This week (in the U.S., next week in the U.K.) sees the return of Torchwood and of Captain Jack – Harkness, not Sparrow – for a fourth series. Now I’ve been told I need to explain what Torchwood is to our mostly North American readership, so here goes with a really brief summary…
Torchwood is a spin-off series from Doctor Who, about a top-secret British organization called the ‘Torchwood Institute’ – which was set up on the instructions of Queen Victoria after she had a run in with an alien werewolf and the 10th Doctor. It’s lead now by the aforementioned Captain Jack (John Barrowman). He is a handsome, charming, heroic, bi-sexual, immortal, ex-time agent. Was that enough adjectives?
The other main character is Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles). She is an ex-cop with the South Wales Police, and is currently the only other member of Torchwood. They are also joined by her husband Rhys (Kai Owen).
Torchwood is aimed much more at an adult audience, unlike Doctor Who which is more family orientated. The Starz (Spartacus, Camelot) channel is co-producing the new series with the BBC. It’s set mainly in America, and was filmed in Los Angeles – except for two weeks in Wales. The stops have been pulled out, with the budget of each of the 10 episodes being, apparently, over £1 million (roughly 1.6 million in US currency).
The general synopsis of the new series – Miracle Day – is as follows.
One day, all across the world, nobody dies. And the next day, and the next day, and the next day… People age, people get sick, people get hurt, but nobody dies. Births continue though. The population sky rockets overnight. Experts predict that in four months the human race will cease to be viable. CIA agent Rex Matheson (Mekhi Phifer) investigates and discovers a global conspiracy that leads him to a secret British institution. It also features Alexa Havins as Esther Drummond and Bill Pullman as convicted murderer Oswald Danes.
Here’s the trailer:
The series starts on Starz in the U.S. on Friday the 8th of July, and on BBC One in the U.K. on Thursday the 14th of July.
Ever wondered what a roasted turd might smell like? Well then look no further (if you have smell-o-vision) than Comedy Central’s next celebrity roast of the tiger blooded blow-hard Charlie Sheen. Yes the coked out former Two and A Half Men star will be joining the ranks of losers class acts including William Shatner, David Hasselhoff and Flavor Flav as people that some of the funniest comedians in the business lambast with plenty of crude jokes.
The Charlie Sheen Roast will air the same night as Ashton Kutcher’s debut on the long-delayed and Sheen-less Two and a Half Men! Take that you earthworms! The Vatican Warlock Assassin just owned you for all time. Seriously though, Two and a Half Men will still be watched by more people than the roast will, but I’m sure those true Sheen followers (Good God is there such a thing?) will tune in to watch their savior deploy his ordinance after he is made a joke of by the likes of Jeff Ross and Lisa Lampanelli. The Sheen has produced enough ammo for them in the past year that they could probably make the roast last three hours to our pure enjoyment. Stay tuned for some highlights of that laugh bombardment.
Camelot left me and many others with mixed feelings. Was it a good show or wasn’t it? I enjoyed it more at the beginning and the end than I did in the middle where I thought the series started to falter. I was willing to forgive and forget the shortcomings of the first season and look on with eager eyes for season 2. After all they finally established the young Arthur as king in the now cleaned up Camelot, had him weilding Excalibur, and making an enemy of his sister who now carried his future nemesis Mordred inside her. Season 2 was supposed to be a ‘cut the pleasentries and get down to business’ season of a show that had plenty of potential, but now we’ll probably never know what might have been. Starz has reached the decision not to renew Camelot. Check out the announcement from IGN:
The only reason given for now? “Significant production challenges.” It looks like Starz might have, once again, run into the problem they faced with Party Down, where “scheduling conflicts with some of the actors were part of the problem for the Ireland-shot costume drama.” Which would probably mean that Starz neglected to lock these guys into a save-the-date contract.
While we’re not sure which actor or actors had the conflict, it had to be one of the key roles. It’s possible that it’s star Jamie Campbell Bower, who plays Arthur, as he just recently signed to star in The Mortal Instruments.
Man if it’s just a case of Jamie Campbell Bower having other obligations then by all means replace that turd with a new leading man. Hell, they’re doing that with Spartacus already albeit under different circumstances: Those being that Andy Whitfield has Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. But at least I loved Andy Whitfield as the main character, with Bower I could care less if they replaced him. So now there are maybe a couple possibilities vague though they may be. The first is that another network picks up the show and the second being that Starz decides to pick the series up down the road sometime. As for another network picking up Camelot, we’ve seen how that theory has panned out with other canceled shows.
So what does everyone think of this news? Are you sitting there crying for Camelot, or are you like me just biding time until Game of Thrones Season 2 comes out? I know the main thing I’ll miss is Eva Green…
Haunted starts out with an ominous voice over, implying things are about to go wrong. This is no surprise as we open on 2 people standing in a pentagram, reading from what appears to be a very old book. This is ‘Horror Movie Classic’ for “everyone is screwed”.
So last winter we learned that Warner Brothers was planning to reboot the 1992 film Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The reboot was not based of the original’s success, but instead the cult following created by the TV show that started in 1997, 5 years after the movies. The creator – Joss Whedon – was offered a chance to get involved and passed. So let’s start off by saying this: Without Joss Whedon this shouldn’t even be made.
Whedon created the characters, wrote, produced, and directed the movie, wrote, produced, and directed the show, and writes the comics. This is his baby, it is why we know his name. Along with the spin-off show Angel, the world of Buffy is vast, and after the Twilight craze, in today’s Hollywood, it was only a matter of time till some intrepid studio head decided this needed a re-boot. It just doesn’t seem right without Joss at the head.
BUT, it’s getting made anyhow, and as ‘Buffy Fans’, Michelle and I have decided to take a look at the upcoming project and let you know who we think could fill the shoes once worn byKristy Swanson and more recently, Sarah Michelle Geller…
So first, Michelle’s thoughts…
Buffy Can Do The Single Ladies Dance!
A rumor recently surfaced about who might play ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ in the new Warner Bros. movie reboot. The rumor named Glee star Heather Morris as the top pick for the new Ms. Summers.
According to the magical internet machine in my living room, she was singled out because of her background in gymnastics and dance, making her athletic. She also would be a pretty damn good-looking Buffy… in my opinion. Although Warner Brothers sent a statement saying that the Heather Morris rumor is untrue, and that discussions about casting won’t occur until after the script is completely done, it got me to thinking about who would make a good on-screen Buffy.
Which brings me to my next point:
Michelle’s TOP 3 PICKS FOR BUFFY (other than Heather Morris):
Eliza played Faith on the original Buffy TV series. I think not only did she do a great job, but she would know the role better than anyone. She is athletic and attractive, but has an incredible fierce attitude that would be necessary by a badass such as Buffy. The only problem? Trying to get her to dye her hair.
Meester has had guest roles on shows such as Veronica Mars, 24 and Entourage, as well as starring in the new thriller The Roommate, where she played… well… a psycho. She did an amazing job, and has had experience being weird, yet totally together. She would be a great choice. She is fit and young and is very professional. She would fit more into the type of character that Kristy Swanson played in the movie… a tad ditzy and cutesy, but she gets her slay on.
Here is when ‘Debbie’ got killed off on 24. Haha. That was hilarious.
Stone has impressed me greatly in her somewhat short career. She has proven herself time and time again… she doesn’t do shitty movies. She showed her athleticism off in Zombieland which is one of my favorite movies. She would bring a new funny modern twist to Buffy because she has a ‘tude, and we know she can kick some ass. Her brassy demeanor and gorgeous presence makes me think that she would be a prime candidate for such a remake.
All of this being said, if Joss Whedon isn’t involved, I know that a lot of fans will not see this remake. It will be hard to get over that detail, but I do believe that no matter what, if they cast it properly it will be great. Buffy is a great character.
Ok, so I like Heather Morris as much as the next red-blooded male, and I’d actually be behind her casting – HOWEVER, with no formal training from an acting stand point, and only minimal experience as a secondary character on Glee, I see her as a long shot. And I’m fairly certain the only reason she’s even being talked about, is this:
And what a reason it is…
So, anyhow, as much flack as the show took from non-fans, though out it’s course there actually was some pretty heavy drama from time to time, so bit of acting aptitude should be taken into account for what could turn into a whole series of movies…
Kronner’s Top 3 Picks…
Now, I know what you’re thinking – “Kronner is gonna say Kristen Bell“, but once, you’re wrong. Her name has been thrown around a few places, but she already owned the High School scene for 2 seasons worth of Veronica Mars and I doubt that now, come up on 30, she’d want back down that road. I’ve also heard Summer Glau‘s name, but again, I think she’s past the point of play a teenager. And of course there were the rumors about Megan Fox, but I think her career is headed no where but down from here…
Sucker Punch was nothing great, but you can’t knock Emily’s performance in it, nor can you say it doesn’t at least qualify her for some consideration here. At only 22 years old, she could easily pass as a High Schooler, and she has both the acting chops and body to meet the demands of the movie. She, as of now, would be my first choice. (Plus ‘Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events’ was throughly entertaining…)
My 2nd choice would have to be the star of the CW show Nikita. Based (obviously) of the French movie La Femme Nikita, Lyndsy plays a kick-ass spy on the show, and I’m sure she could play a kick-ass Slayer in the movies. Not to mention her choice of roles over the last few years (Heroes, Kick-Ass, Hot Tub Time Machine) give the impression she’d be all about killings some vamps…
Wood has plenty of experience with vampires playing the Queen of Louisiana on True Blood, but as her schedule has just cleared up, this is a 23-year-old who could easily pass for 16, especially when you consider that Swanson was 23 when the original movie came out. Wood can act, looks the part, and would no doubt be available.
The role of ‘Buffy’s Watcher’ is an important one, as he is not only the man who trains her, but a father figure as well. Sean Bean, the 52-year-old, recently unemployed star of HBO’s Game of Thrones could be a great fit as the man who must train this generation’s slayer. Maybe ‘dork’ him up a bit, but this would give you an established star with over-lapping fanbases. Most Buffy fans aren’t known for hating on Lord of the Rings afterall…
And while the following characters weren’t in the movie, they made the show work and it’d be strange to not include them…
Xander – Jeremy Allen White: The 19-year-old White plays Lip Gallagher on Showtime’s Shameless, and is easily my favorite character (outside of Emmy Rossum’s boobs), and could no doubt pull off the role of the dorky friend who is infatuated with the Slayer. This results in a truly identifiable character for the guys watching…
Willow – Molly C. Quinn: Quinn, 18, plays Nathan Fillion’s daughter on the ABC show Castle. She’s a brainy redhead who seems almost molded after the original Willow character…you know before all the lesbian Wiccan stuff anyway.
Characters like Angel, Spike, and Faith could be best left for a sequel, while Dawn could be left out entirely…
So those are our suggestions, what’d you think? Who is your pick for Sunnydale’s next protector?
NBC’s The Playboy Club will be airing this fall…at least on most channels. As I mentioned in a previous article, this show will be racy. Of course this is expected because of what the Playboy symbol represents. Most stations were okay with this, but KSL-TV in Salt Lake City Utah is not on board. The president and CEO Mark Willes said that what the Playboy brand stands for is inconsistent with what the station stands for. I looked at this station’s regularly scheduled programming guide, and they are right. They play nothing racier than Days of our Lives and Law and Order: SVU. In The Playboy Club, or at least what I have seen from the trailers, there is a lot of adult content, and all of the women are dressed like bunnies in cute little leotards and fishnets.
But what is worse? a woman in a leotard, or a couple cheating and half naked on a soap opera? I understand that it is going to be a sexy show, but the nudity clause the cast had to sign was specifically for in-DVD extra content. No one will be getting naked on NBC. It is ridiculous. For example, Glee shows two girls making out who are IN HIGH SCHOOL, couples cheating on one another, a pregnancy, and drunken Britney stripping. I am sure that if Glee was put on by NBC, this channel would have no problem airing it. Yet, because this show has the playboy symbol, suddenly it can’t just be a sexy drama… it must be too provocative. NBC Entertainment Chairman Bob Greenblatt said that they are the only place reacting this way, and it is their prerogative to do so.
Heather Morris strips on GLEE – You’re welcome Doc!
Playboy is all about sexuality and beautiful women…but this show does not seem to be any worse than what appears in soap operas or teen dramas. I guess we will have to wait until it premiers this fall to say for sure, but I am of the opinion that KSL-TV has no reason to pull this show from their lineup. The Playboy Club has been adopted by Salt Lake City’s My Network affiliate, KMYU.
The other main character is Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles). She is an ex-cop with the South Wales Police, and is currently the only other member of Torchwood. They are also joined by her husband Rhys (Kai Owen). 
Grizzly Bomb 