Man, it’s a digital distribution day today.

Fox and Microsoft signed a deal to start sending content to Xbox Live Marketplace.  First up…Family Guy.  Starting September 2, Xbox 360 owners will be able to purchase episodes from the first two seasons for the low, low price of $2 a pop.

Granted, you can get the first seasons on DVD for about $50 a piece, which translates to around $1.75 per episode, but if you want to support digital distribution a bit, and have 160 Microsoft Points sitting around in your account not doing anything, check it out next week.

Awesome.  We’ve got ourselves a good old-fashioned showdown.

Apple® today announced that it will not be selling NBC television shows for the upcoming television season on its online iTunes® Store (www.itunes.com). The move follows NBC’s decision to not renew its agreement with iTunes after Apple declined to pay more than double the wholesale price for each NBC TV episode, which would have resulted in the retail price to consumers increasing to $4.99 per episode from the current $1.99. ABC, CBS, FOX and The CW, along with more than 50 cable networks, are signed up to sell TV shows from their upcoming season on iTunes at $1.99 per episode.

“We are disappointed to see NBC leave iTunes because we would not agree to their dramatic price increase,” said Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes. “We hope they will change their minds and offer their TV shows to the tens of millions of iTunes customers.”

Apple’s agreement with NBC ends in December. Since NBC would withdraw their shows in the middle of the television season, Apple has decided to not offer NBC TV shows for the upcoming television season beginning in September. NBC supplied iTunes with three of its 10 best selling TV shows last season, accounting for 30 percent of iTunes TV show sales.

Big kudos to Jobs and gang for standing their ground on this one.  I’m thinking that NBC was betting on Apple not wanting to lose 30% of their television sales and expected them to back down.  Props to Apple for sticking to their guns.

We haven’t heard the last on this, for sure.

(Image courtesy of Apple Gazette)

The New York Times is reporting that NBC will not be renewing its contract with Apple to sell content on iTunes.  They claim that it’s to combat piracy, but really, it all comes down to the almighty dollar.  They’re wanting to package content together so they can charge more, and Apple doesn’t want that.

Michael from sister site Apple Gazette first pointed me to the story, and he rants a lot better than I do, so head over there to read his thoughts, which are pretty much mine, too.

It’s toeing the line for me to justify paying for something that I can get for free.  I have downloaded a total of four shows from iTunes…two episodes of Heroes, one of Lost and one of The Office, and each of those were because I had technical problems on my DVR.  $1.99 per episode isn’t a heck of a lot, but I’m not going to pay much more than that…and I’m sure not going to buy a package just so I can watch one episode.

Last season’s Dancing With The Stars had a very lackluster offering of “stars”, and that really kept me from getting into the show.  Yesterday’s announcement of the new season’s dancers got me interested again.

Look forward to Melanie Brown (a.k.a. Scary Spice), Sabrina Ryan, Indianapolis 500 champ Helio Castroneves, 90210’s Jennie Garth, actress/model Josie Maran, All My Children’s Cameron Mathison, boxer Floyd Mayweather, Marie Osmond, male model Albert Reed, and Dr. Quinn herself Jane Seymour.

The two that really get me excited though…Mark Cuban and Wayne Newton.

Oh, yeah, baby…bring it on.

It’s a two-fer this Tuesday…the last two installments of the Heroes Online Novel really only work together.

We begin back in Japan after the events of the season finale.  Ando, confused about what he should do after Hiro drops him off, goes back to work for Hiro’s father at Yamagato.  He has taken over Hiro’s old job, but his heart yearns for more adventure.  “I’ve been on incredible adventures in America.  I can be a hero, and like Clark Kent and Peter Parker, my day job is my public persona.”

He sees Kimiko, Hiro’s sister, and the object of Ando’s undying passion.  He immediately swoops in for the “flirt”, but she shuts him down pretty quickly.  One of his co-workers tells him that pursuing her is a waste of time…”You’re no superhero, Ando.  Face facts.  She won’t even remember your name.”

“That’s where you’re wrong.  You’ll see.”

That night, Ando is “staying late at work”, which is stalker-talk for waiting for your opportunity to pounce.  Kimiko starts to leave the office, and Ando offers to walk her home.  She reluctantly agrees.

When they emerge from the office, they are shocked to see a biker gang is waiting, swords drawn.  “I have a bad feeling about this,” Ando says.

Turns out, the leader of this gang, Fumio Fukazawa, is an old flame of Kimiko’s, and he has one thing on his mind.  Ando is unsure about whether he has what it takes to stand up against the gang, and when they start their charge, he and Kimiko flee.   Ando ends up going face-first into a fountain, which distracts the gang long enough for Kimiko to commandeer one of their bikes. 

After a brief chase, Kimiko and Ando are cornered by the gang.  Kimiko whispers that she is scared, but Ando reassures her, saying the he will protect her with his life.  When he turns to stand up to the gang, they suddenly become frightened, and speed away.  Ando seems to have saved the day…he’s Kimiko’s hero, and they kiss.

From a nearby rooftop, her father watches sword drawn.  He sees that Ando has proved his worth, and is deserving of his daughter.

The easter eggs for this week and last are a promotional image of Kimiko Nakamura and a behind the scenes shot of Missi Pyle.

On the day that Sam Oliver (Bret Harrison) turned 21, he learns the truth about his destiny…before he was born, his parents sold his soul to the devil (Ray Wise).  When his servitude kicks in, he learns that he must serve as a bounty hunter, returning escaped souls to Hell.

The pilot is directed by Kevin Smith, and his flare with performances and humor is very apparent.  Tyler Labine, in the role of Sam’s best bud “Sock”, carries a large chunk of the show’s comedic moments…he brings a very Jack Black vibe to the part.  The whole show is infused with a very light-hearted feel.  It’s very absurd (Sam’s first soul-collection device…a Dirt Devil), but it works well.

The main shortcoming that I saw in the pilot, though, was the lack of choice on the part of Sam.  The Devil owns his soul, and there is nothing he can do to earn it back.  I’m sure that will be addressed down the line, but I would have liked some kind of foreshadowing here.

Regardless, Reaper could become a nice little hit.  I’ll stick with it for a few episodes, anyway.

Grade: B

Man, Kevin Smith has some busy times ahead for him.

A few weeks ago, we reported that the Clerks director would be adding his touch to an installment of the forthcoming Heroes: Origins one-shots.  Now, NewsAskew has confirmed that he will also be taking on an episode of Battlestar Galactica.

That show is genius and they have a very distinctive visual style. But you are safe as a kitten. If you go in there and say, “I’m going to shoot everything in one big master shot,” they’ll go, “No you’re not, because that is not what we do on ‘Battlestar Galactica.’” I guess it is more about performance-oriented stuff, but at the same time that cast is top notch. How do you f—– direct Mary McDonnell?

I can see how he can take on the Heroes deal, since he can take a bit of artistic liberty with that property.  But BG has quite a unique style, so it should be interesting to see how he can inject his personal flair into it.

Some new casting info rolled in for 24 yesterday.

You’ll probably recognize Colm Feore, he’s been in a lot of stuff…most recently, HBO’s Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee.  Feore will be playing the nation’s first First Husband, married to Cherry Jones’s President.  He’ll be struggling to keep the First Children in line.

Next up is Rhys Coiro.  He’s played a bit part in several shows…Raines, Criminal Minds, Numb3rs, Ugly Betty, CSI: NY & Miami and Six Feet Under.  His most recognizable part, though, is as troubled filmmaker Billy Walsh in HBO’s Entourage.  In 24, he’ll be working with Jeneane Garofalo’s character, investigating the crisis surrounding Jack Bauer.

Man, the season is really starting to gear up now…we’re getting a dozen bits of new casting news every day.  Lost is next on the list.  Several names have been dropped over the past couple of days…so here’s a few of them.

Jeremy Davies (Saving Private Ryan) will be signing on for eight episodes this season.  No word yet on what kind of role he’ll play. 

Rebecca Mader (Private Practice, Justice) is going to be playing a recurring character, possibly Charlotte, the role that Kristen Bell was being considered for.

Ken Leung, who took a notable turn in The Sopranos last year, will be taking on the role of Russell, “a brilliant mathematician who is capable of great insights and has a tremendous knowledge across various scientific fields”.  He’s due to turn up in the premiere.

Finally, Lance Reddick (The Wire) steps into the role of Arthur Stevens a” corporate recruiter who is smart, capable and ruthless. ‘He may smile and his words may sound soothing,’ reads the casting notice, ‘but their effect can send chills up your spine.’”

(Source: eOnline and TVGuide)

This week, members of the Heroes cast will be journeying to the four corners of the world, hyping the show in various new markets.

Adrian Pasdar, Milo Ventimiglia, Jack Coleman, Hayden Panettiere, and executive producer Dennis Hammer will hit Munich, Paris and London.  Sendhil Ramamurthy, Greg Grunberg, Ali Larter and Masi Oka will make the journey through Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Singapore.  Noah Grey-Cabey, James Kyson Lee, Zachary Quinto, and newcomer Dania Ramirez will hit the hot spots in the U.S. and Canada.

The tour begins next week, so if you live in any of those spots, you may be able to find some stars around town.

UPDATE:  I just found this more detailed schedule at Comic Book Resources.

Europe-
-Munich (8/26-8/27
-Paris (8/28-8/29)
-London (8/30-9/2)
Cast Members: Jack Coleman (”H.R.G.”), Hayden Panettiere (”Claire”), Adrian Pasdar (”Nathan”), and Milo Ventimiglia (”Peter”) with executive producer Dennis Hammer

Asia-
-Tokyo (8/26-8/28)
-Hong Kong (8/29-8/30)
-Singapore (8/31-9/2)
Cast members: Greg Grunberg (”Matt”), Ali Larter (”Niki), Masi Oka (”Hiro”), and Sendhil Ramamurthy (”Mohinder”)

North America-
-New York City (8/27-8/29) – The backdrop of Season One
-Toronto (8/30-9/1)
Cast members: Noah Gray-Cabey (”Micah”), James Kyson Lee (”Ando”), Zachary Quinto (”Sylar”), and Dania Ramirez (”Maya”) with co-executive producer/writer Jeph Loeb and acclaimed graphic novel artist Tim Sale (”Batman: The Long Halloween”)