Countdown to Caprica: only 1 day to go!

(Image from the front page of The Caprican, where you can keep up to date with all the news on Caprica)

Yes, I'm excited!
Tomorrow on Syfy (and Space here in Canada), CAPRICA, the brand new series set 58 years before Battlestar Galactica, airs. I was undecided about Caprica until I saw the pilot. Once I had watched it I couldn't wait to see the rest of the series - and it's been a long wait! You do NOT need to have seen BSG to enjoy Caprica (as @Kimevey has also pointed out). If you were a fan of BSG, though, there will be some nods to the future. I don't think anyone is going to be disappointed.

For the last 12 days I've been counting down on PinkRaygun.com with a series of articles and in case you missed any, here's a complete list:

Twelve Tribes Not Feuding 
Eleven: a Parallel Universe?
Ten Lords a-Leaping 
Nine Ladies Dancing 
Eight Daggetts Missing
Seven Characters, Mainly
Six writers, writing 
Five Finals Beginning? 
Four Ladies Leading
Three Friends a-Plotting
Two Families Grieving
And one God to rule them all

Tomorrow my report from the Caprica Set Tour, including the Q&A with the cast, will be up on PinkRaygun, too. It was a great day and I hope I have the opportunity to go back there when they are filming Season 2.

With Dollhouse finishing next week, Caprica is my big hope for a new blockbuster series. Of course I'll still be watching Castle, too. Castle is the only other thing TV show I regularly watch at the moment, and I love it.

New chapter of Dollhouse to screen at Comic-Con first

The next chapter of Dollhouse - directed by Joss Whedon - will be screening exclusively at Comic-Con in San Diego in July.

And we all know who's in that episode, don't we? Felicia Day FTW!

Yeah, I'm not going to be there but I can be happy for those who will be. Really. I can. 

read more | digg story

Dollhouse and Castle: They deserve another season (or five!)

It's the season climax tonight on Dollhouse...

And I won't be watching. Huh? No, it's true, I won't. It's not that I don't want to, but rather that Hulu has decided to lock down even more and so Hotspot Shield doesn't work. I've missed the last three episodes of Dollhouse, my DVR isn't working and so I am resigned to not watching because I'd rather wait for the DVD to come out (Miracle Laurie is my new favourite actor!). I'll be honest, the first few episodes of Dollhouse did not thrill me, which has been one of the reasons I've not really blogged about it.  But from episode 6, "Man on the Street" it became the show I always hoped it would be and I was hooked. I ordered the DVD because I also wanted to see the unaired Felicia Day episode, too. One day we will find out the whole story behind this season. I can wait.

Campaign to save Dollhouse

There is one, of course. There's rumours, counter-rumours and downright speculation over whether Dollhouse will be renewed or not. And what the best way to ensure it is. There are various campaigns and Whedonesque has some details. I would say one easy and effective way is to send a tweet to @Foxbroadcasting telling them how much you enjoy the show.

Castle

Meanwhile Nathan Fillion's hugely enjoyable new series, Castle, is also apparently under the threat of cancellation. Castle is entertaining, witty and has Nathan Fillion in nearly every scene. I don't think I need to say more! And Nathan Fillion is now on Twitter, which is interesting...And - have you seen the xkcd.com cartoons this week featuring Nathan? Well check them out - hi-larious!

Dollverse - Inside FOX's Dollhouse: If you want to complain about Dollhouse episode 13 not airing

Dollverse - Inside FOX's Dollhouse: If you want to complain about Dollhouse episode 13 not airing

I will be posting more about this in a little while when I have marshalled my thoughts and stopped swearing. In the meantime click the link above to Dollverse for details on how you can vent your displeasure at the decision to not air the Felicia Day episode of Dollhouse.

Dollhouse reactions and The Guild Season 2 Finale!

So, did you watch it yet?

Dollhouse, I mean. My DVR didn't record the last 15 mins so I had to watch the first bit on TV then switch to Hulu. For anyone outside the US who wants to use Hulu you can get and IP switcher (see this post for more details). Now there are NO SPOILERs HERE, so you can read on without fear.

Was it any good?

That's the questions everyone is struggling to answer. I waited until I saw it to look at any opinions because I wanted to have my own reaction to it. Given that we know that this first episode is actually the third attempt at a pilot, it was hard to have an open mind. Given the dark cloud of cancellation has been there is people's minds ever since the series was announced, expectations were bound to be high. So....did it deliver? Yes. And no. 

I will be tuning in!

This was not the single most inspiring, exciting, unexpected, breathtaking piece of TV I have ever seen. But how could it be? I knew more than I wanted to about it before it had aired anyway. I knew the premise, the actors, had seen the sets, the clothes, the technology...But it was a good, solid start. The storytelling was sharp, the acting believable and it looked like a polished series that was set to grow. No wobbly sets or crappy camera work. There has been some disappointment, despair and hand-wringing in some quarters but - guess what? That's been going on since day 1 and it's unlikely to change. Give it a chance. Cowboys in space was a hard concept to grasp and, for some, it took a little time to get into. Dollhouse looks like it's a real grower, and I can't wait.

(Picture from Felicia's blog)

The Guild Season 2 Ends Tomorrow!

The waiting and gnashing of teeth has started already. Felicia - get writing Season 3! Felicia - stop swanning around doing other stuff! Felicia - ooh Dollhouse! Yes, Felicia has started blogging a bit more frequently (don't you hate it when your fav bloggers get busy and don't keep you updated? Really ticks me off, that...). In her last blog post she talks about Season 2 and her impending part in Dollhouse. And she also mentions that she might be doing a Live Chat to coincide with the season Finale. Yay! I hope this happens and as soon as I hear I will post details. Exciting, huh?

Are you ready? DOLLHOUSE premiere (and BSG grinds on)

Dollhouse parties - are you going to one?

There is one tonight in Vancouver but I won't be able to make it due to various other child-related commitments (anyone with kids will tell you they have a much more active social life than their parents!). So, this evening I will be off the Internet (shock! Horror!) as I struggle to avoid any spoilers about Dollhouse and Battlestar Galactica.

No Spoilers!

For many months there was a steady trickle of information about the new Joss Whedon/Eliza Dushku series on Fox. Most of it not from Fox itself but from interviews with Joss and Eliza and the other stars. Information from Fox was hard to come by and trailers scare. Little advertising was done on Fox and this heightened fans' fears that the show was about to outdo Firefly by being cancelled before it had even aired. But in the last two weeks - holymoly! There has been reams of interviews, trailers posted, Joss and Eliza have been here, there and everywhere promoting the show. So much information, in fact, that there is far too much for me to process. And, in the midst of this it's hard to stay spoiler-free. Every interview has people asking about the show - of course! But then do you read it or not? I have started a couple and then stopped because I just want to be able to watch. I'll catch up with everything afterwards. For now I'm basking in the anticipation.

But if you want to know more...

Head over the Whedonesque.com. As always it's the go-to place to find out where all those interview, articles and videos are. Mostly they are flagged if they have spoilers so knock yourself out. Yesterday Joss himself posted a message saying he would answer 5 questions of those posted within a half-hour window. His rationale being that he had given time everywhere else so the loyal fans at Whedonesque.com should be rewarded, too:

February 13 2009

For You Guys. I'll check this in 30 minutes and pick five questions to answer.

I'll have to be brief, but since I'm talking to everyone that should include you.

joss | Purple prose | 06:24 CET | 237 comments total

As you can see, as of this morning there were 237 comments in reply to his post - many containing multiple questions. Yes, I think you could say that interest was high.

There's even an article about the science basis behind Dollhouse in 'Dollhouse's Memory Science Mixes Fact with Fiction' article in PopularMechanics.

(Picture from PopularMechanics article)

Could it get any better?

And to top it all Felicia Day confirmed via Twitter yesterday the rumours that had been circulating - she is going to be in Dollhouse later in the season:

For those inquiring minds, I got the ok today to confirm that I'm going to be on an episode Dollhouse later in the season! So exciting

BSG - I'm loving it?

Well you can never say that Battlestar Galactica shied away from violence, mayhem and sheer, bloody-minded refusal to face facts. No, no spoilers but if you haven't already caught up on the happens then do it! Unless you don't like being put through the emotional wringer. Wimp.

JT and Mo get singy and other cool Whedon stuff

Oh, Hai!
Yep. It's official. I've been spending WAY too long on FriendFeed and too little time Blogging. So much so that I am almost fluent in Lolcat. I'm a bad person. But, just in case you haven't seen this yet, you might like this little video from Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen (who both had a big part in Dr Horrible). When you're this talented, even a trip to pick up fastfood is just the inspiration you need to whip up a little ditty or three....

Favorite Food Song


Joss and Eliza Fox interview about Dollhouse
And just to make sure that the Whedons are well-represented in video form this week there is this interview with Joss and Eliza about how Dollhouse is going. They are both clearly excited about Dollhouse and I think this should be a comfort to those of us worried about whether, well, you know...



Now this is a Fox interview on the Fox YouTube channel. So is it too much to ask that they spell Joss' name right? Really? Joss Whendon? Don't make come down there, Spike.....

ELE Applications
Did you know that you have less than a week to get your Applications up on YouTube or Vimeo for them to be considered for the Dr Horrible DVD? What are you waiting for! Check out all the details on the Evil League of Evil website and do it. Now. And while you're at it why not try the competition I'm running. If you win, Evil WorldofHiglet will assess your application in a special Application Processing Web Episode. And the great thing is that you don't need to do a video. All the winner needs to do is fill in a simple Application Form (as seen in Act 1 and Evil WorldofHiglet's ELE Application). The picture is so easy now (especially if you click on it for the large view) that you will have no trouble identifying the DVDs and the book. There have been quite a few correct entries already so get your skates on - all it takes is a quick email (full details here).

Scary Dollhouse News? And - Competition Time!

There was a ripple in The Force last week.

The news that Dollhouse, the new series by Joss Whedon starring Eliza Dushku (who is also an executive producer) has been put on a two week break. There was an interesting piece about why we should be nervous on TelevisionWithoutPity, which lists are the reasons why a break could spell trouble. While it's useful list I'm going to disagree. I don't think there is any reason to panic at all.

Why can't we panic? It's Fox, after all....!

AS I said, it's an interesting list but let us not forget a simple truth. This is a new show. Joss has already re-written the pilot so it is more immediately accessible, and now he wants to concentrate on getting the writing polished for the rest of the episodes. One thing we know about Joss is that he is the boss - and the writing is EVERYTHING. He's been working flat out for months now with Dr Horrible (yay!) and Dollhouse and I think the surprise is that he didn't call for a writing break earlier. Even with experienced and talented writers on the team Joss will want everything nailed down before shooting starts for these last episodes. Even in Dr Horrible there was no ad-libbing from the cast at all - what is written is what is shot. It won't do anyone any good speculating impending disaster and, in the end, it could put people off watching the show or giving it a chance. I think it's an excellent sign that there is a break, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

And now [drum roll] a new competition!

We all love Dr Horrible and many of us are waiting, with little or no patience, for the Evil League of Evil to announce open season on applications. In the meantime I have been amusing myself (and a select few) with producing a webseries based around the ELoE's Application's Office.  The penultimate episode, Act V, was released last weekend and the final episode in this series will be out by next weekend. Due to popular demand (well, two people who are not related to me!) there will also be a blooper/extras reel. And this is where the COMPETITION comes in. If you win EvilWorldofHiglet will assess YOUR application to the Evil League of Evil in a special episode!

What you have to do:

• Watch Act V and tell me the names of the book and DVDs in the background, on top of the printer. 
• Send your entries to worldofhiglet at gmail dot com* before Friday 26th September 2008. If you want you can include a little about why you like Dr Horrible so much and even the name of your Evil Character and I will mention you on the blog. It couldn't be more simple! 

In the event of a tie (or more than 1 entry!) I will use a random number generator to determine the winner.

If you win:

• I will email an Application Form to you (as featured in Act I) for you to fill in. If you also want to post a video entry on YouTube, Seesmic or elsewhere then please send me the link and I will use it as part of the assessment.
  
• EvilWorldofHiglet will then assess your application in a special episode of 'The Evil League of Evil Applications Office' to be publicly available on YouTube.
• The winner will also be announced here on the blog.

Excited? I am. I can't wait to see how you all get on...

* Please note: I am not going to spam you or pass on your email details, I hate spammers as much as you. 

Coming soon - Dollhouse update, YouTube info and a competition...

Everyone's doing it...

...trying to get back into regular blogging, that is. Yes, I've been hanging around FriendFeed and now it's time to get back to some real work! Coming later today:

• Why I'm not panicking about Dollhouse (even though others are)
• Why Friend Feed is not a waste of time
• Why I'm taking a chance and launching a competition on my blog, with a real (virtual) prize!

I can tell that I've have piqued your interest....

A little teaser

You might want to do some prep work for the competition and if so, your homework is to watch the latest installment of my webseries -

Act V - Evil League of Evil Applications Processing Office

Nathan Fillion and Dollhouse updates

Some development news about 'Castle'
TheFutonCritic.com have published some updated development news about 'Castle', a new ABC show that will star Nathan Fillion. It gives some plot outlines for the show which certainly sound very promising and, best of all, is news that a pilot has been ordered. It would be really fantastic to see Mr Fillion in a lead role on a show like this. I tuned into 'Desperate Housewives' just to see him in the season finale and it was a real shame he didn't have more screentime. Can't wait to hear more.

Dollhouse: Eliza is a real Producer
In quite an in-depth interview on scifi.com, Joss Whedon talks about how the reduced ad-breaks will affect the timings for the shows and then he moves on to Eliza's roles:

"I said, 'Oh, wow, I've come up with a show, and I’ll do it with you, but you have to know, though, this thing about you having a producer credit: I'm going to make you earn it. I'm going to want your input. I'm going to want ideas. I'm going to want you to help me work out certain problems. This is our show.' She and I came at it from a very similar aesthetic view, a very similar political view and a great mutual trust. So, to me, it's an essential part of what the show says about people and about her, that she should be a producer."

This is the real deal for Ms Dushku and it speaks volumes about the respect Joss has for her as an artist and co-worker. It makes Dollhouse even harder to wait for!

Fox gets Foxy with the marketing
In a bold attempt to stir up blogosphere (yep, that's a real word) Fox launched their marketing for Dollhouse, Fringe and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. I have mixed feelings about this, but I admire the idea behind it. And they have also headed off the Dollhouse cancellation rumours while simultaneously almost apologising for Firefly's ignominious treatment. Well, I'm choosing to interpret it that way. You might have other ideas...

Dollhouse Trailer and Doctor Horrible news

A Mid-Season Release for Dollhouse is confirmed.
It could be January 08 before the first episode is aired but the PR machine is working pretty much flat-out at the moment. There have been interviews with Joss at LATimes.com, 'Watch with Kristen' on EOnline.com and seat42f.com have an exclusive clip from the show. At TVWorthWatching.com there is a review (plus great cast photo) and the news that Dollhouse and Fringe are going to be "the recipients of a new Fox experiment they're calling "Remote-Free TV." In those two shows, for their entire season runs, commercial ad and promo time will be cut by half, with no more than five minutes of interruptions per hour for network commercial minutes." Now that does sound promising! Over at Dollverse.com they have news that the first episode 'Echo' had completed filming and a great photo taken from inside the Dollhouse. We can be reassured that there certainly appears to be no expense spared...

Doctor Horrible - Joss Speaks!
In the same LATimes.com interview about Dollhouse, Joss talks about Doctor Horrible. It sounds like things got a little hectic for Joss at the end of the Strike:

"...And when we came back, Fox said instead of 3 1/2 months to write a script and a few months of prep time, we're shooting ["Dollhouse"] in two months. And we hadn't even fully broken an episode. And I had "Dr. Horrible" to shoot two weeks from then and no line producer for that. It was a time of work. The thing is, I wasn't going to abandon or short-shrift either project. You just can't. You can't put something out there with your name on it that isn't the most wonderful you can make it...We're dropping in the last effects and color-timing it right after upfronts, and then I'll be talking to people about how we can put it out. I would like to monetize it so I can not only say, 'Look, I can tell stories,' but people can be paid."

So we know it's going to be wonderful, and that the last effects are being done right now. And Kristen also mentions in her article that Joss might be looking for help promoting Doctor Horrible when the time comes. Well, I think that that will not be a problem! As for monetizing it so that people get paid? I'm very interested to see how that will pan out, and I sincerely hope it works out well.

Dollhouse starts filming - today!

The excitement is high, folks!
After months of waiting for preparation, followed by weeks of nothing but preparation, the day has finally dawned on the first day of filming for the new Joss Whedon/Eliza Dushku series, Dollhouse. Conceived by Joss Whedon while talking to Eliza Dushku in the week before the WGA strike, Dollhouse marks a return to TV for Joss. Yes, it's on Fox and yes, fans are concerned about that (after 'Firefly' was ignominiously canned by Fox), but there is every reason to be hopeful. There will be at least 7 episodes and the cast is looking awesome.

Highlights run-down
As might be expected, the Interweb is awash with Dollhouse tidbits today, so here's a selection of the ones that caught my eye:

Whedonesque: two Dollhouse related posts (this morning, anyway!)

• Dollhouse now on IMDb
• Link to Dollverse which has a good summary of why we should be excited

AfterEllen.com: Has a great rundown (with photos) of the cast members and summary of the Televisionary (who have seen the first script) and E! Watch with Kristen (who gives a great summary of the Dollhouse premise) reports.

Dollrific!: Has a summary of the Dollhouse Forum Q&A with Dollhouse writers Elizabeth Craft and Sarah Fain (insightful and with no spoilers!) and the news that brother Jed Whedon and Jed's fiancee Maurissa Tancharoen are also writers on Dollhouse. Jed and Maurissa, along with Joss' other brother Zack Whedon and Joss himself, are the writers on the hopefully-soon-to-be-released Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog.

Looking forward
With official promotional material due within a month, there's going to be a whole slew of information about the series soon. Which can only be a good thing! We might hear more about Dollhouse in tomorrow's Joss Whedon's Journal extract - you can only read it here...

The Guild, Dollhouse and Buffy Paley updates

Episode 9 - Owning Bladezz
Felicia Day has updated her blog with news that the next episode of her webseries 'The Guild' has been posted on YouTube. Needing to deal with the video problem Bladezz left them with, the rest of the gang found the lever needed to convince him to capitulate. Another funny gem from the team! I watched it first this morning and there were already 10,000 views. Going back 2 hours later and there are more than 13, 000 views. If you haven't seen any of them yet try WatchTheGuild.com for links to all the episodes plus news, awards and message boards.

Dollhouse - new cast member
The Hollywood Reporter has Alan Tudyk in it's headlines yesterday because he is to star in a new, as yet untitled, ABC comedy pilot. Among the other news in the article is the update that Harry Lennix has joined the Dollhouse cast.

Buffy Reunion at the Paley
There are now video highlights for all the PaleyFest events on the Paley website, including the Buffy Reunion. It's a short clip but it does feature a little footage of the stars taking the stage and Joss and Sarah talking about the show. News also on the Paley site is that the whole of the Buffy Reunion event including 'Once More, With Feeling' and the Panel is going to be shown at the New York Paley on Friday, April 25; 6:00 to 8:15 pm. There is free entry for Paley members who RSVP and tickets are on sale for $10. A great opportunity for any Buffy fans in the area, check the site for details.

Joss Whedon's Journal
With the WGA Strike grinding on, Joss is still on the front line

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Joss' Journal February 7th
It a good thing to be on the picket line. Well, not a good thing in that we shouldn't have to picket, but, you know what I mean. Everyone has been so supportive and so good to see the troupes (geddit!) turn up. But the interviews! Man! I love to talk, sure, but I'd rather hear the Other Side doing some talking of the good variety instead of me getting all worked up. And it leaves little time for other things.

But I did A Good Thing, held up my Board and helped a potential to make their debut. It was a small enough thing and I'm happy to spend my picketing time doing something useful other than interviews, autographs (I got some good ones!), eat pizza. And doughnuts. And ...well, you get the picture. And I'll be there again for the Sci-Fi day, the Why Don't They Just Listen Day and the Better Agree Soon day.

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Serenity, Dollhouse and Buffy: Between the Lines (part 2)...

Dollhouse news
A quick glance on Whedonesque this morning brings news that Fox has not done a pilot for Dollhouse! But relax, that's only because they are spending the money on building a no-holds-barred life-sized set for the show. The Wall Street Journal article that broke this news is very interesting and looks at how things have changed since the Writer's Strike. Even more exciting (or is it?) for me is the news that 'Life on Mars' (a fantastic British series - I brought my boxsets with me!) is being adapted by ABC.

Buffy: Between the Lines
Now, after the April Madness of last week I mentioned the fact that Buffy: Between the Lines had run a front page saying they were recasting the whole Scooby gang. I also wondered if they had told the cast before the ran the headline. Well Tabz, Producer of Buffy Between the Lines commented on the blog saying that, in fact, the cast didn't know, but worked it out fast! Hehe. Now that's a real April Fool! And I would have mentioned this before and thanked Tabz for the comment, if it hadn't been such a busy extended weekend. But thanks, Tabz, for taking the time. And also on the Buffy: Between the Lines website is the news that Season 2 has now been cast, and the full list will be up soon. If you've never heard the audio-drama (which is set between Buffy seasons), then catch up with Season 1 now. Not sure when the crew list will be complete...

So back to Serenity...
After all the excitement, mudder's milk and boa has settled down, something was announced on Saturday that I forgot to mention. Unfortunately, they haven't announced a sequel yet, but this should keep us going until then. The Universal HD Moderators are now running a competition - 'Who's coat is the Brownest?' - and anyone can enter. There have already been some strong entries but I wouldn't let that put you off. This is a chance to show everyone what you've been doing (related to Firefly/Serenity!) and is a really great way to showcase your fandom. It's the Moderators (not Universal) who are running this and all credit to them for the idea.

New cast announcement for Dollhouse

Televisionary breaks the news
British actress Olivia Williams is to join the cast. Read more details on the Televisionary blog (it contains mild spoilers about the character she is to play). With filming only 3 weeks away we can be sure there will be more news from the Dollhouse very soon.

Saturday 5th April at 8 PM - what will you be doing?
Joining the fun on the Universal HD message boards, hopefully! Operation Full Burn is stepping up to make sure that there are as many Browncoats as possible lurking and posting on the Firefly Message Board just before 8 PM Eastern Standard Time. It doesn't cost anything, it doesn't require you to do anything other than go to the message board (lurkers are welcome, too) but it is your opportunity to take part in a direct action that might have fantastic consequences. Universal will look at the numbers and we want the message to be clear - give us Serenity 2!

How many Browncoats are there?
What a good question! This was posed on the Fireflyfans.net message board and there is no simple answer. Anonymous1 has posted some really interesting figures, though, and in the end, it is money and figures that will determine whether a sequel/mini-series/webisodes are made. So haul your hides onto the Universal message boards on Saturday and be just a number. For once, that might be enough.

Do you live in LA?
Well first off, good for you! And also, good for you because you have the opportunity to see the delightful Felicia Day at The McCadden Place Theatre on Saturday, twice! Her sketch show is actually on at 8 pm on both Friday and Saturday but on Saturday at 10.30 she and fellow Guilders Zaboo and Jeff Lewis are doing an improv show. A chance to see the lovely star of The Guild, Buffy and Doctor Horrible in the flesh? If only I could make it over there, I would. Something to tell the kids in the future. See Felicia's blog for more information.

Did I mention Operation Full Burn yet?
Now, what else is happening on Saturday? Yes, Operation Full Burn. So what's a soul to do if you live in LA? Obviously you log into the Message Board first and then leave your 'always on' connection on while you go clap and cheer Ms Day and friends (not an option for those with dial-up, I know, but we all do what we can).

And I have a confession to make about Felicia, but I'll leave that until tomorrow. I'm still trying damage-limitation at this point...

Follow ups galore!

The world is spinning fast, n'est pas?
Take a deep breath and let's take a look now at some of the items we've covered over the last few weeks and find out what (if anything) is new...

Operation Full Burn
As I was neatly reminded yesterday, Serenity2.net posted about the 'Day of Action' called for by Operation Full Burn (a campaign to show Universal how popular Serenity is and how many people want a sequel). I'm sure that all you Browncoats out there have already joined the the Universal HD message boards by now? No?! Well get yourself over there right now and join! And while you are there take a moment to consider the number of threads and posts on the Firefly boards against those of the other shows. Firefly has 808 topics and 11,741 replies. The next closest show is Battlestar Galactica which has 16 topics and 45 replies.

All you have to do is join the Firefly message board and then log in on Saturday April 5th just before 8 PM Eastern Standard Time, just before they start to air the first epsisode in glorious HD. There is talk of having using the Fireflyfans.net message boards to host an online chat at the same time, so I'll keep you posted about that.

Star Wait and the liningup people
Not so much luck here, I'm afraid. I've still been unable to contact any of the people and my other lead appears to not be interested. But I will persist!

Dollhouse
I've not written that much about Dollhouse recently, what with my head getting all spinned about by Doctor Horrible. His Blog I mean, not Doctor Horrible himself...Anyway, filming should be starting very soon and a quick trip to Dollverse confirms that filming is scheduled for 23rd April. There is lots of other news about cast a crew on Dollverse and DollhouseTV.

Joss' Whedon's Journal
We return to Joss' Journal today, where Joss is in a contemplative mood about the strike...

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Joss' Journal January 17 08

Yes, this not working is really hard at the moment. I'm so busy I've forgotten what my home looks like in daylight. The Strike is taking it's toll on morale etc but onwards and upwards! Everyone gets why we need to do this so it's just a question of digging in and making sure we get the message to the other side. Note to self: must shout 'Panda Fur' at next picket.

And what doesn't help is that there is dissension in the Minion ranks. Apparently I said that Minion #1 could play 'homeless #30' or something in the New Thing, and now they all want a part. Well, I don't remember saying that - I could have said that they look like a homeless (as a joke), but really, have them in front of a camera? My camera? Conflict a go-go...

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Doctor Horrible's Officially Official Fan site

What a few days it's been...
After the excitement of the Buffy Reunion at the Paley last week we might have expected Jossverse-related news to fade to the usual roar. Well, if we did, we would have been wrong. The frenzy surrounding Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog was stoked by Joss casually mentioning that he was slightly tardy to the Paley because they had just finished wrapping Doctor Horrible. Since then there has been a frantic search for information, however small, about who/what/why/when the three, ten minute musical episodes will be completed and released.



From Unoffical to Official in three days...
On March 24th Whedonesque spotted a new fan site for Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and within hours the new site was inundated with visitors. Since then it has added content seemingly by the hour as more information is gleaned from all available sources. And so it was only a matter of time before other parts of the Interweb started to take notice. Already salivating at the prospect of Neil Patrick Harris singing Joss Whedon-penned songs, the fansite was mentioned on E! Online and io9. And the Felicia Day, picking up her Google Alerts, found the fansite and blogged about it. Which makes her blog a blog about a fansite blog that's about a musical blog that she's starring in....On the 27th the fansite announced that it was now the 'Official' fansite for Doctor Horrible and revealed another cast member.

Things move fast in cyber(geek)space
By any measure that's pretty quick going. Apparently the fansite will be the first to know of new developments so that would be the place to go to find things out. Exciting times! And that's even before we think about Dollhouse. Speaking of which...E! Online have broken the news that Helo from Battlestar Galactica (actor Tahmoh Penikett) is joining the crew on Dollhouse. There are more details on the site including his character's name and details of other cast members. Shooting starts in April so there should be more news coming out soon.

And speaking of BSG...
The race is on the finish watching Season 3 before Friday! Space cable channel is airing a hour-long BSG extravaganza on Friday in which Joss himself appears speaking about how much he loves BSG. And Season 4 (the final season) starts on April 4th. Not long to wait now!

Happy birthday Nathan!
Nathan Fillion celebrates his birthday today. Let's hope Captain Hammerpants has a great day with cake, drinks and maybe just a little bit of music.

Woody's Roundup
Have you got your bids in for Mr Sulu and Jayne's Space Monkey yet for the Kids Need To Read auctions? Hurry, only a day to go! After all the excitement I forgot, too, so I'm going to do that later today...

Countdown to Buffy Reunion at Paley

You lucky few
No, I'm not going to be at the Buffy Reunion on Thursday, either. Didn't get a ticket, couldn't have arranged flights/childcare/vast sums of money in time. I did get excited, thinking that there was going to be a live feed of the event, but these hopes were soon dashed. There might be a DVD at some stage, but even this is not certain. However, let's not be too bitter. The fact that so many of the cast and even Joss (bow down!) himself is going to be there is cause for celebration even if we can't witness it ourselves first-hand. Let's imagine the positivity that will be flowing and claim a little for ourselves. And while you're in the mood, why not send in a question suggestion (say that very fast three times!) for the panel at the Paley website. We might never know whether our questions were asked but I'm already inventing great one-liners to mine....I only wish I had Joss' Journal for now - but, of course, he hasn't written it down yet and my contact won't get access to it until Joss does his next archive. We'll just have to wait to hear how Joss is preparing himself, I guess.

Star Wait-ing no more!
And it has finally arrived! In a wonderful piece of cosmic confluence Star Wait has arrived just as we finished watching BSG series 2. Battlestar Galactica has been on heavy duty DVD action over the past few nights (I've got the sleep deprivation to prove it) so Star Wait will cleanse the palate before starting back on Dr Who series 1. Hopefully, if the matches can hold my blood-shot eyes open long enough, I will be watching this tonight. So, the answer is out there, and could soon be mine!

Battlestar Galactica Fantastica
Yeah well, you try making something of the BSG title..I've enjoyed seasons 1 & 2 and now I've got to get the cash for 3. It would be rude not to. There is so much going on and there are levels of meaning for all persuasions so I would recommend anyone giving BSG a go. I've heard from some sources that season 3 isn't as good, but I'd rather find out for myself. Yes, it's true that I only got the DVDs 'cos I had read that Joss really liked the series which makes me some sort of sheep-type consumer-monkey, but I'm not apologising. As reported on Whedonesque today, Joss actually wanted to direct the BSG season finale but work commitments made it unlikely. Work commitments? Pah! He should try herding several kids on Spring Break while working, blogging, and watching BSG DVDs....And don't worry I'm not going to put any spoilers up for anything - I'm so behind that I don't expect anyone to know anything about anything. I wouldn't even tell anyone that Angel is, in fact, a vampire for fear of ruining it for a new viewer....

Dollhouse updates
Dollverse has some good snippets of what's going on, Dollhouse-wise. With production apparently set for April 23rd and Kelly Manners now joining the crew, we can be pretty sure that Joss is not letting Dr Horrible's Sing-Along Blog interfere with Dollhouse. Which is good news, everyone.

Joss Journal Jan 08
The days are so short they merge into one. I'll be glad when I can actually get out and see the sun. I might actually turn to dust by then, but I'm willing to take the chance. I'm not even sure what date it is - everything is by the deadline. 2 days until the final score is due, 6 until my head explodes etc. But it's all good. Might have to up the sleep quotient to 6 today....

Joss' thought machine

In your head
What would you give to know what Joss is thinking? Money? A minor organ? A major organ? Yep, it's a tough old question. Imagine being able to see into the Master's mind (I mean Joss', not, you know, The Master from Buffy). To follow the complicated and inspiring thought processes, the higher levels of intellect that undoubtedly reside within that revered cranium. A tantalising prospect, I think you would agree. A tempting prospect.

Heart is taking over
So what I have to share is something a bit, well.....you'll have to read it and draw your own conclusions I guess. Everyone in fandom has done something a bit mad/weird/borderline legal in pursuit of their quarry. And so many are pursuing Joss. He has become almost mythical in his own lifetime. His latest series, Dollhouse, was dreamt up during a bathroom break while at lunch with Eliza Dushku. Truly he is a Titan (AE) amongst us.

Who are we mistaken
So let me present, for your delectation, delight and diversion, a glimpse into the mind of Mr Joseph Hill Whedon (Joss, to you and me). A sliver of his journal, a minuscule trickle from the river of consciousness.....

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Joss's Journal - Feb 08
Man, good to know that we can still negotiate and win! Victory (of sorts) is ours!
It will feel soooooo goooooood to tune up the old neurons and dust off the quills. Eliza has been ringing, like, twice a day asking if it's over yet so she was over-the-moon when she heard.
Started ringing round only to realise that everyone had already heard on that gorramit Interweb
and were already churning out the words. Always back to the words. Better put my gee-tar down for a little whiles.

Now, where did I put those Dollhouse notes? And where's the phone? Serendipitous indeed for
me that Sarah and Liz were so cruelly cut just when I was looking for more writers. I wonder
if I'll have to get the doughnuts. Have a rep to keep up there, and it's always me that wants the Jelly ones...And what's the Harvard Independent anyway? Like I care if they diss BTVS8! Must remember them at the Paley this year. Now, when was that again? Not next week! Noooooo! Gotta work!

O - Not next week! Silly moi. I knew that. Where's the phone?

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Zombie
Heady stuff, I'm sure you'll agree! Obviously I can't give all the good stuff straight away and some might never see the light of day. Yes, very funny, putting it here means it won't ever see the light of day anyway but I am so over that self-deprecating humour now. The blog's here and it's staying. End of.

Woody's roundup
So, in other news tonight...blog now listed on Google (yay!), Star Wait not arrived yet (boo!), ordered my copy of Serenity: Better days signed by Nathan Fillion on ebay for Kids Need To Read, stopped throwing up (double yay).

Back on the chain gang

I found a picture of you
So, what's all about, then? Geekness, fandom, life, this business called show? While recovering I saw the Star Wars documentary, reliving the excitement, the ups, the downs, the wacky hairdos. It was a welcome distraction and had some footage I'd not seen before. Ole Georgie-boy, he knew (and still knows!) a thing or two about how to make a movie. The sheer persistence and bloody-mindedness needed to get the thing done. The compromises and the tears. And he changed the way movies were made, no doubt about it. Good business sense but still an artist. What a guy. (Still not had my copy of Star Wait, BTW).

The powers that be
And yet...there is controversy over the way things were done. Breaks with the writer's and director's guilds hurt him financially and no doubt personally, but it's hard to see how things could have played differently. Now we are lucky that the recent Writers Strike came to a fairly amicable ending and works are back in progress. The way things are going at the moment it would be good indeed to have some inspiring, uplifting productions to look forward to in Autumn (ok, Fall, if you must).

To a place in the past
For me, there is the prospect of seeing a new Joss Whedon series as it comes out! This will be a first for me. England has great TV (and I miss the BBC A LOT), but always getting things second hand was really hard. You will probably gasp to hear that we had only four (yes, FOUR) TV stations in our house. There should have been 5 but we were in a valley and couldn't get the reception. And the satellite channels were so rubbish I couldn't be bothered to have them. And we couldn't get cable because of the valley...Yes, no wonder I was so out of date (...but I still wouldn't have satellite if we moved back). Now I have over 50 channels-worth of rubbish to click through! That's progress, I guess.

A circumstance beyond our control
But Dollhouse - that will be worth it. In fact, I've been checking the boards and already we are poised to start the 'Bring back Dollhouse' petition just in case Fox pull the plug. Now, I'm not going to start an anti-Fox campaign because who knows what goes on in these big corporations. I'm sure there are many able and dedicated people working at the Network. There have apparently been a lot of personnel changes since Firefly was so cruelly squished. So hope springs eternal. The writing for Dollhouse has been going on apace according to Whedonesque and other sources, so it will be interesting to see when casting is going to start and who gets what.

When I see what they have done
Oh yes, and we might get some exclusive insights into how it's all going, but you have to keep this really, really hush-hush. I mean it! I have some insider information from the world of Joss. Yes, I am about to get hold of some authentic extracts from Joss' personal diaries! Me! Now, don't go spreading that around because the deal could still fall through. Obviously, in order to protect the innocent and save my own butt I'll have to amend them slightly, so some of the details might not be 100% accurate. I'm meeting the guy (well, I'm assuming he's a guy) downtown later in the week so I'll let you know. He's emailing some older extracts today so I'll soon know if they're going to be worth it. As soon as I can check it all out I'll start posting. Here's hoping.