MY URBAN KVETCH

My "Joss Whedon" Piece in Mediaite - The Lost Fragments

Today, Mediaite published my piece titled, "Joss Whedon is Our Master Now," an exploration of why Joss's work resonates so much with his fans. Since it was published, other people have been writing me, sending me clips of articles of Buffy significance, or relating to actors who were part of Whedon's shows. I read about Julie Benz (Darla) appearing soon on "Desperate Housewives."

One of my retweeters, @browncoatsmovie, pointed me to their site for the unauthorized "Serenity/Firefly"fan film (due out in Sept. 2010, with all DVD sales proceeds designated for charities).

One person sent me a link to a story about a PhD student who was regretting her decision to study Buffy for her dissertation - "The Perverse in the Buffyverse: Reading Performative Gender Roles and Their Subversion in 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer.'" [Added Jan 6: Some loyal commenters pointed out that the thesis story was featured on a humor site, so it's probably not true. Although it feels true. And there have been academic conferences on Buffy.]

Check out the Mediaite piece, leave comments, retweet it...whatever you like. But because you're a My Urban Kvetch reader, you get a special bonus: the clipped passages and idea fragments that were cut because of space. Enjoy!

* Joss’s unspoken specialty is women characters – he celebrates the humor and geekiness in women that other men fear to embrace - and this makes him beloved not just by fanboys who might wear “Joss Whedon is my master now” t-shirts, but by the women who see echoes of themselves in Whedon’s women. I know I was supposed to look at the “Sex and the City” characters and say, “I’m a Carrie,” but I really saw myself more as a “Willow” – underestimated, bookish, overlooked, until she battles with herself and emerges as an intuitive, connected woman of power. (Most days, I feel like I’m still waiting for that second part.) 

But the truth is in looking across all the Whedon series, the character I most identify with is whichever is the geekiest: from Giles and Wesley to Willow and Fred, from Wash to Kaylee to Topher. (One of my favorites is from this season of Dollhouse, when Topher imprints his own personality on Victor, essentially creating a clone of himself.) These are my people, the book-and-computer-geek people, who aren’t the suavest of operators, but who keenly observe and understand things before their shinier hero-compatriots do. Their gawky, awkward, unpolished moments emerge as comedic highlights. And we love these characters, perhaps even more than we dare to love ourselves.

*While big-screen Buffy bit the dust, for some miraculous reason, the Chosen-Girl-Fights-Vampires concept got a second chance on television in 1997. The characters deepened weekly, and the ecosystem of support that Buffy has in friends, family and in her watcher, Giles, becomes increasingly important to her survival of both epic battles with evil and high school. In addition to the forces of demonic evil, the characters battled the regular evils of high school: peer pressure, sexual awakening, detention and trying to get your homework done before someone opens the hellmouth. 

To the uninitiated, the hellmouth is the reason Sunnydale is so demonically active: the pocket of evil energy that lives just below the California town is both an excuse for every manner of bad spirit to emerge, but is also a not-so-thinly-veiled metaphor for both the potential for evil in us all, and the uncontrolled geological forces that move beneath the earth, especially in Southern California, threatening to destroy us at any minute. “From beneath us, it devours,” is the perfect expression of everything that lies outside of our range of vision and control – and Buffy teaches us that even though things may look desperate, we have to keep fighting.

Power to the People! Social Media Gives "Ronna and Beverly" Another Chance

This week, the Twitterverse and online-pub-o-sphere has been all abuzz with the latest way social media - a.k.a. "the people" - are making an impact on big media: the possible - even if limited-duration - return of "Ronna and Beverly," a Showtime series created by Jenji Kohan ("Weeds") and two comedians from UCB, Jamie Denbo and Jessica Chaffin, and featuring Denbo and Chaffin as two older ladies who authored a dating book titled "Don't Worry, You'll Do A Little Better Next Time: A Guide to Marriage and Remarriage for Jewish Singles." The title alone is genius - but the most genius thing is the "a little"...as if doing "much better" or just "better" next time is unattainable. (Which is basically what it feels like. But I digress. This isn't JDaters Anonymous...)

Who are Ronna & Beverly? Rachel Sklar (Mediaite) gives us a look:

Ronna & Bev are not real people — except insofar as you may be have grown up around them, or God forbid, be related to them. They are the incarnation of your worst Jewish mother-in-law or Passover seder nightmare, created by LA-based comedians Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo, longtime fixtures of the LA comedy club scene — and now, the subject of a new Showtime pilot that just might have a shot. 

But how much of a shot does it really have on impacting a major cable player like Showtime, which this season picked up no new pilots (essentially saying, nothing personal, Ronna and Bev)? Mashable says (and we have to trust Mashable, because they know lots of stuff about media gone social) that while it's tempting to frame the strategy as groundbreaking, it might not have the desired impact. 

Although social media and online campaigns have had an impact on many other mediums, television has remained an elusive nut to crack. Campaigns to get followers to tune into television premieres have consistently failed (or failed to sustain themselves after the initial flurry is over) and online-specific campaigns to take a show to the small screen have been equally unsuccessful.

My go-to examples of a successful online fanbase precipitating the continuation of a TV show both happen to center on Joss Whedon - the "Buffy" auteur who created "Firefly"'s alternate space western universe and the human trafficking-themed "Dollhouse." In the first case, the fan base demanded a movie and got it: when "Serenity" opened to lackluster box office even with the support of the fan base (and that was before Twitter), the model was seen as not viable for replication. When fans protested the impending cancellation of "Dollhouse," the series got a stay of execution for an additional season; it has since been cancelled, but that additional season does allow the writers to craft an ending for the series, which is a blessing for closure-seeking fans.

It was also this base of technosavvy, loyal admirers (along with Joss Whedon's financial support) that made "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" a smash internet sensation, shattering the paradigm for content and distribution venues, and giving Felicia Day the success she needed to encourage her into taking her idea for "The Guild" directly to fans via webisodes, bypassing networks and cable entirely. The first season of "The Guild," an sitcom webseries about a group of online gamers, was financed entirely by PayPal donations from fans, and then for its second season, drew corporate support from XboxLive, Microsoft and Sprint. Amazing. (Hearing Day's experience at her Digital Hollywood panel was a real eye-opener about how the industry is changing, yet "legacy media" refuses to admit that change is necessary.)

These are small strides, not enough to open a box office blockbuster or get a third season of "Dollhouse," and maybe not even enough to save a couple of Jewish yentas from Boston from cable retirement from being put out to pasture even before they've begun. But I think all this grassroots mobilizing, this "power to the people" democracy when it comes to which entertainment products we choose, why, and how those products are delivered is not the ends itself of social media, but the beginning of a path that negotiates network goals and user preferences. I think we'll all look back on these moments as the evolutionary step, the entity that emerged from the primordial ooze of our now, but what we'll then call "the way television used to be." 

Related stories:

On this site - 

• Much Ado About Whedon category
• "Serenity: The Snark, the Sorrow, and the SciFi" (my "Serenity" review)
• Digital Hollywood

On other sites - 

• Rachel Sklar at Mediaite ("Triumph of Buzz, Comedy and Social Media" and "Second Chance for a TV Pilot - And That's Where the Internet Comes In" ) 
• Katie Rosman in the Wall Street Journal ("Ronna & Beverly: How the Showtime Sitcom Went From Cancellation to Sensation")
• Christina Warren ("Comedy Duo Hopes Social Media Power Will Secure Slot on Showtime") on Mashable
• Al Kustanowitz at Jewish Humor Central ("Politically Incorrect Yentas Get Shot at TV Stardom")

"Dr. Horrible 2: Teenage Boogaloo"

OK, so that's not its name. But someone (I suspect College Humor) has created "A Horrible Turn," a sorely needed musical prequel to "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog." It's unauthorized, made by superfans, and depicts Dr. Horrible's early years. (And it'll be out on November 10 - view the trailer here or below.)

Production value looks good, and I have every expectation that the original cast and creator of "Dr. Horrible" will appreciate this for the video fanfic that it is. Those who are expecting that this homage will approximate the success of its predecessor may be disappointed - while I'm sure the actors in this trailer (and yes, I'm judging it from the trailer until the film is released) are fine, they're no NPH, @feliciaday and @nathanfillion, who have their own substantial hordes of followers. Not to mention that "inspired by Joss" is probably not the same level of adored genius as "actual Joss." (Gosh, why don't Joss Whedon and Neil Patrick Harris tweet? We need to get @feliciaday on this.) 

But I'm fairly sure that the original team will see this as fan flattery and not as plagiarism. Check out the trailer, and begin to feel a little bit of the craving return. (Hat tip: Jake Marsh)

Jenji Kohan, Jill Soloway, and the Hebrew Mamita: "Inside the Jewish Noggin"

Yesterday I went to an event about images of Jewish women in Hollywood sponsored by the MorningStar Commission, an organization founded with support by Hadassah (I actually worked at Hadassah when the Commission was founded, and have long wanted to attend their events). This one, titled "Inside the Jewish Noggin," promised a "main event" interview with Jenji Kohan (left), the creator of "Weeds" and the potentially upcoming "Ronna and Beverly," as well as networking and breakout groups with Jewish women in the industry to give us an inside look at some of the issues they face as Jews in Hollywood. (Sold.)

I've written a longer post about it at Beliefnet (now available here!), but here are some highlights that you won't read over there.

• As an intro, "Hebrew Mamita" Vanessa Hidary (follow her on Twitter!) did her famous spoken-word piece about what it means to look Jewish...I asked her afterwards if it was a longer version of the one we'd seen on YouTube, and she confirmed that it was. As many times as I've seen it, I never get tired of it, and that's a testament to Vanessa's energy. (Haven't seen "Monologues" yet? Now's your chance! Check out this video and get your tickets in NJ, NY and Chicago here.)
• Writer/producer Jill Soloway gracefully handled questions from a room of interested attendees (many of them with job agendas), ranging from explanations about how the American TV industry works to the role of Jews in the writers' room. She explained a theory that Jews were "recreating culture to defend ourselves post-Holocaust," and noted that she meets young writers and tries to mentor them. In fact, she said, in response to a question about where the "United States of Tara" writers come from, she had met a playwright and offered her a job in an email exchange. (At which point, some blogger quipped, "so what's your email address?")
• As she took the stage, Jenji tried to adjust her lapel mic with the help of a technician. "You need to get higher," she said. After a few members of the audience began to snicker, she realized, "everything's a pun."
• Jenji noted that in her writers' room, the only thing that people aren't allowed to be is politically correct. "Being PC...that's just not ok," she said.
• When asked if Andy Botwin (Justin Kirk) would make a good rabbi, she initially said no, that "Andy lacks the scholarship," but that, as long as someone else wrote his speeches, he'd be "fun to listen to at the High Holidays."
• Asked about what it means to raise Jewish children, Jenji said that it means raising children to "question everything and look deeper...ask questions, ask 'why', ask more."
• Growing up in a showbiz family, none of the kids were supposed to go into the industry, but two did. (Brother David Kohan is the co-creator and producer of "Will & Grace.") Their family dinner table was "a really rough room." When Jenji's brother told a fart joke, a parent responded "fart jokes are an easy laugh - you can do better."

This did not come out of the interview with Jenji, which was gracefully conducted by Jewish Journal writer Danielle Berrin, but there's also a Jewish geography/Buffy connection that I must mention. (Because you know that's why you come here.) Jenji's husband, Christopher Noxon, is the brother of...Marti Noxon (writer/executive producer for Buffy and Angel)! Thanks to that factoid, I can also file this in "Much Ado About Whedon." Nice.

Want to watch the whole video and tell me which quotes I got wrong? Check it out over at the Jewish Journal's website. And don't forget to see the official post at Beliefnet.

I Shoulda Been a Vengeance Demon

"Every little day, the same arrangement, I go out and fight the fight. Still I always feel this strange estrangement, nothing here is clear, nothing here is right..."

If you sang the above quote while pretending you were a petite, blonde vampire slayer who had been brought back from the grave by well-meaning friends, you might just belong at the Buffy Singalong, which has officially been noticed in this article in the NY Times. The article tells me that the show is monthly, and that the February showing was sold out. What's missing from the article is when the show is in March. So I go to the website for the IFC Film Center, and it tells me that it's "midnights at IFC," but doesn't say which midnights, how much it is, or how to buy tickets. And since I'm leaving for LA again (Jewlicious at the Beach, register NOW) next week, I'm going to have to wait until I come back to think about going.

What happened to the Internet being the Information Superhighway? Infuriating. Seriously, it's enough to make a girl sing and dance until she spontaneously combusts.

Coming Soon: Buffy Season Eight

Sunnydale was destroyed. Buffy and everyone except Anya and Spike survived the battle against The First with the help of all of the Potentials, who had been activated--along with countless girls around the world--as actual Slayers. One of the Potentials turned up in Season Five of Angel, her superstrength having been activated into a dangerous, homicidal rage after a childhood of abuse. A sad story, an unforeseen aftereffect of Buffy's decision to activate all the potential slayers everywhere even if they weren't ready. But that episode gave us Andrew (Tom Lenk) back, which was great, and he gave us some updates on our favorite characters. Giles was worrying about the world being doomed.

Anyway, now we get season eight. And it focuses on the consequences of Buffy having activated all the slayers around the world. Which is good, because we have to learn that there are consequences for our actions, even if we have saved the world in the process.

Why am I not capitalizing this news? Because it's in comic book form. Man, as if I'm not nerdy enough, now I have to walk into a comic book store, push my glasses up on the bridge of my nose and say, "Excuse me, do you have Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 in comic book form? Joss told me it would be here..."

''We're calling it season 8,'' says Whedon, ''and we're picking up almost right after season seven left off. I don't know exactly why it or how it happened. I just thought, 'Oh, I could do that! It would be fun!' It happens to me every now and then, and causes me to commit to things I really don't have time for.'' [EW]

Man, can I relate.

A Different Willow in the Unaired Pilot of "Buffy"

Perhaps we would have learned to love "Original Willow," but in viewing this unaired pilot, I do miss Aly Hannigan. Nick Brendon's still great, and all the quipping can irk something awful--plus, no Eric Balfour or iconic "the world is doomed..". But it's great to see Giles's stammery goodness again, and let's face it, this show got much better after the first episode anyway. Enjoy!

"Jane Espenson from Accounting"

Some of you may remember the name Jane Espenson...she's written and produced for some of my favorite television shows, from Buffy the Vampire Slayer to Gilmore Girls, and of course, she's a Whedonite born and bred, having achieved the Triple Crown (Buffy, Angel and Firefly). When I see her name on the screen, I get a little charge; both as a writer and as a fan. When Jane's involved, I know I'll be hearing snappy, clever dialogue, replete with pop culture references that seem as appropriate as they do random.

Which is why it was appropriate that her name popped up on '24' during season 2, and the shoutout was noted by Whedon megafan TVGal on Zap2It, under the header ""Where Have I Heard That Name Before?"

You all make me so darn proud. So many of you noticed that when Audrey gave a fake name on "24," she said she was "Jane Espenson from Accounting." Espenson was, of course, a writer on both "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel" with David Fury, who is now a producer and writer on "24." Coincidence? We all think not.

Now it's easy for all aspiring Janeiacs (I'm coining that sucker now) to look at their lives and say, "What would Jane Espenson, from Accounting, do?" We can just visit her blog, Jane Espenson.com, which gives aspiring spec script writers tips and updates us on what Jane had for lunch. Cause she's a woman of the people, and eats her hummus like the rest of us, one leg at a time.

Pop Culture Roundup

Survivor: Jail Edition

First "Survivor" winner Richard Hatch was sentenced to four years in jail for tax evasion. While incarcerated, Hatch will be able to frolic naked to his own content, or at his own peril.

Still in Love with Your Rumored Gay Ex? Marry Someone a Little More Country

Nicole "Aussie Stilts" Kidman recently shared with a women's magazine that she still loves her ex, Tom "Teeth" Cruise, who co-parents their two adoptive children, Connor and Isabella. And yes, I hate that I knew the names of their children without even having to look it up. Just means the Hollywood publicists are doing a good job. Anyway, Nic's engaged to country star Keith Urban. Here's hoping he isn't a Scientologist. Or at least can refrain from jumping on couches or performing strange dances on 106th and Park. (Ving is standing right there and doesn't even stop him...damn...)

Speaking of Names...

The 70th most popular baby name last year for baby girls--ahead of Vanessa, Amanda and Sara--was Neaveh.  That's "heaven" spelled backwards, leading the NY Times to headline-quip that maybe if it was a boy, the baby would have been named "Lleh." 4,750 baby girls were born in the US last year with the name Neaveh. Most popular baby names are listed here, with the option to search for your own name to find out how popular you are. I mean, how popular your name is. For instance, "Esther" was at a ten-year low in 2000, but has since been rising slowly to its ten-year high this past year.

The Spirituality of Lost

Many a blogger wrote about last week's Eko/Locke faith episode (notably Beliefnet's Idol Chatter, which writes a lot about spiritual themes on TV), one of them even providing a link to this quiz. If you can answer all the questions, you likely sit home watching the DVDs all day and should probably check in with your office to make sure you still have a job, or at least check to make sure your spouse hasn't left you. (Thanks to reader David B., for submitting these.)

Lonely Jillionaire On the Wagon? Online Dating May Be For You

Poor "Charlie." His name has been in and out of the media for troubles with alcohol addiction, his marriage and involvement with high-end madams, and has somehow managed to come out with a relative smash of a TV show opposite Jon Cryer, who has apparently had more failed sitcoms to his credit than most actors have stage credits. But now that he's all sober and not hitting the party scene like he used to, he's lonely. So he goes to an online dating service to help him find love. Don't look for him on JDate, though. He's strictly a MillionaireMatch.com guy. And " to insure anonymity, he identifies himself as a Hollywood talent agent." He should just go under his real name, Ramon Estevez. Or is that his dad's name? I forget. But if I were Charlie, I'd jettison the whole online dating thing and use some sort of broker. Maybe go through a matchmaker--it's just like using the Mayflower Madam, but legal.

And that's your pop culture roundup.

"Joss Whedon Costume"

Some of you know that I love the oeuvre of Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel, Firefly and the upcoming Wonder Woman movie). Others of you are all like, "why?" Well, here's a video of "someone in a Joss Whedon costume" at Geek Week, which I am proud to say I did not attend.