For all you non-Anglos out there, Winchester is a boys' boarding school in a small city to the west of London. Like Joss says here, it is considered to be the best boys' school in England more or less, above Eton, St Paul's, Westminster. This means the boys that go there are clever. And they work very, very hard. And are impossibly well connected, which is a different sort of eduction in itself. One thing I've always wondered - did Joss base the character of Rupert Giles on that of fellow Winchester alumnus Robert Graves (poet, anthropologist - see The White Goddess - war hero - see his harrowing Goodbye To All That about his experiences in the first world war)?

c lake | June 24, 14:53 CET

I actually had to load my own film during my thesis film once, because my crew was too stoned. They just said, "We're really too stoned to change it."

Great interview.

wren | June 24, 18:09 CET

I think I read somewhere Whedon based Giles loosely on one of his teachers at Winchester.

Caroline | June 24, 18:18 CET

Wow. That is a kick-ass interview. Right up there with the one from The Onion AV Club.

babykarret | June 25, 00:09 CET

I wanted to be a part of a group. But I felt like Luke Cage in the Fantastic Four, you know – no matter what.

The first thought I had was, that sense of loneliness and not fitting in--I think that's where I connect with Joss' work and I hadn't really thought it through that far before. Interesting.

The second thought I had was, this man is an incredible geek to use Luke Cage's time in the Fantastic Four as a reference.

The third thought I had was, I am an incredible geek because I got the reference and probably still have the comics in the basement...

Terrific interview. I had no idea his dad ran The Electric Company. Makes total sense. Fargo North, Decoder indeed.

[ edited by lynsa on 2003-06-24 22:31 ]

lynsa | June 25, 00:29 CET

Anybody else think that Gunn in Team Angel is like Luke Cage in the Fantastic Four?

brother_grady | June 25, 16:52 CET

Gunn's really more like Cage in Heroes For Hire. Nobody really fits in at this point, especially with Cordy in coma-land.

jack knight | June 25, 16:59 CET

[invokes Periods of Pretension] Best. Interview. Ever.

WHEDON (about self): "He seems to be intelligent, but I wouldn't say he applies himself terribly much."
IGNFF: So you had "artist" written all over you.
WHEDON: Oh god, from day one.

Hurry, tomorrow.

bogu_salias | June 25, 20:43 CET