EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Brian Lynch Talks Angel Comics Part Two

Exclusive Angel Annual Image: The Hollywood Reimagining of LA's descent into Hell

As promised, we present the second half of our interview with Brian Lynch and, if you missed part one, find the crap out of that bad boy right here. In the second half we talk about his involvement in the Drusilla comic, the Spike ongoing, and a little man named Angry Naked Pat. Enjoy!

Buffyfest: Let's talk about the Drusilla book. You told us at NYCC that Juliet sent you these long, movie-style scripts when the idea of the two of you doing a comic together was originally proposed. The final result has very little dialogue. Was it hard transitioning her original scripts to what we ultimately saw on the page?

Brian Lynch: It really wasn't. The first issue was fun, she wrote the story and dialog, I helped transcribe it into comic script format, and futzed with some dialog, gave it back to her, she futzed with it and sent it to Chris. Second issue, we had the story mapped out, so she just want to town and tackled it. I had a little input, but mostly it was me just saying "yes that will work". So it might have been tough for her, but for me, it was fun and a breeze. She had a very clear vision of what she wanted, in script, art and even colors. I just helped her get there.

Buffyfest: Were there an ideas that were specifically yours?

Brian Lynch: Yeah, early on, when she and I talked about the plot on the phone, we went back and forth with story, I had input there. And the moments with the guard who was really working for someone else, who's job it was to keep Dru under wraps, that was my main contribution. Because I figured she'd need someone helping her keep Drusilla a secret, or else it would be very strange that none of these doctors and interns noticed Dru killing people or not going into sunlight. But man, Juliet had everything all ready. She had photos, plots, scripts. She should do another book, that girl is a dynamo. And she's insanely sweet. AND I don't know if you're aware, but she was also on BUFFY and ANGEL.



Buffyfest: HOLY CRAP, WHAT!?

Brian Lynch: Yeah I think she played Rose, Sunnydale's newest exchange student.

Buffyfest: Thank you for that bit of minutia which will surely come in handy when playing Buffy Trivial Pursuit

Brian Lynch: Not a problem.

Buffyfest: How about the ending of that story? You'd mentioned Spike would see Dru during his ongoing. Is that still happening? Where is she?

Brian Lynch: You know, I'm not sure if Dru and Spike will meet up during my run. I feel as though Juliet should that story if she wants. Is that a cop-out?

Buffyfest: total cop-out

Brian Lynch: She and James should write it together.

Buffyfest: That would sell a lot of books

Brian Lynch: The story I have for Spike doesn't feature Drusilla coming in, but I only have, I think 10 mapped out. If I go beyond that, maybe. Unless Spike dies in issue 10.

Buffyfest: Shh... don't even mention that!

Brian Lynch: Okay.

Buffyfest: Are you thinking of bringing Spider into the Spike ongoing?

Brian Lynch: The ongoing will be called SPIKE & SPIDER 4EVA. She's not in my outline, but things can change. Especially since you just shoved her to the forefront of my mind. So you're to blame.

Buffyfest: I'll take it. I liked Spider and I know you had some ideas for her way back when during NYCC.

Brian Lynch: I haven't decided on Spider yet. She's not planned for the series, but as I'm writing, who knows. I am unpredictable and lovely. But I think SPIKE is my last trip in the Whedonverse, so I'm trying to make it count. It's going to be good.

Buffyfest: Anything you want to share or are you keeping it all close to the vest for now?


Brian Lynch: Hmmmm. It's Spike completely in charge of his life for the first time in a long time. He's not following anyone, he's the master of his own destiny. With cameos from all your favorites! And maybe Spider! What I have planned is very dark and very heart-wrenching, but then there's funny stuff too. It's an epic Spike story. It's a lot of little Spike stories that build to an epic Spike story. It's Spike if Spike got his own TV show. But with a movie-sized budget every month. It starts with Spike falling into Joss Whedon's well and ends with a marriage to Spider. Fans will love it.

Buffyfest: If by "fans" you mean "me", then you're correct, sir.

Brian Lynch: That's exactly what I meant.

Buffyfest: I have a question that will please only the most geekiest of geeks. What would have happened in Short Bus to Glory Part Two had it gotten made? (This is in reference to the Angry Naked Pat Animated Web Series)

Brian Lynch: Pat got to assemble his team of special kids that fought against Kevin's team of special kids (which were all celebrities like George Lucas and Fred Durst) and it became a kinda parody of Scooby Doo's Laugh-O-Lympics. Thank you for that question. I so very much want to do more ANGRY NAKED PAT stuff.

Buffyfest: I want to see it.

Brian Lynch: I do too! I want Dave Crosland, the artist on EVERYBODY'S DEAD, to do an ANGRY NAKED PAT comic series. What's weird is, I was talking to Robert Kirkman via email and he said "Are you guy that used to do ANGRY NAKED PAT?" so I guess some people remember.

Buffyfest: I'm really not surprised. It was a good webcomic and the cartoon was great too.

Brian Lynch: I really should bring it back. A decision has been made! This interview was life changing for SO many reasons.

Buffyfest: Truly we have shared a moment

Brian Lynch: Many, many.

Buffyfest: That will alter who we are forever. Shill for Party Truck on your way out!

Brian Lynch: Everyone go to Itunes and subscribe to PARTY TRUCK USA. We talk about all kinds of geeky stuff and make fun of it. If you love me in I-Mterview form, you'll super love me x 10 in podcast form.

Buffyfest: Excellent. Well interviewed, Mister Bond

Brian Lynch: Well interviewered.

A huge thanks to Brian for talking with us. Remember you can check out his blog here and follow him on twitter here. Most importantly, though, you can find all the information you need at comixology for when you reserve the Angel Annual.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Brian Lynch Talks Upcoming Angel Comics Part One

Without question, one of my favorite parts of working on this website is the opportunity it provides to get to hang out and talk with really talented and fun people. Shortly before my trip to LA, Brian Lynch dropped us a line to let us know he was gearing the proverbial hype machine for LAST ANGEL IN HELL, the Angel Annual that will be coming out in December. What was intended to be a quick interview over IM turned into a two hour long discussion about, well, just about everything. Today we're bringing you the first part of two where we concentrate on Angel #'s 26 & 27 as well as LAST ANGEL IN HELL. Without further ado, here's the conversation we had with the man himself:

Buffyfest: Shall we?

Brian Lynch: Let's DO THIS

Buffyfest: Let's do a recap of what's coming up. We've got the two part Angel and Spike go to San Diego story and an annual.

Brian Lynch: Yes, ANGEL 26-27 is Angel and Spike's big movie date night, and the Annual is a whole other beast.

Buffyfest: So for the comic con story the concept is essentially that all the geeks at the con become whatever they are cosplaying as, right?

Brian Lynch: Whatever costume they are wearing, they become. People are dressed as superheroes, super villains, jedi, ninja turtles, vampires, robots. So Angel has to deal with thousands of suddenly very powerful and confused people.

Buffyfest: And Spike is dressed as Angel.

Brian Lynch: Spike is dressed as Angel, so Angel also has to deal with Spike acting like what he thinks Angel is like.

Buffyfest: Which begs the question: what does Spike think Angel is like?

Brian Lynch: Self-important, tortured, a bleeding heart, but also this really noble hero, who is selfless to a fault. We really get a chance to see what Spike thinks of Angel in ways Spike would never, ever admit. I think there's some very sweet moments among the funnier asides, and action. Tons of action, though. Maybe more than I've written in an ANGEL book.

Buffyfest: That makes sense considering all the sudden super powers. How about these con goers? Are they all aware of Angel and the happenings of After the Fall?

Brian Lynch: Some are definitely aware, some think he's simply dressed as a character from LAST ANGEL IN HELL, the movie based on Angel's adventures in hell. Angel hasn't reached Stan Lee levels of fame at the con, though.

Buffyfest: But geeks who are in the know tend to be very critical. Any chance we'll see some of them criticizing LAST ANGEL IN HELL as not being accurate to what actually happened?

Brian Lynch: There is some of that, for sure. A character we haven't seen since AFTER THE FALL is actually very angry about how the movie portrays events. As well he should be. They mess a lot up.

Buffyfest: That sounds hilarious. Did you feel tempted at all to gently rib some of the bigger Buffy and Angel geeks who tend to get caught up in the obsession of story canon when you were writing this story (since comic book geeks will be in it) or have you always felt it best to let sleeping dogs lie when it comes to that sort of thing?

Brian Lynch: I think it is absolutely best to let sleeping dogs lie and not poke fun at canon debates. That said, in ANGEL 26, I have woken the dog and poke fun at canon debates.

Brian pokes some dogs with a stick

Buffyfest: FANTASTIC! I have been waiting for a long time, sir.

Brian Lynch: I've had this idea for years, I just couldn't figure out WHY Angel and Spike would go to a comic con. The fake movie allowed for it, I was thrilled. Angel works best when he's thrown into situations he doesn't understand and/or has to talk to a lot of people. Here, he's in the most crowded location I could think of, dealing with something that makes little to no sense. I mean, we explain everything for the reader, but Angel isn't privy to all the info. Oh, and Angel fights zombies and Spike deals with a chubby power ranger.

Buffyfest: So what other kind of super powers will we be seeing people get? Spidey sense?

Brian Lynch: Hmmmm. Lots of lasers, super strength, tons of ninjas, but my favorite is Explodo. I will not tell you what he does, you will NEVER get it.

What super power would you want?

Buffyfest: Alright. Let's move along to LAST ANGEL IN HELL

Brian Lynch: Hoooray

Buffyfest: Because talking about a theoretical Angel movie is awesome

Brian Lynch: Well, LAST ANGEL IN HELL should never ever be the ANGEL movie. It is written by someone who witnessed some of Angel's heroics, and pieced together what he thinks the story is. Then I gave it an extra gloss of the script being handed over to a committee that clearly didn't care about facts and went crazy. It's a big Bruckheimer-seque ANGEL romp. There are moments in the comic that are clearly put in to sell action figures. Like a character comes in and out and looks cool and leaves. Or action beats happen for no reason. There is a sex scene in the book that is literally put in, even though it is completely pointless and at the worst time, because I pictured the studio executive going "we need a sex scene HERE." I think it's my first sex scene in comics.

Buffyfest: and it involves Angel?

Brian Lynch: Yes

Buffyfest: Does the curse get a mention or is it completely glossed over?

Brian Lynch: It isn't mentioned because the screenwriter wouldn't have known about it.

Buffyfest: And it's definitely not with lady Spike?

Brian Lynch: Lady Spike is sexy...but I cannot confirm or deny if Lady Spike has sex with Pseudo Angel.

Buffyfest: speaking of Lady Spike. What would happen if Lady Spike and Actual Spike met?

Brian Lynch: Oh they will, I think. Spike would definitely take an interest in the girl who played him in a movie, for sure. It's not in ANGEL 26-27, but he does show an interest in meeting her. Like, I know the actress who plays Lady Spike, so when I'm ready to put her into the world, I have all of her background, real name, all sorted out.

Buffyfest: I remember you mentioning cameos Are these Angel character cameos only or might we get a glimpse of some characters from other comics you've written?

Brian Lynch: There is only one cameo in LAST ANGEL, and that is a lead from AFTER THE FALL. I pictured the studio execs going out to all the characters, and only one person said "yes, I will be in this". Although he's not really a person. And he doesn't play himself in the movie. He cameos as a waiter.

Buffyfest: If it's who I think it is... how does he "wait" exactly? With his mind?

Brian Lynch: There's a tray on his back and he floats around. It's in the James Bond type scene, where Angel dons a tux and infiltrates the villain's party.

Buffyfest: James Bond scene you say? Any other major franchises whose style you utilize?

Brian Lynch: Definitely some BATMAN moments, some old Western type beats, a little buddy comedy thrown in. Some product placement, there's a lot going on. And the fake ads, oh the fake ads. This might just be the perfect comic.

Buffyfest: Let's talk about the movie versions of the characters. What we know so far is that Angel is a Nic Cage type, Spike is a Lady, Gunn is a wacky Hurley buddy guy, and Betta went from fish to dog. How about Illyria and Wes? I know Illyria is black suddenly but what else has changed?

Brian Lynch: Illyria is a bad-ass black lady with a secret. And it's not at all close to Illyria's actual secret. Also she's dyslexic so there are very special moments. Wes is Angel's best friend and partner. Hard to describe what he does without spoiling, but a moment with him in the beginning kinda sets the stage for Angel's character arc. Basically, if Angel is Riggs in LETHAL WEAPON, Wesley is Murtaugh. It is really fun. I love IDW, they're taking a chance on this book. I hope people want to check it out even though it is 100% not canon. I've wanted to get to this issue forever and the fact that's it a big annual, like double-sized? So much fun.

Buffyfest: Have you found out officially how many pages it's going to be yet?

Brian Lynch: I think it's just short of 50 pages. Nothing but story and fake ads, though, it's ALL Last Angel related. No IDW solicits or anything. I think we even get the back cover and inside back cover and such. Mooney has had to draw Nicholas Cage a billion times for this one, ORDER IT FOR MOONEY! Or, I should say, someone who kinda looks like Nicholas Cage, not actually Nicholas Cage, because that would be illegal-ish.

Buffyfest: Right. Totally not actually Nicholas Cage (please don't sue)

Brian Lynch: My hope is Nic Cage sees it on the comics shelf and thinks he starred in the movie verson.

NEVER SEEN BEFORE IMAGE: (Not)Nic Cage as Angel Cartwright is about to be married. SPOILER ALERT The wedding will not go well END SPOILER ALERT

Buffyfest: There's a distinct possibility that might happen. I'm sure he doesn't remember half the movies he's in.

Brian Lynch: I just want this comic to be one gigantic punking on Nic Cage. So he talks about it in interviews. "Shooting LAST ANGEL was fun, yeah."

Buffyfest: "It was a great experience. The fat guy from Lost is a real professional"

Brian Lynch: Maybe they will become friends in real life, thinking they made a movie together. LAST ANGEL IN HELL brings people together.

Buffyfest: It's a real people pleasure. Two thumbs up!

Brian Lynch: Oh, the sequel should be 3-D. I just thought of that, that could be fun.

Buffyfest: there should be a 3-D section, I think. Like it is when they do the special IMAX releases of films.

Brian Lynch: Oh yeah, just for a few pages here and there. But it should be the wrong pages. Explosions and sword fights, no 3-D. Long conversation scenes and Angel napping, 3-D!

Buffyfest: It's like I can reach out and feel him snoozing!

Brian Lynch: FINALLY.

Buffyfest: I've been waiting like forEVER. Thank you, Brian Lynch. Thank you.

Brian Lynch: ANGEL: NAPPING is going to be a five issue series, I think.

Buffyfest: We might have to self publish that bad boy

Brian Lynch: So in summation, LAST ANGEL IN HELL is good.

Buffyfest: It most certainly is.

And that's the end of Part One. Stay tuned later this week for Part Two where Brian and I talk about the Drusilla comic, the Spike ongoing, and more!

EDIT: CHECK OUT PART 2 OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH BRIAN LYNCH HERE!

All 13 episodes of Dollhouse Season 2 to be shown!

"If you cancel it, you're an asshole; if you renew it and then don't put it back on, you're an asshole," he said. "I'm still paying for 'Terminator.' 'Dollhouse' has a small rabid fan base that in the world of social media seems bigger than it is. We gave them another season knowing full well we were going to burn in hell if we pulled it."  -Fox scheduling chief Preston Beckman about Dollhouse

The Hollywood Reporter also suggests a full-season order is unlikely. Click here for the full article:

http://www.thrfeed.com/2009/10/fox-we-will-air-all-13-dollhouse-episodes.html

Cast Your Ballot: The Politics of Buffy

Often times people talk about politics on our site (in relation to Buffy, naturally), so we here at Buffyfest got to thinking about one of the biggest questions left unanswered in the Buffy/Angel 'verse - which side are they on politically? Obviously, there is a decade of character development to consider, but here's our impromptu take on the matter.

Buffy: While a Liberal in her early years, with the whole dating a vampire with a soul thing and rebelling against the Watcher's Council, too much death and destruction could make any girl agree with a bloated military budget and a preemptive war strategy. Conservative.

Giles: With the experimental times of his Ripper youth and his own rebellion against the Watcher's Council, Giles has a Progressive heart with a side of Anarchy for good measure.

Willow: Gay rights and she dated a guy in a band. Liberal.

Xander: He's got the whole "seeing things in black and white" thing going on and both of his ex-girlfriends were very much into money. Conservative.

Angel: A Catholic upbringing, a guilty soul and the 'too much death and destruction' thing like Buffy makes him a good candidate for the 'Right', but he does like to help the helpless/hopeless, so maybe Conservative with a Socially Liberal slant.

Spike: A rebel and an unconventional vampire makes Spike a Lefty.

Tara: When we first meet her, she's in a Wiccan group and openly gay, so she probably went the way of the Progressive at an early age.

Cordelia: Conservative all the way in the beginning with the money and the privilege. The visions changed it all and gave Cordy the perspective she needed to see what 98% of the rest of the world was going through - it was like the mystical equivalent to the Peace Corp. Liberal Conservative.

Oz: He drives a van, played in a band and lives in the hills of Tibet. Hippy Liberal is our guess.

Wesley: Here's a tough nut to crack. In his early years, he followed the Watcher's Council blindly when it came to demon issues; however, he did eventually grow a beard and sleep with the enemy. Yet, he's definitely a 2nd Amendment man for sure even if he is from across the pond. We go with Conservative.

Fred: She was really into science, so I doubt she'd side with any Creationists. Lefty.

Gunn: He's been fighting bloodsuckers since he was a teen and he also helps out under-privileged kids in his spare time. Progressive.

Guest Blogger InyRules Reviews 'WET' Video Game starring Eliza Dushku

I want to thank the team here at Buffyfest for inviting me to give a review. They are awesome people.

Contrary to popular belief, I did not pick up WET just because it contained the voice acting of Eliza Dushku, although that was a huge plus for me. I first heard of the game looking through Wikipedia’s PS3 games list, and was immediately interested when I found that there was a game being released called “WET” in nice capital letters, with a gun toting female lead. I was then disappointed to learn that the game was on hiatus. A couple months later, I check the list again, and to my delight, the game was once again on its way to a release thanks to publisher Bethesda. I then read that Eliza Dushku had also signed on. The fan girl in me squeaked with glee.



left: Eliza signing one of the posters I received

What the Game Does Well: Developer Artificial Mind & Movement really hit the nail on the head with aesthetics. WET looks and sounds just like a B-list grind house movie from the ‘70s. The film strip that runs through the screen gives the game a very gritty visual. There are even weird ‘70s commercials played in-between the game’s chapters.

Voice acting in WET is superb. Voicing a badass, potty mouthed and sexy character is not a very big stretch for Eliza. Malcolm McDowell and Alan Cumming also receive top honors for their voice work as several of the game’s antagonists. The dialogue is extremely cheesy and sometimes cringe-worthy, but I can’t help but laugh at many of the lines. The hilarious dialogue is not limited to the cut scenes. Main “protagonist” Rubi Malone often engages her enemies in banter during combat. Very. Explicit. Banter. If you’ve ever wanted to hear Eliza Dushku spew the words “You fight like old people fuck; slow and sloppy,” your wish has come true.

The best thing about WET is the soundtrack. The team behind the game went to great lengths to compose a soundtrack that fits seamlessly with the grind house theme. Many times, I found myself singing along and nodding my head to several of the songs while shooting my way through hordes of enemies, and was disappointed when they ended. I even downloaded the songs offered on Bethesda’s official WET site.

What the Game Does Wrong: Well, where do I start? Despite the success of the various grind house themes in the game, they do not compensate for the many faults that will be WET’s undoing for many gamers. I’ll start with the game play. WET is a very linear game, with many of the fights consisting of large “arena battles,” where Rubi must disable multiple “spawn doors” to stop the flow of enemies. Rubi can perform a wide range of acrobatics, which is her primary means of getting around the levels in the game; swinging on poles, jumping from ledge to ledge, sliding under obstacles, wall running, etc. When jumping/wall running/sliding and shooting at the same time, Rubi enters what is called “acrobatic slow-mo,” where everything, as the name suggests, slows down around her, and Rubi has the advantage on her enemies. During this time, Rubi can dual wield her guns, and it is harder for enemies to shoot her. Acrobatics can be chained together to earn more “style points,” which can be used to upgrade Rubi’s acrobatic skills and weaponry.

Now, while the idea of the game play is all well and good, it suffers from the physics engine and controls being very broken. Rubi doesn’t like to listen to what I tell her to do. I want to wall run horizontally to get past a large gaping hole in the floor. Rubi decides to wall run vertically, flip backwards, and fall right into the gaping hole, to which I am then rewarded by death. I am rewarded by death in a lot of my efforts in trying to get Rubi to cooperate. This wouldn’t be such an issue if the load screens weren’t so terribly long. Jumping over said gaping holes is also a feat in itself. If I don’t jump toward a ladder in a perfect straight line, I plummet to my death, as Rubi cannot change the direction she’s looking at mid air. Quick time events while wall running are also a major issue. Many times these events are unresponsive, and cause more plummeting to my death.

While it is fun to dual-wield guns and shoot enemies while running up a wall, the combat becomes very repetitive. I must remain in constant acrobatic slow-mo in order to survive. During battles, I must constantly jump and shoot as to not get pelted with bullets. Jump, shoot. Jump, slide, shoot. Jump, slide, shoot. Rubi’s health regenerates on its own during combat based on her style points multiplier, which goes up to 5x. The higher the multiplier, the faster her health regens, or so they say. Health does not regenerate during slow-mo sequences, so I have to run for cover in order to replenish my health. This becomes a major problem when there are eight spawn doors, and the arena is littered with enemies.

In the easier modes of the game, the sword is very fun to use, even though the development team did not get very creative with it; it’s got that standard hack n’ slash feel. In the harder modes, however, the sword is virtually useless, save for destroying spawn doors. Standing still for more than a second can mean a very fast death, despite upgrading her health to its maximum.

Camera angle issues are also a contributing factor to the broken mechanics of the game. They also contribute much to dying. Often time, the camera makes it very difficult to pin point where Rubi needs to jump to next, which forces me to do a blind jump in the hopes that she grabs onto to something. These spotty angles also make it difficult to see many of the enemies during combat. I usually won’t see them until they’ve bludgeoned me to death.

Despite the nifty film strip that runs through the game, graphics leaves more to be desired. Sometimes the colors become a bit washed out, and it is difficult again to see where you need to go. I had to up the brightness on my TV to see better. It seem s the developers poured all of their pixels on Rubi and some of the bad guys, and used whatever was left to populate the background. I expected more from a “next gen” game.

Bottom Line: WET shines in its visual presentation, but stumbles on game play. Casual gamers will become increasingly frustrated with the often time unfair mechanics, and will probably not want to complete the relatively short game. Hardcore gamers will want to finish the game at least once just to prove it wrong. Despite its drawbacks, WET can be a very fun game to play. “Rage Mode” is particularly entertaining, as the whole screen goes red, and Rubi ups her ass kicking. I give WET a 7/10.


- InyRules, A.K.A Cool Hip from the SSAA Podcast.

fanvid sunday: queens of the dollhouse edition

I just got back from LA and I am exhausted. It's a good thing the quality of this video speaks for itself (which is to say, it's awesome).


Find more videos like this on BAM Vid Vault


My week on the west coast was absolutely fantastic. I hope I will get back out there again soon. In the meantime, I think I'm going to catch up on the week of television I missed and, you know, sleep A LOT. What are you up to? Happy Sunday, everyone!

The Hollywood Vlog - Buffy #29, Angel #26, and Exurbia Reviewed

One of the things I wanted to do while in LA was do it up, vlog style, in a place that was not my bathtub. Thankfully, Ivan and Michelle had a great, cheesy idea for the perfect external location. Big thanks to Ivan for really going above and beyond. The vlog has never looked so good. Editing, effects, all shot in widescreen and glorious high definition. It'll be kind of rough going back to my usual, porcelain locale next month. For now, though, enjoy!



The two comic shops I visited were The Secret Headquarters and Meltdown Comics. Definitely check them out.

Eminem: Closet Buffy fan? Or How Dawn Became a Back Up Singer

I never thought I'd ever have a reason to put the names Dawn Summers and Eminem in the same sentence...until now. As most things in our lives, all roads seem to lead to Buffy and Eminem's new album is no different. It's not a perfect match, but I wouldn't be surprised if Eminem used "Once More, With Feeling" as his muse during his creative process. Take a listen:

Eminem:



Dawnie:

Eliza's WTF moment on Jimmy Fallon

While Michelle and I were talking this morning, I remembered that Eliza was on Late Night last night. I figured we'd check it out. Thus far her interview crawl hasn't been going very well, with Letterman not talking about Dollhouse at all and Good Day New York not even knowing the show had premiered. I mean it couldn't be any worse than that, could it? Well... I'll let you watch this clip and judge it for yourself:



Do you think she realized the implication of what she said? She did basically say that Buffy fans are crazy stalkers who are too into her, right? That's a pretty hurtful thing to say especially when so many of those fans are trying to help out a show whose ratings are in the gutter.

Here's the full interview including a fight sequence between Eliza and Jimmy.



UPDATE: I want to make sure people see a good interview with Eliza as done through the NY Post. She does a great job here and the interviewer is knowledgeable which is helpful. If you want to spread around a good video for people to watch, this is it. Check it out:

Kaylee Parasols for Charity!

A little while back, I volunteered to create some Firefly-esque parasols like the one Kaylee has in the first episode for the Austin Browncoats. I think they came out rather shiny, if I do say so myself...but I really can't take all the credit. After the initial planning and sketching them, I totally lamed out. Luckily my awesomely crafty mom noticed my plight and came over and saved the day. She was the one who painted them so beautifully. Now I want one for myself!

Click here if you're interested in volunteering for the Austin Browncoats.

Buffyfest in Los "Angelus" with a guest appearance by Brian Lynch

LA from the Griffith Observatory, where they filmed the Angel episode "Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been?"

As you may or may not know, I've been in LA for the past week visiting Michelle. Yesterday, Bitsy flew in to meet us and Buffyfest was together again..."Gee, it's good to be together again!"(Really couldn't help that "Muppets Take Manhattan" moment right there.) After catching up, we decided in honor of Angel's 10th anniversary to have a full on Angel themed day. We started by checking out Angel's Mansion on Crawford Street, aka the Ennis House. Then we moved on to Angelus Ave. (Angel only lives over there when he's gone evil.) Next, we went to the Hyperion Hotel for a little visit in the courtyard. I'd been there before but never inside. It's so beautiful and felt rich with Whedonverse history on this momentous day. Finally, we caught up with Angel writer extraordinaire Brian Lynch for dinner in Santa Monica. We talked about LA, favorite Angel episodes (his is Waiting in the Wings,) food allergies, and a lot more. Overall it was a fabulous day and a great way to pay homage to one of our favorite shows. Check out the photos below.

ps, we did think about stalking David Boreanaz ONLY because we felt obligated to do so, but between the police and his swine flu, we decided against it.

fanvid sunday: bjork(!) edition

Let me tell you something, friends o' the fest, I am a big fan of another woman who kicks a lot of ass and whose name starts with the letter "B". That's right. It's Bjork! So imagine my joy and rapture when I discovered this fantastic fanvid which utilizes the rich and gorgeous song, "Bachelorette". Peep it out!


Find more videos like this on BAM Vid Vault


Interesting story: when I was still in college (back in the dark ages) a few friends of mine ran into Bjork at a cafe in upstate New York very randomly. I was so surprised to see her there that my mouth lay agape long enough for her to notice. She shot me what to this day is the dirtiest look I have ever received. It was such a dirty look that, ever since then, my friends and I still refer to that as the day Bjork punched me in the face... with her mind.

Next week I will be in sunny Los Angeles to kick it with Buffyfest, west coast style! What's the week looking like for you? Happy Sunday!

Watcher's Council - Dollhouse 2x02 "Instinct"

Before we even get to talking about what we thought about this most recent episode of Dollhouse, I think we need to address the ratings situation. 2.1 million viewers, 0.8 preliminary adults 18-49 rating? They even lost a significant amount of viewers in the second half. Ouch! Derivative basic cable shows get better ratings than that, let alone a major network like Fox who knows how to dominate with shows like "House" and "American Idol". Is there any way that this show isn't toast? Even Terminator never did this badly and look what happened there.

As was pointed out elsewhere, Dollhouse is not being promoted much at all and, when it is, um... well, I think this speaks for itself. Fox, man, at least try to let your show succeed, dude. What was the point in even renewing it if you were going to treat it like it's dead on the vine?

Anyway, as Tara is on the coast that is west, I'm going to post this without our reviews for now but, here, have a nifty poll and tell us what you thought while you wait for us to weigh in.

UPDATE: Tara is respecting Michelle's Dollhouse fasting by not watching the episode while she's out there. Here's what I thought though!

Bitsy's take: You can really tell Eliza isn't a mom. It's not that she doesn't look like a woman who just had a baby (and, obviously, she doesn't since she hasn't) it's that she doesn't ooze that warm attachment to her baby that moms do in the earlier scenes before all the crazy happens.

The dialogue between Dichen and Eliza is really wooden. I wasn't sure who to blame for that but, as the episode went on and even Alexis Denisof's acting wasn't quite up to par in his first scene, I started to get the sneaking suspicion that it might be the writers or the director's fault.

The more I watch the more apparent it is that it's the writing that's the biggest issue here. It feels really uneven. The really emotional stuff is handled extraordinarily well but the quieter, more exposition driven scenes feel stiff and unnatural. It's almost schizophrenic but I think the real problem is that the writers couldn't handled making things feel authentically normal without making me bored in the process.

When the acting is on, though, it's really on. Eliza does a really magnificent job of expressing genuine terror. I can't believe I'm going to say this but, honestly, I think she is the best thing about this episode. Once Echo is wiped and all she has left is that maternal need, suddenly Eliza is giving the most subtle and nuanced performance of her life, capturing perfectly a character who is so foreign to our world and making her visceral and real. Color me impressed.

It's funny, when I saw the previews I thought that the concept was ridiculous and that the plot would be laughably bad. It's actually the opposite and, as the episode has time to breath and we enter the second half, it's almost like watching a completely different episode from the first half. I think the cast and crew are finally learning how to take what Fox wants them to do and make it work for them instead of trying to fight the current like they seemed to be doing last season.

All in all, I'd give it an even B. I'm starting to like you, show, which means you'll probably get canceled. Sigh...

Dark Horse 's Scott Allie on His Upcoming Graphic Novel Exurbia

Super Scott Allie is mostly known around these parts for his Buffy Season 8 editorial skills, so we at Buffyfest thought we'd introduce you to Scott Allie, the writer. With the upcoming release of his graphic novel Exurbia, Mr. Allie spoke with us about the story that's been close to his heart for years. You can listen to the full interview in the podcast link.



Exurbia is a post-apocalyptic story about Gage, a boy who struggles with his own post-activism apathy. After years of fighting the good fight, Gage is left broken and cynical by the dilapidated streets of his home town, his past run-in with his hero and the messianic messages from the town's new savior, The Rat.

While speaking to Super Scott Allie, the first thing we wanted to do was get a little more background on how Exurbia came into being. Scott explained that originally, after saving up enough money so he could leave his job working as a soft publisher, he decided to self publish a series of short stories.

"I did an anthology of short horror stories but the one oddball in the group, the one thing that wasn't a horror comic was this thing that evolved into Exurbia. It was these characters living in this really screwed up city, very strange city drawn in a very cartoony style, but very weirdly cartoony it wasn't like, it didn't look like any conventional cartoon style. And Kevin McGovern, and I just kept developing more characters and we just liked the setting, like the vibe we were going for with it and it slowly evolved from a bunch of random short stories into a graphic novel where we saw who the main character was and who his supporting cast was and how they were going to come into conflict with one another."

One of our absolute favorite parts of Exurbia was the story of a character referred to as "The Rat". Scott sums up the character this way:

"We evolved this character called the Rat who was this talking rat who smokes cigars, drinks way too much, and has somehow become the default messiah of this screwed up town."

We talked about how society always seems to need someone like the Rat, someone who they can make into more than what they are, someone to put all your hopes and beliefs into. One of the most interesting things we touched upon in that regard was how Joss fits into that paradigm. Here's what Scott had to say:

"People do that alot. I do that a lot. It's pretty unhealthy. People do it with tv shows. There's lots of people who do it with Joss. You know 'Joss Whedon is my Master Now' (referring to the t-shirts people wear). Or I do the book with Gerard Way and I go to events with him and there's all these teenage girls running around with t-shirts saying "Gerard Way saved my life" like that's the catch phrase among Gerard fans and it's like, woh, that's a lot to carry around for poor Gerard. People I never met, I saved your lives? How dd I do that?"

The image above originally ended up on the cutting room floor. Scott Allie spoke about how the political relevance of the dancing condom had fading once the Bush Administration left office. Since the interview, Scott has informed us that it actually found its way back into the book.

Exurbia asks a lot of important questions that are extremely relevant today. This is a graphic novel that will have you thinking of your own role in society (or should) and the nature of savior/hero in a crumbling world.

Exurbia is set to be released on October 7th. Check out some preview pages here.

We Have a Winner of the Buffy Episode Tournament!

September is over and here we are at the exciting finale of September Silliness! We want give a big thanks to everyone who participated in this tournament, by both voting and spreading the word throughout the internets. This was a fun one and really tough at times!

The results of this last match are even closer than March Madness, with the top ep winning by a mere 3 votes! It always gets so close at the end. Without further ado, we give you the favorite Buffy episode as voted by the fandom. drumroll....

Becoming, Part 2

She loved him, she abhorred him, she killed him. "Becoming Part 2" is an episode with a real emotional punch. Angel's spell worked, Willow's spell worked, and Buffy had to make a sacrifice worthy of a hero...heart-wrenching as it was. Add a little school expulsion and family issues, it's no wonder she couldn't do it a second time, when the issue became Dawn's sacrifice.

That might be how this episode took down the amazing singing and dancing that is "Once More, With Feeling". Congrats to both episodes for being so beloved by the fandom.

Click the image below to enlarge the entire filled in bracket.