Buffyfest's 2012 March Madness was all about the Magical Alternate Universe where those cancelled, ruined or never-realized Joss Whedon projects got the chance to finally shine. But there could only be one winner and if anything deserved more story, it's this masterpiece. Behold, the winner by popular vote of this year's Tournament:
Firefly Season 2, of course! Oh what could've been if it kept flying....
This is it! End of the line for this year's March Madness. This time, we set out to determine which of Joss Whedon's lamented fallen projects would the fine people of our fandom want to see most. The king of all missed Whedon opportunities if you will, and sadly there has been many.
Throughout the tournament, Firefly Season 2 has held steady. Angel Season 6, on the other hand, got beat out by a Spike Made-for-TV-Movie early on in the bracket, but has crawled it's way out of hell since then. This is the final battle! Which broody male lead and fabulous supporting cast will take it?
Last Round: -Angel S.6 beat Faith the Seriesby quite a bit and that's the 2nd loss for her and her motorcycle so she's out for good. Ah well, stack it on top of Tru Calling and Dollhouse I suppose. Poor Dushku, even in the magical alternate universe.
Next: The FINALS! This round will actually be ending on Friday at noon at which point the winner will be announced! Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in perfect world:
Notes: Firefly Season 2 vs. Angel Season 6?
In the alternate universe, would Angel still be fighting the good fight? Would Captain Malcom Reynolds still be flying the good flight?
Both of these series were cancelled before their time. Some would say one more than the other. I guess all you can do now is listen to your heart. So I ask you: In a magical realm where we'd actually get to see either a 2nd season of Firefly or a 6th season of Angel, suspending the actors in their prime with any plot line you desire...which series would you want to see more?
OK, we're about to meet the end of the line for the losers of this Tourney! If you're just joining us, this March Madness has been about trying to find out which of Joss Whedon's fallen projects fans would want to see most. Since it's been the first time we've done a Double Elimination, this is the last chance the losers have to get back in the game...the fantastic losers being Angel and Faith, that is!
Last Round: -Firefly beat Faith the Seriesby a lot. It's not at all surprising, but let's face it...Faith on a motorcycle would've been amazing! Anyway, Faith's going to the loser's circle and Firefly S.2 is advancing to the finals in all it's shiny glory!
Next: The Loser-finals...the 2 small dogs. This round will have just 1 match and will end on Tuesday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Wonderful, Magical Alternate Universe of Trolls and Mermaids:
Notes: Faith the Series vs. Angel Season 2?
Ah...Faith and Angel. They work so damn well together and yet here they're preparing to battle to the death!! So what would you rather see? Faith conquering the beasties and fulfilling her Slayer destiny? Or one more season of Angel and co. helping the helpless and facing Wolfram and Hart or some such. They're fate is in your hands!
Well March is nearing an end and so is this tournament. We're at the semi-finals already, just a few more battles to go! If you've missed this entire March Madness so far, we're trying to find out which of Joss Whedon's fallen projects fans would want to see most. How the hell Firefly Season 2 is now facing a Faith series is pretty boggling, I think it has to do with this whole "Double Elimination" bracket.
Last Round: -Angel S.6 beat the Spike Made-for-TV-Movieafter they were tied for 2 days straight. Spike would gain by 2 votes and then Angel by 3. It was a 'shippers delight and nightmare all rolled into one. I don't know why the hell these brackets like to hurt me. This went to the wire and was determined by a single vote.
Next: The Semi-finals! The 2 big dogs. This round will have just 1 match and will end on Sunday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Wonderful, Magical Alternate Universe of Unicorns and Leprechauns:
Notes: Firefly Season 2 vs.Faith the Series?
Again, this match up is crazy strange....but I guess they would both be pretty bad ass! If you think about it, Faith the series would be a natural extension of the Buffy series. And if you're a Whedon purist, this might be as close as you'd get to a Buffy the Vampire Slayer sequel, if you will. On the other hand, many a Browncoat (and average all-around Whedon fan alike) would probably lay down and die if a real Firefly S.2 was announced tomorrow. Shinyness all around. Happy Voting!
If you're just joining us in this March Madness tournament, we're trying to determine which of Joss Whedon's fallen projects fans would want to see most in a Magical Alternate Universe of fun! This year we're doing a "Double Elimination" bracket so after the losers being given a second chance last round, we're now pitting those winning losers against one another....and I can't believe it! It's Angel vs. Spike once again! The constant cruel joke of the tourney...and the Whedonverse in general.
Last Round: -The Spike Made-for-TV-Movie beat Whedon's Wonder Woman for a second time. I guess that thing just wasn't meant to be.
-In yet another shocking twist, Angel S.2 beat a Ripper! He killed him in real (?) life and killed him in the tournament. What can I say.
Next, let's give those losers another shot at glory! This round will have just 1 match and will end on Thursday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the currently losing Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Wonderful Magical Alternate Universe:
Notes: Spike Made-for-TV-Movie vs.Angel S.6?
Well here we are again....right back to where the whole tournament started over a week ago. How this happens, I'll never know. All I do know is that Spike won the first time, I'd imagine he'll win again. Unless the Bangels get all cut throat and then the Spuffies go on a counter attack of violence! It'll be just like the East Coast/West Coast Rap Wars of the 90's. Let's learn the lesson, people, and not end up like Tupac and Biggie.
We're about halfway through March Madness! Of course, our goal in this tourney has been to find out which of Joss Whedon's fallen projects would be most desired in a Magical Alternate Universe of fun. The road so far has been an interesting one, with Spike the TV Movie, Ripper, Wonder Woman, The Buffy Animated Series, Angel S.6 and Whedon's vision for the original Buffy film all in the loser's bracket at the moment! Of course, some of them can still make a come back with this being a Double Elimination Tournament...but Buffy Animated and the OG Buffy are out for good. Buffy projects are taking a hit here.
Last Round: -Firefly S.2beat Ripper. I know this was a very tough one for a lot of people, but we got through it.
-In a shocking twist, Faith the Series narrowly beat a Spike Made-for-TV Movie! Spoike!
Next up, let's give those losers another try! This round will have 2 matches and will end on Tuesday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the currently losing Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Wonderful Magical Alternate Universe:
Notes: Spike vs.Wonder Woman? - I'm not sure what to make of this. They are entirely different projects, so I guess it all depends on what you'd like to see come to fruition more. I think I have a small idea about what's going to win and quite frankly, I'm shocked that this particular vampire with a soul is even in this area of the tournament!
Notes: Ripper vs. Angel Season 6 - Ah, Rupert Giles vs. the vampire who killed him. Well when you put it like that! Sheesh.
If you're just joining us, we're right in the thick of March Madness here at Buffyfest! This year we are pitting sad, fallen Joss Whedon projects against one another to see what would be most desired in a Magical Alternate Universe of fun. This will hopefully answer burning questions like: What if Illyria and Spike teamed up for realsies? What would become of Faith after the implosion of Sunnydale? Would Saffron replace Inara long term on the ship?
In the Loser's Round 1: Womder Womanbeat Whedon's original vision for Buffy. This is the OG Buffy's second loss, so it's out for good. Angel Season 6 won and Buffy Animated sadly gets thrown to the bottom of the pile once again. Never gets any love, that thing. Poor Jeph Loeb.
Next up, it's back to the winners! Second round for them, choose wisely.
This round will have 2 matches and will end on Saturday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Wonderful Magical Alternate Universe:
Notes: Firefly Season 2: Let's be honest, this is the frontrunner. It seems you can't stop the Browncoats. Those guys don't mess around. I have heard it said that some people feel Serenity was so fantastic that they wouldn't even want another season, but most of those people would squeal themselves into unconsciousness if it happened. As would some of the cast; Nathan Fillion would be your best friend if you could make this possible. I'm convinced the guy spends some evenings staring at his phone just hoping, and I don't blame him.
Ripper: Some expected a continuing series. Some a movie. The most likely project was probably the mini-series for the BBC. We could have counted on 6-8 lengthy episodes of Tony Head goodness, with some of the Doctor Who creative team on board. And a whole new story taking place after "Chosen" but also dealing with Giles's dark past as a violent youth. And at least one song performance. And finally finding out what was the deal with Olivia being pregnant in "Restless". I can't believe they haven't done this yet.
Notes: Spike Made-for-TV movie: As the character with arguably the biggest fan following this project would have had a huge reaction to be sure, but it is hard to gauge if that reaction would be celebration at seeing a final glimpse at the verse with Blondie-bear in the spotlight or total frustration that it would only be for two hours instead of the ongoing series that the Spike lovers really wanted. But since they were planning to give Tim Minear creative control and include Illyria and Willow as sidekicks and evil vampire Gunn as the villain, it would at least have been an impressive two hours.
Faith the Series: Some point out that Dushku has had not one but two chances at a Buffy-like show, once with Joss and once without, but honestly neither of them count because neither one had her riding around on a motorcycle stabbing vampires. Faith as a character is clearly still the best role that Eliza has had and the one she was best at playing. Apparently she wasn't interested, but in the alternate universe competition she doesn't get a vote. I'm just going to boil this down again for simplicity: Faith on a motorcycle. That is all you need to know.
It's March Madness time here at Buffyfest! This year we are pitting lost Joss Whedon projects against one another to see what would be most desired in a Magical Alternate Universe of fun. This should answer burning questions like: What if Angel hadn't been cancelled? What if Joss Whedon had been able to make the original Wonder Woman movie we were all anticipating? And how would a tooned up Buffy of lost S.1 episodes play out?
In the first round: Fireflybeat the Whedon's real vision for the OG Buffy film, I guess Kristy Swanson did a good enough job for everyone's needs. Ripper beat the lost Wonder Woman film, guess SMG in that costume did enough there.
A Spike Made-for-TV movie narrowly beat Angel S.2 - see this I don't really understand just from a logic point of view of wanting a stand-alone 2 hr movie over a whole other season of Angel that Blondie Bear would've been in anyway. But hey, Spike fans are serious.
And finally, Faith the Series beat Buffy the Animated Series - Really tough call there.
Because we're doing a "Double Elimination" tournament, every contender needs to lose twice. This means, all the first round nominees get a second chance at glory! So this is basically the loser's round. Here, Wonder Woman is facing the OG Buffy movie and Buffy Animated is facing Angel S.2. That one is weird because they are both more of the Buffyverse that we never got to see. The difference is Angel would be more of a dramatic conclusion and Buffy Animated would be fill in side stories from S.1, albeit kiddie style. But both would have had Boreanaz's old "pre-Bones era" forehead size.
This round will have 2 matches and will end on Wednesday night at 11:59 pm EST. Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Magical Alternate Universe:
Notes: Whedon's Wonder Woman: Little concrete was ever revealed about Joss's Wonder Woman, but one can feel certain it would have been a fresh take on a long-standing character that varies back and forth between groundbreaking role-model and demeaning throwback. Not only would it have been valuable to put the heroine in the hands of one of the few writers known for writing truly powerful women, it would have managed to get a Justice League movie on the table sooner than The Avengers.
Whedon's Buffy Movie: Joss's disappointment with the original movie necessitated a do-over TV series which led to this blog existing in the first place. Key points removed from the screenplay include the existence of a council of Watchers in a small villain outside Stonehenge, the concept of "vampire kings", and the nature of how the slayers are called (instead of the implied reincarnation in the final version of the movie).
Notes: Buffy Animated: Mixed feelings existed about the idea of re-envisioning the Scooby gang for a younger audience, but including the incomparable Jeph Loeb as a creator would have ensured a level of quality found in few cartoons. While most people would prefer material not set in the past, it would still have allowed new stories and the return of departed characters long missed (or the return of characters acting the way they did when they were more liked). Plus, preteen Dawn interacting with Angel.
Angel Season 6: In the wake of "Not Fade Away", it's really hard to guess what would have happened. Would Angel Investigations reopened? Would it have gone according to Joss's original plan and given us the intending ending? Would he have changed his mind and gone with something more like After the Fall? Would we ever have seen the other wing of the hotel again? And most importantly, could Angel and Spike ever have lived up to our expectations?
IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN! Ahh March...Spring is about to poke it's flowery head up from the ground like a newly sired vampire's arm, Basketball fans are all up in arms about something I don't quite understand and on Buffyfest it's all about forcing certain Whedonverse things to battle against one another to the death! That's right, it's March Madness!
We've done a lot of these tournaments now, so it's getting kind of hard for us to think up new topics, but there's one thing that us Whedonites know about all too well and that's "What could have been?" We've had our hearts smashed from so many broken promises. Burning questions like: What if Firefly had been renewed? What if Joss Whedon had been able to make the original Buffy movie the way he wanted to? And the question that ultimately enters any Whedon conversation: What about Spike?
So this March Madness is going to be all about the magical Alternate Universe where those cancelled, ruined or never-realized-projects will get the chance to shine. Which one would you want to see most? This one might be a little tricky to wrap your head around since it's all make-believe unicorns and leprechauns. It's not as easy as say, who has the most World Ending Hair (Teeny bangs anyone?)...but I think it'll be interesting to see which unrealized project wins this thing. I can't even decide a favorite right now! It's anyone's game. Oh and please don't ask why Spike is pitted against Angel again...it's totally randomized and for some reason these Tourneys like to eff with me.
It's going to be short as we're already down to the Elite Eight, but to complicate things a bit we're going to go with what's called a "Double Elimination" bracket for the first time in Buffyfest Tournament history. Why you ask? Mostly to make my life difficult, but also our resident advisor The Maestro said it will be a more accurate final battle and if your favorite gets eliminated early on, they'll get a second chance. Ok then!
This first round will have 4 matches and will end on Monday night at 11:59 pm EST.
Vote below for the Whedon project you'd like to see most in a Magical Alternate Universe:
