Thursday, September 8 2011
Trickster-Heroes in ‘Buffy’ and ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’
While Spike represents a moral alternative to Buffy’s heroism, the Arthurian Green Knight's tricks -- including a gruesome beheading -- end as mere a parlor game. Spike is the superior trickster.
Monday, August 1 2011
TV Highpoints and Lowpoints of 2010-2011… Number 6
There was both good and bad news for the so-called geek and nerd audience, as Fringe survived its move to Friday night, but they were left with no Space Opera with the cancellation of Caprica and Stargate Universe.
Thursday, April 21 2011
How Much Does an Accurate Location Matter When Watching TV?
Unlike other formats, the sitcom allows us to suspend disbelief because we know this is a set, we know there’s a reason we’ve never actually seen a New York street in Friends, or the fourth wall of an apartment in any show. And we’re okay with that.
Friday, April 15 2011
Whedon and Company: Worlds Await
The formal creation of Buffy Studies -- and therefore Whedon Studies -- was born with the creation of the online journal Slayage 10 years ago. Here the coeditor of Slayage, Rhonda V. Wilcox, offers some reflections on our obsessions with the output of a certain TV creator.
Can’t Stop the Serenity: Taking Fan Activism to the Next Level
A member of Whedonites United, a Tennessee group associated with the Can't Stop the Serenity movement, explains how a group of fans of Joss Whedon and the film Serenity takes fan activism to a new level by actively trying to make the world a more humane and just place.
Thursday, April 14 2011
Six Reasons Why Joss Whedon Is the Perfect Director for ‘The Avengers’
It was announced last year that Joss Whedon would direct the most ambitious superhero movie ever, teaming Iron Man, the Hulk, Thor, Captain America, Black Widow, and Hawkeye all in one enormous film. Matthew Hurd thinks Whedon was the perfect choice.
Wednesday, April 13 2011
The Life of an Alien Lizard Queen: An Interview with Monica Baccarin
PopMatters sat down with Firefly and V. star Morena Baccarin in February 2011 to get her thoughts on working with Joss Whedon and playing an alien lizard queen.
Joss Whedon: Pioneer of the Body Count
Among Joss Whedon's greatest contributions to television has been the continual use of the Body Count, the willingness to kill off recurring characters in order to ratchet up the narrative tension and create a sense of danger.
Tuesday, April 12 2011
The Power of Fandom in the Whedonverse
While viewers watch television and film for entertainment, it's easy to forget that these media are industries. In this essay the changing relationships between creators, studios, distributors, and an increasingly active fandom are examined.
Monday, April 11 2011
The Dystopian Future in Joss Whedon’s Work
In contrast to the utopian vision of the future found in sci-fi series like Star Trek, Joss Whedon's creations show a different vision of the future. And it isn't pretty.
