Dark Horse Launches Adult Coloring Book Program with Serenity and Avatar the Last Airbender

I'm trying really hard to control my excitement of this, but I can't! This is something Browncoats and Avatar: The Last Airbender fans (like me!) have been waiting for.

Since Avatar: TLA went off the air in 2008, fans have wanted more. We got the awful movie, which never should have been made, we've gotten to read about the continuing adventures of Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko in the graphic novels, and we got Korra. But you know fans, we always want more, and luckily, Dark Horse knows how to deliver.

I don't think I need to go into anything about the Serenity coloring book, because Browncoats, and Whedonites, and most of geekdom know the story of Firefly's stupid cancellation and its resurrection with Serenity. We've all been there. Dark Horse is now giving us more. Because we always want more. The press release states:

"Dark Horse proudly announces a brand-new adult coloring book program hitting bookshelves and coffee tables this fall.

Kicking off the coloring books line are Avatar: The Last Airbender and the fan-favorite Serenity series. Each adult coloring book features forty-five pages of original artwork created specifically to be colored on thick, heavyweight 10 x 10–inch pages at a $14.99 value price point!

Relive your favorite scenes from Avatar: The Last Airbender with this beautifully detailed coloring book. Filled with original black-and-white illustrations by artist Jed Henry and produced in collaboration with creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, this book is sure to be a hit with the Avatar fanatic in your life.

Firefly Withdrawal

As I finished the final issue of the current Serenity comic series, Leaves on the Wind #6, I felt a tear well up in my eye. This was not for the tear jerking moments of the issue, although there were plenty. This was because, yet again, this was over. Once again, the crew of Firefly was not getting a new story to read or another fight to survive. It was an ending, pure and simple.

Over the years, geeks have taken to the scrappy crew of Firefly, riding their emotional ups and down. Still, every roller coaster ride is short-lived; from 13 episodes to a movie to a few comic mini-series and one-shots, all spread out over a decade. Most of the gaps in content are due to the creator himself, Joss Whedon, who has been busy with other projects. Still, the love from fans has kept this crew front and center in the geek world, even with nothing new on the horizon in most years.

Review: Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #1

Courtesy of Dark Horse Comics

If you don't already know, I'm a huge Browncoat.  Yeah, super big.  Like throwing a whole party around the Firefly game.  On New Years Eve.  I turned the year playing the Firefly game while ignoring the clock.  So I was a wee bit excited for the release of Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #1 from Dark Horse Comics.  With the team of writer Zack Whedon, penciller Georges Jeanty, inker Karl Story and colorist Laura Martin, this series continues the story of our favorite Firefly crew nine months after the events of the movie Serenity.

NYCC '13: Chat with Georges Jeanty about the Whedonverse

At New York Comic Con, I got a chance to chat briefly with Whedonverse artist Georges Jeanty. And I mean briefly chat. It was exactly 4 min 50 seconds. I timed it. He did confirm some details for me about the upcoming Serenity comics. I also quickly questioned him about any upcoming involvement with Buffy.

Ok, I bulleted all the details for a quick read. Just remember, 

This post is SPOILER-FILLED so if you are allergic to spoilers, go read another tasty article on [insertgeekhere].

SDCC Booth Tour of Awesome

QUANTUM MECHANIX BOOTH!

Yes, I got a booth tour of Quantum Mechanix to see what's coming up on their roster.  These girls and guys are true fans, and it shows in the painstaking details in their work.  Some of these models look like they plucked them right off the screen!

Check out some of the things that will be draining your bank account soon.

So Say We All

They debuted plushie BSG Raiders and Vipers at SDCC!  I really regret not buying these but I bet my roommate is happy I'm not "flying" them around the apartment, making ship noises.

NYCC '11: Interview with Dark Horse Editor Scott Allie

The Whedonverse is very precious to me. It kept me sane as a teenager, and Buffy: Season 8 was my gateway drug into comics. So when the chance to talk to Whedonverse editor Scott Allie, I lost my cool and went total fangirl. Luckily, I got myself together before I met him at NY Comic Con.


I was desperate to talk with him about Buffy, so I immediately asked about what challenges he wants to see Buffy take on in Season 9. He responded that she needs to figure out what the next stage of her life will be. As he puts it, "Her life was on this trajectory that was kinda up, up, up, up and now all that's behind her. She just has to be a girl living a life in San Francisco, and it's like the epic scope of that part of her life is behind her, and she just has to figure out how to move forward."


Then I asked him about the pressures of dealing with such dedicated fans. As he puts it, there are many differences between each fan groups. Even the Whedon subgroups are radically different. Then he gave me a great quote....

It's Shindig Time!: Can't Stop the Serenity 2011

It is my favorite time of the year because it is time for all the Browncoats to come out and get together!  That's right, because it is Can't Stop the Serenity 2011!  I went to the Browncoats of NYC event this past Saturday and had a blast.  

So, in case you don't know, Can't Stop The Serenity is a fan-run event started in 2006.  It is a chance for fans to get together and re-watch Serenity, the little movie that could.  This event began so fans could thank Joss Whedon for all he has done by raising money for his charity, Equality Now.  

Equality Now is an international women's rights advocacy group that was started by a student of Joss’s mother, so he grew up with this cause.  EN works towards the protection and promotion of the human rights of women around the world. Working with national human rights organizations and individual activists, EN documents violence and discrimination against women and mobilizes international action to support their efforts to stop these human rights abuses.  Since 2006, the Browncoats have contributed over $557,000 to the cause and that number just keeps climbing!

As I said, I attended the NYC event this weekend.  The Browncoats of NYC are such a great group of people, and I had been looking forward to this for weeks!   At each event, the custom is to re-watch Serenity but there is so much more!  Plenty of people come in costume, with music, dancing, crazy food, amazing auctions and Jayne hats as far as the eye can see!  I was pretty lucky to walk into the music of Ramblin Andy and the See Ya Laters.  I said hi to some friends, then I hit the auctions and raffles and my bank account is still crying.  Then as we got ready for the movie, we got a surprise video message from the man himself.

So, next year is a biggie.  Next year, Equality Now will celebrate its 20th Anniversary and Joss is excited.  He sent a video message to every event saying that 2012 is going to make some serious noise and he is leading the charge.  While he doesn't give much detail yet, he is excited and it makes me excited.  *You can kinda hear this video if you watch the streaming feed of California Browncoats event.  

If you are not excited yet, I have no idea what will make a difference.  Go find your local event and show your support for this great cause.  If you don't have a local event, find your local Browncoats and start one for next year!  Just remember, you can make a difference.  People, fans just like you and me, built this event and helped change lives.  If each of us makes the choice for equality, we can spread it like wildfire.

"No Power In The 'Verse Can Stop Us" - Firefly

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Video Friday - Geeky Fun!

We interrupt your life to bring you today's Video Friday. So kick back, relax, have a drink, and enjoy.... 


To begin, let's take a look at a clip from the latest Super Sentai show in Japan, known to us here in the States as Power Rangers. I have no idea why it happened but it appears as though every Power Ranger that ever existed was called into battle. This is their fight.





What do you do when you find who you think is the perfect person, only to discover they have one tragic flaw that you cannot look past? This is what Mikey Mason explores in his song, She Don't Like Firefly. (Warning: Major spoiler if you've never seen Serenity, and if you haven't, why not? Go get it as soon as you finish this. GO!)





Now, time for some nerdy mathematical, musical fun. It makes sense, given the close relationship between music and math, that people would create a musical version of Pi. This just happens to be one of the best ones I've seen. A special thanks to Jeff, for sending this my way.





What happens when you're sooooooooo bored and happen to be a marshmallow? I don't want to give anything away, so I'll just say this is brought to you by the creative forces behind Charlie the Unicorn. You be the judge.





And now, I return you to your regularly scheduled life. Hope you enjoyed the break.


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Opinion: What to Do When the Buffy Reboot Comes Out

Ever since it was announced that Warner Bros. was going to go ahead with their cockamamie plan for a Buffy reboot, the Whedonverse fans have been in an uproar. I am among them, and I have been trying to figure out what the best way to deal with this is. Many fans say to boycott the movie. That was my initial reaction, but as I gave it more thought and read more comments across the internet, an idea started to form.

We, as fans, have to decide if we are Whedon fans, Buffy fans, or both. The Whedon fans are those loyal to all things Whedon, while the Buffy fans care more about her than the man who brought her to life. If one is a Whedon fan then it makes sense to boycott the movie. It is absolutely ridiculous to make a movie without its creator, but it has been done before. A perfect example is the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. Wes Craven created him, but he does not own Freddy Krueger, and this led to a lot of problems with most of the sequels. In fact, the sequels that are considered the best of the bunch are the ones Wes worked on, Dream Warriors and A New Nightmare. This is what we are trying to avoid with Buffy. We don't want a new movie that is going to suck so hard Warner Bros. starts clamoring for Joss to come and make a better Buffy movie to wipe away the taint of the second movie. While we would like a Joss made movie, I don't think he would do it. Joss has been screwed over so many times by the industry, I have a hard time believing he'd make a Buffy movie. Maybe in a decade or two, long after the comics have ceased to exist, the fans are going rabid, and an embarrassingly large amount of money is thrown his way.

We are all going to be monitoring the progress of the reboot. We will be critical of casting decisions, who the crew is, and most importantly, the story and how it's written, but ultimately, I think the movie will have to be seen. I do not believe it will be a good movie, but I have to wonder what if Whit Anderson pulls off a miracle and writes an amazing movie? What if she genuinely pays homage to Joss? As a Buffy fan, I think it would be terrible not to experience the movie if it is great, but if the movie is bad, there is no way I am putting down hard earned money for something that is pooping all over a 'verse I love. So, what to do?

I propose we send in designated viewers. We convince one or two of our friends to see the movie and then report back to us. If they deem the movie worthy, we go in droves to support it. If it's unworthy, we get to not only issue a GINORMOUS "I told you so" to anyone and everyone who will listen, including the execs who green-lit the project, but we will be able to explain exactly what was wrong with it, other than Joss' absence.

Warner Bros. does not understand just how intelligent and driven Whedon fans are. They think if it says "Buffy," we will put down money to see it, no matter what the quality is. Once again, they underestimate us. We are the fans who created such a demand for Firefly that it was released on DVD, we got Dollhouse a second season, and we are the ones who brought Serenity to the big screen. There would be no Buffy, Angel, Dr. Horrible, Firefly, or any of the various spin off comics without us. We have made the Whedonverse a lucrative one because we are fiercely loyal, but we will not settle for crap.

So please, don't out right boycott the movie if you are a Buffy fan, but do NOT give a lot of money to the movie until it has proven its worth. Show Warner Bros. they cannot take us and Joss Whedon for granted.

This is part of our ongoing "Buffy Movie" coverage. You can read our first post here.
To see what others are saying about this, check out Action Flick Chick's Reboot Reactions roundup here.

Review: Serenity: The Shepherd's Tale

Finally released (after years of impatient waiting) is The Shepherd's Tale by Joss and Zack Whedon. This story answers the questions of the mysterious Shepherd Book, such as how does a preacher shoot a kneecap so well?

Minor Spoilers Ahead!!!!

The story starts on Haven, the planet community that Book starts after he leaves Serenity (the ship). We actually are watching the very scene from the movie where Haven is destroyed, which is kind of depressing but does fill in some interesting backstory. Here is where we get my favorite quote of the book, from the good Shepherd himself:

"Well, if you look at your life as a chain of events, each responsible for the next and caused by the last, where does any story begin?"

As the scene continues and the fight begins, Shepard Book begins to flash back on his life and we jump back in time a few years to Book living on Serenity (the ship), observing the crew we all know and love. We see them through Book's eyes, as he observes them in their daily scraps, such as Jayne being Jayne or Mal fighting with a arms dealer. We can see the sadness in Book's eyes when he goes to his quarters to pray. As he prays for the crew, we jump backwards again to the Abbey he lived in before joining the Serenity. And back and back we go through his life, learning about how that man got to be our Shepherd Book.

This is a powerful story that really tries to explore what makes a man choose a path and how he lives with that choice. I, along with many Browncoats, did predict some of his past but Joss and Zack threw in a few twists that shocked and surprised me. I like surprises. Best of all, this helps to sum up a mystery left hanging for the past few years. I particularly like the one scene when Book really begins to see how the whole universe is connected and how everything depends on each other.

This "tale" was written by Joss and Zack Whedon, with the art of Chris Samnee. The brothers came together to write this, with Joss penning the outline of the story and Zack taking it from there. This has a strong resemblance to the show and really supports this character. I have read that the timeline in the book doesn't exactly match up to the show but in my opinion, it doesn't hurt the story at all. The art takes some time to get used to. At first, it did bother me because it seemed so dark and shaded, but once I began to see the whole book as a memory, it began to feel more comfortable. The story made the art work.

This is the third Firefly/Serenity comic from Dark Horse Comics and they have hinted that there will be more to come. If you haven't gotten it, go already and pick it up!!! This is a great story that everyone (especially Browncoats) should read. It would even make a great TV show...... :(

Can't Stop the Serenity

This past weekend, I attended a Can’t Stop the Serenity event in Plainview, NY.  It was a gathering of local Whedon fans to come together, watch some movies and support a great cause.  CSTS is an amazing event that is totally fan-run and fan-supported all over the globe.  It was started five years ago by @theonetruebix, and has grown to 52 cities in five countries.  Every year this event supports Joss Whedon’s charity of choice, Equality Now.  Equality Now is an international women's rights advocacy group that was started by Joss’s mother.  They work for the protection and promotion of the human rights of women around the world. Working with national human rights organizations and individual activists, Equality Now documents violence and discrimination against women and mobilizes international action to support their efforts to stop these human rights abuses.  CSTS also supports Kids Need to Read, who works to create a culture of reading for children by providing inspiring books to underfunded schools, libraries, and literacy programs across the United States, especially those serving disadvantaged children.

This year, my local event was held at Ravenblood Games in Plainview, so it had a unique gamer feel.  Every person there was interested in supporting the cause and also had fun stories to tell about their own geeky experiences. We had a Dr. Horrible Sing-A-Long Blog screening (which included some first-time watchers!) and a screening of the big damn movie, Serenity.  In between was a fundraising auction, in which I scored a replica axe that River uses in the final fight scene in Serenity.  This particular event was a smaller group of people, but the store owner is excited to make it grow, so I am already excited for next year!

CSTS is near and dear to my heart, and this post doesn’t do it justice.  It is not very often that you can attend a fan event that really makes a difference.  If you have a chance to attend one of these events, do it!  It is a great way to meet local geeks and have a great time supporting a great cause!

To learn more check out www.equalitynow.org, www.cantstoptheserenity.com, and www.kidsneedtoread.org.