"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" is fondly remembered for so many reasons. On the lighter side, it introduced us all to a valley-slang inspired dialect known as "Buffy speak" and gave us the enduringly heartwarming bonds between the members of the Scoobie Gang. But if "Buffy" was all jokes and wholesome fare, it wouldn't have become the cult hit it did, and it certainly wouldn't have gained a reputation for producing some of the best episodes of TV ever.
Just take a look at "The Body" from season 5. The episode opens with a one-take scene in which the titular slayer walks into her house to discover her mother's lifeless body laying on the couch. It's the episode show creator, "Avengers" director, and all-round prolific creative Joss Whedon considers the greatest thing he's ever done, and is also considered by many to be a standout moment in TV history generally.
But beyond...
Just take a look at "The Body" from season 5. The episode opens with a one-take scene in which the titular slayer walks into her house to discover her mother's lifeless body laying on the couch. It's the episode show creator, "Avengers" director, and all-round prolific creative Joss Whedon considers the greatest thing he's ever done, and is also considered by many to be a standout moment in TV history generally.
But beyond...
- 12/17/2023
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
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"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" might have started out as a cult hit, but it's surely now reached the status of all-time-great TV show. The series lasted for a full seven seasons from 1997 to 2003 and while it has become complicated to love in the wake of startling accusations against showrunner and creator Joss Whedon, the show itself produced some of the best moments in TV history.
As it went on, "Buffy" dealt more and more with serious and weighty issues, making for some truly heartbreaking "Buffy" moments. By the time the fifth season rolled around, Whedon and co. were producing harrowing and affecting explorations of grief with such classics as "The Body," which opens with an unforgettable one-take sequence in which Buffy's mom dies. Joss Whedon still considers that episode the best thing he's ever done.
Back when "Buffy" was first starting out,...
"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" might have started out as a cult hit, but it's surely now reached the status of all-time-great TV show. The series lasted for a full seven seasons from 1997 to 2003 and while it has become complicated to love in the wake of startling accusations against showrunner and creator Joss Whedon, the show itself produced some of the best moments in TV history.
As it went on, "Buffy" dealt more and more with serious and weighty issues, making for some truly heartbreaking "Buffy" moments. By the time the fifth season rolled around, Whedon and co. were producing harrowing and affecting explorations of grief with such classics as "The Body," which opens with an unforgettable one-take sequence in which Buffy's mom dies. Joss Whedon still considers that episode the best thing he's ever done.
Back when "Buffy" was first starting out,...
- 10/9/2023
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
After the much-derided "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" movie debuted in 1992, creator Joss Whedon almost gave up on his original vision. The writer had conceived of "Buffy" as a way to subvert expectations by having the typically helpless blonde become the hero of her own story. Unfortunately, Whedon was beyond disappointed by the film, talking on record about how the project was taken away from him and turned into a campy comedy. In recent years, there's been renewed interest in the "Buffy" movie, which certainly differs in tone from the TV show that came to define the character in popular culture. But the movie did at least give us the first draft of Buffy Summers
After that first iteration hit theaters, Gail Berman of Sandollar Productions thought the subversive vampire slayer might make for a good TV show, and contacted Whedon thinking he'd be uninterested in revisiting "Buffy." But to her surprise,...
After that first iteration hit theaters, Gail Berman of Sandollar Productions thought the subversive vampire slayer might make for a good TV show, and contacted Whedon thinking he'd be uninterested in revisiting "Buffy." But to her surprise,...
- 9/23/2023
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
"Firefly" broke a naming pattern. Creator Joss Whedon's previous TV series were named for their protagonists: "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" and "Angel." "Firefly," on the other hand, is named for its setting; the Firefly-class spaceship Serenity. The ship itself is the main character since it's the glue that holds all of the cast together.
Whereas "Buffy" was a hero's journey, "Firefly" is an ensemble. The supporting characters are as important as Serenity's captain, Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion). According to Adam Baldwin, who played the crude mercenary Jayne Cobb, there not being a single main character also meant none of the cast had the extra job security a lead actor usually does.
Adam Baldwin Explains The Title
"Joss Whedon: The Biography" by Amy Pascale features a quote from Baldwin, recalling what Whedon told the cast at the outset of the series: "You're all expendable. If I choose, you can go at any time.
Whereas "Buffy" was a hero's journey, "Firefly" is an ensemble. The supporting characters are as important as Serenity's captain, Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion). According to Adam Baldwin, who played the crude mercenary Jayne Cobb, there not being a single main character also meant none of the cast had the extra job security a lead actor usually does.
Adam Baldwin Explains The Title
"Joss Whedon: The Biography" by Amy Pascale features a quote from Baldwin, recalling what Whedon told the cast at the outset of the series: "You're all expendable. If I choose, you can go at any time.
- 9/16/2022
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
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Joss Whedon originally had some different endings for Alien: Resurrection. Ryan looks at how Whedon's ideas were changed for the final cut.
In the beginning, it was supposed to be Dan Hedaya who got sucked out into space. His character, General Martin Perez, was originally set to exit Alien: Resurrection in spectacularly bloody fashion - his entire body ejected, limb by limb, through a whole in a tennis ball-sized hole in the space ship, Auriga.
Effects company Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc, spent several weeks in 1996 solving the problem of having a body pulled apart realistically by the vacuum of space. Test footage released by Adi shows the painstaking process of researching and testing practical means of creating Hedaya's death scene, which would have concluded with his character's screaming head stripped of its skin until only a gaping skull remained.
The results were almost comically grotesque and almost mesmerising to watch - so mesmerising,...
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Joss Whedon originally had some different endings for Alien: Resurrection. Ryan looks at how Whedon's ideas were changed for the final cut.
In the beginning, it was supposed to be Dan Hedaya who got sucked out into space. His character, General Martin Perez, was originally set to exit Alien: Resurrection in spectacularly bloody fashion - his entire body ejected, limb by limb, through a whole in a tennis ball-sized hole in the space ship, Auriga.
Effects company Amalgamated Dynamics, Inc, spent several weeks in 1996 solving the problem of having a body pulled apart realistically by the vacuum of space. Test footage released by Adi shows the painstaking process of researching and testing practical means of creating Hedaya's death scene, which would have concluded with his character's screaming head stripped of its skin until only a gaping skull remained.
The results were almost comically grotesque and almost mesmerising to watch - so mesmerising,...
- 2/15/2016
- by ryanlambie
- Den of Geek
Whether you're a complete newbie or if the very words “Joss Whedon” make you do the Dance of Joy, the biography Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe, by Amy Pascale, is an excellent, fascinating, almost comprehensive read.
It's written in such a way that even if you know nothing about Joss Whedon or his work, it's nevertheless completely accessible, since the context is always explained. It's the fascinating, in-depth story of the progression of the life and career of a creative person, and the impact that has on the others around them.
However, even if you're an avid watcher of Joss Whedon's shows, and have a Giles-like knowledge of his work, there will still be anecdotes that you haven't read before, and those that you have already read will be contextualised organically within the development of his various stories. The book does an excellent job of this,...
It's written in such a way that even if you know nothing about Joss Whedon or his work, it's nevertheless completely accessible, since the context is always explained. It's the fascinating, in-depth story of the progression of the life and career of a creative person, and the impact that has on the others around them.
However, even if you're an avid watcher of Joss Whedon's shows, and have a Giles-like knowledge of his work, there will still be anecdotes that you haven't read before, and those that you have already read will be contextualised organically within the development of his various stories. The book does an excellent job of this,...
- 8/25/2015
- Shadowlocked
Nathan Fillion and Joss Whedon have a very long working relationship that started when Fillion played the legendary Captain Malcolm Reynolds on FIrefly. Since then they've worked on several projects together, with Fillion even playing the "Little Bad" in season 7 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They have such a strong friendship that Fillion wrote a wonderful foreword to Whedon's biography. The foreword was published by USA Today, and I've included part of it below:
My generation, we were kind of raised on the super-cool, "I can handle anything" with a gun in his hand hero. Any situation you throw at him, he can handle it — with catchphrases. It was very cool.
But Joss Whedon's version of a hero doesn't always win. He loses more than he wins, and when he wins, the victories are tiny, but he takes 'em. "That's a victory! I call that a victory!" It's a tiny victory — he takes it,...
My generation, we were kind of raised on the super-cool, "I can handle anything" with a gun in his hand hero. Any situation you throw at him, he can handle it — with catchphrases. It was very cool.
But Joss Whedon's version of a hero doesn't always win. He loses more than he wins, and when he wins, the victories are tiny, but he takes 'em. "That's a victory! I call that a victory!" It's a tiny victory — he takes it,...
- 8/6/2014
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
Written by Amy Pascale | Published by Aurum Press Ltd | Format: Hardcover, 448pp
There are certain people who are happy to take the mantle “King of the Geeks” and I normally cringe that the very thought of them accepting it, but for me there is one man who would. Joss Whedon is arguably one of the most important people in this generation to provide the so-called “geeks” with their life blood, he created Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and he even helped make Toy Story the movie we all love. In Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe by Amy Pascale we find out just how he became the idol he is today.
When the book starts off with an introduction by Nathan Fillion that it’s going to be good. Readers will know Fillion worked with Whedon on not only Buffy but mostly on Firefly which he is more famous for.
There are certain people who are happy to take the mantle “King of the Geeks” and I normally cringe that the very thought of them accepting it, but for me there is one man who would. Joss Whedon is arguably one of the most important people in this generation to provide the so-called “geeks” with their life blood, he created Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and he even helped make Toy Story the movie we all love. In Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe by Amy Pascale we find out just how he became the idol he is today.
When the book starts off with an introduction by Nathan Fillion that it’s going to be good. Readers will know Fillion worked with Whedon on not only Buffy but mostly on Firefly which he is more famous for.
- 8/6/2014
- by Paul Metcalf
- Nerdly
Amy Pascale’s biography of Joss Whedon hits shelves today, and with it comes new insight into our Geek Overlord. We’ve already seen Tom Hiddleston’s love letter to Whedon, which came from the book, now io9 has an except of Chapter 17, about the creation of Firefly. It goes in depth about his inspiration for the show, casting, writing Chinese slang, and why he named the show after the ship. He even throws shade at Doctor Who. You should probably read the whole thing (Especially because I’m not going spoil the reason he named the show Firefly. Its reveal is too good in the context of the excerpt.), but here are a few highlights.
Whedon wanted the series to be about “how politics affect people personally. And the personal politics are the only politics that really interest me. I'm not going to make this big, didactic polemic—I'm just going to say,...
Whedon wanted the series to be about “how politics affect people personally. And the personal politics are the only politics that really interest me. I'm not going to make this big, didactic polemic—I'm just going to say,...
- 8/1/2014
- by Mily Dunbar
- GeekTyrant
On August 1, Amy Pascale's "Joss Whedon: The Biography" will be hitting shelves and within its pages is an email exchange between the writer/director of The Avengers and star Tom Hiddleston after Hiddleston first read the screenplay for the superhero team up and Business Insider has published the back-and-forth and it goes to prove Hiddleston's eloquence extends beyond his characters on the screen and exactly why Loki may be the Marvel Cinematic Universe's most entertaining villain: Joss, I am so excited I can hardly speak. The first time I read it I grabbed at it like Charlie Bucket snatching for a golden ticket somewhere behind the chocolate in the wrapper of a Wonka Bar. I didn't know where to start. Like a classic actor I jumped in looking for Loki on every page, jumping back and forth, reading words in no particular order, utterances imprinting themselves like flash-cuts of...
- 7/30/2014
- by Brad Brevet
- Rope of Silicon
There's a reason why Loki is one of the most popular Marvel characters, and much of that has to do with Tom Hiddleston, the actor who plays him. Not only is he insanely talented, but he's charming and friendly, and it's pretty impossible to find anything bad to say about him. So it's no surprise he wrote Joss Whedon this really great letter after reading a draft of the script for The Avengers. In it, the British actor gushes over the screenplay for the film, comparing Loki’s part to Die Hard’s Hans Gruber, and referencing both Willy Wonka and James Mason. The letter (sent via e-mail) is featured in the prerelease excerpts of Amy Pascale’s upcoming Joss Whedon: The Biography – which will be in stores on August 1. Check out the...
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- 7/30/2014
- by Mike Bracken
- Movies.com
Tom Hiddleston was pretty impressed with Joss Whedon's script for The Avengers. In fact, after first reading the script, he was so happy with Loki's role in the Marvel film he just had to write a thank you letter to Whedon. Amy Pascale's Joss Whedon: The Biography will hit stores on August 1, and a few excerpts from the biography have been released, including this lovely thank you e-mail from the actor to his The Avengers director and screenwriter. While...
- 7/30/2014
- by Jesse Giroux
- JoBlo.com
If you're a geek, chances are the words “Joss Whedon” are already synonymous in your mind with “Geek King of the Universe”. In that case, a book entitled Joss Whedon: Geek King of the Universe, with the title in the same font as The Avengers, with a background from Marvel's Agents of Shield, and featuring pictures on the cover of Joss Whedon himself, Woody from Toy Story, Sarah Michelle Gellar as Buffy Summers from the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Nathan Fillion as Captain Malcolm Reynolds from Serenity, and Iron Man, is obviously perfect for you.
But if you're just a casual fan looking to see what all the fuss is about, this biography will fill you in on the man's life and work right up to Much Ado About Nothing.
To enter for a chance to win a copy of the book, simply like Shadowlocked's Facebook page,...
But if you're just a casual fan looking to see what all the fuss is about, this biography will fill you in on the man's life and work right up to Much Ado About Nothing.
To enter for a chance to win a copy of the book, simply like Shadowlocked's Facebook page,...
- 7/24/2014
- Shadowlocked
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