Clea Duvall

Something Wicked This Way Comes

Carnivale was cancelled earlier this year by HBO, but devoted “Carnies” have been banding together in online communities and conventions reminiscent of early Star Trek fandom. Thus far, their efforts have not been successful. However, an entrée in Terry Morrow’s blog offered the first signs of hope in months:

HBO’s terrible decision to end Carnivale earlier this year may not mean the end of the series. One insider tells me that HBO has inquired about making a two-hour movie to wrap up the loose plot ends. There is also discussion of relaunching the series in comic-book form, starting from the first season and bringing it past where the last episode left us.

The powers-that-be behind the series have nixed the idea of the two-hour movie because they say it would not be enough time to do the story justice. Apparently Carnivale’s storyline went through 1945, and when the show ended it wasn’t out of the 1930s yet.

The comic book suggestion, however, might just happen.

If this happens, Carnivale creator, Daniel Knauf would almost certainly be involved. By all accounts, he is a big comic book fan, and is writing a 6 issue Iron Man arc for Marvel next year. However, I can’t quite see Marvel picking up this one, as they mostly stay away from licensed comics these days. Though I think it would appeal to those Stephen King fans they’re trying to attract... My guess is that it will end up at a company like Dark Horse or IDW that has a proven track record with licensed comics.

Now for those of you who have not seen the show, it is pretty complex (and quite good), so here is the official IMDb synopsis to bring you up to speed:

1934, America. The Dustbowl. A fugitive named Ben Hawkins finds refuge within a traveling carnival comprised of a tarot card reader and her catatonic/telekinetic mother, a blind mentalist, a bearded lady, and conjoined twins, amongst others.

The carnival is owned by the mysterious and unseen Management, who has designs on the young Hawkins, for the boy is concealing an untapped gift: he can heal the lame and raise the dead—at a price. Ben also finds himself disturbed by cryptic and prophetic dreams, which he shares with a Methodist preacher in California, Brother Justin Crowe.

Brother Justin, convinced he is following God’s will, has begun to practice his own extraordinary talents, although the preacher’s plans increasingly lead to disturbing and tragic consequences. In this "last great age of magic," Ben Hawkins and Justin Crowe are moving toward a great conflict between Good and Evil, although it not yet clear on which sides these men will stand.

Doesn’t that sound like a perfect fit for Vertigo?

This Has A “Blood of The Avatars” Factor of Six Out of Ten