Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing (Trailers & Release Date)

I'm not the biggest fan of Joss Whedon out there*, but I definitely appreciate most of his work.

'Buffy'?

'Firefly'?

'The Avengers'?

Like, like, and like.

So I'm obviously excited about his newest movie that's coming out (not 'Arrested Development' excited, but pretty close).

My Tension Filled Relationship with 'Once Upon a Time'

Why I'm (Now) Watching 'Once Upon a Time:

Let me preface this by saying that I'm pretty much in love with Jennifer Morrison.

I recently went on a 'House MD' viewing marathon which led to me Googling Jennifer Morrison and lamenting her break-up with Jesse Spencer (because seriously, I learned that they dated/got engaged/broke-up in the span of five minutes). Then I remembered that her personal life was none of my business and decided that IDMB would be more useful and ethical.

Which is the first time I realized she was in 'Once Upon a Time'.

What If Sunday: Nathan Fillion, Joss Whedon, Angel, and BTVS

What if Nathan Fillion had been cast as Angel in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'?

It could have actually happened. The first time he auditioned for a Joss Whedon television show he was trying out for the part of Angel. According to Fillion (pictured on left) he didn't make it far enough through the auditions to actually meet the producers, so Whedon didn't see him then. Years later Whedon told him he wasn't even aware that he'd auditioned for the role (see clip at end).

It's clear that Whedon loves Fillion (as an actor, and I'm assuming also as a person). He's used him in multiple projects: in the final season of 'Buffy' (as Caleb), in 'Firefly' and 'Serenity', in 'Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog', and in 'Much Ado About Nothing'.

Because it's clear that Whedon loves Fillion's talent (which I'm in no way disputing he has), I'm secretly glad that Fillion didn't make it to the final casting round for Angel.

Fillion is a brilliant actor, and he's definitely multi-faceted. He's also attractive or, as they say on 'Castle', "ruggedly handsome". But he doesn't have the dark, brooding handsomeness that helped David Boreanaz fill the role. Everyone uses "dark" and "brooding" as adjectives for Boreanaz (image on left). Seriously, just try Googling those words with his name.




If Fillion had been cast as Angel it would have impacted the entire tone of the Buffy and Angel relationship, as well as many of the show's central plots. I know that looks are in no way the most important factor of an actor's performance, but they do matter.

Considering the fact that Fillion and Boreanaz are on quite similar shows now ('Castle' and 'Bones'), I wonder if their careers paths would have still followed the same trajectory if Fillion had been cast as Angel instead of Boreanaz. Luckily, we'll never know.

Will you be watching 'Ringer'?

Sarah Michelle Gellar (of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' fame) is making a much anticipated return to television tonight...will you be watching?

My guess is that the first episode will get an incredible amount of viewers. 'Buffy' was a show which had a mass of fans while it was on the air, and its fandom has only increased since it ended in 2003. It's hard to believe that Gellar (Buffy Summers) hasn't graced our TV sets in the last eight years!

I do have a big concern. Unless the show is a work of pure genius, I see no way that it can live up to its hype. I'm worried that the loyalty of 'Buffy' fans will lead them to tune in, and promptly tune out when they realize that this show is not 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'.

Sarah Michelle Gellar has mentioned in recent interviews that she has such loyal fans, and that this show has everything they want: it has intrigue, it's intelligent, etc. But what's going to happen when many of those fans prove to not be Gellar fans, but Summers fans instead?

'Ringer' premieres tonight (Tuesday, Sept 13th) at 9/8C on The CW.

What do you think? Will you be watching? Will 'Buffy' fans watch the show just because Sarah Michelle Gellar is in it?

It's Summer...What Are You Going to Watch?

What You Should Be Watching This Summer:

Now that summer's fully upon us (official June 21st!) what are you planning on watching while your favorite shows are on hiatus? Find some of my recommendations for live TV viewing and Netflix browsing below:



Mondays

1) Rizzoli & Isles. Premieres July 11th. Mondays 10/9 c on TNT.

Harmon (from 'Desperate Housewives') as a homicide detective. Alexander (from 'Dawson's Creek' and 'NCIS') as a medical examiner. They solve cases. They're best friends. There's homoerotic tension if you want to look for it.

2) Weeds. Premieres June 27th. Mondays 10/9 c on Showtime.
Marie-Louise Parker. Marijuana dealer. Mother to three. If you're going to watch this you have to play catch up first.

Tuesdays

2) Covert Affairs. Tuesdays 10/9 C on USA.

CIA. Hot female spy. Sexy James Bond lite. Enough said.

Wednesdays

3) Toddlers & Tiaras. Wednesday 10/9 c on TLC.

Ridiculous pageant moms and their children. Watch them 'train'. Watch them 'compete'. Watch the horror of child beauty pageants while sitting on the edge of your seat.

4) Damages. Wednesdays 10/9 c on DIRECTV.
Reality TV not really your thing? Watch Glen Close as a manipulative lawyer, and Rose Byne as her equally devious, slightly more genuine, younger counterpart.

Netflix It Anytime

5) Better Off Ted. Netflix.
If you missed this when it was on the air catch up with it right away. Crazy R&D firm. Portia de Rossi as an insensitive yet hilarious boss. Science nerds, children, and love interests.

6) Arrested Development. Netflix.
I know, I'm really pushing de Rossi's work. But this is pure genius. Watch it at least 3 times to get all the hidden subtext. Zany family, criminal charges, Michael Cera, and the most ridiculous plot you've ever seen. Plus, it has four characters all named some combination of George/Michael. How can you not love it?

7) Wonderfalls. DVD.
Recent Brown graduate works retail. Inanimate animals talk to her. They help her solve people's problems. Add a hot bartender/potential boyfriend and a hilarious closeted lesbian sister and you've got a must-watch.

8) Bones. Netflix.
Rewatch seasons 1-4 (all available on Netflix) and then somehow get your hands on season 5 and 6. Rewatch before November premiere date of season 7. Find the subtext. Reevaluate the writers...maybe they're not all crazy?

9) Law and Order: SVU. Netflix.
Crime, Benson, Stabler. It's all there. With 248 episodes you can really keep summer boredom at bay.

10) Parks and Recreation. Netflix.
Amy Poehler. Ridiculous local government. Rashida Jones. Oh, and did I mention Amy Poehler?

11) 30 Rock. Netflix.
Tina Fey. Alec Baldwin. Behind the scenes of an SNL-like show. Plus Jane Krakowski. Oh, and did I mention Tina Fey?

12) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the series). Netflix.
Because it's a cultural milestone. With a spunky ex-cheerleader and her quirky friends. Oh and said ex-cheerleader kills demons. Plus, early (note: hot) David Boreanaz.

Sarah Michelle Gellar: "The Ringer"

"Buffy's Back?!"

"Buffy's back" is the phrase that has been echoing in the blogosphere. The only problem this is that Buffy is not a real person. Unless you also believe that vampires are real. Then that's your problem.

Regardless, Sarah Michelle Gellar is back. And starring in a new CW show entitled 'The Ringer'.

I actually am pretty excited about this show. SMG plays two different women, identical twins who have been living separate lives. In fact, apparently their lives are so separate that their friends don't even know they have a twin. Basically one of the twins (from what I garner from the upfronts) is kind of a low-life who's an alcoholic and who is running from the law. The other twin is living a life of privilege with a lot of money and a lot of rich and powerful friends. So when poor twin "finds" (I suspect there's something fishy here) rich twin dead she obviously decides to impersonate her. I mean, who wouldn't?

Here's a short clip from 'The Ringer':

My biggest problem with the show is the fact that I'm worried it's going to be somehow tarnished by 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'. Don't get me wrong, I am 'Buffy' fan, but this show is clearly something completely different. And from what I'm reading online I'm concerned that hardcore Buffy fans will trash this show because they feel that it should be similar to 'Buffy'. Which it obviously will never be.




Regardless, SMG clearly knows that this show will not be another Buffy. As she says, "it's not trying to be 'Buffy', because nothing will be 'Buffy'". Still, she seems to think that people will watch the show because they're fans of her...isn't most of her body of work cheesy teen romance movies? Sure she was in 'Buffy' but people who watched that show often watched it because they were fans of the show, not necessarily of SMG. Still, we'll see if she has a fan base following her when 'The Ringer' premieres this fall on the CW.

The Musical Episode (Grey's Anatomy)

THE Musical Episode

So, I'm super excited about the "Grey's Anatomy" musical episode that's going to start in (about) 10 minutes. I even made pancakes to prepare. BUT what I'm not as excited about is all of the comments that have been posted on the web about how the episode will be "revolutionary".

Haven't any of you heard of the "Ally McBeal" musical episode (S3, ep21)? And what about the "Buffy" musical episode (S6, ep7)?

The "Ally" episode first aired in 2000. Entitled 'The Musical, Almost' it was true to its word. It wasn't really a musical, but it did include enough songs/singing that it reminded you of a musical.

The "Buffy" episode ('Once More with Feeling') was really, truly a musical. The entire main cast sang solos, and there were completely original full-length musical numbers interspersed throughout the dialogue. It aired in 2001, and was even nominated for an Emmy. Unfortunately it didn't win (many speculate this happened because it was accidentally left off of the ballots, see Wikipedia for more details).

Anyway, will the "Greys" musical episode be just as good? Maybe. But will it be revolutionary? No. Not when its been done twice before.


p.s. I just googled it and there are a bunch of other musical episodes too. Check out this blog.