Whedon Alumni Among the Busiest

Recently a familiar face just joined Mad Men.
A guy named Danny was just hired by Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, even though all he had was one concept for several products..and he's a cousin of Roger's wife, Jane.
If he looked familiar, he's actually Danny Strong, who was Johnathan on Buffy and also a very good TV screenwriter. He was the guy who wrote Recount, about the 2000 presidential election.

Then I was thinking a lot of the old cast members of the Whedonverse are still quite busy. Look at the cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar is currently enjoying motherhood, as shown in this picture....



Fans, though, hope she will be back soon.
Many cast members are enjoying TV success. Alyson Hannigan is on How I Met Your Mother, David Boreanaz with Bones, Nicholas Brendon makes occasional appearances on Criminal Minds, and James Marsters is poised to be back on Smallville and Caprica (if that gets more episodes. He'll also play a big role in the premiere of Hawaii Five-0, and maybe more after that. Charisma Carpenter has recently been spotted in The Expendables, and has a couple of movies in the works. Amber Benson is a successful author, and co-directed the office/alien invasion movie Drones. Michelle Trachtenberg was a regular on Mercy, but has also been wreaking havoc on Gossip Girl, and will do even more havoc soon.

The crew of Firefly has also done pretty well in the biz. Nathan Fillion, of course, is set to solve crimes and flirt at a cop (even if she has a gun) on Castle for another year. Adam Baldwin is also back as Casey on Chuck, and Morena Baccarin will be back as a very scary alien queen on V. Alan Tudyk has been in movies, including 3:10 to Yuma, but made a heck of an impression as Alpha on Dollhouse (which is one good reason why you should get the season 2 DVD next month). Jewel Staite and Sean Maher recently guest starred on Warehouse 13. She was also on Stargate Atlantis, and I have an action figure of her from that show. Maher just landed a gig on ABC Family's gymnastics show Make It or Break It.
Ron Glass, who played Book, was recently in the U-S version of Death at a Funeral. That's ironic, since Tudyk was in the original as the guy who took one wild drug accidentally. We'll hear more from him when we read The Shepherd's Tale from Dark Horse this fall.
Gina Torres, who played Zoe, is part of the cast of ABC Family's Huge, where she's a counselor at a weight-reduction camp.
Summer Glau has been seen as a Terminator and a wounded computer genius on Dollhouse. Now, she'll be a two-fisted muckraking blogger on The Cape.

As for Angel, Christian Kane is still a big part of the caper drama Leverage. Amy Acker was a regular on Dollhouse and Happy Town. She'll be seen in Cabin in the Woods once MGM fixes its financial problems. Vincent Kartheizer, of course, is enjoying success as Pete Campbell in Mad Men. J. August Richards has been on the TNT show Raising the Bar, and was recently seen on Grey's Anatomy.

The cast of Dollhouse also has a lot of talent, and may are hoping to see more of them soon. Eliza Dushku has been a major part of the Buffyverse as Faith, and Echo in Dollhouse. She's now developing a movie on Robert Mapplethorpe. Olivia Williams was recently seen in The Ghost Writer. Who wouldn't want to see her as a female Giles in a possible Slayer spinoff?
Harry Lennix has an interesting resume. Not only was he Boyd on the show, he was also in State of Play, and even Little Britain USA is the US President. He'll soon be in Mr. Sophistication and McBett, which is Macbeth in the Caribbean.
Enver Gjokaj, if I had my way, would be the new Rollin Hand in Mission Impossible 4. He's been seen recently in Fox's Lie to Me.
Miracle Laurie, who played Maddie/Mellie/November, is part of a ukelele band, but will soon be in a sci-fi drama set in San Francisco about 160 years from now.
Fran Kranz was supposed to be in an NBC romantic comedy, but will also be part of Cabin in the Woods.
Tahmoh Penikett, already a big fan favorite in Battlestar Galactica and Dollhouse, will soon be seen in The Hostage.

The Whedonverse is filled with very talented people and actors that we're certain to see again and again.

Comic-Con 2009: Drusilla and Illyria's back and IDW has them

In an institution in Los Angeles, just before a monumental event, some doctors discuss a strange patient who has been delusional, having problems telling the difference between sex and violence. She has been found with cuts on her body, talking about weird things like her son/lover choosing a cheerleader.
Oh, and she also claims to be more than 150 years old.



This is how Juliet Landau has brought back the character we know her best. In shades of blue, black and red, we find out what happened to Drusilla before and during the days Los Angeles was in Hell. Those at Comic-Con got a preview with a special issue that also includes some fantastic pictures of Landau on the back.

Meanwhile, there is this picture....



She was at the IDW panel with Bryan Lynch, who's writing the comic with her. He was surprised how quickly she adapted to writing for comics. She said when she was asked to do this project, she had a clear vision on what type of story she wanted, and what it would look like. She also said the story also presents an interesting juxtaposition. "I really want the feeling that the world, this institution," she says,"is very oppressive and stark and cold, and that Drusilla is undead and is more alive and vibrant than anyone else who is indeed alive around her." Just see how she interacts with the staff at the hospital, and she uses that to her advantage. The fans also got a chance to ask a few questions, such as her favorite episodes. She said they were "School Hard" (her debut), "Surprise" (when she becomes strong, and "Reunion" (when she reunited with Darla and turns her back into a vampire).

The IDW panel revealed more info about the Angel series. After the Drusilla arc, we'll find Angel and Spike at an event not unlike Comic-Con. Seems they'll be there to promote a movie version of their adventures in "After the Fall." The movie is called "Last Angel in Hell", and I would think the perfect theme song is "Los Angeles is Burning" by Bad Religion. What's more, we'll get a special issue that would show what kind of movie we won't get. After that, Angel will be leaving for a while, giving Spike a chance to make his mark...with his own comic book. We'll see a new character, Eddie Hope, who has a demonic secret.

Illyria will also be back in two series. One will be called "Only Human", where she and Gunn attend the funeral of Fred's uncle (and yes, Illyria poses as Fred, her old self). While he still has issues with her, she wants to know why humans are so obsessed with death. Then, she'll be part of the Fallen Angel series. Here, Illyria meets up with Lee, hoping to reclaim the powers she once had before they were taken away at the end of the Angel episode "Time Bomb". The first pages of the series shows why: Illyria in full-fledged demonic form, ruling over her domain. Who wouldn't want to reclaim their glory? The key is going to Bete Noire, where Lee presides. The series will be four issues.

Peter David, who created Fallen Angel, said he asked Joss Whedon for permission to use Illyria, and he was on his way. He admits this is a way to get Whedon fans to try out the series, while long time fans will get a chance to know Illyria, which may get them to check out her adventures in the Angel TV series and comic books. It's the ultimate in geek synergy.
It just may work for Drusilla, too.