The REALLY Real World

Hi, all.

If you follow me on Twitter, you may know that I, along with @babyraebunz, am preparing to film a new reality show called The Really Real World. It's like the Real World (MTV) but NOT. It's better.  

If you don't follow me on Twitter, fuck you. We don't need the web-inept anyway.

Okay, so if you wanna be on the show here's the spill:

Looking for HOT twenty-somethings with MUCHO problems GALORE.  

Inquire ONLY if you belong to the following demographics, or if you are good enough at acting to portray one of the following demographics.

-Male, Cowboy, bicurious.

-Female, gothic-vampire. Must love eyeliner and The Cure.

-Female, black. (African American or otherwise).

-Male/Female religious patron. Virgin "until" marriage. Preferably blonde.

-Male, Pirate.

If interested, please comment below or hit either of us up on Twitter.

@Pepperinge

@babyraebunz

Thanks, guys. 

You won't regret it.

Your New Favorite Comic.

As some of you may know, I'm currently (seriously) working on a super project called Staked!  

It's only in the preliminary stages right now, but I'm working hard and fast on this one, so production is well underway.  I wanted to write this little tidbit about it now, without giving too much away regarding plot and premise, but I will say that within the next 6 months - a year, I will be giving you guys a FREE sneak peek at Staked! on Myspace.

Here are some details I don't mind divulging:

-It's a Graphic Novel

-It's scary!

-It's funny!

-And I'm debating on whether it should take place in the 80s or present day Virginia.  Just sayin'.

So, there you have it.  The FIRST official update on your new favorite comic book, Staked!

PE

These are the preliminary facial photos for my new Graphic Novel, Staked!

-Stay tuned for more updates on Staked!, your new favorite comic.  coming in 2011!

Blood & Trenches: A Review

What's black and white, and RED all over?

No, not a newspaper! (check the spelling, people) It's Angel: Blood & Trenches!

Blood & Trenches is a four issue comic series written/drawn by John Byrne, and tells the story of Angel's time in Europe during WWI.  The story begins with our hero learning of terrible monsters ravaging troops in Europe.  Angel travels to France to try and uncover what's really going on.  What follows is a non-stop, action packed, black/white romp across northern Europe.  Vampires are feeding on soldiers, but not just feeding, they're siring them, seemingly recruiting them for some bigger, broader plan.  Angel is determined to uncover the plan, and along the way, meets up with a few familiar faces.

What to look for in Angel: Blood & Trenches: 

While reading Blood & Trenches, be on the lookout for certain canonical features.  I won't give any specific details away, but I will say that there are lots of great references to previous Angel encounters (or in this case, future encounters).  Angel awkwardly teams up with a semi-familiar figure, Colonel Geoffrey Wyndam-Price.  That's right; Wesley's granddad (and not a robot this time).  We also have the pleasure (or not-pleasure, rather) of being reintroduced to another Buffy/Angel crossover character, Kakistos.  Kakistos did a stint on Buffy, and then was featured again in the Xbox game, Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Chaos Bleeds.  Kakistos proves to be just as formidable a foe for Angel.

What makes Blood & Trenches so great?

I especially like the aesthetics of this series.  The entire spread is colorless, except for a super-vibrant red-orange used to color blood.  Think of it as a violent coloring book with words and way better pictures.  Also, it's really good to read something about Angel from before he loved and lost the Buffster.  Don't get me wrong, I love Angel & Buffy just as much as the next fan, but all that regret gets kinda annoying, y'know?

So, after all is said and done, Angel: Blood & Trenches makes for a great read.  I think it's definitely one of the better IDW Angel-centered series out there (aside from After the Fall, of course).  Check it out if you haven't already.  It's well worth your while.

And be on the lookout for a hardcover collection of Blood & Trenches, coming soon.

Decapitation vs Defenestration

*The shocking conclusion of my Windex dilemma*

It's been a while, but I'm back with more exciting Windexploits.

As you know (and if you don't know, read my other Windex-centered entries) I just finished the initial tapings of my first ever commercial!  It's an ad for the new green Windex products available at Target and Super Target locations near you!  If any of you readers follow my Tweets on Twitter, then you've probably been seeing some crazy blurbs since my last Windexploits post.  Well, here's a super quick run-on recap:

It all started about a week ago when Michael Lovelace, the director of my Windex commercial, gave me the harrowing news that I could A) star in his ad, or B) have my liver cut out if I didn't obey his wishes.  Lovelace, it turns out, is a Vocah demon (evil, but harmless in most cases) and he wants me to to gestate his demon offspring for a period of 6 weeks in exchange for the role in his commercial.  If I declined, he would cut out my liver and feed it to his newborn child once some other poor soul had delivered it.  I most recently accepted the role and told Lovelace that I would be "honored" to bare his child, even though I am A) a man, B) not up to the challenge emotionally, and C) lying through my perfect teeth.  

Here's the thing.  I told Lovelace I'd go through with it, and we filmed the commercial.  But I can't help him bring a vicious demon-spawn into the world, so I devised a plan.  You may recall me mentioning a dream I had that told me killing Lovelace was the only option, and the only way to kill a demon, that I know of, is to decapitate it.  So, I bought a sword and a few sharp kitchen knives for good measure.

This morning I was to meet Lovelace and his wife, Rebecca, at his office in LA.  We were going to go over the footage from yesterday's shoot and begin the insemination process.  On my way into the building I was stopped at a metal detector and detained for bringing "weapons" into the facility.  Of course, they were stowed (apparently I'm not the only one who wants this guy dead) and I was lead upstairs, defenseless.  

I arrived at Lovelace's office, scared to death and praying to the PTB to help me out.  But, upon entering, I realized it was no use.  I was going to be impregnated with Vocah spawn and there was nothing I could do about it.  They called me into the office and we viewed the ad tape.  I must say, for a moment I forgot all about the impregnation and liver eating.  I was damn good in that commercial!  Maybe this whole ordeal isn't that bad after all, I thought.  Suddenly, the lights dimmed, and Rebecca Lovelace started chanting some weirdo babble from behind Mike's desk.  Candle's were lit, the shades were drawn across the large windows facing LA, and I was pinned to the wall by Michael himself.  

Now, Vocah demons can pass as humans while clothed, but, well . . let's just say that beneath it all, they aren't like real men at all.  Lovelace undressed, and prepared himself for the, er, process.  I was terrified.  I had no idea how this was even going to work.  I don't have a uterus.  I'm not equipped for these things!  As Lovelace pinned me closer to the wall something happened in my brain.  That something told me to run and kick and shove and fight as hard as I could.  So I did.  I pushed Lovelace off of me and then pushed him again, a little too hard, actually.  The next thing I know, a screaming, nude, commercial director is crashing through a thirteenth floor window.  My bad.

Apparently, Rebecca and the others there weren't too happy with Lovelace's antics either, so I wasn't punished too severely.  I was simply shown the door, and sent home.  I even got a few handshakes on my way out!  I guess it just goes to show you that the Powers That Be are always watching.  It's just too bad I didn't get to use the sword.  By the way, as payment for the window I kinda destroyed, I have to wash all the panes on the thirteenth floor for two weeks!  Good thing I know a thing or two about Windex.

Naturally,

PE 

Dollhouse: How Refreshing

What a refresher! 

No, I'm not talking about new Cherry 7up or those bottles of Perrier I just had blessed, I'm talking about Dollhouse; Joss Whedon's newest television series.

Taking a well-needed break from the supernatural genre, Whedon returns to science fiction with Dollhouse, a series about secrets!  Let's all admit it, we love mystery.  And Dollhouse is chock full of it.  Here's a run down, just in case you aren't familiar:

The "Dollhouse" is a hidden facility located somewhere in Los Angeles California.  It's a sort of offshoot of the Rossum Corporation, a mysterious research group.  The inhabitants of the Dollhouse are called Actives, or Dolls, and their minds have essentially been wiped of all memories of the outside world, a trait that allows them to be "imprinted" with new, different personae.  This basically means that the Dolls are blank slates, and can be given new personalities, which help them complete tasks or missions for the Rossum Corporation.  These missions may be known as "engagements" and are often dangerous.  The Dolls are imprinted with the memories and expertise of other individuals in order to help them achieve certain goals.  While acting in engagements, the Dolls are monitored by Handlers, who work for the corporation.  

Okay, so now that we're all clear, let's discuss a few things about this series.  The first season just ended, and I must say, well . . . the only thing I can say, "um?"  Don't get me wrong, season one was a terrific run, but there was a ton of information to process along the way.  For instance, there are Dolls, there are Handlers, there are general employees, and there are Rogue Actives (reprobate Dolls who have become somewhat "self-aware").  There's also this semi-good looking but still kinda boring detective, Paul Ballard, who's heard rumors of the Dollhouse and wants to bring it down.  NEWS FLASH:  The Dollhouse's activities are ILLEGAL, which is also a tad confusing, considering some of the missions they achieve are seemingly good.  The cons of this series, or rather what I consider to be cons, are minimal, but still present.  It is my strong belief, however, that the series has fallen victim to what I call Network Stifling.  Fox currently has the rights to Dollhouse, and the network is using it's power to disassemble the series.  A few of the episodes from Season One were rearranged to form a different order (sound familiar, Firefly fans?), and I believe at least one episode was left out of the season entirely.  I'm not sure of the reasoning behind these choices, but Fox may have put a damper on Dollhouse's interpretability by stifling the original plan.  

Now for the pros.  My favorite thing about this show is all the familiar faces; shall I name them?  Yes!

) Eliza Dushku - Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel

) Alan Tudyk - Firefly

) Amy Acker - Angel

 . . . and many more.

It's great to see three of my favorite Whedon characters in one show.

For me, the story lines are what make this show a hit.  In true Whedon style, there is a looming, sort of overlord of a plot (in this case Eliza Dushku's character Echo becoming "self-aware") and within each episode a smaller, more ascertainable, conflict is created to carry that episode along.  This is what makes this show better, in my opinion, than other shows out there such as Lost or Heroes.  These series leave too much untold in each episode for me to want to come back, and essentially nothing has been achieved by the end of each episode.

The best part of Dollhouse, though, is it's refreshing take on science fiction.  Whedon blew millions away with Buffy and Angel. He created and entire universe of demons and dialogue that made those shows what they were (and have become).  Breaking from that, and from the futuristic sci-fi world of Firefly, Whedon has created semi-realistic view of the technologically scientific fiction.  No aliens, monsters, or weird flying machines here.  This is strictly blow-your-mind (literally) technology, and that's perfectly fine.

So, check out Dollhouse if you haven't already.  It's fantastic once you get past all the kinks.  Season One DVD's on sale soon, and Season Two begins on FOX in September.  You can also view episodes at hulu.com and fox.com.

Thanks, all.

PE.

Recent Ripper Rumors

Digressing from my usual Windexploits, I'm taking a few moments this evening to write about the recent rumors about a THIRD Buffy the Vampire Slayer spinoff.  

The rumors aren't as much recent as they are growing.  I came across an article almost a year ago about an alleged Buffy spinoff in the form of either a miniseries or a made-for-television movie.  The main focus of this new story line; Rupert Giles.  

I know what you all must be thinking.  Giles?  But we know what's happening with Giles.  He's teamed up with Faith the Vampire Slayer and gone all reformative Watcher (ca. BtVS Season Eight).  Supposedly, this spinoff will focus on Giles before the Watchers' Council, back in his demon-worshipping, magic-tampering days as Rupert "Ripper" Giles.

I will admit, I was pleasantly surprised to hear these details, as small as they were.  I am an avid Whedon fan, and anything Whedon-related starts my engine (if y'get my drift).  But the problem with these rumors is that they  are simply rumors as of right now.  Here's approximately everything I've read on the subject of Ripper:

-the televised airings would be broadcast by BBC, which means America = not so much.

-it would be in the form of either A) a made-for-TV movie, or B) a miniseries with no more than 12 episodes.

-Joss Whedon apparently stated sometime last month (when rumors of the new Buffy movie began circulating big time) that after Dollhouse ended he would focus his attention on creating web-based shows/specials, much like Dr. Horrible, exclusively.  So, unless headway on Ripper is made SOON, Whedon probably won't be in the picture.

-public interest is a big issue for this project as well.  The BBC ran (or is running) Buffy on air, so the show has been seen, but aside from the cult following, producers may not feel Ripper would have what it takes to make it on its own; another reason why it may only be presented as a movie/miniseries if presented at all.

I'd love to see this project turned into something amazing.  It could be done, but it sounds to me like a big stretch.  If it does happen, however, we can probably expect some great story lines and familiar faces (i.e. Ethan Rayne, Eyghon, etc).  Let's hope nothing detrimental to the Whedon fanbase happens with this.  I'd hate to see a worthy project get the same kind of reception as the new Buffy film.

-Here's what Anthony Head had to say about the project and his views on "Ripper", Rupert Giles' former self. . .  

http://scifiwire.com/2009/06/anthony-head-the-buffy-sp.php

Thanks, all. . .  and please, tell me what you think as well.

Naturally,

PE