Question: Loved the Whedon treat in last week's AA. Did you see Serenity? And hey, wanna be my peep?
Answer: I liked — not loved — Serenity. Since I missed most of Firefly's run (go ahead, excommunicate me now), a lot of stuff went over my head. That said, it doesn't take a Browncoat to figure out that Nathan Fillion is the next Harrison Ford. Why he's not already a member of Hollywood's A-list is beyond me. And sure, I'll be your peep, Martin! Want to come to CarnyCon with me this spring?
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This week on Surface or, as I prefer to call it, "Lake Bell Has Really Tan Legs," we learn several more key elements in the sea monster mystery. Perhaps most important: You may think you're safe if you move your water-sport shenanigans to a freshwater lake, but apparently the ground can still open up and create a bottomless whirlpool of death. OK, oceans bad. Lakes bad. We can still hang out at Yellowstone, right? Wrong. Old Faithful's trying something a little new this year, and it's called spewing molten lava. Sorry, campers.
So Miles is still having big electrocute-y fun with little Nimrod, and Laura's trying to get her career back on track by, uh, waiting tables and holding clandestine meetings with Creepy All-Knowing Scientist Guy. But this episode's high drama pretty much belongs to Rich, who isn't handling his brother's death all that well. He comes off looking pretty normal when you compare him to the other nut jobs trying to uncover the world's Hidden Biology
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Buffyverse ruler Joss Whedon — whose Firefly flick Serenity hits theaters one week from today — has inked a seven-figure deal with Universal to write and direct the fantasy thriller Goner. "It's the story of a young woman's journey that involves a great deal of horror and some heroics," he tells Variety. "It's certainly darker than Serenity, and there are a lot of left turns along the way. It is something I had in mind for a while, and it just poured out of me when I finished my film." Of course, Goner will have to wait until Whedon finishes Warner Bros.' big-screen Wonder Woman flick and (hopefully) gets the ball rolling on that long-rumored Spike TV movie (hint hint, nudge nudge, slap slap).
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Question: There has been a lot of mention of some of the TV makers who garner a cult following (you've expressed your J.J. Abrams love, while I am a card-carrying member of the Cult o' Joss). With Veronica Mars being lifted up for a second season off the backs of a couple of million people, Firefly becoming a major motion picture, and Abrams being ABC's new golden boy (especially with some major motion pictures of his own coming), which following has the most TV pull? Also, are networks starting to take such cult popularity more seriously with the continuation of shows like Mars, Arrested Development and Scrubs, considering none of them is a ratings dynamo?
Answer: Given that J.J. Abrams has a monster hit with Lost, and is entrenched in the making of a potential movie blockbuster, he probably wins this particular sweepstakes as well. But the minute Joss Whedon decides to throw his hat back into the TV ring, I would imagine it would spark a bidding frenzy to get his next project (unless
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Question: Is there any possibility that Fox would bring back Firefly, should Serenity prove to be a success? Surely Fox realizes that they made a mistake in canceling that show.
Answer: If anything, it's more likely that the Sci Fi Channel, which is currently running repeats of the series, would commission movie or miniseries sequels depending on how well Serenity does or doesn't do. (And, knowing Sci Fi, depending on the budget.) When I saw the movie at a screening, I was struck by how much I enjoyed seeing these characters again, but how much more satisfying Serenity might have been if this story could have played out over several chapters, like a TV miniseries. Fox is out of the picture altogether, and given the way the show was treated the first time around, that's probably a good thing for everyone ...
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