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Gaiman and Whedon Discuss the Rise of the Geek
CABridges writes "In a lengthy Time Magazine interview, Neil Gaiman ("Sandman," "American Gods") and Joss Whedon ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Firefly") talk about their audience.
Gaiman: "Mostly they're people. They're us. That's what they look like."
Whedon: "They're a lot more attractive than I am, actually, which kind of disturbs and upsets me."
Both men, known for their cult-favorite creations, have movies debuting this Friday. For Gaiman it's MirrorMask, for Whedon it's Serenity."
Here's what I had to say on my little bio site about myself: geek - while it used to be a four letter word, it is now a (somewhat?) coveted title. Either that or people just have short memories. Regardless, knowing about technology and having a desire to constantly improve it is now almost as accepted as jaywalking.
fak3r.com
In the list of works for which Gaiman is known..."Don't Panic" is missing!
Procrastination -- because good things come to those who wait.
...talk about their audience. Gaiman: "Mostly they're people. They're us. That's what they look like."
So, the two interviewee's in the article are the only fans of each others' work?
What's going on here?
The folks on this site are more attractive than Whedon?! Holy shit, he must be really disfigured!
We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security. -- Dwight D. Eisenhower
I got to see Serenity three weeks ago and it was GREAT!! Seriously, go tell everyone you know to see it because the movie business requires a great opening weekend or else they quickly disappear. And if it disappears, no sequels.
One of my acquaintances also saw the special preview and he went out and bought the DVD's of the series.
Quick question, I heard that there are eight different versions of the movie that they were previewing, and that they were going to gauge audience reaction before the final release. Is that true?
there's no geeks around here.
So what are the rest?
Technoli
... but PETA complained about the chickens so I had to stop. Now I'm just a nerd.
Serenity ftw.
That said, Whedon has to be one of the most overrated writers, ever. IMO, YMMV, etc.
I am a believer of momentum and curves.
AVClub article
AVClub is from the same guys who do The Onion
This interview also features Dave McKean.
Ryan Fenton
Brought to you by the Linux/BSD Gangster boyz!
Geeks are attractive when they have big wallet bulges. Now that a few internet stocks have revived, especially the Google monster, geeks are in fashion again.
Gaiman and Whedon Discuss the Rinse of the Geek...
I was wondering what that smell was in the elevator...
Is there heaven? Is there Hell? Is that a Tuna Melt I smell?-Primus
Is that cute red-head in Serenity? Willow?
She was the only redeeming value in the Buffy show.
Honestly, I'm not impressed by their work. It's definitely geek material. It's like watching EverQuest, World of Warcraft, and EverQuest II on TV. A bunch of well endowed girls with doll-like figures capable of defeating creatures 10 times their size. They should go into game development.
My ZooLoo
Gratz, Time.com editors, you mispelled someone's name in the most glaring place possible: the headline of the piece (and on the HTML title).
When did the future switch from being a promise to a threat? -C. Palahniuk
Don't go, maybe they'll make the movie going experience not suck.
I hate going to the movies, I'd much rather rent/buy them.
Atlanta has a showing of mirrormask for 1 week only. The artist of mirrormask also does the sandman covers.
h p?date=0
Movie Times: http://www.atlantamovietimes.com/movies/4798910.p
- z
http://www.cgisecurity.com/
Believe me, if I started murdering people, there would be none of you left.
Always with the multiple pages, yes I know you get ansy and start doubleclicking words or some other psychological thing, but for those with attention spans:
One Nice Single Page With No Ads
The 'Rise of the Geek'??!? Well I guess that's nice for the next generation if up and coming nerds, but that doesn't make the pain and humiliation that was childhood any easier. So I like Star Trek, just leave me alone asshole! Hey, I'm trying to read my cosmology book, go away!
The days of the digital watch are numbered.
What's awesome about these two movies is that the talents behind them (and I include Dave McKean here) had complete control of the movies. The scripts, the direction, the marketing - everything. And guess what, it works. They follow through on their vision, no compromise for execs who don't get it, and produce something faithful to what they want.
/. isn't going to make anyone pay 5 bucks for a movie ticket, but if Mirrormask is on near you, go see it.
:)
And they produce excellent movies. Thought-provoking, entertaining, well directed, beautifully shot movies (without any 6 figure salaries).
I was luck to see both Mirrormask and Serenity at the Edinburgh Film Festival this year and both were amazing films for completely different reasons. I realise some random comment on
If you haven't seen Firefly, and Serenity is playing near you, go see it.
This is the new age of the auteur
"JW: But I also think there's a bit of misconception with that. Everybody who labels themselves a nerd isn't some giant person locked in a cubbyhole who's never seen the opposite sex. Especially with the way the Internet is now, I think that definition is getting a little more diffuse."
/.? YES
translation: Anyone geek can get laid with net pr0n.
Am I a geek? Let's see...
Pocket protector? NO
Bad hair/teeth/smell? NO
Own my own RAID? NO
Write apps for fun? NO
Collect Buffy and Transformer dolls? NO
Post on
He who knows best knows how little he knows. - Thomas Jefferson
That's the beauty of Whedon's work, he's the quintessential geek and he manages to showcase the self-deprecating humour so inherent in people with interests outside the mainstream.
Reading an outline for Buffy 10 years ago, you would have instantly assumed it was destined for a short-lived run and eventual shunting to a 2am timeslot before dissapearing into obscurity. Instead it became a cult hit, ran for seven seasons and spawned a massive franchise, including one of the few successful spin-off television shows.
Firefly, with it's mesh of sci-fi and old west, would have seemed likely to suffer the same fate. However after it's network axing, fan support (to which Whedon has paid tribute) has seen a movie release.
Both of these shows have succeeded, in part, due to Whedon's offbeat writing and his affinity for geek references. They've been elevated to cult status and after all, you can't beat a geek for obsessing about a television show.
Slashdot the theaters.
I'm going to use that line on my friends. (I've been pimping it to everyone I know; maybe one or two people who weren't going to go see it before will now.)
Laws do not persuade just because they threaten. --Seneca
It burns like hygiene!!!
[at a scrapyard] ...Ooh! Synchronizer!
Kaylee: Figures - first time in the Core, and what do I get to do? Dig through trash. Why couldn't he send me shopping at the Tri-plex, or
Laws do not persuade just because they threaten. --Seneca
Take a look at the Mirrormask promo site. They list all of its theaters on a single page. Not exactly a major blockbuster release, but hey one of them is near me, so I won't complain.
The trailer looks like a sharp left turn from Labyrinth, although I may have been swayed by the Henson logo.
Inspiration & visuals by Dave McKean, written by Neil Gaiman, where have I seen that combination before? But it's the first feature-length movie for both of them. If they're even half as good at film as they were at comics, should be a surreal treat.
I think one of the things that really propelled Joss Whedon to the front stage as a "great writer" is that the shows he did, a la Buffy, Angel, and Firefly, where competing against things like Suddenly Susan and Friends. His shows, and Buffy especially, had a wicked attitude, a beautiful fantasy/character driven show, and for most of us that started watching Buffy back in '97 it was a take on your every day high school, replete with jocks, cliques, bullies, and a-hole teachers. I think as it progressed, there was a certain age group that followed the series into through high school and into college, while they themselves were making the same transitions. And I'll definitely be seeing Serenity. Sci-fi just had a Firefly marathon so I'm ultra stoked.
suck my ping!
lately, I've been wondering why this is. It seems that "geek hood" is actually approaching a phenomenon. When people ask me what I do for a living, I'll usually give them a grin and say "Oh, I'm a professional geek". To which I usually get the response:
"Oh? What kind?"
Not a look of disdain that those growing up before, say, the 1990's might have received. Part of this I think it because of the dot-com boom (and bust): people saw that geeks could become millionaires, and if there's anything that influences people to do something it's money.
But the other thing is how much technology affects our lives. Cell phones and the Internet are on everyone's minds - you can't go 10 minutes without one some days. Because of this, geeks are now something of mystical wizards, the people who bring these cool "toys" to the masses to play with, including their iPods, the current status symbol, which 5 years ago was purely a geek music toy.
And because of this, I think that society is slowly starting to see the benefits of intelligence. Where before "egg headed intellectuals" would have been scoffed, intelligent activities are starting to aquire some respect. Look at TV shows: the most popular ones weren't just mindless driven, they were shows like "Lost" and "Battlestar Gallactica" and yes, "Desperate Housewives" (which I haven't watched), shows which contain very complex relationships and huge shades of gray in character.
The most popular books: Harry Potter, a book about a geek (a kid who likes to go to school and is best friend with the school uber-geek - a geek girl no less). Manga is becoming popular - I went into a bookstore and saw two whole isles, with 14 - 20 year olds hanging around - and not just the ugly ones, but cheerleaders looking at what once was only "nerd" material talking about how cute so-and-so is.
This isn't to say that those who are smart or different are entering Utopia - look at the current "Intelligent Design" debates and issues with extreme religious people trying to convert government to their way of thinking (as a religious person, this behavior really irks me. There's a reason why the "Render under Ceaser speak was made, and it's still applies, folks), or corporations muddling science (global warming? Where? Have another Hummer!) -
But things are getting better. Saying "I'm a professional geek" makes me the guy at parties people want to talk to. They ask about security, or about games they're playing (amazing how many executives have a PS2 these days), or just computer talk about their iPods or whatever. Yeah, they don't think I can play basketball, but that's ok.
I don't have to - I'm a geek.
Of course, this is all just my opinion. I could be wrong.
52 Weeks, 52 Religions with John Hummel
-- .sig you are looking for.
This is not the
See:0 7&tid=95
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/08/27/16272
where there's fish, there's cats
Joss Whedon has done some remarkable things. Probably none of these are original, but he's combined them consistently, into packages which are only less precious (like some entire series of Buffy) because of the sheer volume.
- He mixes long story lines with short ones so you can enjoy both individual episodes and entire series.
- He has unconditionally excellent camera work, with many long shots, excellent lighting, and hand-held effects that seem cheesy but actually work well.
- He makes great use of music.
- He develops stable groups of characters, bringing interesting social dynamics to the plots, and letting us identify with different characters. I'd like to be Spike, but I know I'm really Xander.
- He stays semi-real, semi-fantasy, allowing him to explore dark subjects (death and loss) in different ways.
- He brings big-screen production quality to every episode, so the DVDs are really worth having.
- His dialogues are usually so good that in the few cases where the characters become formulaic stand out.
On the downside, his work tends to be very politically neutral, which makes it safe, but bland. Serenity was cancelled because it was slyly political, Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham style. The shocker is that it managed to get aired at all, on Fox TV, which is basically a mouthpiece for the Sheriff.
The unfinished Serenity first series, by the way, was fantastic. A wonderful cast, and every single aspect of the production deliberate and perfect, as far as I could tell. I don't normally make an effort to see specific films but I'm eagerly waiting to see Serenity.
My blog
I find tons of people into what have been labeled as "geek" passtimes from the entire d&d thing to the sci-fi fanatics but it seems that the more these people are into these "geek" activities the less they seem "geek" to me.
Am I expectiong too much out of the geek label? Or do I have the wrong definition? I always seemed to think of a geek as someone with a high technical/mathmatical/scientific proficency. It just seems the more "hardcore" fans of geek entertainment seem to be less into the logistical/technical aspects of life and more into simply the fantasy world that real geeks (by my standards only) often get lumped in with.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
It is all about creative control. Someone with a real strong vision can make something uniquely cohesive and brilliant. Whether it's Straczynski's Babylon 5 or Frank Miller's Sin City, it's amazing what can be done when the grubby fingers of mediocrity are kept away from someone's bright ideas.
Of course, creative control doesn't guarantee quality. (See Ilene Chaiken's utter failure to even have consistend characterization on The L Word.) But a lack of it will pretty much guarantee mediocrity.
I want to come out of the theater saying "I have never, ever seen anything like that before." I did that after Sin City; I did that after the preview screening of Serenity that I saw.
Laws do not persuade just because they threaten. --Seneca
Does this geek forebode the geek return of geek Jon geek Katz?
And my very first thought was-
This looks like something akin to Dark Crystal, Labrynth, and Neverending Story (orginal, not the sequals).
And sure enough, one of the selling points on the trailer was that Jim Henson Company was part of the production.
It should be interesting, but sadly I don't think Dark Crystal or Labrynth enjoyed much success at the box office, and I fear that MirrorMask will share the same fate.
III.IIVIVIXIIVIVIIIVVIIIIXVIIIXIIIIIIIIVIIIIVVIII
These are classic geek genres, and Wallace & Gromit is something I can watch with the kids!
"Can of worms? The can is open... the worms are everywhere."
Yes, MirrorMask is in limited release right now. And at least some of those theaters are only running it for a week. According to Gaiman, if it does well on its opening weekend, Sony may try a wider release.
So if you're close enough to one of those theaters, and you're interested in seeing it on the big screen, go see it this weekend! (a) You might not get another chance, and (b) you'll help convince the studio to give it another chance.
People admire geeks' works - not geeks in themselves.
Teenage girls still go with the cool guys - if you're not cool, i.e. involved in something *boring* and not *popular*, you're a loser, period. The only thing that has changed is that some geek-specific jobs or hobbies have become more popular, like manga. Just because the mainstream know about the beauty and art of Manga doesn't mean they've earned more respect towards geeks, or get more interested in them.
I think geekness will never change. Geeks will always seek more, seek to know, to explore, and will sooner or later end up doing stuff that's not necessarily popular. Yesterday it was Startrek, then it was Manga - tomorror who knows? people will despise you because what you like isn't listed as cool in the one-word magazine teen girls read. Go to the highschool and ask a girl if she would date the guy everyone laughs at.
I really don't think geeks (or nerds, whatever the word) have become more accepted. People only become enamoured by the romantic vision of geeks: Hackers which do wonders with computers, or supergeniuses who do cool things with technology or "can repair my interweb thingy". But in reality, I doubt people accept the defects in geeks. It's really a discrimination problem, and i doubt people have stopped being racist towards geeks.
There will always be jerks and bitches to make fun of and ridiculize us. At least something conforms me. Geeks search and dwell in the things that will become popular tomorrow. We're pioneers, so to speak. It is a blessing, but there's a curse related with it. It's hard to work for a society that doesn't appreciate you.
"I hate trolls" - Willow
We used to be unclean, unloved by the opposiste sex, but in the modern, wired world, a geek is a bit like an all round handy-man about the house, who also (probably) pulls in a good salary, and lets face it, we're generally literally about the house when we're not at work (in front of the pc) rather than hanging around bars... We're pretty much IBM.
;)
Ideal Breeding Material
I remember ST:VI was completely different in the theater then it is on the home release, they re-cut the entire movie. Valeris was part Romulan and guy in the Klingon mask at the end was actually Klingon. They added all the stuff about the Fed military brass wanting to preemptively attack the Klingons. Plus a bunch of little dialogue changes were made.
They never really explained why or even noted that it had been re-cut (to my knowledge). In the theatre the whole thing was a Klingon-Romulan plot, where as at home it was a Klingon-Federation plot. The home version was really much more true to the Star Trek ideals of breaking down the barriers of racism and old rivalries (which is I suppose why it was re-cut); but I do wish I could see the theatrical version again, just for the sake of not paving over SciFi history.
Cool art gallery, if you're into that sort of thing.
As far as Whedon's writing skills are concerned. Best TV writer...possibly ever. There is no one else out there who has been able to successfully do the following 1. Write character arcs over SEVEN years that show true character growth. No one has ever done this-- with the possible exception of Joel Fleischman from Northen Exposure ALL TV character basically remain the same. Whedon changed that-- but if your're looking for characters that never mature...stick with the crap that's already out there. 2. Tackle controversial subjects without preaching..."Realistic" TV sermonizes...Whedon entertains and actually demonstrates the complexities of truly controversial subjects-- homosexuality, despair, feminism...etc. 3. Treat Death with dignity-- watch "The Body" from Season Five--- Six Feet Under could've taken some lessons from that episode. Real death was never trivialized on a Whedon show, the way crime shows and supposedly "avant-garde" shows on cable trivialize death. But then again for a nation hooked on narcissistic reality shows--- Whedon's writing skills may go unappreciated.
and you're being moved from place to place by people who want to make sure who we meet.
...The computer world needs better networkign skills.
Is that a hollywood phenomena? Who are these people, where do they come from?
(Hrm, i thought I would've had more)
-Myren
Tron (1982). WarGames (1983). http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113243/">Hackers (1995). Angelina Jolie was a geek. Ryan Phillipe was a geek. Not to mention Keanu Reeves. When geeks aren't busy proving fermat's last theorem, they're out saving the world from corporate scum. PS. I have no idea what that last link is about, it's the fruit of random googling.
http://www.sonypictures.com/movies/mirrormask/thea ters/Theatre List
Quick synopsis:
MIRRORMASK tells the story of Helena, a fifteen-year-old girl who works for her family's circus. Helena juggles, sells popcorn, and wishes that she could run away from the circus and join the "real world." Then, one day she wakes up to find herself in a magical world filled with fantastic beings and creatures, an alternate reality. It is a land of opposing kingdoms, one perpetually existing in light, the other in constant darkness. These lands have existed in perfect balance, until now. And Helena finds herself about to embark on a most remarkable journey.
MIRRORMASK is a new fantasy feature film in the tradition of The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. Gaiman wrote the screenplay and McKean directed, using a combination of live-action and CG animation. Lisa Henson, Michael R. Polis and Martin G. Baker are Executive Producers and Simon Moorhead is Producer. The film stars Stephanie Leonidas as Helena, Gina McKee as Helena's mother Joanne, as well as the two Queens, Rob Brydon as Helena's father and Jason Barry as Valentine.
"Dave McKean and I created the story and the script for MIRRORMASK in the Henson family home in London, surrounded by memorabilia and artifacts from Jim Henson's astonishing career in television and fantasy filmmaking," says Gaiman. "It was a true challenge and inspiration to try to make something today that would be as visually rich, creative, funny, and as moving as Jim Henson's original works."
Yes, you read correctly. I married a cheerleader. I'm a geek. Her dad is a geek, so I had an advantage. I rented the Serenity DVDs from NetFlix. She refused to watch. I tried to cash in my "But I watched XXX with you, in the theater, no less..." to no avail.
Ads for Serenity film came out. She left the room. Finally, they showed one during "Desperate Housewives", and she said "Gee, that looks like fun. Isn't that the one you wanted to see? We'll have to see that."
Marketroids get a point for that.
Here's hoping for a great opening weekend...
...simply the next class of people to be briefly fashionable, soon to be retro-stylee, soon to be maligned once again. Just because it's temporarily cool not to look shallow.
Revel in it while you can, the idiots like the geeks! Fortunately, most of the people I know are neither ;)
My word, appropriately enough, was "bluntest"
Serenity is mentioned quite a few times in the text . . . . :P
I'd like to be Spike, but I know I'm really Xander
I'm stealing your line.
I have to admit, I only got into Buffy et al recently, because continuing storylines in TV series, while I love them, are impossible without a regular schedule. I'm a full-blooded geek, I do the comics thing, I do the Star Wars thing, I write my own Atari 2600 utilities... but I never "got" Buffy, for the above reason mostly, but also because it really seemed to be a "chick" show. A show about a girl(s), for girls. With a few attractive supporting male charcters. Gilmore Girls with vampires. When Angel debuted, it seemed even MORE targetted squarely at 16 year old girls. This is how I viewed Buffy, and the occasional epidose I saw didn't draw me in enough, because it just seemed to be Sweet Valley High with vampires.
A couple of years ago I started getting the DVDs on the recommendation of a friend, and after the first season, I was hooked. I realized that the show was far more than some easily stereotyped genre film. Moved on to Angel, and actually got Firefly without even realizing it was Whedon's work. Been loving them all, even though it's damn near a thousand bucks spent at this point. I've tried explaining the attraction to non-fans, and most of them share my earlier opinion: it's a show for teenage girls.
Anyway, you've summed up exactly what it is about Whedon's work that draws me in: I'd like to be Spike, but I know I'm really Xander. Every show has its archetypes: the jock, the nerd, the cheerleader, the psycho (yes, I watched the Breakfast Club far too many times). Usually, I'd see the jock, wish I could be him, realize I'm the nerd, and get all irritated. With Buffy and the rest, that sort of realization makes me feel GOOD about myself.
Maybe it's just that the characters are not one-dimensional. The show presents the typical, simplistic view (cool tough guy vs. useless weak sidekick), but by the end you realize just who the real hero is of the two. And in a far more believable way than something like Spider-Man. The scene with Xander and Tara talking about what it's like to be "ordinary" people was something I've never seen done properly in fiction before. Amazing stuff.
Endless arguments over trivial contradictions in books written by ignorant savages to explain thunder in the dark.
Your average nerd is just like the black belt in Final Fantasy 1:
When you start off, he's weak, doesn't hit very hard, has no spells, and mostly a burden. But by the end of the game and after his class change, he's your party's powerhouse fighter that takes almost anything down in a few hits, and has a tremendous amount of HP.
It's a grand metamorphosis proving it's good to hang onto those things that don't immediately show you their worth.
Just to put this in context, I learned to program in 3rd grade (circa 1978) and built (as in soldering iron) my first computer in junior high school. I'm deep in this crowd.
That said, my prefered definition of "geek" was "someone with no socially redeeming qualities"; and "nerd" was "someone deeply engrossed in the academic, perhaps to a fault".
Hence, I was a nerd but not a geek. It's possible to be both; we all know them. To avoid banal exchanges (like this) over who was which and why, I just stopped using the words entirely.
Yeah, I'm a quitter.
I was really excited to see the "pilot" episode of Firefly air on Fox, but after watching it, I thought it sucked and never watched another episode. I got turned off by the Buffy-style in-jokes that I didn't get and lots of obvious character chemistry (and plot points) that made no sense without knowing history about the characters and the series. After the series was cancelled, I learned (from /.) that it was heavily edited and aired out of order. Combined with being shown in the Friday night "death slot", these reasons are what I'd heard had lead to the series' cancellation. I eventually read enough rave reviews to buy the DVD's, and loved the series enough to watch it a few times. I don't think the fictional-and-somewhat-unrelated political angle had any bearing on it's cancellation.
Bwaaaaa!
Need Geek Rock? Try The Franchise!
I am probably going to get modded down on this greatly as a troll or the like, but I have to say it so I will...
Everyone keeps talking about Firefly and Serentity as being wonderful and great programs. While I'll accept these as wonderfully fine opinions, it is important that some of you remember that this isn't what the majority of people are going to think, and don't be too surprised if the numbers for the movies are poor.
Just some thoughts on Whedon's 'great' shows: only one of them ever made it to a major network, Firefly, and we all know it didn't last long. Now it can easily be argued that this is because it was sci-fi or people can start the....the masses just don't understand...speeches, but in reality it might truly be a show that was never meant for network, or at least not the big four. We have all seen FOX makes some dumb decisions on shows (i.e. cancelling Family Guy) and making some dumb decisions on picking up shows. The truth of the matter is that FOX gambled on the show based on success of Buffy and/or Angel on their 2nd tier networks, and they lost.
I am not going to openly say that the show sucks, because some of what I watched of it I did enjoy, while other parts I trulty loathed, though that can possibly be said for other shows as well. It should also be noted that the movies launch date is post-Labor Day. With the exception of LotR in recent years, the movie industry makes its money during the summer run. So it might be possible for this to eke out a first or second place simply on your typical low fall movie turnout.
In the end I would like to see what more people say after seeing it, instead of just the people who went to the preview, most of whom have problem had the day circled on calendars for months. I also am tempted to see what the major movie critics say, because their opinions often influence the decisions of the masses. So there it is said, you can mod me up or down as you see fit...
"Some days you just can't get rid of a bomb."
Also missing is Neverwhere, which is not only an enjoyable novel, but was also made into an enjoyable TV mini series.
Sometimes my arms bend back.
I'm excited about both of the projects and I'm planning on going to a midnight showing Serenity tomorrow. The most interesting part of this though is the fundamental shift in the entertainment industry that both of these movies represent. "Movie" studios have been firmly taken over by their DVD divisions. There have been a lot of comments here asking why Firefly was given a movie deal after being seen as such a failure for Fox. The answer, it sold a boatload of DVDs, and Universal is counting less on a succesful theatrical release then they are on selling another boatload when it comes out on DVD. Plus, the markeing campaign for the movie acts as marketing for the existing DVD set, increasing sales there as well. Mirrormask, as someone else pointed out, was produced to be sort of a spiritual successor to the Dark Crystal and Labrynth, 2 movies that didn't have very successful theatrical releases but proved to have very long legs in the DVD sale market. I think these releases are really interesting becasue I think the studios are floating these out there as a test of a new business model, and if these movies spawn lucrative DVD releases, I think we're goign to see some major shifts in movie releases: a shortening of the window between theatrical and DVD releases, an increased emphasis on studio releases straight to the customer like home viewing of downloaded content (which might be great news for the BitTorrent guys if they can become the defacro transmission protocol) and eventually the death of the movie theater as we know it. These ideas of where the business is heading certainly aren't new, but these are the first releases I've seen that look like their number one goal is DVD sales and the theatrical release is secondary.
I am going to say this again: Geek sex is the best! Trust me!
PS: to any woman reading this - Don't even try to mess with my geek. Get your own!
My husband likes star trek...
...he is a Sys Admin...
...all other geek signs included....
Yes! He gets blowjobs and he does not have to ask for it !
He also gets porn occasionally, just to spice it up.
So... you see, if you have to ask for it (or pay for it), YOU are the one not doing it right!
The showing-out-of-order and at-really-odd-times was either gross stupidity on behalf of Fox TV... and that is actually quite a convincing explanation... or it was a deliberate ploy to make the series look bad so that cancellation would not be an issue. Your reaction - "it sucked" is quite typical of those who watched it on TV. Watch it again on DVD, in order, and I'll bet you lunch that you will find it up there with the best stories you've ever watched.
My blog
I'm folding in a different thread, but I think the sign of a good show (either for me or similar people) is that the show *was* cancelled on network TV!
There have been several shows over the years including FireFly, The Tick, Costello, Cupid, and most recently Keen Eddie which were on for typically a half-season or less (usually Spring filler) before being dropped. Those were some amazing shows, and at least these ones were hilarious and insightful - two characteristics I love in a show.
But there is also a contrarian trend of shows where they were dropped from network TV when they were loved, then somehow were brought back to life - but as the living dead. Shows in this group are: The Drew Carey Show, Family Guy and.. I can't remember. Really, after the love people had for them in the first 2+ seasons, they came back as... Less fun, certainly. Less something else too... Spirited?
BTW, I almost immediately got the FG DVD set - and watch it more than the new shows.
YMMV,
8-PP
You can just try to find an old VHS copy of it. The "home" version did indeed at one point not have the bits where the Klingon was really a Federation guy in disguise, etc, because I remember seeing it. But yeah, the home version I think is better, anyway.
It just means there won't be graphic sex. Violence isn't enough to get anyone in trouble anymore.
Denver Isuzu Suzuki
Well,yeah a quitter also. So quit with the self-aggrandizement willya?
A better link, for the raw numbers used in the above chart:
http://www.fireflyfans.net/amazon.asp
Though he lives in America now, I don't think you can rightfully accuse him of 'Typical American Arrogance', though the movie listings are from Sony's site. Does that make it 'Typical Japanese Arrogance'?
Spawn two weeks AFTER the video release? Please tell me that your theatres in Canada now have color AND sound. :)
Well, they can't be completely isolated if ships like Serenity drop by-- they're about as isolated as, say, rural Mexico. Tourist busses full of people with expensive cameras and phones roll through all the time, but many of the residents are poor. It's not a lack of access, exactly-- it's a lack of money. It's not like the incredibly poor can't hitch a ride or make the walk to the Best Buy equivalent two hours away, it's just pointless if you don't have any money.
There are plenty of people here on earth with absolutely no modern technology, and the appearance of spaceships is not likely to change that. In fact, I don't think I'm any more likely to have access to a spaceship of my own than I am to have access to my own airplane today.
Of course, without knowing *which* 15 minutes you saw, I have no idea. Absolutely no tech whatsoever is a bit unlikely, like you say. I remember the show a little differently-- things like ramshackle whorehouses in the desert covered in solar power fabric. The sort of high-tech artifact you might actually find in a backwater. The areas of the world that truly have no access are getting rarer, but they do still exist-- some of them by choice. I'm not entirely sure what the Amish would do with spaceships-- is hitching a ride to start your non-tech life somewhere else okay?