Tagged: Firefly

Marc Alan Fishman: Whedon’s S.H.I.E.L.D. Has Already Been Canceled!

OK, no it hasn’t. But I bet I sure got your attention. Let’s have a quiet chat here, nerds, shall we?

Joss Whedon, Emperor of the Nerds, has ascended to the top of the mountain in Hollywood. Who knew all it took was a couple billion bucks behind the largest franchise film in history to get there? With that being said, Disney / ABC / Marvel has officially dropped the proverbial “dump-truck of money” at Joss’ gilded doorstep. And with it comes his triumphant return to television. And every geek in America (and parts of Europe and Asia, I suppose) holds its breath in anticipation.

The S.H.I.E.L.D show, as we’ve gleaned from what few words have graced us from St. Serenity, will take place in the Marvel Movieverse, but will not be sequel to The Avengers. Aside from that? Well, there’s not much else being said. So what are we to do? Speculate of course! Consider this my open air wish list for the show itself. What it could be, and what it shouldn’t.

First and foremost? I want continuity. I want the show to play in not just New York. I want weekends in Wakanda, layovers in Latveria, as well as trysts in the Triskelion. Marvel has a rich tapestry to explore, and a series that gets too many kicks in a single environment ends up becoming predictable. I’d like to think of the helicarrier as our Serenity, and the 616 provides us a new and cool place to explore every week.

And while we’re on that topic, who, prey-tell, should be doing the exploring? If I had my way, I’d free Colbie Smulders from How I Met Your Mother (which I truly love) in lieu of a permanent station as the show anchor. Whedon is known for his strong portrayal of female characters. Sadly, the movie was too pumped full of testosterone to really have much for Maria Hill or Black Widow to do beyond get a little scuffed, and pouty. I say play to your strengths, Master Joss. Maria Hill would not only be recognizable to the masses, but she (Ms. Smulders) has the depth and chops to carry a show on her shoulders with ease. And beside her? Well, I want all the S.H.I.E.L.D. stalwarts. Dust off Falcon, Quartermaine, and the offspring of Dum Dum Dugan (since I believe he was in the Cap movie and is quite not-amongst-the-living).

And what good guy is good without a bad guy to combat? Marvel’s bench is deep with cool villains perfect for the silver screen. Obviously no spy-based show in the 616 would be worth its’ salt without the perfunctory associations of ne’er-do-wells: Hydra, AIM, the Hand, etc. Heck, bonus points if they incorporate “The Ten Rings” from the Iron Man franchise. But aside from the machinations of large criminal organizations comes a bevvy of singular baddies that S.H.I.E.L.D. could be responsible for removing from the picture. Who here wouldn’t giggle a little if they saw the Purple Man, Baron Zemo, or dare I suggest the Hood making their way onto the teevees? No one, that’s who.

And would it be too much to ask for an occasional cameo? Yes, we know that all the Avengers are going to have full dance cards for a while. But nothing, and I mean nothing keeps fans (casual and crazy) coming back for more than the off chance the real Dr. Banner, Dr. Stark, or Captain America shows up to shoot the breeze. And if not for our “actual” movie stars, maybe a secondary cameo from Dr. Selvig, General Ross, or Agent Coul – err… never mind. The point remains the same. After five-plus feeder movies? There’s a metric ton of characters in the toybox that will help keep the show fresh.

And if I have only one wish fulfilled for this show-to-be… it’s all in the presentation. Smallville started strong, but quickly degraded into predictable schlock. The tendency for all TV (dramas and sci-fi shows alike) is to become machines of procedure. S.H.I.E.L.D. can’t bode well if it quickly becomes “case of the week.” Same could be said if it goes the direction of Lost or Heroes… and becomes obsessed with serialization. The key is, was, and will always be balance. Have an overarching storyline peppered with great single episodes to chew on. With an ensemble cast in place, this will all fall in line.

Ultimately, Whedon’s return to the medium that has raised him up as much as it’s let him down stands to be a great reckoning for our king-nerd. Where Firefly and Dollhouse were quickly dispatched due to poor schedule placements and too-small-of-a-fanbase-to-keep-it-on-the-air, S.H.I.E.L.D. stands the most promise to succeed if only for it’s parent franchise feeding the masses now hungry for more Marvel. You know, all those people who loved the movie(s) but were way too afraid of going to a comic shop to read about their new favorite characters. So long as the show can walk the line between “cool spy adventures” and “snarky fan-service”, and Marvel backs the show up with continually successful movies… the sky is the limit. And in that sky? A gleaming CGI set for the Triskelion.

Marc Alan Fishman and fellow ComicMixers Emily S. Whitten, Mike Gold, Glenn Hauman and Adriane Nash will be at the Baltimore Comic-Con today and tomorrow, mostly hanging around his Unshaven Comics booths, selling his wares to the unwary, and screaming obscenities at nearby Yankees fans. Drop by and say hello.

SUNDAY: John Ostrander and George Bernard Shaw, Shakespeare, Del Close, and Stan Lee.

 

Martha Thomases: Whedon and Women

Summer’s here and the time is right for geeking in the street. In a triumph of nerd culture, The Avengers may be the most successful movie of all time. Certainly, with the second week box office results breaking all kinds of records, there is more going on here than people who read comic books going opening day. There aren’t enough people who read superhero comics to make a movie that successful.

There are, however, enough shared values among comic book creators and movie creators to make a hit. In the case of The Avengers, a lot of the credit must go to Joss Whedon. Whedon earned his cred not only by writing awesome comics, but by producing Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, and Dollhouse.

Those shows had loyal fan bases (which didn’t overlap enough, or we’d still have the latter two on the air). They also shared a marvelous, matter-of-fact feminist sensibility.

The critical response? Not so much.

Most of the critical reviews single out Scarlett Johansson, saying she can’t act, or she’s only there to look pretty. One comment called her a female Keanu Reeves, which irked me for multiple reasons. I enjoy Keanu Reeves. I thought he was brilliant in My Own Private Idaho. And I really like Johansson in The Avengers. I believe she, like her character, has a brain in her head.

What I mostly enjoy about her character is the fact that her motivations are similar to those of her teammates. She wants to rescue her colleague, Hawkeye. Being on the team is part of her job, which she takes seriously.

The Black Widow is not on the team because she’s somebody’s girlfriend or sister. She’s not there to provide a love interest for a more important male character. She’s not there to be taken hostage by the bad guy (a role played, too some extent, by Hawkeye). She is not murdered and stuffed in a refrigerator. She doesn’t wear a costume that is more revealing than anyone else’s, or that defies the laws of physics to keep the film’s PG-13 rating. That’s reserved for the Hulk’s pants, which seem to grow when he does during the New York City battle.

Of course, she must be vilified.

In our popular culture, we’re very threatened by women who consider themselves to be just as able and just as interesting and just as important as men consider themselves to be. If women find meaning in their own lives, a huge market in cosmetics, plastic surgery, fashion and hair color dries up. If women think they can find meaning and value within themselves, they might only wear stiletto heels as a lark, and not proof of their femininity. They might have relationships with men they like, and not for status or validation.

The powers-that-be don’t enjoy that possibility. They’ve kept it out of almost all the other super-hero stories.

As fans and as feminists, we have an obligation to hold their feet to the fire when the inevitable sequels arrive. Joss can’t – and shouldn’t – have to do it alone.

SATURDAY: Marc Alan Fishman 

Dennis O’Neil: So, Who Didn’t Like The Avengers?

Yeah, yeah. I know it’s early in the summer movie season – I do have a calendar, after all – and two of the three big superhero flicks won’t be on screens for weeks yet. But for now, let us proclaim; Joss Whedon is king of the superheroes!

A couple of days ago, Mari suggested we go to the movies and I said no, I had work to do, and then, about ten minutes later I said yes, let’s go to the movies, and we did.

Marvel’s The Avengers, of course.

I don’t attend the 21-plex to criticize – to pry faults out of what’s intended to entertain me and maybe convince myself that I’m really a smart guy. I used to do that for money – the fault-prying part – and though it was okay for me then, it wouldn’t be okay now. I don’t want to criticize, I want to get out from under it. Not to have to think for a little while.

And yet… I don’t want my intelligence insulted, either. When that happens, the magic is gone and there I am, right back under it. So, for example, I loved the Indiana Jones flicks because they delivered the escapism I sought and didn’t expect me to forgive plot glitches, which tend to get in the way of enjoying the escapism. Anything that pulls me out of the story, that makes me question did he director and writer intend what I just saw or is it a mistake? – anything that does that sabotages the experience.

The Avengers verdict: not guilty.

Mr. Whedon understands the appeal of the early Marvel comics, the ones he read as a kid, and what made them work: the broad, extravagant action, the rough edges on the heroes, the occasional flashes of humor, the juxtaposition of larger-than-life characters with realistic settings. (That sure looks like the real New York City the villains are trashing.) He’s translated these from the language of comic books to the language of movies, filled in some blanks, provided some motivations, hired good actors who didn’t condescend to the material any more than he did, gave them decent dialogue and then put the special effects wizards to work and…

Presto! Behold what I think is the best Marvel movie yet (though the first Iron Man might also be worthy of that title).

Did I mention that Joss Whedon, of teevee’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the Dollhouse and Firefly wrote and directed The Avengers? No, I didn’t – my bad – but you figured that out, if you didn’t already know it before you started reading this. Well, that same Joss Whedon had this to say to a Time magazine journalist: “I love fantasy…I love it because of the scope and the chance to talk about humanity that is very close to the heart but not wearing the same skin.”

Go buy yourself a movie ticket and see what he’s talking about.

FRIDAY: Martha Thomases On Alien Sex

 

PRO SE KICKS OFF ‘THE PRO SE OPEN!’

A leader in New Pulp Fiction, Pro Se Productions announced today openings in several upcoming anthologies and a new way that the company would be soliciting writers to participate in  upcoming collections.
  
“One of the thrills,” stated Tommy Hancock, Partner in and Editor in Chief of Pro Se,  “of being a New Pulp writer and publisher is the need to write and offer opportunities for others to write all the cool ideas that could possibly fit between the covers of a book. This fact is something that Publishers, small and large alike, recognize.  As Pro Se’s presence increases at Conventions/Conferences, one question more than any other comes up constantly. And it’s the question a Publisher wants to hear, one that, fortunately for Pro Se, has been unsolicited. That is, writers and artists seeking out Pro Se and asking this most favorite of questions- “You got anything open for submissions?” or the very similar “What anthologies can I submit to?”


“After giving this some thought and looking at how not only the New Pulp crew does it, but also at how larger presses and even the largest of the Publishers handle such things, Pro Se has decided to change up its Anthology process a bit. This will not affect how PULP OBSCURA or future ‘invite only’ Anthologies are done at all. There will still be special projects, of course. But there will also be the PRO SE OPEN.”


“Essentially,” explained Hancock, “The Pro Se Open will be a list of Anthologies that Pro Se plans to do in the future. This is an open call on all the books listed in the Open, that is anyone can submit a story for any of the books in the list. There is no deadline essentially, that is until all the slots open in any given book are filled.”


The Process will be as follows-
1. An upcoming Anthology is listed in the Pro Se Open.
2. Submissions are accepted (a 2-3 paragraph proposal for the story and at least a two page writing sample if you are a new writer submitting to Pro Se)
3. When the slots for the collection are all filled, a deadline will be set of approximately ninety days from the closing of the anthology. This will give writers time to complete their tales, artists time to do covers, etc.
4. The book will be published within approximately 30 days following the passing of the deadline.

 Even though the deadline will be 2-3 months out once a book is closed, Editors assigned to these projects will follow up, monitor, and make sure work is being done. Steps will be taken to move the anthology along as planned if work is not being done in a timely manner.  This means, however, that until all the slots are filled on an anthology in The Pro Se Open, it will remain open, but it is Pro Se’s commitment that once all the works are in for a particular collection, that that collection move into high gear toward publication, regardless of current publishing schedule.

The Pro Se Open will be updated periodically as to adding new collections and removing ones that have been filled.

Anthologies currently listed in the Pro Se Open are as follows- 

PULPOLOGY- It has been said often that Pulp has its origins in ancient tales, legends, the mythologies of many lands. Taking this to heart, this anthology will feature stories starring characters from mythologies around the world! Actual mythological characters in new adventures set in their own era, the ancient world of heroes and monsters, or updated takes on classic myths (Jason and The Argonauts in the Old West, for example). Either way, these stories will spotlight the characters and strengths of mythologies world wide and put a two fisted, high octane Pulp spin on the legends themselves! 6 Stories, 10,000 words each.

THE ADVENTURES OF MOOSE AND SKWIRL, TROUBLETAKERS- Trouble happens everywhere in the universe. Any time. Any place. And to make sure whatever cockeyed balance there is is kept, the universe takes care of itself, assigning special individuals to the unpredictable, unrewarding, and usually life threatening task of just being in the completely wrong places at the totally right times to hopefully keep everyone…or most everyone from dying. But the universe doesn’t trust just one person to do this, no it works in groups of two. Moose-Stocky, barrel chested, two fisted, sarcastic, and ready to deliver a soliloquy over the bodies of whoever stands in his way… And Skwirl-Seductive, sexy, and with a sense of humor that could kill….literally. These two ‘Trouble Takers’ travel space and time very much at random, figuring out whatever issue they are thrown into and then fixing it. In their own unique, usually very destructive, bloody way. Five slots, 12,500 word stories ( If interested, request short bible for this one).

SIX GUNS AND SPACESHIPS- This is a wide open, do it as you want Space Western Anthology. The requirements- It’s got to be a mash up between classic westerns and space opera (Firefly, Outland, Bravestarr, just a few examples). It doesn’t take place on Earth at all, has to be off planet, but time period and location beyond that are up to the writer! 5 open slots, 12,500 word stories.

TO LOVE AND DIE- Pulp Romance is back! And its deadlier than ever! These stories will be set in any time period up until modern day and must feature two things-Romance…and Treachery. These stories may be mysteries, horror tales, adventure yarns, whatever, but there must be a strong core of romance mixed with danger throughout. Six Open Slots, 10,000 word stories

NEWSHOUNDS! – Dogged reporters, crusty editors, copyboys and cub photographers with dreams of grandeur, Pressmen who know the city lives and breathes by what they print! One of the most fertile grounds for action packed pulp has always been the newspaper office. And all those wonderful character types and more all work for The Partisan, a 1950s paper partial to the common man, to righting the wrongs done against the innocent and the weak! And this gaggle of hard bitten, hard fighitng men and women are known near and far to those who love them and those who wish to see them dead! Do No Wrong in Their City unless you want it covered by the Newshounds! 5 open slots, 12,500 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)

THE NINTH CIRCLE-VOLUME ONE, This collection centers around a crime ridden precinct and borough in a city that shuffles its misbegotten and forgotten to THE NINTH CIRCLE. Six Slots-10,000 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)

DEAD MAN WALKEN- This western adventure has enough intrigue and mystery to choke a horse! A town is savagely attacked by a ruthless band of outlaws and most of the citizens killed, including the promising sheriff elect, Fitch Walken. A month after the massacre and all the bodies are buried, Fitch Walken stumbles into town, the last three months of his life gone from his memory! The mystery deepens when Walken’s grave is exhumed…and he’s IN THE COFFIN! What follows is the classic struggle of a man to find out who he is, what happened to him, and just which side of good and evil he will stand on! Five Slots Open-12,500 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)

THE BLACK FEDORA-A BOOK OF VILLAINS- This is just what it says it is, an anthology dedicated to stories about the bad guys we love to hate. These stories will focus on original villains and of course the heroes they face, these tales similar in style to the FU MANCHU stories of the past. But this isn’t only for yellow perils!! Any type of villain that populates pulp is welcome to try on THE BLACK FEDORA! Two slots open, 15,000 word stories

HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY-Ever wanted a chance to write a masked man enforcing justice in ancient Egypt? Or a larger than life genius and his team of heroes righting wrongs in renaissance Italy? Or mad scientists terrorizing the Arizona desert towns of the Old West? Then here’s your chance! HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY will include stories of traditional pulp concepts and tropes plopped into our very own past, pre 1900! Take your favorite pulp stereotype and wrap it up in ancient or not so ancient places and people and join us in HIGH ADVENTURE HISTORY! Five Slots open, 12,500 words stories.

THE SHAMUS DIRECTIVE is a project actually founded in historical context. Just prior to and all during World War Two, The United States government via the FBI as well as members of the Armed Forces, developed dossiers on all licensed Private Investigators in the country. A list was then comprised of the ones deemed appropriate and ‘good’ and they were then considered to be ‘cleared’ to be used in espionage missions, mostly on the homefront, or missions that regular forces just could not deal with for various reasons. THE SHAMUS DIRECTIVE poses the theory that not only was this list compiled, but the people on it were truly the world’s greatest detectives and they were formed into sort of a team to handle major issues in conjunction, even maybe saving major parcels of land and people in the process. Three Slots Open, 10,000 word stories (If interested, request short bible for this one)


If you’re a writer or artist and are interested in these anthologies or have questions, email Hancock at proseproductions@earthlink.net! And check out Pro Se at www.prosepulp.com and www.pulpmachine.blogspot.com.


JOHN OSTRANDER: WWKL?

This week marked fifteen years since the death of my sometime writing partner and lovely wife, Kimberly Ann Yale. Since here we talk about pop culture in so many different forms, I thought I would pose myself a question – WWKL? What Would Kim Like? What has come out since her death that she would really have gotten into?

Let’s start right here – on the Internet. First of all, she would have loved ComicMix and probably would have had her own column here. Kim was a terrific essayist – much better at it than me, I think. She was thoughtful, she picked words with care and grammar and punctuation really mattered to her. Me? If it gets past spellchek, I’m good.

In fact, I think Kim would have been all over the Internet. She would have had a blog or two or three, she would have been answering other peoples’ blogs, she would have been Queen of Facebook. Facebook was invented for someone like Kim. She would have had a bazillion friends on FB. I would have had to pry the computer from her.

Kim was also big into monsters and horror, vampires being her especial faves. I think she would have favored True Blood over the others because of the sex and the melodrama and the Southern-fried aspects of it all. (Kim’s mom was Southern and Kim fancied herself as a Southern belle. Kind of hard to do when you’re born up North but her mind worked it around.) The Dark Shadows movie starring Johnny Depp? Eeeeeeeeee! She would be camped out for it right now.

I think both The Walking Dead comic and TV series would have sucked her in but she would have been tickled by Shaun Of The Dead. Kim had a terrific sense of humor and the world’s most infectious laugh. Trust me – if you were a stand-up comic or doing a comedy in the theater, you wanted Kim in the audience.

I wonder what she would have made of Cowboys And Aliens? She was the one who got me started watching westerns and they were among her favorite genre films and, of course, adding sci/fi to it would have really intrigued her but I’m not sure what she would have made of the execution. I only give it two stars and I think she would have agreed (Kim also worked as a movie critic back in Chicago for a small suburban newspaper, so she could really knew how to dissect a movie.)

On the cowboys and spaceships mode, I think she would have been into both Firefly and the movie tie-up, Serenity. And Nathan Fillion would have led her to the Castle TV series (she also loved fun mysteries and strong female characters).

Then there’s Doctor Who. Kim and I met at a Doctor Who con (actually, a combined Doctor Who / Chicago Comic Con) and she would have rejoiced at the Doctor’s return. I think she would have liked David Tennant’s Doctor the best; she would have described him as a “creamie” – as in cream your jeans. However, she would have liked all three incarnations that have come out since the series’ return and, as a writer, would really enjoyed Stephen Moffat’s writing and now running of the franchise. She would have also liked his take on Sherlock Holmes and on Jekyll and Hyde. I stopped watching the latter during its first season; not because it wasn’t good but because it really creeped me out too much.

On movies, she would have been amazed and ecstatic with The Lord of the Rings trilogy and would, as Mary and I are doing, been waiting impatiently for The Hobbit movies coming out. Viggo Mortensen would also have been counted as a creamie.

She would have been fascinated by how CGI made superhero movies possible and what happened as a result. Christopher Nolan’s Batman films, especially The Dark Knight, would have sucked her in and, come Hallowe’en, she would have dressed up as Ledger’s Joker, no question in my mind about it.  I think, however, she would have been even more taken with Inception – Kim had an active dreamscape and tried to spend as much time in it as possible so the movie’s setting would have fascinated her.

She would have liked Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man (less so the sequel) not only because he was so good (and he was) but because she was also a sucker for redemption stories and Downey’s reclamation of his career would have stirred her. She would also have really liked Chris Hemsworth as Thor (creamie) and the whole Captain America film and she would really be anticipating The Avengers, not the least because Joss Whedon is helming it.

I could go on much longer but I think I’ve tried everyone’s patience enough. I may be just projecting onto Kim what some of my own likes and dislikes are but it refreshes her memory in my own mind and heart, keeping the flame alive. She was full of life and she would have brought that with her into the future. Like all those we treasure, she lives on in me and in all those she loved and loved her.

Memory doesn’t die with the body, and neither does love.

MONDAY: Mindy Newell

 

Fast Company interviews Morgan Spurlock about San Diego Comic-Con Documentary

Fast Company interviews Morgan Spurlock about San Diego Comic-Con Documentary

Morgan Spurlock at the Sundance Film Festival ...

Image via Wikipedia

Fast Company talks with Morgan Spurlock about his documentary Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope (which comes with a companion book that Spurlock describes as “If Taschen made your high school geek yearbook”), how his generation liberated creativity for the basement-dwelling set, and how video games are the next gen’s comic books.

Organizers had routinely denied previous requests to document the event, fearing a public mocking of a misunderstood subculture. But that all changed when Morgan Spurlock Super Size Me, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold came calling with the support of his “geek dream team”: comics legend Stan Lee, Ain’t It Cool News’ Harry Knowles, writer Jeremy Chilnick, and wunderkind producer Joss Whedon Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly.

via Spurlock Penetrates The Nerd Herd In Comic-Con Doc | Fast Company.

Preview: ‘V’ 2.0

Preview: ‘V’ 2.0

Like we haven’t had enough science fiction shows from the 80’s remade lately… here’s the trailer from ABC’s upfronts for V:

Yes, that’s Elizabeth Mitchell from Lost and Morena Baccarin from Firefly with the butch haircut.

Interestingly, some people are finding current political metaphor in it, such as David Sirota in Salon:

Am I crazy or does this preview make the show seem like a
not-so-subtle fringe-right-wing criticism of Obama and Obama followers?

In questioning Obama’s citizenship and heritage, conservatives
have always portrayed Obama as an alien visitor. They’ve also
constantly implied that behind Obama’s friendly veneer are sinister
motives – and they seem to believe that while most of the public are
gullible fools believing in Obama as a savior, they and their tea-party
protestors see the “real truth” of those motives.

Now, didn’t I basically just describe that preview?

And James Poniewozik from Time:

Remake of the classic alien-invasion miniseries plays in the trailer,
weirdly, like an allegory of the Obama election: aliens come to Earth,
promise “hope” and “change” (words actually used), inspire cult-like
devotion, but have creepy intent and are secretly lizards. Maybe I’m
reading too much into it. But it has potential to be Glenn Beck’s new
favorite show.

The original metaphor was the Aliens were based on the Nazis. Now it’s Obama? Terrific.

Fox Finds ‘Good Vibrations’

Fox Finds ‘Good Vibrations’

Good Vibrations is a potential animated mid-season replacement series for Fox. Created by Pineapple Express’ David Gordon Green, Variety says the show “centers on two high school surfer dudes who live near the beach in California.”

The trade also reports voice casting is complete and will feature Josh Gad (Back to You), Adam Brody (The O.C.), Debi Mazar (Entourage), Olivia Thirlby (New York I Love You), Alan Tudyk (Firefly) and Jake Busey (Broken).

Gad will star as Mondo, an “out-of-shape, shaggy-haired teen looking to master surfing and win over Jeena (voiced by Thirlby) — who thinks of Mondo more like a brother.”

Brody, the once and maybe future Flash, plays Woodie, Mondo’s best friend. Tudyk will supply the voice for Lonnie, “an old surf bum who doubles as the show’s narrator.”