FLASHBACK FRIDAY: THE MISS JENNY CALENDAR EDITION!!!!

 Before Robia LaMorte was Jenny Calendar (computer teacher, Giles' S.O., gypsy descendant, and murdered by Angel) - she was a PRINCE Protege. Robia LaMorte was known as PEARL to me. I was a big fan of Prince & The New Power Generation's album, "Diamonds & Pearls" back then. Remember all the sex noises to the intro of "Cream" (get on top, cream shaboogie bop).......

FOLKS!!! HERE'S YOUR MOMENT OF ZEN.

YOU GOT HER NAME WRONG, MTV!!! 

Her? On the left? Why that's no other than ROBIA LAMORTE!!!!!

TO THE LEFT. MISS CALENDAR?

10/10 FACIAL BEAUTY

BEFORE SHE R.I.P.'d

ONE LAST MOMENT OF PASSION WITH GILES

Nowadays according to Robia LaMorte's wiki:
Since her role ended on Buffy, LaMorte has periodically accepted guest starring roles on various television shows. More recently she has retired from acting, focusing her efforts on other priorities such as Christian counseling, although she occasionally can be seen in commercials and smaller roles. She also spends some of her time preaching Christianity and selling audio CDs on her website that give accounts of her religious conversion and beliefs. In an FAQ on that site, LaMorte writes that while she was once a proponent of New Age beliefs, she rejected them after her conversion to Christianity. She criticizes these beliefs as a form of "earth worship" and characterizes the practice of witchcraft a dangerous opening for demonic influence.

 NO COMIC CON APPEARANCES EVER, I IMAGINE. BUT ALL THE BEST. WE LOVE YOU, ROBIA LAMORTE!!!! THIS ONE'S FOR YOU!!!

 Editors Note: I actually wanted to embed some of her funnier commercials but ended up finding this:

   

 You're welcome. - Tara

SEASON 10: THE TEARJERK FACTOR (or TARA'S APART) // ISSUE 9 (SPOILER ALERT)

Hey Buffheads!!! ISSUE 9!!! SPOILERS AHEAD, MATEY!!!!

Last month's issue ended on something that I couldn't and didn't want to talk about. Other places such as (news-breaking) Bleeding Cool leaked it the day of. I will say it now: TARA's tombstone made an appearance at the end of the last issue. Also at the end of the issue, Andrew casting a resurrection spell. So if you see a tombstone in a comic, obviously There is a COMEBACK scheduled!!! Also no one can stay dead in comics. Let's just say I got super-psyched. SUPER PUH-SYCHED.

I really enjoyed Tara and Willow's relationship. Tara always keeping Willow's "magic problems" in check was very "When A Man Loves a Woman." Charming. While watching the show unfold season to season, I felt like I had seen the birth and death of Tara and Willow's relationship.  I was there from when they were curious college girls. I was there to see Tara & the Scoobies face her bigot family with Amy Adams. I was there to see Tara and Willow have their personal conflicts. Finally, I was there to see Tara's demise. She meant a lot to Willow and by watching all this - Tara meant a lot to ME!!

We lived through Kennedy. I personally found her to be abrasive. They didn't last. But Kennedy still exists out there in the Buffyverse. I will say that it doesn't feel as important to have Kennedy make a comeback. Tara has been gone for so long - it only elevates her importance.

As for this issue, the Buffy / Spike storyline is rather simple. Dealing with killing the Soul-Eater Monster from the previous issue. However, the monster is not really important to what is really going on. The storyline is about Buffy and Spike's "will they / won't they?" Are they going to fall back in love? Where are they at? I'm not exactly sure myself. Are they going to kill that monster they're fighting?  I mean of course. Wait - how did they wrap up Dowling?

What I want to see is Tara's "Will she / Won't she come back / And How Will This Go?" Willow comes just in the nick of time. A fight ensues. There is a struggle. Willow feels several different emotions. Andrew's reason for wanting to bring back Tara is heartbreaking. Willow's reaction is doubly heartbreaking. I sat there with some puffy fuckin' eyes.

This is where the tearjerk factor comes in.

I think what's so great about this issue is not so much about what it says out loud. It's great in what it doesn't say. There's a strength in the characters and their relationships that we can fill in the blanks.

The issue ends with some redemption and some resurrection. It was great. I really want to see where this all goes.

At this point, I feel like I would like to see some more Buffy-centered storylines. I would like to see where are they going with Spike and Buffy more. What is up with Xander? What's up with Dawn? How do we feel about Kid Giles? So many questions.

EXCLUSIVE IMAGES: 'Buffy' and 'Angel & Faith' Covers

Straight from the Dark's Horses mouth....How about some exclusive covers for the verse? Click to enlarge this fabulous artwork from upcoming trades and such.

Buffy Season 9 Library Edition (Hard Covers 1, 2 & 3):

Buffy: Season Nine - Library Edition vol. 3 Hard Cover
On sale November 11th 2015 (exclusive cover image)

Buffy Season 10 Trade Paperbacks 1, 2 & 3:

Buffy: Season Ten Vol. 3 - Love Dares You TPB
On sale September 9th 2015 (exclusive cover image)

Angel & Faith Season 10 Trade Paperbacks 1, 2 & 3:

Angel and Faith: Season Ten vol. 3 - United TPB
On sale October 14th 2015 (exclusive cover image) 

And there you have it! Beautiful aren't they? Which are your favorites?

Reminder: Whedonverse Ornament Swap Deadline Today!

Last day to join the crafty Holiday fun! If you'd like to sign up for one of our favorite traditions - our beloved Whedonverse themed ornament swap - follow the instructions below before midnight tonight! We'll be sorting the groups immediately and you'll receive your list of recipients over the weekend.

Please make sure to read full details here and if you're down, send an email with the subject "MERRY WHEDON" with the following information to buffyfest@aim.com:

- name
- mailing address
- whether your are willing to ship internationally (note: All of North America will be combined this year).

'Dr. Horrible' Artist Joëlle Jones Writes 'Lady Killer' Series

Wanted to shine a spotlight on a cool & intriguing read called Lady Killer - written and drawn by Eisner-nominated comic artist Joëlle Jones, with cwriterJamie S. Rich.  It's Jones' first time writing after drawing for so many beloved comic titles on every publisher there is such as: Adventures of Superman, Ultimate Spiderman, Fables, Madame Xanadu and of course the awesome, Zack Whedon penned Dr Horrible one-shot. Jones has a bunch of fans here at Buffyfest...in fact, Dan had her chosen as a favorite dream-artist for our Season 9 Draft Picks a few years back.

Described as "Betty Draper meets Hannibal," The main character of Lady Killer Josie Schuller is a picture-perfect homemaker, wife, and mother—but she’s also a ruthless, efficient killer for hire!" Buffyfest's Kevin has reviewed the first issue, check it out below for all the spoiler-free deets:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It is quite an honor to review something outside of the Buffyverse!! It's nice to let the world know that I am more than some guy who just knows Buffy.

So Let's Talk LADY KILLER!!!

Lady Killer by Joelle Jones is the comic equivalent of Kill Bill meets Mad Men. I guess I should mention Hannibal - but I haven't watched that show yet and I don't feel comfortable saying that. Joelle Jones has a style that reminds me of Bart Sears... Are you aware of who Bart Sears is? Anyone read Wizard Magazine in the 90s?? He has a style that is quite fluid, muscular, and action packed.

I didn't really know what to expect of the comic. Is this based on the late 80s made for tv movie called Ladykillers, which was a murder mystery surrounding the killing of male strippers??? Quite the opposite.

The comic opens like Kill Bill vol. 1. Animated expressions. Camera angles that give you a fast paced fuck-you-up action movie feel but no violent imagery (yet). However, it is hand delivered with images of women wearing outfits tailored from the 50s/60s. There is a lot of reverence given to that old-style fashion in this comic. It should appeal to anyone that has a flair for retro styling. 

May I add that the coloring on the comic is by Laura Allred? She is famous for coloring all of Mike Allred's work. This is perhaps the first time I've seen her not color for her husband. Laura has a great eye for pastel shades that make something really pop! 

The story is fast paced, which unfolds a lot in just the lyricism of the artwork. But there are words and there are other characters AND dialogue. I just wanted to say that in case you thought this was all about facades. In fact, that is one of the themes running through the couple issues I read of Lady Killer. The comic seems to brutally display the ignorant bliss of the 60s, the kind that you see in Mad Men. The anti-feminism. The anti-health. The anti-forward thinking. Back in the 60s, when people were just a bunch of dumb cavemen. 

I should mention that this comic is fun! There are some sexy times. There is a lot of blood and violence. LADY KILLER IS THE TITLE, MIND YOU. It's also very charming and adorable. The two issues that I've read have laid down some ground work for the series to grow. 

Please do yourself a favor and meet Josie Schuller...of LADY KILLER. Coming in January 2015 and currently available for pre-order. 

The first issue is currently orderable through comics shops.
On sale January 7
32 pages, $3.50 Miniseries

You can follow Joelle on Twitter: @Joelle_Jones

The 7th Annual Whedonverse Ornament Swap!

Yes! The Holidays are finally here and we're proud to once again announce our annual Whedonverse Holiday Ornament Swap. 7th year running! 

We adore this event and every year we are reminded of the kick-ass creativity of this fandom. Check out the several hundred photos of awesomeness from years past: http://www.flickr.com/groups/buffyfestholidayswap/

If you've never heard of this swap then welcome, you're in for a treat! Let us do a little explainy: The purpose of the swap is to give and receive a little Whedonverse fun. Basically you will create ornaments with a Whedonverse theme (Buffy, Firefly, Dr. Horrible, Avengers, etc.) and send them to 4-6 different recipients. In return you will receive 4-6 completely different handmade ornaments from around the world. As you can see from the photos, you really can make them out of anything: Wood, knit, sew, paint, draw, sculpt, paper craft, recycle old ornaments (earth friendly!) Have fun with it! There are not rules. (Actually there are some rules, see below.)

If you'd like to join us, sign-ups begin right now and will end next Sunday, November 16th at 11:59 PM U.S. EST. And pretty please make super sure you're willing to go through with this entire process before signing up! Deadbeats ruin the holiday fun for everyone. Here are the guidelines in 6 easy steps:

1. Sign up by sending an email with the subject "MERRY WHEDON" and the following information to buffyfest@aim.com by Sunday, November 16th.
- name
- address
- whether your are willing to ship overseas* (US and Canada will be mixed together)

2. On November 18th you'll receive an email from us containing the addresses and email addresses of 4-6 swap participants for you to send your ornaments to. Since you'll have each other's personal info, please contact each other with any questions, disputes or praise.

3. Create the multiple Whedon themed ornaments! You'll have 3 weeks to make them.

4. Package your ornaments well (especially if you create something fragile) and send one ornament to each person on the list of swap participants in your group by Tuesday, December 9th.

5. Sit back and relax as you wait to receive 4-6 lovely Whedonverse ornaments in the mail!

6. Then don't forget to share photos of the ornaments you make and receive by uploading to the swap flickr group here: http://www.flickr.com/groups/buffyfestholidayswap. You will need a flickr account to upload photos, which is easy to set up.

*A note on international shipping: Please only select international shipping if you are willing to ship at least 2-3 of your ornaments overseas. Take timing and the cost of shipping into account when you design your ornament. Lighter and more compact ornaments are cheaper to ship.

Any questions? Email buffyfest@aim.com

SEASON 10: BACK TO DUH HELLMOUTH // ISSUE 8

HEY YOU GHOULS!! (special Halloween themed Buffyfest blogpost review)

Considering the cover, the timing of this issue, and the actual interior of this issue - The Scoobs (read: Scooby Gang) are celebrating Halloween. The Book of Vampyr is missing and because of Magical GPS - they can tell the book is making its' way to Sunnydale. At this time of year in Sunnydale, all the freaks come out and put on their freakiest costumes and have a Burning Man-style celebration. So the Scoobs need to contend with returning to Sunnydale, which is DEVASTATO (spanish for fucked up) and having to deal with a gross costume party.

POR EJEMPLO

There is an amazing few pages done by the legendary Richard Corben. Do you know who that is? He's the man behind a lot of Heavy Metal magazine illustrations. Corben does monsters LIKE REALLY GOOD. In this super-muscled, textured, and expressive way. SERIOUSLY - GOOGLE HIM. His pages rule!! If you do some further googling - his stuff gets Super-Sexumundo (read: Sexual).

SAMPLE OF RICHARD CORBEN MAGIC

The issue kind of read like standard - "let's move the story along, let's keep you up to date." Obviously I do not mean to downplay the actual story - it is good. I don't think I can bear to tell you about the state of everyone's mind. I have spent the last few reviews being like, "Xander is complicated because...." and "Dawn is complicated because......" Here. It's kind of like - Buffy springs to action. There's a lil' mystery. Andrew (the closet-case gay(?) Scooby) makes some stank choices for some reason - which you will have to read on about. Some characters make a comeback (?). Some lingering thoughts about characters' previous actions are brought to light. (SPIIIIIIIIIKE???)

I will say the end has me super-excited. God what else CAN I SAY!??!? You know I dig this new season. I haven't hit a bummer moment. Rebekah Isaacs is kicking some ass. Christos Gage's writing reads on many different levels, which makes this rewarding. I've not come away from an issue wanting something else or thinking, "Gee had they only...." But if you are new to Buffy - this is a good starting point.

HOW DO YOU GUYS FEEL ABOUT SEASON 10??

I DON'T FEEL LIKE THIS.

Nick Brendon, You So Crazy - Part Two

Nicholas Brendon, slowly but surely becoming the Whedonverse's own Nick Nolte, was arrested for being a drunk, hot mess again at a Comic Convention in Boise, Idaho over the weekend. Just 2 weeks after getting married, he must have been still celebrating just a bit too hard.

Poor Nick, looking a bit bruised and worse for the wear in his mugshot on Saturday Morning, still turned up at the Tree City Con the next day...a delight to fans we're sure.

CNN reports:

Brendon was in town for the Tree City Comic Con. Police were called to a downtown hotel Friday after reports of a disturbance in the lobby, according a news release from the Boise Police Department. "When officers arrived, they found the suspect who showed signs of intoxication and repeatedly refused officers commands to stay seated while officers tried to speak with witnesses," the release said. "When the suspect continued to try and walk away, officers took him into custody for resisting and obstructing."

The hotel staff said Brendon had broken a decorative dish and they wanted to press charges. He was booked into the Ada County Jail and bonded out, police said. Brendon is charged with two misdemeanors -- malicious injury to property and resisting or obstructing officers. Police say additional charges are possible. 

Brendon remained on the schedule to speak at an event Saturday evening. His Twitter account thanked fans for their "love, support and positive vibes."

Haha! Broken a "decorative dish!" What the hell is this nonsense?

You might remember the first part of this story back in 2010 when Nicky got drunk once again and was very rudely tased by the po po! Keep your head up, buddy. We've all been there. Well not exactly there being booked in Boise and all, but you know what we're sayin'....the fans still love ya.

Parting Gifts from Scott Allie...

We got some exclusive previews for you! Here are 2 pages from Buffy #8 which are hilarious and mysterious, respectively. That issue of Buffy is on sale next week (Oct 22nd). Followed by art from Abe Sapien #17, which is on sale today! Thanks to Scott Allie! Click to enlarge:

NYCC Recap - Final Day: Amazing Cosplay, Super-Cute 'Firefly', Rapping Veggies & more!

The last day of New York Comic Con was a chill one. We basically just took in all the wonders.

Actually one of highlights of the day is a cosplay story to be told. It all started with a little Jayne Cobb running by, maybe 6 years old, complete with facial hair and Nerf brand Vera. What was this amazingness? "OMG!" I screamed, unable to move, and pointed in his direction, but the words wouldn't come out and he was running so fast. Luckily Ryan looked up, saw what was making me speechless and said, "Wait, no way, there's a little Kaylee too!" Without another word we just instinctively gave chase through the crowd, squishing through the packed Javits entranceway, down an escalator, and a full 5 minutes of running later we saw them all and just *gasped*. It was an entire Firefly family! Complete with caretaker Mal! When we asked to please please please take a photo they all got into like a rehearsed formation, complete with frickin River Tam signature double-weapon pose and we all *gasped* a second time. Could you not die? Check them out below.

So adorable. Speaking of cuteness in the Firefly 'verse, the QMX booth was previewing this cute Serenity plush - well more like a beanie - compete with detaching shuttles that pop out of the sides. I think I might need this!

Here's a slew of great Buffy Cosplayers from the duration of the convention all taken by Kevin. Check them out below!

Drusilla and Darla

Buffy & Giles

Eye-patch Xander - maybe you can't tell but he's mid-Snoopy dance.

Another Dru!

Season 1 Buffy!

Whedonverse coat of arms…pick out all of the Joss icons!

And a couple of us Buffyfest types, Tara & Kevin.

We still have a few more gems from NYCC to roll out, including our interview with Amber Benson, later this week. I'll leave you with these very entertaining rapping veggies called Super Sprowtz. Check out their YouTube channel. These guys were dedicated and look, it is important to eat your veggies you know.

NYCC 2014 - Tribute Panel: 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' Will Always Kick Ass

Here is the full video of the Buffy panel from this year's NYCC 2014. Paying tribute to the Buffyverse were panelists Amber Benson (who of course played Tara on Buffy) and writers of Buffyverse novels Thomas Sniegoski, Carol Goodman, Michelle Knudson, Hillary Monahan and Keith DeCandido. Enjoy!

 

Firefly: Online Panel at NYCC 2014

The MMORPG Firefly Online panel was held at NYCC day 1 and we have the full panel below! QMx CEO Andy Gore, Spark Plug Games' tech director John O'Neil, casting director Andrea Romano and composer Dave Wesley were all there to reveal some fun tidbits. The team had already announced that the whole Firefly cast would be reuniting to voice their characters for the game - yes including Alan Tudyk and yes, he is still dead. Well, Wash is, not Alan. Gosh! But you know what I mean. They also announced that cast interviews about the show that will be included in the game and showed a sneak-peek of Morena Baccarin as Inara.

There are 14 interviews being edited and packaged for inclusion on "The Cortex," a related app. You can register for the online version now of "The Cortex" now. Firefly Online is scheduled for Spring of 2015.

Apologies to the sound on the second half of this vid...especially to Dave Wesley whose lovely performance at the end sounds less than stellar due to our main camera pooped out and we had to switch to the emergency back-up camera!

NYCC Day 2 Recap: 'Buffy' panel, Tiny Jayne Hats, Ninja Turtles & more!

Day 2 of New York Comic Con can only be described as pure-as-the-driven-snow fun. So much fun! Inspired by the Firefly Online panel the day before, I went for a Browncoat look complete with tiny Jayne Hat fascinator. 

I should give credit to Angela Turner aka Ma Cobb who knitted this little guy as an ornament for our very first Whedonverse Ornament Swap back in 2008 and I sewed it to a headband in the morning.  I know, I know, it's genius. Thanks Ma Cobb!

Since we didn't have much Buffyfest press coverage until the panel at 5 pm, we really made the most of the convention day. We had the Einhorn's Epic Cookies, we stopped by our peeps at the Dark Horse booth, and then while waiting at a meet-up spot, we decided to do this:

Wasn't that so much fun?! I'm telling you, it's the most fun to be had with the shortest line at NYCC this year. Make sure you stop by at the Nickelodeon cube and make your own voice-over vid. They also have other cartoons…Rugrats, Spongebob, etc.

We popped by the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D signing where a very stylin' Clark Gregg was hanging out with Jeph Loeb.

And then on to the Buffy panel where we took a lot of photos of Buffy Cosplay. We'll have the video of the full panel up in full sometime in the next 24 hrs. Overall, a super fun day was had!

NYCC Day 1 Recap: Amber Benson, Firefly Online and more!

Day 1 of New York Comic Con was a bevy of geek madness, giant inflatables, themed food trucks and costumes, as per usual!

We met up with the always lovely Amber Benson (who played Tara on Buffy of course.) Look out for our mini-interview with her in a day or two where we discuss her new book, The Witches of Echo Park and Buffy.

Dark Horse's Booth is all decked out in the usual Whedon fare:

It was announced at the Diamond Retailer Breakfast that Dark Horse will be celebrating Buffy's Birthday in January once again. Here’s a shot at a Georges Jeanty variant cover….

I actually saw Seth Green outside when I was getting off the bus. He swizzled into the celebrity side door at the Javits. The panel he did later that day was pretty cool, though. He's doing a Vimeo channel with his Stoopid Buddy Stoodios that will offer a two-hour animation class exclusively on Vimeo's pay-for-view on-demand channel on December 15.

Finally, some food fun! This year there are definitely a few cool extras at NYCC. For instance, Did you know that New York Comic Con has an official cookie? Einhorn’s Epic Cookies at booth #130!  Einhorn’s Epic Cookies is an extra-cool cookie company -- each cookie comes with a free comic book, like the “Prize Inside” snacks of our youth but better (because it’s a comic, of course!)

And check out the Wikia Food Truck - line up early! It's so awesome, they did a tournament focusing on “Fantasy Foods” like Harry Potter’s Butterbeer, Fallout’s Nuka Cola, Glee’s Slushie and Doctor Who’s Fish Fingers & Custard. And you can sample some of the discussed treats for free at Wikia’s Fantasy Food Truck at the show from 2:00-3:00pm TODAY!