9 to Watch in 2009: The Comics

The New Year is wide open with comics firing on all cylinders in the upper echelons of superhero comics to the vibrant field of modern comics. But who rests at the top? Who are the biggest and brightest – who are the ones who pose to make 2009 a breakout year for themselves? From characters to comics to creators, and even to the wider spectrum of television and movies – who will be the breakout stars?

Newsarama gathered the facts, analyzed the fiction and reviewed the rumors to delineate who we think will the top – the 9 to Watch in '09. All this week, we'll be picking out the 9 To Watch in '09 in five categories: comic characters, comic creators, comic series/books, movies and television shows. The first three are clearly comics-centric, while the last two are wide open.

And The Doctor Is...Matt Smith

26-year-old actor Matt Smith has been cast as the Eleventh Doctor, as revealed in today's special broadcast of Doctor Who Confidential on BBC One. Smith will succeed David Tennant in the role for the fifth series, which begins filming this summer and will air in 2010.

Smith has appeared in various television productions, including alongside Billie Piper in the BBC's adaptations of the Philip Pullman novels The Ruby in the Smoke and The Shadow in the North. He co-starred in the drama series Party Animals, and on stage was in Alan Bennett's acclaimed play The History Boys.

New Doctor Who to be announced

The name of the actor who will replace David Tennant in Doctor Who will be announced on Saturday.

Tennant said in October that he would stand down from the show after filming four special episodes in 2009.

His replacement - the eleventh Doctor of the TV series - will be revealed in a Doctor Who Confidential programme on BBC One at 1735 on 3 January.

Just So You Know

I'm not being completely lazy here. The holidays have indeed sucked but I have been behind the scenes crafting my first ever year end, wrap up type of post for 2008. No, it isn't about RPGs. I thought that I'd have it done by now but, well, I'm still figuring out mesdiafire and getting it together.

Dorkland! on Facebook

I've added Dorkland! to a blog network on Facebook. If any of you readers are on there and would like to follow this blog via Facebook then click through on this link.

Send me a message through there if you're a reader and on Facebook and would like an add on there.

Game Geeks #86 Ghosts of Albion RPG by Eden Studios

The latest Cinematic Unisystem game, set in a Victorian world created by Amber Benson and Christopher Golden. Can't wait for the the print version to come out.

West End Games Video Update

Bettie Page dies at 85

Bettie Page, the brunet pinup queen with a shoulder-length pageboy hairdo and kitschy bangs whose saucy photos helped usher in the sexual revolution of the 1960s, has died. She was 85.

Page, whose later life was marked by depression, violent mood swings and several years in a state mental institution, died Thursday night at Kindred Hospital in Los Angeles, where she had been on life support since suffering a heart attack Dec. 2, according to her agent, Mark Roesler.

Super Surfer Girl

Green Ronin Announces 3rd Era (Green Ronin Publishing)

An interesting decision and I am going to be watching this closely. To me one of the more interesting parts is the fact that a major player like Green Ronin is going to be pursuing having any of their product that is available through Lulu rather than traditional distribution channels.

Green Ronin Publishing announced today that it would keep its classic d20 System titles available under its new 3rd Era brand name. The process began this week with the re-release of six books in PDF format and will continue on a regular basis until all the titles are updated.

'The status of the old d20 logo is now unclear,' said Green Ronin President Chris Pramas, 'so we created a new logo to replace it. This will keep PDFs of our back catalog available. We're also going to offer Print on Demand editions through Lulu, so gamers who want hard copies of difficult to find products like the Book of Fiends will be able to get them.'