This interview contains some mild spoilers for Naomi #1. It has been edited for length and clarity.

The story of Superman began with him crashing down in a little town. In Naomi #1, the new DC Comics series from Brian Michael Bendis, David Walker, and Jamal Campbell, another hero’s journey begins when a battle between the Man of Steel and Mongul leads to a collision course with a small town, and leaves a big impact.Naomi (last name a mystery) is a young adopted woman of color, and a Superman super-fan. The story of the Kryptonian baby adopted by Earth parents fuels Naomi’s fantasy that she may also be special. But when the high school student twice misses the hero’s appearance in her sleepy home of Port Oswego, Oregon, it sets her off on a mission to uncover the story of a long-forgotten superhero who had visited the town 17 years prior -- right around the time she was adopted.

Part of the Wonder Comics imprint, a teen-focused, in-continuity line of titles from DC, Naomi introduces a brand new character in the DC Universe. While revolving around Naomi’s quest to uncover her (potentially super) origins, the title features realistic teen dialogue, vox pops panels, and Campbell’s luscious art, all of which combine to bring Naomi to life as a real woman, and creates a Port Oswego that feels as lived-in as any of the more recognizable DCU locations.

However, while Naomi at first seems removed from the action of Metropolis, Bendis promises his new character won’t be shrouded in mystery for too long and that she’ll be joining the big-league action soon after. He also shares why Naomi matters as a character to him, and where she fits alongside his other original creation “kids,” Jessica Jones and Miles Morales (who is definitely having a moment right now with a Golden Globe-winning, Oscar-nominated movie).

Den of Geek: Does Naomi feel like a new kid for you? Are you a proud parent all over again?

Brian Michael Bendis: Yes, it really does. Every time I've had this wonderful opportunity to be additive to a universe like this, it is, I must say, one of the big joys of my life. And it doesn't matter how old the character is or what the character comes from, you do, you feel like a proud parent. And so it's exciting as, I guess as Miles Morales goes off to college. In my head, it feels like our one kid has graduated and started their life as a Golden Globe-winning person. We got to introduce Naomi, whose story is as unique to the DC universe as it is to everything else I've had a help in creating over the years.

What makes her unique?

She's a unique spirit with a unique story to tell. Much like Jessica Jones' story could only happen in Marvel universe, it really feels like Naomi's story could only happen in the DC universe. I'm so excited that I got the opportunity to come here with my friend David Walker, and Jamal, and create a brand-new energy that is reflective of the DC universe and will reveal a very big, powerful secret that will be additive to everybody who wants in on it at DC.

This is your Jack Kirby moment to create something original at both Marvel and DC.

You can't help but think about all the other creators that have come and been in the position that I've been offered. I'm not comparing myself to Jack Kirby, I'm just comparing the opportunity, and the opportunity was to really go nuts and really create. He went and created the Fourth World and went bananas. And it took years for people to even catch up to what he did.

read more: Superman and the Next Evolution of Superboy

I said to David, "I think we kind of really have a similar situation in that we should take as much opportunity and be as creative and additive as possible." I'm not comparing Naomi to the Fourth World, but I'm saying she was created with the same spirit in that we can be that big and that additive. So though this first issue is very personal and intimate, every issue gets bigger and bigger as she discovers more and more of the secrets around her and the town.

The Superman Complex was introduced by anti-comic psychiatrist Fredric Wertham, but you take the idea, and instead apply it to the desire to have a special purpose – especially for adopted children, because Superman was also adopted. This is personal for you?

Of my four children, two are adopted -- one international, one domestic. Because of that, I have an enormous amount of adoption in our world. A lot of our friends, and a lot of our families, a lot of the things that we go to, involve adoption, and psychology. Philosophies about adoption are part of it. It's always on my mind, constantly. And though people might think that this story is a reflection of my family, it actually is not at all.

Did you talk about Naomi with your kids?

In fact, I sat down with my daughters and I said, "Listen, you're going to meet Naomi and you're going to read it and you'll realize, 'This isn't like us.'" And it isn't. It does not reflect our life at all. It reflects other people like that. There's a lot of parts about adoption that we have not seen reflected in comics, and really anywhere in literature. We're talking about representation, sometimes it's more than just experience and perspective. Even though so many superheroes have lost their parents, they're not really about adoption.

It is interesting we talk about Superman as an immigrant, but not much as an adopted child.

People don't really think of Superman as adopted, even though he said to the world, "I've been adopted." It's not part of his secret identity, and so that would mean something to adopted people. That would be a reflection of them. That allowed me to tell the story: Superman bouncing into this town for one second would cause so much emotional and spiritual crisis. That idea was so exciting to me. That little moment would trigger all of this stuff in the town for Naomi to start investigating.

Superman is this inspiring character for the town, and especially for Naomi …

The Superman connection is very purposeful, not only because of the adopted connection, but there's a Superman thread that weaves its way through all of the Wonder Comics titles, and only the audience will know what the thread is. The characters will never be able to put that thread together. Young Justice and everybody else, they'll never know what's up. You create an energy in the world, and Superman's moving so quickly, and dealing with his own stuff, he's never going to be able to wrap his head around what his every action does for every single person. But Superman is inspiring a lot of things that he'll never even know about.

How would you describe her personality? She comes across as a journalist, or sleuth.

There are certain people in her position who, when they grow up, they become hyper focused on how the world works. It's because something happened early in life that didn't work for them like it works for everybody else. So, she's always been very interested in how the pieces all fit together and that's also because, in her heart, she knew there's a missing piece of her world. She's been struggling for years, trying to just put the world together in her head, and now the missing piece is revealing itself to be missing. It's not just her neurosis, it's real.

Even though she's a whole new character, what percentage of Jessica and Miles are in Naomi?

With Miles, it was so crazy, and was more than you could ever imagine. You’re doing a brand-new character in the midst of another character finding such an amazing international spotlight. You can't help but reflect on it. I talked to David Walker about this because he was there when Miles was created as well. It definitely feels great that Naomi is a completely different than Miles and Jessica Jones, completely different. But she’s being treated in the same genuine spirit, a very authentic spirit. That feels very good. I feel the same way on the dawn of her debut that we did about Miles when he was first appearing. It feels really real, in the best way possible. So, other than that, she's completely different.

As a storyteller, do you fear falling into a “chosen one” trap with something like Naomi?

Yeah, no, it's not a "chosen one" story. Naomi is a spectacular individual with a secret that will be revealed. It is different than, it's not like, "You're the only one.” It's a story of her, so its unique to her. But it's not the, "You've come to save us all.” It is a story being told around kids that know the trope of "the chosen one.” Because she knows it's a storytelling trope, and is still trying to process her place in the universe.

As far as supporting characters, who are the people that we should be watching out for?

Mom and Dad, you're going meet them next issue. Mom and Dad know a lot of stuff. We meet Dee, the local mechanic at the end of the issue, and clearly he knows something, and he's physically a little different than everybody else. So there's some secrets right over there that we're going to start diving into right away. And of course, Naomi's best friend Annabelle is going to be an amazing energy for her to deal with everything that is happening. But this is a story about Naomi and her parents.

How long are you going to play out the mystery of her origin?

Not long. We start unpacking quickly. By the way, by Issue #4, the book's almost a completely different genre. Right away, this is a massive origin story and there's a payoff. This isn't years of her walking around her small town wondering what happened. By Issue #3, she damn well knows what happened, and then the next three issues are her dealing with it. It is an enormous secret, and you got to remember, she's basically opening a door to something that the DC Universe did not know existed, and it's enormous. There's a lot of things behind that door that she has to deal with -- or are coming to find her.

Are you going to bring her into the fold with the other Wonder imprints?

Yeah. After her sixth issue, she will debut the very next week in Young Justice. Every hero figures out they have to walk their path; when she figures that out, it's going to happen in the sixth issue, so that's exciting.

Naomi #1 is on sale now.

Gerard Way and Gabriel Ba's The Umbrella Academy is coming to Netflix as a live action series. The comic book series, which debuted in 2007, was first optioned as a movie before Dark Horse signed a deal with Universal Cable Productions to adapt the comic as a TV series. 

The live action series follows the estranged members of a dysfunctional family of superheroes -- The Monocle, Spaceboy, The Kraken, The Rumor, The Séance, Number Five, The Horror, and the seemingly powerless Vanya -- as they work together to solve their father’s mysterious death while coming apart at the seams due to their divergent personalities and abilities. 

Way began writing The Umbrella Academy just a year after the release of My Chemical Romance's magnum opus, The Black Parade. The series is Eisner Award-winning goodness that has continued to inform Way's career as a comic book writer, especially with his current run on Doom Patrol and his Young Animal line at DC. Artist Gabriel Ba has also done some of his best work on the series. (If you want something really great by Ba, check out Daytripper, which he created with his twin brother, artist Fabio Moon.)

The Umbrella Academy recently returned in 2018 with the third volume, Hotel Oblivion, which sees the family continue to struggle with its legacy. The show will likely carry many of these same themes. Here's everything else we know about the Netflix series:

The Umbrella Academy Trailer

The Umbrella Academy full trailer has arrived and wants to save the world. If that song in the background sounds familiar that's because its a cover of The Bangles'"Hazy Shade of Winter" performed by Umbrella Academy creator and My Chemical Romance frontman Gerard Way. When it rains, it pours.

The first trailer is here!

The Umbrella Academy Cast

Netflix has revealed the core cast of the show. Here are the actors who will portray the members of the Umbrella Academy:

Ellen Page (X-Men: Days of Future Past) will star as Vanya, who is estranged from the rest of the family because of her lack of powers. Vanya is a very important character in the first arc of the comics, as she goes through a bit of self-discovery that puts her at odds with the superheroes she once called a family.

Tom Hopper (Game of Thrones) plays Luther, aka Spaceboy. He has super-strength, and after a terrible accident during an expedition to Mars, his head had to be transplanted onto the body of a gorilla. Ehem...

Emmy Raver-Lampman (Hamilton) will play Allison, aka The Rumor, who can alter reality by lying. 

David Castaneda (El Chicano) is Diego, codenamed The Kraken. He is sort of a fuse between Aquaman and Batman. He can hold his breath indefinitely, which gives him an advantage when in water, and is an expert knife thrower.

Robert Sheehan (Misfits) is perfectly cast as Klaus aka The Seance, the most morbid character of the group. His powers, which manifest only when he's barefoot, include levitation, telekinesis, and the ability to contant the dead. In the comics, Klaus is killed at one point but rejected from both Heaven and Hell.

Aidan Gallagher (Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn) is Number Five, simply codenamed The Boy. He can effortlessly travel in time and does not age due to a temporal condition. 

Colm Feore (House of Cards) will play Sir Reginald Hargreeves, the leader of the Umbrella Academy. He is the billionaire who adopted all of the strange children that made up the superhero team. Hargreeves was known to be manipulative and cold towards the kids, something that has scarred the heroes later in life.

Adam Godley (Breaking Bad) will play Pogo, a genetically-engineered and talking chimpanzee. Pogo is a point of comfort for the Umbrella Academy, acting in much more of a fatherly and nurturing role than Hargreeves ever did. 

Ashley Madekwe (Revenge) plays Detective Patch, who is at odds with the vigilantes that protect her city. She prefers to play things by the book.

Mary J. Blige has joined the cast as well. She will play the role of Cha-Cha, the insane time-traveling assassin first introduced in the second arc of the comic, "Dallas," which reimagines the Kennedy assassination. Cha-Cha, along with her partner Hazel, believes in using the most violent method possible to dispatch her prey. 

Hazel will be played by Cameron Britton (Mindhunter). According to the official character description, Hazel will become at odds with Cha-Cha at some point after their time-traveling blood-soaked adventures begin to wear on him. 

John Magaro (The Big Short) will be a series regular, playing Leonard Peabody, described as “a sweet Average Joe,” who, while dismissed as being somewhat of a milquetoast, strikes up an unlikely romance with Vanya (Ellen Page) that plays out against the backdrop of the larger events of the series.

Kate Walsh will play a recurring character called The Handler, officially described as “a composed and confident leader of a mysterious, bureaucratic company who is always ready to manage any situation — though it's best not to get on her bad side. Her charm is her greatest strength and she uses it to her advantage to complete the business of her organization.”

The Umbrella Academy Release Date

Netflix has officially announced that all 10 one-hour episodes of The Umbrella Academy will premiere will premiere on February 15, 2019. Best Valentine ever.

John Saavedra is an associate editor at Den of Geek. Read more of his work here. Follow him on Twitter @johnsjr9. 

One of the most popular fantasy franchises of the literary world, The Wheel of Time, is getting a live-action television adaptation. Originally authored by Robert Jordan, the 80 million-selling 1990-2013 book series depicts a sprawling mythology, amalgamating feudal and magical tropes with elements of Eastern mysticism. While the project was first brought to the table by Sony, the latest development has procured its home.

Amazon gave a series order to The Wheel of Time back in October, setting the project as an hour-long series that will stream on Amazon Prime Video, as reported Deadline and confirmed by an APV retweet. The move serves as the culmination of what has been a year-and-a-half process, which commenced back in April 2017, when it was first reported that Sony Pictures Television was moving forward with the TV project.

In the latest news on Amazon's The Wheel of Time TV project, a production timeframe was recently spotted in trade magazine Production Weekly, via fan site The Daily Trolloc. The excerpt claims that the series is set to commence production in Prague, Czech Republic sometime in September 2019.

The Wheel of Time follows Moiraine, a member of an all-female secret society of magic users called, Aes Sedai of the Blue Ajah. She embarks on a dangerous journey with five young people who she comes to mentor, one of whom she believes could be the reincarnation of an individual who is prophesized to either save or destroy humanity. The books bear philosophical influences from European and Asian culture, notably Buddhism and Hinduism, centered in the idea of a time being cyclical in nature.

Of course, The Wheel of Time should be a large-scale endeavor, since the novels of Robert Jordan (nom de plume of James O. Rigney Jr.), three of which were completed by Brandon Sanderson after Jordan passed away in 2007, build an intricate mythology governed by the titular seven-spoke Wheel of Time powered by an incorporeal celestial source of power. Like the Force in Star Wars, it is a binary power utilized by gifted people called “channelers.” The story is spread across epochs in the continuing battle against Shai’tan (or, the Dark One,) who, upon breaking free of imprisonment from the Creator, exerts influence on the malleable to lead the source toward evil.

The Wheel of Time will be run by Rafe Judkins, who assumes duties as writer, executive producer and showrunner. Judkins is no stranger to genre television, serving as a producer and writer on ABC’s Marvel series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Netflix horror series Hemlock Grove. He was also a story editor for NBC’s beloved geek-wish-fulfillment spy series Chuck. Judkins will be joined by executive producers Rick Selvage and Larry Mondragon of Red Eagle and producers Ted Field and Mike Weber of Radar Pictures. Additionally, the property’s authorial legacy is in place with Jordan’s widow, Harriet McDougal, onboard as a consulting producer.

As Sharon Tal Yguado, Head of Event Series, Amazon Originals states:

“Developing and producing Robert Jordan’s beloved fourteen-books-series for TV is a big undertaking, and we don’t take it lightly. We believe that Rafe’s personal connection to the material and soulful writing will resonate with the book’s passionate fans.”

Amazon's series order for The Wheel of Time arrives after several years of starts and stops, going back to 2000 when author Jordan was still alive. A pilot called Winter Dragon, starring Billy Zane and Max Ryan, aired on FXX on February 8, 2015 (at 1:30 a.m.) to no fanfare or fruition (it was essentially a move by Red Eagle to prevent the rights from expiring). However, McDougal herself made media ripples in April 2016 when she announced “exciting news” about the property; something that required the clearing of some legal issues before moving forward. After the resolution of said legal issues, McDougal speculated that The Wheel of Time would become a “cutting edge TV series.”

We’ll keep you updated on Amazon’s The Wheel of Time as things develop.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy has sold over 125 million copies around the world, and launched a movie series adaptation that has made $1.3 billion at the global box office. So you better believe it's big news when Fifty Shades author E.L. James announced earlier today on the Today show (via The Wrap) what her next book project will be...

The novel will be called The Mister, and it will be a contemporary romance set in London, Cornwall, and Eastern Europe—all very romantic places, in some sense of that word. The Mister will follow aristocratic gentleman Maxim Trevelyan (great name) and the "mysterious, talented, and beautiful Alessia Demachi." Alessia has just arrived in London with very little to her name and a dangerous past. 

Further reading: Fifty Shades of Grey Movie Review

Reading that description, I straight-up forgot this is a contemporary novel, but James reminds us that it is in the following statement:

I’m so excited to finally get this passionate new romance out into the world. It’s a Cinderella story for the twenty-first century. Maxim and Alessia have led me on a fascinating journey and I hope that my readers will be swept away by their thrilling and sensual tale, just as I was while writing, and that, like me, they fall in love with them.

Further reading: Fifty Shades Darker Movie Review

It sounds like fans of the Fifty Shades series—and, as previously mentioned, there are many—which follows college graduate Anastasia Steele as she embarks on a romantic and sexual relationship with business magnate Christian Grey will be into this story as well. It has many of the same themes: contemporary romance, young protagonists (one of whom has a mysterious past), and an imbalance of power.  

Fifty Shades was adapted from a Twilight fanfiction called Master of the Universe, which James wrote under the online name Snowqueens Icedragon. It will be interesting to see if The Mister rises to the same level of popularity as the Fifty Shades trilogy.

Further reading: Fifty Shades Freed Movie Review

The Misterhits bookstores on April 16.

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.

I had a thought last year-- what has Christopher Paolini, author of the Inheritance Cycle series, been up to lately? A quick Google search told me nada. Then, at the very end of last year came a collection of short stories, set in the world of Alagaesia and a brief look at what our main character Eragon was up to, as well as telling some new stories set in that world.

It’s important to understand going in that this isn’t a singular story, and shouldn’t be held to the standards of holding up as a true sequel to the conclusion of the Inheritance Cycle. Holding it to such standards would leave the reader wanting much more from this, rather than enjoying the simple ride this collection presents.

Read Eragon: Inheritance, Book 1 by Christopher Paolini

The Inheritance Cycle was about Eragon, simple farm boy-turned-Dragon Rider set in the magical world of Alagaesia. It was a classic fantasy story, rife with warring factions and an evil Dragon Rider who ruled with an iron first. The world building was lovely, the characters memorable and the stakes high. It took four hefty tomes to tell Eragon’s story and the last book was published in 2011, so it’s been a while since we’ve heard from either Eragon or author Christopher Paolini, who hadn’t published anything until this time.

The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm is three stories set within the world of Alagaesia, bookended by what Eragon is up to these days. It both elaborates upon the world while continuing to leave many mysteries, drawing attention to the fact that this collection is subtitled “Volume 1: Eragon.” It appears to hint that other books revolving around pivotal characters may follow.

The volume is divided in three major parts. Eragon leads and then wraps up each part, gaining a lesson or two from the process while he deals with being the leader of a new settlement. So, no, this isn’t Beedle the Bard: Alagaesia Edition, but it’s own thing. It’s a pretty brief read, all but for the last part which goes in depth on a folk tale.

There are several ideas I would have liked explored further in this book, or at least touched upon. I feel like a missed opportunity exists where the author could have given us a glimpse at when Alagaesia was discovered. Numerous clans and creatures talk about when their kind sailed into the land many lifetimes ago, but we don’t know where they came from or why they came to Alagaesia. Perhaps this can be elaborated on in a further installment.

Stepping into this new volume had a general air of excitement. The reader, familiar with the world already, could finally revisit. It’s like the Narnia kids having a long reprieve from their magical world until a new portal opens in an unexpected place.

Further reading: 9 Fantasy Books Set At Magical Boarding School

It doesn’t quite fill the gap where a full book would fit. The three parts of the book are like snapshots. Eragon, dealing with the pressures of leadership, is shown three different stories that are meant to teach and guide him. One is a glimpse at an old friend in a land far away, teaching a life lesson to a young girl. Another features the partial memoir of herbalist Angela and the third is a folktale told by an Urgal (a horned creature in this world).

The format eliminates the ability to go too deep into meaning and shock value. The parts with Eragon are brief enough to feel like snapshots (20 pages at the most) so that his very real problems of running a settlement are mostly just touched upon.

There is a scene in which Eragon must address a cave-in that injures some of his people: “For all the spells he had learned and powers he had gained since becoming a Dragon Rider -- and for all the strength of the dragons -- some things were still beyond him.” It’s an important lesson to learn, and an important facet showing that Eragon still has growing to do as a character. He’s not perfect, he’s no Mary Sue (or Marty Stu, as the male version is sometimes called) and he has to learn the hard way that not all problems are easily answered or solved at all. Does this hold the amount of weight that could have been explored in a novel format? No, but it does the job it’s meant to do.

Further reading: An Author Interview with S.L. Huang

An interesting feature of the book is a partial memoir from Angela the herbalist, written not by Christopher Paolini but his sister Angela Paolini, whom the character was initially based on. This gave a new voice to read into, but a perplexing memoir.

In the section “On the Nature of Stars” where Angela states: “The tales contained in this volume are all true, and every one is false.” It’s commentary on the memoir Angela tells, but may further describe the book itself. We don’t truly know if the folk tale at the end of the book “The Worm of Kulkarus” is a true story, or whether the peculiar Angela is actually writing a memoir or blatantly lying. The only story we assume is true is the first one “The Fork” which is shown to Eragon via his dragon friends. Perhaps, truly, Angela is saying something more meta. That if you don’t care for this book, don’t count it as canon for the series. Bold move, Paolini’s.

WIth the release of The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm arriving eight years after the last book in the Inheritance Cycle series was published, It seems Paolini is almost living up to GRRM level book release times. Luckily that doesn’t appear to be the case. The author has teased on his website a “massive sci fi novel” that is intended to be published by the end of this year.

Further reading: Den of Geek's Best Fiction Books of 2018

In the meantime, this collection brought back fond memories and a breath of fresh air. It didn’t have to be perfect. Nobody asked it to. It left this reader yearning for more, perhaps a new story told in a multi-book arc.

A short story collection can’t quite hold itself up against a full book in the series. We shouldn’t expect it to. There’s no time to develop characters and situations. At best this book should be treated as what it is -- several morality tales set in a magical world.

At least one thing is settled: The world of Alagaesia still lives.

Read The Fork, The Witch, and The Worm now. 

Bridget LaMonica is a contributor at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @BridgetLaMonica.

The Locke & Key TV series project has had a rough time, but its troubles finally appear to be over, thanks to Netflix.

Back in July 2016, THR revealed that Hulu gave the show adaptation of writer Joe Hill's IDW horror comic book series a pilot order, with Carlton Cuse (Lost) set to serve as showrunner. Auspiciously, Andy Muschietti (It, Mama) was on tap to direct the pilot after Doctor Strange's Scott Derrickson had to withdraw.

Unfortunately, after all that, Hulu passed on the project! However, Netflix eventually came in for the rescue... even if said rescue involved scrapping Hulu's pilot. Regardless, the Locke & Key TV series is finally happening, officially greenlit as a 10-episode series for Netflix!

Locke & Key Cast

Locke & Key has scooped up The Fosters star Sherri Saum. According to TVLine, Saum will play Ellie Whedon, "a teacher at Matheson Academy who has a mysterious history with the Locke family." 

Netflix has revealed, via Deadline, the young cast who will portray the Locke siblings in the streaming giant’s reworked version of the Locke & Key TV series.

Connor Jessup (American Crime, Falling Skies) will play Tyler Locke, who, as a teenager, is the oldest of the siblings.

Emilia Jones (Wolf Hall, Utopia) will play Kinsey Locke.

Jackson Robert Scott (It– as Georgie Denbrough) was previously added, set to play the youngest of the trio, Bode Locke. Interestingly, Scott was cast as Bode in the nixed Hulu iteration and, for now, stands as the only cast member confirmed for retention by Netflix.

While the streaming giant rescued the wayward project, the move involved crucial caveats: Netflix’s series order came with the confirmation that Locke & Key will go back to the drawing board, re-casting while redeveloping the scripts, essentially scrapping the Hulu pilot, which starred Frances O’Connor and was directed by It helmer Andy Muschietti (who’s too busy with the sequel to handle the mulligan).

Interestingly, Netflix is opting to keep the Hulu iteration’s creative fulcrum, Joe Hill, who remains onboard as creator/writer/executive producer. The same goes for showrunner Carlton Cuse, known from Lost, The Strain, Bates Motel and Amazon’s upcoming Jack Ryan series. Cuse is now joined in that capacity by Meredith Averill, who’s worked on Jane the Virgin, Star-Crossed and The Good Wife, along with Netflix’s upcoming TV series horror reboot The Haunting of Hill House.

Of course, there's another failed Locke & Key TV endeavors that predate Hulu's version.

In 2016, IDW Entertainment released news that Locke & Key writer Joe Hill (he wrote the story for the comics, with art by Gabriel Rodriguez) was on board to write the pilot and executive produce the TV show adaptation as a straight-to-series project. It's unclear how Hulu and Cuse's involvement might change that plan, but Hill had previously said in a statement:

I love this story. The seven years I spent working on Locke & Key was the happiest creative experience of my life, and there still isn’t a day when I don’t think about those characters and miss visiting with them. The six books of the series are very like six seasons of a cable TV series, and so it feels only natural to bring that world to the little screen and to see if we can’t scare the pants off viewers everywhere.

Locke & Key begins with the story of three siblings returning to their family's ancestral home following the brutal and mysterious murder of their father. As they explore the house and its surroundings, it becomes clear that there are wonderful and terrible things lurking on the grounds. It is a comic book horror classic.

Previously, a TV show adaptation made it all the way to the pilot stage, but never garnered a pick-up. The TV adaptation had Josh Friedman as a showrunner (The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Avatar 2) and an all-star cast that included Miranda Otto, Sarah Bolger, and Ksenia Solo. Check out the trailer...

Sadly, this version of Locke & Key never made it past a pilot, but the pop culture world seems better poised to embrace an onscreen version of this horror comic now. Not only are there way more comic book adaptations on TV and film, but Joe Hill has attained a better industry foothold, especially with the recent film adaptaion of Horns. Hopefully, the Netflix adaptation is good and garners enough of an audience to ensure its continuation. Universe, you owe us this.

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

Another superhero series is joining Netflix’s original content lineup. However, this one won’t quite fit with its existing Marvel small screen scene. Raising Dion, an independently-created superhero sci-fi story that carries a heartfelt family twist, has been given a full series order by the streaming giant.

further reading: Lost in Space Season 2: Everything You Need to Know

Netflix has announced that Raising Dion will arrive on its platform with a 10-episode series order. The story stems from a 2015 short film and comic book of the same name, created by Dennis Liu and illustrated by Jason Piperberg. It depicts the innately unconventional parenting task of a widowed African-American woman, whose 7-year-old son Dion possesses an array of potent superpowers (telekinesis, energy projection, invisibility, etc.). Yet, despite its fantastical premise, the focus rests more on the realistic implications that one would have when raising a child who has a normal sense of wonder and mischief, but happens to possess incredibly dangerous abilities. Indeed, the sight of the mother packing a pistol while watching some men-in-black types outside her door drives home the idea that threats are everywhere.

Discussing the Netflix pickup, creator Dennis Liu expresses in a statement:

“I started this project many years ago because I wanted to see more diverse representation on film and television and I’m excited to partner with Netflix, who I know shares that commitment. More than ever, we need more stories told from different points of view and my hope with Raising Dion is to create a cinematic experience for all families that will lift your spirits and make you laugh and cry.”

Helping Liu in that endeavor with Raising Dion will be appointed showrunner Carol Barbee, who has also written the script for the first episode. Barbee, a veteran television writer/producer, has been attached to a wide variety of series, notably in the sci-fi/action arena, with Falling Skies, Touch, Hawaii Five-O and Jericho, as well as dramas such as UnREAL, Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce and Judging Amy. She is joined by exec producers in Macro’s Charles D. King, Kim Roth and Poppy Hanks, along with Kenny Goodman and Michael Green.

further reading: The Best Sci-Fi Movies on Netflix

Intriguingly enough, also joining Barbee as an executive producer on Raising Dion will be actor Michael B. Jordan (Black Panther), who is onboard via his Outlier Society Productions. Moreover, Jordan will also appear on the series on occasion, playing the late father of the titular super-powered-sprout, who (at least, in the original short,) is implied to have been a military man who was cut down in action.

Regarding Michael B. Jordan’s presence on the series, Netflix VP of Original Content Cindy Holland states:

“We haven’t seen this type of superhero story before — an origin myth full of imagination, wonder and adventure, all grounded in the experiences of a modern single mother. Michael B. Jordan is an exciting and dynamic talent, and I’m excited to see him, Macro, Carol and the team translate Dennis’ unique vision to television.”

Longtime TV director Seith Mann (who, like Jordan, worked on TheWire but not at the same time as the actor) is set to direct the series' first episode per Deadline. 

Raising Dion does stand as a potentially unique family-centric take on an increasingly crowded superhero/sci-fi genre, also carrying much of the same X-Men-esque drama about society’s depicted fear of superpowered people; something that will undoubtedly be rooted in socially topical themes.

Raising Dion Cast

Netflix has now cast the Dion in Raising Dion along with his mother as well. According to Deadline, newcomer Ja’Siah Young will protray the young boy with limitless potential and powers. Alisha Wainwright (Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments) will play the mother tasked with raising him, Nicole. 

further reading: The Umbrella Academy Release Date

Michael B. Jordan, of course, is portraying Dion's father and he posted a lovely little family photo to his Instagram. 

On the non-family front, Jason Ritter previously joined Michael B. Jordan in being one of the first actors cast on Raising Dion. Ritter will portray Pat, a comicbook fan, scientist, and best friend to Jordan's character, Mark. After Mark dies, Pat fills in as a paternal figure for Dion and shares a special bond with her. Someone's gotta raise Dion! The show's title demands it.

Ritter has had a strong recent history of television roles and is coming off of starring in ABC's Kevin (Probably) Saves the World. Deadline first reported the casting.

Jazmyn Simon (Ballers) will play Kat, Nicole's sister and a surgical student. 

Raising Dion Release Date

There’s no word yet on when Netflix expects Raising Dion to arrive. It is not currently among the shows listed in Netflix's roster and could get a release date of 2019 or later.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens ushered in an entirely new generation of fans looking for more adventures in the galaxy far, far away, but with the whole issue of Legends canon vs. the new canon and a whole slate of new books, comics, and movies arriving in the next few years, it can be hard to figure out where to start. Luckily for you, it's become a bit easier to dive into the canon materials now that a clear line has been drawn between Legends (pre-Disney) and new canon (post-Disney) stories, but that new material is quickly growing, too. 

In order to help new fans get a clear look at the official Star Wars timeline, we've put together a list of the most central Star Wars books, comics, and games and detailed how they relate to the movies and TV series.

Further Reading: Everything We Know About Star Wars Episode IX

What won't you see on this list?

Most Star Wars Insider short stories, Star Wars Rebels Magazine comics, Forces of Destiny shorts, or Disney novelizations like The Princess, The Farmboy, and The Scoundrel. Star Wars Insider stories have been included where we felt they contributed most to the overarching timeline -- or if we felt they were particularly good.

This timeline is intended to help you find the best jumping-on point. (There's always the "pick up whatever you find first" approach, though.) Dates are sometimes approximate and are based on years before (BBY) and after (ABY) the Battle of Yavin, equivalent to before and after A New Hope, as per the official canon chronology.

Buy all your Star Wars movies, books, comics, and merch here!

32 - 20 BBY - Age of Republic

Written by Jody Houser

Art by Cory Smith and Luke Ross

The Age of Republic comics miniseries is composed of one-shot issues that prove writer Jody Houser is a powerful new addition to Star Wars fiction. The series focuses on Prequel characters such as Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Maul, Jango Fett, Padmé Amidala, Anakin Skywalker, Count Dooku, and General Grievous. They each get their own issues, which can be read together or separately. Age of Republic Special stars Mace Windu and brings in heroes and villains from across the Clone Wars.

32 BBY - Marvel's Darth Maul

Written by Cullen Bunn

Art by Luke Ross

Set before the events of The Phantom Menace and the villain's first demise at the hands of Obi-Wan Kenobi, this comic book miniseries follows Darth Maul in the early days of his apprenticeship under Darth Sidious. While he's not allowed to engage the Jedi just yet, Maul still manages to come face to face with a young Jedi Padawan during one of his missions for the Dark Lord of the Sith. The events of the series show how the dark side makes Maul more powerful but also incredibly flawed.

Buy Marvel's Darth Maul

32 BBY - The Phantom Menace 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy The Phantom Menace

29 BBY - Marvel's Obi-Wan & Anakin 

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Marco Checchetto

This comic series, written by Charles Soule and penciled by Marco Checchetto, is Disney’s first foray into deep Prequel territory, without even The Clone Wars to hang on to. Devoid of any ancillary material. Obi-Wan & Anakin paints a slightly different picture of the iconic Jedi team-up than the Legends stories did before. Anakin is a headstrong tinkerer, but there is also an edge of vengefulness or self-hatred around him in the first issue when he summons a hologram of Darth Maul that surprises and disgusts the Jedi Council.

The series expands on how Anakin’s life as a slave affects the way he views the Jedi. This isn't an easy apprenticeship for either Jedi, but we know that it’s leading up to at least some camaraderie by the time of Padme’s attempted assassination in Attack of the Clones.

Buy Marvel's Obi-Wan & Anakin

22 BBY - Attack of the Clones 

Directed by George Lucas

Written by George Lucas & Jonathan Hales

Buy Attack of the Clones

22-19 BBY - The Clone Wars 

Created by George Lucas

Buy The Clone Wars

21-17 BBY - Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel

Written by James Luceno

Before Jyn Erso embarked on her fateful mission to steal the plans to the Death Star from the evil Empire in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, she lived on Coruscant with her parents, Galen and Lyra. Galen is a scientist who means to use his kyber crystal research to produce renewable energy for the galaxy, but his friend Orson Krennic has very different plans. The scientist doesn't know that he's actually helping create a weapon for the Death Star!

Buy Catalyst: A Rogue One Novel

19 BBY - Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir 

Written by Jeremy Barlow

Art by Juan Frigeri

Although Mother Talzin appeared to have perished in The Clone Wars, she returns in what may or may not be a spiritual form during the many battles in Son of Dathomir. This comic miniseries, like Dark Disciple, was adapted from unused scripts from The Clone Wars, and is something of a battle royale, pitting Darth Maul against a variety of foes, including Count Dooku and General Grievous.

Buy Darth Maul: Son of Dathomir

19 BBY - "Kindred Spirits" 

Written by Christe Golden for Star Wars Insider #159

Often, Star Wars Insider stories will tie directly to one of the recently released novels, exploring side characters or presenting scenes before or after the book. In the case of "Kindred Spirits," the author was also the same: Christie Golden penned this tale of Asajj Ventress finding an unlikely ally shortly before Dark Disciple. Readers interested in the bounty hunter persona Ventress adopted during The Clone Wars might especially appreciate the tone of this one, which also features another tough female character.

19 BBY - Dark Disciple 

Written by Christie Golden

While fans clamored for more of The Clone Wars after the animated series’ cancellation, stories set in this era, and overseen by many of the same writers and producers, began to emerge in different formats. Some unaired episodes of The Clone Wars were aired during conventions or released online; others were adapted into comics, as in Son of Dathomir. Dark Disciple was one of the more high-profile results of this effort, as it is a full-length novel telling the story of Asajj Ventress after her story on the television show had ended.

Ventress is reluctantly recruited by Quinlan Vos, a morally ambiguous Jedi in pursuit of Count Dooku. Dark Disciple is, in part, a love story, showing Ventress and Vos’ relationships with one another and how that affects their views of the Force. It’s also a war story, with the inventive action typical of The Clone Wars.

Buy Dark Disciple

19 BBY - Revenge of the Sith 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy Revenge of the Sith

19 BBY - Marvel's Kanan 

Written by Greg Weisman

Art by Pepe Larraz

If you watch Rebels but haven’t read Star Wars books or comics before, Kanan series is a good place to start. The stories alternate between the crew of the Ghost undertaking what at first seems to be a simple mission on Lothal, and Kanan’s memories of Order 66 and his training with his Jedi Master. This is a good way to learn about this fan-favorite character.

Buy Marvel's Kanan

19 BBY - Marvel's Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Giuseppe Camuncoli

This series literally starts at the moment Darth Vader is born, a second after the end of Revenge of the Sith. Unlike Marvel's first Darth Vader series, this new ongoing book tackles the earliest days of Anakin's transformation into the feared Sith apprentice, more machine than man. 

Buy Marvel's Darth Vader: Dark Lord of the Sith

18 BBY - Ahsoka

Written by E.K. Johnston

What happened to former Jedi Padawan Ahsoka Tano after leaving the Order in The Clone Wars? This is the story of what led Ahsoka down the path to becoming the Rebel agent Fulcrum. Anyone who loves the character's appearances in the animated series should read this book.

Buy Ahsoka

14 BBY - "Orientation" 

Written by John Jackson Miller for Star Wars Insider #157

Like "Kindred Spirits," John Jackson Miller’s "Orientation" has some of the same characters as the Star Wars novels that came out around the same time. It was packaged along with Lords of the Sith, but touches some other Star Wars material, too.

Darth Vader is ostensibly the main character of the story, strutting his way around an Imperial training ship. But the other star of this story is Rae Sloane, a young cadet. Remember that name.

14 BBY - Lords of the Sith

Written by Paul S. Kemp

Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine have crash-landed in the dangerous wilderness of Ryloth in this dark side road trip. Lords of the Sith also has a connection to Rebels and The Clone Wars: freedom fighter Cham Syndulla sees a potential advantage for his rebels and tries to assassinate the Sith while they’re working their way through the wilderness.

The novel explores Vader and Palpatine’s tense power struggles as well as the things that bind them together. Lords of the Sith also has the new canon’s first LGBT character, the slovenly Imperial Moff Mors, who has her own character arc as the story goes on.

Buy Lords of the Sith

14 BBY - Tarkin 

Written by James Luceno

Another tale from the dark side, Tarkin shows the history and martial rise of the man who would one day command the Death Star. James Luceno was known for writing big, encyclopedic novels in the Legends timeline—he’s particularly good at fitting different parts of the canon together and talking about the political landscape of the galaxy far, far away. The Tarkinnovel brings both of those things into the new canon and tells the story of Tarkin’s attempt to retake an experimental starship from Rebel saboteurs.

Buy Tarkin

13 BBY - Lando's Luck

Written by Justina Ireland

Disney Publishing has been knocking it out of the park with the young adult Star Wars novels, and Lando’s Luck is the most entertaining of the Solo tie-ins. Funny dialogue and a fast-paced adventure make this story—in which Lando and L3-37 team up with a young princess—a good one to pick up if you liked Lando in either Solo or The Empire Strikes Back. 

13-10 BBY - Solo: A Star Wars Story

Directed by Ron Howard

Written by Lawrence Kasdan and Jon Kasdan

11-5 BBY - Lost Stars 

Written by Claudia Gray

Although Lost Stars spans throughout the Original Trilogy, it starts beforehand, with two young people joining the Imperial Academy. It’s essentially a love story, with Thane Kyrell and Ciena Ree still holding their feelings for one another even after Thane joins the Rebellion. This book is also a great look at the psychology of the people inside the two armies.

The new Star Wars books have dispensed quickly with the idea that all Rebels are noble (or noble scoundrels) and that all Imperial loyalists are scheming. Lots of different things drive people to make their choices in war, and Lost Stars shows that. It also culminates in an exciting battle that ties into The Force Awakens. After reading this one, you’ll never look at Jakku quite the same way again.

Buy Lost Stars

11-2 BBY - Thrawn

Written by Timothy Zahn

When the old continuity was turned into Legends, it meant that many of the greatest characters introduced in the old EU were no longer canon. It seems like even that couldn't keep the Empire's greatest tactician down, though. The cold, Chiss admiral Thrawn returns to continuity with this new origin story from writer Timothy Zahn, the man who created the character back in the '90s. 

Buy Thrawn

11 BBY - A New Dawn 

Written by John Jackson Miller

For fans of Rebels, A New Dawn shows the origins of some fan-favorite characters and sets the tone for the new canon Imperials. It introduces the ruthlessly efficient Count Vidian, who goes up against Hera and Kanan when the fate of a planet is on the line. Joining them are the unlikely duo of conspiracy theorist Skelly and ex-Imperial surveillance officer Zaluna. Although it explains more about Kanan’s history than Hera’s (more about her can be found in the short story “Mercy Mission,” in the Rise of the Empire collection), A New Dawn is a good piece of the continuity puzzle for Rebels fans.

It was also the first book in the new canon, making its title doubly appropriate. Author John Jackson Miller was well-known for Legends material, like the novel Kenobi and the Knights of the Old Republic comic series, before he contributed the first book to the new canon.

Buy A New Dawn

6-4 BBY - Servants of the Empire 

Written by Jason Fry

This four-book young reader series follows Zare Leonis, the Imperial cadet who helped Ezra escape the stormtrooper academy in season one of Rebels. Like Rebels itself, the series can be enjoyed by people outside of its grade-school audience, too. Part of the appeal is the characters: the story switches between Zare and his conflicting ideas about the Empire to his friend, hacker Merei Spanjaf, who launches her own investigations while trying to avoid being caught by her security expert mother.

Zare is on the hunt for his sister, a promising, Force-sensitive Imperial recruit taken by the Grand Inquisitor. Like in A New Dawn, Rebelsfans will be able to find plenty of connections to their favorite characters.

Buy Servants of the Empire

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6 BBY-3 ABY - Battlefront / Battlefront: Twilight Company 

Video Game Developed by DICE

Novel Written by Alexander Freed

Like John Jackson Miller, Battlefront: Twilight Company author Alexander Freed came to Star Wars novels through short stories and comics. His canon short fiction has appeared in Star Wars Insider before (“One Thousand Levels Down” and “The End of History”).

Twilight Company visits some of the same locations available to players in the 2015 Battlefront video game, but its characters are new and unique. The cynical protagonist is Namir, a soldier who fights doggedly for the Rebellion’s cause without ever really believing that the cause is as noble as others do. He finds an unlikely ally in Chalis, a former Imperial governor whose ruthless plans for the Rebel squad’s success cause some dissent in the ranks.

Buy Battlefront

Buy Battlefront: Twilight Company

5-2 BBY - Rebels 

Created by Dave Filoni, Simon Kinberg, & Carrie Beck

Buy Rebels

3 BBY - Leia: Princess of Alderaan

Written by Claudia Gray 

After winning fans' hearts with the political novel Bloodline, Claudia Gray returned with a young adult novel about Leia's youth on Alderaan and her first missions with the Rebel Alliance. Leia: Princess of Alderaan focuses on the princess and her parents, Breha and Bail, but also includes cameos from characters such as The Last Jedi's Amilyn Holdo, Captain Panaka, and Grand Moff Tarkin.

Buy Leia: Princess of Alderaan

2 BBY - Thrawn: Alliances

Written by Timothy Zahn

The wildly popular canon Thrawn novels continue with a story set during the Clone Wars. Alliances jumps between the Original Trilogy and the Prequel era, showing how Thrawn worked with Anakin Skywalker before and after he became Darth Vader. The book also features Padmé on her own mission during the Clone Wars. She finds herself reluctantly teaming up with the titular Chiss mastermind. 

0 BBY - Guardians of the Whills

Written by Greg Rucka 

A fun look at Jedha before the decidedly less fun events of Rogue One, Guardians of the Whills captures Baze and Chirrut's voices well and shows what Jedha City was like before its destruction. 

Buy Guardians of the Whills

0 BBY - Rogue One

Directed by Gareth Edwards

Written by John Knoll, Gary Whitta, Chris Weitz, & Tony Gilroy

Buy Rogue One

0 BBY - A New Hope 

Directed & Written by George Lucas

Buy A New Hope

0 BBY - 5 ABY: Battlefront II/ Battlefront II: Inferno Squad

Video Game Developed by EA DICE, Motive Studios, Criterion Software

Novel Written by Christie Golden

A prequel to the video game Battlefront II, the novel Inferno Squad introduces players to Iden Versio, special forces commander and daughter of Imperial loyalist Admiral Garrick Versio. Assigned to infiltrate a group of Saw Gerrera's Partisans, she and her team grapple with the morality of both the Empire and the violent splinter group of the Rebellion. 

The video game's campaign follows Inferno Squad from shortly before the destruction of the Death Star to the Battle at Jakku, where the Empire finally fell. Fans who read the novel will have much better context for the relationships between the characters in the campaign, which also introduces playable versions of Luke Skywalker and Kylo Ren. 

Buy Battlefront II

Buy Battlefront II: Inferno Squad

0 BBY - Marvel's Princess Leia 

Written by Mark Waid

Art by Terry Dodson

Many of Marvel’s Star Wars comic series so far take place in the Original Trilogy time period. Before information about The Force Awakens was public, Marvel was already doing all it could with its re-acquisition of the Star Wars brand, launching three ongoing series (Star Wars, Darth Vader, and Kanan), along with a succession of miniseries. The Princess Leia story picks up immediately after the end of A New Hope, touching on Leia’s feelings—or lack thereof—about the destruction of her home planet.

Although Rebel High Command wants her to keep a low profile, Leia makes it her mission to recruit surviving Alderaanians to the Rebel cause. They are in diaspora, but not all of the people she meets want to go to war. She’s helped by Evaan, a Rebel pilot with a not-so-favorable view of the woman she calls “ice princess.”

Buy Marvel's Princess Leia

0 BBY - Heir to the Jedi 

Written by Kevin Hearne

Heir to the Jedi was published right in the middle of the transition from Legends to new canon. Originally branded as part of the Empire & Rebellion series, along with Razor’s Edge and Honor Among Thieves, it alone of the three books in that series survived the cut-off. Kevin Hearne’s story explains how Luke learned the telekinesis he used in The Empire Strikes Back.

Since Obi-Wan never taught him that, someone had to encourage Luke to use the Force—and in Heir to the Jedi, it’s Nakari Kelen, a fellow Rebel pilot with whom Luke goes on a mission to retrieve a Rebel codebreaker.

Buy Heir to the Jedi

0 BBY - Marvel's Chewbacca 

Written by Gerry Duggan

Art by Phil Noto

Some time after the events of A New Hope, Chewbacca finds himself comfortably crash-landed on the planet Andelm IV. He’s willing to have a bit of a nap before beginning a leisurely search for parts for his ship, but there are other people on the planet who aren’t so relaxed.

A girl named Zarro and her father have been conscripted into working essentially as slaves in a mine run by a man who plans to profit off of the Empire. Chewie and Zarro hatch a plan to free her father in this fun, five-issue series with beautiful art by Phil Noto.

Buy Marvel's Chewbacca

0 BBY - The Weapon of a Jedi  

Written by Jason Fry

Prolific Star Wars writer Jason Fry tells a quintessential Luke story in The Weapon of a Jedi. A young Luke travels to Devaron on a hunch sent by the Force and discovers an ancient Jedi Academy where he can hone his skills—and where he fights with a lightsaber for the first time.

Although we don’t know for sure whether the Jedi Temple on Devaron will affect the Star Warsuniverse going forward, it’s Luke’s best canon example of a place where Jedi can go to learn, and maybe influenced the academy he eventually built in the New Republic. The book also features flash forwards to Jessika Pava, the Resistance pilot who flew with Poe Dameron at the battle of Starkiller Base.

Buy The Weapon of a Jedi

0 BBY - Marvel's Star Wars & Darth Vader 

Star Wars: Written by Jason Aaron, Art by John Cassaday et al

Darth Vader: Written by Kieron Gillen, Art by Salvador Larroca

Some of the best—and more surprising—stories in the Marvel Star Wars line come out of the ongoing series, which occur concurrently and crossed over in their first big event, “Vader Down.” The series follows both heroes and villains of the Original Trilogy, including Luke’s earnest, enthusiastic slide into learning how to use his Jedi powers; Vader’s conflicted relationship with Emperor Palpatine and the Sith legacy of betrayal and competition; and Han’s maybe-wife Sana Solo. 

The longest-running Marvel Star Wars series so far are also the ones that most clearly show how Marvel is handling the core characters going forward, so check these out if you want to see what Luke, Han, and Leia are up to after A New Hope.

Darth Vader recently wrapped and it's easily one of the best stories to come out of the new EU so far. You NEED to read this series!

Buy Marvel's Star Wars

Buy Marvel's Darth Vader

0 BBY - Marvel's Doctor Aphra

Written by Kieron Gillen & Simon Spurrier

Art by Kev Walker et. al.

After becoming a breakout hit in the comics, Doctor Aphra became the first Star Wars character who never appeared in the movies to helm her own comic book series. Her title reveals her history, including her parents and how she became a rogue archeologist. 

Buy Marvel's Doctor Aphra

0 BBY - Smuggler’s Run 

Written by Greg Rucka

Smuggler’s Run is one in a series of three young reader books put out as part of the Journey to The Force Awakens line. Along with Weapon of a Jedi and Moving Target, Smuggler’s Run follows one member of the Original Trilogy trio and is bookended by scenes set in the Sequel Trilogy era.

This one focuses on Han Solo and Chewbacca balancing living the lawless life with their work for the Rebellion. Written by Greg Rucka, Smuggler’s Run shows Han as he reluctantly takes on a mission to save a Rebel scout from the Empire.

Buy Smuggler's Run

0 BBY-3 ABY - Marvel's Lando 

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Alex Maleev

Lando, written by Charles Soule, with art from Alex Maleev, shows the suave baron-administrator before he got his title. Lando thinks he has scored big when he plans to steal a valuable starship, but it turns out that the ship once belonged to Emperor Palpatine (and Darth Maul), and there are plenty of unpleasant Sithly surprises in store.

As well as featuring Lando himself, the comic has a lot of great supporting characters, including mysterious twin aliens and Lobot himself. Watching Lobot’s stoic expressions in The Empire Strikes Back will never be the same after reading this comic.

Buy Marvel's Lando

0-3 ABY - Marvel's Han Solo

Written by Marjorie Liu

Art by Mark Brooks

Buy Marvel's Han Solo

3 ABY - The Empire Strikes Back 

Directed by Irvin Kershner 

Written by Lawrence Kasdan & Leigh Brackett

Buy The Empire Strikes Back

4 ABY - Moving Target 

Written by Cecil Castellucci & Jason Fry

Leia’s installment of the Journey to The Force Awakens series follows her on a mission to distract the Empire from the Rebellion’s growing fleet—the fleet that will attack the second Death Star at Endor. Her team travels through various adventures in their effort to do that, while Leia weighs her feelings about duty against the idea that she might be sacrificing some Rebel sympathizers in order to buy time for others.

Like the other two Original Trilogy books in the line, Moving Target is a quintessential Star Warsstory with a few connections to other parts of the saga. The flash forward involves PZ-4CO, the blue droid seen in the Resistance base in The Force Awakens, interviewing Leia for her memoirs.

Buy Moving Target

4 ABY - Return of the Jedi 

Directed by Richard Marquand

Written by Lawrence Kasdan & George Lucas

Buy Return of the Jedi

4 ABY - Marvel's Shattered Empire 

Written by Greg Rucka

Art by Marco Checchetto

The timeline between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens is a bit sparse right now, with the Aftermath trilogy expected to fill up the years after Return of the Jedi. Another novel, Bloodline by Claudia Gray, due out in 2016, is set about six years before Episode VII.

However, Shattered Empire wastes no time in showing where Luke, Han, and Leia were immediately after Return of the Jedi, while also introducing Poe Dameron’s parents. Pilot Shara Bey and soldier Kes Dameron join the Original Trilogy heroes in mopping up what’s left of the Empire on Endor—and find some strange, Force-sensitive trees.

Buy Marvel's Shattered Empire

4 ABY - Aftermath 

Written by Chuck Wendig

The first novel set after Return of the Jedi brings a new cast of characters to the story, Rebels who, with varying degrees of reluctance, find themselves embroiled with a meeting of the surviving Imperial officers. Remember Rae Sloane? She’s back, as an admiral this time—and she has her own plans for how to restore the Empire to both greatness and stability.

Aftermath also stars Norra Wexley, an X-Wing pilot who fought at the Battle of Endor. She has become estranged from her son Temmin, who will one day become “Snap” Wexley of The Force Awakens’ Resistance fighters, and recruits him, plus a bounty hunter and an Imperial deserter, on a quest to find her missing husband. Aftermath is followed by two sequels, Life Debt and Empire’s End.

Buy Aftermath

5 ABY - Aftermath: Life Debt

Written by Chuck Wendig

Buy Aftermath: Life Debt

5 ABY - Aftermath: Empire's End

Written by Chuck Wendig

Buy Aftermath: Empire's End

7 ABY - Last Shot

Written by Daniel Jose Older

After years of friendship, Han and Lando reminisce about getting older while facing the same old trouble these two always seem to get into. This is a must-have tie-in novel to Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Buy Last Shot

28 ABY - Bloodline

Written by Claudia Gray

Star Wars: Bloodline by Claudia Gray gives a clearer picture of the state of the galaxy before The Force Awakens than any other new canon entry. The New Republic has been standing strong for almost thirty years, and the events in the novel tips things toward the chaotic scenario we saw in Episode VII.

Buy Bloodline

28 ABY - Phasma

Written by Delilah S. Dawson

The history of the First Order's feared enforcer is revealed secondhand through a Resistance spy interrogated by the First Order. The Phasma novel explores the irradiated planet Parnassos and the way Phasma first met Brendol Hux, shedding some light on the premier stormtrooper without explaining everything behind the mask. 

Buy Phasma

28 ABY - "The Perfect Weapon" 

Written by Delilah S. Dawson

"The Perfect Weapon" by Delilah S. Dawson was the first short story to feature one of the new characters from The Force Awakens. Like the young reader books listed earlier, it’s part of the Journey to the Force Awakens line and was released as an ebook and excerpted in Star Wars Insider #163.

Bazine Netal, the woman who informs the First Order of the Resistance fighters’ presence at Maz Kanata’s castle, works as a bouncer and hired gun in this story. It doesn’t take place at the same time as The Force Awakens or particularly illuminates Bazine’s actions during the movie, but if you’re interested in her from the few glimpses in The Force Awakens, it might be worth checking out.

Buy "The Perfect Weapon"

28 ABY - "Bait" 

Written by Alan Dean Foster for Star Wars Insider #162

The Star Wars Insider story that ties most closely with The Force Awakens so far is also tied to "The Perfect Weapon.""Bait" follows Grummgar, the alien seen lounging with Bazine in Maz Kanata’s palace. Like "The Perfect Weapon," it takes place at an unspecified time before the movie and shows a hunting trip that doesn't quite go as expected.

28 ABY - Tales from a Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens 

Written by Landry Q. Walker

Although four of the stories in this collection were released as e-books, six of them, all by Landry Q. Walker, are only available in this collection. The anthology tells selected tales from the lives of the denizens of Maz Kanata’s palace, including the Jakku lawman Constable Zuvio and the red-masked Crimson Corsair. The stories follow in the tradition of Legends'"Tales" anthologies that were set in the Original Trilogy and have some surprising connections to the Prequels.

Buy Tales from Galaxy Far, Far Away: Aliens

34 ABY - Marvel's Poe Dameron

Written by Charles Soule

Art by Phil Noto

Before he destroyed Starkiller Base, ace Resistance pilot Poe Dameron was already taking on missions from General Leia and fighting the good fight against the First Order. This comic book series shows what Poe was up to before he met Lor San Tekka on Jakku. 

Buy Marvel's Poe Dameron

34 ABY - Marvel's C-3PO Special

Written by James Robinson

Art by Tony Harris

Want to know what was up with Threepio's red arm in The Force Awakens? This touching one-shot tells the story of a droid adventure for the ages that is surprisingly full of emotion. Who knew droids could feel so much?

Buy Marvel's C-3PO Special

34 ABY - Before the Awakening 

Written by Greg Rucka

There’s something to be said about not having to answer every question about a large science fiction universe in a movie, but for people who have questions about The Force Awakens, this is the book that answers them.

How did Poe Dameron become part of the Resistance? What was life actually like for Finn in the First Order stormtrooper corps, and why does he make his decision on Jakku? When did Rey hone her piloting skills? Before the Awakening answers all of these questions, as well as tell three fun stories suitable for young readers.

Buy Before the Awakening

34 ABY - Resistance

Created by Dave Filoni

Overlapping with The Force Awakens, Resistance follows former New Republic pilot Kaz Xiono on a mission to discover a First Order spy on a floating platform where starship racers rule the roost. Kaz is joined by the aspiring pilot Tam and quirky Neeku in the mechanics’ shop run by deadpan ex-racer Jarek Yeager. Poe Dameron, BB-8, General Hux, and Captain Phasma make cameos in this laid-back Star Wars romp, which might be best for the younger set who aren’t ready for Rebels.

34 ABY - The Force Awakens 

Directed by J.J. Abrams

Written by Lawrence Kasdan, Michael Arndt, & J.J. Abrams

Buy The Force Awakens

34 ABY - Marvel's Captain Phasma

Written by Kelly Thompson

Art by Marco Chechetto, Andres Mossa 

Set immediately after The Force Awakens, Captain Phasma follows the titular stormtrooper captain out of the trash compactor in which she was imprisoned at the end of Episode VII. She quickly finds her way to an inhospitable planet in pursuit of Sol Rivas, a First Order lieutenant and the only person who knows that Phasma lowered Starkiller Base's shield. The comic shows how Phasma escaped and some of the tough choices she had to make in the aftermath.

Buy Marvel's Captain Phasma

34 ABY - Canto Bight

Written by Saladin Ahmed, Rae Carson, Mira Grant, John Jackson Miller 

The Canto Bight novella collection includes four stories set in the lavish casino city from The Last Jedi. Its varied visitors include a down-on-his-luck gambler, a casino servant, and a salesman who won a trip to the city. 

Buy Canto Bight

34 ABY - The Last Jedi 

Directed by Rian Johnson

Written by Rian Johnson 

Buy The Last Jedi on Amazon

Traditionally when one thinks of neighborhood violence inflicted by Nazis, it is in chilling black and white footage of a brick going through a window or assassinations in 1930s Germany. But as Stieg Larsson spent his life warning against, our past increasingly looks like our future. It’s a grim reality underscored to nightmarish effect in Stieg Larsson: The Man Who Played with Fire, a new Swedish documentary which premiered Friday at the Sundance Film Festival. Ostensibly a film about the enigmatic life of an ill-fated author—one who died before the success of “the Millennium Trilogy,” which most Americans know as The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo books—the movie is much more fixated on Larsson’s own lifelong obsessions: such as the rise of far-right extremism and its shifting persistence.

The testament to Larsson’s fear is the world we’re living in today, one that began forming in the margins long before Larsson’s untimely death in 2004. For instance, the film’s most disturbing events involve fellow writers for Larsson’s Swedish magazine, Expo, having a car bomb planted beneath the driver’s seat of their vehicle in the 1990s. Decades later, the terrorized couple will still only speak for the documentary in silhouette while recalling how one saw their 10-year-old son running from a burning car while covered in his father’s blood. It seems Lisbeth Salander, Larsson’s beloved literary icon, wasn’t the only one who kicked the hornet’s nest.

As a documentary that alternates between English and Swedish, The Man Who Played with Fire is a bleakly intriguing historical record on the rise of far-right extremism before it went mainstream in late 20th century Europe. Larsson’s life story acts mostly as a magnifying glass for documentarian Henrik Georgsson to study Sweden’s own peculiar strands of white nationalism, which in the process builds the late author up as something akin to Kevin McCarthy at the end of Invasion of the Body Snatchers: a largely ignored voice screaming into the camera that an existential doom walks among us. Blending actual photographs of Larsson during the ‘80s and ‘90s with reenactments of a lookalike spending late nights staring at government records and eating fast food between drags of a cigarette, the doc has more to do with the kind of fascists that terrified Larsson and enraged his dark avenger than informing where Lisbeth herself sprang from in his mind. Given that Larsson himself did not live to see the publication of his novels and their global popularity, the movie raises the question if Larsson’s relationship with is famous creations will ever be fully known.

Conversely, The Man Who Played With Fire is at its most interesting when Larsson teams with journalists 20 years younger to create Expo, a magazine dedicated to uncovering the ugliness of a far-right culture that  blossomed earlier in Northern Europe thanks to things like “Viking Rock” (a term created by morally flexible record producers to explain the anti-immigrant and pro-Adolf Hitler lyrics), and then tracing the moneyed connection between that base and the rise of Swedish Democrats, a party founded by white nationalists in 1988. As of 2019, and 15 years after Larsson’s death, they are the third largest political party in the country of Lisbeth, holding 62 seats in Parliament.

The film doe such a fabulous job of tracking the queasy sensation of the wheels coming off of Western democracy's vehicle that it can sometimes distract from the fact that Stieg Larsson rarely digs into the actual life of its subject in any meaningful way. While some reenactment footage proves useful, eagerly tracking the nocturnal restlessness of Larsson, the reliance on an actor’s interpretation being juxtaposed with actual interviews Larsson gave near the end of his life is mostly distracting, as are the only hinted glimpses into his home life, beginning with an idyllic childhood in the countryside that's shattered when his grandfather dies of a heart attack.

The documentary was made with apparent support from Larsson’s life-partner Eva Gabrielsson, who famously has contested the closeness of Larsson with his father and brother. The latter pair retained the rights of the characters Lisbeth Salander, Mikael Blomkvist, and all other “Millennium Trilogy” players when the will discovered by Gabrielsson was thrown out, leaving her with nothing and Larsson’s literary legacy in the hands of men she suggests were estranged from the writer.

Yet none of this is hinted at by the documentary, nor are Larsson’s inspirations for his most enduring literary work beyond the fact all of the antagonists in the “Millennium Trilogy” are misogynistic men of privilege or their enablers. Well that, plus Lisbeth and Mikael have a penchant for late nights in archives with cigarettes and junk food in hand.

read more: The Girl in the Spider's Web Review

The film is ultimately about what drove Larsson, as opposed to where that motivation actually carried the man, including to an early grave. Nevertheless, the doc has merit in helping underscore the nightmare Larsson saw coming almost 50 years ago: the return of fascism to Europe and the West. While it is intrinsically linked to Sweden’s own mutation of this disease, it is not hard to draw parallels between Swedish racists muttering all immigrants are criminals and American ones throwing out the word “rapists” into the mix. Nor is it lost that Swedish Democrats have flourished as a nationalist party after trading in shaved heads for three-piece suits, just as America’s alt-right has found wild success inside of a red baseball cap.

As a document of a crime author foreseeing the rise of political criminality going mainstream, The Man Who Played With Fire is hot to the touch, even if it’s cool on too keenly exploring the inner-life of that fellow holding the matches.

David Crow is the Film Section Editor at Den of Geek. He’s also a member of the Online Film Critics Society. Read more of his work here. You can follow him on Twitter @DCrowsNest.

Holy revolving door, Batman! The Caped Crusader has been portrayed by more actors than any other superhero in movie history – eight to be exact. Most have lasted for just one film. But after The Dark Knight Rises, Christian Bale has become the first man to have played Bruce Wayne and his alter-ego more than twice on the silver screen. He didn’t have much competition – Michael Keaton was the only other actor to reprise the role. And we imagine that with the kind of deals being shaken out at WB that Ben Affleck has a good shot at topping both of those numbers, especially if you count his Suicide Squadcameo, which makes 2017's Justice League his third film in the cape.

But before anymore history is made next year, let’s take a look at the men who have been Batman.

1. Lewis G. Wilson

Wilson was the first and youngest actor ever to play the adult Batman, and also the least successful. At 23, the unknown thespian donned the cape and the cowl in the 15-part 1943 Columbia serial Batman. While he looked the part of the dashing playboy, his physique was more Danny DeVito as the Penguin. One critic described Wilson as “thick about the middle.” Maybe that was why he wore his utility belt just below his chest. Critics also complained that his voice was too high and that he had a Boston accent. That, of course, wouldn’t be the last time someone complained about Batman’s voice.

read more - Men of Steel: 11 Actors Who Have Played Superman

After Batman, Wilson’s career went nowhere. Most of his roles went uncredited. His next biggest movie part was probably in the 1951 cult classic Bowanga Bowanga. A few years later he was out of showbiz altogether. His son, Michael G. Wilson, however, fared better in Hollywood, becoming the executive producer of the James Bond series. Lewis G. Wilson died in 2000.

Buy the 1943 Batman serial on Amazon

2. Robert Lowery

Lowery took over the role in the follow-up serial, 1949’s Batman & Robin. Unlike Lewis, Lowery, 36 at the time, was a veteran actor, having already appeared in The Mark Of Zorro (1940), The Mummy's Ghost (1944), and Dangerous Passage (1944). He also filled out the Batsuit better than Lewis, with his utility belt hanging where you would expect it on a non-octogenarian.

read more: The Actors Who Have Played The Joker

Though Lowery never played Batman in another movie, he did get to wear the cape once more and make superhero history in the process. In 1956 he guest-starred on an episode of The Adventures Of Superman, marking the first time a Batman actor shared screen time with a Superman actor. (The two also appeared together in their pre-superhero days, in a WWII anti-VD propaganda film called Sex Hygiene). 

After Batman, Lowrey enjoyed another 20 years in movies and TV. He died in 1971.

Buy Batman & Robin (1949) on Amazon

3. Adam West

The man logging the most hours in the Batcave, of course, was William West Anderson, whom you probably know better as Adam West. Either you love him for his goofy charm or hate him for blemishing the Bat’s image for several decades. His campy, over-the-top portrayal of Gotham’s Guardian infiltrated nearly every medium, including a 1966 movie and several animated series. 

read more: The Early History of the Batman TV Series

Legend has it producer William Dozier cast West after seeing him play a James Bond-like spy called Captain Q in a Nestlé Quik TV ad. He beat future Wonder Woman co-star Lyle Waggoner for the role. Dozier, who supposedly hated comic books, decided the only way the show would be successful was if they camped it up. So blame him.

Things would almost come full circle in 1970 when West was offered the role of James Bond in Diamonds Are Forever. West declined, later writing in his autobiography that he believed Bond should always be played by a Brit. Holy bad career moves, Batman!

After the Batman series went off the air in 1968, West was resigned to typecast hell. At one point, he was forced to make public appearances as the Caped Crusader to earn a living. Then, in 1977, he returned to the tube as Batman, doing his voice in The New Adventures Of Batman, and then on such shows as Super Friends.

read more: The Comic Book Origins of the 1966 Batman TV Series

West’s resurgence as a pop-culture icon began in the early '90s when he starred as a has-been TV action hero in the pilot episode of Lookwell, produced by Conan O'Brien and Robert Smigel. It wasn’t picked up but took on a cult following online (check it out here). He made regular appearances on Family Guy. as "Mayor West" before returning to voice Batman in two excellent animated features that expanded on the show's continuity, Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs. Two-Face (opposite William Shatner as the special guest villain). West died in 2017, but his Bat-legacy is immortal.

Buy the Complete 1966 Batman TV Series on Amazon

4. Michael Keaton

It took more than 20 years for Adam West to lose his exclusivity on Batman.

When director Tim Burton (who like Dozier was not a fan of comic books) and Michael Keaton were announced for 1989’s Batman, fans went bat-shit crazy, thinking their beloved superhero was going to get the Adam West treatment again. Keaton's casting caused such controversy that 50,000 protest letters were sent to Warner Bros.’ offices. In an effort to appease the naysayers, Batman co-creator Bob Kane was hired as the film’s creative consultant. And in case you're curious, here is Keaton, Affleck, and a long list of other great castings that fans initially thought would suck.

Other Hollywood stars considered for the role of Batman included Mel Gibson, Kevin Costner, Charlie Sheen, Pierce Brosnan, Tom Selleck, and Bill Murray. But producer Jon Peters said he cast Keaton because “The image of Batman is a big male model type, but I wanted a guy who's a real person who happens to put on this weird armor. A guy who's funny and scary. Keaton's both. He's got that explosive, insane side.'' 

read more: Why Tim Burton's Batman 3 Never Happened

The studio and the fans had nothing to worry about. Keaton’s performance received favorable reviews,and Batman killed at the box office. Variety magazine gushed, “Michael Keaton captures the haunted intensity of the character, and seems particularly lonely and obsessive without Robin around to share his exploits.” Keaton was rewarded by being the first actor to reprise the role on the big screen. And in 1992’s Batman Returns, Keaton again garnered positive reviews. 

Of course, Keaton has now seen a career revival thanks to the spectacular Birdman, and his time as the villainous, winged Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming!

5. Val Kilmer

When the Batman franchise was turned over to director Joel Schumacher, Keaton decided not to return. Daniel Day-Lewis, Ralph Fiennes, William Baldwin, and Johnny Depp were reportedly considered as replacements. But the job was won by Val Kilmer – probably the most forgettable of the modern Batmen. Go ahead – try to remember. See? You can’t.

Schumacher became interested in Kilmer for 1995’s Batman Forever after seeing him in Tombstone (in which he played Doc Holiday, who Adam West also portrayed in a movie before he did the Batman TV series). Kilmer allegedly accepted the role without even reading the script or knowing who the new director was. Schumacher quickly learned who Kilmer was, though, and the two clashed on the set. Schumacher later described Kilmer as “childish and impossible,” claiming that he fought with various crewmen and refused to speak to him for two weeks after the director asked his star to stop behaving rudely.

read more: The Batman Forever We Never Saw

Kilmer’s performance got mixed reviews. As The New York Times put it, “The prime costume is now worn by Val Kilmer, who makes a good Batman but not a better one than Michael Keaton.” Bob Kane felt otherwise, saying he thought Kilmer did the best job of all the actors to have played Batman up to that point.

The movie performed better than Batman Returns at the box office, but Kilmer was destined to be a one-term Caped Crusader. Between his bad attitude and his concern that the superhero wasn’t getting as much screen time as the villains, he left the Batcave for good. Instead of filming 1997’s Batman & Robin, he did The Saint.

After Batman, Kilmer’s career headed downhill. Though it was probably 1996’s The Island of Dr. Moreau that had more to do with that than Batman Forever.

6. George Clooney

George Clooney’s movie career was just taking off when he was cast in 1997’s Batman & Robin, with his breakthrough performance coming just the year before in Quentin Tarantino’s From Dusk Till Dawn. Producers probably felt they pulled off a major coup landing the soon-to-be mega-movie star. Those producers, along with Clooney, may regret that decision now.

Batman & Robin was a disaster, rife with homoeroticism, camp, and those infamous Bat-nipples. Clooney once joked that he helped to kill the franchise. “Joel Schumacher told me we never made another Batman film because Batman was gay.” The actor also called the movie “a waste of money.”

Critics and fans agreed. In 1997, Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “George Clooney is the big zero of the film, and should go down in history as the George Lazenby of the series.” Batman & Robin received 11 nominations at the Razzie Awards and frequently ranks among the worst films of all time. It was also the worst box office performer of the modern Batman movies. However, despite its many, many, many flaws, we will stick up for it a little...

read more - Batman & Robin: The Judas Defense

But all that did nothing to hurt Clooney’s career. After Batman, he went on to super stardom, starring in Out of Sight(with a cameo from Michael Keaton), Three Kings,and O Brother, Where Art Thou? over the next three years alone, and he hasn't slowed down much since.

Buy The Batman Collection on Amazon

7. Christian Bale

Between Adam West and George Clooney, Batman seemed destined to remain a joke, at least when it came to live-action adaptations. Then came along Christopher Nolan. The Memento and Insomnia director was given the reins and he planned to reinvent the franchise, finally making the Dark Knight dark.

Among the early candidates for the Batman/Bruce Wayne roles were Billy Crudup, Jake Gyllenhaal, Joshua Jackson, Heath Ledger, and Cillian Murphy. But Nolan ultimately chose Christian Bale, explaining that “he has exactly the balance of darkness and light that we were looking for.” 

Bale got generally favorable reviews for 2005’s Batman Begins, with several critics saying it reminded them of his brilliant turn in American Psycho. Not so brilliant, it seems, was his uber-husky Bat-voice. One reviewer compared Bale's guttural utterances to a “10-year-old putting on an ‘adult’ voice to make prank phone calls.” It got even more gravelly in 2008’s The Dark Knight, with NPR’s David Edelstein describing it as “a voice that's deeper and hammier than ever.”

Even Kevin Conroy, the man behind probably the most recognisable Batman voice, chimed in, saying at a C2E2 panel in 2010 that Bale’s voice was “ridiculous” and implored the actor to stop doing it. While The Dark Knight Rises was not as well received as 2008's sterling The DarkKnight, especially in the fan community, we still will happily come to the defense of it.

Also, Bale was crucial to the alchemy in Nolan's second Batman feature, The Dark Knight. That film is generally considered the benchmark in the superhero genre that all other movies about caped do-gooders are compared to nearly a decade later. It is also the only superhero movie to win an acting Oscar, for Heath Ledger's iconic Joker, and is considered responsible for why the Academy now nominates 10 films instead of five for Best Picture. This occurred after The Dark Knight was egregiously snubbed in 2009.

Buy the Complete Christopher Nolan Dark Knight Trilogy on Amazon

8. Will Arnett

With any other actor in the role, the presence of Batman in the 2013 cinematic smash The LEGO Movie could easily have become the sort of performance that gets neglected from lists like this. However, Arrested Development star Will Arnett brought some comedy magic to the role and landed his own spin-off movie as a result.

It helped that movie came at the perfect time in Batman’s busy cinema schedule – long enough after The Dark Knight Rises for lampooning of Bale’s gruff Batman to be entirely welcome, and far enough before Batman v Superman: Dawn Of Justice that Arnett’s new iteration didn’t get lost in all the hype for Ben Affleck’s debut.

The result of this perfect casting and canny scheduling was a Batman who will go down in the history books as the funniest, freshest and downright fun-est take on the character. From penning "dark" lyrics to haplessly attempting to hide his secret identity, Arnett’s Batman was a gag machine who The LEGO Movie’s younger audience really embraced.

There were knowing winks in there for adult fans too, with such as dialogue as “I only work in black – and sometimes very very dark grey" appealing to comic book fans and LEGO Batman’s painful attempts to hit a button with a Batarang surely connecting with anyone who’s ever got stuck for hours at a simple door-button in the Arkham Asylum games.

Arnett’s delivery, combined with Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s zingers, made this portrayal a quick favorite for many, and he reprised the role in The LEGO Batman Movie in 2017, to equally impressive effect. Bats is back in The LEGO Movie 2, out on February 8 and he'll get a sequel of his own at some point, too.

If you want more hilarious Arnett voice work in the meantime, check out BoJack Horseman on Netflix – you wont regret it.

9. Ben Affleck

It is often said that history repeats itself, and so it did when Ben Affleck was cast in the role of Batman for Zack Snyder's controversial Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Affleck was fresh off of seeing his third directorial effort, Argo, win Best Picture at the Academy Awards, cementing one of the most grandiose career comebacks in Hollywood history. He also was in the midst of filming Gone Girl with legendary auteur David Fincher at the helm. Nevertheless, fans went apoplectic that the star of notorious flops like Gigli and Jersey Girl was now the "Bat-Fleck." The fact he appeared in the mediocre Daredevil movie from 2003 likely did him no favors.

Yet, ironically, Affleck is now generally considered the very best part in an otherwise tortured viewing experience. Like Michael Keaton before him, Affleck enjoys fan adulation only a few years after intense backlash. Of course, the actual depiction of his Dark Knight in director Snyder's hands is far less universally loved. For the record, Affleck offers a solid performance as the Batman. He is neither as haunted and emotionally elusive as Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne, or as noble and psychologically broken as Christian Bale's take on the character. In fact, Affleck lacks the lived-in quality of either performer's interpretation. But what he does have is a picture-perfect physique for the role and a sense of dashing charisma that all other Bat-actors have lacked or underplayed.

read more - Batman v Superman and Batman & Robin: Two Sides of the Same Coin

Some fans even suggest he could be the perfect Batman due to his appearance and natural charm, but he was hampered in BvS with a voice modulator no less absurd than Bale's gravelly alternative, as well as a characterization of Batman that bordered on fascism, including as he ambivalently murdered many folks with direct gun shots, car collisions, grenades, knife stabs, and even crushing one's head in with a crate. This cruelty and totalitarian streak is in-keeping with Frank Miller's extreme vision of the character in The Dark Knight Returns graphic novel. But that story was always a major departure from mainstream interpretations of the character. In fact, for all the visual upgrades to Affleck's Batman, his characterization completely lacks the altrusitic heroism and sense of driven purpose enjoyed by the much more humanistic (read: flawed) take offered by Christian Bale.

Justice League, for all of its behind-the-scenes problems, was something of a course correction for the DCEU and Affleck's take. It saw his Batman evolve, apparently "inspired" by Superman's sacrifice at the end of Batman v Superman to be a more balanced hero. His future with the role at the moment is unclear at best, and he may not return for Matt Reeves' upcoming The Batman solo movie. Hopefully he gets one more shot with the role somewhere in the DCEU.

The Voices of Batman

Speaking of Batman voices, there have been about as many men to voice the Caped Crusader as have portrayed him in live-action. But the bulk of the animated Batman work over the years has gone to two actors.

In real life Olan Soule was a bespectacled pencil-necked geek, but that didn’t stop him from voicing the Dark Knight in six different animated series, beginning with 1968’s The Batman/Superman Hour. His run pretty much ended when Adam West took over voicing duties in the late '70s. Soule, who also appeared in such films as The Day The Earth Stood Stilland North By Northwest, died in 1994.

Unlike Soule, Kevin Conroy could probably pull off Batman in real life, but so far he’s been relegated to voice work – and quite a lot of it. Conroy began voicing the superhero in Batman: The Animated Series, which made its debut in 1992. Since then, he’s done three other Batman series, a bunch of animated movies and videogames. 

read more - The Essential Episodes of Batman: The Animated Series

Others to voice Batman are Will Friedle (Batman Beyond), Rino Romano (The Batman), Diedrich Bader (Batman: The Brave And The Bold), Jeremy Sisto (Justice League: The New Frontier), Bruce Greenwood (the brilliant Young Justice), and Bruce Thomas (who voiced Batman in commercials for GM’s OnStar service and portrayed the character briefly in the live-action TV series Birds Of Prey).

But Will Arnett deserves special attention.

With any other actor in the role, the presence of Batman in the 2014 cinematic smash The Lego Movie (which we reviewed here) could easily have become the sort of performance that gets neglected from lists like this. However, Arrested Development star Will Arnett brought some comedy magic to the role and landed his own spin-off movie as a result.

It helped that movie came at the perfect time in Batman’s busy cinema schedule – long enough after The Dark Knight Rises for lampooning of Bale’s gruff Batman to be entirely welcome, and far enough before Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice that Arnett’s new iteration didn’t get lost in all the hype for Ben Affleck’s debut.

The result of this perfect casting and canny scheduling was a Batman who will go down in the history books as the funniest, freshest and downright fun-est take on the character. From penning ‘dark’ lyrics to helplessly attempting to hide his secret identity, Arnett’s Batman was a gag machine who The Lego Movie’s primary younger audience really embraced.

There were knowing winks in there for adult fans too, with such as dialogue as “I only work in black – and sometimes very, very dark grey’ appealing to comic book fans and Lego Batman’s painful attempts to hit a button with a Batarang surely connecting with anyone who’s ever got stuck for hours at a simple door-button in the Arkham Asylum games.

Arnett’s delivery, combined with Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s zingers, made this portrayal a quick favorite for many, and it was telling that no one is complained about Arnett’s reprisal in an upcoming 2017 standalone story.

In fact, The Lego Batman Movie only cemented the adoration received by Will Arnett's much more ego-centric version of Bruce Wayne. A petulant, selfish loner who secretly watches romantic comedies when no one is lookng, it is a broadly funny (and perhaps more honest?) take on a billionaire who sneaks out at night to beat up poor people. It also unabashedly referenced countless other Batman movie, comic book, and cartoon moments, which we unpack right here.

The number one Batman?

It’s probably not a worthwhile question to ask which Batman actor is the best. It’s hard to argue that Christian Bale isn’t tops among the live-action crowd (Though I’m sure there are some Adam West Michael Keaton, and Ben Affleck fans out there who might take up the cause).

Still, Bale is no Christopher Reeve, whose iconic portrayal of Superman has made replacing him a seemingly impossible task. Bale has been a respectable Bruce Wayne/Batman, but the franchise can and has moved on without him. And though another half-dozen actors have resided in Wayne Manor, we have not found the definitive Batman. 

Until then, Hollywood is sure to keep trying, and maybe Affleck will be able to do it all on his own when he's allowed to direct his own solo Batman movie following 2017's JusticeLeague. 

Just in time for Batman Beyond(the show)'s 20th anniversary, Dan Jurgens brings back the ur-Batvillain, the Joker. To me, this is a great addition. My biggest problem with the show (which I still really enjoy) was how much stronger it was as a Spider-Man show than a Batman one.

I think we can all stipulate to that. New hero learning the ropes, having trouble balancing his normal life with his superhero one who really loves the superhero side, that's pretty much the classic Spider-Man archetype. Not that it was bad! There were some gems in the show - anything with the Royal Flush Gang or Shriek was guaranteed to be solid. But the tighter the show hewed to the DCAU as a whole - in anything with a throwback villain, or "The Call," or the crossovers - the more it felt like Terry stepping into the role of Batman and the less it felt like Terry learning how to become a super hero.

I think Jurgens gets this. He got a ton of acclaim for his post-Rebirth Superman work on Action Comics, but he's also been building a coherent possible future for the entire DCU for almost five years now. The guy's been writing and drawing high profile DC characters for a generation, so he's got a solid handle on the entire universe. He's one of the few people who can drop the Joker into a future Batman story without it feeling derivative or contrived, and the strongest evidence of that is how far back he's been seeding the Joker's return - almost since Rebirth started.

DC sent over a preview of the new issue, #28, where Joker pits a cyborg under his control against Batman and the brand new Robin. Here's what they have to say about the issue:

BATMAN BEYOND #28 written by DAN JURGENS
art by BRETT BOOTH and NORM RAPMUND
cover by PASQUAL FERRY
variant cover by CHRIS STEVENS
The Joker prepares to deliver his fatal punchline: everything and the kitchen sink hits the fan for Batman and Robin, and even with Dick Grayson’s help, the Dynamic Duo of tomorrow and Bruce Wayne may not stand a chance. Will Joker turn Terry’s brother into the new Jason Todd? Is now a good time for Terry and Bruce to clash? And why are Neo-Gothamites cheering on the Clown Prince? Will anyone survive “The Final Joke”?

This TASinspired cover is really nice. Take a look.

If you've been waiting patiently for some more Marvel's Spider-Man news, then today is the hallowed day you've been anticipating: following the announcement that something "fantastic" was coming to the game, two Fantastic Four-themed costumes have popped up thanks to a new patch. 

It's another fan-pleasing patch from Insomniac, which previously appeased a lot of vocal gamers by adding the much-requested "Raimi Suit" to the title, as two separate Fantastic Four outfits have been added to Spider-Man's wardrobe.

One of these is a Future Foundation suit, which calls back to a comic book run in which Spidey joined Reed Richards in a new team with snazzy white outfits, and the other is the fan favorite Bag-Man costume, referring to a time when Peter Parker had to dump the symbiote-powered black suit at the Baxter Building and leave in some hastily assembled new threads. Bag-Man has shown up in loads of games before, making this a callback that works on numerous levels.

Further Reading: Spider-Man: Far From Home Trailer Breakdown

Fans who are lucky enough to not be at work right now have already started playing with and snapping photos of these new suits, and you can take a look for yourself here...

On top of the new DLC, the game's creative director, Bryan Intihar, is teasing something new to come. Intihar tweeted about something very intriguing at the end of last week. Without sharing what his new project is, Intihar revealed that he is pitching some sort of new story content to his colleagues...

Is it possible that Intihar has been working on the story elements of Marvel's Spider-Man's proper sequel while other departments at Insomniac were working on the Fantastic Foursuits? Of course, it's impossible to know for sure what's going on, so we'll keep our ears to the ground in the hope of hearing an official announcement. 

Stephen King’s novel The Outsider is becoming a limited series at HBO, which has given the adaptation a 10-episode order. 

The story of The Outsider puts a mind-blowingly monstrous twist on traditional murder fiction. Here, police detective Ralph Anderson fields an investigation in the fictional Oklahoma town of Flint City that upends the local populace when a well-liked local man, Terry Maitland, is arrested for the shockingly malicious murder of an 11-year-old boy. While a mountain of evidence – including DNA and fingerprints – make the case seem open-and-shut, Maitland vehemently swears his innocence; an idea that gains momentum when his alibi – of being out of town at a conference – checks out, leading the investigation to a potentially supernatural turn.

Further Reading: Every Stephen King Movie and TV Series in Development

Onboard as executive producers are Richard Price (HBO’s The Night Of, The Deuce), Jack Bender (Mr. Mercedes, Lost), and Jason Bateman via his Aggregate Films, also joined by Temple Hill Entertainment and MRC. Bateman will direct the first two episodes. 

Here's everything else we know about the series:

The Outsider Cast

Ben Mendelsohn (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) has been tapped to star as Detective Ralph Anderson.

Cynthia Erivo (Bad Times at the El Royale) plays Holly Gibney.

Bill Camp (The Looming Tower) has been cast as Howie Gold.

Mare Winningham (George Wallace) is Jeannie Anderson.

Paddy Considine (The Ferryman) will play Claude Bolton.

Julianne Nicholson (Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders) portrays Mercy Maitland.

Yul Vázquez (I Am the Night) is Yunis Sablo.

Jeremy Bobb (The Knick) plays Alec Pelley.

Marc Menchaca (Ozark) portrays Jack Hoskins.

Hettienne Park (Hannibal) will recur as Tomika Collins.

Michael Esper (Trust) is set to recur as Bill Samuels.

The Outsider Release Date

The Outsiderdoes not have a premiere date as of yet. Our guess is that the series will begin filming this year for a 2020 premiere. 

Joseph Baxter is a contributor for Den of Geek and Syfy Wire. You can find his work here. Follow him on Twitter @josbaxter.

We loved Children of Blood and Bone, the debut young adult novel from Tomi Adeyemi. Given that the book has been on the New York Times Young Adult Hardcover bestsellers list for 46 weeks and counting, we're not the only ones we feel this way.

The Afrofuturist fantasy about Zélie, Amari, and Inan is only the first in Adeyemi's planned Legacy of Orïsha series and the sequel to Children of Blood and Bone now has a title, release date, and official synopsis.

Children of Blood and Bone Sequel Release Date

We have an updated release date!Children of Virtue and Vengeance is set to hit bookshelves on June 4, 2019. It is available for pre-order now.

Children of Blood and Bone Sequel Story

While Adeyemi has understandably stayed tight-lipped about what will happen in Children of Virture and Vengeance after that cliffhanger, she has dropped a few teases.

"I think about my readers with every word I write, and I'm so excited to keep working hard and give them another adventure with Children of Virtue and Vengeance,"Adeyemi told InStyle, mentioning that she is most looking forward to "the ability to expand my world."

Adeyemi added: "I can't wait for people to meet the new characters, experience the new magic, and dive deeper into the enchanting world of Orïsha. I've had so much fun writing this story, so I can't wait to share it with everyone else!"

Here's the official synopsis for Children of Virtue and Vengeance:

After battling the impossible, Zélie and Amari have finally succeeded in bringing magic back to the land of Orïsha. But the ritual was more powerful than they could’ve imagined, reigniting the powers of not only the maji, but of nobles with magic ancestry, too. 

Now, Zélie struggles to unite the maji in an Orïsha where the enemy is just as powerful as they are. But when the monarchy and military unite to keep control of Orïsha, Zélie must fight to secure Amari's right to the throne and protect the new maji from the monarchy's wrath.

With civil war looming on the horizon, Zélie finds herself at a breaking point: she must discover a way to bring the kingdom together or watch as Orïsha tears itself apart.

Children of Virtue and Vengeance is the stunning sequel to Tomi Adeyemi's New York Times bestselling debut Children of Blood and Bone, the first title in her Legacy of Orïsha trilogy.

Children of Blood and Bone Sequel Cover

While we may not have the Children of Virtue and Vengeance cover yet, Tomi Adeyemi has seen it!

More news on the Children of Blood and Bone sequel as we get it!

In the meantime, head over to the Den of Geek Book Club Goodreads page to chat about Children of Blood and Bone, as well as other Den of Geek Book Club picks!

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.

NOS4A2 is the next big horror series coming to AMC. The show is based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Joe Hill, the son of horror master Stephen King. It's not surprising then that NOS4A2 is a deliciously haunting piece of fiction.

The 10-episode series – produced by AMC Studios in association with Tornante Television – will arrive under the primary purview of showrunner Jami O’Brien (Fear the Walking Dead), joined by executive producer Lauren Corrao, Co-President of Tornante Television. As Hill lauded of O'Brien in an April statement, “her beautifully composed scripts show a writer at the height of her powers, one who has an exquisite touch with character and a relentless instinct for suspense.”

Hill will also serve as an executive producer on the series. Kari Skogland (The Handmaid’s Tale) is confirmed as the director of the first two episodes. 

Here's everything else we know about the series:

NOS4A2 Cast

The primary duo of NOS4A2 has been officially announced!

Zachary Quinto (Star Trek) will play Charlie Manx, an immortal parasitic serial killer who uses his 1938 Rolls Royce with the license plate number "NOS4A2" to kidnap children. According to the description, Manx is “a seductive immortal who feeds off the souls of children, then deposits what remains of them into Christmasland – an icy, twisted Christmas village of Manx’s imagination where every day is Christmas Day and unhappiness is against the law.”

Ashleigh Cummings (Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries) will play series protagonist Vic McQueen, a young New England-based starving artist who suddenly discovers that she possesses a supernatural psychic ability connected to the killer, allowing her to track him and rescue his victims, an endeavor she will attempt to accomplish without losing her own mind. As the official description adds, “what Vic lacks in social confidence, she makes up for in courage, humor, and tough-as-nails grit.”

Rounding out the cast are Olafur Darri Olafsson (The Deep) as Bing Partridge, Virginia Kull (Big Little Lies) as Linda McQueen, Ebon Moss-Bachrach (The Punisher) as Chris McQueen, Jahkara Smith (of YouTube fame) as Maggie Leigh, Karen Pittman (Luke Cage) as Angela Brewster, Rarmian Newton (Nightmares & Dreamscapes) as Drew, Darby Camp (Big Little Lies) as Haley Smith, and Ashley Romans (Shameless) as Tabitha Hutter.

NOS4A2 Release Date

The series is set to premiere sometime in 2019.

This article comes from Den of Geek UK.

Warning: contains spoilers for The Last Kingdom series one to three

Together, books one to six in Bernard Cornwell’s The Saxon Stories series number almost 2000 pages. That’s roughly War And Peace plus Jane Eyre, if you’re a fan of useless equivalents.

Stephen Butchard’s screen version has compressed all that intrigue, passing time and descriptions of longship sails into three (and soon to be four) snappy, action-packed TV series. Inevitably—and rightly—changes have been made along the way. Characters and plot threads have been snipped out, or woven in with others. Executions have been stayed. Plotlines have been reassigned. It’s the way of any good adaptation.

That said, those changes do mean that we’ve been denied the sight of Father Pyrlig lobbing beehives over a fort wall mid-battle, so it’s not all progress. Here’s that and ten other The Last Kingdom book events that didn't make it onto the screen…

Uhtred is kidnapped by Father Beocca

“ ‘You are rescued, lord,’ he said to me, ‘praise Almighty God, you are rescued!’ “

In book one, when Uhtred’s captor (and now adopted father) Ragnar treats with King Alfred, the young Uhtred encounters the priest who baptised him at Bebbanburg, Father Beocca. He arranges for young Uhtred and Brida to be knocked unconscious and taken from their Danish ‘captors’ in what he supposes is a rescue mission. Uhtred and Brida however, not wanting to remain with the Saxons, escape from Alfred’s wife Aelswith and return to their people.

Finan and Thyra kill Sven the One-Eyed

“Finan crouched, still grinning, ready to drive his long sword into Sven’s exposed belly.”

In the TV series, Thyra gets a triumphant revenge on her kidnapper and serial abuser Sven the One-Eyed when, at her command, her pack of hounds maul him to death during Ragnar and Uhtred’s attack on Dunholm. In the third book of the series, The Lords Of The North, it’s Uhtred’s swordsman Finan the Agile who first fights off Sven’s defenders and knocks him over a rampart where Thyra then instructs the dogs to savage him to death.

Osferth maims and kills Sigefrid

“All were behind Sigefrid, and he turned, astonished, and just then Osferth, Alfred’s bastard son, jumped from the gate’s top.”

Baby Monk Osferth, the illegitimate son of King Alfred, is no great shakes in battle. Yet in book four, it’s him who kills Dane warrior Sigefrid at Uhtred’s command, after first paralysing him in an earlier battler when he jumped on him from a height and stabbed him in the spine with a sword.

In season two of the TV series, Aethelflaed is given the task of killing Sigefrid in revenge for him having killed his brother (and her lover) Erik.

Uhtred’s son dies in childbirth along with Gisela

“ ‘Mother and child’, Aethelflaed said very softly.”

Gisela’s death in book five, The Burning Land, happened in the first episode of The Last Kingdom season three. Uhtred’s wife died in childbirth, leaving our hero with a son he hated for being the cause of his beloved’s death. In the book, that son perished at the same time as his mother, but in the TV series, Uhtred’s second son remained alive after his mother's passing.

Uhtred and Aethelflaed become lovers

“Fate is strange. I had rejected Christianity, preferring the gods of the Danes, but I loved Aethelflaed, Alfred’s daughter.”

Like the identity of Osferth’s true father, Uhtred and Alfred’s daughter Aethelflaed being lovers is an open secret in Wessex and Mercia. In the TV adaptation, season three saw the pair kiss and Aethelflaed declare her attraction to Uhtred. He refused to become her lover then as it might expose her to Skade’s curse, but with the curse broken, there's always the possibility in future…

Aethelflaed is given custody of Uhtred’s children

“The king has decreed that your children will be cared for in the Lady Aethelflaed’s household’.”

After Uhtred accidentally kills Brother Godwin after he is provoked into attacking him by his cruel words about the deceased Lady Gisela, Alfred seizes his children as hostages. In the TV series, it’s Hild who takes care of them, baptises them and raises them as Christians, but in The Saxon Stories, it’s the Lady of Mercia, Aethelflaed.

Uhtred kills Aldhelm

“There was no pleasure in killing such a man and so I made it quick.”

In season three, cowardly villain Aethelred of Mercia discovers his advisor Aldhelm has acted against his orders and so stabs him in the gut. Bleeding and on death’s door, Aldhelm uses what may be his last breaths to warn Lady of Mercia Aethelflaed of her husband’s continuing plot against her life. Whether Aldhelm will survive to season four is in the laps of the gods.

In book five, The Burning Land, Uhtred comes to the rescue of Aethelflaed, who’s being held more or less captive by her husband, and kills Aethelred’s servant Aldhelm in the process.

Uhtred and Skade become lovers

“I took off her cloak and I lay her down, and when we were done we were both in tears.”

Skade is introduced in The Last Kingdom season three as a bloodthirsty seer and the consort to warrior Bloodhair. She curses Uhtred and attempts to convince him to join as her sexual partner to allow her power to work through him. In a ploy, Uhtred lies to Skade to gain her trust, then murders her by drowning (believing his curse can only be removed if she dies without spilling a drop of her blood).

In The Burning Land, however, Skade and Uhtred become lovers aboard the ship Seolferwulf after she convinces him that it wasn’t her curse that killed Gisela.

Bloodhair kills Skade

“Harald kissed her open mouth as he ripped the blade upwards, ever upwards.”

When Bloodhair murders Skade in the books, he certainly spills more than a drop of her blood. Hating her for giving herself to Haesten (yes), a withered Bloodhair embraces his former consort, places a golden crown on her head, strokes her hair and stabs her through her chainmail as Uhtred and Aethelflaed watch.

Uhtred kills Bloodhair

“Finish what you began.”

After murdering Skade, Bloodhair tells Uhtred to kill him. Instead of allowing Bloodhair to die with a sword in his hand, and thus go to Valhalla in death, Uhtred kicks away the sword and puts him to death, in revenge for Bloodhair’s many acts of cruelty.

In the TV series, Bloodhair and Haesten face each other in combat, but Skade stabs Bloodhair in the neck, killing him. Brida, watching from the sidelines, rushes to put Bloodhair’s axe in his hand to ensure that he will reach Valhalla.

Father Pyrlig and the bees of war

“ ‘Have some honey!’ he roared at the Danes and tossed the hive upwards.”

In book five, The Burning Land, Uhtred and Edward Atheling’s army marches on Haesten’s forts at Beamfleot. They’re surrounded by Danes, but win the battle thanks to the arrival of Steapa with reinforcements. They seize the first fort and attempt to assault the second, but struggle to scale the walls. Enter: Father Pyrlig, with a bunch of live beehives that they throw onto the walls, thus distracting Haesten’s men and allowing Uhtred’s fighters to capture the fort. Buzz.

We'll bring you news on The Last Kingdom season four as it arrives.

Some of the best fantasy, science fiction, and horror storytelling is happening in the young adult book world—if you need some specific examples, check out Den of Geek's picks for the best fiction books of 2018.

There's so much to look forward to in our speculative fiction future. Here are some of the young adult speculative fiction books we're most excited about and/or are currently consuming...

read more: Best New Young Adult Books in 2018

Best New Young Adult Speculative Fiction Books in January 2019

The Wicked King by Holly Black

Type: Book Two in The Folk of the Air series
Publisher: Little, Brown Books For Young Readers
Release date: 1/8/19

If you haven't heard of The Cruel Prince, then you probably didn't read any YA in 2018. The story picks back up in The Wicked King, with Jude bound to Cardan after having tricked him into becoming king. When it becomes apparent that someone close to Jude is looking to betray her, Jude must uncover the traitor while also navigating her feelings for Cardan. #itscomplicated

Read The Wicked King by Holly Black

Slayer by Kiersten White

Type: Set in Dark Horse continuity
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release date: 1/8/19

A new novel set in the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Kiersten White's story follows not Buffy, but another Chosen One trying to figure out her role in the supernatural fight while also coming of age into a confusing world. 

The eponymous Slayer here is Nina Jamison-Smythe, the daughter of Buffy’s first Watcher, and the Last Slayer. Slayer is the perfect entry point for new Buffy fans, while also sure to delight existing fans. You can read our full review here.

Read Slayer by Kiersten White

The Girl King by Mimi Yu

Type: First book in Girl King series
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Release date: 1/8/19

You've heard of sibling rivalry, right? Asian-inspired fantasy The Girl King takes the theme to the next level, telling the story of two sisters who become somewhat reluctant rivals in the quest to rule the empire. When their emperor father gives Lu's birthright to her nephew, Lu leaves home to find a new path to power, while her younger sister, Min, quietly gains power from within the empire.

Read The Girl King by Mimi Yu

Imprison the Sky by A.C. Guaghen

Type: Book Two in the Elementae series
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Release date: 1/22/19

In the sequel to Reign of Earth, trading vessel ship captain Aspasia works to free as many women, children, and Elementae from slavery as she can, using her powerful magic. As Cyrus, the leader of the black market empire, gets closer to uncovering Aspasia's secrets (that she is a wind Elementae, and that she is looking for her lost family), Aspasia finds herself at the center of a brewing war.

Read Imprison the Sky by A.C. Guaghen

Song of the Dead by Sarah Glenn Marsh

Type: Book Two in the Reign of the Fallen duology
Publisher: Razorbill
Release date: 1/22/19

In this follow-up to 2018's fantasy breakout Reign of the Fallen, Odessa is back. This time, she is facing a Karthia where the kingdom's borders are open for the first time in 300 years. Raising the dead has been outlawed and Odessa sets out on an ocean voyage with Meredy that takes them to "a land where the Dead rule the night and dragons roam the streets." I'm in!

Read Song of the Dead by Sarah Glenn Marsh

King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

Type: Book One in King of Scars duology
Publisher: Imprint
Release date: 1/29/19

Leigh Bardugo wrote one of our 2017 faves—Wonder Woman: Warbringer—so we are here for this start to a fantasy duology (is it just me or are duologies very in right now?). King of Scars is a Slavic-influenced fantasy about Nikolai Lantsov, a young ruler with a dark magic growing inside of him following a bloody civil war.

Nikolai teams up with a young monk and 'a legendary Grisha Squaller," and journeys to "the places in Ravka where the deepest magic survives to vanquish the terrible legacy inside him." Sounds like Nikolai has some big goals for 2019. Good for him.

Read King of Scars by Leigh Bardugo

A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

Type: Standalone novel
Publisher: Bloomsbury YA
Release date: 1/29/19

Recent on-screen adaptations of Beauty and the Beasthave done nothing to modernize the tale, which is one of the many reasons why I am so into the concept for this book. A cross between portal fantasy and contemporary YA, A Curse so Dark and Lonely follows Harper, a young woman with cerebral palsy who is sucked through a portal into the world of Emberfall where she meets a cursed prince. Yep, I'm in.

Read A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

What new YA speculative fiction books are on your radar? Let us know in the comments below or over at the Den of Geek Book Club!

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.

Justice League, the gonzo DC flagship book that burst out of Dark Nights: Metaland Justice League: No Justice, is about a year in now, and this week's first Annual marks an inflection point heading into its next arcs. As nuts as it has been - and make no mistake about it, the Annual alone has Starman, the Green Lantern Corps, Thanagar and the New Gods teaming up - we had to ask writers Scott Snyder and James Tynion III how they were going to top it in year two. "We've got a really big story coming to you and stuff that's really going to shake our characters to their core. This year is going to be harrowing for our heroes in a way that is going to be delivered by exiting, fun comic books," said Tynion.

"We're thinking of calling it 'War of the Realms,'" added Snyder.

There's a certain cackling, maniacal glee in Justice Leaguethat's been there since it was a twinkle in Scott Snyder's eye back in Dark Nights.This is the DC Universe at its wildest - backstory growing willy nilly, continuity being raised and then macheted into component parts, a book so densely packed with new ideas that only a quarter of them are going to be examined on page, with the rest left for other writers to cultivate. And, in case you couldn't tell from Snyder's tone, they're having the time of their lives.

But with that grandeur comes a certain responsibility. "Justice League for me has always been kind of a golden ring book, like the heart and soul of the DCU," said Snyder. "I knew if I ever got a chance to do it, I just wanted to go big or go home, kind of write the story that I could leave on the table as the least super hero story thing I ever did and be okay with that."

"The needle that we're threading is how do we present everything in it's biggest core iconic form while being considerate towards the continuity and the larger continuity," Tynion told us. It's a serious job. Since starting this book, Snyder and Tynion have rewrote the fundamental forces of the universe (adding Still, Sage, and Strength force to the Flash's Speed Force); added a Lantern spectrum; brought in the most complicated Starman; and overhauled the mythology of Atlantis AND Thanagar. 

But for all that change, the Legion of Doom might be what Tynion and Snyder are most happy with. "My favorite thing that we've been able to do is tap into a bit more of the mad scientist aspect of Lex Luthor," said Tynion. "For the breadth of DC history, for the majority of it, Lex Luthor is the most dangerous mind on Earth. He might not be able to beat Superman in a fist fight, but his mind is this terrifying weapon that can bring Superman to heel. Putting [Luthor] in a central role on this Legion of Doom and him driving all of these terrifying events and proving how truly terrifying he is, it's a thrill."

For Snyder? "I love writing Jarro."

"No, I think if there's an aspect that we're proudest of I really think it's...the idea of making Justice League a book again, it doesn't feel isolated. We always wanted to approach it as something that would be kind of the headquarters and the heart and the emotional kind of core of the DCU. So being able to kind of bring back the Hall of Justice, have the team interact with so many different characters and so that the story is intrinsically linked to so much of the DCU and the DC mythology, I'm very proud of creating a Justice League with James that feels, I think, intrinsically tied to the DCU."

Co-writing a book is complicated: the only coordination necessary on a solo book is coordination with the artist and editor, but adding a second writer is a second set of eyes, of sensibilities, of pace and style that can break the flow of the narrative, especially in a serialized format. But Tynion and Snyder have been working together for years and are close friends: one could be forgiven for not noticing the division of labor, though it exists. Snyder said "[James is], I think, the best writer I know, but also one of my best friends. It was always like, if we're going to do this, let's do it in a way where we can celebrate everything we love together and I'd know that he'll keep me honest and make sure the story's as emotional as possible and as big and as daring as possible."

Tynion said, "When we started having the idea of what we wanted to do for the full year and what we wanted to build here in Justice League...if Scott's taking the core Justice League track, I would take the Legion of Doom track and then  once we reach this point in the story where those points really collide and we see how they all impact each other. That's what allows a story like the Justice League annual."

Year two has been pretty meticulously laid out by the team already. "There are hints in issue one in the vision that Martian Manhunter has at the end for stuff that's going to be the end of the year of 2019," Snyder told us. "This issue, the annual, as a combination with 16 and 17...introduces the stakes and the heroes really begin the quest, which is going to take them into much more challenging waters with the next issues. We're trying really hard to make something that only rewards you more and more every issue." A reminder that starting in March's issue 19, the League heads to the Sixth Dimension.

Justice League Annualis now on sale. For more on Justice League, the Legion of Doom, the DCU as a whole, or whatever new bananas stuff Snyder and Tynion throw our way, stick with Den of Geek!

Elizabeth Banks is adding another credit to her directing filmography. According to Deadline, the actress, producer, and director has signed on to helm The Grace Year, an adaptation of the Kim Liggett novel set to be published next fall, for Universal.

The Grace Year, which is being published by Wednesday Books, is being touted by Macmillan "a speculative thriller in the vein of The Handmaid’s Tale and The Power." (Sounds good to us. We loved The Power, and are eagerly awaiting the return of The Handmaid's Tale TV adaptation to Hulu.)

It tells the story of 16-year-old Tierney James who is preparing for her "grace year," the time when women are sent out of the village and into the woods to release their aphrodisiacal magic into the wild. The book "examines the complex and sometimes twisted relationships between girls, the women they eventually become, and the difficult decisions they make in-between."

Banks made her directorial debut with Pitch Perfect 2, and she wrote, directed, and starred as Bosley in the upcoming Charlie's Angels reboot, which sounds amazing.

Banks will produce The Grace Year alongside Max Handelman through their Brownstone Productions. Additionally, Bank and Handelman have adaptations of Paper Bag Princess and Red Queen in development, with Banks set to direct both.

There are so few female directors in Hollywood who gain access to even mid-sized projects. It's cool to see Banks translating her influence as a successful actress into other, behind-the-scenes gigs, including the most powerful one of all. I am following her directorial career with particular interest. 

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.

Middle grade books don't get talked about nearly enough in our corner of the internet, which is a shame because there is some amazing fantasy storytelling happening in the pages of these books written for kids. One such example is Wings of Fire, an ongoing series of fantasy novels about the fictional, dragon-inhabited continents of Pyrrhia and Pantala.

Written by Venezuelan-American author Tui T. Sutherland and told over the course of three, five-book arcs (we're currently anticipating book thirteen), the Wings of Fire series is proof that just because something is written for a younger audience, doesn't mean it can't be epic in scope.

Wings of Fireis set in a world where seven dragon tribes have been at war for generations, fighting over a lost, ancient treasure. Enter the Talons of Peace, a movement committed to ending the fighting. Their plan relies on the fulfillment of a prophecy telling of a great sacrifice. To fulfill this prophecy, five dragonets are raised, against their will, to end the terrible war.

Each of the Wings of Fire books is told from a different character's perspective, and follows the quests of the young dragons as they work to fulfill prophecies. Pretty epic, right?

Next in the series, we have The Poison Jungle, which is set to hit bookshelves on July 30, 2019. We're lucky enough to have an exclusive first look at the cover for the much-anticipated installment, as well as a look at the synopsis. Check out the gorgeous cover for The Poison Jungle...

And here's the official synopsis, which teases the discovery of brand new tribes of dragons:

The #1 New York Times bestselling Wings of Fire series travels deeper into the dragon world than ever before—uncovering the LeafWing tribe, which everyone thought was extinct. Instead, these adaptive dragons are hidden in the treacherous Poison Jungle, plotting revenge against the HiveWings. Can a group of young dragonets prevent another war? Or will the continent of Pantala be torn apart forever?

The Poison Jungleis currently available for pre-order.

Find out more about the author behind Wings of Fire below...

About Tui T. Sutherland:

Tui T. Sutherland is the author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling Wings of Fire series, the Menagerie trilogy, and the Pet Trouble series, as well as a contributing author to the bestselling Spirit Animals and Seekers series (as part of the Erin Hunter team). In 2009, she was a two-day champion on Jeopardy! She lives in Massachusetts with her wonderful husband, two awesome sons, and two very patient dogs. To learn more about Tui's books, visit her online at tuibooks.com.

read more: Best New Young Adult Speculative Fiction Books

Kayti Burt is a staff editor covering books, TV, movies, and fan culture at Den of Geek. Read more of her work here or follow her on Twitter @kaytiburt.