Information sources - you can we trust? by CBY

GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

Information sources - you can we trust?

POSTED BY: CBY
UPDATED: Sunday, December 25, 2005 18:05
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Sunday, December 25, 2005 3:43 AM

Note: I wrote this with some irony. I hope you recognize it when you get there

Also it is written deliberately provocative in certain parts (but not trollish I hope).

Let's take a closer look at the creditabilty of some popular information sources:

Joss Whedon

I wanted to write about twenty lines about his way of saying things (e.g. turnips) but I'll spare you that part. His generally strange, flurry utterances get flushed all over the net in a matter of hours. Personally I don't pay his comments much credit anymore. I doubt he will ever make a straight forward statement about the future of Firefly. After the three weeks being around here I've already heard too much "maybes" and "ifs" from him.

The studio(s)

I'd say they are trustworthy to a certain extend. If they give the green light in a believable fassion you can be quite sure that it's really going to happen. The problem is the other way around: They will never tell us something like "Alright browncoats, you lost, it's done. Joss is an ass and got fired." There will be no "red light" so to say. They will keep our sprit alive as long as possible which leaves us in the good old limbo after all.

The cast and staff

Our big damn heroes are of course very lovely people, but if you ask them "What's next with the franchise?" (what obviously happens all the time) they can promise you heaven and earth because they have absolutely no influence. Their only real task is to comfort the fanbase at this point. Same goes for the rest of the crew.

The Internet

Let's be blunt: Everyone can make up everything on the net. At this seconds you are reading the thoughts of a strange fellow called "CBY". I could tell you now that I am a lost step brother of Joss Whedon and that I know what he plans. Do I have to go on?

conclusion

Well, after all this drivel, where can you get serious information about the franchise? For me the best source is right here - a big fan forum where all the informations, no matter how valid they are, accumulate. You can compare and relate them and hopefully you end up with a fairly accurate picture of the things really happening.

Where do you get valid informations about the future of our franchise? What do you think of the limbo we are in? What do you think of Joss Whedon?

I'm eager for your thoughts about this.

Chris

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 5:41 AM

EMBERS

I think you are expecting hard and fast answers where there just aren't any.

Joss loves his creation, he doesn't want to jinx anything by saying:
Yes, come Hell or High Water I WILL make a sequel!
But I think we can rest assured that if he can figure out a way, he will do it.
And he has promised more comics in 2006.
Fact is he has said time & time again, he has more stories to tell, they are in his brain, and they want to come out.

Universal is not disappointed in Joss, they think he is a future gold mine in the making. They hope to make the new movie 'Goners' (which Joss has already written the script for) soon.
I think if the DVD sales for 'Serenity' are strong they will want to make a sequel too,
if just to keep their future gold mine happy....

The cast have all said they would come back any time. They love each other, Joss, and (most important) their characters. But actors fall in love with a lot of projects and then get their heart's broken....

So pretty much we, as fans, have to be patient,
enjoy what we do get...
and have faith that there will be more.

Joss is very young, 41 is still very young for a director/writer guy...
he has a good thirty years ahead of him to continue to develop his 'verse.

No body is 'over' Firefly/Serenity

**********************************************
watch the R. Tam Session vids: http://www.hittarivertam.nu/
and buy the 'Serenity' comics published by Dark Horse,
and have you joined the Browncoats yet?
http://browncoats.serenitymovie.com/serenity/?fuseaction=tools.invlink
&u=embers&linkID=36

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 6:03 AM

CBY

Quote:
Originally posted by embers:
I think you are expecting hard and fast answers where there just aren't any.

My point is a more general one: Where would the answers come from we all are waiting for?

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 7:00 AM

ECGORDON

There's no place I can be since I found Serenity.

The only reliable sources for information will be Joss and/or Chris Buchanan on the creative end, and Universal and/or Fox on the business end. Anything else is just rumor and not to be trusted. Believed in maybe, hoped for definitely, but not trusted.

wo men ren ran zai fei xing.

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 9:04 AM

KWICKO

"We'll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false." -- William Casey, Reagan's presidential campaign manager & CIA Director (from first staff meeting in 1981)

I think one thing you have to keep in mind is that - at least at this level - this kind of "storytelling" (making movies, TV shows, et al) is a business, first and foremost, and in business it always comes down to dollars. Do we want a sequel or seven? You betcha. Does Joss want it? Just to hear his passion when speaking about this 'verse, I'm thinking he does. Does Universal want it? Well, if they do, it means that they want a sequel because either (a) the first one was a roaring success, or (b) they feel they can build a strong franchise off of it with future installments, and can then leverage the merchandising rights far into the future (as Star Wars has done so well). Do the cast and crew want a sequel? Definitely; they'd like to eat regular-like, and the best way to do that is to keep getting steady work.

So I think all the principals involved WANT more Serenity stories told; it's just a matter of what form is best-suited to tell them and sell them. For the most part, that comes down to money. There's the business part of the equation again. As much as all involved may love the stories, the writing, the cast, and Joss, I doubt many (if any) of them would jump in and do the hard work for free - or worse yet, pay for the privelege of making a movie that loses money. If Serenity doesn't first make the money to give the studio faith in a sequel, it becomes ever less likely to happen.

From where I sit (corner of No and Where), even if the BDM only breaks even, it'd be worth at least a second look from Universal toward going ahead with the trilogy. Keep the budgets around the same ($40million-ish), and every new movie that comes out further drives sales of the previous installments on DVD, as well as licensed merchandise (t-shirts, calendars, posters, soundtracks, hats, scale models, action figures, etc.). But that's just ME saying that; I could be wrong...

Anythough, the reason it's hard to find EXACT, succinct answers is that, at this point in time, there just really AREN'T any definitive answers. My understanding is that the studio hasn't greenlighted another installment, and the TV networks haven't lined up to outbid one another for rights to a resurrected series yet ("yet" being the operative word, in my hopeful view!). That could change if the numbers are kind to us, but I just don't think we'll really know for some time yet - a few months, at least. Be patient - look how long it took to get the BDM after the series was cancelled. The Battle of Serenity Valley wasn't fought in a day, ya know, and we're not laying down arms just yet... ;)

Quote:
The only reliable sources for information will be Joss and/or Chris Buchanan on the creative end, and Universal and/or Fox on the business end. Anything else is just rumor and not to be trusted. Believed in maybe, hoped for definitely, but not trusted.

That's about as clearly as it can be stated. Joss actually seems to really love his fans and share their enthusiasm; if Serenity II gets the green light, I'm sure we'll be among the first to know, and it'll likely be Joss Whedon spreading the good news. Even if that NEVER happens, we've got some amazingly good stories to revisit.

Mike

Grrrrr. Arrrgghh.

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 9:14 AM

THOLO

Speaking of information here is what I found on Cinematical.

Joss Whedon Admits He is Mortal
Posted Dec 20th 2005 8:25PM by Mark Beall
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, Fandom, Scripts & Screenwriting, Comic/Superhero/Geek

Geek kingpin Joss Whedon recently gave an exclusive interview to Coming Soon!, and in it discussed his latest projects- most notably his upcoming Wonder Woman. As always, Whedon's got a thousand irons in the fire; he's still working with Marvel comics and his own Buffy and Serenity comics, he's scriptwriting for another movie called Goner, and he's still contemplating direct-to-DVD releases of a few new Buffy-verse movies. And wonder of wonders, the man actually admits to being mortal.

When asked about doing more with the Firefly franchise he said " It was hard to make and I'm very tired. I need some sleep, and then we'll see if people are interested in more." When addressed about the possibility of writing Wonder Woman comics, he replied "No, I don't think so... I've taken on too much as it is." Whedon concedes that in all likelihood Wonder Woman could be the first project he finishes, leaving his own Goner (and assorted other projects) for later.

I'm not always a huge fan of Whedon's creations (I like some, I dislike others), but I most definately envy the man's creativity, willpower, and sheer stinking tenacity. Anybody that can live out their dreams like he is has got to be doing something right.

Just FYI.

Keep Flying!!

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 2:22 PM

OOKAMIKAWAHARA

Thanks for the post!! This is what I have been trying to hammer into people w/ that last thread about the EW article. I just recently graduated with a degree in Political Science (similar focus) and trust me if you are citing a reference in a 10-15 pg essay for a class this is not going to cut it. Same with pure net sources. You have to evaluate the sources and have varied info!!! Same equation other people have drawn on ie Joss, $$$ from sales and revenue etc, plus the big boys ie Fox, Universial, and any other contenders. Keep an eye out and another one on the source what its saying and if there is follow up etc.
mata, Ookami yori

Suren the Alliance boys are putting up some mighty heavy Disinformation.
Sarge, and Joss said to hold so damn it boys and girls we are holden here!!!

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Sunday, December 25, 2005 6:05 PM

NOSADSEVEN

Quote:
Originally posted by CBY:
conclusion

Well, after all this drivel, where can you get serious information about the franchise? For me the best source is right here - a big fan forum where all the informations, no matter how valid they are, accumulate. You can compare and relate them and hopefully you end up with a fairly accurate picture of the things really happening.

Where do you get valid informations about the future of our franchise? What do you think of the limbo we are in? What do you think of Joss Whedon?

I'm eager for your thoughts about this.

Chris

I very much agree with your conclusion. What went on with the "Special Advance Screenings" of Serenity demonstrates what these boards can accomplish. Many of the second and third rounds of screenings sold out before they were announced because people came together and shared the little bits of information (valid or not) that they had. Information came from people who talked to the local theater managers, people who went trolling fandango, and just people brainstorming on the consistency of screening and ticket sale dates. None of this information on its own was conclusive, but combined it became actionable and effective.

Now, granted, the information we are all currently seeking is much more ambiguous and "upper level" than anything like the advance screenings, but I think the screenings are a valid demonstration of the strengths of these types of forums. All of these different sources sharing whatever scraps of information they have at least serves to reduce sampling error (like you see with the EW article on slashdot). When you see many similar articles and then one that is inconsistent (like the EW article), it is not nearly as disruptive.

What do I think of Joss? I think everything he's said suggests that he'd like to do more in this 'verse, but that he doesn't need to. Joss's need to make Serenity is what got it made. As it stands now, I think there will need to be an outside driving force to get a sequel made. Of course, if Joss's future projects are wildly successful, he may gain enough clout to do whatever he wants to, and he may just want to give us more Serenity.

What do I think of this limbo? I think it is just that...limbo. What do we do about it? We keep spreading the word, introducing friends and family to this 'verse - not to boost sales and spawn a sequel, but because it is something that has touched us that we would like to share.

~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ain't. We. Just.

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