Merlin Season 3 on SyFy

SyFy premieres season 3 of BBC1's Merlin next Friday. Here is the teaser from BBC1's YouTube Channel:

The Doctor, Merlin, and Gandalf!

The following appears in a recent book from Kitsune Books:

Burdge, Anthony S. “The Professor’s Lessons for the Doctor: The Doctor’s Sub-Creative Journey Toward Middle-earth.” In The Mythological Dimensions of Doctor Who. Eds. Anthony S. Burdge, Jessica Burke, and Kristine Larsen. Crawfordville, FL: Kitsune Books, 2010. Pp. 65-84.

Is BBC's Merlin a Parselmouth?

In J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series both Harry and Voldemort are Parselmouths, wizards able to speak to snakes, and I found it interesting that Merlin in the second season finale episode on the BB1's Merlin that Merlin displays a similar ability (and similar speech pattern):

There is a clip of the relevant scene in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on YouTube.

Merlin Season Two Marathon on Syfy

Syfy celebrates the conclusion of the second season of the BBC1 series Merlin on Friday with an all-day marathon of the entire season that culminates in the season finale at 10 PM EST. The series offers a fresh look at the Arthurian story and places a teenaged Merlin at Camelot, where he must protect its inhabitants, including the magic-hating King Uther Pendragon and adolescent versions of Arthur and Morgan le Fay, from evil mages who seek, from week to week, to overthrow or kill Uther.

Details of the marathon are as follows:

FRI., 2 JULY
10:00 AM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE CURSE OF CORNELIUS SIGAN
11:00 AM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE ONCE AND FUTURE QUEEN
12:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE NIGHTMARE BEGINS
01:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: LANCELOT AND GUINEVERE
02:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - PART 1
03:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: BEAUTY AND THE BEAST - PART 2
04:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE WITCHFINDER
05:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE SINS OF THE FATHER
06:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE LADY OF THE LAKE
07:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: SWEET DREAMS
08:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE WITCH'S QUICKENING
09:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE FIRES OF IDIRSHOLAS
10:00 PM MERLIN, SEASON 2: THE LAST DRAGONLORD

The Black Cauldron (1985) on DVD

On 14 September 2010, Disney will be releasing a 25th-anniversary edition of The Black Cauldron (1985), the studio's first PG animated film, to DVD. Based on the novel by Lloyd Alexander, the film features a number of magic-wielding figures. The following information comes direct from Disney, and various trailers can be found online, including one from the original theatrical release in 1985 and a second (posted after the blurb) for an earlier DVD release:

Fantasy, magic and fun are all brewed together in Disney's legendary adventure The Black Cauldron. Created from a new digital master, this 25th Anniversary Edition features vibrant picture presentation and includes exciting new bonus features!

Whoever releases the mysterious Black Cauldron's power will be invincible! The fearsome Horned King will do anything to possess it, but he is challenged by the most unlikely adversary: a young assistant pig keeper named Taran, who dreams of doing heroic deeds. With a motley team of the brave Princess Eilonwy, a minstrel named Fflewddur Fflam and Hen Wen, a remarkable pig who can predict the future, Taran embarks on a quest to stop the Black Cauldron's evil once and for all. Will he have the courage to succeed?

Amazon.com provides the following information on the new release's bonus features:

New bonus features:
• Deleted scene: The Fairfolk: Join Taran, Fflewddur Fflam, Gurgi, and Princess Eilonwy as they travel into the depths of the earth, and meet the Fairfolk
• The Witches’ Challenge Game: In order to defeat the dark powers of the Horned King, you must get the magical sword. The sword is held by the Witches of Morva. Solve their riddles and the sword is yours
Plus classic DVD features:
• Still frame gallery – Gallery of behind-the-scenes artwork and photos
• Theatrical trailer: Original theatrical trailer
• Quest For The Black Cauldron: Race to reach the Black Cauldron before the evil Horned King does in this trivia game
• Trick Or Treat: Donald Duck cartoon from 1952

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2010 & 2011) Trailer

Released just this week, here is the official, wizard-filled trailer for Warner Bros.'s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the two-part conclusion, from director David Yates, to the film franchise. Part one is set to be released on 19 November 2010 (in time for Thanksgiving), and part two on 15 July 2011.

The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) Trailer

The following trailer for Fox 2000 Pictures and Walden Media's The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, based on the novel by C. S. Lewis, was released last week. The film will be in theaters beginning 10 December 2010 and features the wizard Coriakin (and, hopefully, his associate Ramandu).

The Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) Trailer 4

Here is the latest trailer for the upcoming film The Sorcerer's Apprentice due on on 14 July. This trailer comes from the DisneyMovieTrailer Channel on YouTube and will hopefully be active for longer than the last trailer I posted.

Legend of the Seeker, Season 2: Coming Soon to DVD

Season two of the syndicated series Legend of the Seeker will see its Region 1 DVD release from ABC Studios on 28 September 2010.

Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) Update

The following information (posted on Amazon.com) about the "junior novelization" of the upcoming The Sorcerer's Apprentice links the film closely to the Arthurian tradition:

In modern day Manhattan, one young man's life is about to take a surprising turn. When Dave Stutler wanders into a strange shop downtown, he can never imagine the consequences. It turns out that Dave is no ordinary boy--he is a Merlinian. As a descendent of the most famous sorcerer in history, Dave has untapped powers. The problem is, certain people don't want him to ever use them. Led by Horvath, a Morganian (descendents of the evil sorcereress Morgana), this group will stop at nothing to destroy Dave and unleash darkness upon the world. Dave will have to rely on the help of his mentor, Baltazhar Blake, to find his inner strength and help save the world.

New/Recent DVDs

The following new and recent DVDs may be of interest:

GANDALF & SARUMAN:
The Lord of the Rings (Animated): Deluxe Edition (1978)


MANDRAKE THE MAGICIAN:
Defenders of the Earth: Complete Series (1986)


MERLIN:
The Legend of Prince Valiant: Complete Series (1991-93)
Merlin and the War of the Dragons (2008)
Merlin: The Complete First Season (2008)


MORGAN LE FAY:
The Legend of Prince Valiant: Complete Series (1991-93)
Merlin: The Complete First Season (2008)

Coming Soon: The Sorcerer's Apprentice

Disney's The Sorcerer's Apprentice a film loosely inspired by "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" short from Fantasia is set to be released next month on July 16th. The film features Nicholas Cage as Balthazar Black, a modern-day mage living in New York City, and Alfred Molina as his nemesis Maxim Horvath. In order to defeat Horvath, Black takes upon an apprentice David Stutler (played by Jay Baruchel) and trains him in the ways of magic.

Two trailers have been released thus far and can be viewed below:

Welcome

Welcome to The Reel Wizards Project, a production of the Institute for the Advancement of Scholarship on the Magic-Wielding Figures of Visual Electronic Multimedia. The initial stages of this endeavor were begun early in the 2000s, but interest petered out as the decade continued. Now, a blog seems one of the best ways to reconfigure and expand our mission.

Basically, the blog is conceived as a way to provide information on how magic-wielding figures has been depicted on film and television, but, as necessary, our scope will expand to investigate similar characters in other visual electronic multimedia, like video and computer games, and in earlier filmic and film-related media.