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Are you aware that Joss Whedon is the best thing since sliced bread? 'Cause he is. Apparently the Producers Guild of America agrees, since they've selected him to receive the Vanguard Award, which "recognizes achievements in new media and technology."

Okay, so I'm admittedly a total Whedon fanboy and am completely aware that this places me in the most rabid and terrifying fanbase roaming the interwebs. Ever bear witness to a Browncoat vsTrekkie debate? I'm having an aneurysm just thinking about it. However, when you are the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly, you've earned my undying devotion (and my forgiveness for scripting the appalling Alien: Resurrection).

The reason for the award, though, definitely appears to be Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog, which, in addition to being the best science fiction musical about a mad scientist yearning for love ever made, proved that web-based media could not only look and sound professional, but could become a sensation beyond a niche audience and could be financially viable. Considering that Whedon has a Gilliam-esque penchant for disaster when he works within the studio system, new media represents an opportunity for him to make what he wants, when he wants and deliver it straight to his audience via the magical power of the internet.

These are exciting times and Whedon is a trailblazer. The next decade is going to see more and more exciting work being created strictly for internet consumption; how content is made and how we view it are going to change dramatically.

And Joss Whedon gets a plaque or a trophy or something come January 24th, so hoorah!

Welcome to TV Geek Week -- a new weekly column about sci-fi TV news and programming. Don't forget to click through for this week's TV picks.

Is George Lucas finally moving ahead with that promised live-action Star Wars TV show? Sources say yes. Sources also say the show will be produced in Australia by a hand-picked crew of Aussie TV vets. And we might even get to see it before the end of 2010. But I got a question: Do we really want a live-action Star Wars TV show?

Well, yeah, of course we do. For most of us, the original Star Wars trilogy was a thrilling entry point into the bizarre and inspiring world of science fiction. For an '80s kid like me, Star Wars was nothing less than a dazzling blast of awesome that I couldn't get out of my head. There was nothing cooler. (I wore the sh*t outta my Yoda jammies.) I'd love to see a Star Wars TV show deliver the same unpolished pluck, heart and spirit of the original trilogy, but we all know that's not gonna happen.

You've seen the prequels. You've seen The Clone Wars. It's likely the new series will be heavy on cartoony CG effects and kid-friendly concepts and light on the simple but engaging storytelling we fell in love with decades ago. Word is the series will focus on "relationships and emotional landscapes." Normally, I'd say that's a good thing. What's a TV show without engaging relationships and characters motivated by emotion? But we've already seen the new Star Wars' version of relationship drama, and it is very, very bad. Remember that "Sand sucks. It is so rough and sand-like, but you are so soft" nonsense between Anakin and Padme from Episode II? It only got worse from there.

I'm behind on my Buffy comics, so I have no idea why Angel and Spike appear to be preparing for a massive make out session in the panel posted up top. Something tells me a demon from a hell dimension, or some vocal slash fiction fans, are behind this. (Or maybe the writers were inspired by James Marsters visit to Torchwood last year.)

The panel comes from the July edition of Dark Horse Presents. It's part of a three-page short comic called "Always Darkest" that also features the return of Caleb (Nathan Fillion's baddie from Buffy's season seven) and a scene where Buffy marries Skinless Warren. Looks like Joss Whedon and crew aren't done torturing our favorite vampire slayer yet.



[Via: Robot 6]