Filed under: OpEd, Grey’s Anatomy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, TV Squad Lists, Features

If you love bridal shows and haven’t checked out ‘Say Yes to the Dress’ yet, now is a perfect opportunity. The reality series returns Friday, April 30, 9PM ET on TLC, and it’s all about the inner workings of Kleinfeld Bridal, a premiere bridal salon whose goal is to make every bride completely happy with her wardrobe for the big day.

In honor of the show’s return, I’ve compiled a few TV weddings that didn’t happen for various reasons. Maybe if the brides had gone to Kleinfeld Bridal, things would have turned out differently … or not.

For top TV weddings that actually did happen, check out Memorable TV Weddings. Jim and Pam, Niles and Daphne, and Luke and Laura made the list.

1. Xander and Anya, ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer.’ I know Xander wasn’t ready to take the leap, but it still saddens me to think he left ex-vengeance demon Anya on their wedding day, thanks to a nudge by a demon pretending to be Xander’s future self (it wasn’t pretty). Then there was that awful business with Anya and Spike hooking up, Xander attacking Spike, and the Scooby gang discovering that Buffy and Spike had been sleeping together for a while. What a mess!

2. Diane and Sam, ‘Cheers.’ Did anyone think these two would go through with their marriage? This relationship had so many ups and downs, Six Flags could have made a roller coaster ride out of it. Let’s see … there were several proposals, a near murder, and a courtroom scene that culminated in her saying yes. But alas, Diane left Sam at the (bar) altar when a book deal came calling. He told her to go write the book and come back in six months. She did come back, but not until six years later.

3. Luke and Lorelai, ‘Gilmore Girls.’ So close, and yet so far away. When Luke learned he had a daughter, he got cold feet on his upcoming nuptials with lovely Lorelai. In turn, she became impatient waiting for him to move their relationship forward, so she gave him an ultimatum. He wanted time to think, and before you know it, the wedding was off. But all wasn’t lost; in the series finale, the two got back together. Whether they married or not is anyone’s guess.

4. Derek and Meredith, ‘Grey’s Anatomy.’ Let’s face it. We all knew Meredith would never don a frou-frou wedding dress — even one Izzie picked out for her — and walk down the aisle with Derek. It’s just not her. The couple finally decided to get married at City Hall, but their hectic schedules prevented it from happening. In the end, they did get “married” — sort of — by signing a marriage contract on a pad of Post-it notes. Their vows included: “You’ll love me, even when you hate me” and “You’ll love me, even when we’re old and smelly.” Derek also vowed to remind Meredith who he was if she ever got Alzheimer’s like her mother.

5. Justin and Rebecca, ‘Brothers and Sisters.’ Things never looked particularly good for this couple, partly because of Justin’s shortcomings at school and overall fears about being a good husband and father. After talking with Rebecca, he regained his confidence and the picture-perfect beachfront wedding was a go. Then there was that awful moment when Kitty collapsed while reading an e.e. cummings poem. Justin and Rebecca eventually did tie the knot, but their future is sure to be anything but smooth sailing.

Who’d I miss? Feel free to add your own favorite non-weddings in the comments below.

(Follow @jboursaw on Twitter.)

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Buffy season eight Big Bad revealed

Filed under: OpEd, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Reality-Free, Joss Whedon, Features

For those not keeping track, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer franchise has continued to a season eight in the comic books. In her latest escapades, Buffy (with her Slayer army) has been fighting a masked villain named Twilight who apparently is familiar with Buffy.

In an interview, Dark Horse editor Scott Alie revealed the secret identity of Twilight. Spoiler is after the jump …

Twilight is Angel. This story has been coordinated with IDW publishing for the Angel Season 6 comics so that the two series do not contradict.

This sort of twist is very much like Joss. In fact, since he’s done this sort of thing with the character of Angel before (Buffy season two), nobody is expecting it. I’m sure there will be a very good explanation for Twilight’s extra powers.

Of course, all this could be Scott Alie having fun with the fans. We won’t know the full truth until issue 34 of the series hits the shops in March. Assuming it’s true, what are your thoughts on this reveal?

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Mad Men and Buffy writer remaking Fright Night

Filed under: Industry, OpEd, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Reality-Free, Joss Whedon, Features, TV News

Marti Noxon will be writing the remake of the cult 1980’s flick Fright Night. For those who don’t know, Noxon is a writer on the series Mad Men (for which she got a WGA nomination) among other shows. She is best remembered for her singing appearances on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Once More With Feeling” (she was a writer and producer on that show too) and the Internet phenomenon Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog.

Getting into movies for a moment, Fright Night was always a guilty pleasure of mine. Noxon is a good choice to write it too. Along with the diversity of her writing experience, she has used the same sort of combination of horror/humor when she wrote Buffy.

Of course, she’s not the only Buffy alumnus writing a comedy horror. Joss Whedon himself is involved with project called Cabin In The Woods. He has the spare time to complete it now.

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Buffy season nine, by Joss Whedon

Filed under: OpEd, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Pickups and Renewals, Reality-Free, Joss Whedon, Features, TV News

“But wait,” you say. “There was a season eight?” Yes, there was. It was in comic book form. And season eight will be in the same format. This is according to Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon.

If you haven’t been reading the comics, shame on you. Without the restrictions of a television budget, some crazy cool things have been happening. Like Dawn growing to enormous size and Buffy teaming up with Dracula to take out a band of rogue Asian vampires. Also, Buffy travels to the future to meet Slayer-from-the-future Malaka Fray (who was in a previous comic series of her own).

Whedon is obviously a fan of comics. The good news is, in comic books, the series never has to end. We could all be enjoying Buffy season 337 in a few centuries. Well, our descendants would be anyway. It’s something to look forward to.

[Watch clips and free episodes of Buffy at SlashControl.]

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Gone Too Soon: Firefly

Filed under: Other Drama Shows, Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, OpEd, Desperate Housewives, Stargate, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Chuck, Reality-Free, Dollhouse, Gone Too Soon, Joss Whedon, V, Features

When I first started exploring this project, there were a few shows that I knew were going to be important to hit. This is the first of those. Firefly was Joss Whedon’s sci-fi western series. The show mustered disappointing ratings in its short eleven-episode run on FOX.

Since then it’s gone on to near mythic cult status. There was such an outcry of support from its loyalists, the Browncoats, over its cancellation that the producers made a feature film sequel. That movie, Serenity, answered a lot of questions about the future fate of the cast. Unfortunately, like the television series, it couldn’t find quite enough people to show up and tune in to warrant a sequel. Nevertheless, the few morsels of Firefly we did get are enough to prove that this is one of the most innovative and enjoyable series ever to hit the airwaves.

What was it?
[Spoilers Ahead!] Firefly was an ambitious seven-year saga developed by Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel, Dollhouse). A hybrid of classic western and modern sci-fi, the stories mainly took place on the fringes of civilized society. The crew of the titular firefly-class ship Serenity tried to avoid both the organized government Alliance, as well as the ne’er-do-wells in the black, like the cannibalistic, savage Reavers.

As much as the show was about character, so much about each character was a mystery. Mal Reynolds was captain. His second-in-command, Zoe, was on the losing side of the war with him. Now, they run cargo and smuggled goods to make enough to keep flying.

Others on the ship included pilot Wash, mechanic Kaylee, hard-headed Jayne, and Companion (high-class prostitute) Inara. They took aboard Book, a Shephard with secrets of his own, and Simon, a doctor on the run traveling with his sister River. Her condition was the deepest mystery of the series, largely revealed in the follow-up film Serenity.

Why did it have to go?
The easy answer is to say that it just didn’t have the ratings, averaging less than five million viewers. FOX aired eleven of the fourteen episodes in random order. Actually, it was the network making arbitrary decisions as to which episodes they felt would better play to the audience, completely ignoring the narrative Whedon was weaving about his world throughout. The pilot, that best introduced the characters and their environment, was the last episode FOX aired.

How do I find out what happens next?
The most obvious place to look is in the sequel film, Serenity. That jumps us to a future point in the timeline where Inara and Book have left the ship. The film delved into the River storyline, while also featuring the deaths of two of the core characters.

There have been a few Serenity comics. These take place before the feature film, keeping the cast in intact. The plan is to continue with a mini-series further exploring this reality, but Whedon has indicated he doesn’t think a comic series official continuation would work for Firefly as it has for both Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. I disagree, though, as we’d barely scratched the surface of this rich world he’d created.

Where did the cast wind up?

• Nathan Fillion (Malcolm “Mal” Reynolds) led future GTS contender Drive for FOX, before landing a more successful recurring role on Desperate Housewives. He’s currently the star of ABC’s Castle.
• Gina Torres (Zoe Alleyne Washburne) had recurring roles on Angel and 24, before getting another regular post on the short-lived Standoff.
• Summer Glau (River Tam) went on to The Unit and The 4400 before landing the role of Cameron in GTS Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. She is set to rejoin Joss Whedon in the upcoming season of Dollhouse.
• Adam Baldwin (Jayne Cobb) had recurring spots on Angel, The Inside and Day Break, before nabbing the longest role of his career as John Casey on NBC’s Chuck.
• Alan Tudyk (Hoban “Wash” Washburne) was notably seen as the pivotal character Alpha in Whedon’s Dollhouse. There’s no way we’ve seen the last of him.
• Ron Glass (Shepherd Derrial Book) has slowed his career down in recent years, though he still does occasional guest work.
• Morena Baccarin (Inara Serra) has had recurring roles in tons of series over the years. She’s now landed a lead role as Anna, leader of the Visitors, on the forthcoming remake of V.
• Jewel Staite (Kaywinnit Lee “Kaylee” Frye) went on to a role on Wonderfalls, before securing a regular gig on Stargate Atlantis. She is set to star in the film spin-off of that.
• Sean Maher (Dr. Simon Tam) is doing the guest role circuit on shows like Ghost Whisperer and Drop Dead Diva, as well as small appearances in several films.

Who cares?
So many people still care about Firefly/Serenity. Officially dubbed “Browncoats,” it was the fans’ faith and loyalty that lead to the movie in the first place. They keep the faith alive, along with much of the cast and crew, that a future film installment might still see the light of day.

Firefly ranks continuously on lists of best sci-fi shows, cult shows and short-lived shows of all time. It was even retooled for HD so that it could air on Universal HD, as well as get treated to a Blu-Ray release. In March 2009, Firefly was awarded top honors in the “Shows We’d Bring Back” category for the first annual Hulu awards, proving that the faithful are still strong.

When can I see it?
I’ll do you a solid and give you the real first episode right here. Then jump over to AOL’s SlashControl to check out the rest.

[via IMDb, Wikipedia, Browncoats.com and more!]

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TV Squad Ten: Joss Whedon's big bads

Filed under: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, TV Squad Lists, Reality-Free, TV Squad Ten, Dollhouse, Features

Before pondering the meaning of identity on Dollhouse, Joss Whedon gave us some great shows featuring iconic heroes and some really nasty but unforgettable villains.

Unlike Dollhouse, most of Whedon’s earlier shows featured a “big bad,” a major villain who caused trouble throughout an entire season, or series, for the heroes and their friends. Luckily, Whedon’s heroes always managed to outwit these evildoers, but they couldn’t stop them from stealing scenes and making the Whedonverse a very, very dangerous place to live.

Let’s take a look back at some of Whedon’s best “big bads” that made life a living hell for Buffy, Angel and Captain Mal.

10.) Glorificus/Glory - An evil, egotistical and mentally unstable goddess with unlimited power, Glory proved to be one of Buffy’s toughest foes. The tall blonde knocked the Slayer on her teeth more than once during Buffy’s season five, but her presence on Earth led to the creation of Buffy’s sister, Dawn. Glory tried to kill Dawn in order to return to her home dimension, but Buffy sacrificed herself to save her sister and the rest of humanity.

9.) The Alliance – Perhaps Whedon would have introduced a more traditional big bad on Firefly if the show had lasted longer. But this authoritarian government caused enough trouble for Captain Mal and company without having a clearly defined figurehead. The Serenity crew managed to win a few scuffs with this oppressive force, even though they were outmanned and outgunned at every turn.

8.) Wolfram & Heart – Another giant evil corporate-like entity, Wolfram & Hart was at the center of most of the bad mojo seen throughout the entire run of Angel. The inter-dimensional law firm had massive influence on Earth and the demon underworld, influencing the lives of humans and supernatural beings to carry out the will of its demonic senior partners.

7.) The Master – Buffy’s first TV big bad is probably one of the most traditional villains in the Whedonverse. The Master was a powerful and ancient vampire with a monstrous face who tried to take over Sunnydale in Buffy’s first season. Trapped underground, he manipulated Buffy with hypnotic powers in an attempt to help him escape and open the Hellmouth. The Master actually succeeded in killing Buffy, but she got better and defeated him in combat.

6.) The Trio – Instead of just one big bad, Buffy’s season six had three wannabe big bads who lived to annoy the Scoobies. But as the season progressed, the geeky trio of Jonathan, Andrew and Warren became more dangerous thanks to Warren’s thirst for power. The Trio were a hilarious addition to the show, often commenting on Buffy’s adventures as if they were watching them on TV and dropping a million geek culture references a minute.

5.) Depression – The Trio were an annoying thorn in Buffy’s side, but they were nothing compared to this big bad. The Scoobies raised Buffy from dead, but the slayer returned aimless and indifferent. It was revealed later that Buffy’s soul was ripped away from Heaven, not the hell dimension in which her friends thought she was trapped. Buffy’s bout with depression lasted for most of season six. It led to her affair with Spike and created distance between her and sister Dawn. Buffy even sang the blues during season six:

4.) Lindsey McDonald – The “tiny Texan” had no evil supernatural powers to speak of, but hate and blind ambition were enough to turn him to the dark side. As a representative of Wolfram & Hart, Lindsey often clashed with Angel during the show’s first two seasons. Despite trying to kill each other several times, Lindsey and Angel sometimes worked together. In the end, Angel recruited Lindsey to help him defeat their common enemy, Wolfram & Hart. But Angel knew he couldn’t trust Lindsey, and he ordered the normally peaceful Loren to assassinate him. Lindsey went out stunned that he was killed by one of Angel’s “flunkies” instead of Angel himself.

3.) Richard Wilkins, aka “The Mayor” – The big bad from Buffy’s third season was like an evil version of The Middleman: a seemingly non-threatening, polite and often corny chap with a smokin’ hot babe for a sidekick. As the mayor of the Scooby gang’s hometown of Sunnydale, Wilkins offered a handshake and a smile to every constituent, but he was hiding a whole lotta bad behind that toothy grin. The Mayor turned out to be a skilled sorcerer who made a pact with the Hellmouth demons to live forever in the form of a nasty, pure-breed demon-monster snake thing. Buffy and crew obliterated The Mayor with a library full of dynamite. His last words: “Well, gosh.”

2.) Spike – The bleach blonde vamp and his gal pal Drusilla rode into Sunnydale during Buffy’s second season. Spike, aka “William The Bloody,” was a wicked and merciless devil with a trail of dead slayers behind him. He proved to be a formidable foe for Buffy … until he fell in love with her and was left unable to harm humans, courtesy of an experiment conducted by the U.S. government.

After becoming impotent, Spike lost his edge for a while and became a sort of comic relief character, a vampire Huggy Bear. After fighting to regain his human soul, Spike became a reluctant champion who helped Buffy and crew save the world, once again, in the series’ final episode. Spike later showed up on Angel to fight against the evil senior partners of Wolfram & Hart.

1.) Angelus – Buffy rarely broke a sweat while slaying vamps, but Angelus was no normal bloodsucker. He was one of history’s baddest and toughest vamps, and he was also the evil and soulless version of Buffy’s one true love, Angel. Angelus took over Angel’s body in season two of Buffy, after Angel found true happiness (while making love to the slayer) and lost his soul due to a gypsy curse.

He earned his reputation as a cruel and sadistic evildoer by tormenting his enemies psychologically as well as physically. He would often hurt or kill his enemy’s loved ones just to watch their spirit break. He was gone for a while after the Scoobies restored Angel’s soul at the end of season two, but Angelus returned later in Whedon’s Buffy spinoff, Angel.

Runners up: And here are the Whedon baddies who just missed the list, mostly because they only showed up for a few eps or didn’t dominate a season: Evil Willow, The Gentlemen and Drusilla from Buffy; Lilah, Darla and Holtz from Angel; Badger, Jubal Early and Saffron from Firefly.

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Will Summer Glau play a villain on Dollhouse?

Filed under: Celebrities, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Casting, Dollhouse, Features, TV News

Earlier today, we told you about Summer Glau landing a recurring role on Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse. Glau, of course, has worked with Mr. Whedon before on the much loved but short-lived Firefly and its film spinoff, Serenity.

This isn’t the first time Whedon has cast actors he’s worked with before in a new project; he does it all the time. But like Squad commenter “davem” pointed out, actors who return to the Whedonverese for a second go-round usually end up playing villains.

So does this mean Glau is destined to be the new big bad on Dollhouse?

Let’s look at the trend davem pointed out earlier, and let’s start with Dollhouse: Last season, Firefly alum Alan Tudyk made a memorable guest appearance as Alpha, an escaped active with a penchant for slicing up pretty faces. Yeah, he was a bad guy. Two more Firefly alums, Gina Torres and Adam Baldwin, worked with Whedon again on the Buffy spinoff, Angel. Torres played a demon goddess who ate people; Baldwin played a bruiser controlled by an ancient evil. Again, bad. Really bad.

It doesn’t stop there. After Fox dumped Firefly, Captain Mal himself, Nathan Fillion, showed up on Buffy’s final season as Caleb, the villainous ex-priest working for “The First Evil.” Superbad.

This isn’t an exact science, but the trend is worth examining and discussing. Do you think Glau will play a villain on Dollhouse? Do you want to see her play a villain?

I’d love to see Glau as a Dollhouse baddie, but I must make one request of Mr. Whedon: Please don’t kill off her character next season. Most of the villainous characters played by returning Whedonverse vets tend to have very short lifespans. I’d like to see Glau last a little longer, assuming Fox renews Dollhouse after season two.

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Buffy's Harmony visits The Colbert Report

Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Reality-Free, Features

Caprica producer and former Buffy the Vampire Slayer scribe Jane Espenson is one of the minds behind the latest arc on Joss Whedon’s Buffy comic that sees vampires coming out of the coffin. After the very True Blood-esque outing, vacuous vamp Harmony goes on The Colbert Report to, of course, promote her new reality TV show in the latest issue of Dark Horse Presents.

The Buffy comic is a direct continuation of Joss Whedon’s TV series, and the medium has allowed the Buffy story to go to places it never could have gone on TV. Fans itching for a Buffy fix should pick up an issue or head over to MySpace to follow Harmony’s adventures with Clem, the hilarious “loose-skinned demon” who first befriended Buffy and crew on the TV series.

Colbert is becoming a regular in the comic book world, with appearances in Spider-Man and his own comic book series, Stephen Colbert’s Tek Jansen. Maybe Buffy should show up on The Daily Show to give Jon Stewart some comic book love in next month’s issue.

[Via: Comics Alliance]

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Buffy's James Marsters joins Caprica

Filed under: Battlestar Galactica, Celebrities, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Casting, Reality-Free, Features, TV News

The folks at Caprica central are making a lot of geeks happy this week. First, we heard that comedian and professional nerd Patton Oswalt was joining the Battlestar Galactica prequel series as a Caprican talk show host. Now comes news that Buffy the Vampire Slayer vet James Marsters is joining the show for a sizeable arc.

Marsters will do what he does best on Caprica: play a dangerous and unpredictable baddie driven by his carnal and moralistic desires. EW tells us that Marsters will play a terrorist leader named Barnabus Greele in at least three episodes of the upcoming Syfy series.

This role sound like a perfect fit for Marsters, who made a name for himself in genre TV as Spike the vampire on Buffy. The actor seems content sticking with genre projects. He had a sizeable arc as Brainiac on Smallville a few seasons ago, and he shook things up for Captain Jack on a few eps of Torchwood last year.

Caprica premieres January 22, 2010 on Syfy. (Hey, Buffy fans who have yet to dive into the BSG universe, will this get you to watch Caprica?)

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Browncoats, Slayers and Dolls unite: WhedonFest '09 kicks off Friday

Filed under: Other Sci-Fi/Supernatural Shows, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Reality-Free, Dollhouse, Features

Hundreds of Joss Whedon fans are expected to take over the small town of LaVergne, TN this weekend for WhedonFest 2009, a celebration of all things Joss Whedon. A fan group called Whedonites United is holding the three-day event in the Tennessee Valley woods. Yes, it’s a camping trip (and no, the irony is not lost on us).

The first-ever Whedonfest will offer a number of nerdy activities for Whedon devotees, including role-playing hours, an improv show, and a number of panel discussions, like “The Nature of Identity in Dollhouse,” inspired by Whedon’s work.
Sadly, no Whedonverse stars are scheduled to attend (not even Buffy‘s James Marsters?!), but the fest will feature a talk by David Lavery, a rock star in the Whedon fan world. Lavery, a professor at Middle Tennessee State University, co-founded the Slayage Conference on the Whedonverse, one of the first scholarly conferences about Whedon’s work.

The weekend of fandom comes pretty cheap: $75 will get you a cabin, food and a pass to all the events. All the proceeds will go to charity, including Kids Need to Read, founded by Firefly alum Nathan Fillion.

We TV Squadders are contractually required to sit on the couch all day, so we won’t be able to attend what sounds like a fun bash for passionate fans. If you’re heading to WhedonFest this weekend, feel free to send us some photos and don’t forget to tell us all about it.

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