Firefly

Joss and cast appeared in the upstairs ballroom - a smallish 900-seat or so space, - at the LB Convention Center. Since I got in the line at about 12:30, I was able to snag a nice seat in about the 4th or 5th row, and borrowed the wife’s digicorder to record the event. Wasn’t allowed to tape the 5 minute preview from Serenity - I imagine it was the same one that they showed in SF.

Joss came on to great acclaim and said “I have some bad news.” (Holds up new Capt. Mal action figure). “We shrunk Nathan.” (in tiny voice) “I love you all.” He then held up the Mal and Jayne figures, and teased “who wants to see it?”, then had them smooch.

He then introduced the cast, “in order of talent,” starting with Ron, then Morena (still with her stylish short ‘do), Sean, Jewel, and (“bringing up the rear, the baggage, the dead wood, the recently de-miniaturized”) Nathan last. Nathan proceeded to conduct the audience’s applause for a few minutes, then picked up the action figures, and said “it looks just like . . . David Duchovny.” Then they ran the preview, about which I will not speak right now.

Just as Joss was getting going again, Nathan held up the action figure again to show that he’d accidentally broken the arm off, and Ron symbolically said last rites over it.

Here are the more interesting answers to questions:

 Serenity will have a “regular-type” premiere, in Los Angeles in September.

 Joss repeated that David Newman will be scoring, and said that he is a “classical composer, a violinist, and an extraordinary talent.”

 Some relatively non-spoilery spoilers: The “Ballad of Serenity” will not be appearing in the movie. And neither Simon or Kaylee speak any Chinese in the movie (in response to a question for each cast member about what it was like to go back to speaking Chinese).

 Nathan informed us that Sean’s nickname on set is “Sean ‘The Bod’ Maher.”

 Re the focus groups’ reaction to the advance screening: Joss said that the main difficulty with people unfamiliar with the show was “how to get all the information out without making it sound like we were getting all the information out”, and that it was an “eye-opener” to see which parts people were getting. But he emphasized that the film was not being “simplified”: he just wanted to make sure it was as clear as possible without sacrificing the necessary elements they wanted to achieve.

 Re yesterday’s appearance with Stephen Sondheim: Joss said that SS had not seen OMWF, and “didn’t have the slightest idea who I was,” but that meeting him was still “AWESOME!”: “I got to meet an actual real genius yesterday.”

 Joss would like Serenity to be successful enough to make more FF movies (and after Nathan whispered in his ear, “oh, more movies with Nathan.”)

 Everyone applauded a question seeking more info about Wonder Woman. Joss said he “really liked” WW, and seemed totally happy about it. Both Jewel and Morena had their hands up, apparently wanting to be part of the movie. Jewel then said, ever so sweetly, “can I be in your Wonder Woman movie?” Joss, looking meaningfully at Morena, then proclaimed, “where will I find a dark-haired olive-skinned beauty?”

(Nathan and Morena then did a slightly bawdy riff on the Adam Baldwin action figures being “scratch n’ sniff”, which was followed by Joss mounting Nathan’s back. I can’t really do justice to this part . . . )

 The Serenity trailer will be appearing in the summer, “might be May,” and Joss had just seen a rough first cut, “and it’s coool . . . “
 Book’s “mysterious past” is "touched upon" in the movie.

 All of the cast said they would definitely do a Firefly TV show again if given the chance.

 Joss started writing the Firefly universe at the end of BtVS Season 3, after reading a book entitled “The Killer Angels” about the Battle of Gettysburg.

 Joss wasn’t a fan of the 70s Wonder Woman series (“although I wasn’t a non-fan”), but he didn’t think “she was as strong - as she’s going to be.”

 This should please many of you: “If people decide they’re interested in making a Spike movie, I think I’ll probably arrange to do that.”

 Re Joss’s input in the Angel comic - not huge, but he gives them boundaries of things they shouldn’t get into, themes they should stay away from, “because they’re mine.”

 Re Reavers: “the question was how much we could show and keep our PG-13 rating.” Some of the concept sketches for them were drawn by Bernie Wrightson (creator of Swamp Thing).

Well, that’s all I can do for now. It’s pretty much impossible to impart how warm and fuzzy, and funny, the cast and Joss are with each other, and how silly Nathan Fillion is. Good times.