Sometimes You Have to Choose the Hard Path

This script writing stuff is hard. Especially when you take characters that are already established that you LOVE because you don't want to hurt them. You feel like they are a part of you. That's the "Fan" talking though. The "Fan" can really screw up a good story.



While on this journey with Xena & Gabrielle for the second time as we re-watch all the episodes, we have laughed & we have cried. We've cried more. The characters have hurt so deeply & overcome incredibly difficult situations. There is something beautiful in the pain they share & what they give to each other. I realized last night that part of the problem with our story was that I wanted to save them. I didn't want them to hurt. Sure, they could get physically beat up a little, but no more emotional hurt. I wanted to fix everything & it end happy and everything be okay, just in an exciting way.



How uncharacteristic & boring. And how impossible. As a writer, you have to make the hard choices. You have to up the stakes. You have to hurt your characters or they will never move past things & grow. Xena left Gabrielle alone. After all the promises of forever & eternity & never again, she left her. Not only that, but she left her just as she came into her own as a warrior. Xena always had Gabrielle to lean on, but who does Gabby have?



Now, the anger & frustration I need my character to feel is difficult. I don't want her to be upset & angry. I don't want her to have to become hard. Just like Xena, I don't want that "light" to go out in her soul. However, as a writer, it sure would make an interesting story. It sure would hurt to see that happen. It sure would make you cheer on Xena in attempt to bring Gabrielle back from that. It would be interesting to see what Gabrielle tells Xena about how she feels about being abandoned. Much of it wouldn't be pretty & we all know we can't just go back to who we were in the past. We can only move forward & decide what direction we are going to take now. Sometimes, in order to move forward, you have to let go. I love this creative process. I love everything I'm learning. Even if it hard sometimes.

Have Dinner with the One and Only Lucy Lawless

charitybuzz | #262825 - Have Dinner with the One and Only Lucy Lawless in LA or New Zealand

The New Thundercats

Thundercats - Cosmocats 2011 VOSTFR EP 1 & 2 by Rakuen06

If you haven't seen this yet, or like me have no TV because cable is stupid high, here it is! Episodes 1 & 2 of the New Thundercats! It's awesome! It's like Star Wars mixed with some Lord of the Rings & the old Thundercats all in one show! Let's hope it stays up for a while so those of us without TV who LOVE the old show can catch the new one!

Thundercats HOOOO!!!

Writing Xena

Well, T & I have been hard at work on this Xena script. We realized we hadn't watched Xena seasons 4, 5 & 6 much at all after the series ended. We knew 1, 2 & 3 like the backs of our hands, but beyond that things got hazy. So, we are re-watching the entire series & just made it to the end of season 4. Oh! Season 4. I remember it like it was yesterday. They teased the fans the entire season with a premonition Xena had of her & Gabrielle being crucified. Watching it again still made me nervous, even though I knew what was coming.

That's where we left off last night. Xena & Gabby hanging on crosses. Xena's spirit comes out of her body & lifts Gabrielle's spirit from hers, a bright flash of light & credits!


Two seasons to go.

You know, this was an amazingly written show. It was nominated for & won many awards, from ASCAP awards to GLAAD awards. It even took home an Emmy. If you are into editing, Xena is probably one of the best television show ever to study. Their editing was pretty flawless. You never notice when we change from Lucy lawless to Zoe Bell & back. Did you know the head costume designer for Xena, Ngila Dickson, went on from Xena to win an Oscar for the Lord of the Rings Costume Design? There were so many talented people connected to this campy, yet deep little fantasy show. If you didn't take the 6 year journey with these characters, you should. Episode by episode. Sure, there are a few turkeys, but it is well worth it. It will change you.



The episodes have really held up. It's not like Wonder Woman or Buck Rogers or even the A-Team. I love those shows, but man, they are really cheesy & dated. Xena however isn't. It helps that it was set in an ancient time. The things Xena & Gabrielle deal with are issues everyone deals with, so that is what helps it hold up so well. Xena & Gabrielle deal with things like trying to figure out what path in life to take & how to know if you are on the right path. It deals with faith & how we shouldn't depend on any deity as opposed to relying on ourselves & our friends. It shows us that no one is perfect, but we all have the ability to be the best person we can be, no matter who we have been. It also deals with that deep connection to another soul that we are all either searching for or have found. These things never change, despite the times.



It's hard, but so much fun, picking these characters apart. What motivates them, moves them, stirs them. Because we are looking at them so hard, T & I are seeing things we never did before. Not to mention seeing how far we have come from where we were when we watched these the first time around. It's an amazing process. Trying to take characters you love & stop being just a fan & start being a writer. To write what the character would do & not what you want the character to do. We have a great plot so far. The hardest part, in my opinion, is going to be summing up the series in the first 15 to 20 minutes of the film script & then having a real convincing reason for Xena to return to the land of the living. Or for Gabrielle to die. We are determined to do this. We are doing this.



If you haven't yet, please go "LIKE" the Facebook Page Xena 2011 Movie Campaign.

Oh, and one more thing. Guess who has a 2012 calendar coming out? Xena. Yep. Makes you wonder what's up. There hasn't been an officially licensed calendar since 2002. Could this be a fresh new marketing push? Let's hope so.

In the Flesh

Okay, this is pretty cool. A Doctor Who ganger making set. Gangers are the term for the clones made out of artificial flesh in the Doctor Who episode "The Almost People". I don't know about you, but I have always loved sets that come with goo or stuff to mold & molds to do it with! This one is also great because the mold is of the 11th Doctor. That means all you custom figure makers can make endless copies of Matt Smith's Doctor & sculpt him up any way you want! How cool is that?



The set comes with figure mold of the doctor & tools to mix your Flesh compound. Use the included hand pump to squirt flesh compound into the mold and make your own Ganger figure! Set is $52.99 (import from UK) at Entertainment Earth!

River Song is Da Bomb!

So guess what Think Geek has? It's really cool! You're going to HAVE to have it. Here's a picture:



Do you know what THAT is? Here's a Video:



Yep, River Song's screwdriver. Sonic Screwdriver. With removable parts & flashy lights! $19.99.

You know you want it!

I Wrote This!

So, yep, I'm now published! Woo-Hoo! Go check out my Xena article online over at Lesbilicious!

http://www.lesbilicious.co.uk/tv-film/bringing-back-the-warrior-princess-the-xena-2011-movie-campaign/

The Creature in Barnes & Noble

You never know where you're going to find action figure collectibles. Sometimes they pop up at places like Barnes & Noble or their online source barnes&noble.com

These Diamond Select Art Asylum Mini-mates are a prime example! They are from my favorite Universal Monster Film "The Creature From the Black Lagoon". I don't know how it is in the rest of the world, but here in the "Land of the Red Man", Creature stuff is hard to come by. Universal Monster stuff is something that always seems to rise in price as well. Almost immediately after it comes out. Barnes & Noble has this particular pack on sale for $12.76.

They also have this sweet All Star Superman Collectors Action Figure Box Set for $35.96 onlne which would include free shipping since it's over $25.00.



It's always a great idea to look for sales & clearance online at places you might not think about carrying toys, figures & collectibles in order to find those missing items or hard to find items. So, Happy Monday!

Leela & Leela & a River.

First off, Happy Birthday to my sweet dog Leela. She officially turned 4 on Aug. 9, 2011. She is the best dog EVER!

Secondly, AWESOME!!! Underground Toys made a Leela action figure! No, not of my dog, of Leela from Doctor Who! Apparently this was one of the San Deigo Comic Con Exclusives!



Leela is 5" & comes with an array of weapons. Right now, Entertainment Earth has managed to snag up a few & they are asking $30.99 ea. for them.

Oh, but there's more! There is another San Diego Comic Con figure that I know you want. They also made my other favorite companion of all time. River Song!!! Not just River Song, but River Song with the Pandorica chair! She is much harder to get hold of though. You can find her on Ebay at anywhere from $40 to $70 bucks.



Don't forget, New Doctor Who episodes start in two weeks!

New NECA 7 Inch Figures

NECA has some great new 80's movie figures they are releasing this month. If you're a Robocop fan or a Terminator fan, you will want to snatch these up. Robocop is poseable with interchangeable hands & his signature pistol.



The Terminator figure is one I have always wanted to see! It is from the original Terminator movie. When the Terminator T-800 series finally tracks down Sarah Connor in the nightclub he is wearing a very 1980's outfit or Tech Noir clothes. I'm not sure how poseable this figure is, but then again he is a cyborg. Honestly though, he appears to have little if any articulation. He is solid plastic, despite what appears to be cloth. Now, if they will make the Sarah Connor figure & Reese figure from the same scene I can pull off some little videos to make the fanboy & girls proud.



The Terminator figure is $14.99 & I believe Toys R Us will be carrying it. The Robocop figure is $16.99 & I wouldn't be surprised to see him show up there, too. You can also find both figures online at Entertainment Earth.

Thundercats Sale!!!

You read that right! For every 2 Thundercats items you buy, Entertainment Earth will give you the second one for 30% off! Just put 2 ThunderCats items in your shopping cart and they'll automatically insert a coupon in your cart that gives you the lowest priced of the 2 items for 30% off during checkout.

The sale ends Aug. 9th, so don't wait!

Darth Maul Bronze

Sideshow's latest Star Wars bronze.

Check out Sideshow's page for Pre-Order info!

Seriously!? THIS rocks.

So, I am getting more magazine requests & many that promise to do an article themselves on the Warrior Princess. T's is amazed. We have to laugh a little because she is the Professional Writer & I am the Professional Artist. She has had great success with selling her art & now I'm getting paid to write.

The Xena 2011 Movie Campaign FB Page administrators wrote me a really nice e-mail thanking me for my efforts. I feel I've made some friends. It's really amazing. I'm working hard, having fun, & doing something I believe in. Pretty freakin' sweet.



You know, THIS is really going to happen.

Obsession + Passion = Bravery

Huh, who knew that if you got really passionate about something & wrote to every magazine you could think of about the Xena 2011 Movie campaign that some of them would write you back & ask you to write them an article? An article they are willing to pay you for! That's exactly what has happened. By trying to get the word out, I inadvertently created work for myself that people are willing to pay me for.

So, my first article will be with the online magazine Lesbilicious It's a UK magazine, but the good ol' internet makes online relevant worldwide.

Now I have to find people to interview. I have already sent my questions out to the administrators of the Facebook page "Xena 2011 Movie Campaign" and to the writer/producer of several Xena episodes throughout the series Steven L. Sears.



I wonder who else I can ask?

My deadline is Aug. 7. I better get on it. Wish me luck!