Skyland Episodes 1 & 2, and lastest poll

A few weeks back, I ran a poll to know if any of you would be interested in buying the Skyland animation series if it ever came on DVD. Well it seems that quite a lot of you would, so you'll be happy to hear that the series is being released in France this fall, though there is no news on the North-American market or elsewhere. Guess we'll just have to wait for that. If you have any news on it, please let me know.

Back to the poll results now. So here are the results after running the poll over a 2 weeks period:

• What the hell is Skyland? - 13% (2)
• Maybe, if the price is right - 13% (2)
• Maybe, if the rest of the series is as good - 13% (2)
• Most likely - 13% (2)
• Definitely - 50% (8)

Looks like this would be a hot item! I do realize that I did not have the choice to say that you would not be buying the DVD series at all. What can I say, this whole polling thing is new to me! I will next time I promise.

Finally, I've had quite a lot of emails and posts asking me where one could get the first two episodes of the series. As I mentioned in this post a few months back, Nicktoons had made available the initial two episodes. But for some reason, they removed them. Lucky for me (and you), I downloaded both back then. And so, I was able to email them using Pando to a few of you. But, the demand has been so great that it no longer is convenient for me to use that utility.

Last week I came across Box.net, a great site that offer online storage. And so over the week-end I uploaded both episodes, and you can now download them yourselves! One thing though, I've to subscribed to the service ($5/month) in order to be able to upload the episodes which are about 130Mb each. The five bucks a month gives me 5Gb of space and 20Gb of bandwidth monthly. As write this, I have no clue as to how quickly I'll go though that. We''l just have to see. So here are the two links:

• Skyland Episode 1 (QuickTime - 127.3Mb)
• Skyland Episode 2 (QuickTime - 128.3Mb)

Please let me know if you run into any trouble trying to download either of them. You can also drop me a comment or an email to say thanks and Hi!

Hope you enjoy!

A Skyland Poll: would you buy the series if it came out on DVD?

As many of you know, besides EVE Online and Battlestar Galactica, another interest of mine is Skyland. I've been watching the series lately and I'm really enjoying it. It's still visually very impressive, with a few moments each episode where you just gasp at the beauty of the work done by these French artists. And except for a few weak episodes here and there (The Great Wall comes to mind), so far I like the direction the series is heading.

If this keeps up, I might eventually want to buy it if it comes out on DVD. Which brings us to this week’s poll: How likely are you to buy the series if it releases on DVD? Head over to the poll to let me know. And when you're done, drop your thoughts in the comments — I'd love to hear what you think of Skyland so far.

For those of you who don't know Skyland, see my previous posts here, here, here, and here. Also check out my Skyland blinklist, which I update whenever I find something good.

For those discovering Skyland for the first time, here are a few videos to whet your appetite:

Skyland Teaser



Skyland – The Making Of

If you wish to discuss the poll, feel free to use the Comments section.

Skyland: starts on TELETOON, April 22nd

Set your TiVo or DVR, program your VCR, or block off your Saturday night, Skyland is finally here! This upcoming Saturday, April 22nd at 7h30 pm, TELETOON will finally air the series. The big question is will they be reruns of episodes 1 & 2, or will this be new material.



As soon as I have word from my source, I'll let you know. In the mean time, enjoy the 2nd episode (in French since it also aired on France 2). I can't wait to see what happens next!

Skyland: pushed back to April

Well it seems we won't be able to know what happens to Mahad and Lena anytime soon! The show was supposed to air in early January on Nicktoons and later that same month on TELETOON, but as per Nicktoons' Skyland website, the premier has now been pushed back to April.

If you've got any news, please let me know!

Skyland: the first two episodes available!

So this morning I was looking up the "recent keywords" activity of my blog, using StatCounter (it's the best free site statistics I've come across), and "skyland" comes up regularly. I always research keywords to understand how you guys get to this blog and what you searhed for to get here. Through StatCounter, you can link to the search page (98% of them being Google) with the keywords they (that's you) searched under.

I did just that this morning, and doing so, came across a French site which had posted the links on NickToons to the FULL first 2 episodes of Skyland in Quicktime!!

So without further ado, here are the links.

• Episode 1 (127Mb)
• Episode 2 (128Mb)

Enjoy!

[Edited 5 April, 2006] It seems Nicktoons has removed both episodes - I'll try to find them elsewhere. Drop me an email if you still interested in getting them or if you have new links to them.

Craving Skyland...

Since in last aired on TELETOON, I've been craving some more of Skyland. And there isn't much to be found, except for the same bits of information on the same sites. The only new site I found screenies on, was Laurent Pierlot's site, showing his portfolio where you can see some captures. Enjoy!

Otherwise, checking TELETOON's TV schedule, we learn that the next episode (same as the first 2?) is on December 31st, and the next one is next year, on January 29 same time, 19h30, every week-ends. Looking at this, December's showing is more then likely a rerun.

Skyland, tonight on TELETOON!

I don't remember the last time I got excited about animation. Probably back in highschool when I used to get up at 7:00 am in the morning on the week-ends to watch Robotech. Man that was good anime and it brings back lots of fond memories. I remember the feeling of having come upon something few of my peers knew about at the time, and how excited I was.

Well earlier this week I had the same feeling! On Thursday night I watched an amazing new anime series called Skyland. And I'm really excited about it. It's visually stunning, hell I'll even go as far as say it's breathtaking. The setting is very interesting, even if it's a bit deja vue. But I enjoyed it so much, that I'll be watching it again tonight when it airs on TELETOON at 7:00 pm, here in Canada. I think it airs an hour later in the states, but I can't be sure. Skyland is an international production between France and Canada, and is being aired in the USA, UK, France and Canada. Tonight's 2 episodes are a sneak peek at the series which will start in January 2006.

This is the synopsis of the show:

In 2251, the earth shattered into millions of blocks that now float in orbit around its core. These blocks remained suitable for living, and life resumed on them. Water is now the most precious resource. The Sphere, a council of leaders assembled from all over the world, has installed a dictatorship that controls water distribution. Their immense army is composed of robots, called Brigadiers, and is led by an elite force, the Guardians.

Marcus and Mila, a married couple who spearhead the pirate resistance movement, seem poised to fulfill an ancient prophecy telling of Skyland's rebirth, thus raising the hopes that the Sphere will be toppled. They have a dangerous but happy life, bringing a son, Mahad, into the world soon after their union. Shortly before the birth of their second child, Lena, Marcus and most of the pirates disappear during a major offensive against the Sphere. With hope for the freedom all but collapsed, Mila decides to raise her children under a new identity: as a Mansa farmer on a quiet block called Babylonia. Mila is kidnapped by Oslo, the evil leader of the Guardians. Her children manage to escape, and find refuge living near an eccentric savant, the Vector, in Porto Angel, a port led by the pirate Aran Cortes. Mahad and Lena will try to free their mother while Oslo tries to capture Lena, who is the key to absolute power. At first, Oslo thought that the prophecy spoke of Mila and himself, but now he's convinced that Lena is the "light" that will allow him to dominate Skyland.

The resistance movement believed that the prophecy spoke of Mila and Marcus. When Marcus disappeared, this interpretation was forgotten. Very few people now believe in the prophecy. This is a major dispute between the Vector and Cortes.

Mila has learned that her daughter is 'the light' spoken of in the prophecy. She decides to keep this from her children until they are adults, so they may have a normal childhood. They learn about the prophecy and Mila's past soon enough.

The Sphere leaders do not believe in this prophecy. The inhabitants of Skyland believe that the prophecy speaks of human beings, referring to Mahad and Lena.

But seriously, words cannot due justice to this series (well anyways to these first two episodes). You have to see it. So check your local listings and if you miss it, it airs again on Sunday. In the mean time, read up on it at the following sites:

• Welcome to Skyland (Official site)
• TELETOON (check the Skyland section)
• Nicktoons Skyland
• Blogs:
• Blog of Nuke
  
• fps magazine
• Trailers from Nicktoons
• Trailer 1
• Trailer 2
• Trailer 3
• Trailer 4
• Global Promo Sneak Peek
• Original Pilot from Attitude Studio who worked on the 3d rendering

Speaking of Attitude Studio, here is an interview (in French) with one of the 3d Graphic Designer who worked on the series. Adds a different perspective, and there are great screen captures.

Enjoy!

Destroying platforms, all part of the job

2005.11.25.02.21.05
Originally uploaded by crazykinux.

Thursday nights are usually EVE evenings, where I can spend a few hours immersed in EVE. But tonight I had other distractions, which I'll get to mention in a few posts; once I gather all my info and am allowed to discuss. Let's just say it involves an amazing new anime, TELETOON, and a great story line.

So instead, I did a simple level 2 agent mission, just to remind me of how fun they were. This one involved an agent in Stacmon, a thief in Dastryns, a document to bring back and a platform to destroy. Makes for some nice screenies.

Check out my latest flickr pics in my EVE Online set!