Saturday at Comic-Con presented a number of tempting options for TV fans — particularly those who love fairy tales, werewolves, witches and vamps. Here are a few of the highlights and quotes from the panels and press room interviews for “Once Upon a Time,” “True Blood” and “The Vampire Diaries“.
Quote #1: “This is the first time that (Disney) princesses have held weapons. This is the first time that we’ve been able to depict a princess holding a sword. And it’s been incredibly empowering. They’re really let us modernize these characters and make them more relatable. That’s very rewarding.” Ginnifer Goodwin, on presenting a very different version of the classic character Snow White for the ABC series “Once Upon a Time“.
Quote #2: “This season is about belief, (for) the first eleven episodes… that is a big theme because ‘belief ‘means something different to everyone.” “Once Upon a Time” executive producer Edward Kitsis on this season’s overarching theme
News: Season three of the fairytale drama takes the core cast of characters to Neverland to search for Henry, who was taken at the end of the second season finale. The story’s next set of adventures will be split into two 11 episode arcs, each running straight on through ’til morning — or rather, until a midseason hiatus, then season’s end.
Viewers will meet Peter Pan, Tinkerbell, Ariel (aka The Little Mermaid), and find out more about “The Home Office”. And in the premiere, which picks up right at the moment where season two ended, we’ll find out why Henry was taken by Tamara and Greg Mendel. Additionally Neverland poses a new challenge for the core group of characters, since nobody from the Fairytale Land that was is familiar with Neverland or its inhabitants beyond what they know from rumor or legend.
Kitsis offered one final detail about this new voyage: “If you remember about Neverland, it runs on belief. You need to believe to see Tinkerbell… We have a take on Tinkerbell we’re really excited about. And… she has a surprising connection to someone on our show – and not just Captain Hook.”
Season three premieres at 8pm Sunday, September 29 on ABC.
Quip #1: “I listen to some Rihanna. And once the makeup goes on, I sort of get into the mind of Lafayette. Rihanna and makeup gets me into LaLa Land.” Nelsan Ellis, on how he transforms into the fabulous, fierce short order cook/reluctant medium Lafayette on “True Blood“.
Quip #2: “Ryan made me feel like a lady that day. He couldn’t have been more gentle. Not too much tongue. And I fulfilled the dream of many ladies in this audience.” Rob Kazinsky on the “sensual grooming” scene between Ben/Warlow and Jason Stackhouse in a recent episode.
News: If you’re keeping track, the citizens of Bon Temps have had to live with a maenad, a djinn, witches and warlocks, faeries, shapeshifters, werewolves, vampires, a demigod and now, a fae/vampire hybrid. That’s a lot of supernatural beings — enough to perhaps make a person wonder (with more than a little trepidation) what’s next.
Viewers who may have been concerned that the “True Blood” world was in danger of being overrun by otherworldly beings can relax a little. Executive producer Brian Buckner, who took over showrunner duty when series creator Alan Ball stepped down, is not interested in adding any more creatures to the mix.
“The show is going to return back to its roots and it’s going to be about this gang of people who live in Bon Temps,” Buckner explained. “We’re going to try to condense the number of stories that we’re telling and really make it feel like it’s coming home.”
The current season airs new episodes at 9pm Sundays on HBO.
Quip: “Why are we pursuing higher education? We’re all murderers. Why are we studying?” Paul Wesley, star of “The Vampire Diaries“, questioning why very old undead beings have the need to keep cramming for finals once every few decades — a question this writer asked when the series first premiered.
Quote: “It’s not going to be good for her…it’s going to take a lot of getting used to.” Nina Dobrev on Katherine Pierce’s transformation from being a vampire to a human, which will include a lot of unpleasant new (again) experiences like getting a cold.
News: They may be (un)dead, but Elena and Caroline are going to be co-eds pursuing their Bachelor’s Degrees, and Caroline is hoping Tyler will join them there. Meanwhile, Damon and Jeremy will be roommates so that they can keep an eye on Elena, which should add plenty of comic relief to the mix.
Jeremy’s return came with the price of Bonnie sacrificing her life and being trapped on the other side, and sadly only Jeremy can communicate with her. However, death is not the end of Bonnie’s story on this series — she will serve to give viewers a glimpse of “the other side”.
And though the situation looked grim for Stefan at the end of season four, with his evil psychic doppelganger Silas having locked him in a safe and tossed him into the water at the bottom of the quarry, Silas may not be the worst villain Mystic Falls has to contend with. Executive producer Julie Plec hinted that although Silas will certainly be a problem when the season begins, most of the season start with one Big Bad only to have the stakes raised by a Bigger Bad — news that Wesley, who has played the good guy (even if he was lost for a time) for most of the show.
“I like being evil. I’m sorry, but I do,” Wesley joked.
The fifth season of “The Vampire Diaries” premieres 8pm Thursday, October 10 on The CW.