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Hulu crashed San Diego Comic-Con on Saturday, unveiling the first episode of its original animated series The Awesomes, and joined a sizable roster of broadcast and cable networks unspooling their new and returning series.
The Awesomes, created by Saturday Night Live‘s Seth Meyers and Mike Shoemaker, revolves around the greatest superhero team in history and what happens after its most powerful members retire.
The series (from Lorne Michaels‘ Broadway Video) premieres Aug. 1 on Hulu and subscription service Hulu Plus and comes as the streaming service attempts to cut through the clutter that now includes Emmy crasher Netflix (House of Cards, Arrested Development) and Amazon.com. (Xbox 360 users will get the series a week early, starting July 25.)
PHOTOS: The Scene at Comic-Con 2013
Meyers said he and Shoemaker instantly bonded over their shared love of comic books and brought the project to Hulu. “I think it would have been like manslaughter, it definitely would have died,” Meyers joked of what the experience would have been like had The Awesomes been developed for broadcast TV.
Assembling a cast that includes a who’s-who of comedy among its voice cast — Ike Barinholtz, Rachel Dratch, Bill Hader, Rashida Jones, Kenan Thompson, Bobby Lee, Taran Killam, Paula Pell and Emily Spivey — wasn’t easy for co-creator Meyers.
“Everybody up here has a million things going on; we had to grab people in the middle of the night to record their lines,” Meyers said, noting many recorded multiple episodes at a time. Comic-Con marked the first time the cast really gathered as a whole.
Meyers, who will segue from Saturday Night Live to take over for Jimmy Fallon as the host of Late Night in February, noted that producers including Shoemaker are currently prepping for his transition.
“It’s an exciting time for the late-night show; we’re going to premiere Feb. 24 after the Olympics and preparation is just starting to begin,” he said. “I’m happy to be staying in New York and at 30 Rock — I’ll be on SNL until the new show starts.”
E-mail: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com
Twitter: @Snoodit
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