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Though writer-director Joss Whedon may not be who we thought he was, there is no question that his television shows remain widely loved and celebrated. This is especially true of the imaginative sci-fi Western "Firefly," which aired for only 11 glorious episodes in 2002. Most fans wouldn't see the remaining three episodes until the series came out on DVD in 2004. Fox bungled this one, pure and simple.

Fans mourn what might've been the way Independents look back on the Unification War, but there's no profit to be had in wishing things were different. "Firefly" gave us 14 wonderful episodes before flying off quietly into that good night. At least there was a form of closure in the 2005 film "Serenity," and the story goes on in a series of graphic novels. As the theme song says, "You can't take the sky from me."

With that in mind, this piece means to sort the wheat from the chaff.

In the first of what I hope to be a regular feature on Fused TV, I have decided to choose Buffy The Vampire Slayer, as my choice. First off, this feature is designed to rehash thoughts and feelings and interesting reactions to shows of the past. Shows that changed how I perceive TV, shows that I still can pull out a DVD and watch an episode, shows that have such an awesome cast, and many more things. “The Show Must Go On” and why not start with one of my favorite series ever, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Matt Roush of TV Guide put it nicely at the Buffy reunion one year at the Paley Festival. Roush, a long time fan of the show, got up and quipped at his introduction, “My name is Matt and I’m a Buffy-holic.” He also described the show as “Clueless meets Carrie by...

In a festival filled with brutality and and splatter effects, one might think a straightforward rom-com would get lost in the gore. But Drones was not only a refreshing break, but stands on its own as a witty tale of an office romance with a twist ... aliens.

Yes, aliens. Yet the film contains no CGI, no prosthetics or special cosmetics, just a guy and a gal and impending alien invasions. "Boy meets girl but she's an alien" is not a new plot device, but writers Ben Acker and Ben Blacker capture interpersonal dynamics with dry wit while embedding a science-fiction theme within a very typical office, although with a very unusual copy machine. 

Brian (Jonathan M. Woodward, Firefly) is a dedicated worker bee of an office drone, who has a crush on Amy (Angela Bettis, May) across the aisle. Brian's best friend and coworker Clark (Samm Levine, Inglourious Basterds) pushes...

The new sci fi Drones, directed by Amber Benson (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer Fame), offers up plenty of laughs but falls short as a sci fi. This low budget gem premiered at Fantastic Fest 2010, a genre film festival held in Austin. With Indy regulars like Jonathan Woodward, Angela Bettis and Samm Levine, this film has the acting chops to pull off a strange script full of light comedy and 3rd Rock from the Sun-style sci fi. Brian (Woodward) spends his day laconically working away in his little cubicle, a drone bee in the hive of his company. Trying to avoid any real work or drama, Brian...

Were you one of the lucky winners of our Joss Whedon Day prize pack? Then you managed to snag a shiny new copy of “Firefly: Still Flying,” a collection of stories and essays by the cult show’s former writers. Don’t get tetchy, though – the book hits stores this week and we chatted with Jose Molina, writer of one of the stories in the collection, and two of the thirteen Firefly episodes that ever saw air. Oh, and just how he managed to get Nathan Fillion butt nekkid:

Ugo: Let’s talk about Firefly – how’d you get hooked up with the show in the first place?

Jose Molina: As I've said before: "The Lady of the Lake, her arm clad in the purest shimmering samite, held aloft Excalibur from the bosom of the water signifying by Divine Providence that I, Jose, was to write for Firefly.

Among the women who have played gay for pay, Amber Benson is one I dearly wish were also gay for play.

It’s purely selfish, because Benson’s character Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer is half of one of the best couples ever to grace the small screen. (The other half, of course, was Alyson Hannigan’s Willow, in case you were born yesterday or something.)

But even though Benson is coupled with Adam Busch, who played Warren on Buffy (and yes, Warren killed Tara, but let’s try to forget that, mm-kay?), she has been a strong supporter of the lesbian fan base she developed during her Tara years — and we love her for it. Besides, she’s gorgeous.

So when I learned that Benson and Busch would be at a free screening of their movie Drones at Dallas’ USA Film Festival, I happily waited in line.

Parking-lot-style...

Gallery I of photographs from Moving Pictures Media Studio at Sundance Film Festival 2010: James Urbaniak, Samm Levine, Mark Evan Jackson, Jonathan M. Woodward, Amber Benson, Adrien Grenier, Jonah Hill, Mark and Jay Duplass, Marissa Tomei, John C. Reilly, Adam Busch, Aimee-Lynn Chadwick, Adam Bowers, Alan Tudyk, William Davidson, Phil Walker, Robert Persons, Adriana Magg, A.J. Buckley, Amanda Peet, Aamir Kahn, Clayne Crawford, David Hyde Pierce, Megan Perry, Nathanial Parker, Nick Tomnay, Adam Green, Alex Gibney, Alvaro Pastor, Ben Mendelsohn, Joel Edgerton, David Michôd, Sullivan Stapleton, James Frecheville, Jacki Weaver...

Amber Benson and Adam Busch are true multihyphenates. Both boast a long list of acting credits, including stints on the TV cult classic "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Both channel their creative energy into other mediums: He's part of the successful folk-rock trio Common Rotation; she's the author of popular urban fantasy series "Death's Daughter." In addition, both are as comfortable behind the camera as they are in front of it, producing and directing their own work. Recently, the real-life couple teamed up to co-helm "Drones," a screwball sci-fi comedy set in a seemingly mundane cubicle farm. The film, which bowed at Slamdance earlier this year, stars such diverse talents as horror queen Angela Bettis ("May," "Girl, Interrupted"), Obie winner and cartoon superstar James Urbaniak ("The Venture Bros.," "American Splendor"), and "Freaks and Geeks" alum Samm Levine ("Inglourious Basterds").Back Stage: How did this project come together?Adam Busch:...

Start: 04/13/2010 Start: 04/13/2010

Check out this awesome for-charity screening of director/actress Amber Benson's new romantic science fiction comedy movie Drones in Los Angeles on Tuesday, April 13th, 2010. Non-profit writing/tutoring center 826La will benefit, to provide free creative writing programs for Los Angeles students ages 6-18. The exclusive screening will be followed by a Q&A with cast and crew, including Benson and Bettis, and an afterparty. Drones was written by Ben Acker and Ben Blacker, directed by Amber Benson and Adam Busch, and stars Angela Bettis, Marc Evan Jackson, Paul F. Tompkins, Samm Levine, James Urbaniak and Dave (Gruber) Allen.

Brian Dilks is an Office Drone. He spends his days at OmniLink in comforting monotony: facilitating the movement of product around the country, faxing, copying, joking with his best friend, Clark, and harmlessly flirting with fellow cubicle-mate, Amy. But how well does anyone really know the people they work with?...

In case you were wondering what Tangi Miller has been up to…

Most will probably remember her as Elena Tyler on the popular late 90s/early 00s television drama Felicity – a series that was created by… drumroll… J.J. Abrams, who’s now quite the Hollywood hotshot. Matt Reeves was co-creator of the series. Reeves wrote and directed the 2008 monster hit, Cloverfield.

But back to Tangi Miller… she hasn’t done much. Her role in Felicity was supposed to be her star-making turn, but, once the series ended, she kind of faded… despite being named one of TV Guide’s “Sexiest Faces,” and Ebony magazine’s “Hollywood Hot Starlets.” The 35-year old has since appeared alongside Mekhi Phifer, in the independent film, The Other Brother (2002), Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood and Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Family Reunion.

Not exactly choice work there, but I’m sure the checks helped pay some bills.

Amber Benson and Adam Busch (Tara and Warren, respectively, of "Buffy" fame) have teamed up to co-direct a film called "Drones," which appears to be a cross-pollination of the office slacker comedy and the aliens infiltrating and invading science fiction flicks, the love child of "V" and "Office Space." It's an independent film but landed a fairly impressive second tier cast with Samm Levine, Angela Bettis, Jonathan Woodward, and Dave Allen. Although she's the co-director, Amber Benson unfortunately doesn't pull a Shyamalan and give herself a role, probably because her SAG contract forbids her from appearing on screen unless making out with Alyson Hannigan.

Two trailers have gone up online over the last month, showing very different angles of the film. First they released this one:

Then this one:

I think what happened is that the first trailer is just a little too indie cutesy romance with the sci-fi element...

At first I thought this was a TV show and I got really excited. It's got a few faces from television that many of you will probably recognize and it plays a lot like a show. However, it's not. Drones is actually a new indie scifi feature from ex Buffy the Vampire Slayer stars Amber Benson and Adam Busch. It debuts at the Slamdance Film Festival next week.

Synopsis:

Star-crossed lovers Amy and Brian, played by Angela Bettis (May, Girl Interrupted) and Jonathan Woodward (Firefly, Buffy, Angel, Wit) embark on a unique interoffice romance which sparks repercussions far outside the copy room. Also staring are Paul F. Tompkins (Best Week Every, Mr. Show) and James Urbaniak (The Venture Brothers, American Splendor). The film features original songs from singer/songwriter, Dan Bern (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story).

ScifiWire scored the exclusive new trailer, but I've embedded it after the break.

Drones, the new comedic (sci-fi?) film co-directed by Amber Benson (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Adam Busch is screening at Slamdance Film Festival 2010!

Synopsis reads only A man discovers a universal threat to his life, job and the planet. The awesome Angela Bettis and Jonathan M. Woodward star. It has a definite Office Space appeal to it, but with sci-fi hints in the plotline. Watch the trailer...

Slamdance, which runs concurrently with Park City’s Sundance Film Festival, has announced its 2010 line-up, and there are several choices that look to make genre fans sit up and take notice.

Variety provided the names of the ten narrative and eight documentary feature films that are, in the spirit of the fest’s motto, “by filmmakers, for filmmakers.” Although not all of them are horror related, in the interest of keeping you guys fully informed on all the latest indie happenings (and because some of the docs just sound so damn interesting with topics like William Burroughs and Bolivian women wrestlers!), the full list follows:

Narrative Competition:

Cummings Farm (Andrew Drazek) - Comedy about three couples who try group sex at a lakeside strawberry farm, naively hoping it will lead to enlightenment; with Laura Silverman.

Drones (Amber Benson & Adam Busch) - A man discovers a universal threat to his life,...

What's that? You can't wait to hear about the Irish post apocalyptic film One Hundred Mornings? Well you don't have to because we already have a review of it right here! Our own Alan Maxwell called it an "uncomfortably realistic vision of the breakdown of society." Yeah, it's good.

So continuing, part of the Slamdance lineup has been announced and it's got quite a few films we've featured.

Want something horrible in the forest? How about YellowBrickRoad?

Or maybe some William Burroughs? How about William S Burroughs: A Man Within?

Yup, the lineup for one of my favorite festivals is looking mighty fine as usual, and we'll be bringing you more shortly.

Partial lineup after the break!

Narrative Competition

Cummings Farm (Andrew Drazek) Comedy about three couples who try group sex at a lakeside strawberry farm, naively hoping it will lead to enlightenment; with Laura Silverman.

Drones (Amber Benson...

The competitive lineup for the 2010 Slamdance Film Festival (of which Fangoria is a media sponsor) has been revealed via an announcement on Variety. "As in years past, competing films are by first-time feature directors working with limited budgets and without domestic theatrical distribution in place. Among the 18 titles, 11 are world premieres." the trade reports.

Fright fans may recall that Oren Peli's recent hit Paranormal Activity played the fest in 2008. As always, Slamdance will run side-by-side with the Sundance Film Fest in Park City Utah, January 21-28, 2010. While there's plenty of genre fare to be seen, we've got the entire list of films for you to browse below.

Narrative Competition

“Cummings Farm” (Andrew Drazek) Comedy about three couples who try group sex at a lakeside strawberry farm, naively hoping it will lead to enlightenment; with Laura Silverman. “Drones” (Amber Benson & Adam Busch) A man discovers a universal threat to his life,...

Amber Nicole Benson was born on January 8, 1977, to Edward and Diane Benson, and today is an actress, screenwriter, producer, director, playwright, and author who's most famous for her role as Tara Maclay on the long-running television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV). Benson was both born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama, and it was there that she first discovered her interest in the arts, as she studied dance, music, and acting. "When I was a little kid I saw The Nutcracker Suite and desperately wanted to get on the stage," Benson told AfterEllen.com. "That was the beginning of the end for me." A family move to Orlando, Florida led to several opportunities, but work and success followed yet another move, this time to Los Angeles. Benson was still in her teens when her acting career started to take off. She played Nicole Reed in several made-for-tv Jack Reed movies starring Brian Dennehy,...

Emma Thompson bared her backside on the opening day of filming new TV movie Wit to help her co-star relax. The actress plays terminally ill cancer patient Vivian Bearing in the new movie, directed by Mike Nichols, and when she realized her co-star Jonathan Woodward felt awkward poking her on his first day of filming she set about helping him relax. Woodward makes his movie debut as Bearing's doctor in Wit. Nicholls recalls, "He was almost passing out, trying to fake putting his arm inside Emma. Suddenly she leaned forward, hiked up her gown, and said airily, `Feel free to rummage.'"...