In the Springtime of the year 2000, NBC got together with hit-maker Carsey-Werner-Mandabach and aired an animated series called
God, the Devil and Bob. The storyline was that God (James Garner,
The Rockford Files) was very disappointed in us, and was considering the idea of chucking the whole planet and let the Devil have us all. But he decided to give it one more go, and base the fate of the Earth on any single person that the Devil (Alan Cumming,
X2: X-Men United &
GoldenEye) choose. The Devil chooses Bob (French Stewart,
3rd Rock From The Sun), a lazy and grumpy autoworker who is awestruck by the situation he finds himself in, and tries to turn himself around in order to save the world. Laurie Metcalf (
Roseanne) and Nancy Cartwright (
The Simpsons) co-starred...at least their voices did!
Well, even superstars like the guys at CWM can have some bad luck. The show didn't take off at all. Of the 13 episodes that were put together, only 4 of them aired, and the show was cancelled in the same month it debuted.
Now CWM has
made a pact with Fox Home Entertainment to release a couple of their properties on DVD, starting with
That '70s Show in late October/early November. It's the first that any CWM-owned properties will be available for sale in stores in Region 1.
Variety reports that
God, the Devil and Bob is part of the first phase of the pact as well, looking at an early 2005 release of all 13 episodes. Here's an excerpt from that article (please click on the preceding link for
Variety's full story):
Pact calls for Fox to distribute only "That '70s Show" and CWM's short-lived animated "God, the Devil and Bob." If those releases go well, however, CWM has told Fox the studio is first in line to release two other big titles in CWM's library: "The Cosby Show" and "Roseanne."
CWM co-prexy/chief operating officer Dirk van de Bunt said the company talked to several studios about releasing CWM titles on DVD. Fox "gave a very effective marketing proposal, and we thought they were the way to go," he said.
...It's expected "God, the Devil and Bob" will be released on DVD early next year; series creator Matt Carlson already has been approached about supplying extras for the collection. Only 13 episodes of the toon were shot, and most never aired on NBC.
A broadcast of some lost episodes on Trio generated some fan buzz, a factor in the decision to put the show out on DVD. Fox also has vast experience marketing toons "The Simpsons," "Family Guy," "Futurama" and "King of the Hill."
This is a welcome opportunity to take a look at a show that had a short life on broadcast TV, but has lived on in the minds of fans for years afterward. Stay tuned, and we'll bring you more about this when Fox makes their announcement.
