Captain Power Reboot Phoenix Rising Gets A Trailer In Time For Comic Con 2016

Just days before the series will be marketed at Comic Con International: San Diego, Phoenix Rising got its first trailer.

The series, a reboot of the ’80s kids’ show Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future, was first announced back in 2013.

“A lot of fans have been thinking that what we’re going to do is just the [unused] second season scripts or some kind of continuation or follow-up. It’s really not; it’s more what Ron Moore did with Battlestar Galactica, where he went back to the source material and kind of updated it and just gave you a new entry point into that mythology and into that universe,” executive producer Roger Lay, Jr., told me at the time. “Having said that, when the show is moving, you will see a lot of elements that Gary [Goddard] had envisioned all the way back to the original and some of them he couldn’t even implement because of limitations with technology or dealing with a company like Mattel, who’s trying to sell toys at the same time. This one is kind of the original concept unleashed, actually.”

The series, which was produced in cooperation with Mattel, who developed a series of toys that would interact with the broadcasts, also had a comic book series with art by legendary comics artist and executive Neal Adams — who had reportedly expressed some interest in the property again about five years ago.

Joining Goddard Film Group on the project is Thomas Vitale, who will executive produce the new series along with his producing partner Craig Engler, through their newly-formed Planet X Productions.

Phoenix Rising brings original Captain Power series creator Gary Goddard back to television, serving as executive producer. Joining Goddard on this project are Goddard Film Group partners Roger Lay, Jr, and Eric Carnagey, also serving as executive producers. Goddard Film Group owns and controls all rights to the classic intellectual property. The company is in discussions with cable and streaming outlets as it seeks to find the best home for this legendary property.Original series star Tim Dunigan, who originated the role of “Captain Jonathan Power,” will also appear in the reboot in a key – but different role.

The pilot episode of Phoenix Rising was scripted by Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, New York Times Best-Selling authors and writers/producers with extensive credits in genre programming, including Primeval: New World, Star Trek: Enterprise and The Lost World.

Two-time Emmy Award winning Special Effects Artist Todd Masters, Founder of MASTERSFX, will lead his team of FX artists based in Vancouver, in the creation of the practical and CGI Powersuits and characters that will be featured within this new series. MASTERSFX have worked on everything from True Blood and Star Trek to iZombie and The Expanse.

“Back in 1987, our presentation of Captain Power was considered a landmark program – a sci-fi series that was ahead of its time,” Goddard said. “Today, in a world of drone air­craft, battlefield robots, and Cloud-based artificial intelligence, our original series was predictive fiction, because, some would say, those confrontations are no longer speculative today, but inevitable – they have already become part of the global fabric and the ima­gin­ation of the world’s population.”

“As fans of both science fiction and the Captain Power series, we’re excited to help re-imagine this iconic TV show for today’s viewers,” added Planet X’s Vitale and Engler. “Although the surprisingly dark themes, serialized storytelling and shocking character deaths featured within the series were well ahead of their time in 1987, they’re exactly the kind of story elements a modern viewing audience craves.”

Lay, Jr., and Carnagey said in a statement, “As appealing and relevant as the original setting, storylines, and themes behind Captain Power continue to be, Phoenix Rising, our next evolution of the franchise, will still have at its core the same essen­tial elements that made the original series such an addictive success the first time out: Com­pelling and relatable characters whose struggles, hopes, and sacrifices will draw us back again and again to find out what happens next.”