Deathstroke got the worst of it in the teaser trailer for the upcoming [currently scheduled release date: October 25, 2013] video game "Batman: Arkham Origins" - a prequel to the previous two games in the Arkham series - but that's no surprise as he generally doesn't have the goods to deal with the Dark Knight...

Dr. Heinz Doofenshmirtz from "Phineas and Ferb" [on the Disney Channel, like you didn't know] will try to sell his newest ominously named invention - The Shrinkinator - to the five panel judge on ABC's "Shark Tank" series finale tonight. Unfortunately, he will fail but perhaps he should have used a different pitch - since the panel includes the NBA's Dallas Mavericks' owner, he might have touted the invention's ability to shrink the San Antonio Spurs or Houston Rockets, allowing the Mavericks to win their division and make the playoffs this year. Alas, he chose to go this way...

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has announced that The Sword in the Stone, Robin Hood, and Oliver and Company will all be coming to Blu-ray disc on August 6, 2013. Disc artwork and fact sheets follow. Rediscover The Humor And Magic of The Classic Animated Film Which Is Celebrating its 50Th Anniversary The Sword in the Stone 50th Anniversary Edition Available for The Very First Time on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack with Digital Copy on August 6, 2013 Synopsis: Disney proudly presents the 50th anniversary edition of a spellbinding and beloved animated classic. Conjure up magical family fun with the humor, adventure and Academy Award®-nominated music (Best Score – Adaptation or Treatment, 1963) of The Sword In The Stone – now on Blu-ray Combo Pack for the first time ever! Take an amazing journey with a young orphan named “Wart” and the extraordinary wizard Merlin. According to legend, only someone with the purest character and inner strength can pull...

The Hub Network has released an exclusive promo video for The Aquabats Super Show! season 2, set to premiere on June 1, 2013, at 1:00 PM (ET). The season 2 premiere episode will guest star skateboarding legend Tony Hawk. The Aquabats Super Show! follows the (mis-)adventures of a quintet of costumed crime-fighters/rock stars on a mission to "right wrongs, destroy boredom and seek justice for all!" The series earned a Daytime Emmy Award nomination last year for Outstanding Children's Series. Stay tuned for Toonzone's interview with Christian Jacobs, co-founding member of the Aquabats and the band's semi-fearless leader the MC Bat Commander. For more info about the Aquabats Super Show!, visit the official web page on the Hubworld website, or catch up with season 1 of the show on Hulu.com.

CLANCY BROWN RETURNS AS LEX LUTHOR TO ANCHOR VERSATILE ENSEMBLE CAST FOR LEGO BATMAN: THE MOVIE – DC SUPERHEROES UNITE Star of The Shawshank Redemption, Highlander reprises iconic villain role for new Blu-ray/DVD feature-length animated film coming May 21 Over two nights in early February 2012, the versatile cast of LEGO Batman: The Movie – DC Superheroes Unite gathered to record the animated film in a spacious Studio City location. The room was filled with renowned voice talent, yet one man – literally and figuratively – stood above the rest: Clancy Brown. As the definitive voice of Lex Luthor from his days creating the character for Superman: The Animated Series and numerous other series and films, Brown was the lone returning voice in a room of familiar heroes and villains. For the veteran actor known for memorable roles from The Shawshank Redemption to Highlander, voicing Lex Luthor in an animated Lego film offered an altogether...

Warner Bros. Animation has released the following clip and stills from "Ghost Boy," the next new episode of Teen Titans Go! premiering on May 21, 2013, at 7:30 PM (ET/PT) on Cartoon Network: Click any of the stills below to enlarge: OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS: Beast Boy pretends to be a ghost haunting Starfire so she will do his bidding. When she figures out the ruse, she and the other Titans convince him that he’s actually dead. Ratings Highlights for 5/14/13 #1 IN THE TIME PERIOD: #1 in the time period with Boys 2-11, 6-11, and 9-14 and Male Teens #1 KIDS PROGRAM ON ALL TV: #1 Kids program for the day on all kids’ networks with Boys 6-11, 9-14, and Male Teens Source: Nielsen Media Research based on Live+SD. 05/14/13. Tuesday 6a-6a & 7:30-8p. Across its season-to-date, Teen Titans GO! was the #1 program of the day with boys 2-11, 6-11 & 9-14 on all TV. Source: Nielsen...

Ralph Bakshi’s Animated Masterpiece Comes to High Definition! HEAVY TRAFFIC Starring Joseph Kaufmann, Beverly Hope Atkinson, Frank DeKova ARRIVES ON BLU-RAY™ FOR THE FIRST TIME IN STORES NATIONWIDE ON JULY 16, 2013 FROM SHOUT! FACTORY Pre-order this collection today! From Ralph Bakshi, the legendary director of Fritz The Cat and The Lord Of The Rings (1978), comes the surreal tale of Michael Corleone, a young cartoonist scraping by on the inner-city streets of New York. Using pinball as a metaphor for the highs and lows of urban life, Bakshi once again weaves a marvelously gritty, yet darkly humorous tapestry made up of love, prejudice, sex, and murderous betrayal, earning the controversial director the most critically acclaimed film of his career. A Steve Krantz Production Produced by Steve Krantz, written and directed by Ralph Bakshi An AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL Release Pre-order links: http://www.amazon.com/Heavy-Traffic-Blu-ray-Joseph-Kaufmann/dp/B00C7E3EH8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1368803383&sr=8-1&keywords=HEAVY+TRAFFIC...

As if he doesn’t already have enough on his plate with the production of his next blockbuster film “Interstellar” [due to be released November 7, 2014], mega-director Christopher Nolan has been contacted to possibly direct the next installment – the 24th in the franchise – of the James Bond series. Talks are still in preliminary stages but the director of “Inception” and two popular but dark Batman films [“The Dark Knight” and “The Dark Knight Rises”] would naturally be expected to take an even darker direction with Bond than has already been taken with Daniel Craig as the current version of 007. On a more pleasant note, high-tech gadgetry toys might replace a reliance on helicopters and return to prominence under the technophile Nolan. “Bond 24” is expected to have a late 2015 release.

It is always good to know what Slovakians think is popular in the United States [once you know where Slovakia is, naturally]. In this case, the Slovakian-based gamemaker Cypronia has produced a little video series for Nintendo called “California Super Sports” – which consists of all these sports popular in the USA like croquet, lawn darts, rollerblading, shuffleboard and target football. “California Super Sports” is available for $4.99 or 500 Nintendo points on DSiWare and 3DS handheld.

It's a really good time for pre-schooler TV because more and more programming is breaking from older conventional wisdom that skewed these programs to the kiddie audience and nobody else. Kids may love the likes of Dora the Explorer or Go Diego Go! or Caillou, but I'd think any adult expressing genuine affection for programs like them is either on staff or suffering from prolonged child-induced sleep deprivation. The Hub may be the network that most consistently produces shows equally enjoyable to kids and supervising adults, but the latest offerings from Disney present a formidable challenge to the Hub's crown. This is quite easily seen in Doc McStuffins, which has just gotten its second DVD release in Time for Your Checkup, as well as in the DVD inaugurating the newest Disney Princess, Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess. The title character of Doc McStuffins is a young girl (wonderfully voiced...

MANGA ENTERTAINMENT UK are delighted to announce that they will be attending the MCM London Comic Con weekend (24th-26th May 2013), located at booth number 510. Please see below for an overview of some of the fun that’s in store! LIVE MANGA PODCAST Manga Entertainment are pleased to inform that this year they will be enthralling show visitors with another fantastic live podcast! Come and check out MCM Theatre A for big new announcements, exclusive clips, all the latest hot off the press news on upcoming releases and as always, lots of entertainment and fun. Not to be missed! MANGA BOOTH Head over to the Manga booth which comes with all the traditional highlights including: - the lively Cosplay Area with free photo-booth. Manga are generously offering £100 worth of free Manga DVDs and Blu-rays to the Best Male and Best Female cosplayers and a £200 bag worth of Manga goodies to...

A report on Deadline.com cites anonymous Disney sources that a proposed redesign of Brave's Princess Merida does not match a widely publicized image that has drawn a firestorm of controversy, including sharply critical comments from Brave co-director Brenda Chapman (who was replaced as director late in the development process and is currently working for DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc). Chapman described the redesign as "a blatantly sexist marketing move" that sent the wrong messages with its "sexy 'come hither' look and the skinny aspect of the new version," in contrast to the way, "Merida was created to break that mold — to give young girls a better, stronger role model, a more attainable role model, something of substance, not just a pretty face that waits around for romance." The redesign drew over 200,000 signatures on a petition in protest addressed to Disney CEO Bob Iger. The Deadline.com sources add that the...

MANGA ENTERTAINMENT UK are delighted to announce that they will be attending the MCM London Comic Con weekend (24th-26th May 2013), located at booth number 510. Please see below for an overview of some of the fun that’s in store! LIVE MANGA PODCAST Manga Entertainment are pleased to inform that this year they will be enthralling show visitors with another fantastic live podcast! Come and check out MCM Theatre A for big new announcements, exclusive clips, all the latest hot off the press news on upcoming releases and as always, lots of entertainment and fun. Not to be missed! MANGA BOOTH Head over to the Manga booth which comes with all the traditional highlights including: - the lively Cosplay Area with free photo-booth. Manga are generously offering £100 worth of free Manga DVDs and Blu-rays to the Best Male and Best Female cosplayers and a £200 bag worth of Manga goodies to...

In this week's Adventure Time, Finn and Jake decide to spend their day by playing a game: neither of them are allowed to speak, and they can only use pre-written cards to communicate. Both Finn and Jake's refusal to lose the game scares BMO in the process, causing him to hide himself in the wall. Jake shrinks and goes into the wall to cheer BMO up and explain everything. Meanwhile, scantily-clad women begin flocking together outside the treehouse. As seen from last week's episode, a heartfelt tribute disguised as a simple, strange romp, Adventure Time is capable of hidden depth while also being fun, surreal television. Despite a dedication to the late storyboarder Armen Mirzaian, this week's episode is less of a cryptic metaphor and more of a chance for guest artist Graham Falk to have some fun within the show's world. His style is nowhere near as distinctive or different...

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment has announced that The Sword in the Stone, Robin Hood, and Oliver and Company will all be coming to Blu-ray disc on August 6, 2013. Disc artwork and fact sheets follow. Rediscover The Humor And Magic of The Classic Animated Film Which Is Celebrating its 50Th Anniversary The Sword in the Stone 50th Anniversary Edition Available for The Very First Time on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack with Digital Copy on August 6, 2013 Synopsis: Disney proudly presents the 50th anniversary edition of a spellbinding and beloved animated classic. Conjure up magical family fun with the humor, adventure and Academy Award®-nominated music (Best Score – Adaptation or Treatment, 1963) of The Sword In The Stone – now on Blu-ray Combo Pack for the first time ever! Take an amazing journey with a young orphan named “Wart” and the extraordinary wizard Merlin. According to legend, only someone with the purest character and inner strength can pull...

The Hub Network has released an exclusive promo video for The Aquabats Super Show! season 2, set to premiere on June 1, 2013, at 1:00 PM (ET). The season 2 premiere episode will guest star skateboarding legend Tony Hawk. The Aquabats Super Show! follows the (mis-)adventures of a quintet of costumed crime-fighters/rock stars on a mission to "right wrongs, destroy boredom and seek justice for all!" The series earned a Daytime Emmy Award nomination last year for Outstanding Children's Series. Stay tuned for Toonzone's interview with Christian Jacobs, co-founding member of the Aquabats and the band's semi-fearless leader the MC Bat Commander. For more info about the Aquabats Super Show!, visit the official web page on the Hubworld website, or catch up with season 1 of the show on Hulu.com.

Opening Today on 2.4 Billion Screens Around The World! Bristol, UK Thursday 14th May - After a worldwide search, THE 99 have partnered with Aardman Animations, to design and create an exciting new kids fansite for their hit animated series, which will serve the brand’s rapidly growing global audience. THE 99 is a comic book brand and animated TV show created with the intention of providing new role models for young people all over the world. The superheroes are based on Middle Eastern principles and Islamic archetypes that possess values that are shared the world over. Aardman Digital, the digital arm of Aardman, has been commissioned to devise and develop a multinational, inclusive digital home for THE 99. The exciting new website will eventually be a bilingual brand site that includes sophisticated and cleverly designed mechanics which allow children from across the world to work together, no matter what language they speak, to...

Shout! Factory has released the following new clips from Monsuno: Power, the next volume in the series coming to DVD on May 21, 2013. For more details, check out the press release below. The Race to Control the MONSUNO Continues! MONSUNO: POWER DVD to be Unleashed May 21, 2013 in Stores Nationwide from Shout! Factory Kids On May 21, 2013, Shout! Factory Kids, in collaboration with FremantleMedia Kids & Family Entertainment, will release MONSUNO: POWER, the latest DVD collection based on the highly popular Nicktoons animated series! Delivering five action-packed episodes that kids and families are sure to enjoy, the DVD also features bonus content including character bios, and has a suggested retail price of $14.97. Pre-order is available now on ShoutFactory.com for MONSUNO: POWER, the follow-up to the season 1 MONSUNO: DESTINY DVD collection which released earlier this year. MONSUNO is an epic boys action adventure series where kids discover, command and battle creatures with tremendous...

It's a really good time for pre-schooler TV because more and more programming is breaking from older conventional wisdom that skewed these programs to the kiddie audience and nobody else. Kids may love the likes of Dora the Explorer or Go Diego Go! or Caillou, but I'd think any adult expressing genuine affection for programs like them is either on staff or suffering from prolonged child-induced sleep deprivation. The Hub may be the network that most consistently produces shows equally enjoyable to kids and supervising adults, but the latest offerings from Disney present a formidable challenge to the Hub's crown. This is quite easily seen in Doc McStuffins, which has just gotten its second DVD release in Time for Your Checkup, as well as in the DVD inaugurating the newest Disney Princess, Sofia the First: Once Upon a Princess. The title character of Doc McStuffins is a young girl (wonderfully voiced...

Warner Bros. Animation has released a new video clip and stills from LEGO Batman: The Movie - DC Superheroes Unite, showing Batman and Robin breaking into Arkham Asylum to stop a mass inmate jailbreak. The following stills were also released from the movie. Click any thumbnail to enlarge: The film will be available as a Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and OnDemand starting May 21, 2013. It is now available to own via Digital Download. Initial Blu-ray Combo Pack & DVD releases will include an exclusive Lego Clark Kent/Superman figurine while supplies last. For more details, check out Toonzone's earlier coverage here. OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS LEGO Batman: The Movie – DC Super Heroes Unite provides the ultimate blend of action and humor guaranteed to entertain fanboys of all ages. The film finds Lex Luthor taking jealousy to new heights when fellow billionaire Bruce Wayne wins the Man of the Year Award. To top...

Build-A-Bear Workshop Makes a Splash  with New SpongeBob SquarePants Collection Company introduces collection of plush friends based on the global pop culture icon ST. LOUIS (May 14, 2013) - Build-A-Bear Workshop®, the interactive entertainment retailer of customizable stuffed animals, announced today a new relationship with Nickelodeon to bring the hit animated series, SpongeBob SquarePants, to Build-A-Bear Workshop. Beginning May 17, the company will offer make-your-own SpongeBob and Patrick ($23 each) at Build-A-Bear Workshop stores throughout North America and online at buildabear.com®. SpongeBob’s Bikini Bottom friends Sandy Cheeks and Gary the Snail will also be available as pre-stuffed minis for $10 each. “For the first time ever, Build-A-Bear Workshop Guests can finally take home the underwater fun of SpongeBob SquarePants and his friends,” said Maxine Clark, Build-A-Bear Workshop founder and chief executive bear. “We are excited to be working with Nickelodeon to bring this iconic series and its loveable characters to life at...