Disney Publishing's "Tron: Betrayal" offers a fascinating look at the story between the stories of the original "Tron" and the new "Tron: Legacy." MTV Geek chatted with "Tron: Betrayal" writer Jai Nitz about Tron's lasting appeal, writing comic book "prequels" of movies, and the charismatic Kevin Flynn!
MTV Geek: What do you account for the massive popularity of "Tron" almost 30 years after the original bmovie first premiered?
Jai Nitz: Tron was a trans-media phenomenon. The movie was something unique, but no one just remembers the movie. If you were the right age (like me) you remember the movie, the toys, and especially the video games. There were stand-up arcade games, Atari games, and Intellivision games. I mean, Tron was about video games in a way that no other movie had been. The games were integral to the story, after all. And the special effects were really special for the time. Don’t get me wrong, you could probably animate those same sequences with my desktop computer today, but at the time they were stunning. Always ahead of his time, Roger Ebert called Tron, “…a dazzling movie from Walt Disney in which computers have been used to make themselves romantic and glamorous. Here's a technological sound-and-light show that is sensational and brainy, stylish, and fun.” Also, Jeff Bridges was on the cover of Rolling Stone in August of 1982 in his Tron costume. A four-star review from Ebert and the cover of Rolling Stone? Those things leave a lasting impression. Read More...
It's official: Marvel and Disney will be publishing Jim Henson's Muppets starting in July! And with the new movie The Muppets coming out in Thanksgiving -- including a subsequent huge marketing push by Disney -- it's no surprise this giant-sized comic is hitting the stands.
