Disenchantment Season 2 (or, as it's being billed, "Part 2,") is coming to Netflix very soon!

Netflix was apparently enchanted enough with Disenchantment, since it gave the Matt Groening animated series an early order for Season 2 of the series, also setting up a release strategy that will see episodes released all the way through 2021! As creator Matt Groening expressed of the move in a statement:

“We’re excited to continue this epic journey with Netflix. Stay tuned for more cranked-up suspense, infuriating plot twists, and beloved characters getting knocked off.”

Disenchantment is produced by The ULULU Company for Netflix, with Groening and Josh Weinstein serving as executive producers. Rough Draft Studios handles the animation.

Disenchantment Season 2 Trailer

The full trailer for Disenchantment Part 2 has arrived!

You can also check out the first teaser, which revealed that Elfo is not fully dead... but also kind of dead. Yet, as we'd later learn in the full trailer, he's in heaven... literally.

Disenchantment Season 2 Release Date

Disenchantment Season 2 premieres all 10 episodes on Friday, September 20.

Disenchantment Season 2 Cast

Jacobson, Faxon and André are joined in the Disenchantment voice cast by John DiMaggio, Billy West, Maurice LaMarche, David Herman, Tress MacNeille, Matt Berry, Rich Fulcher, Jeny Batten, Lucy Montgomery and Noel Fielding.

Disenchantment Season 2 Story

The story of Disenchantment centers on the exploits of the hard-drinking Princess Bean (Abbi Jacobson), who, joined by her elven companion Elfo (Nat Faxon) and personal demon Luci (Eric André), experience very real concepts like life, death, love and sex within a magical medieval world called Dreamland. The series, much like The Simpsons creator Matt Groening’s Futurama, taps heavily into the well of genre satire, this time utilizing fantasy tropes. However, unlike Groening’s Fox shows, Disenchantment conforms itself to Netflix binge-watching, mostly telling a linear story across the season instead of resetting the status quo each episode.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

Jack Ryan Season 2 is already a go at Amazon!

While the Amazon television offering, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, debuted on August 31, the series officially announced its astoundingly advanced Season 2 renewal back on April 24. The series stars John Krasinski – in a form that’s surreal to fans of his classic TV run as Jim on The Office– as an early-career version of author Tom Clancy’s iconic thwarter of terrorism and geopolitical conflicts. He is joined by co-stars Wendell Pierce, Abbie Cornish and John Hoogenakker.

Jack Ryan Season 2 will bring about another 8-episode run (just like Season 1). The globetrotting action series is currently in production, shooting across four continents.

Jack Ryan Season 2 Release Date

Jack Ryan season 2 will premiere on November 1, 2019 on Amazon Prime. Here's your boy glowering over some destruction in Venezuela.

Jack Ryan Season 2 Trailer

Amazon Prime has debuted the latest and presumably final Jack Ryan season 2 trailer. The two-minute clip finds Jack in Venezuela, dealing with a collapsing government and Russian arms dealers. 

Here is a first look at Jack Ryan season 2, fresh off the press fom Amazon's appearance at the Summer 2019 TCA press tour. Lots of running. Lots of South America.

Jack Ryan Season 2 Cast

Jack Ryan Season 2 has been going full steam ahead in adding to its cast.

Michael Kelly (House of Cards) will be joining Jack Ryan Season 2. Kelly will play Mike November, a smart, seasoned CIA lifer and field officer who will work with Jack. Can't wait to see how he'll betray our hero! That's not based on any inside info other than understanding Kelly's acting archetype.

further reading: The Top 25 Secret Agents in Movie History

Noomi Rapace (of Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Prometheus fame) will be joining Jack Ryan as a series regular, as announced by Amazon at the show's San Diego Comic Con 2018 panel. The acclaimed Swedish actress will play Harriet “Harry” Baumann, a highly capable, intelligent and charming German Intelligence agent, who crosses paths with Jack in South America. Noomi and John Krasinski in South America. Should be fun!

Other cast additions include: Jovan Adepo (The Leftovers), Jordi Molla (Genius), Cristina Umaña (Narcos), and Francisco Denis. According to Deadline, Adepo will play Marcus, a former special crewman in the Navy now repairing boats whose life takes a turn when an old colleague offers him a critical position in a covert operation; Molla will play Nicolas Reyes, the powerful and charismatic leader of a South American Country; Umaña will play Gloria Bonalde, a woman who fearlessly balances her career in politics with the demands of motherhood; and Denis will play Ubarri, a senior government official in a South American country.

Wendell Pierce (Unsolved, Selma, The Wire), who plays Jack's boss, James Greer, in Season 1, is confirmed for a return in Season 2.

A man is headed to Jack Ryan Season 2; a declaration that’s more specific than one might initially think. That’s because said man plays a character who famously begins every sentence in which he’s the subject with “a man.” Indeed, we’re referring to Game of Thrones actor Tom Wlaschiha, who’s set for a recurring role on the Amazon series, reports Deadline. Here, Wlaschiha will wear the proverbial face of Max Schenkel, a foreign operative with mysterious motivations, who will cross paths with Jack Ryan during a mission in South America.

Wlaschiha, an East Germany-born actor, is, of course, best known as the enigmatic Faceless Man assassin Jaqen H'ghar on Game of Thrones. While most of his resume consists of German films and TV shows, he did field a three-season 2013-2015 co-starring run on an internationally distributed crime series, called Crossing Lines, opposite Donald Sutherland and William Fichtner. Interestingly, Wlaschiha had U.S. TV prospects charted last year when he was set to star in a TNT pilot, a dark urban drama called The Deep Mad Dark, which was subsequently pulled by the network.

Jack Ryan Season Story

Per Amazon:

"In the second season of Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, after tracking a potentially suspicious shipment of illegal arms in the Venezuelan jungle, CIA Officer Jack Ryan, portrayed by John Krasinski (A Quiet Place), heads down to South America to investigate. As Jack’s investigation threatens to uncover a far-reaching conspiracy, the President of Venezuela launches a counter-attack that hits home for Jack, leading him and his fellow operatives on a global mission spanning the United States, UK, Russia, and Venezuela to unravel the President’s nefarious plot and bring stability to a country on the brink of chaos."

Jack Ryan Season 2 Details

Dennie Gordon, a DGA Award-winning director, is set to helm a trio of episodes for Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan Season 2, reports Deadline. She will arrive on the series, coming off a string of serial TV experience from stints on shows such as (Amazon’s) Goliath, Power, Legion, Empire, Kingdom, Bloodline and Hell on Wheels.

Season 1’s directorial lineup consisted of Patricia Riggen, Daniel Sackheim, Morten Tyldum and co-creator Carlton Cuse himself.

As the official Jack Ryan Season 2 logline states of the story:

In Season Two, Jack Ryan confronts the forces in power in a dangerous, declining democratic regime in South America.

Amazon Studios head Jennifer Salke explained of the early renewal:

“With so much early anticipation for Tom Clancy’sJack Ryan from our customers and personally having the pleasure to preview the exhilarating, action-packed first season, we are excited to greenlight a second season of the series months ahead of its debut. The new season will take our unexpected hero to a new, exciting and dangerous world.”

As co-showrunner Carlton Cuse added:

“We’re thrilled that the first season has generated so much enthusiasm. We couldn’t be happier to be working with Amazon and to be filming very near the Amazon to tell the next great Jack Ryan adventure.”

Interestingly, a lot of the early Jack Ryan momentum had to do with star John Krasinski himself, who is coming off the inventive – potentially bellwether – horror movie, A Quiet Place, for which he served as its star (alongside his wife, Emily Blunt,) and was its director. The film not only proved to be a lucrative hit, but established Krasinski as quite the action/horror Renaissance man. Indeed, Amazon locked him in for Jack Ryan Season 2 as soon as it was humanly possible.

As Amy Powell, president of producing studio Paramount Television, says of Krasinski:

“From day one we only had one actor on our casting board for this series – John Krasinski. We are so excited that he is our Jack Ryan and we get to make another season with this incredibly talented team. We have been blown away by what our whole team has delivered for season one and we can’t wait for everyone to see it this summer.”

However, Amazon had another reason to justify the Jack Ryan Season 2 renewal, pointing to a 400% increase in Prime Members in the aftermath of its Super Bowl ads, necessitating a boost in original content.

further reading: Jack Ryan Review

As for the plans for Jack Ryan Season 2, it appears that things will stay the course regarding the personnel. The showrunners in executive producers Carlton Cuse (Lost, Bates Motel) and Graham Roland (Fringe, Prison Break) will remain in place. Plus, star John Krasinski will maintain his status as executive producer.

Jack Ryan Season 2 is in production, shooting in unspecified locations in Europe, South America and the United States.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

13 Reasons Why Season 4 has been made official by Netflix, setting up what will serve as the final season for the series.

Indeed, while the series recently released its third season, 13 Reasons Why will soon run out of reasons to cite, with a finish line now firmly on the horizon for its now-confirmed fourth season. While the number of Season 4 episodes were not confirmed, the show typically runs 13 episodes, with Season 3 being no exception. The final frame will see the series remain under creator/showrunner/EP Brian Yorkey.

Netflix has yet to announce a release date for 13 Reasons Why's final season.

13 Reasons Why Season 4 Cast

Gary Sinise is joining 13 Reasons Why for its final season as part of the main cast, set to appear in every episode. He will play Dr. Robert Ellman, who Netflix describes as “a compassionate, incisive, no-nonsense adolescent and family therapist who works to help Clay Jensen battle anxiety, depression, and grief.”

Sinise, best known from his Oscar-nominated role as Lt. Dan in 1994’s Forrest Gump, most recently appeared in the drama, SGT. Will Gardner, having come off TV runs on CBS shows Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders and CSI: NY. Amongst vast credits, he’s famously appeared in Ron Howard films Apollo 13 and Ransom, starred in ABC’s 1994 TV miniseries of Stephen King’s The Stand and won a Golden Globe for his starring role in HBO's 1995 presidential biopic, Truman. He's also known for his philanthropic work for military veteran's charities, which involves performances with his Lt. Dan Band.

Telegraphing the importance of Sinise’s Season 4 role, showrunner Brian Yorkey lauds in a statement:

"From the first moments we conceived of the role, I thought of Gary Sinise, but hardly dared to dream it might happen.” He adds, "A consummate actor and first-rate human, Gary brings the exact combination of toughness, smarts and heart the character needs. We’re all thrilled and honored to have him join us for this pivotal role in our final season."

The rest of Season 4’s lineup was not revealed, but the recently-released Season 3 focuses on characters Clay (Dylan Minnette), Tyler (Devin Druid), Tony (Christian Navarro), Jessica (Alisha Boe), Zach (Ross Butler), Alex (Miles Heizer) and Justin (Justin Foley). They are joined by cast members Justin Prentice, Amy Hargreaves, Timothy Granaderos, Steven Weber, Brenda Strong, Grace Saif and Anne Winters.

13 Reasons Why Season 4 Details

While 13 Reasons Why– a TV adaptation of Jay Asher’s book of the same name – set its handprint firmly in the cement of recent pop culture, notably due to its controversial teen-suicide-related content, the show’s imminent ending is hardly surprising. After all, Season 2 saw the exit of star Katherine Langford, whose character, Hannah Baker, posthumously left a series of videos explaining the (titular) 13 reasons for her suicide. Indeed, while the typically spendthrift Netflix has – for the first time since its meteoric rise – found itself having to tighten its budget and cancel some shows, one might consider that the thing on which the show’s title was based no longer appears to be a prominent part of its premise, limiting its shelf life.

Consequently, Season 3 saw the show move on to a new subject, the mysterious death of character Bryce Walker (Justin Prentice); a move that took the headline-generating topical series into a morosely surreal Riverdale­-style direction. Thus, after a retooling of that caliber, the idea of Season 4 serving as the end makes sense.

We’ll keep you updated on 13 Reasons Why Season 4 as the news arrives!

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

The Loch Ness Monster has been spotted over 1,000 times since the year 565, and is a major tourism draw for Scotland. The creature, lovingly called Nessie by fans and followers, is reluctant to surface. In Travel Channel's upcoming special, Loch Ness:  New Evidence, will subject the waters of Loch Ness to forensic science searching for proof that a mythical monster lurks in the deep.

Dr. Neil Gemmell of University of Otago in New Zealand will employ a cutting-edge scientific technique called environmental DNA (eDNA) to test. Gemmell and his team collected marine DNA samples from three different depths across the length of the lake. The samples were filtered for DNA fragments.

“Perhaps the most lasting legacy of this adventure will be that millions of people now know about the power of eDNA to understand, monitor and protect our environment.” Gemmell says. The team found no evidence of reptilian DNA, ruling out the theory that Nessie is a surviving plesiosaur, of the Jurassic era, Britain's The Telegraph reported. But did find eel DNA.

read more: In Search of Monsters Will Chill Out With Yeti

The scientific community has been fascinated with the secrets of the Scottish lake for years. The Loch Ness Investigation Bureau, which was started after numerous photographic studies were conducted in the 1930s, had more than 1,000 members investigating the Loch around the clock in search of the monster for nearly all of the 1960s. In the 1970s, the search incorporated the widespread use of submersibles and submarines and then advanced to sonar searches in the 1980s.

“Our cameras have been behind the scenes capturing all of the drama and finally revealing that several leading theories can be scientifically dismissed. Now, the most thorough eDNA study of the loch in history will have its day in the spotlight,” Matthew Butler, general manager of Travel Channel, said in a statement.

The two-hour special will follow the high-tech monster hunt, as Dr. Gemmell carries out his experiments, talks to eyewitnesses and investigates the history of the Loch Ness monster. The special will also spotlight the expeditions of naturalist Adrian Shine, who used a homemade submersible to explore the lake in 1973. Archival footage of this expedition survives to this day. Shine conducted Operation Deepscan, a complete sonar mapping of Loch Ness, in 1987. The sonar detected something mysterious at a depth of nearly 600 feet.

"Is Nessie a giant sturgeon or catfish as many contend," the press statement asks. "Could it be a new, undiscovered species of large eel? Is it a lost relic of the dinosaur era that captured the world’s imagination in the infamous, black and white 'Surgeon’s Photo,' taken in 1934?" Cryptozoologist Loren Coleman suggests the claim that the photo is a hoax was an act of revenge contrived by the family of a dishonored Nessie Hunter.

Loch Ness Monster: New Evidence premieres on Sunday, September 15 at 8 p.m. on Travel Channel.

Culture Editor Tony Sokol cut his teeth on the wire services and also wrote and produced New York City's Vampyr Theatre and the rock opera AssassiNation: We Killed JFK. Read more of his work here or find him on Twitter @tsokol.

This DuckTales review contains spoilers.

DuckTales Season 2 Episode 19

DuckTales is the funniest show on TV but when it wants to? It can also be the most gut wrenching, tear jerking one. When I talked last episode about DuckTales’ characters being well grounded in believable motivations that holds doubly true when the show tells a more dramatic story. Especially when it involves Lena.

After literally exercising her demons in her last full appearance, Lena hasn’t been doing well. She got the evil directly out of her life but the trauma of Magica still lingers. Lena and Magica’s relationship steps firmly out of the abuse coding that it had been up to now and full on acknowledges it, albeit in a dream plot where Lena turns into a monster that looks right out of Gargoyles (those wings, amirite?)

Lena is terrified of going to sleep because of her bad dreams. While we later learn they were caused by Magica, it still speaks to Lena wrestling with her trauma. She fears sleep because then she’ll have to face the horror’s of her life, so she does everything possible to stay awake. To keep moving, to not acknowledge the fear… But that only works for so long.

Webby attempts to reassure her that she isn’t evil, she’s good! Good enough to be their friend. Lena accepts it outwardly but you know it isn’t sinking in. After years of abuse it’s hard to accept you’re worthy of that kind of friendship. That love. Magica was the evil one but Lena feels more responsibility than Magica ever has or will. She did so much less but she feels like more of a monster than Magica.

Thus her dreams have her take on that form literally. Slowly at first but by the climax she’s almost turned into her worst nightmare, Magica. Magica needs Lena’s help to get her magic back and she’ll do anything to make it happen. The words Magica carefully chooses full on gaslight Lena, the abuse continuing once more.

“What did you do to me?" 

“Me? This is all you. Did you think you’d turn out different than me? I’m trying to save you. You came from me.”

It’s not Magica, it’s all Lena’s fault! She can’t be better! She’s evil, just like Magica…. Magica… The only one who can save her.

It’s horrifying. DuckTales doesn’t need jump scares, blood, or violence to sell the most bone chilling moment in it two season run. It just needs words that are all too real. The kind that can completely crush a person’s soul.

DuckTales’ portrayal of abuse is deadly serious and, as we’ve seen in all the previous Lena episodes, incredibly effective. Lena’s struggle isn’t easily resolved. The abuse isn’t a one and done deal. It’s something that literally haunts her and the way she almost gives up here? Tired of fighting against it? That rang so heart breakingly true.

As I’ve discussed in past Lena episodes, I faced similar trauma to her and these episodes help me to understand my own feelings. Like the best media, it held up a mirror to my own life so I could safely look at it. It reminded me how some abuse victims put so much pressure on themselves to be “better”. It’s soul crushing. You hold yourself to a set a standards that aren’t even well defined. You just fear doing anything that could be “bad”, just like Lena in this episode. She shoved aside her own good actions because she wasn’t good enough.

One of the most important things you can do, and Webby shows Lena this, is acknowledge you aren’t your abuser. 

“You’re not her. You’re you. You put so much pressure on yourself to be good. But you’re good enough.”

That says it all. You’re good enough. You deserve good things and good people. Don’t push them away or hide things, just because one-person hurt you doesn’t mean others will to.

Lena is able to break free of Magica and if the episode stopped there? It would have been amazing… but it didn’t.

It kept going. Magica appears in the real world and it’s revealed she was deliberately messing with Lena’s dreams. Yes it was with a fantastical dream machine thing but it was abuse. Pure and simple. However, Magica steps into the light and it’s revealed she has no real power. Without Lena she’s nothing. A shabbily mess. Damn near a dusk of a person. She cries out to her,

“We’re family. You need me.”

But Lena, in a moment that made me smile wide and pump my first in air, replies,

“I don’t need you. YOU NEED ME! You are no longer allowed in my head!”

It’s a brilliant line that externalizes Lena’s struggle with Magica’s abuse. This isn’t the end of that story arc, not by a long shot, but it gave Lena a triumphant moment. A moment that let he be in control for perhaps the first time in her life. Putting those words into action will be tough, but it’s the right first step.

‘A Nightmare on Killmotor Hill!' is without question one of DuckTales’absolute best. Not just because of the Lena plot but how it develops it. It handles the effects of abuse with great care and devastating power. My hat goes off to everyone involved with this episode, Emmy Cicierega for writing it, Tanner Johnson for directing it, Emmy, Vince Aparo, and Ben Holm for boarding it, and everyone who touched it. 

There’s also the Huey, Dewey, Louie, Webby, and Violent dreams which were just delightful. Huey’s dream especially was bonkers but extremely revealing. He wants his “oldest child” status to be made manifest yet he can’t even dream it properly, coming out as horrific sized limbs. There’s a lot to unpack there, buddy.

DuckTales Quotes To Make Your Life Better 

- “Time loses all meaning in the infinite night of the Shadow Realm.”

- “If TV and movies taught me anything when you turn into a teen you just have to sing!”

- “Wake up, kids! What are you lot still doing asleep? It’s almost 6AM. Go get some jobs!

Keep us with all our DuckTales season 2 news and reviews here!

Shamus Kelley is a pop culture/television writer and official Power Rangers expert. Follow him on Twitter! Read more articles by him here!

This Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance review contains no spoilers, except for some information that was presented in the series’ trailers. It is based on all ten episodes of the debut season.

While it earned a modest profit during its original 1982 theatrical run, The Dark Crystal never lived up to the high expectations that Universal or project mastermind Jim Henson had for it. Influenced by everything from new age philosophy to classic fantasy works, the film – directed by Henson and frequent collaborator Frank Oz – was a technical marvel that told its ambitious story through revolutionary puppetry techniques. While a bit derivative of Lord of the Rings and Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey (but then again, isn’t everything?) The Dark Crystal had plenty of innovation of its own. The problem, for lack of a better word, is that it wasn’t The Muppets. And audiences weren’t ready for the strange creatures who inhabited the world of Thra, deeming the film either too dark or too weird to be a pop culture gamechanger.

Like many cult works that went unappreciated in their time, the legend of The Dark Crystal has grown exponentially in the nearly 40 years since its initial release. Everything from fiction books to board games to comics have helped to expand the saga’s worldbuilding. While a much ballyhooed sequel never quite panned out, that project’s failure directly led to the birth of The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, an enthralling, hugely ambitious 10-part Netflix series that could easily become the next Stranger Things. That is if mainstream audiences are willing to take a gamble on a prequel show based on a property they only half remember in the first place.

further reading: How Age of Resistance Can Reignite The Dark Crystal Franchise

On terms of the fantasy scale, The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance fits somewhere at the midpoint between The Hobbit-style winsomeness and Game of Thrones-esque plotting. As the series opens, narration from The Myth Speaker (Sigourney Weaver) presents viewers with a sort of Thra 101, realizing that the majority of those bingeing may not be aware that this isn’t a new property just added to Netflix. The world of Thra is inhabited by seven diverse clans of Gelflings, honest and lovable creatures who serve their masters, the Skeksis – massive vulture-like beings who are the guardians of the Crystal of Truth. The crystal is “the source of all life” on Thra, a planet where all things are connected.

Our main characters are Rian (voiced by Taron Egerton/performed by puppeteer Neil Sterenberg), a Gelfling guard sworn to protect the castle that is home to the Crystal, Brea (Anya-Taylor Joy/Alice Dinnean), a Gelfling princess, and Deet (Nathalie Emmanuel/Beccy Henderson), a Gelfling whose tribe lives underground. With whispers of a “Darkening” spreading blight throughout Thra and turning creatures evil, our heroes find their fates intertwined after a tragic event reveals the truth about the Skeksis -- whose dark doings set in motion a revolution that will change the course of Thra forever.

Featuring a peerless voice cast of main and supporting characters that also includes Mark Hamill (as a Skeksis scientist who sounds like a cross between his Joker voice and Chris Latta's Cobra Commander), Jason Isaacs as the Skeksis Emperor, Gugu-Mbatha Raw as Brea’s sister, Simon Pegg as the scheming Skeksis Chamberlain, and Donna Kimball as Aughra, a mysterious figure in Thra’s past and future (and a key player in the original Dark Crystal film), the series has a surprising level of complexity that wears its Game of Thrones influence on its magnificently costumed sleeve. (Did I mention that Lena Headley and Natalie Dormer are also in the cast?) The talent on display here is full of engaging vocal performances combined with the impressive on-set work of the industry's best puppeteers to deliver fully realized characters.

To reveal plot twists would be a big no-no for a spoiler-free review, but I can say that the surprises are plenty and meaningful. The initial two episodes spend the majority of their runtime establishing Thra and its inhabitants, further illustrating that any previous knowledge of the world of The Dark Crystal is unnecessary to fully enjoy this series. In fact, any allegiance to the pre-existing work might be a detriment. For all of the movie’s successes, the brutal fact remains that it can be a bit of a slog at times. (Mystics scenes, I’m glaring at you). Excitingly, pacing issues that marred the film are more than resolved here.

further reading - Dark Crystal: The Age of Resistance Breathes Life Into Its Puppets

It feels like the writing staff, including Lost’s Javier Grillo-Marxuach and Dark Crystal expanded universe author J.M. Lee are aiming to develop a new pop culture juggernaut for a post-Game of Thrones world, and they largely succeed by crafting a story that is complete yet kicks the door open for future tales to come. This is no simple task given the problems inherent in writing a prequel.

The original Dark Crystal begins years after all the Gelflings, save for two, have been wiped from the face of Thra by Skeksis leaders who have corrupted the Crystal of Truth to drain them of their living essence. So anyone who has seen the film goes into this series with the foreknowledge that these new characters are all doomed. Or are they? Age of Resistance plants seeds suggesting that the future glimpsed on the big screen isn’t carved in stone. Or crystal for that matter. This is one of the more interesting divergences from the source material that helps make this show very much its own thing.

Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance achieves the impossible task of making viewers forget they aren’t watching flesh-and-blood actors on screen. The characters created by the Jim Henson Workshop feel familiar yet exotic, light years away from the sort of Uncanny Valley issues that would have plagued this show were it done strictly by computer imagery. But more than that, the series elevates puppetry to the next level by daringly pushing the artform to its very limits (as well as having fun deconstructing it, such as in a memorable sequence where characters put on their own puppet show to fill in narrative gaps bridging the series and the film).

Director Louis Leterrier (The Incredible Hulk) had the unenviable task of attempting to bring these non-human characters to life, a challenge that could have easily been a disaster. His mastery of dynamic action sequences and a commitment to keeping CGI enhancements to a minimum – you really won’t believe how much of the series is pure traditional puppetry – is the stuff Hollywood legends are made of. In an unorthodox project like this, good scripts and fantastic voice acting can only take you so far. It is making these performances feel seamlessly alive that is the ultimate challenge. And Leterrier does, wonderfully.

further reading - The Dark Crystal: What Makes Age of Resistance Unique TV?

This being the hellscape that is 2019, it is impossible to watch the greed and corruption that the Skeksis get involved with and not think of America’s current political climate. (Be prepared for an onslaught of thinkpieces comparing the Skeksis Emperor to our current president). By reinventing a nearly 40-year-old piece of IP as a contemporary political allegory might be the greatest feather in Age of Resistance’s cap.

Somewhat more subtle is the series' commentary on same sex marriage and enviornmentalism, issues that demand attention as our society continues to careen backwards. "The Rainbow Connection" is nowhere to be found here, but the show reminds us that we are all bound together as humans in this world of chaos.

Over the course of these 10 episodes we get to know and care about Rian, Brea, and Deet, as well as their associates, the evil Skeksis, and the world of Thra intimately. From the technological advances in puppetry that will be dissected for years to come to the sheer miracle that is reinvigorating a property that was long forgotten by mainstream viewers, Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance is a triumph of creativity and entertainment. Here’s hoping the saga finally becomes the pop culture behemoth it so deserves to be.

Chris Cummins is a Philadelphia-based writer, producer, and comics historian. Read more of his work here. You can find him on Twitter at @bionicbigfoot and @scifiexplosion

OK, so almost nobody really liked The Flash costume last year. Despite trading the leather look for something a little more hi-tech, a little more brightly colored, and one that emphasized the slim, runner's silhouette that so defined Carmine Infantino's early Flash comics, most agreed that there was something just a little bit off about the final effect. Most of that problem seemed to come from the headgear, which eliminated the chinstrap which helped to give the cowl a more symmetrical look, and the effect was occasionally that it made Barry's head appear a little too big for his body.

To be perfectly clear, I rather liked that suit, the weirdness of the cowl aside. But it was very much a point of contention among fans throughout the season. Well, you spoke and the Arrowverse listened, because Barry Allen will have a new costume when The Flashseason 6 gets here in October.

Grant Gustin assured fans at The Flash season 6 panel at SDCC that the new Flash suit is "pretty dang cool." After acknowledging that the suit last year wasn't anyone's favorite, he says that tweaks have been made to it this year that should make fans much happier. "It's the closest it's ever been to looking like the suit from the comics," Gustin said. 

TV Line revealed the first look at Barry's new suit, and while it isn't drastically different, that cowl is vastly improved. The return of the chinstrap definitely helps a lot of the issues that fans had with the overall effect. Check it out...

So then the question is, what will cause Barry to make the change to a new Flash suit? Will it be during a battle with new villain Bloodwork? Could it be something that happens leading to the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths? We'll find out when The Flash season 6 premieres on Oct. 8.

Mike Cecchini is the Editor in Chief of Den of Geek. You can read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @wayoutstuff.

This article comes from Den of Geek UK.

The late 2010's have been a banner time for horror. Across all media formats, horror is a big deal and everyone has been scrambling for a slice of that gory pie. Traditionally, horror is a big screen format, but with the rise of streaming services, the continued need for hours of content for cable, and network shows reaching out for marketable niche programming, small screen horror is thriving. Here are the eleven best horror shows currently airing.

The Haunting Of Hill House

Creator: Mike Flanagan

Broadcaster: Netflix

Premise: Hugh and Olivia Crain move into the crumbling Hill House with their five children. The goal is to renovate the mansion, sell it for a profit, and build the family dream home. Unfortunately for the Crains, the house needs more renovations than expected, and during that process, the Crain children begin to have terrifying paranormal experiences. The ghostly happenings escalate into a world-shattering tragedy that haunts the Crains to the present day. Read our full spoiler-free review here.

Why it's worth watching: Hill House manages to be one of the most famous and influential books in horror, one of the best movies in horror (1963's The Haunting), and an exercise in both emotional anguish and psychological terror. Somehow it's simultaneously beautiful to look at, hard to watch, emotionally wrenching, and visceral. There are images in that show that are hard to forget. A second season, called The Haunting Of Bly Manor, is forthcoming.

read more: Everything We Know About The Haunting of Bly Manor

Black Summer

Creators: Karl Schaefer and John Hyams

Broadcaster: Netflix

Premise: In the early days of the zombie apocalypse, there's still order, but humanity is being pushed back by an enemy that can't be reasoned with and is incredibly difficult to kill. For Jaime King's Rose, her only goal is to reunite with her daughter. But in order to do that, she'll need to survive in a rapidly changing world, with the help of a small group of survivors.

read more: Upcoming Horror Movies Heading Your Way

Why it's worth watching: The Asylum is mostly known for its mockbusters, but the studio has quietly put together a solid reputation in the world of genre film and television. Say what you want about their relative merits, the Sharknado films were kind of fun (at least the first one), and The Asylum's zombie television series, Z Nation, was a bit of lightness in an otherwise grim genre. Where Z Nation used atmosphere for amusement, Black Summer uses atmosphere for dread. The same alchemy the goes into crafting a joke works equally well for crafting a scare, and Black Summer pulls no punches in showing the bleakness and terror of a world slowly succumbing to madness. Without The Walking Dead's special effects budget, Black Summer's scares come from brilliant film-making and zombies that are faster, stronger, and more relentless than their big-budget relative.

Season one of Black Summer debuted in April.

The Terror

Creator: David Kajganich

Broadcaster: AMC

Premise: Two of the Royal Navy's most high-tech ships, the HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, are on an expedition to find the fabled Northwest Passage. Using a combination of engine and sail, the two ships plan to break through the Arctic ice and find passage to India. The two ships, unsurprisingly, end up frozen in the ice, isolated hundreds of miles from the nearest habitation. A mysterious creature and the pitiless cruelty of nature endangers the sailors from without, while human frailty, illness, and insanity threatens them from within. Will Sir John Franklin, Captain Francis Crozier, and the rest of the HMS Terror and Erebus survive in a land where summer never comes? You can follow along with our episodic reviews of season 1 here.

Why it's worth watching: If The Thing isn't bleak enough for you, consider The Terror. Never has a show felt both claustrophobic and agoraphobic at the same time. Top-notch performances from Jared Harris, Tobias Menzies, Ciaran Hinds, and Paul Ready serve to push along a tight, tense story. Even before the monster begins to kill crew members, The Terror lives up to its name.

A second season in the anthology series, called The Terror: Infamy, recently debuted.

read more: Why The Terror: Infamy Is The Most Important Show On Right Now

American Horror Story

Creators: Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk

Broadcaster: FX

Premise: The original and most successful horror anthology series of recent years, American Horror Story is the forerunner for things like Into The Dark and the second season of The Terror. Each season is a self-contained miniseries with different characters, settings, and themes. The most resent season, Apocalypse, brought together the characters and casts from two previous seasons, Murder House and Coven, to craft a campy, gory tale of the end of the world.

further reading: The Best Horror Movies on HBO Go

Why it's worth watching: When American Horror Story is at its peak, it's brilliant television. Funny, evocative, insightful, bold, and unlike anything else on the small screen. Like any anthology, some stories are better than others, but a strong repertory company of actors, including Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Kathy Bates, and more, team with genre veteran writers and directors like Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, Jennifer Lynch, James Wong, and Jessica Sharzer to bring to life characters both amusing and terrifying in turn. If one season doesn't resonate, then simply wait for the next, it's guaranteed to be different.

American Horror Story season 9 is titled "1984" and appears to be heavily influenced by 80s slasher films and is coming in September.

The Walking Dead

Creators: Robert Kirkman, Frank Darabont, Gale Ann Hurd, and a whole host of others

Broadcaster: FX

Premise: Years into a zombie apocalypse, motley crews of survivors come together, fracture apart, fight, feud, and cooperate with one another in the face of an overwhelming zombie menace waiting for an opening to pounce upon the struggling survivors.

Further Reading: The Walking Dead Season 9 Ending Explained

Why it's worth watching: With the departure of Andrew Lincoln, Lauren Cohan, and showrunner Scott Gimple, The Walking Dead's ninth season is something of a new start for an already established show. With new showrunner Angela Kang comes new directors, new writers, new actors, and an infusion of freshness into what remains one of cable television's dominant programs. Certainly, it's not the unkillable juggernaut it was a few years ago, but more is on the way with a retooled companion piece in Fear The Walking Dead, an upcoming trilogy of movies starring Rick Grimes, and a spinoff YA series planned. Like the titular zombies, it might be slowing, but it isn't stopping any time soon. The Walking Deadhas survived competition, audience fracture, and network interference like no show of its type, and it continues to produce great drama and impressive scares.

The Walking Dead Season 10 is coming on Sunday, Oct. 6th. Here's everything we know about the upcoming season.

Into The Dark

Creators: Blumhouse Productions, various writers and directors.

Broadcaster: Hulu

Premise: A different movie every month, inspired by the month of its release, all tied together in a loose anthology format.

Why it's worth watching: Various horror note-worthies (Nacho Vigalongo and Patrick Lussier among others) are given a different holiday or special event to base a horror film around. Some of these, like Halloween and Christmas, are obvious. Others, like International Women's Day, give the creative crew an opportunity to skew more political. The results can be a mixed bag in terms of an individual story's success or failure, but Jason Blum and company deserve all the credit in the world for trying something new. It's an anthology series of movies, all of which feel different and yet similar, thanks to what I can only describe as the Blumhouse aesthetic.

read more: How Into The Dark Episode 1 Sets The Tone For The Series

Stranger Things

Creators: The Duffer Brothers

Broadcaster: Netflix

Premise: In the rural town of Hawkins, Indiana, strange things are happening, and we're not talking about the 1980's hairstyles and fashions. We're talking an alternate dimension, supernatural monsters, telekinesis, psychic powers, mustaches, missing children, and secret governmental conspiracies.

Why it's worth watching: Let's be honest, you've probably already watched Stranger Things. 1980's nostalgia, science fiction, horror, and some impressive performances from folks like Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Joe Keery, Finn Wolfhard, Sean Astin, Paul Reiser. and Millie Bobbie Brown, among others. The show leans a bit more sci-fi than horror most of the time, but like Alien, it blurs that line quite a bit. Stranger Things season 4 is already in production.

read more: Stranger Things Season 3 easter egg guide

The Purge

Creators: James DeMonaco

Broadcaster: USA Network

Premise: In a dystopian America in which all crime is legal for one 12-hour period per year, various characters have various experiences during Purge night while trying to survive an orgy of murder.

read more: How The Purge TV Show Continues The Film Universe's Story 

Why it's worth watching: If you liked the Purge movies (a fifth one is on the way), you'll probably like the Purge TV series. It's not quite as tightly written, and the first season had a few characters who were less interesting than others, but such is the nature of episodic television. When The Purge leaned into its premise with things like Good Leader Tavis's death cult and the murder carnival, it was the kind of impressive weirdness that can still struggle to find a home on television, especially a basic cable outlet like USA. Certainly, it pulled a few punches considering the limits of network standards and practices, but not as many as one might expect.

The Purge season 2 is coming sometime in 2019. Here's what we know about the new installment of the anthology.

The Last Drive-In With Joe Bob Briggs

Creators: Austin Jennings, John Bloom

Broadcaster: Shudder

Premise: The world's foremost drive-in movie critic screens horror films both classic and obscure, dovetailing each film with the “Drive-In Totals,” facts about the film and filmmakers, personal stories, jokes, observations, and the occasional musical interlude.

Why it's worth watching: After three successful movie marathons proved the viability of the horror host format, Joe Bob Briggs and company have made the most of their new home on Shudder. Basically, The Last Drive-In is a rehash of Briggs' previous shows, Drive-In Theater and MonsterVision, but on an uncensored streaming service. Yes, Briggs will interrupt the movies he presents at several points to inject facts, tell stories, or otherwise weave tales into the fabric of the film, but for fans of Joe Bob's unique brand of wit, those interruptions are welcome indeed. The films themselves vary based on Shudder's library, but thus far Joe Bob and Darcy the Mail Girl have dissected and discussed wide-ranging fare from classics like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Phantasm to oddities like Q The Winged Serpent and Street Trash. Where else could you possibly watch a loving tribute to the late director Larry Cohen during one film, and watch a movie in which people play gridiron football with a severed penis during the next film? The movies themselves can be a lot of fun, but it's hearing Joe Bob talk in depth about (and to) the creators and stars of these movies that makes The Last Drive-In worthwhile viewing.

A second season has been announced to great fanfare.

further reading: The Best Horror Movies on Hulu

Dark

Creators: Baran bo Odar, Jantje Friese

Broadcaster: Netflix

Premise: Dark is an ncredibly complicated German time travel horror involving missing children and multiple time lines. This is sci-fi/horror which veers into full on "good versus evil" territory, as families who live in the small town of Winden are charted through three generations. This is the first German-language Netflix original, there are two seasons already available to watch, with a third and final season already commissioned.

further reading: Dark Season 2 Release Date, Trailer, and More

Why it's worth watching: If you can actually follow what’s going on this is a massively rewarding watch with revelations, twists and out-there moments in every episode. Season one ends with a massive cliff hanger which opens up the series to whole new post-apocalyptic possibilities and season two is even more expansive but definitely no less complicated. If you like your horror existential, and you’re not put off by subtitles this is well worth your time. A third and final season is in production.

Black Mirror

Creator: Charlie Brooker

Broadcaster: Netflix

Premise: An anthology series focusing on the dark side of technology, the "Black Mirror" of the title refers to your phone screen, as well as indicating the show’s satirical and sinister reflection of society. Episodes frequently boast an a-list cast and high profile guest directors including Joe Wright, Jodie Foster, Dan Trachtenberg, and John Hillcoat.

Why it's worth watching: There are five seasons to date and each has some serious high points. Season one’s peak is probably "The Entire History Of You." For season two we’d go for "Be Right Back," while season three, after the show’s move to Netflix, has at least four corkers in "Nosedive,""Playtest,""Shut Up And Dance" and "San Junipero." For season four we’d recommend "USS Callister,""Hang The DJ" and "Crocodile," and in five "Striking Vipers" would be our top pick. The feature length choose your own adventure style standalone "Bandersnatch" is also very much worth a watch where you can actually pick the direction of the narrative yourself. This is some of the smartest TV around.

further reading: Black Mirror - Ranking Every Episode

On an ensemble series like Legends of Tomorrow, change is a constant. Characters come and go, as old favorites say goodbye and new faces arrive. The unexpected impact of things like magic and time travel means that characters or stories can become different versions of themselves virtually overnight. And while those changes are often sad, the twists are at least somewhat understandable.

Not so much this time, though.

The news that Legends star Courtney Ford, who plays semi-reformed villain Nora Darhk, will be leaving the show in Season 5 is a decision that’s tremendously difficult to accept, precisely because it seems so… well, wrong.

Nora’s redemption arc had only barely begun, and her slow transition from a girl traumatized by a toxic childhood to a woman capable of both atoning for her past and forging a completely new future feels like a story with much left to explore. Because Nora’s journey isn’t just about a former villain learning how to change; it’s also about a survivor discovering how to heal.

read more: Fall 2019 TV Preview

Original Legends cast member Brandon Routh (married to Ford in real life) is also reportedly exiting the Waverider this upcoming season, and we’ll all certainly miss Ray Palmer’s big heart and aggressive optimism—not to mention his charming bromance with Nate. But Nora’s departure is a true gut punch, if only because it feels as though some of the most important parts of her story hadn’t even happened yet.

Legends of Tomorrow has a laudable history of telling stories about complicated, complex women. The evolution of Sara Lance from lost ex-assassin to brave, competent group leader has been amazing to watch. Zari fought to save her family in the future as she learned to let go of some of her anger and open herself up to others. Ava wrestled with the discovery that she was actually a clone and all of her memories were lies. And Amaya used her journey to the future to determine how best to face her own destiny in the past.

read more: Legends of Tomorrow Season 5 Story Details Revealed

Therefore, the fact that the show decided to rehabilitate Damien Darhk’s daughter Nora—a villainous time witch who was possessed by a demon as a child—certainly isn’t a surprise. In fact, Nora is exactly the kind of intricate, messy character Legends of Tomorrow generally loves to explore. Which is why it’s so frustrating that the show appears to be abandoning her story well before it ought to be over. Because, while Nora Darhk may have entered the world of Legends as a villain, she has evolved into one of the show’s strongest and most interesting (female) characters.

Nora has fought for a chance at redemption, taken responsibility for the evils she has committed and the mistakes she has made, and has repeatedly tried to atone for them. Throughout Season 4, we saw Nora make different choices than she ever has before. She refused to use her magic, afraid that doing so would draw her back to her darker side. She rescued Constantine, at some personal risk. And she turned herself in to the Time Bureau, rather than go back to a life on the run. For once, we’re actually watching a character do the hard work of change, and it’s been fascinating to see unfold.

read more: Legends of Tomorrow Season 4 Episode Guide & Reviews

Nora was first introduced on Arrow, where her father was a major villain during its second and third seasons (and Nora was a young girl). By the time the character arrived on Legends, she was a time-displaced adult version of herself, bitter over a life spent watching her father chase immortality. Growing up as Damien Darhk’s daughter would have probably been enough to make anyone a borderline supervillain, but Nora also spent large chunks of her life in an insane asylum, a death cult, and serving as a vessel for an evil demon by the name of Mallus.

As a result, much of Nora’s life has never been her own, and she’s a victim as much as she’s ever been a villain. And her story on Legends has been just as much about healing as it has been atonement. Nora’s initial rough edges, anger and bitterness are the natural outcomes of a lifetime of abuse and trauma, but her decision to choose a different path is all her. But it’s a transition that’s messy and takes time.

Giving herself up in the name of rectifying her past behavior isn’t an instant panacea for her problems. Sure, she’s paying for her crimes, but Nora initially remains distant from everyone around her, even those who are trying their best to help her. Whether that’s because she doesn’t think she deserves kindness, or because she simply doesn’t know how to make friends, it’s heartbreaking. As Season 4 continues, we see Nora grow closer to several of the other Legends, join a bookclub with Mona and Ava, and open herself up to genuinely becoming part of the group on her own terms.

read more: Crisis On Infinite Earths — Who is Pariah?

At this point, after becoming a Fairy Godmother and journeying to Hell to save Constantine, it feels like Nora has firmly turned a corner toward the side of light. But that in no way means that her redemption arc is complete. Healing and change are processes, after all—processes that are far from linear—and it feels important that we see the full narrative sweep of Nora’s story. It’s rare that mainstream television allows characters like this – victims of abuse, trauma, or other emotional hurts – to heal in real time, and there’s something that feels so necessary about doing so.

Nora is proof that who you once were doesn’t have to define who you will become. And that has always been one of the key messages at the heart of Legends: that anyone can change, and become better than who they used to be. What an incredibly hopeful storytelling foundation. We deserve the chance to see the person Nora will grow to be – as well as the process of how she gets there.

read more: Supergirl Producers Tease Season 5 Leviathan Arc

Far too often, TV characters achieve some perceived “redemption”—or at least join the side of the good guys for an episode or two—with little to no effort, as though there is simply a switch inside all of us that lets us determine whether we’re a good or a bad person. (That’s literally how it works on The Vampire Diaries, after all.) Likewise, characters suffering from trauma often wind up miraculously healed or instantly well-adjusted, rather than going to therapy or doing anything to help them process what they’re going through. (See also: The entire cast of Riverdale.)

Very rarely do we as viewers get the chance to see how genuinely difficult it is for a person to truly change, or the amount of real work that healing requires. But Legends of Tomorrow has always been a different beast in that regard. The proverbial Island of Misfit Toys of the Arrowverse, it’s a home for broken, damaged people who have never necessarily fit elsewhere. These are characters who stumble, regress and fail. Who may have been villains in other lives.

read more: Brandon Routh to Play Kingdom Come Superman

Every person on the Waverider is on their own journey to redemption, and they’re all healing themselves as much as they’re ever fixing the anomalies and corralling the magical creatures scattered throughout the timeline. Nora deserves the chance to do the same, and the survivors out in the Legends audience deserve the opportunity to watch her try, probably fail, and then try again. Because that’s what the hero’s journey ultimately is. And it’s exactly the sort of story this show does best.

However, since Ford and Routh appear to be leaving the show at the same time, one can only assume that Ray and Nora will get a happy ending together, in some form or other. To be fair, isn’t a bad thing on the surface; their relationship is sweet, romantic, and has played a big role in Nora discovering her inner worth and strength. But, there’s something about this idea that feels as though Legends is prepared to simply give Nora a great boyfriend, send her on her way, and call the story of her redemption a victory.

read more: Crisis On Infinite Earths — Everything You Need to Know About the Arrowverse Crossover

But the thing is: it isn’t. It can’t be. No matter how much she and Ray love one another, a successful romance isn’t an acceptable substitute for holistic character development, and it isn’t the same thing as giving Nora a story a proper ending in its own right.

We don’t yet know how Legends will wrap up Nora’s storyline, but the fact remains: Legendsonly just started digging into her redemption arc, and what her decision to choose to change means for her, as a person. Her character deserves better than a sudden, unexpected exit – and viewers do too. Because the ending of Nora’s story shouldn’t be tied to man – not even one as wonderful as Ray. It should be about whether she can truly heal and change. That’s the part we deserve to see.

Lacy Baugher is a digital producer by day, but a television enthusiast pretty much all the time. Her writing has been featured in Paste Magazine, Collider, IGN, SyFyWire and elsewhere. Literally always looking for someone to yell about Doctor Who and/or the CW superhero properties with, you can find her on Twitter @LacyMB.

This DuckTales review contains spoilers.

DuckTales Season 2 Episode 20

While today’s DuckTales was about celebrating what makes you unique and special (even if it’s crashing a plane) there’s something a bit deeper I want to read into. Both Launchpad and Webby have trouble acknowledging reality.

For Webby it’s straightforward. When face with mounting evidence that her quest for treasure is in vain, she desperately searches for any reason to keep the hunt going. Looks for anything she may have missed. For Launchpad it’s more outlandish but look at that moment when Della tells him he’s a bad pilot. Perhaps it’s the first time anyone has told him this point blank. He has no idea how to respond. It’s a brief moment but it says a lot, especially when he quickly pivots to his new desire of being Della’s co-pilot.

Webby and Launchpad are different and look at reality just a bit differently than we do, they have their heads in the clouds. As Della says to Webby at the climax of the episode, she’s unique and special. Webby gets excited about adventure and treasure, to the point she’s crawling like a spider on the ceiling (HOW DID SHE DO THAT?) Launchpad crashes things constantly yet it doesn’t faze him. To the outside world these can seem peculiar and at times downright frustrating, as it was for Della.

Crucially DuckTales doesn’t out and out excuse Launchpad for always crashing, it does hinder the family sometimes. Same with Webby, her tendency to go overboard with adventuring does put people in danger. Still, just because these two aren’t exactly what society would call “normal” that doesn’t make them bad or unworthy. The normal way you're "supposed" to act shouldn't define you.

Webby’s quest to be more like Della is shot down and that’s what this episode needed. It’s not about being more like someone else. It’s about learning who you are and what makes you unique and special. You may have quirks but there’s always a place where they can be celebrated. So really, Webby and Launchpad don't have trouble acknowledging reality. Not really. They just see things a little bit differently. 

‘Happy Birthday, Doofus Drake!’ touched on this as well, with Louie trying to be more like Goldie than himself. It’s a great lesson that DuckTales, as always, is doing a killer job with. In our world today where people are being persecuted simply for being different, it’s comforting DuckTales is celebrating those things that make us all unique. 

The whole adventure was lower stakes than we’re used to but that’s fine, not every episode can be earth shattering. Seeing Della and Launchpad together was an unexpected treat and their dynamic deserves to be revisited. The ultimate resolution of the popcorn was a neat twist and reminds us that treasure isn’t always riches. Sometimes it’s delicious!

DuckTales Quotes To Make Your Life Better 

- “Cool, this is our tomb.”

- “Quite repeating yourself, history, you rascal!”

Keep us with all our DuckTales season 2 news and reviews here!

Shamus Kelley is a pop culture/television writer and official Power Rangers expert. Follow him on Twitter! Read more articles by him here!

This article is presented in partnership with Leftfield Media and Big Easy Con.

It isn’t enough to throw a party in New Orleans; it has to be done the right way, in a style befitting the Crescent City. And that’s a big part of why the Big Easy Con pop culture event by Leftfield Media announced its inaugural show would be moved from June to November 1-3, 2019. 

That’s according to Ron Brister, co-founder of Leftfield Media, who joined Den of Geek to discuss these changes, and to ensure that the “big” in Big Easy would be even bigger due to the November date.

“New Orleans is a vibrant, highly artistic community with a level of artisans, and crafters in the area that rivals most of the nation,” says Brister. “And the connection between New Orleans and fandom is pretty sticky with its relationships to the macabre, and vampires, and as a home to great authors, storytelling, rich street art, huge cosplay, parades, and pageantry -- all things that line up with comic cons and fits perfectly into what we’re passionate about and celebrate.”

“But sometimes -- whether you’re a 30-year-old event company or a start-up, and I’ve been in both – you have miscalculations,” he adds. 

Brister says Leftfield always wanted to have a three-day show in New Orleans, although it did settle on the initial two-day event. However he says they heard “loud and clear” that the time frame was tough for vendors. Additionally, he admits the June date also put Big Easy opposite Denver Comic Con, which he calls a national show, and that created challenges in “attracting the level of guests we expect to bring to our shows.”

read more: Inside Awesome Con and Its Fan First Approach

“When you’re trying to attract the biggest, brightest comic guests, doing a three-day convention versus a two-day convention makes a lot more sense to them, financially, because that is a pretty big chunk of income," Brister says. "I wouldn’t try to persuade them to do our show over Denver, because that was a better show to do.”

“We made a tough decision,” he says. “We decided this was not the show the community would want, and not something from a brand perspective we’d be proud of for a two-day show.”

But the move has allowed Leftfield to re-focus energy to November’s Big Easy Con to make it the best possible event in New Orleans, he says. He acknowledges that the move also requires the organization to re-establish trust with the community. 

“We knew we weren’t going to get high fives for it, but we knew it was the right decision,” Brister says. “When we make mistakes, we own up to them, and within the community, the most important part is the artist alley, and maker’s market.”

read more - Comic Con Calendar: Upcoming Conventions in 2019

To earn that trust back, Leftfield has refunded table expenses to all those impacted by the date change, and have offered the same space for free during the November event. According to Brister the move is because he wants those vendors to be part of their community with as little risk as possible.

“It wasn’t their fault we needed to move the dates; that is 100 percent on us.”

Moreover, he adds the con continues to partner with Urban South Brewing (just a mile from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, where Big Easy will be held), and have an event there May 31 “to meet up with the community, and tell them we’re not abandoning the market.” Plus, they will continue to have meetups in the area throughout November to build momentum.

Though the date change has unfortunately led to the event losing John Barrowman as guest, due to the Doctor Who and Arrow actor’s prior commitment (“So we’ll have to bring John back,” says Brister), the date change has also allowed unique opportunities for Big Easy that weren’t available for the original June setting. 

For instance, now the event is able to bring on board Shazam’s Zachary Levi as a headline guest. 

“We chased Zachary Levi for a little while, but we waited too long, and Denver got him,” Brister says. “We were super bummed out about it because he’s not only a hot movie property, but a genuinely nice person, so when we decided we were going to move the date, he was the first person we went after.” 

Additionally, Brister says November has allowed the event to pursue tentpole talent that weren’t otherwise available, and which will be announced shortly. He notes that the new date is on the other side of large-scale events New York Comic Con, and no longer right before San Diego Comic-Con International. Meanwhile, some actors have lighter production schedules during that time. 

read more: Geek Travel Destinations for Genre Fans

“All the difficulties we were having in getting people in June, we’re not facing in November,” he says, before adding with a laugh that, “I had some people who wanted to come to New Orleans, but don’t like to sweat, and didn’t want to go in June!”

“At the end of the day, our guest list will be stronger than it was in June, and from a programming perspective, we were 100 percent ready to go, so we’ll have even better content, and polish what we were working on.”

Brister also emphasizes the event’s focus on the family-first Big Easy Con Jr. programming, and Future Con, which includes conversations on science, and science fiction, with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Smithsonian magazine. 

So while Big Easy Con still promises to be a hot show, the new November 1-3, 2019, date also makes it cooler due to nicer New Orleans weather. And Ron Brister of Leftfield Media says to stay tuned, because the Big Easy will now be bigger than before with upcoming announcements.

Big Easy Con runs from Nov. 1-3 in New Orleans, LA. Click here for more info!

BoJack Horseman Season 6 is coming whether BoJack can handle it or not. Season 5 darn near killed the poor guy/horse but hopefully he'll have some time to recover.

The Hollywood Reporter first reported that Netflix officially ordered BoJack Horseman Season 6. The show then confirmed the news via its Twitter account. 

BoJack Horseman is one of Netflix's, and television's very best shows. Ostensibly a comedy, BoJack Horseman also happens to be a searing psychological drama about one aging actor's ego and depression. It's a fun watch, of course, but things also happen to get pretty dicey for our beloved lead horse. 

further reading: BoJack Horseman Season 5 Proves the Show Can Last Forever

BoJack Horseman comes from a time in Netflix's life cycle in which it didn't secure the worldwide rights to its shows. That's why BoJack reruns are heading to Comedy Central in syndication. Thankfully it looks like the won't effect the fate of BoJack Horseman Season 6. 

BoJack Horseman Season 6 Release Date

There is no confirmed release date for BoJack Horseman Season 6 yet. Thankfully, Netflix has been fairly consistent with scheduling the show around the beginning of the fall season in September. Barring any major interruptions we should look for BoJack in the fall of 2019.

BoJack Horseman Season 6 Story

So what does show creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg have in mind for future seasons? Before Season 6 was officially confirmed Bob-Waksberg granted an interview to Metro. This is what he had to say about the direction of the show:

"I'm always sure that every season is going to be the season that everyone turns on us, the season that we finally screw it up. Every year that doesn't happen, it only increases the pressure for the following year. Someday, I’ll probably crack and walk away from the show because it's killing me, but maybe I'll wait until we get that eventual backlash. Though really, I'm going to keep making the show as long as I can. There might come a time when the show doesn't excite me anymore, but there are still lots of stories and relationships to explore. It hasn't gotten boring yet. There’s a danger of it becoming boring for an audience, maybe before it becomes boring for me, but as long as they still enjoy it, and I still enjoy it, I'm going to keep making it."

Well there you go. Netflix is still enjoying the BoJack ride too.

It's rarely revealed what any given BoJack Horseman season is about before it debuts but it's fair to assume that Season 6 will catch up with BoJack still in or freshly out of rehab.

Alec Bojalad is TV Editor at Den of Geek. Read more of his stuff here. Follow him at his creatively-named Twitter handle @alecbojalad

Lost in Space Season 2 has officially been confirmed by Netflix.

Lost in Space Season 1's promising, cliffhanger conclusion indicates that the producers are confident there will be a Lost in Space Season 2. Series co-creators Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama confirmed to IndieWire that they are working on season two and have some "wild' ideas.

further reading: Best New TV Shows From 2018

“We are working on scripts and hoping that, if we get a green light, we’re ready to go,” Sazama said. “We’ve had a lot of thoughts about it, and hopefully, if everyone watches it, we’ll get to see more adventures of the Robinsons, because we do have some crazy stuff planned out that we really hope we get to film.”

Lost in Space Season 2 Release Date

Netflix has yet to announce a Lost in Space Season 2 release date. Season one debuted on April 13th, 2018. Obviously that's not in the cards for 2019. We'll keep an eye on it. We may get a release date soon with the season 1 DVD/Blu-Ray now out.

Lost in Space Season 2 Cast

Lost in Space Season 2's cast could either be much bigger or much smaller. Notably, Lost in Space Season 1 ends with a huge paring down of the cast so that only the eight main characters from the original series remain: John, Maureen, Judy, Penny, Will, Smith, Don, and the Robot. Characters like Victor, Vijay, the Watanabes, and more are back home on aboard the Resolute and on their way to Alpha Centauri.

further reading: Lost in Space: Inside the Creation of the Robot

With the absence of those supporting characters though, the show has a unique opportunity to make its cast even bigger. The Robinsons, Smith, and West are now on the outskirts of an alien world. Will this mean more CGI/make-up characters? One can only hope so.

Though a report from The Hashtag Show suggests that some honest-to-goodness human being characters will be joining the show in Season 2. The first new addition will be Ava, a 20-40-something mechanic supervisor. She's a serious individual with little time for Don West's nonsense. Commander Jiang will also be introduced in Season 2. She is the commander aboard the Resolute and is described as capable, stalwart, and...uh, resolute? Looks like the Robinsons won't be lost that much longer. 

Lost in Space Season 2 Episodes

There is no word on how many episodes Lost in Spacemay run. Season 1 featured 10 episodes and it seems to be an expensive show so they'll probably shoot for 10 or less.

Lost in Space Season 2 Plot Details

There have been no leaks from the set about Lost in Space Season 2's story but thanks to that season 1 cliffhanger, we know some relevants details for season 2. The Robinsons were only kind of lost in space in Lost in Space Season 1. They had other marooned colonists to keep them company and at least roughly knew the location of the Resolute.

further reading: Lost in Space Graphic Novel Coming This Fall

For Lost in Space Season 2, all of that goes bye-bye. The Robinsons have been transported to a truly remote and unknown corner of the universe, far, far away from any of their Resolute comrades. The only clue we have about the location of that planet (which resembles a collapsed star) is that it has something to do with the Robot. So in conclusion...Lost in Space Season 2: fewer people, more robots!

Alec Bojalad is TV Editor at Den of Geek and TCA member. Read more of his stuff here. Follow him at his creatively-named Twitter handle @alecbojalad

This The Deuce review contains no spoilers.

Midway through The Deuce season 3’s first episode, “The Camera Loves You,” former Times Square streetwalker turned arthouse porn director Eileen “Candy” Merrell (Maggie Gyllenhaal) attends the 1985 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.

She and producing partner Harvey Wasserman (David Krumholtz) are there to hock their wares - stylish, slick, and largely feature-length pornography. As they sit behind their ill-attended booth, Candy and Harvey see two men wearing all black along with matching black pimp hats march in with a cadre of onlookers surrounding them.

“Who the fuck are they?” Candy asks, of the men gracelessly appropriating the world she used to live in.

“The Dark Brothers,” Harvey says. “They made a film Let Me Tell Ya ‘Bout White Chicks.It’s just a bunch of fuck scenes set to music but it sells.”

“Why? Sounds like loops.”

“Whatever it is, they’re hot as fire.”

“Why do they come dressed like that?”

“In public they come dressed as pimps. It’s marketing.”

“Any pimp I ever knew would sell those guys for parts.”

David Simon and George Pelecanos’ pornographic period masterpiece The Deuce has always resisted easy categorization. Like its Simonian forefathers in The Wire and Show Me a Hero, it is almost aggressively unpretentious and unadorned. The Times Square and Hollywood Hills of the ‘70s and ‘80s are presented in their full unvarnished and often disgusting glory. There is little to no soundtrack to speak of. Characters are rarely granted the opportunity or time to grow. They merely become more comfortable or languish.

Still, at its best, it remains one of the best dramas on television, because of its own adherence to its honest in-house style…or lack of style. With Candy and Harvey vs. The Dark Brothers, The Deuce isn’t trying to draw a comparison between real art and commercial art. At the end of the day, art is art, porn is porn, and art is porn. The Deuce’s argument is simply just reality, itself. It’s both Candy’s feminist porn films and the Dark Brothers fuck flicks. It’s beautiful and awful and real.

read more - Watchmen: Everything You Need to Know About the HBO Series

The Deuce eason 3, the show’s final go-around, opens with another now-expected time jump. We’re on the eve of 1985 now and The Deuce brings all the expected mid-‘80s trappings to the fore. The Deuce and Times Square in general is a mess. Apparently Officer Chris Alston (Lawrence Gilliard Jr.) and Gene Goldman’s (Luke Kirby) plan to make an honest neighborhood of Midtown has to get worse before it gets better. You can set your watch to the pickpocket attempts on 42nd…if your watch hasn’t been nicked already.

Brothers Vincent and Frankie Martino (James Franco) are more deeply involved with the mob than ever, even as the mob seems to be losing its power. Vincent is trying to make a go of it as an honest man with ex-wife Andrea (Zoe Kazan) while at the same time retaining his boundary-less relationship with Abby Parker (Margarita Levieva). Abby, meanwhile has come a long way from her days as a wide-eyed college student and now those eyes remain laser-focused on social justice and fighting the losing battle against the streets that churn up and spit out the working girls.

Candy remains in the porn world, even meeting a nice man named Hank (Corey Stoll) who has a surprising reaction to her past. Out on the west coast Lori Madison (Emily Meade) continues her ascent as a porn star, even as she begins to lose the battle against time itself. She’s in on the ground floor of the porn industry, but perhaps at the wrong time in her life. Bobby (Chris Bauer) continues to do Bobby things…only this time with a toupee.

Even through all the ugliness, and there is plenty of it with the HIV virus having New York fully in its thrall, it’s sometimes startling how entertaining The Deuce can be. Elevated runtimes of 55-60 minutes are thankfully becoming more rare in a television landscape dominated by algorithms and endless options, but The Deuce comes by its full hours honestly. The key is in the riveting, open-handed storytelling, of course, but also the editing.

The editing on The Deuce has always borrowed a bit from the Dark Brothers in its perchance for presenting small, bite-sized scenes one after another. And now in The Deuce season 3, the scenes have gotten even shorter. I swear there are at least two occasions in the first three episodes of season 3 in which a scene will cut out mid-conversation only to be picked up five minutes later after an interlude with another set of characters.

The effect is not only easy on the attention span but also charmingly suggests a writing staff bursting with love and excitement for all of the various plot threads involved. The Deuce can’t bare to be away from any one character for too long.

In its final season, The Deuce is something of a TV dinosaur. It resembles the long, languid HBO dramas of yore more than the many of the streaming and cable drama/comedy hybrids on the scene currently. But that means little in the grand scheme of TV conversations. “The job is the job,” Lester Freamon once said and in the entertainment business the job is to tell compelling stories.

In the end, HBO and the rest of the world at large has once again benefited from handing David Simon and friends a blank check. The Deuce has always had a way of capturing the way life is and the way it should be simultaneously. In that way it’s exactly unlike the porn it covers…or exactly like it. Depends on the porn you watch, I suppose.

The Deuce season 3 premieres on HBO on September 9 at 9 p.m. ET.

Alec Bojalad is TV Editor at Den of Geek and TCA member. Read more of his stuff here. Follow him at his creatively-named Twitter handle @alecbojalad

The Batwoman TV series is coming to The CW, bringing Bruce Wayne's cousin, Kate Kane, to the Arrowverse.

Caroline Dries (The Vampire Diaries) will serve as the writer and will executive produce, along with Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Geoff Johns. Marcos Siega directed the pilot. He brings a vast CV from director/producer TV runs on Dexter, The Following and The Vampire Diaries, most recently with work on the pilot episode of The Passage, as well as God Friended Me, You, Time After Time and Blindspot.

read more: Supergirl Season 5 — Everything We Know

Siega replaced David Nutter, the acclaimed small-screen director of iconic Game of Thrones episodes, as well as Arrow, The Flash, Smallville, Roswell, The X-Files and many more. While Nutter ceded his role for personal reasons, he will remain a credited EP on the Batwoman pilot. 

Check out our spoiler-free review of the first episode!

There's already several Batwoman trailers, all of which you can view by scrolling down to the appropriately marked section of this hub.

Here's everything else we know about the show so far...

Batwoman Cast

Ruby Rose (Orange is the New Black, John Wick: Chapter 2) was introduced as Kate Kane/Batwoman in the Elseworlds crossover, before launching into her own Batwoman TV show in 2019. 

"Batwoman is kind of like Batman," Rose recently told the New York Times regarding her incarnation of the role. "She’s sort of no-nonsense, very stern. She’s cheeky but she doesn’t speak a ton, and when she does, she kind of does a lower voice, hiding her identity. When I do fight sequences and stunts as Batwoman, I do the Alexander Technique, where we study the bat and study the movement. Even the head movements are kind of batlike, so it feels like two different people."

Rachel Skarsten, who previously played Dinah Lance (Black Canary) in the short-lived 2002 Birds of Prey series, has been cast as main villain Alice. "If Batwoman had a Joker, it would be Alice, the leader of her Lewis Carroll–inspired Wonderland Gang," her character description reads. "Swinging unpredictably between maniacal and charming, Alice has made it her mission to undermine Gotham’s sense of security."

Dougray Scott is set to play Jacob Kane, the father of Kate/Batwoman; a role that’s being referred to as the male lead in the series, as trades such as Deadline report. Jacob is depicted as a former military colonel who has contempt for vigilantes as he attempts to tackle the crime of Gotham with his private security firm, The Crows. However, in the ultimate irony, he’s unaware that his own daughter has become the very thing he reviles: a vigilante.

read more: GLOW Season 3 — Everything We Know

The character of Jacob, a fairly recent addition to the canon, was introduced in DC’s Detective Comics #854, dated August 2009. If his television trajectory matches the comics, then the adversarial relationship he has with vigilantes, specifically (his daughter,) Batwoman, is destined to become a partnership, since he is known for utilizing his connections and resources to help in her crimefighting endeavors.  

The veteran Scottish actor, Scott, was recently seen on Crackle's Snatch series, miniseries The Woman in White, Full Circle and Fear the Walking Dead. However, he’s best known from films such as Mission: Impossible II, My Week with Marilyn, Ever After: A Cinderella Story, Hitman and a TV run on Desperate Housewives. However, he’s also the Pete Best of the X-Men films, since he was originally cast to play Wolverine in Bryan Singer’s 2000 film until injuries sustained while filming the aforementioned M:I-2 prevented him from taking the role, which eventually went to a then-unknown Australian actor named Hugh Jackman.

read more: Dark Phoenix Director Takes Blame for Box Office

Meagan Tandy (Teen Wolf) is playing Sophie Moore, described as "After graduating from military academy, Sophie rose through the ranks to become a high-level private security agent and one of Gotham’s staunchest protectors. Despite her bite and regimented outlook, Sophie has a soft side, illuminated by Kate Kane’s return."

Camrus Johnson (Luke Cage) is Luke Fox, "A Dark Knight loyalist and son of Wayne’s R&D director Lucius Fox, Luke works to keep Wayne Tower secure in his boss’s absence. While Luke considers himself the guardian of all things Batman — specifically his symbol — he also recognizes the city’s need for a new hero." DC Comics fans will recognize Luke Fox as the character known as Batwing.

Nicole Kang (You) will play Mary Hamilton. "Excitable, talkative, and an influencer-in-the-making, Mary is Kate Kane’s step-sister and polar opposite. But what Mary lacks in a filter, she makes up for with her compassion for Gotham’s underserved communities, proving she has more in common with Kate than she thinks."

Batwoman Trailer

The CW has been pumping out Batwoman teaser trailers on a weekly basis. The latest clips, seen below in descending order, highlight Kate's backstory, while also showing more of the show's main antagonist, Alice (Rachel Skarsten), who already appears to be one of the creepiest villains we've seen in the Arrowverse shows.

The Batwoman trailer below, released during SDCC 2019, doesn't really give us much in terms of story details, but here it is anyway:

Here's another teaser focused more on a night-riding Kate Kane, rather than her crimefighting alter-ego.

Here's the first full trailer! 

And we got this "first look" at Kate Kane planning some tweaks to the Batman suit...

And here's the original teaser...

Batwoman Release Date

Batwoman will arrive on the CW in Fall of 2019. It premieres Sunday, October 6th at 8pm ET, and will be followed by Supergirl at 9pm ET. Check out this awesome promo featuring both Supergirl and Batwoman...

Batwoman Story

Here's the official synopsis for the Batwoman TV series:

Kate Kane (Ruby Rose) never planned to be Gotham’s new vigilante. Three years after Batman mysteriously disappeared, Gotham is a city in despair. Without the Caped Crusader, the Gotham City Police Department was overrun and outgunned by criminal gangs. Enter Jacob Kane (Dougray Scott) and his military-grade Crows Private Security, which now protects the city with omnipresent firepower and militia. Years before, Jacob’s first wife and daughter were killed in the crossfire of Gotham crime. He sent his only surviving daughter, Kate Kane, away from Gotham for her safety. After a dishonorable discharge from military school and years of brutal survival training, Kate returns home when the Alice in Wonderland gang targets her father and his security firm, by kidnapping his best Crow officer Sophie Moore (Meagan Tandy). Although remarried to wealthy socialite Catherine Hamilton-Kane (Elizabeth Anweis), who bankrolls the Crows, Jacob is still struggling with the family he lost, while keeping Kate –– the daughter he still has –– at a distance. But Kate is a woman who’s done asking for permission. In order to help her family and her city, she’ll have to become the one thing her father loathes –– a dark knight vigilante. With the help of her compassionate stepsister, Mary (Nicole Kang), and the crafty Luke Fox (Camrus Johnson), the son of Wayne Enterprises’ tech guru Lucius Fox, Kate Kane continues the legacy of her missing cousin, Bruce Wayne, as Batwoman. Still holding a flame for her ex-girlfriend, Sophie, Kate uses everything in her power to combat the dark machinations of the psychotic Alice (Rachel Skarsten), who’s always somewhere slipping between sane and insane. Armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, Kate soars through the shadowed streets of Gotham as Batwoman. But don’t call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, she must first overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham’s symbol of hope. 

We learned quite a bit about Kate Kane in her debut during the Arrow chapter of the Elseworlds crossover. For one thing, Ruby Rose is a great choice, and she gives Kate/Batwoman both gravity and swagger.

further reading: Elseworlds Explains Arrowverse Batman Status

The episode establishes quite a bit about the status of the Arrowverse Batman, as well, and this will set the tone for the Batwoman TV show down the line. Batman retired years ago, and Bruce Wayne has been missing for three years. In that time, Gotham City has fallen even deeper into despair and crime than usual, but there are still plenty of opportunities for familiar Bat-lore to appear. 

Batwoman has become a big part of the extended Batman family in recent years. First introduced in Detective Comics #233 and created by Edmond Hamilton and Sheldon Moldoff in 1956, Batwoman has gone through two different incarnations and they're both named Katherine. The Silver Age Batwoman is best known as Kathy Kane, who was created in order to offset rumors that Batman and Robin were homosexuals. Kathy created the persona of Batwoman to win the Caped Crusader's affection.

Kathy Kane was later dropped as a character by DC in 1964 when editor Julius Schwartz decided that he wanted to take the Batman books in a different direction. She would reappear in the '70s but was eventually killed off for good. Other writers, such as Grant Morrison, have reimagined her in the years since.

The far more popular version of Batwoman -- and the version we're getting in the Arrowverse -- was introduced in the 2006 DC weekly, 52, by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid, and Keith Giffen. This version is Kate Kane, a tough-as-nails former military school student, and is actually Bruce Wayne's cousin on his mother's side. Kate is also one of the first LGBT members of the Bat Family. The character has previously been in relationships with Renee Montoya and Maggie Sawyer (a connection The CW is surely aware of). 

read more: Every DC Comics Easter Egg in the Elseworlds Arrowverse Crossover

Unlike Kathy, who was mostly featured in books alongside other members of the Bat Family, Kate has enjoyed some memorable solo runs. In fact, Batwoman was one of the most popular books of the early New 52 era before the creative team of W. Haden Blackman and J.H. Williams III left the book after DC refused to let Batwoman marry Maggie Sawyer. 

Most recently, Batwoman has been one of the stars of the relaunched Detective Comics by James Tynion IV and finally has her own solo series again. It's written by Marguerite Bennett, with pencils by Fernando Blanco, Steve Epting, and Stephanie Hans. 

With such a long career in comics, Batwoman will certainly make a great addition to the Arrowverse as the DC TV universe prepares to explore Gotham City. We're looking forward to seeing what Ruby Rose can do with this beloved character!

Batwoman Costume

Check out a look at Ruby Rose in her full, and perfectly accurate, Batwoman costume right here!

Batwoman Villain

We learned at SDCC 2019 that Tommy Elliot, the troubled man who become the vile villain Hush in the comics, will appear on Batwoman. He's described as Kate's former friend who is now a bit of a rival. The first season will explore Elliot's origin story. Hush, one of Batman's modern archnemeses, was first introduced by Jeph Loeb and Jim in the fan-favorite Hush storyline that saw the Dark Knight face his past like never before. How this story might translate to Batwoman remains to be seen, but we're excited to find out!

Rachel Skarsten, who will be playing Batwoman antagonist Alice, the leader of the Wonderland Gang, recently spoke to TV Line about what to expect from her character, saying: "She is the big bad of the show. She plays the main antagonist. She has a very complex relationship with Batwoman, played by Ruby Rose, and she sort of teeters between sane and completely insane. Which is really fun."

Skarsten teased that Alice has "an axe to grind with another character on the show," and also "wants to run Gotham ... and bring mayhem wherever she goes."

"[Alice]’s a great manipulator of people," Skarsten continued, "and because she can sort of sit between the world of sane and insane, she can appeal to many different types of people. And actually, who she brings on side with her, on the show, is quite interesting."

Batwoman showrunner Caroline Dries revealed during the show's appearance at Summer 2019 TCA press tour that Kate will have yet another villain to contend with. While Alice remains the "big bad" of the season, other DC comic villain Magpie will be turning up as well. Magpie is Margaret Pye, a jewel thief with an appreciation for birds. There is no word on a casting yet. 

Read and download the Den of Geek SDCC 2019 Special Edition Magazine right here!

John Saavedra is an associate editor at Den of Geek. Read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @johnsjr9. 

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

The gravity-abused life of iconic stuntman Evel Knievel (1938-2007) will be chronicled by USA Network, which has ordered a limited series, titled Evel.

Milo Ventimiglia, who currently stars on NBC television drama This is Us (which manifests under the same corporate umbrella as the cable channel), will play the eponymous daredevil on USA Network’s Evel, which he’ll also executive produce. The series will focus on a specific period in Knievel’s career, namely the preparatory build-up before his famously-failed jump (atop a steam-powered rocket,) across Snake River Canyon – a heavily hyped event (which aired on closed-circuit television and at theaters,) that took place west of Idaho’s Shoshone Falls, on September 8, 1974, at 3:36 p.m. MDT.

The limited series comes after a 2015 spate of contemplated-but-nixed Evel Knievel biographical projects from heavies like Martin Scorsese and Darren Aronofsky. However, don’t expect the stunts to dominate here, since USA is teasing Evel as a character study on the life of the man himself – at least when not plummeting to the ground in grim-reaper-defying grandeur. Indeed, USA describes the series as “an exhilarating portrait of a complex man living the American dream, juggling meteoric celebrity and raising a family -- and facing the very real probability that his next jump will kill him.”

As Chris McCumber, President, Entertainment Networks – USA Network and SYFY expresses in a statement:

“USA Network is known for big event series that celebrate heroes, rebels and icons, and what could be bigger than the story of one of the greatest thrill seekers of all time?" He adds, "The incredible life and journey of Evel Knievel lends itself to a dramatic retelling, and we are excited to be partnering with Milo, McG, UCP, Atlas and Wonderland to bring this iconic American tale to our viewers.”

The Evel role presents an intriguing challenge for Milo Ventimiglia. Besides his ongoing starring role on This is Us, he recently co-starred with Amanda Seyfried in dog-centric dramedy The Art of Racing in the Rain, having come off a co-starring role with Jennifer Lopez in rom-com Second Act, a role reprisal (from 2006’s Rocky Balboa) as Rocky’s son in Creed II, horror film Devil’s Gate, Adam Sandler Netflix offering Sandy Wexler and even reprised his early-career television role as former well-read delinquent Jess Mariano on Netflix revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. Of course, genre fans know that Ventimiglia first came to prominence on NBC’s groundbreaking series, Heroes, which made a monumental impact in its 2006 arrival, only to stumble in subsequent seasons, eventually ending in 2010, save for a short-lived 2015 revival series, which he did not join.

Evel arrives under the creative purview of writer and executive producer Etan Frankel (Sorry for Your Loss, Shameless, Animal Kingdom). Joining him are executive producers McG, Mary Viola, and Steven Bello of Wonderland Sound & Vision, as well as Alex Gartner, Charles Roven, Topher Rhys-Lawrence of Atlas Entertainment and, as mentioned, star Ventimiglia. Additionally, Russ Cundiff will co-executive produce on behalf of DiVide Pictures.

Evel Release Date

Evel doesn’t have a release date yet, but production is expected to begin in 2020.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

Shared universes are apparently no longer restricted to Marvel and DC blockbusters, at least that’s the notion streaming service Hulu was embracing last December, when it started plans for television series adaptations of multiple John Grisham novels. That’s right, folks, Hulu was conceiving a live-action franchise that was to be called The John Grisham Universe! However, in the latest news, those plans have been taken off the table.

Hulu has ended development on its once-ambitious plans for serial television adaptations of John Grisham novels, according to Variety. While no reason was provided for the move, a major development worth noting is Disney's takeover of Hulu back in May. The plans were initially slated to started with 1995’s The Rainmaker and 2015’s Rogue Lawyer, which were designed to be connected continuity-wise, and adhere to a non-linear format that accommodates watching the episodes out of order, or, as the service’s statement puts it, either “vertically” or “horizontally.” The two series were, at one point, planned in a writer’s room simultaneously, with an initial benchmark of producing eight scripts for each.

The now-nixed developmental plans were set over at ABC Signature and Seitzman and Christina Davis’s ABC Studios-based Maniac Productions. For this initial duo of Grishamverse legal dramas, Hulu had tapped the creative coalition of writers Michael Seitzman (Quantico, Code Black), Jason Richman (Mercy Street, Detroit 1-8-7) and author Grisham himself, who, having given his blessing, was to have his say in the adaptation process as executive producer, joined in that capacity by the Seitzman/Richman duo and Davis.

Of course, several of Grisham’s novels have been adapted for the big screen (some more successful than others), most notably, the 1993 Tom Cruise-starring legal drama, The Firm, along with The Pelican Brief, The Client, A Time to Kill, The Chamber, A Painted House and Skipping Christmas (not counting Netflix’s recent Grisham docuseries, The Innocent Man). However, film buffs will remember The Rainmaker from director Francis Ford Coppola’s 1997 movie adaptation (pictured in the title image), in which Matt Damon starred as a recent law school grad who – joined by a shady partner played by Danny DeVito – attempts to do benevolent legal work by helping a leukemia patient whose insurance company unscrupulously denied treatment.

The Rogue Lawyer, which was to get its first live-action adaptation, centers on the exploits of a street-based solicitor who practices in the seedy side of the city out of the back of a black bulletproof van, joined only by a heavily-armed driver. However, Hulu’s aforementioned non-linear TV plans would have seen the stories of the two Grisham adaptations directly intertwined, sharing a murder mystery that will be connected to a larger conspiracy (its own proverbial Infinity Gauntlet-wielding Thanos, if you will), making the manner in which these shows were to be binged subjective to one’s own tastes. Yet, the structure of Hulu’s John Grisham Universe was set to be designed organically and expand at a careful rate.

It will be interesting to see if the seemingly incompatible concepts of “John Grisham” and “Universe” will end up being salvaged by another streaming platform or network.

*This article was originally published on December 4, 2018 and has been updated with new information.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

Catherine the Great is headed to HBO in the U.S. and Sky in the U.K. as a four-part television miniseries starring Helen Mirren (who will also direct and executive produce). She plays the eponymous Russian empress, whose late-18^th-century reign is widely considered the Golden Age of the old Russian monarchy and a time of rapid rise for the country. Indeed, the miniseries focuses on Catherine's political machinations, chronicling her rise to power and subsequent rule.

Mirren will be joined by co-star Jason Clarke, who plays Grigory Potemkin, a Russian military leader who came into Catherine’s favor as a friend and trusted advisor, going back to his support for her during the 1762 coup, which removed her husband, Emperor Peter III, from the throne, leading to her ascension. The series serves as a quick reunion, since Clarke recently co-starred with Mirren in the 2017 fact-based horror film, Winchester.

Catherine the Great Trailer

Here's the full trailer for HBO's Catherine the Great.

You can also check out the teaser trailer below.

Catherine the Great Release Date

Catherine the Great will premiere on HBO on Monday, October 21 at 10 p.m.

Catherine the Great Details

Catherine’s story is one that saw a monarch who brandished attitudes considered modern in terms of strength, independence and sexual liberation, making the role of this historical figure perfect for Mirren, who knows the cinematic throne well, notably from her Oscar-winning role as Queen Elizabeth II in 2006’s The Queen. Indeed, in the January 2018 press release that initially announced the project, Mirren stated:  

“I am very excited by the possibility of embodying a woman from history who grabbed and then wielded great power. She rewrote the rules of governance by a woman, and succeeded to the extent of having the word Great attached to her name, Catherine the Great. I am very grateful to have HBO and Sky as partners in this endeavour. There are no other homes on television that bring the support and understanding needed for this kind of project.”

The title role is especially apropos for the London-born Helen Mirren, whose paternal family were Russian. The accidental expatriation occurred in 1917 when her grandfather, a Tsarist aristocrat, was stranded in London in the midst of an arms deal negotiation while the events of the Russian Revolution (not a good time to be Tsarist aristocrat in Russia,) were playing out back home. Mirren is just coming off another Russian role in the June release, Anna, playing the handler to the film’s eponymous KGB assassin. She recently reprised her role as Magdalene Shaw in franchise spinoff film Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs and Shaw, which hit theaters on August 2, after which she'll reprise the role again in the untitled Fast & Furious 9.

Co-star Jason Clarke has seen his star rise in recent years, with films such as Chappaquiddick, Mudbound, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Terminator Genisys and Zero Dark Thirty. He comes into Catherine the Great off roles in films such as director Damien Chazelle’s Neil Armstrong biopic, First Man, as well as Matthew McConaughey/Anne Hathaway thriller Serenity, Keira Knightley-starring World War II drama The Aftermath, and just starred in this past April's remake movie of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary.

Mirren and Clarke are joined in the Catherine the Great cast by names sucgh as Thomas Doherty, Georgina Beedle, Antonina Clarke, Andrew Rothney, Adam El Hagar, Phil Dunster, Georgina Hale, James Northcote, Paul Kaye, Lucas Englander, Felix Jamieson, Sam Palladio, Tom Lawrence, Simon Thorp.

Catherine the Great is produced by Origin Pictures and New Pictures. With star Helen Mirren directing and executive-producing, the script will be written by Nigel Williams, whose vast body of work also happens to include another one of Helen Mirren’s royal starring roles in 2005 miniseries Elizabeth I.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

The Boys unleashed an unapologetically ultraviolent response to the entertainment industry’s seemingly interminable array of live-action superhero fare with a TV series created by Supernatural and Timeless's Eric Kripke, adapting the bleak comic book series from Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. The result was a serial offering that's already said to be one of the most-watched shows for the Amazon Prime Video platform.

Amazon was clearly privy to the fact that The Boys was something special even before it premiered, since the online retail monolith's streaming arm preemptively ordered a second season of the series back in July during SDCC season. (If you're so inclined, do check out our review of The Boys Season 1.)

Here's everything to know about The Boys Season 2!

The Boys Season 2 Cast

Eric Kripke is slowly turning The Boys into a reunion of his gone-but-not-forgotten NBC series, Timeless. While that show’s co-star, Malcolm Barrett, provided a memorable cameo on Season 1 (more on that later), it appears that two more key personnel from the time-traversing Lifeboat are set to recur on The Boys Season 2, according to Deadline.

Goran Visnjic will play Alistair Adana, “the charismatic and shadowy leader of a mysterious church.” Visnjic, who co-starred on Timeless as antagonist-turned-ally Garcia Flynn, has since fielded a run on Netflix’s now-canceled Santa Clarita Diet, with other runs on NBC’s Crossing Lines, CBS’s Extant, and films such as General, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and pre-MCU Marvel spinoff Elektra. He’ll next be seen on the November-scheduled Hulu comedy series, Dollface.

Claudia Doumit will play Victoria Neuman, “a young wunderkind congresswoman.” Doumit is best known for her Timeless role as tech wiz (and love interest to Barrett’s Rufus,) Jiya. She has since put in an appearance on the Cate Blanchett-headlined comedic mystery, Where’d You Go, Bernadette, with a pre-Timeless CV that includes comedy film Dude and TV appearances on Supergirl, How to Be a Vampire, Scandal and Mike & Molly.  

Getting back to Malcolm Barrett, the report also confirms that he will return for Season 2 as Seth Reed, who, as he explained in a Season 1 therapy session, is a Vought Marketing executive whose sexual encounter with a frozen-powered Supe forced him to “let it go.” – And we’re not talking about his fears. Barrett, like Visnjic, also put in a recent appearance on Santa Clarita Diet, and comes off another TV run on AMC's Preacher. Amongst his credits is a role in 2014's Dear White People, a series-long run on ABC 2009-2010 sitcom Better Off Ted and a 2002 guest spot on HBO's The Sopranos.

They join an initially-announced newcomer...

Aya Cash is the first new cast member to join The Boys Season 2. Variety confirmed the news prior to The Boys panel at July's SDCC 2019 panel.

Further Reading: The Boys: A Response To Cinematic Universe Madness

Cash, as Deadline reported earlier, is rumored to be portraying superhuman Nazi antagonist, Stormfront. The casting would represent an intriguing spin on the character, not just because it would be a gender swap of the originally-male villain, but due to the fact that, in the comic, Stormfront – the iron-fisted leader of Avengers-parodying super-team Payback – is a Hitler Youth-raised Neo-Nazi; a powerful, Superman-esque (or, if you will, Homelander-esque) caped pseudo-superhero, who publicly claims to be the electrically-created reincarnation of a Viking, but is, in actuality, the result of a Captain-America-like super-soldier experiment by the Third Reich.

Moreover, the character loudly adheres to his pro-Aryan ideology, often with brutal results. Pertinent to the buildup generated from such a character – and at the risk of divulging some comic spoilers – Stormfront eventually meets a brutal (and I mean BRUTAL) death at the hands of The Boys; a notion that should generate curiosity with regard to the gender swap, especially if the show decides to closely follow the comics.

Cash is coming off a 5-season run as the star of FX comedy series You’re the Worst, and recently put in another role for the network in its Fosse/Verdon miniseries. She’s also banked appearances on Easy, the revived Will & Grace and, years earlier, on HBO’s The Newsroom and short-lived Fox sitcom Traffic Light, along with film roles in Social Animals, Game Over, Man!, Mary Goes Round and The Wolf of Wall Street.

The Boys Season 2 Details

Supes, beware! The first image from the second season of The Boys has arrived in the form of this crimson-soaked, bird-flipping set photo, courtesy of showrunner Eric Kripke, who's seen in the center among cast members Tomer Capon, Karen Fukuhara, Jack Quaid, and Laz Alonso.

The Boys Season 2 Release Date

The Boys Season 2 is set to arrive on Amazon Prime Video sometime in 2020, though no specific date was divulged.

For the sake of context, Season 1 arrived on July 26, 2019, so we should expect at least a full year to wait for the next chapter.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

Read and download the Den of Geek SDCC 2019 Special Edition Magazine right here!

The Purge season 2 will continue to terrify citizens everywhere on USA Network. The network confirmed The Purge Season 2 renewal, another sign of the network's continued commitment to scripted genre programming. Who would have thought that a series of subversive b-movies would spark a successful TV series, right? 

The first season was executive produced by James DeMonaco (the creator of the franchise and director of all but one of the films) and Thomas Kelly, who served as the showrunner. Presumably DeMonaco, ringmaster of all things Purge related, will return for The Purge Season 2.

Here is everything we know about The Purge season 2.

The Purge Season 2 Release Date

The Purge Season 2 will premiere on USA Network on Tuesday, October 15. 

The Purge Season 2 Trailer

The Purgeseason 2 trailer is here! "Without the Purge, this is what our world could look like everyday."

The Purge Season 2 Cast

Pictured immediately above, left-to-right, the new series regulars, revealed via Deadline, consist of the following:

Derek Luke (13 Reasons Why, The Americans) will play Marcus Moore, “an accomplished professional with a loving wife and a beautiful house whose seemingly perfect life is shattered when an assassin breaks into his house on Purge night.”

Max Martini (The Order, Pacific Rim) will play Ryan Grant, described as “unassuming yet laser-focused,” who “spends his entire year precisely preparing for a massive once-a-year Purge heist with his long-time crew.”

Paola Nuñez (The Son, Bad Boys for Life) will play Esme Carmona, described as “a top employee at an NFFA surveillance center,” who has “dedicated her life to spotting crimes and digitally tagging lawbreakers.”

Joel Allen (Room 104, Never Goin’ Back) will play Ben, described as “a clean-cut, fraternity member from a middle-class suburban family.” However, “Ben’s life changes forever when he goes out on Purge night for the first time.”

The series also announced recurring roles for Rochelle Aytes (Mistresses) and Danika Yarosh (Greenhouse Academy). 

The Purge Season 2 Details

“USA Network is so proud to be the television home for the iconic franchise, The Purge,” said Chris McCumber, President, Entertainment Networks for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment in a statement. “The partnership and creative trust of Jason Blum and everyone at Blumhouse Television and Universal Pictures ensured The Purge’s successful transition from film to TV – and, along with Universal Cable Productions, we look forward to digging even deeper into the mythology in Season 2.”

The first season takes place during the 10th Purge, leaving room for the franchise explore other areas of the Purge timeline in season two. 

“James Demonaco has done it again: the propulsive and compelling story he crafted for Season 1 of The Purge truly resonated with audiences in a significant way,” said Jason Blum, founder of Blumhouse.  “We are thrilled to embark on Season 2, and can’t wait to bring more of James’ vision to USA and fans of The Purge.”

You can read all of our reviews from the first season of The Purge TV series right here.

Mike Cecchini is the Editor in Chief of Den of Geek. You can read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @wayoutstuff.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.