MERLIN Renewed for a Fourth Series on BBC!

Spectacular news, Merlin fans!

Today, BBC announced that MERLIN, staring Bradley James and Colin Morgan, has been confirmed for a 4th series!

[We are] pleased to confirm that the magical world of Camelot will be returning next year for a fourth series of this fresh and modern retelling of a classic British legend.

The hit television show captivated over 6 million fans this past Saturday night and continues to do well in the ratings, despite being up against the X-Factor. “Merlin offers audiences an alternative treat on Saturday night,” says BBC controller of Drama Commissioning Ben Stephenson. Its also doing particurally well internationally, selling to 180 countries.

The drama enchants audiences of all ages with a clever adaptation of the Arthurian legend, depicting Arthur as Prince before his time as ruler of Camelot, and Merlin as his loyal servant – and secret sorcerer. At times outrageously funny (if somewhat cheesy), MERLIN hits everything right on the mark with its likable characters, breathtaking scenery, and engaging story lines. The show also boasts a large collection of well known guest stars including: Warwick Davis (Harry Potter), Mackenzie Crook (Pirates of the Carribean), Sarah Parish (The Holiday, Pillars of the Earth), Mariam Margolyes (Harry Potter), Charles heartbreakingly Dance (Alien 3), and Emilie Fox (Silent Witness).

MERLIN is currently midway into it’s 3rd season on BBC and will conclude on December 4th with the “nail biting” finale. While series 3 has yet to be released in America, BBC did confirm that SyFy has bought the show and will begin airing it shortly.

Filming for season 4 is set to begin in March 2011.

Need a MERLIN fix while you wait for next week’s episode (with guest star Warwick Davis)? Check out this interview from the set, shown at Comic Con 2010:

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Change is a good thing!

It’s been almost two months since I’ve blogged. Not a single post in September.
Not that my mind wasn’t begging me to.

My site here has changed a little. New colors, new theme, but still the same Harry Potter-loving, soundtrack-listening,  all-around geek me. I’ve discovered a few new things since August, including a frightening but absolutely thrilling addiction to Fox TV’s Fringe (I watched most of season 1, all of season 2, and what’s up of season 3 in the past two weeks).

These past few months flew by with spectacular Harry Potter news, brand new trailers, the 3rd season of BBC’s Merlin, album releases from Tom Felton, a new season of The Big Theory, and the airing of one of the most beautiful songs ever produced by GLEE.

Perhaps the most interesting, and unexpected, bit of news however was Warner Brother’s announcement a week ago that Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I would not be released in 3-D due to time constraints (the movie would not have been completed in the highest quality before the November release date). The announcement received mixed reactions – some from avid 3-D fans who feel a bit cheated, and then other less annoyed ones from those who prefer 2-D anyway.

Even though I was planning on viewing Deathly Hallows in 3-D, I am thoroughly convinced that Warner Brothers has made the correct decision. The team has made huge strides to make Deathly Hallows the best movie of the bunch, and having an incomplete or low quality 3-D production would have been a huge deterrent to fans. Despite the massive revenue drops WB is taking because of this, they certainly have the support of the fans who are going to value their decision to give us the highest quality 2-D rather than shotty 3-D.

Don’t worry though, 3-D fans! Part II will be ready by for 3-D release in July of next year. Perhaps, if they feel up to it, WB will re-release Part I a month or so before Part II in 3-D.

Now wouldn’t that be a marketing decision!

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Youtube Tuesday! Harry Potter, Merlin, The Big Bang Theory, and more!

Need a laugh? Check out some of these awesome Youtube videos and get your fix for the week! Some are old, some are new, some you’ve seen, some you haven’t – but rest assured, at least one of them will make you smile.

Take your pick! They can all be viewed by clicking the links. Or just watch the embedded videos.

For the Harry Potter People:

• LITERAL Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Trailer: An absolutely hysterical parody on the Deathly Hallows trailer. I especially enjoy the “buy two tickets” part. I’d never thought of that! Worth it though!

For the Merlin People:

• Merlin Blooper Reel from Comic Con 2010: No introduction needed. A lot of fun – go watch!

• Colin Morgan and Bradley James sing “You’re the Voice”: These two have a bunch of fun on and off set, and apparently singing while on set is quite common.

Big Bang Theory Fans:

• Big Bang Theory Panel at Comic Con 2010: Finally, the entire panel is online! And yes, it’s not strictly ‘youtube’ but the quality is better. (However, no luck embedding it)

Lord of the Rings?:

• Lord of the Rings Blooper/Gag reel: Just for a bit of fun. =)

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New Roundtable Interviews with the MERLIN panel members from Comic Con 2010: Anthony Head, Colin Morgan, Johnny Capps, and Julian Murphy

After a few days hiatus, I’m back in the blogging world. And what better way to get back in than with some new footage from Comic Con 2010? (Can you believe its only been a week?).

Last Sunday night, I edited and posted the entire Merlin Panel, bloopers, and interview with Bradley James and Warwick Davis from Comic Con on my youtube channel. I had no idea how popular they would be! Even as I was loading them, I was getting hundreds of views (especially on the bloopers). At first I couldn’t figure out who was on youtube at 3am (except me of course). Then I remembered – the Brits were all up! And the Brits love Merlin.

So as I was exploring today, I discovered three brilliant new roundtable interviews with Colin Morgan, Anthony Head, and writers/creators Johnny Capps/Julian Murphy. They have been added to my “Merlin” playlist on youtube, but can also be viewed below. Enjoy!
Some interesting tidbits revealed in the interviews:

• Harry Potter actors Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick) and Miriam Margolyes (Professor Sprout) will be guest staring on Series 3 of Merlin.
• Colin Morgan reveals how he hopes Merlin’s magic is revealed to Arthur (which, incidentally, is how I am hoping it was revealed). “It’s time” he says. Colin Morgan Interview: 5:35
• Colin’s favorite aspect of shooting Merlin is its variety – he loves working the actions scenes, but also enjoys the dramatic moments.
• “We care about our characters; we care about our show”. I loved that Colin said this, which echoes what Anthony Head said to me during the autograph signing, “I love this job. Its the best job in the world”. Personally, I absolutely love it when actors connect with their characters, and really care about making their show great and their fans happy. It creates a special bond between the viewers and the actors.
• Colin laughed about the amount of fans who have been showing up on the set to watch the filming. He said it was a bit “daunting…but lovely, really nice”.
• In a question related to Gwen/Merlin’s relationship, Colin revealed there isn’t much development during the third series. While the two remain friends, the writers are “toying” with Guinevere  – making her ready to be Arthur’s Queen.

Colin Morgan:

Anthony Head:

Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy:

To anybody who has watched ANY of my videos, including the ones from the Tom Felton Interview at Comic Con, thank you! You encourage me to put more things up, and spread the geek joy. =)

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Merlin Update – Videos from the Panel (W/Colin Morgan and Anthony Head) and from the set (Bradley James and Warwick Davis)

Merlin fan? Couldn’t make it to the Merlin Comic Con Panel in San Diego? Well never fear, Merlin fans! I recorded it all! Including a funny video with Bradley James (Arthur) and Warwick Davis (some goblin in Merlin, Flitwick in Harry Potter). Also, a blooper real and fan questions.  Again, legalities forbid I record the trailer.

Actors Colin Morgan (Merlin), Anthony Head (Uther Pendragon), and creators/writers Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy.

After the panel, I was lucky enough to get a signing from the actors/writers. It was great to hear how much they love their fans, and how much they really love what they do (especially Anthony, he absolutely raves about his job). Also, Colin Morgan mentioned to me that he loves theme parks, and when I suggested he visit Disneyland, he said he absolutely wanted too…but had a plane to catch. Busy people these actors! (But all the more special they came!) The writers were also very happy, and proud, to here that Merlin is one of the ways my 12 year old brother and I stay close when I am at college.

Here is just a sneak peak! The rest is coming soon, and even though I won’t put them all here, they will be under a playlist on my Youtube channel.

Bradley James “Interviews” Warwick Davis — The two could not make it to Comic Con, as they were filming series three

The Blooper Real — even though it drifts a lot. I had to cover my screen or they would have been like ‘You there, are you deaf? Put that light out!’. (Quiz…which HP movie is that line from?)

Special Note: Apologies, but for personal and professional reasons, I couldn’t risk taping the trailer. I could have tried, but I may have gotten in trouble – especially if I wanted to get all these up! But be assured Merlin Fans! You will love Series 3!

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What to expect from me during Comic Con!

The elation has been building for weeks and the time has finally come.

Comic Con 2010 starts tomorrow in downtown San Diego to the tune of thousands and thousands of geeks.

Okay, well, technically Comic Con starts tonight with the exclusive “Preview Night” (which is offered only to buyers of the four-day passes). However, the panels and programs do not begin until tomorrow when the floodgates open at 9:30am. Unable to get an official four-day pass for the event before they sold out, I resorted to buying each day individually. And I’m glad I did!

For the next four days, I will be your source for anything mentioned in my original Comic Con post (which was recently updated with some VERY exciting news related to TOM FELTON!!) — especially all things Harry Potter. For all those HP fans out there who cannot make the event and the Warner Brothers panel, I will be providing video, pictures, tweets, and articles on everything as or right after it happen (thanks to Center’s free, albeit slow, wifi). You will be able to find it all on an individual post pertaining to that panel. Because of time limitations between panels, I won’t be able to put it all up right away – but rest assured – the Harry Potter and Merlin posts will be up almost instantly (again, depending on the wifi). Regardless of the laptop connections though, I will definitely be tweeting plenty from my cell phone.

In addition to my posts and such, be sure to check out SnitchSeeker.com and TheLeakyCualdron.com, both of which have promised exclusive, special, famous fansite stuff.

Until tomorrow!

Oh! And don’t forget! Tomorrow night, A Very Potter Sequel premieres on youtube! For information about that, see yesterday’s post.

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Comic Con: 10 Days and Counting! Here’s what to look forward too…

Edit: See “WARNER BROTHERS PANEL”

After months of waiting, the schedule of events for San Diego’s Comic Con is finally online. It can be found here.
For that are wondering, Comic Con is essentially the largest gathering of geeks, their conspirators, and the things they love each year. It takes place in the San Diego Convention Center every year at the end of July. It encompasses the entire world of comics, fantasy, science fiction, video games, movies, television, books, artists, collectors items, pop culture – anything (essentially) that you can watch, read, play, or listen too.

For the first time ever, I am attending all four days. I snagged three of the four days before the sold out in record-breaking December (beating the tickets for 2009’s Comic Con which sold out in the March before the event). I grabbed the fourth just a few weeks ago when return memberships came back on sale. I am absolutely thrilled at the program schedule this year, which includes panels I both was – and wasn’t- expecting. Many I was absolutely ecstatic about. Here are some of my favorite panels and guests coming to CC this year (in no particular order):

Warner Brothers Panel, Including The Deathly Hallows (Saturday, 11:45am) — Warner Brothers will be presenting looks at three of their upcoming films: The Green Lantern, Sucker Punch, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. EDIT: In a surprise, but absolutely brilliant turn of events, Warner Brothers today (July 21) revealed that Tom Felton will be attending the panel to present NEW footage! While we all expected the footage, no cast members were originally slated to attend. Having obviously felt the pain from every Harry Potter fan in attendance at CC, it seems Warner Brothers was able to get Tom out here! I am ridiculously excited about the news, especially because (lets be honest), if there was one Potter star I wanted to meet – it was Tom Felton! (Read why in last week’s Actor Spotlight). Also, check out my newest post on what to expect from me after the panel!

The Big Bang Theory (Friday, 12:45pm) — From one of the most popular sitcoms on television comes a panel moderated by Star Trek: The Next Generation star and BBT guest actor Wil Wheaton in what is sure to be the most fantastic hour of hilarity at Comic Con. Not generally a fan of television comedy, the BBT is my favorite half-hour show out there, largely do to its incredible writing, acting, and geek references (all, for the most part, of which I get).

Behind the Music: Composing for Sci-Fi, Horror, and Fantasy TV and Film (Thursday, 4:30pm)— Award-winning composers of the music of Heroes, True Blood, Pushing Daisies, Lost, Superman Returns, and Avatar:The Last Airbender will share just how to compose for one of the most versatile musical industries – film. My personal favorite attending (and one of my absolute favorite composers) is Michael Giacchino, who recently one a Golden Globe for his work in Up. He is also known for scores such as the new Star Trek, Lost, Ratatouille, and The Incredibles.

Tron: Legacy (Thursday, 11:15am) — Okay, I’ll admit I haven’t seen the original movie – but don’t worry – its on a to-do list. But I’m a sucker for the big sound, big picture, big technology kind of movies. The original trailer got me sucked in, and I want to see where they take it. And, according to the number of people who have already put it on their schedules (close to 2000), its going to be the biggest event this year.

Merlin (Sunday, 11:45am)— Now this was truly unexpected. The popular television show in Britain has slowly been making itself known in the United States on ABC. Having finished an extremely successful second season, Merlin is coming to Comic Con to share new glimpses into the upcoming third season. Featuring Merlin himself, Colin Morgan, and acclaimed actor Anthony Head (who plays Uther Pendragon, father of Arthur), this panel is one of the ones I am most looking forward too – largely because I can’t get enough of the actors. Too bad Bradley James, the ever gorgeous Arthur, isn’t scheduled to attend – saving some British maidens in distress I suppose…

Fantasy Author Panel including Christopher Paolini (Thursday, 1:45pm) — This panel is centered around exploring if fantasy books require larger than life heroes and heroines. In addition to getting a chance to talk to a group of fantastic fantasy writers, we might be able to get a glimpse into the future of certain writers books (like Paolini – who’s fourth book in the Inheritance Cycle is long overdue).

Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Friday, 3:15pm)— Starz’ new, hit series (and a personal favorite of mine) will be having its own panel this year with many of the actors and crew from the show. In addition to information about the second season, we will also get an exclusive first look at the prequel: Spartacus: Gods of the Arena which was filmed while one of the lead actors was battling cancer (p.s. – he kicked cancer’s ass).

Glee (Sunday, 1:30pm)— Yes, Glee is coming. Did you expect anything less? I anticipate a lot of singing….of which I will probably take part in.

Thanks to a new feature on the Comic Con website, I can actually create my own personal schedule which allows me to see how many people have declared they are ‘attending’ a certain panel (great for planning how early to arrive).
If you are interested in seeing what I am attending, you can find my tentative schedule here.

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