Shiny.

blutortu | January 27, 01:35 CET

Amen to that! Thank you, Joss, for all your wacky wonderfulness.

Eden | January 27, 02:08 CET

I second that thank you! (As we all do.)

Nicely written... I especially like the part about loving Buffy because she was a real person, which means sometimes she was a bitch. hehe.

fortunateizzi | January 27, 02:09 CET

USUALLY she was a bitch! But she lead me to Willow and Giles and Spike and Angel and Wesley and Faith and Fred and Gunn and Clem... so, all's forgiven (mostly).

Great letter.

Haunt | January 27, 02:25 CET

What a lovely letter. When I met Joss I had about 10 seconds to garble inanely (it went something like 'Oh, my camera's not working', followed by the sound of my heart breaking), so I think next time I'll just hand him a letter very much like that. And then suavely reassure him that it's not full of anthrax.
Yup, a big thank you with bells on to Joss. My hero.

lone fashionable wolf | January 27, 02:35 CET

It really sums of my Joss love perfectly. *sigh*

LmR | January 27, 02:38 CET

simple and heartfelt word

dottikin | January 27, 02:42 CET

I like it... but (with me there's always a but) it's for the choir (well for Joss... but you know what I mean).

Few folks (outside of our 'verse) seem to get it.
I would love a similar letter...that would inspire folks to watch the different shows.

sigh...life's just not as bright w/o Joss on.

..and sorry none of the shows out now fill that void.

[ edited by hbojorquez on 2006-01-31 18:07 ]

hbojo | January 27, 02:58 CET

Amen to that indeed! *dances dance of honor*

[ edited by flightofserenity on 2006-01-27 01:07 ]

flightofserenity | January 27, 03:03 CET

I bow to Joss, The Shiny Master of the Universe

twa_corbies | January 27, 04:53 CET

That was awesome! I can't add a thing to that. Joss just *rocks*! :-)

billz | January 27, 06:02 CET

I love it!

"...Fred, Drusilla, Darla, Glory, Harmony, Lilah, and yes, even Dawn." LOL

Poor Dawny can never catch a break.

alexreager | January 27, 06:34 CET

Wonderful letter. Reminds me of the fabulous works of art that Hunter Maxin (Matthew) used to write about Joss on ScoopMe (anyone know what happened to him? Great writer).

Maybe I'm being a bit thick here, but who's Fembot? Is that the writer? Someone she's quoting? An Austin Powers joke? All three?

Willowy | January 27, 06:45 CET

OK, am I the only one who can't read the damn thing because of that obnoxious Mini Cooper ad that unfolds and obliterates the text? I click to close it, but the text never comes back . . .

SoddingNancyTribe | January 27, 08:27 CET

SNT, heh, aren't you taking delivery of that annoying vehicle any day now?

Heh, not really relevant, just wanted to tease you a tiny. And no, no advert obstructed my view.

Willowy | January 27, 08:35 CET

*applauds the writer for catching the spirit of how we all feel*

Also? JUST caught on that Adam Baldwin played Hamilton... *feels like an idiot*

Willow Kat | January 27, 08:45 CET

That letter pretty much sums up how I feel about Joss and his creations. I've often wondered what the hell I'd say if I ever got to meet the man in real life... and the only thing that really seems apt would be a heartfelt "Thank you for the wonderful stories."

Kwicko | January 27, 09:07 CET

"Thank you for the wonderful stories."

I couldn't even get that out when I met him on the Serenity red carpet. I had just fainted from exhaustion and was high on painkillers. My girlfriend at the time was holding me up to get me down the red carpet and there Joss was greating people. He hugged and kissed the people in front of me so when I got there and I looked ready to pass out, all I could say is "You don't have to kiss me." and shook his hand. hahaha

GimpyD | January 27, 09:35 CET

Willowy, Fembot is just the alias of one of the writers at Sci-Fi Brain. Most of the writers there are men. I think they added her recently to give a woman's perspective on sci-fi.

[ edited by delirium_haze on 2006-01-27 07:56 ]

delirium_haze | January 27, 09:50 CET

I'm quite fond of the Whedonverse. I've spent more money than I care to mention during the past year acquiring the Whedonverse. But am I the only person here to find this post a little icky? I highly respect Joss, but I don't worship him. I think that this just reinforces the "we don't respect sci-fi because the fans are all crazy" approach, which definitely hurt Serenity at the box office.

OK, ready to be flamed now. *cringes*

cronopio | January 27, 10:06 CET

Well, still can't read it. (And yes Willowy, I am expecting the car soon - and ain't nothing annoying about it. ;))

cronopio, fortunately flaming isn't a thing here. And your POV is absolutely fine. I tend to find outright worship icky also - and then sometimes I find myself feeling man-love towards Joss, so I have a touch of the ickiness too. But usually I can be sober in my fandom.

SoddingNancyTribe | January 27, 10:28 CET

Thanks, SNT. You have no idea how hard it was to speak my mind.

cronopio | January 27, 10:35 CET

Oh, yeah. Just a little bit icky. BUT. If any one writer/show creator deserves it, it's gotta be "Mister-Whedon-sir."

Which, by the way, is all I could get out of my mouth for the first full minute when I met him. "Mr. Whedon, sir?" tremulously holding out my X-Men comic hoping he might sign it. (He did.:)) It was sheer luck, and I had to forcibly stop myself from squee-ing. And I NEVER squee. I am NOT a squee-er. Ever.

Fitz | January 27, 12:20 CET

I highly respect Joss, but I don't worship him.

I don't think Joss demands worship, nor deserves it. However, I'm sure he wouldn't mind some cookies. ;-)

This person's undying worship was a little icky, but I suppose it takes all kinds. I don't think anyone here will flame you for what you said, you were diplomatic and reasonable.

chickenbird | January 27, 17:03 CET

Well I hate diplomatic and reasonable, so FLAME! FLAME! FLAME!

There, got that out of my system.

Do I worship Joss? Well, not in a sacrifice small animals or Republicans on the alter of the Jossgod kind of way. (Okay, maybe the odd Republican.) But I think Joss is more than just a brilliant entertainer (though he is that)-in a medium where Art is not so much rare as myth, he has created the actual thing.

josscats | January 27, 22:26 CET

Is it "worship" to say thank you and list the things you appreciate about someone?

billz | January 27, 22:43 CET

*points* What the author said. Because, yeah, lots of love.

[ edited by megaloo on 2006-01-27 20:57 ]

megaloo | January 27, 22:55 CET

Well, the devil must have his advocate and honestly, I didn't find this icky. Icky to me would be imposing one's feelings upon the person of interest in a very pushy, obsequious or ingratiating kind of way that turns them into an object. This seems very straight-forwardly worded, one person to another, with no overly dramatic "we're soul mates because you know exactly how I feel" sentiments. I hear genuine appreciation for his creations (mildly expressed compared to what I'd probably end up blathering if I tried to do the same thing), not "I know where you live and my life revolves around you". Should I get my hearing checked?

There's a little humor there, and a little familiarity in the tone of address which could, I guess, be interpreted as disrespectful, but gosh, I don't think "Mr. Whedon" when I think of Joss. He's ... Joss. It's not meant to be a lack of respect. I personally don't think of him in that way; it feels formal and stiff. Joss is anything but, um, that. (Except in the manliest kind of way, of course. Heh.) (And see how that was maybe icky, especially if that was written seriously in the context of an open letter? There's a difference between that and the way this letter is written, at least to me.) Also, the writer doesn't seem to want anything from Joss, at least not more than what he's already been very willing to give.

And perhaps a certain degree of slavish adoration is a necessary ingredient for holding the 'verse fandom and its constituent parts together? Consider that if not for the truly, insanely dedicated individuals who worked shoulder-to-shoulder with Joss to bring the shows we care so much about into being, they wouldn't exist, and we wouldn't all be here. And who's going to deny that approval and affection, when you're lucky enough to get it, is empowering, and might juice him to keep going when he feels low?

Admittedly, Joss exhibits some superheroic attributes from time to time, but I'm pretty sure he's still human. Without the commitment and passion of many others, he couldn't have done what he's done, alone.

Now, who was it that said, "Passion rules us all, and we obey. What other choice do we have? Passion is the source of our finest moments. The joy of love, the clarity of hatred and the ecstasy of grief. It hurts sometimes more than we can bear. If we could live without passion, maybe we'd know some kind of peace ... but we would be hollow ... Empty rooms shuttered and dank. Without passion we'd be truly dead"? ;)

Wiseblood | January 27, 23:37 CET

And if I could actually read the thing, I would be happy to offer my opinion whether this is worship, or something less-than . . . but I'm not bitter, oh no.

[Edited - received the text. Thanks.]

[ edited by SoddingNancyTribe on 2006-01-27 22:35 ]

SoddingNancyTribe | January 27, 23:44 CET

I agree with Wiseblood. SNT, the letter is really long. I don't know if posting it would be OK?

billz | January 27, 23:58 CET

I don't find it icky, but I wouldn't have published were I the publication's editor.

Caroline | January 28, 00:03 CET

*Nods and smiles stupidly in agreement* Thank you Joss! And personally I don't think there can be enough thank yous, no matter how somewhat obsessive or whatever some may call them.

eloamandao | January 28, 00:22 CET

OK, thanks so much to those who e-mailed me the letter. No need to post it - and, arguably, that wouldn't be a good idea anyway.

No, I didn't find it worshipy in the slightest. OTOH, the amount of sentiment may be cloying to some.

SoddingNancyTribe | January 28, 00:34 CET

SNT - Sent.

Lioness | January 28, 00:35 CET

Thanks, Wiseblood and others, for your thoughts. Received and considered respectfully.

I just get weirded out by fawning. My perspective, my problem. Thanks to all for the answers.

cronopio | January 28, 00:40 CET

Now I see why you were confused, SNT, thinking I was Lioness. I didn't get it before. ;-D

Eden | January 28, 01:17 CET

The author wrote what was swimming around in my heart and mind. Now things are calmer with the eloquent way the thoughts and feelings were expressed in the open letter.

We live in a great time to be contemporaries of Joss.

best_hair_ever | January 28, 02:35 CET

Maybe a little OTT for me personally tho' it seems genuine and heartfelt. Agree with Caroline tho' that if I was the web-site editor and wanted to maintain even a modicum of journalistic objectivity, I wouldn't have published it (in fairness the Scifibrain portion of Ign seems to be less formal in content).

Re: the name thing. I always feel a bit weird calling the BDHs Joss, Nathan etc. since i've never met any of them but everything else just seems way too formal given their approachability and interaction with the fans.

Saje | January 28, 05:29 CET

That's really a good point, Saje. I started on this website calling everyone "Mr." and "Ms.," but after a while I really felt like I was making too much of a fuss. I guess everyone realizes that we are not trying to act like we have met the BDHs, just that they seem like nice people who would not be offended that we use their first names when we discuss their work and accomplishments. After all, we are really polite here on the black! :-)

billz | January 28, 05:40 CET

Well, if that isn't just like an American! Mixing up 2 Canadians. SNT, I bet you think we look alike too! Humph. And here we are spelling colour and honour correctly and everything. ;-)

Lioness | January 28, 06:12 CET