The third chapter in the Starship Troopers series arrives on home video today, putting Johnny Rico and fellow Federation soldiers up against more menacing, computer-generated alien bugs. Also debuting on disc are a new feature-length animated movie title Garfield’s Fun Fest, the entire fourth season of Ben 10, an eighth volume of Charlie & Lola and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Volume Three.
Available on DVD, Blu-ray and UMD for PSP, Starship Troopers 3: Marauder finds a team of elite soldiers on a secret mission to rescue a small crew of fellow troopers stranded on the remote planet of OM-1. Battling a variety of extraterrestrial bugs, the crew turns to the Marauder advanced weapons technology as its only hope against a treasonous element operating within the Federation itself. But the insects have a secret weapon of their own that could destroy humanity. Capser Van Dien returns from the first film to lead a cast that includes Jolene Blalock (Stargate SG-1), Amanda Donohoe (Lair of the White Worm), Boris Kodjoe (Madea’s Family Reunion), Marnette Patterson (Charmed) and Catherine Oxenberg (Dynasty). Making his directorial debut on the pic is Ed Neumeier, screenwriter and co-producer of Starship Troopers and RoboCop. Visual effects were overseen by Academy Award-winning vfx supervisor Robert Skotak (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Aliens, X2: X-Men United).
The DVD and Blu-ray discs offer the featurettes Evolution: The Bugs of Starship Troopers 3: Marauder and Enlist: Marauders Mobile Infantry. Other bonus features include commentary by the filmmakers and cast, and an all-new extended version of the music video ‘It’s a Good Day to Die.’ Exclusive to the Blu-ray version is a interactive feature titled Put Yourself in the Film: Join the Fight! Viewers will be able to upload a photo and insert themselves into key scenes in the film. There will also be a Marauder Mode picture-in-picture feature, which employs graphics, text and pop-up video to provide insight into the film’s characters and story while expanding on the general mythology of the Starship Troopers universe. The DVD version will include a bonus digital copy of the film that consumers can unlock and play on their PCs and/or PSPs. Watch the trailer for the movie on AniMagTV.
Garfield’s FunFest is a CG-animated movie that revolves around a annual talent competition for the funniest comic strip in Cartoon World, which Garfield wins every year. This year there is a new contender named Ramone, a tall, handsome and talented competitor who jus might unseat Garfield as king of the comic strip. The movie is 70 minutes long and includes an exclusive comic booklet by Garfield creator Jim Davis. Fans can pick up the DVD for $19.98 or less.
Ben 10 Season 4 is a to-disc set offering all episodes from the hit Cartoon Network series’ fourth season. The half-hour series follows the adventures of 10-year-old Ben Tennyson, whose life is changed when he comes across the Omnitrix, an out-of-this-world wristwatch. With the extraterrestrial gizmo, Ben can transform into any one of ten alien beings, each with their own fantastic superpowers that help him battle the evil Viglax, who will stop at nothing to get the Omnitrix. The show is created by Man of Action (the collective name for Joe Casey, Joe Kelly, Duncan Rouleau and Steve Seagle), and produced by Cartoon Network Studios in Burbank, Calif. The DVD lists for $19.98.
Charlie and Lola, Vol. 8: I Am Collecting a Collection is a single disc that lists for $14.98. A production of London-based Tiger Aspect Prods., the show is based on the award-winning children’s book series by Lauren Child, whose other creations include Clarice Bean and Hubert Horatio Bartle Bobton Trent. Charlie and Lola has 7-year-old Charlie patiently helping his feisty, but endearing, 4-year-old sister with such things as keeping a clean room, handling new friendships and overcoming a fear of the dark.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe: Volume Three is a three-disc set with 13 episodes chronicling the final battle between good and evil in the 2002 revival of the classic ’80s cartoon series. The BCI/Eclipse release retails for $26.98 and includes such extras as the original “Morals” segment for episodes 27 through 39, the never-before-seen episode 40, five commentaries, extended video commentary, interviews with toy line designers and marketers from Mattel and The Four Horsemen, three image galleries featuring previously unseen production sketches, complete animatics for three episodes and two collectible art cards.
