In This Week in Animation News, I’ll take a look at the previous week in the world of animation in order to get you caught up on everything you might have missed. It’s your one-stop shop for news regarding cartoons, anime, and animated web series. We’re talking movies, TV shows, digital shorts, and everything in between!

For the latest animation stories we’ve already covered on the site this week, take a look at the following links. Then, check out a selection of new stories below. Be sure to let us know your thoughts in the comments!

R.I.P. Heather North, Voice of 'Scooby-Doo's Daphne

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Image via Hanna-Barbera

Before we get into this week's animation news, we'd like to express our condolences to the friends, family, and fans of Heather North, who passed away at 71 on November 30th. North long voiced the character of Daphne Blake on many versions of the Scooby-Doo series, beginning in 1970 with the animated series' second-season premiere, and making her final appearance as the heroine in 2003's Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico.

'Teen Titans' Season 1 Blu-ray Now Available for Pre-Order!

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Teenage super heroes never looked so good as Warner Archive Collection brings another favorite from the Warner Bros. Animation canon to Blu-ray with the January 23, 2018 release of Teen Titans: The Complete First Season. Pre-orders are now available via wbshop.com and your favorite online retailers.

With awesome super skills and powers galore, these crime-fighting partners kick butt and squash evil like nobody's business! But as roommates in Titans Tower, it's every hero for him/herself when it comes to living in peace. Not even super heroes can settle fights over who's in control of the TV remote.

In these 13 action-packed adventures, the Titans face all your favorite villains – Mad Mod, The Puppet King, Killer Moth and, of course, their arch-nemesis Slade – in one power-packing showdown after another. Some battles even pit the Titans against each other. Featuring bold animation, funky music and fun characters, this complete Season One from the hit TV series is an intergalactic knockout.

The renowned Teen Titans core cast features Khary Payton (Cyborg), Tara Strong (Raven), Scott Menville (Robin), Greg Cipes (Beast Boy) and Hynden Walch (Starfire).

Guest voices line up like a Murderer’s Row of celebrity actors, led by the ever-present Ron Perlman as Slade. Also featured in Teen Titans: The Complete First Season are Malcolm McDowell (Mad Mod), Clancy Brown (Trident), Wil Wheaton (Aqualad), Dave Coulier (Captain, Tramm), James Arnold Taylor (Overload, Cash), Kevin Michael Richardson (Mammoth), Rino Romano (Kai), David Sobolov (Cron), Dee Bradley Baker (Cinderblock, Plasmus), S. Scott Bullock (Thunder), Quinton Flynn (Lightning), Tom Kenny (Mumbo, Fixit), Roger Bumpass (Dr. Light), Keith Szarabajka (Trigon), Tracey Walter (Puppet King) and Lauren Tom (Gizmo).

Produced by Glen Murakami, Teen Titans: The Complete First Season features direction by Michael Chang, Alex Soto and Ciro Nieli, and scripts from Rob Hoegee, Amy Wolfram, David Slack, Adam Beechen, Greg Klein, Tom Pugsley, Rick Copp and Teen Titans guru himself, Marv Wolfman.

Executive Producers are Sam Register and Sander Schwartz. Associate producer is Kimberly Smith. Producers are Bruce Timm and Linda Steiner.

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Image via Warner Archive Collection

Episodes on Teen Titans: The Complete First Season are:

  • Final Exam
  • Sisters
  • Divide and Conquer
  • Forces of Nature
  • The Sum of His Parts
  • Nevermore
  • Switched
  • Deep Six
  • Masks
  • Mad Mod
  • Car Trouble
  • Apprentice: Part 1
  • Apprentice: Part 2

'Trollhunters' Season 2 Concept Art and New Clips Revealed

In Part 2 of the epic saga DreamWorks Trollhunters, ordinary teen-turned-Trollhunter Jim Lake Jr. faces new challenges in his continued battle to protect his hometown of Arcadia and the fantastical Troll world he inherited. Jim's risky decision to enter the Darklands unearths startling discoveries, forcing him and his friends to face gripping consequences as they race to end the battle against evil. Season 2 is available to stream now, but to get a look behind the scenes, check out some newly revealed concept art and a pair of clips!

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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix
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Image via Netflix

'Olaf's Frozen Adventure' Arrives as Digital Release with Special Features

Disney is celebrating the digital release of Olaf's Frozen Adventure, starring the voice cast of Josh Gad, Idina Menzel, Kristen Bell and Jonathan Groff. The digital copy of Olaf’s Frozen Adventure will also add six classic Disney shorts to your holiday digital collection. Take a look at the special Olaf clip below as well as a video of some of the Easter Eggs hidden in this special holiday featurette, seen above. 

In Walt Disney Animation Studios’ 21-minute featurette “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure,” Olaf (voice of Josh Gad) teams up with Sven on a merry mission. It’s the first holiday season since the gates reopened and Anna (voice of Kristen Bell) and Elsa (voice of Idina Menzel) host a celebration for all of Arendelle. When the townspeople unexpectedly leave early to enjoy their individual holiday customs, the sisters realize they have no family traditions of their own. So, Olaf sets out to comb the kingdom to bring home the best traditions and save this first Christmas for his friends.

 

Extras:   6 Classic Disney Holidays Shorts:

  • THE HOCKEY CHAMP - Donald Duck shows his nephews the moves that won him his hockey trophy, but the boys have a few moves of their own.
  • WINTER - Silly Symphony - In this musical short - the last of the ‘Silly Symphony’ series - see wintertime from the point of view of our favorite woodland creatures.
  • THE ART OF SKIING - The first cartoon to use the now-famous Goofy holler, this short features Goofy learning how to ski at the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort.
  • PLUTO’S CHRISTMAS TREE - While picking out their Christmas tree, Mickey and Pluto chop down the perfect one, unaware that they’re bringing home Chip and Dale along for the ride.
  • ONCE UPON A WINTERTIME - While courting Jenny, Joe tries to show off on the ice, but events soon turn to a timely rescue in this musical December Valentine.
  • POLAR TRAPPERS - The first cartoon to feature Donald and Goofy without Mickey; The duo are animal trappers in the South Pole with very different (and hilariously unsuccessful) approaches.

Here's another special video featuring two of Ellen DeGeneres’ favorite singers, Claire and Dave Crosby! The father-daughter duo visited Disney Animation Studios to perform "When We’re Together" from the new featurette, "Olaf’s Frozen Adventure."

'Batman: Gotham by Gaslight' Premiere Tickets Now Available!

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Image via Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will present the World Premiere of Batman: Gotham By Gaslight in Washington D.C. on January 12, 2018 as part of the grand "DC in D.C." event weekend. Fans can acquire free tickets to the premiere via the EventBrite page.

FRIDAY, JANUARY 12th — NEWSEUM -- 6:30-9:15pm

BATMAN: GOTHAM BY GASLIGHT -- WORLD PREMIERE

Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment provide a new take on Batman as a steampunk Dark Knight hunts Jack the Ripper through the shadows of turn of the century Gotham City in this all-new animated feature available from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment January 23, 2018, on Digital and February 6, 2018, on Blu-ray and DVD. The premiere event is for mature audiences 18 years of age or older. The evening will kick off with a cocktail reception prior to the screening -- which will be followed with a Q&A session with the film’s voice cast and producers.

Inspired by the landmark one-shot Elseworlds tale by Brian Augustyn and Mike Mignola, Batman: Gotham By Gaslight takes place at the turn of the century as America’s continued industrial revolution is to be showcased at a World’s Fair hosted by Gotham City. But while the world prepares to witness the glittery glory of Gotham’s technological advances, there is a killer loose in the city’s darkest shadows. Preying on the city’s women, this killer is as precise as he is cruel. As Police Commissioner James Gordon (Scott PattersonGilmore Girls) tries to calm the fears of Gotham’s citizens regarding the butcher called Jack the Ripper, the masked vigilante Batman (Bruce GreenwoodAmerican Crime Story) indulges in his own detective work — with the help of confident, capable Selina Kyle (Jennifer CarpenterDexter) — to stop the Ripper’s murderous spree. Witness a world in flames as the notorious serial killer’s controlled savagery meets the calculated stealth of the Dark Knight.

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Image via Warner Bros. Animation

The voice cast also features Anthony Head as Alfred Pennyworth, Yuri Lowenthal as Harvey Dent, John DiMaggio as Chief Bullock, William Salyers as Hugo Strange, and Grey Griffin as Sister Leslie. The cast includes notable voice actors Tara Strong, Bob Joles, David Forseth, Chris Cox, Lincoln Melcher and Kari Wuhrer.

Producer Sam Liu (Teen Titans: The Judas Contract) also directs Batman: Gotham By Gaslight from a script by Jim Krieg (Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox). Alan Burnett is co-producer. Executive Producers are Sam Register and Bruce Timm (Batman: The Killing Joke). Benjamin Melniker and Michael Uslan are executive producers.

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Image via Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

Marvel Funko Releases a New Short, "Time to Unwind"

Check out the new Marvel Funko short, "",Time to Unwind featuring Loki attempting to sneak into Doctor Strange’s Sanctum Sanctorum and soon discovering that the Cloak of Levitation is anything, but a welcome mat!

Loki tries to sneak into Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum and soon discovers that the Cloak of Levitation is anything but a welcome mat.

Marvel and Funko have collaborated to create a second season of the extremely popular Marvel Funko animated shorts, the fourth of which, "Time to Unwind", was recently released in partnership with GameStop!

There will be 8 Marvel Funko animated shorts in total for this second season and each one is ninety seconds in length. Featuring some of Marvel’s most popular Super Heroes and Villains, including Thor, Loki, Hulk, Black Widow, Doctor Strange, Captain America, Red Skull, Ant-Man, Hulkbuster, Ultron, Spider-Gwen, and Venom, the new animated short "Time to Unwind" is AVAILABLE NOW on Marvel HQ.

'LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash' Trailer Reveals the Speedy Superhero

The Flash’s world spins out of control when his arch-nemesis Reverse-Flash puts the Scarlet Speedster into a vicious time loop in LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash, the latest animated film from Warner Bros. Animation, DC Entertainment and The LEGO Group. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will distribute the full-length movie on Blu-rayTM Combo Pack and DVD on March 13, 2018, and Digital on February 13, 2018. Order due date is February 6, 2018.

In LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash, Reverse-Flash manipulates the Speed Force to put The Flash into a time loop that forces him to relive the same day over and over again – with progressively disastrous results, including losing his powers and being fired by the Justice League. The Flash must find a way to restore time to its original path and finally apprehend his worst enemy before all is lost for The Flash … and the world!

Along the route, The Flash encounters numerous new characters being introduced to the popular DC Super Heroes series, including The Atom; B’dg, a squirrel-esque Green Lantern; a pair of legendary super pets in Ace the Bat-Hound and Krypto the Super-Dog, Batman and Superman’s faithful canine pals; as well as Aquaman’s trusted seahorse, Storm.

LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash also features an original song, “It’s Magic,” written by Tim Kelly and Jeremy Adams, and performed with enthusiastic zest by the trio of The Flash (voiced by James Arnold Taylor), Zatanna (Kate Micucci) and Doctor Fate (Kevin Michael Richardson).

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Image via Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

The cast of LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash features some of the top voiceover artists in the industry, led by the aforementioned Taylor, Micucci and Richardson, along with Troy Baker (Batman), Nolan North (Superman, Killer Croc), Grey Griffin (Wonder Woman, Lois Lane), Dwight Schultz (Reverse-Flash), Eric Bauza (The Atom, B’dg, Jimmy Olsen), Tom Kenny (Plastic Man, The Penguin), Phil LaMarr (Firestorm), Khary Payton (Cyborg), Vanessa Marshall (Poison Ivy), Dee Bradley Baker (Captain Boomerang, Aquaman), Jason Spisak (The Joker) and Audrey Wasilewski (Mayor).

LEGO DC Super Heroes: The Flash is directed by Ethan Spaulding from a script by Jim Krieg and Jeremy Adams. Sam Register, Brandon Vietti, Jason Cosler, Robert Fewkes and Jill Wilfert are executive producers. Benjamin Melniker and Michael Uslan are co-executive producers.

19th Annual Animation Show of Shows

The ANIMATION SHOW OF SHOWS returns to theaters across North America and will open at the Quad Cinema in New York on December 29th (with many other cities to follow), presenting 16 exceptional and inspiring animated shorts from around the world. At a time of increasing social instability and global anxiety about a range of issues, the works in this year’s show have a special resonance, presenting compelling ideas about our place in society and how we fit into the world.

The 19th ANIMATION SHOW OF SHOWS represents the work of artists from eight countries, including nine women. Funny, moving, engaging, and thought-provoking, the ANIMATION SHOW OF SHOWS not only has something for everyone, but is a remarkable and insightful microcosm of our world.

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16 animated short films presented in order of appearance – Total Running Time: 93 minutes

Can You Do It - Quentin Baillieux, France

Tiny Big - Lia Bertels, Belgium

Next Door - Pete Docter, U.S.

The Alan Dimension - Jac Clinch, UK

Beautiful Like Elsewhere - Elise Simard, Canada

Hangman - Paul Julian and Les Goldman, U.S.

The Battle of San Romano - Georges Schwizgebel, Switzerland

Gokurosama - Clémentine Frère, Aurore Gal, Yukiko Meignien, Anna Mertz, Robin Migliorelli, Romain Salvini, France

Dear Basketball - Glen Keane, U.S.

Island - Max Mörtl and Robert Löbel, Germany

Unsatisfying - Parallel Studio, France

My Burden - Niki Lindroth von Bahr, Sweden

Les Abeilles Domestiques (Domestic Bees) Alexanne Desrosiers, Canada

Our Wonderful Nature: The Common Chameleon - Tomer Eshed, Germany

Casino - Steven Woloshen, Canada

Everything - David OReilly, U.S

'Chew': Animated Feature Deal Collapses, New TV Series May Be in the Works

Earlier this year, I spoke with Steven Yeun about a number of his ongoing and upcoming projects, including an adaptation of ChewRob Guillory and John Layman‘s comic books about Cibopathic detective Tony Chu, meaning he gets psychic impressions from whatever he eats. He didn't have any details on the status of that adaptation, but as Pursue News reports (via CBR), plans for an animated TV series are in development after the feature film fell through.

Pursue News chatted with Layman during Bangalore Comic-Con 2017 where the comics creator expressed his patience in getting an adaptation off the ground:

“It took Preacher 15 years to become a TV show so I’m being patient."

Check out the video interview below for more:

Check Out the First Teaser Trailer for 'Bilal: A New Breed of Hero'

1,400 years ago, Bilal, a seven-year-old boy, with a dream of becoming a great warrior, is abducted into slavery with his sister and taken to a land far away from his home and thrown into a world where corruption and injustice rule all. Throughout his life he undergoes many hardships, through which he discovers an inner strength he did not realize he possessed. Through these experiences, Bilal comes to realize that if he is brave enough to raise his voice and choose his own path - everything becomes possible. It is through his courage, that he frees himself and ultimately his community; It is through the power of his voice and faith that his lifelong dream of freedom comes true.Bilal grows into a man who will inspire the world.

Bilal: A New Breed of Hero stars Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje  as the voice of adult Bilal; Ian McShane as the voice of Umayya, Bilal’s evil master; Jacob Latimore  as the voice of teenage Bilal; China Anne McClain  as Bilal’s teenage sister Ghufaira; Cynthia Kaye McWilliams as Bilal’s mother, Hamama; and Michael Gross as Okba the cowardly slave trader.

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Image via Barajoun Entertainment