In case you were busy last week defending public libraries, endangered species, or something else that shouldn’t need defending if the world wasn’t a giant turd right now, here are all the trailers you missed from this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.
And by all, I mean the highlights because wow were there a lot of them. Some were anticipated and some were surprises, and if I had to sum it up, the surprises were the best part. Aquaman was…fine, for the most part, but seriously, how are not more people talking about Invader Zim. This is critical information the planet needs right now.
Anyway, away to the trailers!
Aquaman
There’s a lot going for this movie. First and foremost is probably Jason Momoa, who isn’t much like the Arthur Curry many of us are familiar with, but hot damn did he do it right in Justice League. (One of the few things right in that movie, really.) And then there’s the fact that James Wan is in the director’s seat for this one; giving such an odd, potentially claustrophobic setting to a renown horror director that has also helmed Furious 7 is a damn interesting choice.
The problems come flooding in, though, with the actual trailer as it’s rather dull. It relies so much on bland, flavorless narration and plays its arc far too closely to what the film itself will portray. That bit where Mera (Amber Heard) delivers the entire logline in one go should be a war crime in trailer editing. Still, it’s hard to deny seeing Momoa in action isn’t summarily satisfying.
It comes out on December 21, 2018.
The Dragon Prince
Listen, pretty much all you need to say is that two of crew behind Avatar: The Last Airbender are involved in anything together and I’m there. That is a goddamn masterpiece and I’ll fight anyone that says otherwise. It’s hard to pin down a moment where characters, motivations, or actions were ever misaligned or less than compelling in that show’s three season.
And this is where we’re at with The Dragon Prince. We have head writer Aaron Ehasz, director Giancarlo Volpe, and Uncharted 3 director Justin Richmond as a wildcard with RWBY-style animation and a story about a quest to bring about peace in a warring land. Also a weird glowing slug that’s probably the dragon.
All the episodes release on Netflix on September 14, 2018.
Shazam!
I’m still not over the idea that they would hand Shazam! over to David F. Sandberg. And I don’t mean that in a bad way; he’s a decent director. But it certainly is odd to throw a traditionally lighthearted hero to a grassroots horror guy like him. Then again, that might be just what the movie needs.
So far, that’s the impression that we’re getting, especially with that subway scene. Zachary Levi is pretty much perfect as the hero persona of Billy Batson, and any time you get Mark Strong to play a villain, you’re in for a good time. This is, however, another bummer in trailer-making. It might be necessary given how unfamiliar most people are with the source material, but giving up the entirety of Billy’s backstory is super not necessary.
It releases on April 5, 2019.
Godzilla: King of Monsters
It’s kind of funny that Legendary considers their MonsterVerse a cinematic universe when their crossover event slated for 2020 is what they just called a movie back in 1962. But hey, whatever floats their boat and doesn’t result in Universal’s Dark Universe. Plus, they’ve done well so far with Godzilla and Kong: Skull Island.
Here we have Millie Bobby Brown, Kyle Chandler, and Vera Farmiga as the Russell family (apparently these Godzilla reboots are all about nuclear families) dealing with being kidnapped by an organization that wants to do nefarious things to creatures like Godzilla. And boy are there going to be a lot more creatures. With Mothra, Rodan, and King Ghidorah, this is shaping up to be very Pacific Rim.
Expect it in theatres on May 31, 2019.
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
How wild is that after living on television, David Yates is now the protector of the Hollywood vision of the Harry Potter world? He’s earned, though, after carrying to term either middling or exceptional films in the franchise, the latest of which was 2016’s Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, which falls squarely in the “middling” territory.
Part of the problem was that it felt so overwhelmingly familiar, despite taking place in a completely different country, time period, and character set. How much more do we care about prophetic, unlikely heroes saving the world from a categorically malicious threat across five(!) separate films? Hopefully this one will shake things up what with Jude Law in the mix. Now if only we could do something about that Johnny Depp…
Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald releases on November 16, 2018.
Glass
Hot off the tails of M. Night Shyamalan’s return to a state of success with Split, he’s building on that film’s shocking reveal/confirmation with Glass. It turns out that his works just might share a world in the way Quentin Tarantino’s movies do as this brings together Split‘s Kevin (James McAvoy) and Unbreakable‘s David Dunn (Bruce Willis) and Mr. Glass (Samuel L. Jackson).
It is sounding a bit highfalutin, though, in the scary sort of way Shyamalan’s self-promoting can get. “Finally, the thriller genre and the comic book genre have come together,” eventually coming to call it “the first fully grounded superhero movie.” That’s a big pill to swallow coming from the guy that also talked up Lady in the Water. But with those three talents and Sarah Paulson on board, there’s a lot to look forward to.
Look for it on January 18, 2019.
The Walking Dead — Season 9
Honestly who cares.
I mean, good for you if you do, but also come on. It premieres on AMC on October 7, 2018.
Voltron: Legendary Defender
As much as I love Voltron: Legendary Defender, it makes me so happy that along with dropping this seventh season trailer, they’re announcing the end of the series. The delta between a bad show and a good show that goes on way too long is almost nil. But looking forward to a concrete resolution is goddamn exciting.
Having recently wrapped up a tremendous four-season arc, it’s rad seeing hints of how it’ll complicate the triumph found at the end of season six. Our heroes finally return home but we’ll also explore their backstories, finally answering some long-lingering questions. Also LGBTQ representation incoming!
The entire seventh season releases on Netflix on August 10, 2018.
Young Justice: Outsiders
It is absolutely buck-fucking-wild that Young Justice is back. Cancelled back in 2013 after two incredible seasons of stellar critical reception but apparently lackluster viewership numbers, enough fans clamored for resolution that they’ve brought it back for a third season with creators Brandon Vietti and Greg Weisman also returning.
It’s fascinating that they’ve also taken this history into account with this Outsiders arc. Taking place years after the second season where plenty of complications were introduced but with no denouement, we find new heroes in Spoiler, Arrowette, Forager, and Thirteen joining old youngins Artemis, Nightwing, Superboy, and Aqualad as they investigate metahuman trafficking. Pretty damn cool.
The season will start streaming on DC’s streaming platform DC Universe in 2019.
Titans
lol fuck Batman.
Listen, this was bound to happen. DC has been heading towards edgelord territory for quite some time now. Arrow was a success, so they took that grim setting and ran with it despite the upbeat The Flash, cheery Supergirl, and batshit Legends of Tomorrow finding even more fans than Oliver Queen.
It does, however, kind of make sense, I guess? In abject terms, Robin (Brenton Thwaites) has a lot of reasons to be frustrated with his surrogate father figure. And wow did they freaking nail Robin’s look; that is exactly what his costume looks like in the Arkham games. A lot of the characters we see actually seem pretty spot-on, which is damn cool.
It starts streaming on DC’s streaming platform DC Universe this fall.
Nightflyers
I would be zero percent intrigued by this if Daniel Cerone wasn’t involved. He worked as showrunner (and co-creator) of the Constantine series, which was criminally underrated and ended far before its time. And hell, his time behind the wheel with Dexter and The Blacklist were highlights of those shows.
But the fact that it involves any amount of George R.R. Martin is less appealing. Sooooooo I guess it’s a wash.
It’s set to debut on Syfy this fall.
Dragon Ball Super: Broly
Yeah, sure, why not.
It releases on December 14, 2018.
Spider-Man
I’m still hesitant on being excited for Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man despite having actually put hands on it and seeing more than enough footage to back up that experience. Haven’t we been burned by enough web-slinging video games? But this trailer also makes it look like the story is bringing the heat.
Miles Morales and M.J. make an appearance while showing off Silver Sable, which is pretty cool considering we’ve largely seen just villains on villains on villains. And not in the trailer, but there were pre-order bonuses announced in the form of new Spidey suits (which are also available just by playing the game, so fuck yeah).
It releases exclusively on the PlayStation 4 on September 7, 2018.
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
Speaking of animated series abruptly cancelled, Star Wars: The Clone Wars is coming back after being unceremoniously kicked to the wayside in 2013. Granted, it made way for the also spectacular Star Wars: Rebels, but it’s not like there isn’t room for two shows about Jedi. But now creator Dave Filoni is getting a chance to put a bow on his story.
We’ll pick up, ostensibly, where it left off with Ahsoka out of the Jedi Order but also bringing to fruition the Siege of Mandalore. It’s unclear how this will work around Jon Favreau’s live-action series also set in the Star Wars universe, but hopefully we’ll find out soon.
No date announced but it will be 12 episodes available for streaming on Disney’s own streaming service.
Doctor Who
Gosh I wish I could care about Doctor Who. I’ve tried so, so many times but to no avail. This might be the time it does it for me, though; Jodie Whittaker is a goddamn treasure. She anchored the incredible Broadchurch series with her ability to be the entire spectrum of emotion at once. (In fact, Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall is helming this upcoming season.)
It’s also awesome that they’re embracing the aesthetics of this season as “Doctor Who but fashion.” Everything Whittaker wears is an enviable ensemble, both in and out of the show. Yeah, this just might be the season I get way into Doctor Who.
Look for it on BBC One this October.
Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus!
In-freaking-sane. Who in their right mind would allow an Invader Zim movie to happen, especially after ending back in 2006 after being strung along between two network over the course of four years. Oh, that’s right, literally anyone with a brain and the power to say yes because Invader Zim is god’s perfect show.
There’s not a lot to glean from this trailer other than it looks exactly how you’d want it to and it’s going to blow your effing bean apart. It’s as mind-bendingly demented as it’s always been (especially in the ongoing comic series via Oni Press) even with absolutely zero dialogue. It’s just a teaser, but it’s more than enough to get the hype engines going.
It’s expected to premiere on Nickelodeon later this year.
