NUTS!

The third time is hopefully the charm for “Jericho,” which has risen yet again.

After being so rudely interrupted by an extended mid-season hiatus and two cancellations, “Jericho” is back once more, this time as a comic book series from Devil’s Due Publishing.  Make no mistake: This is an official season three, written by the entire creative team behind the TV series, including Jon Turtletaub and Carol Barbee.  If you watched the show during its initial run on CBS, this comic book is very much worth a look.  I will avoid spoilers in this article, but I can say that having read the first issue, you will easily be absorbed right back into the action of “Jericho” as though it never left.  No, it’s not the same as a TV series, and personally I am not a comic book reader, so I went into this with the mindset that it wouldn’t be as good as having it back as a TV series, but I wanted to see how the story would have continued.  It didn’t hurt going into it knowing that the entire creative force behind the show was involved.

Last month, Dan Shotz, a “Jericho” producer who frequently appeared on Shaun Daily’s “TV Talk” program to discuss the comic alongside Devil’s Due Publishing’s Josh Blaylock to discuss what season three had in store.  Dan Shotz talked about “Jericho” with a level of enthusiasm that helped to ease the transition from television to comic book.  He emphasized that the writers and producers were part of the development and production process of the comic from top to bottom and it wasn’t merely a case of them handing the story off to a publisher to do as they wished.  He said they provided the artist with a lot of pictures of the sets so that the buildings, streets, homes, etc. would look as they did on the show.  He said that while the bulk of the action would involve Jake and Hawkins, as the show itself did, all of our favorite characters would be included in the comic series at some point.  All of the actors signed off on allowing their likeness to be used, so everyone from Jake and Hawkins to officers Jimmy and Bill will be drawn to the actors’ likeness.  Aside from our old favorites, a new family member will be introduced in season three, as well as a new villain.

As for more live action “Jericho,” Dan commented on the rumors of a future movie as well.  He said that’s a goal, and that they are in early stages or pre-production, and that financing is the biggest obstacle.  Obviously, if the comic book sales are strong, that will bode well for any future “Jericho” on our screens.  He also encouraged us by saying that while season three is currently planned to run for six issues, it doesn’t end there.  He said to buy these six issues, and there is more to come.  CBS has been very supportive of the process and wants the story to continue.

In the meantime, if you would like to hear Shaun’s entire interview with Dan and Josh, it is archived at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/shaunomacradio/blog/2009/11 and you can also visit Devil’s Due Publishing’s official “Jericho” website at http://jerichocomic.squarespace.com.

In the meantime, what are you thoughts?  Have you read the comic?  Do you plan to read it?  Do you refuse to read it and would rather let the story end where season 2 did?

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