'Futurama' Stars Working On Kickstarter For Animated Webcomic Goblins (kickstarter.com)

Long-time Slashdot reader wonkavader writes: Billy West, Maurice LaMarche, and Phil LaMarr from the Futurama cast are working on a Kickstarter campaign to animate the Goblins web-comic. Also involved are Matt King, Jim Cummings, Matthew Mercer, Steve Blum, and Jennifer Hale from World of Warcraft, Resident Evil, Cowboy Bebop, Mass Effect, Powerpuff Girls, and other stuff. It's surprising to see so many well-known voice people...

The writing for the show will be done by Matt King and Phil LaMarr along with the original Goblins creator, Tarol Hunt. They have an initial teaser trailer (or rather the 'animatic') which is definitely aimed at people who have already been following the comic.
Last week Reddit hosted an AMA with some of the project's stars, including Phil LaMarr (Samurai Jack, Futurama), Matt Yang King (WoW, GI:Joe), Tarol Hunt and Danielle Stephens (Goblins Comic).

Comments

Been reading Goblins for years

[Anubis IV]

I never figured it’d be able to line up this sort of talent. I never even realized it was big enough to draw that sort of talent. I always just thought it was a decently well-written and drawn comic that occasionally gave me fuel for my nightmares (see: finger monster).

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[lucasnate1]

My thoughts exactly. Idk, I always assumed OOTS or even Erfworld are more popular.

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[gurps_npc]

I agree. But it has some really good plot points.

I loved the "total annihilation, as if it had never been - including memories of the object". Great story line, making me feel sorry for an idiotic hero, while at the same time removing a character from the plot without having to kill her off.

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[abies]

I never even realized it was big enough to draw that sort of talent.

Half million dollars for one episode might have something to do with that...

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[Baron_Yam]

I'd love to see OOTS animated, in more or less the same style as the webcomic is drawn. Great story, great humour, and absolutely no need to get at all fancy with the art.

Erfworld, not so much. It would need some 'higher end' animation, and I don't think the plot would work so well with a mixed audience. It'd go more to the niche of RPG min-maxers, because the story is mostly about figuring out the mechanics of an RPG world and optimizing for them. That's not a huge audience without a lot of more general humour to pad things out.

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[Kjella]

Half million dollars for one episode might have something to do with that...

From the stretch goals their running price seems to be $150-200k/episode, but yeah... this isn't your typical YouTube video but the lower end of pro animation. Big shows like Family Guy and the Simpsons are $1-2m/episode, when you consider the names involved the costs don't seem out of line. Whether you can get that kind of money from a Kickstarter, I dunno... my guess is that this might be an alternative pitch for a series no TV channel wanted to pick up, like if you got a script, a potential cast and a teaser trailer already having them say "support our Kickstarter" is not much extra work and even if it fails some channel might see it has potential.

Re:Been reading Goblins for years

[Calydor]

While I enjoy the comic as well, the total annihilation idea isn't specifically Thunt's. I remember reading it in one of the later DragonLance novels a couple of decades ago, it was the ability of this once-sealed god of chaos. One touch, and all memory of your existence was wiped away.

8-bit-theater

[IckySplat]

Would have been my preference.
***Hadoken***

I apologize if the Goblins creators read this...

[Baron_Yam]

But I hope they get a say in the plot but NOT the storyboarding.

The comic is engaging enough that I hate the irregular updates because I'm always waiting in anticipation of the next one, but some of the artwork completely fails to communicate what's happening.

First episode: "I'M SAD"

[ToTheStars]

For more information: http://www.badwebcomicswiki.sh...

Re:First episode: "I'M SAD"

[Anonymous Coward]

I've read those complaints before. In my never humble opinion, the author(s) of that wiki page are butt-hurt losers who wouldn't know fun if it stabbed them in the eye with a dull stick.

Re:I'M SAD

[ToTheStars]

I'M SAD

Sorry you got moderated by someone who's never heard of Goblins before... http://www.badwebcomicswiki.sh...

Something like C&H Shorts?

[tepples]

I'd love to see OOTS animated, in more or less the same style as the webcomic is drawn. Great story, great humour, and absolutely no need to get at all fancy with the art.

Would it look something like the Cyanide & Happiness shorts?

Re:Something like C&H Shorts?

[Baron_Yam]

Probably. Also, you just destroyed several hours of my evening...

Re:I'm new to Goblins

[Calydor]

Might I suggest you try again in a few days, just in case your verdict is influenced by having a bad day? Goblins really is one of the best fantasy/RPG webcomics on the net.

Seriously?

[HeckRuler]

What? Seriously? They know this guy is crazy right? I mean, hey, tortured artists are a thing, but he had a breakdown. I guess he's still going strong, and when it comes to being mentally functional that's really all that matters. But this is a bad idea anyway. I mean, the entire premise of the comic is playing off of tropes that are generally only known to D&D players. Which, just in case I have to remind the geek crowd, is still a nitch thing. It's hella more common these days, but it's still not common. And it's not just D&D tropes, it's subverting those tropes. How many audience members out in the general public are going to be bored with standard D&D? And hell, it's based on a previous version of D&D. A previous version of the previous version of D&D. And it touches on some... well... taboo subjects that will never make it to prime-time TV. And the side-arc with the secondary heroes has never been coherent.

How the hell did this one happen?

Re:Seriously?

[HeckRuler]

From the AMA, as far as I can tell, Matt King (The voice actor for Illidan in 2002 Warcraft 3) just really likes the comic and pushed everyone into it. Apparently he has connections?

They're asking half a mil. I don't see it happening. I'll eat crow if they make it, but... yeah.

Re:Seriously?

[lucasnate1]

They could just edit the hell out of it to make it fit ordinary audiences. This already happened with comics adapations.

Re:Seriously?

[Baron_Yam]

>They know this guy is crazy right? I mean, hey, tortured artists are a thing, but he had a breakdown.

Buy the rights to animate it (including the rights to ongoing use of the content of the webcomic), leave him the rights to the webcomic format.

The artist gets a payday, but isn't a risk to the animated product.

>And it's not just D&D tropes, it's subverting those tropes.

I think the world can handle 'silly prey creatures decide to stand up for themselves and become heroes'.

If HarmonQuest can get an audience and two seasons, I'm pretty sure Goblins is good for a couple itself.