I was incredibly lucky to get a sneak peek at the new Green Lantern: The Animated Series, attend the Q&A panel, and interview Bruce Timm in the press room. Find the pilot preview and panel review below, but check back later for the Bruce Timm interview.
Green Lantern: The Animated Series
If you’ve seen any of Bruce Timm’s many, many DC-animated series (Batman, Batman Beyond, Superman, Justice League) then you know to expect a well-plotted, well-animated, and well-done series.
The sneak peek previewed “Beware My Power,” which opens with Hal Jordan as a test pilot but closes with him investigating the death of Green Lantern core members in a galaxy far, far away. I don’t want to give too much away, but let’s just say the menace Hal faces is evil and red.
Overall, the vocal actors and the fluid 3-D animation, simulating 2-D, impressed me. Timm stated that he went with 3-D because his “boss,” Sam Register, wanted to do a series using the technology. Outside of specific moments, you wouldn’t even know it was 3-D. Timm stated he did it deliberately because he didn’t want an overtly realistic CGI style that generated zombie-looking humans.
Because I’ve seen almost all of the cartoons in the Timm-verse canon, the first half didn’t initially blow me away. That isn’t to say it wasn’t good, but if someone gives you cake every day and then hands you Tiramisu, it’s good, but you’ve had good desserts from them so often it doesn’t make an impact. However, by the time the show closed, I found myself clapping and applauding with everyone else.
One thing you’ll notice is that the cartoon appears to take off where the film left off. Hal is a Green Lantern with an on again-off again relationship with Carol, his boss; Kilowag still serves as his trainer, and OA looks like its filmic counterpart. The only deviation is Carol doesn’t know about Hal’s secret identity. However, Timm stated that the film and the cartoon developed on two very different tracks.
Later in the Q&A, Bruce admitted that they hoped the film would serve as an audience lead-in to the cartoon. But considering no one save me, myself, and I enjoyed it, he hopes that won’t impact the show when it premieres.
Because I don’t want to spoil the pilot for you guys, I will say I enjoyed the cartoon overall. If you’re a fan of the Timm-verse, you’ll probably enjoy this as well. There’s an awesome scene where Hal drops from the sky de-powered to power himself, and Kilowag digs Hal’s tendency to ALWAYS wear his mask.
Overall, I enjoyed the cartoon. So, take advantage of the pilot’s November 11th viewing on Cartoon Network.
Green Lantern: The Q&A Panel
During the audience Q&A panel Timm talked more about the graphic style and choosing Hal Jordan as the protagonist.
The 3-D mirrors Timm’s 2-D style so closely that you’d think Timm generated each image himself. However, he admitted that he wanted a 3-D version that appeared stylized, yet close to his animation style. Because 3-D is more expensive than 2-D, he worked to find a version that remained fluid yet budget-friendly.
After using so many different Lanterns in the past, he felt it was the right time to go with Hal full throttle. For the most part, the season’s initial half will primarily focus on the lantern core, the alternate universe it uncovers, and the Red Lantern arc. Yet, despite the overarching theme, it will remain episodic. We won’t see Hal return to Earth until later in the season.
Despite choosing some of the more violent lanterns as the key antagonists, Timm managed to make it family-friendly. He increased the characters’ personalities, while pulling back on their more hideous aspects like vomiting blood.
The voice acting impressed me major league. Everything sounded spot-on. Although they had an open audition, they settled on Josh Keaton (Spiderman, Justice League) for the lead, with Jonathan Adams as Atrocitus.
When a plucky female audience member asked him about doing a DC-show with a female lead, he admitted he’d love to do a Wonder Woman, Birds of Prey, or Batgirl “in a heartbeat,” but according to the powers-that-be there currently isn’t a market for it.
Can’t wait? You can check out a six minute preview to whet your appetite.
Clacked by An Nicholson 
on Nov 01, 2011 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
You’re right about the voice acting being stellar. Is the supporting cast made up of some of our old favorites, or did they clear the boards again?
I dunno about the 3D. Part of the problem is that all the textures are far too muted and realistic in comparison to the bright 2D cel-shading in the previous shows. The people just look too round and plastic to me, and the backgrounds and environments are sparse and unpopulated. You can draw beautiful backgrounds every time in 2D, but here you have to code and render every object in a scene. Atrocitus’s energy blasts seemed to cause the exact same CG explosion each time. Was the preview meant to be rough animatics, or was this the finished and polished product?
I clicked on the link to your Green Lantern movie review, but all the text below your byline seems to be missing. Suffice it to say that I enjoyed the first two acts at least, if not the third.
Loved AIA, though, and the trademark Timm humor.
Perhaps it’s just a question of budget, as I have none of the same complaints when watching Star Wars: Clone Wars.
Birds of Prey was the last DC comic I read, but I hear the new Batwoman title is pretty interesting.