To me, theres no longer any question whether or not were living in a new Golden Age of Comic Book characters in all mediums of communication. To that end, were also seeing characters of African descent that are gleaned from these illustrated pages being birthed onto the big and small screen like never before. Not only have such big name characters as Black Panther and Luke Cage been cast with top flight actors, there are several instances in which the films have changed characters that were White in the pages of their respective books (Johnny Storm, Jimmy Olsen) into Black characters for the sake of adaptations.
Though there are bound to be many fans to poo-poo this recent development, we have no problem with it whatsoever. After all, there have been many situations in which the exact opposite has been true in Hollywood and television series with people who lived in Africa (Ancient Egypt), Cleopatra and Moses, being depicted as White in film and television time and time again.
But were not only excited about the recent casting of Black characters and actors in Marvel and DCs respective cinematic universes, but the myriad of projects that are scheduled to hit the big screen within the next year. On Monday, Nerdist.com reported that DCs Teen Titans will be headed to TNT and that casting is just about to wrap. Characters that will reportedly be involved in the series are Dick Grayson aka Nightwing/Robin, Barbara Gordon aka Oracle, Hawk and Dove, though that duo isnt traditionally associated with Teen Titans.
Teen Titans mainstays Raven and Starfire will be a part of the show as well with Beast Boy slated to appear later in the season. But Cyborg will not be on the series because of big screen plans for a spinoff from the upcoming Justice League offering in 2017.
But this report still hasnt been confirmed, according to Comic Book Resources.
In other news, creators of The Flash recently teased the arrival of A.T.O.M. on the show and tonight’s episode gave fans their first glimpse of Gorilla Grodd. Meanwhile, over in Starlight City, Arrow has already debuted Black Canary at the beginning of its season. If these recent offerings are any indicator then the multimedia offerings for comic book lovers are multiplying at an incredible rate. To top that off, Netflix recently announced actress Krysten Ritter will star as Jessica Jones in the upcoming series A.K.A. Jessica Jones. And lest we forget that Daredevil is slated to premiere on Netflix in April as well.
Boy we cant wait and were certain that you cant either.
Catch us next Tuesday when well continue bringing you conversations and viewpoints from some of the most innovative minds in the comic book game.
Until then, excelsior!
