We're getting to the point where comic book superhero TV shows are as popular and common as crime procedurals and hospital dramas, and an exciting new project has just been announced that will look nothing like either of those subgenres. Marvel's high-octane comic series Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is in development as a new Marvel Animation series being eyed for a future home somewhere in Disney's widespread TV schedule.
Currently going by the title Marvel's Moon Girl and Devil Diinosaur, which could change, this new project will be an adaptation of the similarly named comic series, first published in January 2016 and created by Amy Reeder, Brandon Montclare and Natacha Bustos. The story centers on nine-year-old Lunella Lafayette, an incredibly brilliant and tech-savvy inventor whose life takes a far more adventurous turn once she teams up with Devil Dinosaur, with whom she shares a telepathic link. (Some similarities with Runaways heroine Gert can certainly be found there.) Together, Lunella and her badass reptile mate use their respective wits and brawn to keep evildoers at bay. Note that Devil Dinosaur was originally created by Jack Kirby in 1978 as a partner for Moon-Boy, so we could maybe expect to see some backstory play out in the show.
Marvel Animation will be producing alongside Cinema Gypsy Productions, which was co-founded by black-ish executive producers Laurence Fishburne and Helen Sugland; both will also serve as EPs for Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur. Titmouse Inc., which has worked on Netflix's Big Mouth and Adult Swim's Black Dynamite, will be the animation studio bringing the characters to live. No decision has been made about where the animated series would air, with Disney Channel, Disney Junior and Disney XD all in contention, according to Deadline. Considering other Marvel series like Avengers Assemble and Guardians of the Galaxy are on Disney XD, that would seemingly be the most natural fit, but perhaps Lunella's age could provide the opportunity to skew younger for the Disney Junior crowd.
With the gigantic success of Black Panther rocking the box office, and with Black Lightning currently standing high and mighty alongside The CW's other DC heroes, it's a fabulous sign of progress that Marvel is granting a nine-year-old African American character her own TV project. Now it just needs to get ordered to series. And if Disney wanted to make a Black Panther animated series happen on the side, we'd offer zero complaints.
Marvel is extremely busy on the TV front these days, so it's a wonder there's anyone left to keep developing new projects. Netflix is gearing up for its next wave of dark and vicious dramas, while Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is keeping things crazy on ABC. And then there's Runaways, Cloak & Dagger, New Warriors, and whatever show is going to Disney's streaming service. That's not even an exhaustive list, either.
At this point, it's still too early to tell what will happen with Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, but we're hoping the early stages are all successful enough for the show to get the go-ahead. While waiting, head to our 2018 Superhero TV schedule and our midseason premiere schedule to see all the new and returning shows coming soon.
