THE FANDOM ZONE 175: "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Parts 4 & 5" is Up!

"In the beginning, there was only one, a single black infinitude.  Then the infinitude found release, and finally, the darkness broke, filling it with life...with the Multiverse.  Every existence multiplied by possibility and spread out before space and time in infinite measure. Civilizations rose and fell...and rose again to cross realities grasping expanse.  Life, a precious gift persevering in the face of every obstacle...until, finally, the Age of Heroes was born."
-- Oliver Queen, Legends of Tomorrow: "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part 5"

Hello again, everyone!  My co-host Jesse Jackson and I are back with the 175th episode of The Fandom Zone Podcast!  This time, we're joined by DJ Nik from The Whiskey & Cigarettes Show and the Happiness in Darkness podcast to discuss the last two parts of "Crisis on Infinite Earths", the sixth annual Arrowverse crossover event, based on the classic 1985-86 DC Comics maxi-series and featured in episodes of Arrow and Legends of Tomorrow!

In this episode, Jesse, Nik and I talk about things like the final two parts suffering from a month-log gap, the staff writers writing their respective episodes, Crisis on Infinite Earths writer Marv Wolfman writing a chapter of the CW crossover, speculating why George Perez wasn't included, Jesse not being impressed by Oliver's second death, the Monitor taking the place of Krona as the Anti-Monitor's creator, why we didn't need to see the Monitor's origin, Oliver becoming the new Spectre, "Crisis" borrowing a little from Avengers: Endgame, Grant Gustin's Arrowverse Flash meeting Ezra Miller's DC Extended Universe Flash, Jon Cryer as Lex Luthor, the quick battle between the Spectre and the Anti-Monitor, the power of positive thoughts, Marc Guggenheim not being a good Arrow writer historically, Diggle not being happy that Oliver died without him being there, the Flashes admiring the other's suit, Lex Luthor being revamped as John Byrne's Lex Luthor, the awkward moment when Marv Wolfman met The Flash and Supergirl after killing them off in Crisis, Heat Wave doing a book signing as romance novelist Rebecca Silver, Ryan Choi finally stepping up, wanting HBO to do a Crisis on Infinite Earths series like they did Watchmen, Oliver getting public redemption by the President, the new Berlantiverse multiverse, Oliver getting a memorial shrine and chair, Barry forming an unnamed Arrowverse Justice League, the Super Friends Hall of Justice homage, the horrible Gleek ending, our favorite quotes of each episode, and more!

You can check out episodes of The Fandom Zone using...

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And if that isn't enough for you, you can also check us out on YouTube, Soundcloud, and the official Southgate Media Group website!  Oh, and if you're interested in an officially official Fandom Zone Podcast t-shirt that all the cool kids are wearing, you can get those on TeePublic HERE as well!  Feel free to post a picture on our Facebook page of you or some other cool person you know wearing the shirt!

Be sure to come back soon for more of The Fandom Zone Podcast!

Your 2020 Geek Movie & TV Calendar

Once again, the new year brings us closer to The Films and TV Shows You've Been Dying to See for, Like, Forever.  If you enjoy sci-fi, fantasy and comic book based entertainment as I do, you already have several must-see flicks and television programs in the pipeline for 2020.  With that in mind, I thought I'd go ahead and give a helpful chronological rundown of which geek movie and TV goodness arrives when.  Some of these TV shows and films will be worth the long wait, others you wouldn't watch even if they were on Netflix, but each have their audiences and key target demographics.  Start planning your work vacation/sick/personal days accordingly.

JANUARY

1 - Doctor Who (TV)

9 - Star Trek Short Treks: Children of Mars (TV)

14 - Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow (Crisis on Infinite Earths Parts 4 & 5) (TV)

15 - The Magicians (TV)

19 - Batwoman, Supergirl (TV)

20 - Black Lightning (TV)

23 - Star Trek: Picard (TV)

24 - Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV)

FEBRUARY

February 2020? - Last Week Tonight, The Umbrella Academy (TV)

4 - The Flash (TV)

7 - Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) (Movie)

14 - Fantasy Island (Movie)

21 - Bloodshot (Movie)

23 - The Walking Dead (TV)

MARCH

March 2020? - American Gods, Stargirl, What We Do in the Shadows (TV)

27 - Mulan (Movie)

APRIL

April 2020? - Harley Quinn, Star Trek: Discovery, Westworld (TV)

3 - The New Mutants (Movie)

8 - No Time to Die (Movie), Twin Peaks 30th Anniversary

MAY

May 2020? - Dune: The SIsterhood, Lucifer (TV)

1 - Black Widow (Movie)

9 - Artemis Fowl (Movie)

JUNE

June 2020? - Doom Patrol, Wynonna Earp (TV)

5 - Wonder Woman 1984 (Movie)

JULY

July 2020? - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Boys, Pennyworth (TV)
3 - Free Guy (Movie)
10 - Ghostbusters: Afterlife (Movie)
17 - Tenet (Movie)
31 - Morbius (Movie)

AUGUST

August 2020? - Mindhunter (TV)
21 - Bill and Ted Face the Music (Movie)

SEPTEMBER

September 2020? - The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, The Simpsons, Stranger Things, Titans (TV)
18 - The King's Man (Movie)

OCTOBER

October 2020? - Castle Rock, The Walking Dead (TV)
2 - Venom 2 (Movie)

NOVEMBER

November 2020? - The Mandalorian (TV)
6 - The Eternals (Movie)
20 - Godzilla vs. Kong (Movie)

23 - Doctor Who 57th Anniversary

DECEMBER

18 - Dune (Movie)
25 - The Tomorrow War (Movie)

SOMETIME IN 2020 - BizarroTV, Helstrom, Invincible, Jupiter's Legacy, The Sandman, Strange Adventures, WandaVision (TV)

THE FANDOM ZONE 172: "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Parts 1, 2 & 3" Is Up!

"Keep riding the lightning, son.  I know you'll make us all proud."
-- The Flash (Earth-90) to The Flash (Earth-1), The Flash: "Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part Three"

Hello again, everyone!  My co-host Jesse Jackson and I are back with a very special episode of The Fandom Zone Podcast!  This time, we're joined by DJ Nik from The Whiskey & Cigarettes Show to discuss the first three parts of "Crisis on Infinite Earths", the sixth annual Arrowverse crossover event, based on the classic 1985-86 DC Comics maxi-series and featured in episodes of Supergirl, Batwoman and The Flash!

In this episode, Jesse, Nik and I talk about things like DJ Nik making his debut on The Fandom Zone Podcast, rereading the original Crisis on Infinite Earths by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, Crisis being adapted for television on The CW, former original TitanTalk member and Supergirl writer Jay Faerber, all the great cameos from previous DC Comics movies and TV shows, the destruction of Argo City and Earth-38 Superman and Lois sending their son Jonathan to Earth in an escape pod, Oliver passing on the Green Arrow mantle to his daughter Mia and his death scene, Kevin Conroy's amazing Batman voice, Brandon Routh reprising Superman, Kevin Conroy playing an older Batman who murdered criminals and Superman, Supergirl and Batwoman as the new Flash and Green Arrow, Heat Wave babysitting Jonathan, Tom Welling and Erica Durance reprising Smallville's Clark Kent and Lois Lane, John Constantine meeting Lucifer Morningstar, Oliver becoming the new Spectre, Black Lightning stepping up after learning his entire family has been destroyed, antimatter cannons being very bad for Flashes, John Wesley Shipp getting a heroic ending as the Flash from Earth-90, the Danny Elfman theme from The Flash, our favorite quotes of all three episodes, listener David K. Proctor being turned on to Watchmen, and more!

You can check out episodes of The Fandom Zone using...

Google Play Music -- HERE 

iTunes/Apple Podcasts -- HERE

Direct Download MP3s/Libsyn -- HERE

Spotify -- HERE

Stitcher -- HERE

The Fandom Zone on Facebook -- HERE

The Fandom Zone on Twitter -- @FandomZoneCast

The Fandom Zone on Instagram -- HERE

And if that isn't enough for you, you can also check us out on YouTube, Soundcloud, and the official Southgate Media Group website!  Oh, and if you're interested in an officially official Fandom Zone Podcast t-shirt that all the cool kids are wearing, you can get those on TeePublic HERE as well!  Feel free to post a picture on our Facebook page of you or some other cool person you know wearing the shirt!

Be sure to come back in a few days, as Jesse and I review "A God Walks into a Bar", the eighth episode of HBO's Watchmen, right here on The Fandom Zone Podcast!

The CW Arrowverse Casts Stephen Lobo as The Spectre

What the Spectre fears may destroy us all.

IGN has revealed that actor Stephen Lobo has been cast for the upcoming Arrowverse crossover event "Crisis on Infinite Earths" as Detective Jim Corrigan, better known to DC Comics fans as the supernatural antihero The Spectre.

According to the article, "the network isn't confirming whether The Spectre himself will appear, though given the character's role in the original Crisis on Infinite Earths comic, that seems a distinct possibility."

Executive producer Marc Guggenheim remarked, "Fans of the Crisis on Infinite Earths comic know the Spectre plays a pivotal role.  We’re thrilled Stephen is our Jim Corrigan."

Lobo, 45, is a Canadian-British actor probably best known as Matthew Kellog on the Syfy series Continuum.  He's appeared in episodes of Supernatural, The X-Files, Smallvillle, Fringe, Painkiller Jane, Colony, Zoo, Arctic Air, and The Dead Zone.

Created by Superman co-creator Jerry Siegel and artist Bernard Baily, The Spectre first appeared in 1940's More Fun Comics #52 as Jim Corrigan, a hard-boiled cop who was on his way to his engagement party until was he murdered by being stuffed into a barrel filled with cement and then drowned.  His spirit was refused entry into the afterlife however, instead being sent back to Earth by a supernatural entity referred to only as "The Voice" to eradicate evil.  Assuming the identity of The Spectre, Corrigan begins seeking vengeance against his murderers in grim, supernatural ways.  Breaking off his engagement with his fiancée Clarice, Corrigan continues his crusade, becoming the Spectre whenever he's needed.

During the event known as Crisis on Infinite Earths, The Spectre united superheroes and supervillains by warning them about the threat of the Anti-Monitor.  The heroes traveled back in time to stop the Anti-Monitor, while the villains traveled back in time to the ancient planet Oa to prevent renegade scientist Krona from creating the technology necessary for the Anti-Monitor's plan to succeed.  The villains failed, and Krona continued his experiment. The Anti-Monitor waited for Alexander Luthor to reopen the portal between the positive and antimatter universes, capturing the heroes, but the magically empowered Spectre created an energy overload which shattered space and time.  The five Earths merged into a single shared universe, and the superheroes returned to the present, with only those present at the dawn of time remembering the original realities.

In the current New 52 continuity, Corrigan is a Gotham City Police Detective whose fiancee is kidnapped.  Guided by the Phantom Stranger on the instructions of The Voice, the Stranger leads Corrigan to the abandoned warehouse where she is being kept, but this turns out to be a trap.  Jim Corrigan and his girlfriend are murdered by the kidnappers and he is then transformed into The Spectre, who accuses the Phantom Stranger of betraying him.  As the Spectre is about to attack the Phantom Stranger, The Voice intervenes and sends the Spectre off to inflict his wrath on those who are more deserving.

Lobo will be the second actor to portray The Spectre in live-action, after Emmett J. Scanlan in the NBC series Constantine.  The character has also appeared in the animated short DC Showcase: The Spectre (voiced by Gary Cole) and on the series Batman: The Brave and the Bold (voiced by Mark Hamill).

The "Crisis on Infinite Earths" crossover event begins with the CW series Supergirl on December 8, 2019.

Stephen Amell Announces ARROW Will End in Fall 2019

Arrow is ending, but the Arrowverse lives on.

Actor Stephen Amell, the star of the CW series Arrow, has announced via his official Twitter account that the long-running superhero drama will end this fall with a final Season 8 run of ten episodes.  Amell, who plays DC Comics superhero Green Arrow/Oliver Queen, posted the following:

Playing Oliver Queen has been the greatest professional experience of my life... but you can’t be a vigilante forever.

Arrow will return for a final run of 10 episodes this Fall.

There’s so much to say... for now I just want to say thank you.

— Stephen Amell (@StephenAmell) March 6, 2019

The news that Season 8 of Arrow will only be ten episodes long makes it likely that the show will lead directly into the Fall 2019 Arrowverse crossover event "Crisis on Infinite Earths", based on the classic DC Comics maxi-series from 1985-86.  In the DC comic book series, notable superheroes Supergirl and The Flash were killed off, which now leads to speculation about whether Green Arrow will die during the Arrowverse crossover.

Amell also posted a livestream video on his Facebook account, thanking both the Arrow production team and, of course, the show's fans.  In addition, he explained exactly why the show will be ending, detailing the various aspects that ultimately led to the decision.



He remarked, "Towards the end of Season 6, I approached [executive producer] Greg Berlanti, who I will be thanking in a second, and said that I thought, both personally and professionally, that at the end of my commitment this coming season it would be the best for me to move on.  I've always been a fan of television shows that not only don't overstay their welcome, but end in a manner that really packs a punch.  And so, it had always been my hope that we would know when we were gonna finish this journey and not limp to the finish line, so to speak.

"After a lot of discussion, Greg and I decided that the best way to do this would be to have me come back for a limited run in Season 8, which is what we're gonna do.  And, from there, I had always hoped that beyond the seventeen different shows that Arrow has spawned (I'm kidding, it's only like sixteen) that there was a possibility that the show could live on beyond me, because the entity of Oliver Queen and the character, and the mythos, and the iconography of Green Arrow has always been something that's bigger than me or any other actor that's playing him or voicing him.  There's always been something more to it.

"I spoke with [showrunner] Beth Schwartz and [series creator] Marc Guggenheim this past Friday, and then Greg Berlanti this past Friday night, and it was the decision of WB and CW and Beth and Greg and Marc, in a very mutual way, based off of what they thought was best for the show creatively and being very honorable and respectful as it pertains to my wishes, that we were gonna end after a 10-episode run next year."

From there, Amell addressed the personal reasons for his decision.  "Even though I've known that this is coming, it is still a very emotional time, because I have been on the show in what can only be described as a fundamentally transformational, nearly decade-long run in my life.  (As someone) who started as an actor who doesn't have a lot of experience, who was, you know, sort of dating someone, to now...a large part of this decision being because I am now a father and a husband and a lot of my life and interests now don't really reside in Vancouver anymore and thinking that that's the best thing for me personally and professionally.  To say that it has been a real sea change over the past seven plus years would be a vast understatement."

Arrow Season 7 currently airs on Monday nights at 8 p.m. on The CW, with Season 8 airing sometime this fall.

Your 2019 Geek Movie and TV Calendar

Once again, the new year brings us closer to The Films and TV Shows You've Been Dying to See for Like Forever.  If you enjoy sci-fi, fantasy and comic book based entertainment as I do, you already have several must-see flicks and television programs in the pipeline for 2019.  With that in mind, I thought I'd go ahead and give a helpful chronological rundown of which geek movie and TV goodness arrives when.  Some of these TV shows and films will be worth the long wait, others you wouldn't watch even if they were on Netflix, but each have their audiences and key target demographics.  Start planning your work vacation/sick/personal days accordingly.

JANUARY

1 - Doctor Who: Resolution, The Gifted (TV)

3 - Gotham, Star Trek Short Treks: Escape Artist (TV)

4 - Young Justice: Outsiders (TV)

6 - The Simpsons (TV)
13 - True Detective (TV)

14 - The Passage (TV)
15 - The Flash (TV)
16 - Deadly Class, Riverdale (TV)

17 - Star Trek: Discovery (TV)

18 - Glass (Movie), The Punisher (TV)

20 - Supergirl (TV)

21 - Arrow, Black Lightning (TV)

23 - The Magicians (TV)

FEBRUARY

10 - The Walking Dead (TV)

14 - Alita: Battle Angel (Movie)

15 - Doom Patrol, The Umbrella Academy (TV)

17 - Last Week Tonight (TV)

MARCH

March 2019? - Krypton (TV)

8 - Captain Marvel (Movie)

10 - American Gods (TV)

APRIL

April 2019? - Game of Thrones, iZombie, Legends of Tomorrow, Legion, Lost in Space (TV)

5 - Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV), Shazam! (Movie)

12 - Hellboy (Movie)

26 - Avengers: Endgame (Movie)

MAY

10 - Swamp Thing (TV)

17 - John Wick 3: Parabellum (Movie)

31 - Godzilla: King of the Monsters (Movie)

JUNE

June 2019? - Preacher (TV)

7 - Dark Phoenix (Movie)

14 - Men in Black International (Movie)

21 - Toy Story 4

JULY

July 2019? - Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Castle Rock, Wynonna Earp (TV)

4 - Stranger Things (TV)
5 - Spider-Man: Far from Home

26 - Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (Movie)

AUGUST

2 - The New Mutants (Movie)

9 - Stargirl (TV)

SEPTEMBER

September 2019? - The Simpsons (TV)

6 - IT Chapter Two (Movie)

OCTOBER

October 2019? - The Flash, The Gifted, Titans, The Walking Dead (TV)

4 - Joker (Movie)

11 - Harley Quinn (TV), Zombieland 2 (Movie)

NOVEMBER

November 2019? - Star Trek: Picard

1 - Untitled Terminator Film (Movie)

8 - Kingsman 3 (Movie)

DECEMBER

20 - Star Wars: Episode IX (Movie)

SOMETIME IN 2019 - The Boys, Good Omens, Jessica Jones, Mindhunter, Pennyworth, Watchmen (TV) 

The Arrowverse Confirms CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS as 2019 Crossover Event

Worlds will live.  Worlds will die.  And the wait for Fall 2019 is going to be excruciating.

Last night's episode of The CW's series Supergirl, "Elseworlds, Part 3", concluded with a major announcement for fans of DC Comics and the CW's Arrowverse shows -- Next year's crossover event will be an adaptation of the classic DC Comics saga Crisis on Infinite Earths.

Written by Marv Wolfman and drawn by George Pérez, Crisis on Infinite Earths was a 12-issue maxiseries that ran from April 1985 to March 1986.  In the story, the Anti-Monitor (the Monitor's evil counterpart) is unleashed on the DC Multiverse and begins to destroy the various Earths that it comprises.  The Monitor tries to recruit heroes from around the Multiverse but is murdered, while Brainiac collaborates with the villains to conquer the remaining Earths.  However, both the heroes and villains are eventually united by the Spectre.  the series concludes with the Earth-2 Superman, Superboy-Prime, and Alexander Luthor Jr. defeating the Anti-Monitor, and the creation of a single Earth in place of the Multiverse.  Crisis on Infinite Earths also featured a high death count, with hundreds of killed DC Comics characters died, including DC icons such as Supergirl and Barry Allen.

As the third part of "Elseworlds" ended, Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) and Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) shared a drink while discussing their latest adventure.  They were soon interrupted by Oliver getting a call from Batwoman (Ruby Rose), who said that Doctor Destiny/John Deegan (Jeremy Davies) had become an inmate at Arkham Asylum and made a new friend, the Psycho-Pirate (Bob Frazer).  Rather ominously, the Psycho-Pirate tells Deegan, "Don't worry, Doctor...Everything is as it should be.  The stage is set.  Worlds will live.  Worlds will die.  And the universe will never be the same."

Old-school DC fans quickly recognized the familiar line from this 1985 DC Comics house ad promoting Crisis on Infinite Earths:

And sure enough, viewers soon saw the stylish worlds "COMING FALL 2019", followed by an equally stylish version of the Crisis on Infinite Earths logo, which confirmed next year's Arrowverse crossover.

The "Elseworlds" crossover introduced LaMonica Garrett as The Monitor/Mar Novu, a very important character in Crisis on Infinite Earths, who revealed that he was testing champions to face a powerful, future threat, hinting at Crisis' big bad cosmic supervillain, the Anti-Monitor.  

The Psycho-Pirate also has a significant role in Crisis as an accomplice to the Anti-Monitor, who manipulates a captive Barry Allen after the Pirate's powers are briefly enhanced so that he can control three alternate Earths—Earth-4, Earth-S, and Earth-X—to provoke their heroes into attacking the teams sent to rescue them.  After the resolution of the Crisis, the Psycho-Pirate is one of the few to have full memories of the event.  Driven mad by these memories, the Psycho-Pirate was shown in the last few panels of Crisis in a straitjacket, as the scene pans out from his eyes to a full view of Earth from space.

Other characters who probably will play a part in next year's Arrowverse crossover are The Flash from Earth-90 (John Wesley Shipp, reprising his character from the 1990-91 TV series The Flash), who was last seen being teleported away by the Monitor in "Elseworlds, Part 2", and John Diggle (David Ramsey)'s wife Harbinger/Lyla Michaels (Audrey Marie Anderson), who served the Monitor in Crisis on Infinite Earths as his assistant and helped him prepare for the battle with the Anti-Monitor.

In the meantime, though, The Flash and Supergirl might want to take care of any necessary arrangements...just in case.

THE FANDOM ZONE 151: "Resurrection" is Up!

"I'd rather die as the Devil, than live as Matt Murdock."

-- Matt Murdock, Daredevil: "Resurrection" 

That's right, Karen and I are back with another new episode of The Fandom Zone Podcast!  This week's reviews of comics on television include:

Supergirl 4x01: "American Alien"  (Season Premiere)

Arrow 7x01: "Inmate 4587"  (Season Premiere)

Black Lightning 2x02: "The Book of Consequences: Chapter Two: Black Jesus Blues"

Daredevil 3x01: "Resurrection"  (Season Premiere)

In this episode, Karen and I talk about things like my Daredevil Funko figure, Karen being on paid meds again, Agent Liberty resembling the Voice of Rao, Agent Liberty in the comics, Rhona Mitra as Mercy Graves, Otis finally getting a last name, Dreamer being the first transgendered superhero on television, Nia being the Season One Kara, Lillian and Lena playing chess, Bruno Mannheim and Intergang, enjoying Karen's stream of consciousness, Colton Haynes returning as the older Arsenal, Wooden William being much more interesting as an adult, Semi-Goth Felicity working as a barista, Wild Dog's duct-taped punching bags, Jimi Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary", wondering when Painkiller is going to find out that Jennifer has Lightning powers, Jefferson's students standing behind him, Windfall from the Outsiders comics, Daredevil surviving the collapsed building at the end of The Defenders, the importance of the comics storyline "Born Again", wondering who Bullseye is going to kill, Sister Maggie's important connection to Matt Murdock, Kingpin trying to have a nice quiet dinner in prison, Matt as a Jesus Christ metaphor, some new feedback from Justina, everyone loving Karen on Next Stop Everywhere, and more!

You can now check out episodes of The Fandom Zone using...

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The Fandom Zone on Facebook -- HERE

The Fandom Zone on Twitter -- @FandomZoneCast

The Fandom Zone on Instagram (NEW!) -- HERE

And if that isn't enough for you, you can also check us out on YouTube, Libsyn, Soundcloud, Stitcher, and the official Southgate Media Group website!  Oh, and if you're interested in an officially official Fandom Zone Podcast t-shirt that all the cool kids are wearing, you can get those on TeePublic HERE as well!  Feel free to post a picture on our Facebook page of you or some other cool person you know wearing the shirt!

Be sure to come back next week, as Karen and I review the Season 4 premiere of The CW's Legends of Tomorrow, along with new episodes of  Netflix's Daredevil and The CW's The Flash and Black Lightning, right here on The Fandom Zone Podcast!

John Wesley Shipp to Reprise 1990's The Flash for Arrowverse Crossover "Elseworlds"

Cue the Danny Elfman theme music!

Entertainment Weekly has word that actor John Wesley Shipp will reprise his 1990-91 character of The Flash on the upcoming fifth annual CW Arrowverse crossover event "Elseworlds."  

Arrow star Stephen Amell posted a behind-the-scenes image on his official Twitter account, showing Shipp as the 1990 Flash alongside himself as an Elseworlds version of Grant Gustin's current Flash, Gustin as an Elseworlds version of Amell's current Green Arrow, and Melissa Benoist as Supergirl.

No big deal. Just working with @JohnWesleyShipp for the first time. Nice of him to dress up for the occasion. pic.twitter.com/twRkwIhilv

— Stephen Amell (@StephenAmell) October 22, 2018

Shipp, 63, previously played The Flash/Barry Allen in the short-lived CBS series The Flash that aired for one season of 22 episodes before being cancelled.  He returned for The CW's 2014 version of The Flash, this time playing Barry Allen's father Henry Allen until the character was killed off in the Season 2 finale, "The Race of His Life".   Shipp took on the recurring role of Jay Garrick, the Earth-3 version of The Flash and the original DC Comics Flash, with the Season 2 episode "Welcome to Earth-2", although his identity as the Earth-3 version of Henry Allen wasn't revealed until the Season 2 finale.

Former Arrow showrunner Marc Guggenheim, who is overseeing the crossover, shared another image of Shipp in costume and revealed that the suit was made by the 2014 Flash‘s costume designer, Kate Main.

After seven years, this just might be the coolest thing we’ve ever done...@JohnWesleyShipp pic.twitter.com/mmpac4k5YE

— Marc Guggenheim (@mguggenheim) October 23, 2018

The three-night event will also introduce Ruby Rose as Batwoman, Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane, Cassandra Jean Amell as Nora Fries, and LaMonica Garrett as the Monitor.  In addition, Tyler Hoechlin will reprise his Arrowverse character of Superman.

"Elseworlds" begins Sunday, December 9th, with The Flash at 8 p.m. EST, then continues Monday, December 10th at 8 p.m. with Arrow, and concludes on Tuesday, December 11th at 8 p.m. with Supergirl.

The CW Arrowverse Casts Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane

Hi, Lois Lane.  Welcome to the planet.

Deadline has word that The CW Arrowverse has cast Elizabeth "Bitsie" Tulloch as legendary DC Comics character Lois Lane.  The character will make her debut as part of the annual DC Arrowverse crossover involving CW shows The Flash, Arrow and Supergirl.

It's not known how many episodes Tulloch will appear as Lois, but Tyler Hoechlin’s Superman will be featured in all three episodes.

In an earlier statement from August, Supergirl executive producers Jessica Queller and Robert Rovner said, "We couldn't be more excited to introduce Lois Lane to the Arrowverse.  This dogged, determined and brave reporter will make for a strong partner to Superman and amazing addition to our universe of DC characters."

Tulloch, 38, is probably best known as Juliette Silverton/Eve on the NBC series Grimm.  She has appeared in the films Concussion and The Artist, and on episodes of Portlandia, Tyranny, Outlaw, Moonlight, House, Cold Case, and The West Wing.

Created in 1938 by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, Lois Lane first appeared in Action Comics (vol.1) #1 as an aggressive, career-minded reporter for the Daily Star (the newspaper's name was changed to the Daily Planet in Action Comics (vol.1) #23 in 1940).  After Clark Kent joined the paper and Superman debuted around the same time, Lois found herself attracted to Superman but displeased with her new journalistic competition in the form of Kent.  Starting early as the 1940s, Lois began to suspect that Clark Kent was Superman, and started to make various attempts at uncovering his secret identity, all of which backfired because of Superman's efforts.

In 1986, after DC Comics rebooted its entire continuity following the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths, writer/artist John Byrne revamped Lois in the miniseries The Man of Steel (vol.1) as a former Army brat and tough-as-nails reporter who rarely needed rescuing.  She was depicted as strong, opinionated, yet sensitive.  Another major change made was that Lois did not fall in love with just Superman, although she was attracted to him.  Lois initially resented the rookie Clark Kent getting the story on Superman as his first piece when she had spent ages trying to get an interview.  Following Clark's brief rampage under the influence of the Eradicator, Lois was hesitant to forgive Clark for "selling out" to Collin Thornton and running Newstime Magazine, but forgave him in a span of mere minutes when he returned to "grovel for his job back".  Clark elected to repay Lois by finally letting go of his self-imposed inhibitions and passionately kissed her. The two became a couple, and eventually, Lois accepted a proposal of marriage.

Before they were able to be married, however, Superman died in Lois' arms after a battle royal with the monster Doomsday.  After a period of time, Superman returned to life, and both he and Lois resumed their relationship.  Upon discovering Clark still had her wedding ring within a handkerchief, Lois warmly broke down, teasing Clark and finally agreeing to become his wife.  In 1996, Lois and Clark were finally married in the comic book Superman: The Wedding Album.

In 2011, DC once again rebooted its entire continuity with The New 52, but just four years later, the pre-Flashpoint Lois and Clark returned in the miniseries Convergence, with had them dealing with the impending birth of their child, as Superman is called to protect the city.  Their son, Jonathan Samuel Kent, was born shortly after and eventually began to develop superpowers of his own as he grew older and learned the truth about his parents' true origins.

Tulloch will be the eighth actress to portray Lois Lane in live action, after Noel Neill in the movie serials Superman (1948) and Atom Man vs. Superman, and Adventures of Superman TV series; Phyllis Coates in the movie Superman and the Mole Men and Adventures of Superman; Margot Kidder in the four Superman films starring Christopher Reeve; Teri Hatcher in the TV series Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman; Erica Durance in the TV series Smallville; Kate Bosworth in the film Superman Returns; and Amy Adams in the movies Man of Steel, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Justice League.

The three-night Arrowverse crossover event begins with The Flash on December 9th, followed by Arrow on December 10th, and ending with Supergirl on December 11th.

The CW Arrowverse Casts Ruby Rose as Batwoman

Gotham City has a new dark knight.

The Hollywood Reporter has word that The CW's Arrowverse has cast Ruby Rose as Kate Kane, better known to DC Comics fans as the superhero Batwoman.  The character will make her debut as part of the annual DC Arrowverse crossover.

According to the article, Kate is described as "armed with a passion for social justice and flair for speaking her mind, soars onto the streets of Gotham as Batwoman, an out lesbian and highly trained street fighter primed to snuff out the failing city's criminal resurgence.  But don't call her a hero yet — in a city desperate for a savior, Kate must overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham's symbol of hope."

The proposed Batwoman series is in development, with Caroline Dries of The Vampire Diaires writing the script.  Should Batwoman be picked up as a series, it will likely debut at midseason.  Reportedly, the CW isn't planning to use the Arrowverse crossover as a backdoor pilot for Batwoman, but instead film a full-length pilot as it did with The Flash.

Rose, 32, is an Australian model, DJ, recording artist, actress, television presenter, and former MTV VJ.  She came out as a lesbian at age 12, and has identified herself as genderfluid.  In 2015, she wrote, produced, and starred in the short film Break Free, a tribute to gender fluidity, which became a viral hit, garnering more than 25 million views on YouTube.  In addition, she's appeared in the films John Wick: Chapter 2 and John Wick 3: Parabellum as the assassin Ares, xXx: The Return of Xander Cage as Adele Wolff, The Meg, Pitch Perfect 3, and Resident Evil: The Final Chapter.  Also, she has appeared on episodes of Orange is the New Black as Stella Carlin, Dark Matter, and Mr & Mrs Murder.

Created in 1956 by Edmond Hamilton and Sheldon Moldoff, Batwoman first appeared in Detective Comics (vol.1) #233 as Kathy Kane, a wealthy heiress who gained great acrobatic skills during her career as a circus trapeze artist and stunt cyclist.  Becoming infatuated with the Batman, she fashioned herself a costume and secret hideout and started operating as Batwoman.  She upstaged Batman and his sidekick Robin in capturing crooks, but Batman eventually learned her true identity and tracked her to her secret cave hideout.  Showing her how easily it was for him to learn her identity, Batman pointed out that criminals could probably do it just as easily and tried to convince her to drop out of crime fighting.  Disobeying Batman's advice, she tried to capture mobster Curt Briggs.  During this caper, Batman went missing and Briggs, struck with amnesia, left thinking he was Batman. Ultimately the real Batman reappeared, and Biggs was turned over to the police.

Batwoman came out of retirement to aid Batgirl against Killer Moth and the Cavalier, but her return was never intended to be permanent.  Kathy Kane was then present at a surprise party for Bruce Wayne at Wayne Manor.  When Batwoman was later disintegrated into nothingness on Barbara Gordon's doorstep, Batgirl and Robin teamed-up to find the cure and restore Batwoman to her normal form.  Shortly after this, Batwoman met the Huntress from Earth-Two and aided her and Batwoman in capturing Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Madame Zodiac.  When the Freedom Fighters of Earth-X searched for a group of criminals known as the Warmakers, their search led them to the carnival owned by Kathy Kane. Kathy, as Batwoman, aided the Freedom Fighters and Batgirl in defeating the Warmakers.  In her last recorded adventure, Kathy Kane was murdered by the League of Assassins, who were being manipulated by Ra's al Ghul.  Her death was eventually avenged by Batman.

In 2006, the character was reinvented by Greg Rucka, Grant Morrison, Geoff Johns, Mark Waid, and Keith Giffen, making her debut in 52 #7 as Kate Kane.  In their early childhood, Katherine Rebecca "Kate" Kane and her sister Elizabeth "Beth" Kane were identical twins and were very close to each other.  On their twelfth birthday their military father couldn't come home so Kate and Beth were taken by their mother, Gabrielle "Gabi" Kane, to an expensive restaurant for chocolate and waffles, their favorite dish.  On the way to the restaurant, a group of gunmen attacked the family and took them hostage, killing their bodyguard in the process.  After learning of her family's kidnapping, Kate's father, Colonel Jacob "Jake" Kane, led a rescue mission to save his captured family, which ended with Kate's mother executed and Beth apparently killed after being caught in the crossfire between the kidnappers and soldiers.

Years later, Kate attended the United States Military Academy, West Point, where she received excellent grades and ranked at the top of her class.  However, when it was alleged that she was in a lesbian relationship with another student, Kate's commanding officer asked her to disavow the allegation.  Telling the officer that she refused to lie and violate the code of the Academy, Kate admitted to being lesbian and was forced to leave the school.  When she confronted her father with the news, he supported her and affirmed that she upheld her honor and integrity.  She then moved back to Gotham City, where she attended college and pursued a wild social lifestyle, consisting of parties and tattoos.  Kate was eventually pulled over for speeding by a young Renee Montoya, who was just a traffic cop at this point.  The two dated for several months but broke up following a fight where Kate berated Renee for keeping her sexuality hidden from her colleagues and family.  While attempting to call Renee and apologize for her behavior, Kate was attacked by a mugger who wanted her wallet and cell phone.  Using her military training, Kate easily defeated the criminal just as Batman arrived and helped her off the ground.  She was fixated by the Bat Signal as Batman departed the scene.

Inspired by her encounter with Batman, Kate began fighting crime using military body armor and weaponry stolen from her father's military base.  After being confronted by Jake, Kate accepted his offer for assistance and began an intense two years of training across the globe with her father's military friends.  Upon returning to Gotham, Kate discovered that her father has created a Batsuit for her, along with an arsenal of experimental weaponry based on Batman's known gadgetry and a bunker hidden in the Kane home.  She soon adopted the identity of Batwoman and was soon accepted as a member of the Batman family.

This will be the first time Batwoman will appear in live action, although the character has appeared in various animated projects including Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman (voiced by Kyra Sedgwick), Batman: The Brave and the Bold (voiced by Vanessa Marshall), and Batman: Bad Blood (voiced by Yvonne Strahovski).

THE FANDOM ZONE 138: "A Devil of My Word" is Up!

"It's all true."

-- Chloe Decker to Lucifer Morningstar, Lucifer: "A Devil of My Word" 

After a successful liberation attempt, Karen and I are back with another HUGE episode of The Fandom Zone Podcast!  This week's reviews of comics on television include:

Lucifer 3x24: "A Devil of My Word"  (Season Finale)

Legion 2x07: "Chapter 15"

Gotham 4x22: "No Man's Land"  (Season Finale)

Arrow 6x23: "Life Sentence"  (Season Finale)

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 5x22: "The End"  (Season Finale)

In this episode, Karen and I talk about things like my copy of Domino #2 by Gail Simone, why Lucifer's showrunner is a bonehead, how Lucifer's series finale cliffhanger actually works as an ending, Lucifer throwing down with his wings out, being relieved that Ella wasn't completely Team Pierce, Lucifer's second season being its best, Karen's Star Wars geek cred fail, crying over Fry's dog, the subject of moral panic, Fredric Wertham's Seduction of the Innocent creating fear and panic over comic books in the 1950s, John Hammeos, Present Day Syd being jealous of Future Syd, the Shadow King being the hero and David Haller being the villain, Kerry not wanting to eat and poop, the Vermillion being quantum locked like Weeping Angels, David confronting the icky delusion bug, Ra's al Ghul wanting to bring down Gotham in order to make Bruce the "Dark Knight the city needs", Stabby Babs failing to stab Ra's al Ghul, the Penguin finally settling a long grudge against Tabitha, that awkward moment when Lee catches the Riddler torturing Jim Gordon with an industrial press, Stabby Babs going all "men suck" and establishing female-only turf, the first appearance of Man-Bat, Cassandra Cain as Orphan, the debut of the Bruce Signal, Beth Schwartz taking over as Arrow's showrunner, Laurel or Yanni, Oliver Queen's apology tour, the F.B.I. not giving Oliver two minutes to cope with Quentin's death before arresting him, Oliver going all Tony Stark, Mike Grell's Green Arrow: The Longbow Hunters, another rant by Karen about not being able to hack a pacemaker, Quentin taking a bullet to save Black Siren, the decision to kill Quentin off camera, Yo-Yo being the only one willing to make the hard call of killing Coulson to save the Earth, Daisy throwing down with Graviton in Chicago, Fitz being Whedoned, Coulson getting a "Spy's Goodbye", the return of Justina's feedback, Lena Luthor not being able to figure out that Kara is Supergirl, and more!

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And if that isn't enough for you, you can also check us out on YouTube, Libsyn, Soundcloud, Stitcher, and the official Southgate Media Group website!  Oh, and if you're interested in an officially official Fandom Zone Podcast t-shirt that all the cool kids are wearing, you can get those on TeePublic HERE as well!  Feel free to post a picture on our Facebook page of you or some other cool person you know wearing the shirt!

Be sure to come back tomorrow as Karen and I review the big season finales of The CW's The Flash and Syfy's Krypton, along with new episodes of The CW's Supergirl and FX's Legion, right here on The Fandom Zone Podcast!