Nathan Fillion: will such a geek icon ever become A-list?

Ti Singh

Nathan Fillion may be a recognisable name to cult movie and TV geeks, but does he have what it takes to break into the mainstream? Ti weighs up the possibilities…

Published on Sep 7, 2010

In the world of cult movie and TV geekdom, there are actors that are revered and worshiped. Actors who, in the eyes of their fans, can do no wrong and attract a large and loyal following wherever they go.

Names like Bruce Boxleitner, George Takei and Bruce Campbell may not mean much to the average person, but say their name to someone wearing some sort of retro t-shirt and their eyes will light up.

Unfortunately, these actors have never been truly embraced by film studios and have never achieved A-list status, making their cultdom all the more endearing. However, every now and then a geek icon threatens to break into the big leagues and all it takes is one role or one film to make it so.

Take, for example, Heroes' Zachary Quinto. Formerly that bloke from 24 and Heroes, Quinto is arguably heading towards the A-List after his blockbusting turn as Spock in the Star Trek reboot. The same can be said of Steve Carell, Tina Fey and Jennifer Aniston. They all started in TV and, through the popularity of their individual shows, they now command hefty paychecks.

For many, it is a fine line of having the screen presence and charisma to make the leap, but there is one actor who arguably should have made the leap a long time ago or is due it now. Nathan Fillion.

For many, Fillion first came to note in Two Guys, A Girl And A Pizza Place, but then acquired more fans after his turn as Caleb in Joss Whedon's Buffy The Vampire Slayer. However, it was his role as Mal Reynolds in the ill-fated Firefly that sealed his position in the hearts and minds of geeks everywhere.

Displaying Indiana Jones-esque cockiness, withering sarcasm and his ability to take a punch, Fillion's Mal Reynolds became the Han Solo of a new generation. His undeniable 'star quality', coupled with a cool jacket and a revolver, made him arguably the closest we have to a 21st century Harrison Ford. Except maybe for Harrison Ford, but he's far too grumpy these days.

The fact that Fillion even appeared to be channelling Harrison Ford made his character even more appealing, but it was his natural charm that won over so many fans, male and female alike.

When Firefly was cancelled, it seemed Fillion's chance to break out of TV hell went with it, but Whedon resurrected the character and Firefly for the theatrically released film, Serenity.

Fans of the TV series went nuts for the big screen outing of the Firefly crew, but the general audience was apathetic and a disappointing box office return meant the end for the show and its characters.

For Fillion, though, his geek credentials grew and he got cast as the lead in James Gunn's excellent B-movie tribute Slither. You can argue that Fillion really only specialises in playing various forms of the same character, an honourable, over grown man-child with a wit as dry as a desert, and it was no different in Slither where he played Sheriff Bill Pardy, the local lawman who must defend his town from alien parasites.

Again, Slither found a cult audience, but its box office wasn't enough to put Fillion on anyone's A-list.

Roles followed in the likes of White Noise 2 and TV hit Lost, and then it looked like Fillion might get another shot at TV stardom with Drive, a drama about various people competing in an illegal cross-country road race. However, the series was cancelled after six episodes.

It was another series that catapulted Fillion into the mainstream audience's consciousness, Castle. Cast as Richard Castle, a crime writer who follows around a female detective for inspiration, Fillion displayed chemistry with his co-star, Stana Katic, reminiscent of Bruce Willis and Cybil Shepherd in Moonlighting. Essentially built around Fillion's personality and charm, the series has been a hit and is currently filming its third season.

Bit parts in highly acclaimed indie films like Waitress and Trucker show his acting chops to movie producers, while his part in Dr Horrible's Sing-A-Long Blog as the egotistical Captain Hammer has only solidified his appeal in the hearts of geeks around the world.

He'll be seen soon in Super, James Gunn's next film, where he'll star as The Holy Avenger, as well as  appearing in the new series of Castle, but his name has been bandied around a number of projects for the past year.

Firstly, he was rumoured to be a contender for the Green Lantern role, but this was merely fan speculation. However, it still led to the creation of a fan trailer that was incredibly popular on the web.

While the role went to fellow Canadian and Two Guys cast member, Ryan Reynolds, Fillion was rumoured to be in The Avengers film, especially when it was confirmed Joss Whedon was directing, but this turned out to be false.

However, no matter what the role is, Nathan Fillion is always one name thrown out by the fans. It just appears to be the studios that don't agree. For this writer, he would be the perfect choice to play Nathan Drake in the proposed film version of the popular PlayStation series Uncharted.

The character is very Fillion-esque in his humour and manner. Hell, the character looks exactly like him too.

The only thing standing in the way is the studios.

Either way, with the third series of Castle out in September, his star is going to continue to rise for quite a while to come. It just remains to be seen whether he can escape the TV screen for the silver screen.

Beautiful Water-Themed Graphic Design Projects

Today we’ve compiled some inspiring graphic design projects utilizing water. Each project takes a highly unique approach, and really shows what can be done with the subject matter:

Alexandra Zaharova & Ilya Plotnikov – Splashes

This great design project constructs various objects out of water splashes. This effect is actually very difficult to do well, and so I have the upmost respect for these artists:

Alena Nikiforova

This photography project really emphasizes the substance of water by coloring it with dye and enhancing it on Photoshop. The effect is a project rich in textures and colors:

Mark Mawson – Underwater Dance

I love this photography project. The lighting and color of these photos is really impactful. The floating figures accentuate the fluidity of water, and create an atmosphere that appears devoid of any kind of gravity:

Wojciech Pijecki – Rites of Water

This is one of my favorite ever typography projects. The attention to detail is stunning, and I love how the artist has so accurately captured the texture of water.

YouWorkForThem – Typography in Water

This project is really interesting. The artist takes some fairly basic typography, and then photographs water lapping over it. This adds so much to the typography, really giving it extra depth and detail:

Peter Jaworowski – Barcardi Shoot & Fly

This is a great example of water being used in product advertising. This really shows how water can be manipulated. The artist has artfully wrapped the streams of water around the centrally positioned product, and even manipulated it to form the shape of a dragon:

Joseph Tremblay – VOSS

Like with the Barcardi advert, I love how the artist has manipulated water so artfully. He has moulded various photos of water perfectly to form the shape of a woman, and given added emphasis to his piece by including extra splashes of water:

ChainBear | via

From an article in the New York Times by Guy Deutscher, describing linguistics view of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, seventy years on. Taken from his book Through the Language Glass: Why the World Looks Different in Other Languages. Spotted on Lambda the Ultimate.

For instance, some languages, like Matses in Peru, oblige their speakers, like the finickiest of lawyers, to specify exactly how they came to know about the facts they are reporting. You cannot simply say, as in English, “An animal passed here.” You have to specify, using a different verbal form, whether this was directly experienced (you saw the animal passing), inferred (you saw footprints), conjectured (animals generally pass there that time of day), hearsay or such. If a statement is reported with the incorrect “evidentiality,” it is considered a lie. So if, for instance, you ask a Matses man how many wives he has, unless he can actually see his wives at that very moment, he would have to answer in the past tense and would say something like “There were two last time I checked.” After all, given that the wives are not present, he cannot be absolutely certain that one of them hasn’t died or run off with another man since he last saw them, even if this was only five minutes ago. So he cannot report it as a certain fact in the present tense.

I wish all scientists were trained in this language!

David Jablow, whom I met at the Philly Alt Comic Con, sent over a note to check out this intense project that he is working on painstakingly filling in all 38 sheets of a 1960s doodle pad that all have the same image of a woman with bits missing. He is drawing 38 scenarios and posting them all to Flickr here, with the intention to ultimately have them published in some form or another when the project is completed soon.

This chart from Clusterstock (via Carpe Diem) shows the cost of college tuition comparison to historical housing prices and the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the same period. The CPI is designed to track our cost of living by estimating the average price of consumer goods and services purchased by households. Everything was normalized to 100 starting in 1978.

While housing went up 4x at its peak (~400), college tuition has gone up over 10x. Instapundit Glenn Reynolds says the higher education bubble is about to burst:

It’s a story of an industry that may sound familiar. The buyers think what they’re buying will appreciate in value, making them rich in the future. The product grows more and more elaborate, and more and more expensive, but the expense is offset by cheap credit provided by sellers eager to encourage buyers to buy.

Buyers see that everyone else is taking on mounds of debt, and so are more comfortable when they do so themselves; besides, for a generation, the value of what they’re buying has gone up steadily. What could go wrong? Everything continues smoothly until, at some point, it doesn’t.

Yes, this sounds like the housing bubble, but I’m afraid it’s also sounding a lot like a still-inflating higher education bubble. And despite (or because of) the fact that my day job involves higher education, I think it’s better for us to face up to what’s going on before the bubble bursts messily.

The college tuition prices being tracked in the chart was done by the CPI for US cities for “College Tuition and Fees”. According to this BLS.gov link, this tracks actual expenditures by households, and not some measure of median college tuition, which is often just the “retail price” before various forms of financial aid and/or scholarships.

Another hot topic is the rapidly rising cost of health care. Well, college tuition CPI beats that too, from this Wikipedia chart:

I know that I’m scared to imagine what college will cost in another 20 years. Dealing with this issue will be tricky, with huge amounts of easy government credit being given to 18-year-olds that are being told by everyone (including parents) that it is totally worth it. For many people, it will indeed be worth it. For others, not so much.

In my humble opinion, it also seems obvious that this trend can’t survive forever. But will it burst like a bubble? Perhaps if the government turns off the loans suddenly, but that seems unlikely. I like Reynold’s idea that there may be an educational revolution with the internet, online coursework, and changing educational standards.

How To Open a New Book

...a document with historical significance? Found via The Dusty Bookshelf in Manhattan, KS.

Super cool street art from Joshua Allen Harris:

[Via Ellis Vener]

I know it’s probably not the hardest thing in the world to make a pretty picture in milk foam, but I can’t help but be super impressed when I see it. This one especially. It’s so nuanced and balanced and adorable! Also, how cute is that sweet bear’s (>_<) face? (I am an old lady, it took me forever to figure out how to make that face.)

Submitted by: dunno source via Submission Page

“This computer is so slow, it’s horrible! I can’t stand it anymore!” My coworker cried.
Right, I do IT so this is my problem.
“Can you fix it now?” She politely demanded.
“Computarius Repariousa!” I say pointing my pen with a dramatically flourish. The pen would function better if it had a phoenix feather in it.
“Did you just try to cast a spell on the computer?”
“Yes, it was that or restart it.”
“I could restart it. Any muggle could”
“Yes, yes you could.” This is a learning moment. Learn!
“Oh.”
“If it’s still horrid afterward I’ll put my MCSE skills to work.”
“MCSE?” The librarian/muggle replied quizzically.
“Microsoft Certified Sorcerer Expert.

X-Posted from: http://libraryninja.blogspot.com

In celebration of its 50th anniversary, the Fujitsu company has released a ScanSnap unit with a traditional lacquered finish, but — and this is the painful part — it appears to only be available in Japan:

The S-1300 and S-1500 units can fold up to look like a decorative box on your desk, which is as clever as it is beautiful. Fujitsu announced the commemorative document scanners by way of a manga advertisement, and you can see both pages of the advertisement online: Pages 1 and 2.

In addition to the stylish new exterior, it looks like the 50th anniversary ScanSnap models might also come with two tea cups and a sushi mat (although, I don’t think the raven is included):

Now, I’m crossing my fingers and hoping the Fujitsu company considers releasing decorative models in more markets. To learn more about getting your paper clutter under control with the help of a ScanSnap, check out our article “Scanning documents to reduce paper clutter.”

Happy anniversary, Fujitsu! And, thanks go to reader Jen for letting us know about this item.

Like this site? Buy Erin Rooney Doland's Unclutter Your Life in One Week from Amazon.com today.

WOW, we’ve got four trends going on here in one product: cupcakes, pirates, monsters and mustaches.  I think that’s a record for trends per product on this site.

Set of six key covers available for purchase at PaperSource.

It is very difficult to say when and where the first lamp was used, but they are mentioned in all three early ages – lamps were used in Egypt, Greece, and Rome. It may  sound unbelievable, but scientists say that the lamp was invented and first used around 70,000 BC! Back then they were made of naturally occurring objects – coconuts, sea shells, hollow stones or similar objects filled with moss or a similar material that was soaked with animal fat and ignited. [1 2]

First electric lamp was invented in England in 1809 by Humpry Davy. He connected two wires to a battery and attached a charcoal strip between the other ends of the wires. The charged carbon glowed making the first arc lamp. 70 years later in  1879 - Thomas  Edison invented a carbon filament that burned for forty hours. Edison placed his filament in an classic-shaped oxygenless bulb.[3]

Nowadays, lamps burn much longer, shine brighter, and use less energy than ever before. Besides being better,  they are way cooler than ever before!  So without further ado let’s look at some  very creative modern lamp designs!

1. Teddy Bear Lamp

Designer: Matthew Kinealy

2. Ice Cream Lamps

Designer:unknown

3. Garbage Lamp

Designer: Peter Castellucci

4. Liquid Lamp

Designer: kyouei design

5. Light Blub

Designer: Pieke Bergmans

6. La Vie En Rose Lamp

Designer: William Brand, Annet van Egmond

7. Melting Lamps

Designer: Keita Ogawa

8. Pixel Lamps

Designers:  Chan Wan Ki Kay, Chen Siu Wa Shai Chai, and Suen Ka Hei Catherine

9. Mario Bros Garden Lamps

Designer: Arthur Xin

10. Dandelion Lights

Designer: Qin Xue, Cao iXiaoxiao & Wei Hangshuai

11. Sip of Light

Designer: Sang-Hoon Lee, Sung-Kyu Nam & Su-Jung Kim

12. Bottle Lamp

Designer: unknown:

13. Abduction Lamp

14. Light Dressing

Designed by  Mary Huang

15. Tea Lamps

Designed by Louisa Kober

16. Noose Hanging Lamp

17. Electro Heart Lamp

18. Modulares Lamps

19. Martyr Lamp

(link)

20. Mr. Blamp

Which one would you like to have at your home? Or maybe you own one already?

20 Cool Modern Lamp Designs originally appeared on Bored Panda on September 1, 2010.

Possibly related posts:

1. 15 Cool and Geeky Gadgets For Your Kitchen
2. 15 Most Creative Calendar Designs
3. 15 Cool and Unusual Carpets, Rugs And DoorMats

You've been extremely helpful, so bugger off: What started out as a routine study of group behavior ended up turning a bit surreal. According to the authors of a new paper, they started out trying to find out how long a group would tolerate members that abused the common good. In the process, they found that members who put the most into the common good were quickly expelled from the group. Not entirely believing it, they replicated the findings—twice. Some of the hate comes from the overly officious group members, who viewed those who gave more than they needed to as breaking the rules. But some of it also comes from people who think that altruistic behavior like this simply raises expectations unnecessarily.

Bonus points go to the people who put the press release together for the best two opening sentences I've probably read all year: "You know those goody-two-shoes who volunteer for every task and thanklessly take on the annoying details nobody else wants to deal with? That's right: Other people really can't stand them."

Read the comments on this post

[Source: CAPTCHArt]

CAPTCHA-related humor began with the widespread use of CAPTCHA (and more recently reCAPTCHA) on popular blogging and forum sites. The technology is intended to stop spam by asking the user to verify a pair of distorted words, thereby proving they are not a bot. In the case of reCAPTCHA these words are pulled somewhat randomly from an archive of textual documents requiring digitization, and that random pairing of words often produces strange and comical combinations. While simple reCAPTCHA screengrabs have appeared on sites such as lamebook, and "draw your CAPTCHA" threads have been around on the Something Awful forums for well over a year, the practice really took off when Moot implemented reCAPTCHA on the 4chan boards. Users took their extensive MS Paint skills and trollface comic generators and produced a wide variety of CAPTCHA related art and images, a sample of which we have included here.

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Dey be celebraytin over in Goggie Land 2!

Snakes and Lattes, a Toronto café, combines board games, sippy drinks and a relaxing atmosphere. Oh, it also supports practices that many people strived to overcome throughout history. Just, you know, against modern technology. The puntastic café, owned by Ben Castanie and Aurelia Peynet, opened yesterday in Toronto's Koreatown with a couple gimmicks.