Sheppherds tale still in the works... by stewiej84

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

Sheppherds tale still in the works...

POSTED BY: STEWIEJ84
UPDATED: Wednesday, June 17, 2009 21:53
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VIEWED: 5236
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Monday, May 25, 2009 7:46 PM

hey guys, I emailed dark horse about the sheppherds tale, and got confirmation that it is in fact NOT, i repeat NOT scrubbed, just waiting. here is the email i got back. i know its not much but i figured you guys might want to know its still in the works. Here's the email below.

Hi,

Thanks for the email!

We are still planning to release that comic series, and delve into the
life of Shepherd Book, but it looks like we don't know when the timing
will be right. Joss Whedon is a busy man and he works very hard, but
it may be some time before we can pin down that series. Unfortunately
I can't be any more specific than that. Hope that information helps.
From one fan to another I can't wait for this one.

We appreciate you thinking of Dark Horse Comics.

Zoë: Sir, we don't want to deal with Patience again.
Mal: Why not?
Zoë: She shot you.
Mal: Well, yeah, she did a bit.

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 12:35 AM

DEWRASTLER

Thanks for the post, it's good to hear it's still in the works.

________________________________
People who don't care about anything will never understand the people who do

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 2:23 AM

BROWNCOAT1

May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.

*sigh*

The unfortunate problem of a creator that does not trust his beloved creation to another, but is too busy to give it the attention it needs. *sighs*

Wish Joss would just let someone else take up the baton and run with it. Buffy and Angel have their own ongoing monthly comics, why not Serenity?!?

__________________________________________
Holding the line since December '02!

Richmond, VA & surrounding area Firefly Fans:

http://www.richmondbrowncoats.org

Color Officer / Battalion O.I.C.

http://76thbattalion.homestead.com/index.html

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 2:47 AM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN

Quote:
Originally posted by BrownCoat1:

The unfortunate problem of a creator that does not trust his beloved creation to another, but is too busy to give it the attention it needs. *sighs*

Browncoat1 throws a bullseye.

I've been waiting for this graphic work with a little fear. To me, the best backstory for Book is that of an operative, given the facts we know about him. I fully expect the story to not follow that path. He'll be a dirty cop most likely. This is based upon what Ron Glass was told to tell fans in 2008. Blah.

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 6:14 AM

DARKFLY

Nice to hear, thanks for the update man

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Knightfly on Xfire, www.xfire.com/profile/knightfly/

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 6:42 AM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN

Last year Ron Glass approached Joss and stated that fans kept pestering him about Book's backstory at conventions and he didn't know what to say in return. The answer he got was "Just tell them Book was a dirty Cop".

Blah.

Book should be a former operative. There is so much buried minuta that fits the operative model perfectly.

1. In the film he knew how the Operative would try to approach Mal "They'll come at you sideways, that's how they move. Sidle up you and smile, then hit you where you're weak"

2. In the Pilot episode the barker in the eavestown docks called him Grandpa to which he replied "I never married". The life of an operative requires 100% committment to the Alliance, there is no room for a family.

3. The treatment by the Alliance in the episode "Safe" is far beyond that which would be given a former police officer. "Get this man into the infirmary" was most likely the response of an Alliance officer who scanned the ID card and saw "Operative of the Parliment, Deactivated". Compare that scene to Dr. Mathais's agitation in the movie at an intruder present in the Blue Sun Archives to which he demands an ID. When he gets it, he suddenly defers...just like the officer in "Safe".

4. Book knows all sorts of other things as well. He's familar with weapons when they fight Niska, he knew what the scrappers would do to them in Our Mrs. Reynolds, he knew what Womak's stripes meant in The Message...ect. These things are always used in the defense of the "He's a cop" theory...but they fit an opertative too. Would a cop know about Shan Yu? Maybe..it's a stretch. Would an operative? Well judging by the one we saw who carried a katana and quoted philosophers, I'd say YES.

To me the absolute best backstory is that Book was an operative during the Unification War. He feels great guilt and pain for evils perpatrated by his hand during the conflict. His psychic statement to River in Objects in Space lends power to the premise: "I don't give half a hump if you're innocent or not! So where does that put you?" Oh Book, what did you do? His guilt over past deeds during the war led him into the life of a Shepard in an effort to atone. Such a backstory would also be a great jumping point to create tension twixt Book and Mal/Zoe if some details of his actions against Independents might have come to light. I often thought a great episode of Firefly might have contained a flashback that placed Book at a particular conflict opposite the 57th overlanders. Then a writer could produce a story where Mal and Book see a similar event with two radically different eyes.

But what shall be cobbled together in A Shepards Tale? What new story will supplant the facts from the show? What grave liberties will be taken with our beloved canon? I tremble with fear at these thoughts.

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 7:01 AM

STORYMARK

Quote:
Originally posted by bluesuncompanyman:
Last year Ron Glass approached Joss and stated that fans kept pestering him about Book's backstory at conventions and he didn't know what to say in return. The answer he got was "Just tell them Book was a dirty Cop".

And you're taking it at face value? Seriously???

Seems pretty obviouse that's just something to shut people up so they don't have to answer the question...

"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 7:16 AM

BYTEMITE

I agree, StoryMark, I have my suspicions that if Joss tosses the fans a bone, it's never the WHOLE bone.

What if Book was a rogue operative, a bit more underhanded than the usual breed and had his part in lots of not so legal activity, using his status to keep himself free and clear? Like the Operative of the movie, he might also have had "for the better good" justifications for the things he did, until something shook him out of it. And then he could accurately be described as a "dirty cop."

In The Message, we find out there are rogue Federal Agents, why not?

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 7:54 AM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN

Quote:
Originally posted by Storymark:
And you're taking it at face value? Seriously???

Well, yes. If it came from Joss I'd fear the statement.

Joss is a very busy man. When he gets busy things slip. Just look at Buffy season 7 and angel season 4 as an example. They suck compared to the other seasons he worked on. Why? Because they were filmed at the same time Firefly was in production. I've often said that Joss robbed the energies of Buffy and Angel in 2002, a sad thing certainly, but the result was his opus: Firefly. I'm resolved that the steep price was worth it.

Joss is once again busy. I'd say that saving Dollhouse is the bulk thought currently residing in his frontal lobe. He's offered statements on Whedonesque lately that indicate he's cooking up other ideas as well. I think firefly just isn't his prime focus now. Oh how terrifying that is! He will then defer to some other writer who will belt out A Shepards Tale, most likely without an eye for the minuta present in the show. The result will be a work inconsistant with the verse. The resulting erosion of canon will serve ills upon our verse in a manner similar to what has happened to the Alien, Preditator, and Terminator franchises. God forbid it ever go as badly as Star Wars, where everybody with access to a computer has written horribly confusing stuff into the enormously bloated canon. I gave up on SW long ago.

When Joss says something people listen. If he quips offhandedly to Ron Glass that Book's a cop, some writer is certainly going to grab onto it. Suddenly Book will be a cop and the superior story will be left behind in the dust, along with seasons 2-6 of firefly.

To anyone who reads Sandman, the tales of Book that should exist, but don't, will thereafter reside in Luciens library to plague us whistfully as we consider the beauty that was lost.

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Tuesday, May 26, 2009 10:18 PM

SHINYGOODGUY

Shiny............pass the Mudder's Milk, I need a drink.

SGG

Tawabawho?

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Thursday, June 11, 2009 4:58 AM

BLUESUNCOMPANYMAN

Quote:
Originally posted by stewiej84:
hey guys, I emailed dark horse about the sheppherds tale, and got confirmation that it is in fact NOT, i repeat NOT scrubbed, just waiting.

I'm dragging this thread back to the fore because I too just recieved an email from Dark horse. It was interesting because right away it sounded familiar:

Thanks for the email! We are still planning to release that comic series, and delve into the life of Shepherd Book, but it looks like we don't know when the timing will be right. Joss Whedon is a busy man and he works very hard, but it may be some time before we can pin down that series. Unfortunately I can't be any more specific than that. Hope that information helps. From one fan to another I can't wait for this one.
We appreciate you thinking of Dark Horse Comics. Best,
Spencer
Dark Horse Comics, Inc.

I had written expressing my fear that the comic would be generated by someone...not Joss Whedon...and would make terrible canon mistakes. I asked if possible to pass along via the internet tubes this thread address to whomever is working on the project. While I didn't expect that to actually happen, it was worth the 1/100,000 shot. And my reply after 2 weeks was the exact same reply StewieJ84 got. i.e. the emailer is a person at dark horse whose sole job is to scan emails for comic topic then send the appropriate pre-prepared statement, much like a press release.

Has anyone ever seen the film called comic book villians? There is a great scene there where a true-believer comics collector describes a wall of seperation that has always existed between fans and those that produce the art. This email auto-reply proves the truth of his words to me today. I have no idea if "Spencer" is a real person or a SpamBot.

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Wednesday, June 17, 2009 1:14 PM

CELLARDOOR

Quote:
Originally posted by bluesuncompanyman:
I'm dragging this thread back to the fore because I too just recieved an email from Dark horse. It was interesting because right away it sounded familiar:

Thanks for the email! We are still planning to release that comic series, and delve into the life of Shepherd Book, but it looks like we don't know when the timing will be right. Joss Whedon is a busy man and he works very hard, but it may be some time before we can pin down that series. Unfortunately I can't be any more specific than that. Hope that information helps. From one fan to another I can't wait for this one.
We appreciate you thinking of Dark Horse Comics. Best,
Spencer
Dark Horse Comics, Inc.

Has anyone ever seen the film called comic book villians? There is a great scene there where a true-believer comics collector describes a wall of seperation that has always existed between fans and those that produce the art. This email auto-reply proves the truth of his words to me today. I have no idea if "Spencer" is a real person or a SpamBot.

Now, sumthing 'bout that is just downright unsettlin'.... *sigh* =\

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Wednesday, June 17, 2009 9:53 PM

STEWIEJ84

Quote:
Originally posted by bluesuncompanyman:
Quote:
Originally posted by stewiej84:
hey guys, I emailed dark horse about the sheppherds tale, and got confirmation that it is in fact NOT, i repeat NOT scrubbed, just waiting.
I'm dragging this thread back to the fore because I too just recieved an email from Dark horse. It was interesting because right away it sounded familiar:

Thanks for the email! We are still planning to release that comic series, and delve into the life of Shepherd Book, but it looks like we don't know when the timing will be right. Joss Whedon is a busy man and he works very hard, but it may be some time before we can pin down that series. Unfortunately I can't be any more specific than that. Hope that information helps. From one fan to another I can't wait for this one.
We appreciate you thinking of Dark Horse Comics. Best,
Spencer
Dark Horse Comics, Inc.

I had written expressing my fear that the comic would be generated by someone...not Joss Whedon...and would make terrible canon mistakes. I asked if possible to pass along via the internet tubes this thread address to whomever is working on the project. While I didn't expect that to actually happen, it was worth the 1/100,000 shot. And my reply after 2 weeks was the exact same reply StewieJ84 got. i.e. the emailer is a person at dark horse whose sole job is to scan emails for comic topic then send the appropriate pre-prepared statement, much like a press release.

Has anyone ever seen the film called comic book villians? There is a great scene there where a true-believer comics collector describes a wall of seperation that has always existed between fans and those that produce the art. This email auto-reply proves the truth of his words to me today. I have no idea if "Spencer" is a real person or a SpamBot.

Gorramit! Here I thought we had a browncoat on the inside. Would it suprise anyone else if the comic were already finished and simply awaiting release? You know, hold off release to make people want it more so they can further guarantee a tidy profit? I'm not sure I'd be suprised if that were the case.

Spencer is a ruttin' spambot! *runs off and sobs into his 'serenity shaped pillow'*

Zoë: Sir, we don't want to deal with Patience again.
Mal: Why not?
Zoë: She shot you.
Mal: Well, yeah, she did a bit.

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