Catch Nice Girl’s Faves on Late Night and Daytime

I don’t know about you, but there’s nothing I enjoy more than watching talent from some of our favorite television shows playing around with talk show hosts. In an effort to organize my DVR settings, I’m going to attempt to post a listing, when available, of late night and daytime talk show appearances. I hope this will aid you as well.

Nathan Fillion (Castle) – Regis & Kelly Monday, Jan. 11

Matt Bomer (White Collar) – Regis & Kelly Friday, Jan. 15

Ian Somerhalder (The Vampire Diaries) – Regis & Kelly Monday, Jan. 18

That’s it for a start. Am I missing one of your faves?

Having a Blast; NiceGirls Style

This past week I had the chance to attend two unique and fun events very much in line with the ‘celebration’ of Halloween. On Wednesday, I attended the Paley Center for Media’s look Inside the Writers’ Room of the fan favorite HBO series True Blood. You can see my full write-up on the panel itself at both True-Blood.net and SciFiTVZone.com sometime this week.

As a regular viewer of the show – and I have to preface this with the fact that I’m not a fan of the show (per se) even though it is a cult favorite and a good guilty pleasure series – it was interesting to learn the inner workings of the talented writers on this series.

The audience was appreciative of Executive Producer Alan Ball and his staffs’ work and the careful details they provided for Season 3. While they were rather elusive on specifics, it was fascinating to learn their process and get a behind-the-scenes look at how True Blood is put together.

On Friday night, I attended the Second Annual Halloween Charity Screening of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along-Blog as well as the screening of the entire second season of the internet series The Guild, starring Felicia Day which was coordinated by the folks behind Whedonopolis.

Felicia Day made a special appearance at the event and while we all would have loved for Nathan Fillion or Joss Whedon to have been in attendance, it was nice to know they are hard at work on their respective shows, Castle and Dollhouse.

Much like my write-up for the True Blood event, you can read my full article about the charity screenings via SciFiTVZone.com, also, sometime this week.

Next week I will be going to another event at the Paley Center for Media: this time a retrospective on the WB hit series Dawson’s Creek with expected appearances by James Van Der Beek, Meredith Monroe, Busy Phillips as well as Creator/Executive Producer Kevin Williamson.

Next Saturday I was supposed to attend an in-store appearance at Barnes & Noble by the cast of the new FOX musicomedy Glee. But, I recently learned wristbands were to be given out at 9 AM this morning; and given the fact that my friends and I (who were going to make the Glee appearance a group event) all have to go to our day jobs, so the Glee event won’t happen after all: much to our chagrin and disappointment.

Lastly, a few weeks from now Creation Entertainment will be holding their annual Firefly and Serenity convention, featuring guest appearances by Nathan Fillion, Morena Baccarin, Adam Baldwin, Alan Tudyk, Mark Sheppard and Yan and Rafael Feldman. This event is always fun and entertaining; and I’m sure this year will be no different.

Such is the life of a NiceGirl in California and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Captain Tightpants Rides Again!

We’d heard the rumors, we set our DVRs in anticipation, and we were rewarded: in the opening sequence of last night’s Halloween-themed episode of Castle, Nathan Fillion’s Richard Castle broke out his “space cowboy” costume (aka Firefly’s Captain Malcolm Reynolds) and had some fun. Until his daughter brought him back to earth in a way only teenagers can.

Watch the entire episode on Hulu and watch for the Buffy reference.

Getting to Know Nathan Fillion

Would you like to know a bit more about Nathan Fillion than he Tweets? USA Today’s PopCandy got the chance to chat with him over lunch, recently. It’s a two-part interview with the second part made up of fan’s questions.

Believe everything you’ve heard about Nathan Fillion.

He’s incredibly kind, funny, talented and good-looking. He’s also quite easygoing when it comes to picking a restaurant and eager to show you photos of his cat, Spartacus.

I met Nathan for lunch on Saturday. He’s in town promoting the second season of ABC’s Castle, which premieres tonight at 10 ET. After ordering some coffee and pierogies at East Village diner Veselka, we chatted about the show, Joss Whedon, video games, Dr. Horrible — actually, we talked so much that I’m splitting this interview into two parts. (Continue reading.)

Here is the link to part 2.

Castle Returns with New Mysteries & Old Flames

After wooing fans with its delicious blend of witty banter between the world renown mystery novelist, Richard Castle (handsomely and humorously portrayed by Nathan Fillion, best known as Captain Malcolm Reynolds to Firefly fans) and the no-nonsense, by-the-book Detective Kate Beckett (played by the sleek and stunning Stana Katic), Castle makes its second season debut on September 21st.

To provide a quick reintroduction and mini-recap of the first season, Richard Castle was recruited by the New York Police Department to assist in an investigation after a copy-cat murderer staged a scene to resemble one from Castle’s books. After successfully solving that crime, Castle was intrigued by the opportunity to participate in solving real-life crimes and inspired by Beckett herself as a muse to cure his writer’s block. Thus, Castle made an unusual proposal that he would offer his services gratis in order to continue shadowing Beckett in her other cases – a notion quickly accepted by the police captain, a golfing/poker buddy of Castle’s. Much to Beckett’s amazement and dismay, their tag-team approach works exceptionally well with Beckett approaching crimes from the police viewpoint and Castle approaching them from the perpetrator stand-point. Coming at the problem from two different angles has proven to be the key to solving their weekly crimes.

Also lurking in the background is the mystery surrounding the circumstances of Beckett’s mother’s death. Despite being told in no uncertain terms to not go anywhere near that cold case, Castle was unable to resist and dug up some new information. The first season ended with Castle confronting Beckett with what he found, even if it meant incurring her wrath forever. It remains to be seen how Beckett reacted and if Castle will be subjected to frosty repercussions for meddling in Beckett’s personal life.

Castle is a well-balanced mix of the standard police procedural and a funny-bone tickling romantic-comedy. From the first moment they were onscreen together, Fillion and Katic’s electric chemistry was immediately apparent to viewers and remains a key ingredient in luring back the fans for the second season. Add in Debi Mazar’s recurring role as Castle’s book agent and a former fling, and sparks are guaranteed to fly this season.

In a novel (all puns intended) approach, ABC took the summer-break to promote Castle by publishing an actual mystery book entitled “Heatwave” written by the fictional character, Richard Castle, which is published by Hyperion. Initially, the first half of the book was published in chapters on the ABC website, but as of September 29th, the book will be available for purchase in its entirety. For the fan looking to enrich and expand their experience in the realm of Richard Castle, this book is a must read.

Be sure to tune in for the second season premiere of Castle on Monday, September 21st at 10/9c on ABC.

Shiny!

Early this year, one of my friends told me I needed to watch Firefly, Joss Whedon’s short-lived space cowboy odyssey. After many a delay, I sat down the other week to watch the series before attending a charity screening of Serenity, the movie after the series ended.

Like many of the shows I watch on DVD, I do so fairly quickly (call it a drawback to not working during the summer, or an advantage.) This time, I went in knowing a few things (mostly from one of my friends who spoiled a moment in Serenity, which I was happy to know about before I watched.) It didn’t deter watching the show–mostly because I knew there was an ending, no matter how quickly put together.

However, what I noticed more (like I do in just about every show) is the number of guest stars. But, I also paid close attention to the complicated world that was created. It took so much for me to reconcile the depressed conditions on most of those planets with the fact that space travel is possible.

One of the better moments while watching the movie came before the aforementioned spoiler happened (yes, I will be good and not give it away, but) when my friends were starting to get nervous and teary eyed while I sat in blissful ignorance. We all talked about it after, with me watching the scene without question, whereas my friends wanted to look away and not watch.

When the show aired, I’m certain I wouldn’t have watched (oh, the main reason being a lack of a TV in my early college years), but given what I’ve been watched since, the show has a new place in my heart.

So, long live Captain Tightpants, and guns are shiny!

Whedon’verse Alum Take Over TV

It’s no secret that Joss Whedon is a hero here at Nice Girls HQ. As if pimping Dollhouse for months prior to its debut wasn’t enough of a clue, we have a (possibly annoying) habit of gleeing over various Whedon alumni whenever we encounter them on the airwaves or in real life (see: Comic Con). So you’ll understand that I really have no choice but to dedicate this week’s column to all of the Whedon alumni who are currently working on pilots or actually have TV shows on the air at this very moment.

Currently on TV

Eliza Dushku
Formerly: Faith, Buffy the Vampire Slayer/Angel
Now: Echo, Dollhouse
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 3

Amy Acker
Fomerly: Fred, Angel
Now: Dr. Claire Saunders, Dollhouse
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 2

Summer Glau
Formerly: Prima Ballerina, Angel; River Tam, Firefly/Serenity
Now: Cameron/Allison, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 2/3*

Nathan Fillion
Fomerly: Caleb, Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Captain Malcom Reynolds, Firefly/Serenity; Captain Hammer, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog
Now: Rick Castle, Castle
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 3/4*

Adam Baldwin
Fomerly: Jayne Cobb, Firefly/Serenity
Now: Major John Casey, Chuck
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1/2*

Alyson Hannigan
Fomerly: Willow, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Now: Lily, How I Met Your Mother
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1

David Boreanaz
Fomerly: Angel, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
Now: Seeley Booth, Bones
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 2

Michelle Trachtenburg
Fomerly: Dawn, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Now: Georgina, Gossip Girl
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1

Felicia Day
Fomerly: Vi, Buffy the Vampire Slayer; Penny, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog
Now: Codex, The Guild
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 2

Mark Sheppard
Fomerly: Badger, Firefly
Now: Tanaka, Dollhouse; Jim Sterling, Leverage; Romo Lampkin, Battlestar Galactica
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 2

Neil Patrick Harris
Fomerly: Dr. Horrible, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-a-Long Blog
Now: Barney Stinson, How I Met Your Mother
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1

Coming Soon to TV

Anthony Stewart Head
Fomerly: Giles, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Now: Uther Pendragon, Merlin (coming to NBC this summer)
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1

Sean Maher
Fomerly: Simon Tam, Firefly/Serenity
Now: Drop Dead Diva (coming to Lifetime this summer)
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1/2*

Sarah Michelle Gellar
Fomerly: Buffy Summers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Now: The Wonderful Maladys (pilot for HBO)
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1

Morena Baccarin
Fomerly: Inara, Firefly/Serenity
Now: Anna, V (pilot for ABC)
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1/2*

Alan Tudyk
Fomerly: Wash, Firefly/Serenity
Now: Drew, Untitled David Kohan/Max Mutchinick Project (pilot for ABC)
Number of Whedon Projects to Date: 1-3**

Did I miss anyone? Do you have scoop on a Whedon alum who may be returning to our TV screens soon? Leave a comment below and let me know!

*Technically, Firefly and Serenity are two different projects. However, the movie is obviously a continuation from the series, so it’s up to you to decide how to number them.

**SPOILER WARNING: Alan Tudyk may be in another Whedon project, but that is currently unconfirmed. Sort of. It’s complicated.

Nice Boy of the Week: Nathan Fillion

Canadian-born Nathan Fillion has been unanimously voted this week’s Nice Boy in honor of his new television series, Castle, which premiered Monday night on ABC. Nathan is best known for his role as “Capt. Malcolm (Mal) Reynolds” in Joss Whedon’s Firefly, and, subsequently, Serenity. He also played “Caleb” in Joss’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer for its final season. Joss used Nathan again in Dr. Horrible’s Sing-A-Long Blog, where he played Capt. Hammer.

We are proud to add Nathan to our Nice Boys Wall of Fame.

Teaser Trailer for DR.HORRIBLE’S SING-A-LONG BLOG

We here at Nice Girls love all things Joss Whedon, so while we wait for what we’re sure will be the genius of Dollhouse, we also wait for what we’re sure will be the genius of DR. HORRIBLE’S SING-A-LONG BLOG (yes, you have to type it in ALL CAPS). The teaser trailer for this web-short starring Nathan Fillion and Neil Patrick Harris has finally be released. Enjoy!

Teaser from Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.