BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT!! X-FILES: REVELATIONS!! MONK!! PYSCH!! SOPRANOS!! HercVault!! -- Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news.

Published on Tuesday, July 8, 2008 - 1:43am

BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT!!
X-FILES: REVELATIONS!!
MONK!! PYSCH!! SOPRANOS!! HercVault!!

UPDATED AT 10:04 PT!!

It was indeed the Buffy Chosen Collection!!

They Were Letting It Go For $97!!

IT SOLD OUT IN LESS THAN THREE MINUTES!!

All gone before 10:03 P.M.!!

Buffy Is Popular!!

Hope All The AICN Readers Who Wanted One Got Theirs!!

ORIGINAL POST:

There’s no way to be completely sure about this, but it looks like Amazon will be discounting the special “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” series collection starting at 10 a.m. Pacific Time.

Click HERE! (It's not the United Artists set on the left; it's one of those Movie & TV "lightning deals" on the right side of the page.)

The sale window technically lasts four hours, until 2 p.m. PT, but I’ve never seen an Amazon short-window sale on this set not go to "sold out" long before the window closes. My advice? Stay frosty and click right at 10 a.m. PT (1 p.m. ET).

I am – Hercules!!

Batman: Gotham Knight is comprised of six 12-minute anime shorts – long on visual flair but lightish on story – that share a lot of characters. All stories were concocted by one Jordan Goldberg, who served as Christopher Nolan’s assistant on “Batman Begins” and quickly rose to serve as associate producer on Nolan’s big-screen follow-ups: “The Prestige” and “The Dark Knight.”

1) “Have I Got A Story For You.” Directed by Shojiro Nishimi (animator on “Tekkonkinkreet”); story by Jordan Goldberg; screenplay by Josh Olson (screenwriter of “A History of Violence”). A handful of kid skateboarders compare their separate recent encounters with The Batman. One remembers him as an Obsidian-like shadow creature, another as something akin to Man-Bat, and a third as a Terminator-like construct.

2) “Crossfire.” Directed by Futoshi Higashide (animation director on “Baki The Grappler”); story by Jordan Goldberg; screenplay by Greg Rucka (writer on the funnybook series “Gotham Central” and “52”). Gotham police detective Crispus Allen (a Rucka comic-book creation who in print eventually became the new Spectre) and his Renee Montoya-like partner Anna Ramirez have a change of heart about Gotham City’s most famous vigilante after they escort a prisoner to Arkham Asylum. (Curiously, Renee Montoya – who in the DC funnybooks eventually becomes the new Question – is Allen’s partner in Louise Simonson’s novelization of “Gotham Knight,” which contains no character named Anna Ramirez.)

3) “Field Test.” Directed by Hiroshi Morioka Tsubasa (“Rservoir Chronicle”); story by Jordan Goldberg; screenplay by Jordan Goldberg (Christopher Nolan’s assistant on “Batman Begins”). A long-haired Bruce Wayne experiments with Lucius Fox’s new bullet-deflecting technology.

4) “In Darkness Dwells.” Directed by Yashuhiro Aoki (animator on “Ah! My Goddess!: The Movie”); story by Jordon Goldberg; screenplay by David Goyer (writer-director of “Blade: Trinity; co-writer of “Batman Begins”). Knee-deep in the fecal water of Gotham’s sewers, Batman gets a dose of The Scarecrow’s toxin from a Killer Croc bite.

5) “Working Through Pain.” Directed by Toshiyuki Kubooka (animation director on the “Lunar” video games); story by Jordan Goldberg; screenplay by Brian Azzarello (writer on the funnybook series “100 Bullets” and “Lex Luthor: Man of Steel”). A badly injured Batman flashes back to the young outcast Indian woman (“ER” doc Parminder Nagra, dialing down her Brit accent), who instructed Bruce Wayne in pain management.

6) “Deadshot.” Animation produced by Madhouse (“Paprika”); Story by Jordon Goldberg; screenplay by Alan Burnett (“Batman: The Animated Series,” “Batman Beyond”). The most fluid, slick and visually arresting of the six chapters pits the Caped Crusader against Floyd Lawton, the classic com assassin with really good aim.

2-DISC EDITION EXTRAS

* Commentary. DC Comics exec Gregory Noveck, longtime Batman comics writer Denny O’Neil (who sounds a lot like his old boss Stan Lee to me), and longtime voice-of-Batman Kevin Conroy. Conroy remembers that when he auditioned for “Batman: The Animated Series,” Bruce Wayne’s backstory reminded him of “Hamlet.” Conroy relates that this marked the first time he added his voice to the cartoon; usually the cartoons are created around his dialogue tracks. He remembers cooking for relief workers in New York following 9/11. O’Neil recalls during the Deadshot sequence that Batman, who was inspired by the pistol-toting Shadow, used a gun early in his career.

* “Wonder Woman Sneak Peak.” (10:28) A look at the next direct-to-DVD starring Keri Russell (Diana of Themyscira), Nathan Fillion (Steve Trevor), Virginia Madsen (Hippolyta), Rosario Dawson (Artemis) and Alfred Molina (Ares, God of War). Learn that William Moulton Marsden, who created Wonder Woman and the Lasso of Truth, also played a key role in the invention of the real-life polygraph lie-detector. Learn that Rosario Dawson’s mom is six feet tall. Learn that the “Wonder Woman’s” director, “Superman Doomsday” vet Lauren Montgomery, is way cute.

* “A Mirror For The Bat: The Evil Denizens of Gotham City” (35:44). Noveck, Azzarello, Rucka, 0’Neil, Olson, DC Comics execs Paul Levitz and Dan Didio, animated series writer Paul Dini and Batman movie producer Michael Uslan talk about Batman’s many adversaries, with emphasis on Deadshot, Killer Croc, Poison Ivy, Harley Quinn, Clayface, Mr. Freeze, The Scarecrow, The Riddler, Ra’s Al Ghul, The Penguin, Catwoman, Two-Face and especially The Joker. (No love for Bane, Catman, Dr. Phosphorous, Firefly, Killer Moth, Man-Bat, Maxie Zeus, Hugo Strange or The Ventriloquist.)

* “Batman And Me, A Devotion to Destiny: The Bob Kane Story” (38:23). The tale of impoverished Bronx Jew Robert Kahn, who created the wealthy playboy who became “the Bat-Man,” inspired by Superman and Leonardo DaVinci sketches and Douglas Fairbanks movies. Learn that he worked animating Betty Boop cartoons for the Fleischer Bros. before he turned to print. Learn that Kahn and “Spirit” creator Will Eisner went to the same high school at the same time. Learn that the first Batman story, drawn by Kane and written by Bill Finger, was titled “The Curse of the Chemical Syndicate.” Learn that Kane was disappointed in the “Batman” serial’s twentysomething Robin and generic looking Batmobile. Learn that Kane apparently boned Marilyn Monroe. Learn that there was talk of canceling the Batman comic just before the TV show was made. Learn that Hugh Hefner supposedly had something to do with getting the TV series. Learn that Kane would tease Stan Lee following the 1989 “Batman” movie’s mammoth box office success, but didn’t live long enough to see Lee’s “Spider-Man” hit the big screen. Learn that Mark Hamill is starting to look like Richard Jaekal in middle age.

* “Bruce Timm Presents: Bonus Episodes From ‘Batman: The Animated Series.’ (These actually account for more screen time on the set than the 75-minute “Gotham Knight.”) Timm offers no filmed introductions or anything. The four episodes included:

1) “Legends of the Dark Knight” (20:16). Very similar in structure to the “Gotham Knight” segment “Have I Got A Story For You,” the episode employs two kids telling two different tales of Batman’s exploits. The first evokes the early Bob Kane comics (and the animated title sequence of the live-action 1960s TV show); the last is an homage to Frank Miller’s “Dark Knight Returns.” Batman turns up in person at the end.

2) “Heart of Ice” (22:24). Vengeful Victor Fries (pronounced “Freeze”) menaces the heartless captain of industry he blames for his wife’s death – and gives the Caped Crusader a nasty case of the sniffles. Homage is paid at least twice to the Hoth sequence of “The Empire Strikes Back.”

3) “Over The Edge” (21:33). In an episode featuring The Scarecrow, Harley Quinn, The Mad Hatter, The Riddler, The Ventriloquist, Bane, Renee Montoya, Robin and a mullet-rocking Nightwing, Batgirl is killed, Batman’s secret identity is exposed, and Bruce Wayne becomes a fugitive hunted by a vengeful Jim Gordon.

4) “I Am The Night” (21:15). When a thug’s bullet threatens to claim Jim Gordon’s life, a weary Bruce Wayne contemplates retiring the Batman for good, and a grown Dick Grayson climbs back into his Robin outfit.

I only received for review the 2-Disc DVD edition, but “Gotham Knights” also comes in a 1-disc DVD and a Blu-ray edition .

An excerpt from a press release tells us what’s doing with the “I Want To Believe” tie-in set X-Files: Revelations:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PREPARE TO BELIEVE AGAIN
THE X-FILES REVELATIONS

Just In Time For The Highly-Anticipated Theatrical Sequel,
Eight Critical Episodes, Hand-Picked By Series Creator Chris Carter, Land On A Two-Disc DVD Compilation July 8th From Fox Home Entertainment Includes All-New Introductions To Each Episode By Creator Chris Carter & Executive Producer Frank Spotnitz, Exclusive WonderCon Panel With David Duchovny & Gillian Anderson, Teaser Trailer For The Upcoming Film & Free Movie Cash Ticket

CENTURY CITY, Calif. - The truth will be out there... Fox Home Entertainment presents an exclusive insider's pass to the science-fiction television phenomenon just in time for its second trip to the big screen when "THE X-FILES" REVELATIONS descends onto a two-disc DVD collection July 8th. Selected by eight-time Emmy® Award nominated series creator Chris Carter himself, all eight full hour episodes in the compilation include special on-camera introductions by Carter and producer Frank Spotnitz, revealing why each were chosen and how they relate to the highly anticipated feature film, invading theaters on July 25th.

Also featured on the set is the February 2008 WonderCon panel session with Carter and Spotnitz, as well as series stars David Duchovny (Mulder) and Gillian Anderson (Scully), making their first fan convention appearance together in several years and taking questions from rabid "X-Philes," in an interview spanning over 38 minutes. These eight essential episodes - "Pilot," "Beyond the Sea," "The Host," "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," "Memento Mori," "The Post-Modern Prometheus," "Bad Blood" and "Milagro" - span seasons 1-6 and cover a variety of paranormal and unexplained cases centering on alien abductions, psychic phenomenon and life forms not quite human that set the stage for the eagerly anticipated sequel. As an added bonus, the DVD set also features the theatrical teaser trailer along with a free Hollywood Movie Money ticket (valued at $8.50 U.S. / $10 Canada) to see the sequel in theaters.

With what do the eight episodes deal? And what clues do they offer with regard to the new movie?

1.1 “Pilot.” Spooky and Dana meet the Cancer Man as they investigate the deaths of several Oregon classmates – deaths that may be tied to alien abduction.

1.13 “Beyond the Sea.” A death row inmate offers to use his supposed psychic powers to help Mulder track down a serial killer while Scully has a vision of her recently deceased father (recently deceased “Twin Peaks” vet Don S. Davis).

2.2 “The Host.” Mulder meets the Flukeman, a breedy dude-size flatworm formed in the radioactive sewage spawned by the Soviet Union’s Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

3.4 “Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose.” A sideshow performer offers to use his supposed psychic powers to help Mulder track down a serial killer who preys on fortune tellers. Peter Boyle won an Emmy for assaying the title role.

4.14 “Memento Mori.” Scully is diagnosed with an inoperable brain cancer common to other abductees.

5.5 “The Post-Modern Prometheus.” The agents investigate a two-faced monster who has been knocking residents of a small town. Jerry Springer cameos.

5.12 “Bad Blood.” Mulder gets the FBI into a potentially costly lawsuit after he uses a wooden stake to kill a dude he apparently mistook for a vampire. Luke Wilson plays Sheriff Lucius Hartwell.

6.18 “Milagro.” Scully falls for an apparently psychic murder suspect who bases a character in his novel on her. John Hawkes, hardware retailer Sol Star on “Deadwood,” plays the writer.

Herc’s Popular Pricing Pantry