[Televisionary]

Wonder just what ever happened to Joss Whedon's Buffy prequel Ripper ? Speaking on a press call last week to promote his new series Merlin (which launches later this month on NBC), former Buffy star Anthony Head addressed some questions about that long-stalled Ripper project, plans which Head says were "sideswiped by Dollhouse ." Head, who plays Uther Pendragon on the NBC/BBC series, was candid about the likelihood of donning Rupert Giles' specs for another go-around as the much-beloved Watcher, created by Joss Whedon. " Ripper is a kind of a - it's a funny old thing," said Head. "Whether it ever gets made or not... if it does ever get made, I'll probably be an octogenarian by the time it does. But it is something I actually introduced Joss to [ Doctor Who producer] Julie Gardner, who was a producer with the BBC. She has long wanted to do something with the project. There are obviously complications with Ripper because there are lots of t

I woke up this morning with a singular thought: what ever happened to that planned Buffy spinoff Ripper ? If you remember back nearly a year ago, the internet was abuzz with the news coming out of San Diego Comic-Con: Joss Whedon had announced plans to go ahead with Ripper , the proposed Buffy the Vampire Slayer spinoff centering on Watcher Rupert Giles (Anthony Stewart Head). Fanboys (and girls) everywhere were proclaiming it to be a very happy day indeed, what with Whedon returning to the franchise with Ripper and the then-upcoming Buffy Season Eight comic book. (Shame on you, if you're not reading it!) Since then, a lot has happened, both here in Hollywood and specifically to Whedon himself. Joss ended up selling a seven-episode drama series called Dollhouse --starring former Buffy staple Eliza Dushku and BSG 's Tahmoh Penikett --to FOX; pre-production is currently underway for a spring shoot and Dollhouse has been slated to air this fall. (I, meanwhile, have been hard a

Better sharpen those stakes. In a surprise Comic-Con announcement, Joss Whedon has confirmed that the long-gestating Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off, entitled Ripper , finally looks like it's going forward. Whedon says that he's thisclose to signing a deal with the BBC to finance a 90-minute telepic that will star Buffy 's Anthony Stewart Head as former Watcher Rupert Giles as he combats the things that go bump in the night sans Slayer. The deal hasn't been signed yet, so anything can happen, but Whedon was quick to say that no US distribution has been decided. Meaning that it's still a bit soon to circle a launch date on your calendar or break open the bubbly. Meanwhile, Whedon has launched a non -Buffy -related online comic called Sugar Shock with Dark Horse (the publishers of the Buffy Season Eight comic). It's free, it's online, and it might just tide you over until Ripper ... or the next issue of the Buffy comic.