From the moment I finished Christopher Paul Carey’s Victory Harben: Fires of Halos, I knew this character in the Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe had something new to offer. A legacy from the Earth’s Core with direct ties to Tarzan as well, Victory could visit any and all of Burroughs’ other characters.
Though technically born in the 1930s, she’s a modern super genius who learned to control an ability to jump around in time and space. Carey and the ERB team created her in 2019 to reflect 21st century tastes. In the first “super arc” the company published, Victory encountered Tarzan, Carson of Venus, and characters from Barsoom at various points in their histories. She also found herself in previously unknown worlds as well as points in Earth’s history. The way Carey set her up (and I’ve told him this several times), she’s almost like Doctor Who.
I can’t peacock about this too much, because I’m sure the people at ERB intended exactly that. The proof? They’re developing an animated series with Flying S Films, a studio with talent that has worked on many videogames and animated features. This is something I’ve hoped for for a while and I’m thrilled to see this announcement. While no streaming service or network has become attached yet, it’s only a matter of time… and space… and adventure!
From Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.:
Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., the company founded by the creator of Tarzan® and John Carter of Mars®, and Flying S Films LLC, a Seattle-based studio dedicated to producing unique feature film and episodic properties for a worldwide audience, are excited to announce a partnership to develop an animated television series featuring the sci-fi protagonist Victory Harben™. In the show, Victory will find herself hurled into adventures alongside an array of iconic heroes such as Tarzan®, Jane Porter®, John Carter®, Dejah Thoris®, Carson of Venus®, and other characters inhabiting the rich science fiction and fantasy setting of the Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe™ (ERB Universe™).
The team at Flying S Films is headed by showrunner Scott Swan and producer Stuart Lowder, with Swan and Taylor Lowder on board to write the series. Rounding out the team is Ray Hansel Morales as line producer and Gene Alexander as executive producer.
Showrunner Scott Swan states, “It is my conviction that the upcoming success of the Victory Harben animated series lies in a deep love and abiding respect for the creations of Edgar Rice Burroughs. The scope, majesty, richness of the ERB Universe, combined with the complexity of the Victory Harben character, will allow us to create a series that captivates new audiences and delights longtime fans.”
“Long before anyone ever conceived of comic book and cinematic universes,” says Wolf Larson, head of ERB Entertainment, the film and television division of ERB, Inc., “Edgar Rice Burroughs created a cosmos of extraordinary worlds and heroes that crossed over in the storylines of his many best-selling novels and series: tales of Tarzan®, Barsoom® (Mars), Amtor™ (Venus), Pellucidar® (the prehistoric world At the Earth’s Core™), The Land That Time Forgot®, and Beyond the Farthest Star™, to name only a few. The Edgar Rice Burroughs Universe is one of the most expansive and rollicking adventure settings ever to appear in popular culture. Now, for the first time, we are thrilled to see the whole interconnected ERB Universe being developed for the screen by the top-notch creative talent at Flying S Films.”
Victory Harben first appeared in a new series of novels, short stories, comic books, and graphic novels published and licensed by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc., and was recently featured prominently in a collectible card game and other merchandise. The character is the creation of ERB Universe creative director Christopher Paul Carey, who also holds the role of Vice President of Publishing at the company.
“Victory Harben is the perfect gateway to the ERB Universe,” says Jim Sullos, President of Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc. “She’s smart, likable, and during the course of her adventures will come to find her place in the heroic lineage of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ literary creations. We are extremely pleased with the vision Flying S Films is bringing to the project, and look forward to audiences accompanying Victory on her fantastic escapades and becoming enchanted with Mr. Burroughs’ universe of high adventure.”
You can get a further taste of the adventures of Victory Harben with Tales from the Void, which I admit has been on my read pile and I haven’t gotten to yet — but it’s near the top!
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