July - August 2003 ARCHIVES

GE/NBC WILL PROBABLY GET VIVENDI

August 26, 2003 FROM THE NY POST: "Vivendi management is expected to recommend to the company's board of directors today that it enter into exclusive talks with General Electric to hammer out the final details of a proposal to merge GE's NBC with Vivendi Universal Entertainment, according to sources close to the matter." For the complete article go to the NY Post website

Also check out this article on Yahoo which gives an excellent over-all view of the happenings. Thanks Donnie!

CONVENTION UPDATE

August 16, 2003: Kent McCord will be making his first UK Appearance at Alternate Universe in London on November 14-16. 

In earlier news, Starfury Conventions has started to announce guests for their November 28-30 Senior Partners convention and Gigi Edgley will be among them! The convention will take place at the Thistle Hotel, Heathrow, UK. 

UPDATE August 19, 2003: Gigi Edgley's appearance at Page's Bar  in the UK has been confirmed for September 13th. Thanks Donnie!

Go to Newscape's Convention News pages for up-to-date convention listings.

JONATHAN HARDY INTERVIEW

August 15, 2003: The BBC's Farscape website has yet another fantastic interview, this time with Jonathan Hardy, the voice of Rygel. Among other things, Mr. Hardy talks about Rygel (he loves the helium thing), the cancellation and his career. It's a great read!

ADV OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCES SEASON TWO DVD BOX SET

August 12, 2003: ADV has finally confirmed that the Season Two box set of DVDs will be released on October 28, 2003. After denying for months that it was in the works, yesterday they sent out a press release officially announcing the set. Newscape published the item back in July and there are details on our Future Merchandise page, thanks to Christine.

ARTWORK GALLERY GRAND OPENING

August 5, 2003: Karlsweb's newest addition to Visual Datastores, the Artwork Gallery, is now open! We're too cheap to spring for wine and cheese, so just pretend, ok? Check out the products of talented artists of the scaper community! If you would like to see your art displayed in the gallery, just click on Pilot near the top of the page. 

ROCKNE S. O'BANNON TO APPEAR AT TO BE CON-TINUED 2

August 10, 2003: Rockne S. O'Bannon, the creator of Farscape will be appearing at To Be CONtinued September 26-28, 2003 in Merrillville, Indiana which is just 15 minutes outside of Chicago. To my knowledge, this is the first convention that Mr. O'Bannon has attended since the first Farscape convention in 2000.

For up to date convention news, go to the Newscape Convention News pages.

CHICAGO TRIBUNE ARTICLE WELL WORTH A READ

August 9, 2003: Chicage Tribune reporter Maureen Ryan attended ScaperCon last weekend and has written an article titled Science Friction for the Tribune. Ms. Ryan writes about the Save Farscape campaign and quotes several fans, cast members, Brian Henson and Matt Roush (TV Guide) among others. Click Here to read the article. You'll have to register first, but it's free and simple. The more hits this article receives, the better!

JONATHAN HARDY AT UK CONVENTION

August 8, 2003: Jonathan Hardy (the unmistakable voice of Rygel) will be making his first UK appearance at Collectormania 4 on October 3-5. The news should appear on Collectormania's website soon! Click here to go to our Convention News pages. 

Thanks to Mara for passing this info along!

MERCHANDISE REPORT

August 6, 2003: With so many new products and items about to come on the market, I've decided to consolidate the information in one report to make it easier for you to decide how to spend your money. Click Here for a preview of what's new in the world of Farscape stuff .

NO ONE GETS LEFT BEHIND CAMPAIGN

August 7, 2003: During ScaperCon it was revealed that several of our favorite cast members hadn't been invited to attend the Official Farscape Convention in Burbank in November. Click Here for information on the campaign to get Creation Entertainment to invite the largest number of the cast possible.

RESPONSE FROM CREATION ENTERTAINMENT

August 8, 2003: "Thanks for the great support for the upcoming Official FARSCAPE Convention, this November 14-16 at the Burbank Airport Hilton Hotel.

"Over 500 tickets have been sold to date.  We have received some e-mails from fans inquiring and we want you to know that we are still working on additional guest announcements to add to those coming: we'll keep you posted!..."

August 7, 2003: There's good news from Rittenhouse Archives for trading card fans! They will definitely be doing more with Farscape as they've recently extended their license. Steve Charendoff, Rittenhouse's President, told me that an all art set is "certainly possible.

ART CONTEST

August 5, 2003: Farscape Create is having an art contest! It's open to everyone, so if you're interested in entering, click on the banner at the left to read the rules. The contest closes on August 16th (Bennington Battle Day) so you'd better hurry. Winners will be announced on August 30th.

GALAXY CON POSTPONED

August 5, 2003: Sadly, Galaxy Con II will be postponed until October 2004. The Spring 2004 convention scheduled for Washington DC is also posponed. Click here to read the reasons why.

CINESCAPE NAMES BONNIE #7

August 5, 2003: In Cinescape issue 72 (September 2003) Bonnie Hammer is number seven in their Genre Superpower 100. She ranks just below George Lucas, and is the #1 person from television. Spielberg is overall #1

A quote from the article, "She's bold, we'll give her that. As the head of the nation's only dedicated science Fiction Channel, she took their highest rated show - Farscape - and axed it..." The article closes with, "Looks like there's life after Farscape after all. But where will the Hammer fall next?"

DRAGON*CON UPDATE

August 03, 2003: Dragon*Con has added another Farscape guest to its schedule - David Franklin (Braca). He will join Jonathan Hardy (Rygel's voice), Anthony Simcoe (D'Argo) and Lani Tupu (Crais & Pilot's voice). The convention takes place August 29 - September 1. Click Here to go to Newscape's Convention pages.

COMMANDO AERYN & PLUSH RYGEL UPDATE

August 03, 2003: According to Entertainment Earth, release date for Commando Aeryn has been pushed back to November 2003. Plush Rygel won't be around until July 2004. 

FARSCAPE SCHEDULE UPDATE ON SCIFI

August 02, 2003: As of the beginning of September, Farscape will  join what the Sci-Fi Channel calls "Daytime Rotation." From 11:00 am to 4"00 pm (Eastern) every Tuesday-Friday (with some exceptions) they show five episodes of one of several shows. Farscape's two September showings are on Sept. 02 and Sept. 19. 

The Monday airings at 12:00 am will continue.

DVD UPDATES

August 01, 2003: ADV has just sent a press release announcing the final Season Three volume for Region 1 (USA & Canada), which will be available on October 7, 2003. Click here go to the Newscape DVD page. To read the complete press release from ADV, click here. 

Meanwhile, Contender's next volume for Region 2 (UK, Europe, Japan) will feature the final four episodes of Season Four. Details are on our DVD page.

MGM DROPS OUT OF BIDDING

July 30, 2003: According to The Hollywood Reporter, MGM has pulled out of the bidding for Vivendi Universal's US entertainment assets (which include the Sci-Fi Channel) considering the price expectations are too high. If Vivendi should drop its price, some analysts say that MGM may be back in the game. Remaining in the bidding are Comcast, Liberty Media, General Electric's NBC TV network, Viacom and a team led by Edgar Bronfman Jr. Click here to read the complete story.

BLAKE'S 7 GETS A SECOND CHANCE

July 29, 2003: The show that has much in common with Farscape is close to making a comeback. The rights to Blake's 7 have been acquired by actor Paul Darrow, who played Kerr Avon in the original series. If you like Farscape, this show would probably interest you also. Click here to read the article. Thanks, Karl, for passing this along!

LANI TUPU INTERVIEW UP AT BBC SITE

July 26, 2003: The BBC Farscape site has scored again with a Lani Tupu interview! The interview was conducted on July 4th, before the rumors of a miniseries surfaced. When asked if he thinks that the show will ever be revived, Lani says, "No, I don't think so. I think it's gone. 
"I think there was a possibility that a film might happen, but it's too far down the track now. People are working on other projects. It would have been great to have worked on the film, just to complete it and give some kind of conclusion, but that's not to be." I hope he's wrong! 
Click here to read the complete interview. Thanks, Sue, for passing this along!

ADV ANNOUNCES SEASON 2 BOX SET

July 28, 2003: At last there's news of a Season Two DVD box set for region one. (USA and Canada) ADV has announced that the set will be released on October 28, 2003. More news as it becomes available. Thanks to artood2 for passing along the info!

July 29, 2003: As of July 1st, families who use DirecTV and are part of Neilsen's random people meter sample will have their viewing patterns sampled. This is the first miutichannel service provider that has had its national audience measured by Neilsen. 

July 28, 2003: If you'd like to see what Natira or Jothee do in their spare time, check out the new section of Who's on First! Coming Soon - Writers' area!

2004 CALENDAR COVER CONFIRMED

July 24, 2003: The 2004 calendar is about to be released (August 8th) and Newscape has a confirmed cover picture from the manufacturer. Click on the image at the right to see a larger version. 

FARSCAPE ONE OF TOP FIVE TV SHOWS

July 20, 2003: Starburst Magazine's issue #300 has listed Farscape as one of five of the best TV shows. Here's what they have to say:

"Often derivative (Blake's 7 and Buck rogers are plundered shamelessly), but yet still shiningly original. Farscape endears with its grandiose space battles, off-the-wall plots, often unlikable characters and sheer attitude. Season Three, in which Lead character John Crichton (Ben Brrowder) was duplicated and the cast split in two, remains the peak of perfection."

Also named in the five best are The X-Files ("A shame they just didn't know when to stop"), Star Trek: The Next Generation ("Other later Treks would prove to be just shallow imitations); Babylon 5 ("This remains dense, groundbreaking Outer Space drama"); and Buffy The Vampire Slayer ("Funny, thrilling and clever).

ANOTHER CONTENDER FOR VIVENDI

July 24, 2003: Comcast, the largest cable TV operator in the US, has become interested in the Vivendi Universal Entertainment assets, which include the Sci Fi Channel. That makes six bidders for the property: Comcast, Liberty Media, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, General Electric's NBC TV network, Viacom and a team led by Edgar Bronfman Jr. Comcast has its own financial troubles. Right now it's $27 billion in debt.

BEN BROWDER TO DO SHOW FOR THE HISTORY CHANNEL

July 20, 2003: Right after the Farscape panel at Comic-Con, Ben was flying off to Europe to do do a new series for the History Channel. More about this as it becomes available. 

Check Ian Smith's web log out for some great photos and a short report on the Farscape panel at Comic-Con.

YA GOTTA HAVE HOPE!

July 20, 2003: Hope is always a good thing, and since speculation on Farscape's return has been heating up over the past few weeks it's time to warm up the spoilers pages once again. We've moved the IGN articles over to the spoilers area and from now on, any unconfirmed items regarding Farscape's return will be posted in the spoilers area.

REVIEW OF ILLUSTRATED SEASON 4 COMPANION

July  10, 2003: Geoff Willmetts reviews the latest volume in the Illustrated Companion series. Here's an excerpt from the review: "Somewhere down the line, unless you bought these companion books when they first came out, one day you’re going to be stalking second-hand bookshops, you’re going to regret not getting a complete set for reference." To read the complete review go to SF Crowsnest. To read some excerpts from the book, Click Here.

BEN BROWDER INTERVIEW

June 24, 2003: The latest Visual Imagination's Cult Times Special (#26) has an interview with Ben Browder. The cover of the issue  states: "Ben Browder on war and why he's a whore!" Read the interview in our Data Stores pages or order the issue at VisiMag's website.

SQUIRM,  BONNIE, SQUIRM!

UPDATE July 11, 2003: The Cleveland Plain Dealer has a wonderful story (maybe not so wonderful from SciFi's point of view) on the Battlestar Galactica debacle reported here a few days ago. Here's an excerpt from the article: "...Suffering an acute attack of honesty, [Edward James] Olmos sat and delivered a filibuster that busted up all the lofty claims being made by Hammer..." To read the complete article, click here.

If you're headed off to ComicCon next week, you might want to stop in at Friday's panel on Galactica. Mr. Olmos will be one of the panelists. It runs from 12:00 to 1:00. Don't forget the Farscape panel begins at 1:00 pm.

From TV Guide Online: 
EDWARD JAMES UH-OH: Sci Fi Channel president Bonnie Hammer visibly squirmed at Tuesday's TCA presentation for Battlestar Galactica, where star Edward James Olmos revealed that devotees of the original '70s TV show are sending him hate mail. Apparently, they've heard Sci Fi's four-hour fall miniseries is a very loosely based remake, and they ain't happy. "If you're a die-hard fan of the original Battlestar Galactica, please don't watch," Olmos declared. "Sci Fi Channel wants you to think everyone will like this. They won't! So please, don't watch! Buy the DVD of the original series, and when we're on, pop it in instead! I don't want you writing me any more letters!"

Thanks to Donnie for passing this along!