Fox TV will be introducing a new sci-fi TV series in the autumn called Fringe. According to some of the blurb posted on the Internet this series is:
From J.J. Abrams (“Lost”), Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, the team behind “Star Trek,” “Mission: Impossible III” and “Alias,” comes a new drama that will thrill, terrify and explore the blurring line between science fiction and reality. Fringe-element
According to the IMDB it’s centered around a female FBI agent who is forced to work with an institutionalized scientist in order to rationalize a
brewing storm of unexplained phenomena.
The show is being described as a cross between The X-Files, Altered States and The Twilight Zone. Like Abrams’ previous TV shows, it will have an overarching mythology. A two-hour, $10,000,000 pilot is being produced, where Walter is in a mental hospital. Jeff Pinkner will serve as executive producer/showrunner. The Fringe series premiere is scheduled for August 26, 2008.
This is another in the long list of modern mythological TV series concerning people with special or super human powers. Over the past 10 – 15 years there has been a proliferation of this genre including:
The X-Files
Millennium
American Gothic
The Lost Room
Heroes
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Carnivàle
Pushing Dasies
The Dresden Files
Twin Peaks
A Town Called Eureka
Charmed
Lost
Alias
Harsh Realm
Etc.
There seems to be an insatiable demand for fantasy stories on TV and increasingly so in recent years. Maybe there is a correlation between economic downturns and the desire to watch fantasy programmes. This might be worth checking out…
NASA has announced that the Phoenix lander has started to return some amazing results from it’s surface and surface soil chemistry experiments. The experiments are concerned with trying to discover is water did in fact run freely on the surface and the chemical composition of the soil. Already the results are amazing from the point of view that the soil seems very reminiscent of soil on planet Earth. As reported in last nights NASA newsletter:
"We are awash in chemistry data," said Michael Hecht of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, lead scientist for the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA, instrument on Phoenix. "We’re trying to understand what is the chemistry of wet soil on Mars, what’s dissolved in it, how acidic or alkaline it is.
With the results we received from Phoenix yesterday, we could begin to tell what aspects of the soil might support life."
"This is the first wet-chemical analysis ever done on Mars or any planet, other than Earth," said Phoenix co-investigator Sam Kounaves of Tufts University, science lead for the wet chemistry investigation.
"This soil appears to be a close analog to surface soils found in the upper dry valleys in Antarctica," Kouvanes said. "The alkalinity of the soil at this location is definitely striking. At this specific location, one-inch into the surface layer, the soil is very basic, with a pH of between eight and nine. We also found a variety of components of salts that we haven’t had time to analyze and identify yet, but that include magnesium, sodium, potassium and chloride."
Some people might be wondering what a space based chemistry set looks like. Of course most people would expect this kind of thing:
A space based chemistry set.
Or this picture of Wet Chemistry Laboratory Units
On the other hand due to US Government budget cuts NASA had to use an alternative source for it’s high profile experiments, here is a top secret picture leaked from a NASA operative showing the actual chemistry lab being used by the Phoenix lander:
It’s amazing what can achieved even in these belt tightening times!
In the beginning Joss Whedon created Buffy. Now the television was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the schedules, and the Spirit of Joss was hovering over the channels. And Joss said, "Let there be high ratings," and there were high ratings. Joss saw that the ratings were good, and he separated the fans from the critics.
In the end Buffy got to series seven and that was that. The cast went on to bigger and better things (hmmm…) and Joss Whedon decided that his next TV adventure would be a space-based science fiction ‘western’ called Firefly. Firefly was not a big hit with critics but according to the IMDB it has a viewer satisfaction rating of 9.5/10. Firefly was cancelled by the studio but Whedon carried on with a spin-off movie called Serentiy. Personally I thought this movie was under-funded, the script was poor and the acting a couple of notches above drama school.
Joss has not given up on a Buffy follow-up though and has come up with a new TV series called Dollhouse. So what’s the news on Dollhouse? It’s currently in production with a preview just released. Here is the back ground story from Joss Whedon:
Concept
So what is the concept, exactly? Explains Whedon: "Dollhouse is a suspense drama about a girl who can have any personality except her own." So it’s part Alias and part Quantum Leap, "because Echo is literally changing who she is," he continues. "She gets into people’s lives a little bit." Even Dushku’s. "I relate so much to this character," she marvels. "Echo is essentially the story of my life. I’ve lived a crazy life the past 16 years, traveling around the world and then tripping and falling into this business. Everyone wants you to transform and be a different person every week."
Characters
Beyond Dushku’s character, the show will also revolve around the people who run the mysterious "dollhouse" and two other "dolls," a man and woman who are friendly with Echo.
Then there’s the federal agent who has heard an urban myth about the dolls, and is trying to investigate their existence.
Background
Great chemistry and intriguing premise notwithstanding, you’d think that after Fox snuffed Whedon’s Firefly and hung up on Dushku’s Tru Calling, one or both of them would have been more than a little hesitant to get back into bed with the network. "Honestly? Walking back into that building was pretty damn strange," Whedon admits. But "I always had a good relationship with [Twentieth Century Fox], and on the network end, it’s a completely new bunch of people, and from what I’ve seen, a fairly impressive bunch." Dushku seconds that emotion. "I really get the sense that they’re committed to [this show]… It feels right." Besides, as Whedon notes, "I told them I was interested in writing a pilot, and they gave me seven episodes. They’ve already shown more support for it than I have." Now it’s your turn to show the comeback kids some love. And, like Dushku, I don’t think you’ll let them down. "We have the best fans in the business [in the] the Buffy and Whedon universe," she says. "It’s going to be pandemonium when this [news] hits." And it’s only just begun. Dollhouse web
Here is the trailer:
And here is link to the Dollhouse Wiki where you can find more information (such as the episode list) about this exciting new Whedon adventure. Let’s just hope that Fox don’t pull the plug too soon…
