TVSquad

Citing information from "animation insiders," Animation Magazine is reporting that Disney may have its sights set on securing broadcast rights to Clone Wars, the CGI-animated cartoon series based on George Lucas' Star Wars universe (the series would take place between episodes Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith). The series' debut has been set at fall 2008 for some time now, but no official announcement has been made as to which network or cable station would air the series. Rumor has it that both FOX and HBO would also like to broadcast the series.

I told you back in May that The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones might be out on DVD before Christmas -- and it will be.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Volume One will hit stores on October 23 and will include seven feature-length episodes which follow a young Indiana Jones as he encounters various historical figures and important events from the past. The 12-disc set will also include a whopping thirty-eight documentaries corresponding with the episodes, and interviews with such people as Martin Scorsese, Colin Powell, Deepak Chopra and James Earl Jones. Two more volumes will follow on December 18 and Spring 2008, respectively.

Ever since Moral Orel creator Dino Stamatopoulos told me Robot Chicken and LucasFilm were joining forces for a kick ass Star Wars-themed special (Moral Orel and Robot Chicken use the same production space), I've been keeping my eyes peeled for when the special might air. It was originally included on the schedule grid on February 4 at 11:30 p.m., but later that section of the grid was blacked out. Now, it looks likes an episode of Family Guy has taken over that timeslot.

That doesn't necessarily mean the special isn't going to air, and most likely the schedule will change, as it always does. Currently both Moral Orel and Boondocks have reruns listed in March, the month when both of those series are actually supposed to return with new episodes. I've learned not to rely on Adult Swim's schedule too far into the future, for she is a mercurial beast.

In October I hepped you guys to a bit of insider-y information about a Robot Chicken / Star Wars special being created with the help of LucasFilm and the man himself, George Lucas. A recent glance at the Adult Swim schedule showed the special was set to air on Sunday, February 4 at 11:30 pm. However, a few days later, that particular grid in the schedule was blacked out. There was also a note scrawled at the bottom of the schedule informing viewers that Lucas himself absolutely loved Robot Chicken's parody featuring the Emperor, and was the one who contacted the show, but that note has also been removed.

So what does this mean? I honestly have no idea. Hopefully the special will still pop up at some point. I'll keep my eyes peeled for you.

In case you didn't read my interview with Dino Stamatopoulos, you may be interested to know that he hepped me to some interesting news about Robot Chicken. Here's what Stamatopoulos, whose show, Moral Orel, shares a production facility with Robot Chicken, had to say:

"We're actually gonna shut down on Friday because Robot Chicken has a special they're doing. I don't know if I'm supposed to say, but I don't give a shit, I'll tell you anyway. LucasFilm saw some of their Star Wars parodies and now they're financing a whole half-hour special that's gonna be played for one of the network's halftime shows for Super Bowl Sunday. So they're building all these Star Wars sets around here. The nerds are creaming in their pants."

So there you go, Robot Chicken fans, a full half-hour of Star Wars-inspired Robot Chicken goodness. This was the first I had heard of such a thing, and I'll let y'all know when I find out more information.

Last month Richard got us all up to speed on the live-action Star Wars series, which is currently set to debut in 2008. Apparently the people behind the new series have been working like crazy, so we'll see if the wait is worth it, though I can't think "Star Wars" and "television" without thinking of those horrible made-for-TV Ewok movies.

Anyway, while we have to wait a couple years for this series, we may be seeing the new animated series as soon as next year. Lucasfilm's animation studio in Singapore is currently working on the CGI series, which will focus on the Clone War era that falls between episodes two (Attack of the Clones) and three (Revenge of the Sith). The Clone Wars, while a vital part of the movies, was delved into much deeper in the books and comics based on the series. Despite this, insiders claim there will be some surprises for even the most diehard fans of Star Wars and its expanded universe.