Back To Frank Black
A Return To Chris Carter’s Millennium
Edited By Adam Chamberlain & Brian A. Dixon
Introductions by Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz, and Chris Carter
Fourth Horseman Press
Release Date: October 15, 2012
Cover Price: $28.99

One of my favorite television shows of all time is Millennium. Created by Chris Carter following his success with The X-Files, Millennium follows former FBI profiler Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) journeying into the darker recesses of society as he tracks down criminals as a law enforcement consultant for the shadowy Millennium Group. The series zoned in on the dichotomy of light and dark / good and evil in society at the time, and in retrospect was a watershed moment in television for the abundance of procedurals and darker shows that would follow in a post-9/11 world.

After three seasons, the show came to an end, canceled by Fox, and leaving fans wondering what happened to Frank Black. In the many years that have followed, the fans of Millennium have never forgotten the series – and neither has Lance Henriksen, who has stated many times his hopes for a Millennium movie.

And that’s where Back To Frank Black comes in.

To Hell You Ride #1
Written by Lance Henriksen and Joseph Maddrey
Art by Tom Mandrake
Colors by Cris Peter with Mat Lopes
Letters by Nate Piekos of Blambot
Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: December 12, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

To Hell You Ride (the title is a play on words inspired by the comic’s Telluride Colorado locale) combines the debut comic writing talent of actor Lance Henriksen (best known for his role as Bishop from Aliens and for acting in nearly every genre film in the last 40 years) and Joseph Maddrey (Nightmares in Red, White and Blue: The Evolution of the American Horror Film), with art by Tom Mandrake (The Spectre, oodles of Batman). Those names are certainly enough to sell comics on their own merits. However, it is their deft synthesis of Native American folk tales with horror and western genres that allows Dark Horse’s new series to read less like standard comic fare, and more like a well-paced film that stays with you long after the credits stop rolling.

With a byline like “White Man’s Guilt” and a plot that involves white settlers in the 1880s interrupting a tribal sacrifice ritual that unleashes a supernatural curse that affects the denizens of the Colorado mountain town up to the present day, one might assume this is a book about race. However, that’s hardly a fraction of the point. Without any specific agenda, this comic is already asking more questions than providing answers and thus providing space for an epic journey to unfold. With statements like “The world falls further out of balance with each new generation. The only thing that changes are out intensity of our indifference.” This could be a rather heavy handed comic without the advanced cinematic timing and character development skill of its authors. Existential questions about the environment and ignoring the messages of the land and the importance of ritual are expressed within the frame of a grand adventure, with lots of supernatural elements thrown in.

Out of the realm of television from the 1990s, Chris Carter‘s Millennium has to be my favorite. An offshoot from The X-Files, the show focused on Frank Black – played by Lance Henriksen – working for a group known only as the Millennium Group, who consults the FBI and local law enforcement on odd crimes and serial killers. I’ve often made the case for the possibility of a Millennium movie, continuing from where the show left off – and now Henriksen echoes those sentiments of the cult following of the series.

Through press appearances for the upcoming animated series of TRON: Uprising, Henriksen let the cat out of the bag to Coming Soon about his hopes for a Millennium film.

The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes
Netflix Streaming
DVD Volume 1
DVD Volume 2
DVD Volume 3
DVD Volume 4
Directed by Vinton Heuck and Sebastian Montes
Starring Brian Bloom, Chris Cox, Mark Hamill, Lance Henriksen, Phil LaMarr, Eric Loomis, Gabriel Mann, James C. Mathis III, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Fred Tatasciore, Rick D. Wasserman, Wally Wingert
Disney / Marvel
Originally Broadcast: September 22, 2010

The new animated series of The Avengers is a fantastic journey into fun adventure, with writing that embraces the best elements of all Marvel media, wrapped around the original comic book foundation created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Taking these elements involved, and coupled with excellent voice talent, and an animated style that pays tribute to earlier cartoons, The Avengers is a lot of fun for comic and superhero fans of all ages.

A new teaser trailer for the very dark upcoming steampunk/noir drama, Thelomeris, has been released online.

The movie, which is directed by 28–year-old Hungarian Balazs Hatvani in his feature debut, stars Mark Hamill (Star Wars, Batman fan–favorite voice of the Joker), James Purefoy (Rome, A Knight’s Tale), Lance Henriksen (Aliens, The Terminator), and DJ Qualls (Road Trip, Hustle & Flow).

Continue reading to read a synopsis for the movie and check out the teaser trailer now!