Faria and tear more of Nazreal’s secrets from her. But she knows nothing, except that the powers hunting her threaten the entire world. With her father missing, Faria has to rely on her own strength and brave the world that attacks her at every turn. Friends and guardians rally by her to help save her father and reveal the mysteries of the ruined city, while the dark legacy of an ancient cataclysm wraps its claws around her fate… and her past. She soon realises that this is not the beginning, nor anywhere near the end. A titanic war spanning thousands of years unfolds around her, one that could yet cost the lives of everyone on Eeres.” The book is available for the Kindle on Amazon, at it seems to be getting good reviews from the readers quoted there.

image c. 2012 Hugo Jackson

The Wolf Children

Jan 8th, 2012
by rodney.
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More from Cartoon Brew: They have a first look at Okami kodomo no ame to yuki, a new 2D anime feature directed by Mamoru Hosoda. The title translates as The Wolf Children Ame and Yuki. Here’s the basic press release: “From the director of The Girl Who Leapt Through Time and Summer Wars, the story of a college student named Hana who marries a ‘wolf man’ and gives birth to two wolf children. When the wolf man dies, Hana and the children move from the city to a quiet rural town.” The film is being distributed by TOHO Studios, and it’s set for release (at least in Japan) this July. There’s not much yet on the film’s web site (and what’s there is in Japanese), but they’ll add to it as the year goes along.

image c. 2012 TOHO Studios

Beauty and the Beast that Never Was…

Dec 15th, 2011
by rodney.
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Who knew that Secret of NIMH director Don Bluth and his crew had their own version of Beauty and the Beast in the works? Well they did, back in the day, and we stumbled across some pictures from the project. According to animation historian John Cawley (from Get Animated), “Early in 1984, Don began in earnest turning the famous tale into an animated feature. He even announced it in the Fall of 1990 in his Animation Club newsletter. At the time, he described it as ‘a tender love story that says, ‘a thing must be loved before it’s lovable.’ We sprinkled this classic tale with a generous amount of comedy, a little bit of terror, and a lot of love. From Nan, the clairvoyant dog, Max, a bird detective, and Otto, an escape artist lizard, to the King Bats, the Wee Beasties and Queen Livia, herself, this picture has something for everyone.’ An American Tail also interrupted this production. As work began on Land Before Time, Don felt that Beauty and the Beast would be his first independent picture. However in late 1986, the Disney Studio announced they were working on a version and by 1989 had begun full production (for a 1991 release). Knowing his version could not be completed before Disney’s, Don dropped the project.” The picture below and others were recently uncovered on Tumbler.

image c. 2011 Don Bluth Studios

When Mice Do More Than Point and Click

Dec 13th, 2011
by rodney.
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We can’t make this stuff up folks (if we could we’d be out there doing it!). Here’s the publisher’s description of Mousenet,  the first novel by Prudence Breitrose: “When ten-year-old Megan helps her uncle invent the Thumbtop, the world’s smallest computer, mice are overjoyed, and they want one for every mouse hole. The Big Cheese, leader of the Mouse Nation, has orders: follow that girl—even if it means high-tailing it to Megan’s new home on the other side of the country. While Megan struggles as the new girl, the mice watch, waiting for their chance. But when they tell Megan the biggest secret in the history of the world—mice have evolved, and they need her help—she isn’t sure anyone will believe her. With all of Mouse Nation behind her, Megan could become the most powerful girl alive, but just how will she create a Thumptop for every mouse?” It’s illustrated throughout by Stephanie Yue, and it’s available in hardcover (at Amazon and everywhere else) from Hyperion Books.

image c. 2011 Hyperion Books

Stately Mice at Sea

Dec 5th, 2011
by rodney.
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Richard Peck is a prolific author of fiction for adult and young readers. His latest book would likely be considered for the latter, but his style includes a lot of sly winks at human society that grown-ups are likely to pick up on too. Secrets at Sea is available now in hardcover from Dial Books. It’s illustrated throughout by Kelly Murphy. Here’s the publisher’s description: “In the beloved tradition of The Borrowers, The Tale of Desperaux, and The Cricket in Times Square, here is an irresistible adventure story of the tiny individuals who secretly live among us humans. Helena is the oldest of four mouse siblings who live in the walls of the Cranston estate. It is 1887 when the nouveau riche Cranstons decide to take a cruise ship to England in search of a husband for their awkward older daughter. The Cranston mice stow away in the luggage . . . and so begins the time of their lives, as they meet intriguing, cosmopolitan mice onboard and take it upon themselves to help the human Cranston daughters find love.” There are more reviews available at Amazon.

image c. 2011 by Kelly Murphy

He was the Ace, he was Fantastic

Nov 19th, 2011
by rodney.
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News out of the UK: Mark Hall, one half of the production team Cosgrove/Hall, passed away from cancer this week at the age of 75. From 1971 until their retirement in 2000, Mark Hall (the quiet business-oriented one) and his partner Brian Cosgrove (the crazy artistic one) created numerous award-winning, world-famous, and financially successful animated programs and productions. Chief among them: Danger Mouse, the super-hero/super-spy spoof that’s still in repeats around the world. The pair were also well-known for The Wind in the Willows, a stop-motion animated series based on the books and stories of Kenneth Grahame. Furry fans might also want to seek out the company’s adaptation of Gerald Durrell’s fantasy novel The Talking Parcel from 1978. The Guardian UK has an obituary for Mr. Hall up on line, which discusses many of the shows that Cosgrove/Hall produced.

Mark Hall (left), Brian Cosgrove (right), and Mr. Toad

Offerings from Arcana

Nov 9th, 2011
by rodney.
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Arcana Studio has several paperback graphic novels of interest to Furry Fandom coming up soon. Dragons vs. Dinosaurs by Chris Eric Peterson is a fantasy adventure (of course!) featuring, well, dragons battling dinosaurs! With a title like that, who needs to be worried about the plot? It’s coming in early January. Lethal Instinct (by Soares, Thompson, Jadson, and Borges) tells the story of a werewolf police detective — who discovers that he’s not the only shape-shifter in town — and his new competition is attacking politicians. The moon also rises next January. Finally, in a completely different and less violent vein, there’s A Cat Named Haiku by Mark Poulton and Dexter Weeks. It follows the adventures of a mischievous cat told completely in, you guessed it, haiku poetry. It’s available now. You can read more about these titles on Amazon here, here, and here respectively.

image c. 2011 Arcana Studio

Training Dragons on TV

Nov 3rd, 2011
by rodney.
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Here’s a scoop that we stumbled across recently: Dreamworks Animation is not only hard at work on a sequel to 2010’s Ursa Major Award-winning film How to Train Your Dragon, but they are also working on a TV series to be aired on Cartoon Network beginning in late 2012. ScreenRant.com have been following the story closely, and they recently featured an article that includes an interview with executive producer Tim Johnson from BadTaste.it. According to Mr. Johnson, How to Train Your Dragon 2 (the working title) will be released in the latter part of 2013. Dean Deblois, co-director of the original film, will this time serve as sole writer and director for the sequel. Original co-director Chris Sanders will be on as an executive producer, along with original producer Bonnie Arnold. Most of the original voice cast will return for the sequel, including Jay Baruchel, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, TJ Miller, and Kristen Wiig. It’s unclear right now if any of them will also be involved in the TV series. Also unclear at this point is what the plot of either the TV series or the sequel film will be like, although Tim Johnson has said that the TV series will likely be a bit more mature, perhaps even darker, than the current Dreamworks TV spin-off series, Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness.

image c. 2011 Dreamworks Animation

 

Bigfoot: Private Eye

Nov 1st, 2011
by rodney.
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Okay here’s a different take on things: Mr. Foot, aka Bigfoot, is a sasquatch private eye. Having received a letter from his long-lost brother Yeti, Mr. Foot enlists the aid of his friend The Jersey Devil to fly him to the arctic — only to find that Yeti has been beheaded. Now the reluctant Mr. Foot must bring together his old gang of cryptozoological friends — including Nessie and the Megaladon (or giant shark) and others — to find the killer and bring them to justice. It’s all there in Footprints, a new black & white comic book series from 215 Ink. It’s written by Joey Esposito (the comic book editor for IGN Publishing) and illustrated by Jonathan Moore (FUBAR). Alternative Magazine On Line has an extended preview of the comic up on their web site.

image c. 2011 Jonathan Moore

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