James Callis on FlashForward, part 4: It Was Frakking Awesome.

OMG, this is awesome! Many loving thanks to Nicole.

Quick bulletin points:

-He is adorable. I just want to cuddle and snuggle him. Look at Gaby-Waby trying to save the day - he is so gonna fail!

-The verdict is still out on autistic savant/Asperger's, but either way he's doing a great job portraying it. And funny. "Can't touch this! Can't touch this!" How does he do this?

-The outfit is hilarious, but him wearing it and being all fateful and frakked up is even more so.

-That is a decent American accent! He doesn't sound fake at all. Awesome!

-This really is unlike what he's done before. I'm so excited!

He is going to be in four episodes, so three more to go. He'll be more prominent next week. Can't wait!

Edit: So um... I'm not sure if I should be timid and try to not gush too much, or be just like before? I feel a bit timid still, but then, that may just be my own bullshit. James didn't ask me to stop gushing. Everybody else is gushing... So frak this. EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Fangush!!!! (L) (L) (L) JAMES!!! (L) :D :D :D OK, I feel better.

Somebody make a fanvid of "Can't Touch This" with Gabriel. Please.

I hesitate to say way too much before we see more of Gabriel McDow, but I'm totally having multiple FanForwards over this. (Sorry for the pun, couldn't resist.) I was sure I'd be a little disappointed after the hype and expectations, but it's quite the contrary. I'm beginning to feel more and more excited and can't wait for next Thursday. There's something different about this role.

For one thing, I'm really surprised he's autistic/Asperger's/remains to be seen. We knew he was quirky and socially awkward, but I didn't realize it was in this way. This is truly something new for James, and I'm just proud of how we'll he's portraying it. After seeing the photos, I was very amused indeed, but also a bit worried they might just do a really broad nerd stereotype. But this makes the outfit totally appropriate, even serious - yet he's still also hilarious and adorable in all the right ways. It's just so good.

A very good sign: I'm already fascinated with this guy. I want to know more about his condition and how he sees the world, in a way that isn't only related to the plot. I hope they make something of it and give us some view into Gabriel's head. I'd also be very curious as to what kind of background work/mental preparation James did to get into this character. As Gaius' narcissism and Guy Curran's (Going Wrong; I'll write about it someday) obsession were fascinating, this is fascinating in a psychological way. It may be one of those characters who stay with you.

Jessika Borsiczky, a producer of FlashForward, is on Twitter and she just came out as a total James fangirl. Eeee! She promises that James will be doing four episodes all in all, and that episode 20 is his biggest one. Also that "he steals" the next episode - as if he didn't already!

His American accent has improved since I last heard him use it. It's always been OK, but sounded like he's putting it on - it hasn't sounded very authentic. This time, it sounded authentic to me. It might have to do with the rhythm of his speech here and the way he talks dramatically, but I wouldn't guess by this that he's British. I'm so proud of his development as an actor. *gushes even further*

More fan reactions at Nicole's LJ here and here.

Last night, I had to go to bed not knowing what his role was like. Had a nightmare where he was in a church, looked more like Sylar with a very calm/evil expression, said dark stuff about God and painted a childlike altarpiece that was yet somehow very frightening. Then he turned into an old, fat, bald guy. (Serves me right for joking he'd be bald for the role!) All through the dream, I was wondering, "Why did people say he'd be adorable/funny? This is frakking depressing!"

All I'm saying is, it's not easy being a fan who lives in Finland. Without illegal downloads, I'd have to wait two weeks to see this. Thank gods for copyright law infringements!

(Um, I'll have to see more of him to determine if he's actually chubbier or not. Maybe the coat is just tight enough to make it look so. I'm sure no one really cares though, but it's important for ME as the foremost expert on the topic. Either way: ADORABLE.)