On March 24, 2009 Warner Bros. Home Video in conjunction with Lucasfilm Ltd released a four episode arc of the hit Cartoon Network animated series, 'Star Wars: The Clone Wars' onto DVD. The four episodes, which include ‘Ambushed’, ‘Rising of Malevolence’, ‘Shadow of Malevolence’ and ‘Destroy Malevolence’ have been combined to create ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars – A Galaxy Divided’.

The episodes, which are presented in a format preserving the aspect ratio of their original television broadcast, chronicle events starting off with Jedi Master Yoda’s top secret mission that swiftly becomes a battle for survival as he and three clone troopers go up against one of their fiercest enemies yet – the assassin Asaii Ventress and he massive droid army. While Yoda is engaged in his deadly struggle with Ventress, Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker leads a clone squadron attack against the deadliest warship ever encountered so far, ‘The Malevolence’. Matters are complicated for Anakin and Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi when Padme Amidala and C-3PO fall into a trap and are taken hostage aboard ‘The Malevolence’.

Created and produced by the animation staff and writers at Lucasfilm Ltd., ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars- A Galaxy Divided’ is not your grandfathers cartoons. These are richly textured, computer generated high definition animation coupled with in depth storytelling to rival any ‘live action’ production around. The characters in this version of the galaxy far, far away are complex and filled with personality.

The four episode arc of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars – A Galaxy Divided’ is solidly packaged and comes with languages and subtitles in English, French, Spanish and Portugues and is available in stores and through Warner Home Video. Check out the official site for ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars – A Galaxy Divided for more details and exciting information about this hit animated series.

I love it when a plan comes together!

Especially when it's Supernatural creator Eric Kripke's 5 -year plan for his hit series starring Jared Padaleck and Jensen Ackles as Sam and Dean Winchester: two demon hunting, ghost banishing, monster slaying brothers who drive around in a cool  black '67 Chevy Impala loaded with weapons to deal with all kinds of supernatural related threats.

SUPERNATURAL, has been posting ratings growth since the 4th season premiered back on September 18th of 2008: a season which has seen the the return from hell of older brother Dean Winchester  (Jensen Ackles), the introduction of the angel Castiel (Misha Collins) and has also seen younger brother Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) begin what may very well turn out to be his decent into darkness with the demon Ruby (Genevieve Cortese) unintentionally (??) leading the way.

With the early pick-up by the CW network which seems to have rebounded from their earlier troubles, Supernatural will enter its fifth season later this year. New episodes of season 4 will resume airing this coming March 12th at 9PM EST.

Among the other series receiving early pickups for next season are The CW’s Monday tandem of sophomore sensation GOSSIP GIRL and ONE TREE HILL, which combined to lift The CW to become the fall’s #1 network on Monday with women 18-34.  Both GOSSIP GIRL and ONE TREE HILL have scored double-digit gains compared to their previous seasons.  Freshman hit 90210 has improved the network’s Tuesday night by double-digit increases in key demos.  Wednesday anchor AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL, which consistently wins its time period with young women, will also be back with superstar Tyra Banks and new groups of aspiring models for cycles 13 and 14.

Also renewed was Supernatural's established Thursday partner series SMALLVILLE, which stars Tom Welling as Clark Kent and will be entering its ninth season.

Monday January 26, 2009

In the early morning hours it began circulating as a rumor on German Supernatural discussion forums. By Mid afternoon it was confirmed as fact by a posting Supernatural actor Jim Beaver made on his Myspace Page.

"Jim is in mourning for one of the best friends and best directors he's ever known--Kim Manners, who died last night from lung cancer."

Then came this statement from the Publicist for Supernatural confirming the passing of Kim Manners:

“Supernatural” executive producer & director Kim Manners passed away last night in Los Angeles, following a battle with cancer. 

Then a statement from Creator and Executive Produce Eric Kripke:

"Everyone at 'Supernatural' is walking around in a daze, shocked and absolutely devastated.  Kim was a brilliant director; more than that, he was a mentor and friend.  He was one of the patriarchs of the family, and we miss him desperately.  He gave so much to 'Supernatural,' and everything we do on the show, now and forever, is in memory of him. 

The soft spoken Kim Manners had been with Supernatural since the first season coming in as director of the season one's 4th episode, "Dead in the Water". Even though Manners went on to become an executive producer of the hit series, which stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as demon fighting, monster hunting brothers Sam and Dean Winchester, he continued to direct up until his illness hospitalized him in December of 2008. His last listed episodes as director is the season 4 episodes "Lazarus Rising" and his final one, "Metamorphosis".

Kim Manners, who is the son of Cleveland Ohio born director/producer Sam Manners, was no stranger to the entertainment industry having been raised into it by being the son of such a well known and well respected industry professional.  Manners, whose career began back in 1970 has spent over three decades in the entertainment industry working as an actor, producer and director and has worked on such highly successful projects as The X-Files, Baywatch and 21 Jump Street which starred a young and up and coming Johnny Depp.

Yet it was more than just three decades of entertainment industry experience that Kim Manners brought to Supernatural as a director and executive producer, by all accountings from cast and crew alike, Manners brought a sense of solid strength and good-nature to everyone involved with the series and to the set. Both series leads Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles love to relate  their favorite story about how Manners playfully 'got them back' for the numerous pranks they played on him by waiting until both actors were trapped in a small tunnel like set in the season 2 episode 'No Exit' and poured a large bucket of cold water down on them.

Kim Manners could also be relied on by the cast and crew to be a practical problem solver as Jensen Ackles points out in a recent interview with the Official Supernatural Magazine. In the interview, Ackles relates how Manners took charge of figuring out how to get the actor, who was stranded at the LAX airport over the tail end of busy holiday because his seat was sold out from under him on an over booked flight, to the set of Supernatural in time to meet his set call and not lose the production money and time.

Kim Manners cared about Supernatural, it's cast and crew. He took pride in his work and in being part of bringing the fans and viewers the best possible stories being told. It's a given that all of those involved with the production of Supernatural are going to miss their co-work, friend and director/executive producer. Those of us out here in the fandom and media are going to miss Kim Manners as well.

We at EclipseMagazine.com send our prayers and condolences to the Manner's family and to his 'Supernatural family' as well.

Kim Manners will be missed.

The publicity department at Warner Brothers Television has once again provided the media with sneak peek teaser clips from an upcoming episode of Supernatural Season 4, which stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as Sam and Dean Winchester: two always on the go monster hunting, ghost chasing, demon hunting brothers.

After School Special,” will air on Thurs., 1/29 at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on The CW.

In the episode, Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) look into a possible haunting taking place at one of the many schools they briefly attended while they were growing up.  Dean is not thrilled to be returning, but Sam takes a special interest in making the trip.  Flashbacks to when the Winchesters attended the school give insight to a childhood spent on the move with a largely absentee dad.  Guest starring Colin Ford as ‘Young Sam’ and Brock Kelly as ‘Young Dean.’    “After School Special” was written by Andrew Dabb & Daniel Loflin and was directed by Adam Kane.

The episode sounds like it promises to be a good one as far as insight into what makes the Winchester brothers tick and I have to say that the sight of Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) in a pair of tight red gym shorts is worth the price of admission.

Check out the clips provided by Warner Brothers and tun into the Supernatural this Thursday at 9PM EST to watch After School Special.

Experience the horror when Amusement arrives on Blu-ray and DVD January 20th from Warner Home Video. From screenwriter Jake Wade Wall (The Hitcher) and director John Simpson (Freeze Frame), Amusement follows three friends tied together by a seemingly innocent childhood event and someone thirsty for revenge.

A twisted thread ties Tabitha, Shelby and Lisa together in this anthology of seemingly unrelated vignettes. Stalked by a killer with a grudge that extends back to the girls' childhoods, these friends and other potential victims must struggle to survive.

Available on DVD: January 20
Official Site URL: http://www.amusementmovie.com
BUY IT!:
http://whv.warnerbros.com/WHVPORTAL/Portal/product.jsp?OID=71164

Catch a sneak peek at Amusement in this exciting trailer clip.

Amusement is available on DVD: January 20
Official Site URL: http://www.amusementmovie.com
BUY IT!:http://whv.warnerbros.com/WHVPORTAL/Portal/product.jsp?OID=71164

He's gonna break your heart.

Several people have already written some excellent reviews of this movie for EclipseMagazine so this is going to be mostly a commentary on the movie that will be mainly focused on the 3-D version vs the 2-D version with some comparisons to the 1981 My Bloody Valentine. Some of the content will be of a reviewer's nature however.

I know that with the advances in the way a 3:D movie is formatted - to quote Jensen Ackles 'this isn't your grandma's 3-D - and that the movie industry is ready to embrace this new technology, I am going to be right up front about this, having seen both versions of the new, updated My Bloody Valentine movie I have to say that I personally think that the 2-D version is better than the 3-D version when it comes to telling the story and seeing how good a job the actors really did in this movie. I also know that the executives at Lionsgate, the producers of the movie and the actors are all gung ho about the 3-D special effects for My Bloody Valentine. However to me as a viewer, no matter how technologically advanced and super whiz-bang as they are in this movie the 3-D aspect  just -and no pun intended- strips the heart out of the story and reduces the movie to nothing more than a series of fancy visual effects,

This is not to say I didn't have an appreciation of the new 3-D technology employed in the 3-D version of My Bloody Valentine and I certainly like the new style of 3-D glasses (and yes I kept mine because I consider them paid for with the ticket price). I thought the technology was awesome and visually stunning. I jumped and cringed at all right moments. I appreciated how the 3-D effect brought out textures and depth to the scenes and especially to the visual presence of the actors on screen.

Jensen Ackles is a stunningly handsome man as it is and every line, angle and design of his features and build were made for such presence of depth on the big screen. The same for Jaime King, Kerr Smith and Megan Boone.  As for the lovely Besty Rue, who plays the ill-fated Irene, what can I say except it takes a woman with a very strong and centered sense of self to be seen totally naked in this kind of an 'in your face' technology that puts your body so 'right there' in front of the audience that you might as well actually really be there in the flesh. She's a far braver woman than I am, that's for sure.

However as much as it was very impressive and cool to look at, the 3-D technology in my opinion, served to fragment and compartmentalize the movie into individual scenes where the audience isn't so much following the story as they are busy watching the 'in your face' effects and focusing on them instead of the story or the acting in it.

Jensen Ackles may be a stunningly handsome man, but more than that, he is very talented and versatile actor whose mastery of his craft (along with co-star Jared Padalecki's as well) has made Supernatural a hit television series for the CW and Warner Bros.  Kerr Smith and Jamie King are also talented actors as well so when I came out of the 3-D showing not overly impressed with the performances in the film, it took me a while to realize it had less to do with the actors and more to do  with how much the 3-D effect and the fragmenting it created just overshadowed the story and the actors in it.

The synopsis of the movie lays the story of this updated version of My Bloody Valentine as this:

Ten years ago, a tragedy changed the town of Harmony forever. Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles of Supernatural), an inexperienced coal miner and son of the mine owner, caused an accident in the tunnels that trapped six men and sent the only survivor, Harry Warden who had killed the other five to increase his own chances of survival, into a seemly permanent coma. But exactly one year later on Valentine's Day Harry Warden woke up deranged and out for revenge against anyone involved themselves with the Hanniger Mine, especially young Tom Hanniger. Warden went on a rampage brutally murdering twenty-two people with a pickaxe before being supposedly killed.

Ten years later, Tom Hanniger returns to Harmony on Valentine's Day, still haunted by the death and by his own near fatal run in with the rampaging Harry Warden ten years earlier. Struggling to make amends with his past, he grapples with unresolved feelings for his ex-girlfriend, Sarah (Jamie King of The Spirit), who is now married to his best friend, Axel Palmer (Kerr Smith of Dawson's Creek), the town sheriff. But tonight, after years of peace, something from Harmony's dark past has returned. Wearing a miner's mask and armed with a pickaxe, an unstoppable killer is on the loose. And as his footsteps come ever closer, Tom, Sarah and Axel realize in terror that it just might be Harry Warden who's come back to claim them.

I was intrigued by the storyline that was set up for this updated version of MY BLOODY VALENTINE which is directed by Patrick Lussier from a screenplay by Todd Farmer and Zane Smith, based on a screenplay by John Beaird, story by Stephen Miller and was looking forward to seeing it on the big screen. I also have to give kudos to Todd Farmer who as the truck driver in the movie who has wild sex with Irene and then dies at the hands of the killer is obviously one writer who doesn't write anything for the actors in a movie to do that he isn't willing to also do on screen himself. I was way impressed by that.

So imagine my disappointment when I finished watching the 3-D version and the storyline and characterizations, while superior to the 1981, just seemed to lack cohesion and the acting seemed barely there. It took me awhile to realize that being forced to focus on the cool whiz-bang 3-D moments, my attention was distracted from the story and acting. So I decided to go again and see the movie in 2-D.

I know this might not be what the studio that is asking the audience to embrace the 3-D technology wants to read about, but the truth is as soon as I started watching My Bloody Valentine in 2-D, it became a much better movie to me. Without the distraction of being overwhelmed by the individual 3-D moments and the overall 3-D appearance, the cohesion of the plot line fell into place. Without the 3-D, the movie is focused on the story and the characters and you begin to see the real quality of acting that was going on in the movie.

Without the 3-D in the way, the characters come to the forefront because of the actors playing the roles, not because some fancy visual effect makes them look so physically real you could reach out and touch them. Quite honestly while watching the 2-D version I found myself seeing Tom Hanniger in all his emotions, issues and place in the story rather than having my vision filled with wonder of the almost touchable images of the 'magnificent to gaze upon' Mr. Jensen Ackles. The same with Jamie King, Kerr Smith and the others. In the 2-D version the actors got the chance to 'step back' as it were and be seen as their characters and not as good looking actors that the viewer has the novelty of admiring in such an up close almost extremely personal and voyeuristic manner to which they would not have even under the normal circumstances of meeting the actors in person.

In the 2-D version of My Bloody Valentine, I got caught up in the story, in the suspense of it and the psychological aspects of the lives of the characters. For me it became what a movie, any movie whether it be horror or drama is suppose to be--- a story about the characters, not about the visual effects. without the 'in your face' technology, I was able to see an actor I consider extremely talented and versatile, which is what Jensen Ackles is, doing his work and doing it well. Not to say there won't moments that, even in the 2-D version, where he didn't seem to quite be throwing his full acting weight into the role and seemed to be coasting along, because there were those moments. However I understand that the filming of this movie was grueling at times for all the actors and the exhaustiveness of that showed in all of their performances at various points in the movie.

Overall, and in either version, I like the updated version of My Bloody Valentine. As I said it is far superior to the 1981 version. I also like that, as in the original version, the characters are all adults of varying age ranges and not just teens and twenty-somethings. Both the original and the updated version of My Bloody Valentine shows that scary horror can and does happen to adults. The difference between the original and the updated is the characters in the updated one are not one dimensional borderline campy like they were in the original. They have textured and complicated lives and checked histories. The build up about the issue of Harry Warden was far superior in the updated version and lent more credibility to his place as a killer.

The one thing I liked better about the 1981 original My Bloody Valentine? The tag line.

'There's more than one way to lose your heart'.

That's just way cooler than 'He's gonna break your heart'.

The updated version was, according to the publicity by the actors and writers, to have some comedic elements to it that would make the audience laugh out loud. I only found one such incident for myself. In the mine sequence where Harry Warden is killing the kids who are having a Valentine's Day party, one hapless victim-to-be shines a flashlight on the killer and calls out 'Jason is that you'. I got a kick out of what appears to be a not so subtle but good natured 'our killer is way cooler than you killer'  shout out at the upcoming Friday the 13th re-imagining, which stars Ackles' Supernatural costar, Jared Padalecki and opens on February 13th of 2009.

Of course the down side to not being distracted by what I consider the disconnecting of scenes created by the 3-D effect is that you also get to notice some continuity issues and some things that don't quite fit. Things I noticed was Harry Warden waking up from supposedly being in a coma for ten years, yet he is clearly not only wearing a pair of contact lens but they are type that weren't even invented ten years ago. Sarah Palmer has a run in with the killer and gets a heavy bandage put on her arm, a bandage that mysteriously vanishes a few scenes later. When Axel and Tom sit down in the interrogation room to talk about something Tom witnessed, the hands on the clock on the wall are at 4:35. As they talk the wall clock is mysteriously missing from the wall, but when only a few minutes later the guys are physically struggling with each other the clock is not only back on the wall where it can be knocked off during the struggle but the hands are now at 5:35.

The last thing I want to mention in my commentary is something that I don't think got nearly enough attention from the press who covered this movie. Yes it has the legendary horror icon Tom Atkins in it,but the movie also had the still amazing Kevin Tighe in it as well. Ok so I was always more of a 'Johnny Gage Girl' back in the day, but I liked me some Roy Desoto too.

So my conclusion in all of this is, go and see the 3-D version of My Bloody Valentine to experience the cool new effect (and see how stunning Jensen Ackles looks that close up), but if you really want to go and see the story and how well the actors really did in this movie, then also take in the 2-D version as well.

My Bloody Valentine Photos courtesy of and Copyright2009 to Lionsgate Films.

The CW Network/Warner Brothers hit series Supernatural, starring Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as monster hunting, ghost battling, demon killing brothers Sam and Dean Winchester, is gearing up for its come back from holiday break  on Thursday, January 16th with new first run episodes of season 4.

Warner Brothers publicity department has once again provided us with first look, teaser clips of the upcoming episode, which is tilted Family Remains.

In Family Remains, which was written by Jeremy Carver and directed by Phil Sgriccia, A man’s mysterious death causes Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) to believe that his house may be haunted, but when the home’s new owners move in during the investigation, an unexpected and gruesome discovery complicates matters.  David Newsom and Helen Slater guest star along with Dylan Minnette who plays Danny Carver.   

Supernatural airs on the CW Network on Thursdays at 9PM EST. Check out the new episode Family Remains on January 16th.

Video Clip Courtesy of Warner Brothers Television

Anakin Skywalker, left, and Obi-Wan Kenobi capture pirate leader Hondo Ohnaka in a scene from “The Gungan General,” an all-new episode of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS

Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi strike an unexpected and uneasy alliance with their greatest enemy – the villainous Count Dooku – in “The Gungan General,” an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 9, on Cartoon Network.

In “The Gungan General,” Anakin and Obi-Wan are negotiating Count Dooku’s ransom when they are also taken prisoner and placed in holding with the Separatist leader. Their only choice: Work together to escape. A clone contingent is dispatched to deliver a ransom in exchange for Dooku – unaware that the Jedi are with him. But misfortune befalls their mission, and circumstance finds them with the unlikeliest of leaders: Jar Jar Binks.

“The Gungan General” is written by Julie Siege who is well regarded in the entertainment industry for her work, which includes a staff writing position on CW’s “Supernatural.” Siege says her handling of the two-brother central relationship in that series helped her understand the bond between Anakin and Obi-Wan – particularly when forced into an untenable situation like aligning themselves temporarily with Dooku.

“The lure of writing for STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS is right there on the screen: It is a fantastic story, and this was a great episode. The heroes and the villain are forced to pool their brain power and fire power in order to escape,” Siege says.

“Especially at this stage of the saga, it was fun to show the relationship between Obi-Wan and Anakin – particularly knowing where Anakin is ultimately going. But at this point in the story, he is clearly a hero. I love that dichotomy.”

Siege said she enjoyed crafting dial

ogue for the Obi-Wan/Anakin dynamic, and also scripting the newest bad guy in STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, pirate chief Hondo Ohnaka.

“Creating words for that character for the first time was a thrill,” she says. “Here’s this leader of the pirate colonies and he’s faced with a paradox that most of us would be uncomfortable with, but he handles easily: He’s trying to protect his own people, and if that means he has to resort kidnapping, then so be it. There’s an audacity to him that I really liked.”

Check out “The Gungan General,” an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Jan. 9, on Cartoon Network.

Since Joining the writing team for the hit CW/Warner Brothers television show Supernatural, Jeremy Carver has written some of the most pivotal episodes of the series. Episodes like season three's Mystery Spot and A Very Supernatural Christmas which have delved into the deep connections that Sam and Dean Winchester have with each other as brothers and with their destinies as 'hunters' in the world of monsters, urban legends and demons.

Season four of Supernatural has taken off like high speed roller coaster. It has been a twisting, turning ride that has seen Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) pulled from hell by the Angel Castiel (newcomer Misha Collins) and has sent Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) with the aid of the demon Ruby (Genevive Cortese) down a possible path of darkness as he explores and begins using his own possibly demonic given powers. Season four has also expanded the myth arc and history of the Winchester family and given Jeremy Carver the opportunity to write one of this season's most pivotal episodes titled In The Beginning.

Eclipse Magazine.com caught up with Carver to ask him some 'behind the scenes' questions about the creation of this highly revealing episode.

MRR: Was In the Beginning and episode that you pitched in the writer's room or was it something that Eric Kripke came to you and said he would like you to write?

JC: It was a little of both. Eric definitely had always wanted to do a time travel episode in which we learn the origins of the Supernatural story--Mary being a hunter, the courtship of Mary and John, etc.--and I was given the task of fleshing it out.

MRR: Having now been handed the task of writing such a huge story line in the myth arc of the Winchester brothers, what were your feelings as a writer about being given an opportunity to write such a pivotal episode for the series?

JC: Sheer terror. Glee. Suspicion. Was I being set up to fail?

MRR: With John and Mary Winchester both already being established characters in the canon of the series, what was the biggest challenge you felt you faced as writer in creating these younger versions of them? Which one was more difficult for you to connect with as a writer in regards to their storyline?

JC: Originally, this episode was going to be much more of a John/Dean story than a Mary/Dean one. The problem was, with John being a happy-go-lucky, clueless civilian...there was literally nothing for him and Dean to talk about!

That said, writing Mary was far more difficult,if only because so much was riding on getting her right. I give all the credit in the world to Amy Gumenick, the actress who played Young Mary,for bringing her to life so vividly and compassionately.

MRR: In The Beginning had some very well presented guest characters who became very instrumental in the process of creating background history for Sam and Dean Winchester. Of all the 'guest characters' in this story, which one was the most fun for you as a writer to create and bring to life? Which one was the most difficult?

JC: Writing the Campbell clan was the favorite part of the episode for me.

Samuel Campbell was particularly fun...and difficult. Especially after he became Yellow Eyes and went on to Dean about his plans for Mary and the psychic kids. Getting all that mythology straight was brutal. And then Eric told me Mitch Pileggi was playing the role and I suddenly forgot about the pain, much in the way a woman conveniently forgets the pain of childbirth. I think. And, then, I watched Mitch's performance...and I can't quite find the right pregnancy metaphor here,so...let's just say he blew me away.

MRR: There is debate among some sections of Supernatural fandom that all of what happened to Dean in this episode was just a dream. So did Dean really meet his parents and have some affect on the past or was he just an observer in a dream? Is he really named after his grandmother or after the mysterious Dean Van Halen?

MAJOR SPOILER ALERT

JC: The answer to this question is going to be horrendous. Sorry.

Okay, first, not a dream. It all really happened. Yes, Dean affected the past, but he couldn't change it. This makes sense if you think of this from the perspective of the Campbells. In the history of the Campbells, there ALWAYS was going to be a stranger named Dean Van Halen who dropped into their lives and affected things. It's not like the Campbells lived one life, then Dean went back in time and caused them to live another. Future Dean was ALWAYS in their story...the current Sam and Dean just never knew it.

Dean was named after his grandmother, not himself.

If I've made sense to anyone out there, God bless you.

MRR: Will we be seeing any repercussions from events in this episode coming to light in other episodes of season 4?

JC: Yes. Most definitely, yes.

Well that sounds like things are going to continue to get very interesting for Sam and Dean Winchester and it sounds like something that I as a fan and viewer of Supernatural is certainly going to be looking forward to when new episodes of season 4 begin airing once more on the CW Network on Thursday nights at 9PM EST starting on January 15th.

A big EclipseMagazine.com Thank You to Jeremy Carver for taking the time to share these insights and 'behind the scenes' information with all of us. 

So while we wait for season 4 to come back in January, please come and share you thoughts with us here at Eclipse Magazine on what you think the repercussions might be and which upcoming new episode you think they might show up in.

Acclaimed animation-and-comics writer Paul Dini (the “Justice League,” “Superman,” “Batman” animated series) amps up the action for Jedi heroines Luminara Unduli and Ahsoka Tano in “Cloak of Darkness,” an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, December 5th, on Cartoon Network.

In “Cloak of Darkness,” Ahsoka and Jedi Master Luminara escort captured Viceroy Nute Gunray to trial – but they’re unaware that Count Dooku has dispatched his deadly assassin Asajj Ventress to free the prisoner and eliminate the Jedi.

Dini’s work in animation and comic books have created a strong following for him among enthusiasts, and he is noted for creating stunning, memorable female characters. Dini, who has taken time away from the animation realm to be a story editor on ABC’s “Lost,” said he didn’t hesitate to take the assignment from Lucasfilm Animation.

“It was interesting to take Ahsoka, who plays by her own rules, and put her under the tutelage of a more established Jedi,” Dini says. “She can’t get around Luminara the way she plays with Anakin and Obi-Wan. It’s not just their generational difference, it’s a difference in methods – Luminara is very much by the book, and expects any padawan to follow the rules. Ahsoka grabs a lightsaber and runs into battle, whereas Luminara wants to take a moment and assess the situation through her mastery of the Force. Throw in the wildcard of Ventress and you’ve got a very interesting mix.”

In both comics and action-driven animation, Dini says, a preponderance of male characters provides a challenge to develop their under-appreciated female counterparts with equal complexity and motivations.

“A lot of times, female characters – particularly the villains – come off as very one-dimensional,” Dini says. “They get the short shrift in that they’re only given the snappy comeback, or they’re relegated to a very stereotypical role. I want to know what’s driving them – that’s what’s really interesting. If you can find that human moment, then attach a human element of motivation, the character becomes more relatable and, even if she’s a villain, more sympathetic.”

But Dini says viewers won’t find much sympathy for Ventress – and not because she lacks crystal clear motives.

“Ventress has a savage desire to prove herself,” he explains. “She really wants to be the next Sith Lord, and she’ll do anything to achieve her goal. She’s as ruthless, cunning and merciless as any character in the series, and that intense, loose rage makes her a wild card. When she unleashes it, she becomes a berserker. When she fights, she’s like a snake, almost reptilian in some ways. If she kept her rage in check, she might win. But she gives in to that rage, and that is her undoing, her weakness.”

“Cloak of Darkness,” an all-new episode of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS airs at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, December 5th, on Cartoon Network.

Trademark information for Star Wars: The Clone Wars images:
TM & © 2008 Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved.

'Sweeps Weeks' is upon us in 'television land' and that means that TV series are pull out heavy hitting first run episodes for audiences to delve into and to entice advertisers to spend their money on buying ad spots during the shows.  This past week's episode of the hit CW Network series Supernatural titled I Know What You Did Last Summer swept into the fray with a powerful storyline about how Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki) dealt with his grief over losing older brother Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) to death as Dean made good on his deal with a crossroads demon that came due at the end of season 3. The episode also introduced us to Anna Milton, a woman who hears 'angelic conversations', which makes her target of interest for angel and demon alike.  We also got to meet up with the newest demon 'big bad, Alastair (Mark Rolston) who seems to know Dean from the older Winchester's time spent in hell.

Despite being pre-empted in many areas by CW Affiliates choosing to air Football instead, I Know What You Did Last Summer still garnered an impressive 3.91 overnight rating which means that Supernatural continues to hit its stride and continues to gain audience approval and viewer-ship in what is considered a very 'killer' Thursday night time slot. Just goes to show that those Winchester brothers are kick ass tough and they have what it takes to 'go the distance' (cue Eye of the Tiger Music').

Supernatural continues on into 'Sweeps Week' with an episode titled “Heaven and Hell,” which will air on Thursday the 20th at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT on The CW and will be the last original episode of 2008! Additional new episodes of “Supernatural” will resume airing on Thursday January 15, 2009 (The day before Jensen Ackles' big screen horror movie My Bloody Valentine: 3D opens nation wide in select theaters).

Heaven and Hell is the the second half of a two-part episode bloc, which began with I Know What You Did Last Summer and resumes right where the story left off with Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) struggling to save the mysterious Anna Milton (guest star Julie McNiven). As Anna starts to remember her past, the brothers begin to understand the reason behind Castiel and Uriel’s (guest stars Misha Collins and Robert Wisdom) desire to see her dead and ignoring the angels’ orders, they attempt to help her recover an important part of her past so she can be saved. Meanwhile, Alastair (guest star Mark Rolston) and his demons continue to try to get to Anna and the Winchesters before the angels can. Also guest starring Genevieve Cortese as ‘Ruby’ and Traci Dinwiddie as ‘Pamela Barnes.’ The teleplay for “Heaven and Hell” was written by Eric Kripke from a story by Trevor Sands and was directed by J. Miller Tobin.

Previews for Heaven and Hell indicate that viewers might get to see more of the scenes that Jensen Ackles filmed at the end of season 3 of Dean being strung from what look like meat hooks as he was being tortured in hell.

At Comic Con 2008 over the summer, I had the chance to ask Jensen Ackles about filming these scenes and what kind of special effects were involved in them and even though Jensen and I had a different idea of what I was asking about (he thought I was asking if things were done with CGI), his answer was more than I could have asked for in terms of descriptiveness and willingness to share the details with readers.

"A lot of that wasn’t visual effects, a lot of that was real," Ackles told me as he grimaced slightly in remembrance of the process.  "Especially when I was getting killed and I was getting bruised up, I had a full body suit on and blood was flying everywhere, I had to wear that thing for six hours – it was like … I don’t know if you’ve ever had corn syrup blood on you… but it’s real tacky and sticky and I had that thing on for six hours… it’s not fun."

Describing the scene of Dean hanging in hell, Jensen Ackles elaborated on this process as well. "In the hell scene, I was actually hoisted up about 13 feet in the air with wires connected to my wrists and my ankles, and one to my belt," He says, pointing to the areas of his body where the hooks were attached to Dean. "Just splayed out like that and trying to hold myself up was difficult. The hooks were real and they were digging into my skin and with having spent four hours in prosthetics, getting those hooks put into my , you know, back, my stomach, yeah I wish they did all that with CGI," Ackles finished his answer with a rueful smile.

So while we are waiting for more scenes of Dean's time in hell and finding out what happened to him while he was there, Eclipsemagazine.com readers can check out the advance teaser clips so generously provided for us by Warner Bros. Television and then tune into the CW Network this coming Thursday November 20th to watch Heaven and Hell at 9PM EST.

Final Grade = B-

Quantum of Solace, which is directed by Marc Forster and written by Paul Haggis, Neal Purvis & Robert Wade, is Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures/Columbia Pictures release of EON Productions' 22^nd adventure in the longest-running film franchise in motion picture history with Daniel Craig reprising his role as Ian Fleming’s James Bond 007.

'Quantum of Solace' picks up the storyline of Casino Royale mere hours after his betrayal by Vesper Lynd the woman that Bond had fallen in love with. In Quantum of Solace, Bond and 'M' attempt to interrogate Mr. White, whom Bond has captured and in doing so it is revealed that the organization which blackmailed Vesper to steal Bond's casino winnings is far more complex and dangerous than anyone had imagined.

First off let me say that Daniel Craig is only the second actor to play the role of James Bond that I have truly liked and enjoyed watching in the role and whom I feel captures the true essence of the character that Ian Fleming was writing about. I am probably one of those rare people who read all the James Bond books before every having seen any of the cinematic versions of them. To me, in all of Fleming’s books, Bond is a killer who can pretend to be a fancy gentleman, not a fancy gentleman pretending to be a killer. The only other actor in the Bond role that I felt captured the character perfectly for me was Timothy Dalton (and yes this means that I am not in the ‘Connery IS Bond and there can be no other’ camp. While nice to look at and he is a talented actor, Sean Connery just never cut it for me as James Bond).

Like Dalton’s Bond, Daniel Craig’s is gritty and hard edged. You believe him when he is ruthlessly stalking an enemy or playing by his own rules and codes of conduct giving quarter to none, not even M (played by the elegant as always Judi Dench) whom he respects more than any other person in the world.

Secondly, to me story wise Quantum of Solace reminded me quite a bit of Dalton’s last outing as Bond which was ‘License to Kill’. Both movies have the same elements of a James Bond driven by grief and the need for vengeance over the loss of woman he loved. Both dealt with a James Bond who was not only willing to risk his own reputation, position and his life, but that of others around him to accomplish his vengeance/grief driven goal. In both stories there is a bare minimum of snappy one liner comebacks and the ones given are well placed and have impact. There is no over the top witty repartee with the women and the bad guys and no smirking ‘wink, wink, nudge, nudge’ towards the camera. As with ‘License to Kill’, this was Bond at his most elemental and animalistic.

The good news about all of this is that I like this kind of James Bond. I want him to be gritty and edgy with a large measure of moral ambiguity and not some clear cut ‘superman’. To me this is how Ian Fleming wrote the character. I liked ‘License to Kill’ and, for the most part, I liked Quantum of Solace for many of the same reasons. Of course the bad news in all of this is, judging by how soundly ‘License to Kill’ and Dalton’s Bond was trashed by critics and Bond movie-goers alike, I seemed to be in a minority when it comes to wanting a grittier, edgier James Bond. Though I am sensing that there might be a difference in how the Bond audiences of now will react to this kind of James Bond compared to those of the late 80’s viewed such a drastic change in how the character was presented on screen. ‘License to Kill’ might well have been ahead of its time.

On a more specific level, I think that the biggest short coming that Quantum of Solace has is that there is too much reliance on the audience having seen and/or remembering the events of Casino Royale and the character of Vesper Lynd (Eva Green). There is too much reference back to this without a visual ‘recap’ for the audience to be able to fully connect with where Bond’s actions, emotions and motivation are coming from. His feelings for Vesper is too much just this nebulous thing that audience goers might not be able to drawn into caring about or having an interest in. I am of the opinion that it might not be a good thing to have an audience disconnected from the main point of a character’s motivation. Even I, who had seen and liked ‘Casino Royale’, was having a difficult time remembering the plot well enough without a visual recap to connect it to this movie.

Another specific thing I had an issue with was that there were far too many almost mindless ‘chase and kill’ scenes in the opening half hour of the movie. The car and gun chase at the beginning was excellent and it set the tone that yes this IS a Bond movie. But the subsequent foot-chase and boat chase scenes in my opinion went on far too long and with the case of the foot chase way too far into the improbable. It got boring and coming from me whose friends swear that I am an adult woman whose ‘inner child’ is a 14-year-old boy who likes car chases and explosions, that’s saying a lot if I was getting bored. I live for action movies. What I think really could have served this movie much better is that this time could have been devoted to doing a bit of a visual recap on the Vespa scenario. Spending time on that instead of wasting it on overdone chase scenes would have, in my opinion done more to solidify the plot of the movie.

Last point is that none of the other characters, with the exception of James Bond’s old friend Mathis (played by the very suave Giancarlo Giannini) and M, seemed to be given much depth or personality. Dominic Greene (played by the very intense Mathieu Amalric) the villain in Quantum of Solace was stereotypical and generic which made him extremely predicable. The big ‘reveal’ about what his nefarious plot was all about seemed to be of little significance to the movie. It went by in the blink of an eye with little or no elaboration to justify why it made him so worthy of being an adversary to James Bond. The two ‘Bond Girls’ came off as shallow ‘token’ presences in the movie were overshadowed by the specter of Vespa who wasn’t even in the movie. Though Camille (played by the stunningly beautiful Olga Kurylenko) faired much better story wise than Strawberry Fields (played by the striking Gemma Arterton) did.

Overall it was nice to see an edgier, grittier James Bond again. Daniel Craig is excellent. Yet the movie itself, while having good plot elements and ideas, seemed to lack cohesion and honestly it felt like it had been rushed and very little time was taken to think things out more extensively.

Minor nitpick. I disliked the opening credits to this movie and for me they lacked the cinematic presence of previous opening credits of James Bond movies.

Artwork courtesy of and Copyright 2008 to Sony Pictures

Watch the theatrical trailer for Quantum of Solace

R2-D2 and R3-S6 (AKA Goldie)

Have you ever wondered what is R2-D2 made of? Well audiences and Star Wars fans will find out, both literally and figuratively, as Duel of the Droids, an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS premiers at 9 PM EST on Friday, November 14th on Cartoon Network.

Duel of the Droids which was written by Kevin Campbell ("Disney's House of Mouse," "Jackie Chan Adventures") completes a two-episode story arc. Anakin, Ahsoka and replacement droid R3-S6 (aka "Goldie") must embark on a dual rescue/sabotage mission when they discover R2-D2 is being held at General Grievous's secret enemy listening post. In writing this script, Campbell created a little extra work for the Lucasfilm Animation crew when he used the unusually vivid word "splayed" to describe how R2-D2's internal mechanisms would be removed and exhibited across an examining table. That gave the production team ample opportunity to delve into Artoos's inner workings and have a little fun with director Rob Campbell to boot.

According to director Rob Coleman, R2-D2 is the ultimate Swiss Army knife. “We all love the myriad things that come out of him, but having to build and animate all of that is another story", He say of the challenge of animating the ‘splayed out’ scenes for R2-D2.

To achieve the effect and have it stay true to the films and the history of this particular droid, they turned to Lucasfilm Animation's Gary Scheppke, who got a box full of 'Artoo bits' and to the modelers who began basing all of their work off the actual hardware that has historically been shown as being part of R2-D2.

“We crammed it into the model inside the computer. There are definitely some recognizable pieces on that table from the films, as well as all the things that show up for the first time in this episode - a cutter wheel, suction cups, etc.,” Coleman says of the process. “Then they animated in a few things like a pea shooter and a boxing glove just to get my attention. They're funny guys."

As for getting the opportunity to write this episode, Campbell says he took pride in the chance to add some history for Artoo and his capabilities, showing some aspects of the droid that audiences haven't seen before. "I love that we're adding back story to the back story,” Campbell explains with enthusiasm. “We discover that when Princess Leia hid the Death Star plans inside Artoo in Episode IV, it's not the first time he's been entrusted with important information."

Campbell says he also enjoyed that he and the production team get to play with Anakin's emotional side. “The other Jedi are saying he gets too attached, that he's willing to risk everything to get Artoo back. He's a Jedi, and yet he assigns sentimental value to an inanimate object. I can relate to that, because that's real loyalty."

Artwork ™ & © 2008 Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sylvester Stallone has teamed up with Nu Image/Millennium films with a deal to write, star in and direct their latest action movie offering, “The Expendables” about a team of mercenaries on a mission to overthrow a South American dictator.

Stallone will also be weighing in on this film with two other heavy hitting action stars as  Jason Statham co-stars and Jet Li is in final negotiations to join the action film.

Filming on The Expendables starts in February 2009 in Costa Rica and Louisiana with a late 2009 release date tentatively set for the movie.

The hit CW Network/Warner Bros. series Supernatural, which stars Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles as Sam and Dean Winchester: two monster hunting, demon fighting brothers - seems to be really hitting its stride in it's fourth season with this week's episode, Wishful Thinking, getting 3.73 overnight rating.

Next week, Supernatural heads into 'Sweeps Weeks' with one of two highly anticipated episodes of the fourth season. In this first episode, a tip from Ruby (guest star Genevieve Cortese) sends Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) on the trail of Anna (guest star Julie McNiven - “Mad Men”), a mysterious young woman who is being hunted by both demons and angels.  Fans will also learn the long-awaited answer to the question of what happened to Sam (Jared Padalecki) during the four long months following his brother Dean’s (Jensen Ackles) death.  Additional guest stars include Misha Collins as ‘Castiel,’ Robert Wisdom as ‘Uriel’ and Mark Rolston as ‘Alastair.”  “I Know What You Did Last Summer” was written by Sera Gamble and directed by Charles Beeson.

Check out the two teaser clips provided for us by Warner Bros/The CW Network and then check out Supernatural next week on the CW at 9PM EST.

Devil’s Due Becomes First Comic Publisher to Offer Tour Book in Comic Form

Devil’s Due Publishing, which has long been known for their licensed books, including holding the rights for the Halloween and Chucky franchises, announced today that it has partnered with multi-platinum rock act Hinder to produce a limited-edition comic-themed tour book, and is in talks to produce a monthly comic series based on the band’s upcoming “Take It to the Limit” tour.  The first “Take It to the Limit” book will serve as the band’s tour book, which will accompany their 2009 tour.

DDP has been making name for themselves in recent years by developing original comic crossovers and series built around existing stars. Most notably DDP recently developed, produced and published Heroes star Milo Ventimiglia’s “Rest,” which fans first got a look at in San Diego at the 2008Comic-Con. 

Hinder front man Austin Winkler is excited about the group's collaboration with DDP. “Growing up every kid dreams about being in a comic book, or being a super hero, we have a new and exciting opportunity to be portrayed in a comic book series of our own. We are going to have a blast with this, it will be a lot of fun, this is for our fans, and they will be heavily involved in this, we think they will love it. All in the name of 'rocknroll'!”

Channeling the spirit of 80s arena rock, Hinder which consists of Austin Winkler (vocals), Mark King (guitar), Blower (guitar), Mark Rodden (Bass), Cody Hanson (drums)  released their Universal Records debut, Extreme Behavior, in September of 2005 going triple platinum and spent 2 ½ years on the road in support remaining on Billboard’s Top 200 for more than 70 weeks. Hinder were recently honored with three BMI Awards including Pop Song of the Year and Internet Song of the Year for “Lips Of An Angel.”  Hinder’s sophomore release, Take It To The Limit, will be in stores November 4 on Universal/Republic.

For more about the rock group Hinder, check out their official Site. For more information and the latest updates on the Hinder comic series, please visit Devils Due Publishing's website.

In “Downfall of a Droid,” an all-new episode of the hit animated series STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS, premiering at 9 p.m. ET/PT Friday, Nov. 7, on Cartoon Network, R2-D2 is lost during a fierce space battle and Anakin must find him before the Separatists discover the Jedi military secrets locked in the droid's memory banks.

Directed by Rob Coleman and written by George Krstic, “Downfall of a Droid” is the first episode to feature the beloved astromech droid who has been with the Star Wars Franchise since the very beginning, first appearing the 1977 release of Star Wars: A New Hope. Krstic, the creator of Cartoon Network’s “Megas XLR,” says that R2-D2 is his favorite STAR WARS character.

“Artoo is very childlike and inquisitive, there’s no subterfuge to Artoo,” Krstic says. “He’s got loyalty and bravery and, while he doesn’t speak English, I think everyone understands what he’s saying. The wonderful sound design work and the incredible characterizations for Artoo have made it so that it doesn’t matter what language you speak, or where you’re from -- you can relate to Artoo and what he’s about.”

A native of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and current resident of Los Angeles, George Krstic has written three episodes for STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS and says his ultimate “nerd moment” came when he discovered there would be merchandising on some of the characters he’s worked on for the series.

“A few of the characters I wrote for on the series are being made into action figures and, as a fan, that’s pretty much the pinnacle of my career,” Krstic said with a laugh. “I can die happy now because it’s not going to get better.”

Dave Filoni is the supervising director of STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS. George Lucas is executive producer and creator of the series, and Catherine Winder is producer.

Trademark information for Star Wars: The Clone Wars images:
TM & © 2008 Lucasfilm Ltd. All rights reserved.

My Bloody Valentine: 3D starring Jensen Ackles (Supernatural, Smallville, Dark Angel and Dawson's Creek), Jaime King (THE SPIRIT, SIN CITY, SIN CITY 2) and Kerr Smith (FINAL DESTINATION, "Dawson's Creek") doesn't open in select theaters across the USA until January 16, 2009.  However, until then fans can check out the official online website for the movie that features a full length theatrical trailer for this remake of the 1981 horror classic, MY BLOODY VALENTINE 3-D which is directed by Patrick Lussier and produced by Jack Murray and presented in stunningly real, cutting edge 3-D projection.

Ten years ago, a tragedy changed the town of Harmony forever. Tom Hanniger (Jensen Ackles), an inexperienced coal miner, caused an accident in the tunnels that trapped and killed five men and sent the only survivor, Harry Warden, into a permanent coma. But Harry Warden wanted revenge. Exactly one year later, on Valentine's Day, he woke up...and brutally murdered twenty-two people with a pickaxe before being killed.

Ten years later, Hanniger returns to Harmony on Valentine's Day, still haunted by the deaths he caused. Struggling to make amends with his past, he grapples with unresolved feelings for his ex-girlfriend, Sarah (Jamie King), who is now married to his best friend, Axel (Kerr Smith) who is also the town sheriff. But tonight, after years of peace, something from Harmony's dark past has returned. Wearing a miner's mask and armed with a pickaxe, an unstoppable killer is on the loose. And as his footsteps come ever closer, Tom, Sarah and Axel realize in terror that it just might be Harry Warden who's come back to claim them.

On Thursday October 30^th at 9PM EST the hit Warner Bros/CW Network series Supernatural will air it’s Halloween episode, titled ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester’. As the Winchester’s say, every day is Halloween for them when it comes to dealing with all manner of beasties, demons, ghouls and witches. Plus this season there is even an angel or two thrown in for good measure. Those Winchester boys sure have their work cut out for them! 

In this spooktacular frightfest, which was written by Julie Siege and directed by Charles Beeson, Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles): the two monster hunting, demon fighting brothers will be facing off against every type of horrific creature they have every encountered as they investigate some strange Halloween-related deaths that are taking place in a town during the days leading up to the holiday itself. As they begin to solve the mystery, they also learn the real origins of Halloween and find themselves trying to save the entire town itself from a surprising pair of would-be assassins. The episode also guest stars Misha Collins (“24”) as ‘Castiel’ and introduces Robert Wisdom (“The Wire”) as ‘Uriel.’

While fans and viewers of Supernatural are waiting on the edge of their seats for this next episode to air, Eclipse Magazine.com has a real Halloween treat in store for it’s readers as we catch up and ‘go behind the scenes’ with Todd Stashwick, the handsome and talented actor who portrayed the shape shifter with the penchant for impersonating classic movie monsters in the Supernatural episode Monster Movie, which was filmed in retro black and white to pay homage to those classic horror movies of yesteryear.

Todd Stashwick, who describes himself as ‘quite the sci-fi horror geek’, is no stranger to appearing in these types of roles in his career having played all manner of beasties and ghouls before coming to Supernatural to play the shape shifter. The versatile actor has been in such notable scifi/horror series as Angel, Dark Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Enterprise along with a slew of other guest appearances on more mainstream hit series such as Monk, The Riches and The War at Home.

The first thing I learned about Todd Stashwick when I asked him if he was familiar with Supernatural before getting the role as the shape shifter was that he had a prior work connection to Jared Padalecki who plays Sam Winchester.

“Oddly Supernatural was off my radar. I'm quite the sci-fi horror geek but I missed it. I knew it was out there and that Jared was on it, he and I had done a pilot together 7 years ago, so when I saw his mug on huge posters around town I was like "Good for him!" I have since dived into season 1 on DVD and have to say I love it.”

Another new convert to the awesomeness of Supernatural. That’s always a good thing to learn about.

Todd also tells us that it was more than the chance to work with Jared again that drew him to take on the role of the monster movie loving shape shifter. It was the character itself and how the role was going to be presented that fascinated him, as he just like the character, is a long time fan of the classic horror monsters the role was based on.

“How often do you get a chance to recreate such an iconographic performance? We rarely get to play that broad on TV. That style of acting is outdated but quite fun.” It was also the very human side of this character that intrigued him as an actor as well. “Combine that with the emotional admission toward the end of the episode, which made for a complicated monster.”

In this reporter’s opinion, Todd Stashwick did an amazing job of bringing his character to life, especially in the persona of Dracula. The attention to detail in the accent, body language and hand gestures all harkened back to the early days of Bela Lugosi’s riveting work in the role. So I asked Todd if he had studied the old movies for inspiration or was the material for this provided in the script or by the director Robert Singer?

Being both the dedicated actor and fan of the old horror classics that he is, the actor revealed that when he booked the role on Supernatural in the episode Monster Movie, he bought the 75th anniversary edition of Todd Browning's Dracula with Lugosi on his own for reference and inspiration.

“This shape shifter wanted to BE Lugosi's Dracula,” Stashwick explains his take on the character’s motivation. “So I broke down what Bela (Lugosi) did technically. How he moved and spoke depending on whom he was talking to.”

Todd tells me that in order to keep himself on track with his source of inspiration, that he kept the DVD on his laptop in his trailer and watched it in between takes. “It was fascinating for me to study the ACTUAL performance versus the parody it has become through the years, I didn't want to do Sesame Streets "The Count" I wanted to be so loyal to Lugosi that when the gave me my fangs I raised the issue that Bela never had fangs in the original. I lost that argument.”

So what was the most challenging thing about this role on Supernatural and his decision to stay as true to the Lugosi version of Dracula as possible?

“Making sure my accent was consistent. Also staying sympathetic and grounded while still being over the top. I gained a great respect for Lugosi, how clean and stylized his acting was,” Stashwick says of living up to this challenge.

So what was the most fun? “Please, I'm Dracula, it was all fun,” he says laughing.

As to the Mummy and Werewolf versions, those, he explains were played by stunt performers so he really didn’t have to do any research on them.

Speaking of stunt work, I pointed out that his character had quite a few scenes where he mixed it up in fight scenes with the Winchester brothers, especially Dean. How much was stunt work and how much did Todd as the actor actually get to mix it up in the two lead actors?

Apparently all three actor’s, were quite involved in the ‘hands on’ approach to these scenes.

“I did all my own fights with the guys. The stunt guy did the leap over the fence.”

Todd Stashwick considers working with Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles on Monster Movie to have been a special treat for him as an actor. “I had a great deal of fun on this project. The guys are hilarious, a lot of laughing. At one point I had Jensen (Ackles) in a choke hold against a wall, fangs in place and we both just busted up at the fact that here we are both grown men and this is how we are spending our evening.”

Knowing that the two leads are notoriously known for pranking people I asked Todd if he had ended up on the receiving end of any pranks by them or by others on the set?

“Can't kid a kidder,” he responded cryptically.

So I wonder does this mean that Jared and Jensen may have met their match? Since Mr. Stashwick didn’t elaborate, I guess this will remain one of life’s little mysteries in the Supernatural lore.

What Todd was willing to elaborate on was upcoming projects that fans/viewers can see this highly talented actor in.

“I'll be on Ghost Whisperer in November. I just shot an episode of Sarah Conner Chronicles. I got to play a terminator and that was very cool. I'm currently shooting an episode of The Mentalist. Also Surfer Dude comes out on DVD in December, beyond that who knows.”

While we are looking forward to seeing more of the talented Todd Stashwick in his upcoming projects, Supernatural viewers can tune into the CW Network this Thursday at 9PM EST to catch the new episode of Supernatural season 4, It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester.