Gaius Baltar Minus Head Six

Has everybody seen Garfield Minus Garfield? It's pretty brilliant, taking the annoying punchlines and dialogue out makes Garfield kinda... depressing. Yet sorta GOOD. Jon Arbuckle is totally depressed and delusional. And as such, both funny and relatable.

Here's the latest thing from the lovely and talented Robyn E. Kenealy: GAIUS BALTAR MINUS HEAD SIX. Now of course, Baltar is already funny AND depressing, yet this somehow manages to be hilarious. Maybe it's the thinking pose and the fact that, well, whatever facet of Gaius' life you bring into it, he's been a pretty colossal failure. It's depressing yet funny! Why so?

The photos are snaggable, and she also sent me the template. The options are endless! (I may try one myself once I get my Paint to make proper text on photos... Or get a better program.)

James Callis on Eureka: Various Updates

In the video: clips of the first two episodes; interview snippets with James, Colin Ferguson, Salli Richardson-Whitfield, Joe Morton, Neil Grayston, Erica Cerra and Niall Matter.

So as you can deduce from that long list, it's not a particularly long interview with any one actor. But James is wearing his 40's garb, only his hair looks like it's about to burst out of that do! How cute is that? And he really didn't say anything notable other than recap the first couple of episodes. So I'm just staring at him and drooling. *stares; drools*

News: James IS booked for Comic Con, San Diego, Saturday the 24th of July! So that's next week, and he's going to be at least in the Eureka panel. No word on autographs or photos so far. I will be posting any links I find. It'll be fun with some con stuff, and I hope people ask something more in-depth about James' character and the show.

Colin Ferguson and show creator Jaime Paglia were recently asked about working with James, and they had such words of praise for him. This does the fan's heart good:

Can you talk about working with James Callis?

Colin: Sure. Way back when "Battlestar [Galactica]" and "Eureka" were on the same lot, James was one of the first and definitely most vocal people to come forward and be so supportive and encouraging and helpful. So it was really fitting that he was the one who gets to come on our show and do 10 episodes. And we were really, really happy about that. Working with James--it's sort of preposterous how nice a man he is.

He's like the sweetest guy in the world. He just extends himself so above and beyond for everybody. So that alone is a pleasure. And then it's nice to get a different energy on the set, because he's such an actor. He's always digging ... to come up with different angles for things.

(Transcript here)

Paglia calls James "the consummate actor" and says it's exciting to have him play your character.

I mean, wow. As a fan, you have to accept that not everyone sees your idol as a hero like you, but with James, especially people who work with him... kinda do see him that way? It's confusing yet delightful, every time. And you can really tell that James is an asset to work with from a professional viewpoint too, because he really cares about the character and wants to find new ways of doing it. (L)!!! (Yeah, I'm kinda beginning to like Colin Ferguson, considering all this. Just kinda.)

I forgot to link to this interview: James Callis suits up for Eureka.

"I've got well-cut suits," he says, "but they haven't given me the British accent."

Hee! :D Yet I feel like there may have been more of that answer and they only gave us this bytesized bit. I don't know why it feels a bit lacking. Maybe because, if he really wanted to do the American accent for Gabriel McDow, it would seem more likely that he wants to do it for Dr Grant also, right? I'd imagine he's ambitious to try the accents he knows. The article says "Win some, lose some" and moves on, but I'm not sure if that was James' idea. Hmmm. This is why I prefer video/audio interviews, because you hear the context in which he said something.

This is lovely though. What happens when Grant comes to the present?

"Imagine a reset button," says Callis, "that you don't press but you kind of twist round. 'OK, you thought you were like this, but you're not.' Everything is up in the air. It's a bit like classical writing, where the end of the story is exactly like the beginning of the story, but it's slightly different.

Umm. :D I'm trying very hard to imagine how you can twist round a reset button. I'd think you can only push it? But okay, I get what he means. Everything doesn't change completely when Trevor Grant is taken out of the past, but some of the things in Eureka have changed. I didn't really comment on them in my last post, because I don't know the other characters well enough. But Allison has a son who is autistic, and when they come back to the present, he is not autistic anymore; Jack Carter had broken up with someone and when he comes back, the woman is back with him; Henry Deacon is suddenly married, and so forth. It's intriguing, but obviously it would be more so if I had actually watched more before. It's not a hard show to get into, plotwise, but the emotional impact of such events isn't really there for me.

Edited to add: OK, in a rather strange twist of the reset button - hee hee! - there's a new interview of James today, and he mentions specifically wanting to do a different character. An American character. That's what I thought - actors want to do different things, not keep their own accent. (It's possible James jokingly said he got the suits but not the English accent though, but it just goes to show that you can't take what he says too seriously. He is usually joking.)

"The show is very funny," he said. "It's kind of smart, and it's light and is good-natured. I felt like, just, I needed a change, wanted to be a different person, and this character is American, and it's a chance to be somebody else. The character is clean-shaved. God, that makes a difference to me!"

LOL! .. but wait, why such a big difference? Because it's so unlike his everyday life? Because his beard grows freakishly fast and it takes more work to maintain? Because he looks more handsome in his own opinion without a beard? Very interesting.

I prefer "kind of smart" to "very smart" like he said earlier. I don't think it's always smart; it's sort of smart in a Gilmore Girls kind of way, not smart in a Mad Men kind of way. Mainstream smart, not smart smart. But maybe I'm just a snob. I definitely did enjoy the first episode of season four, so maybe more positive surprises lie ahead!

(End of edit)

There was something cute in an earlier interview that I never commented on.

As an actor, you're always coming to something that started without you. It's tough. Even the most open and generous family is still a family by themselves. It's like Tetrus. They have walls up and you have to get through those things.

What is "Tetrus"? All I found were typos of Tetris. (I was thinking it might be some Shakespeare thing. :D) So I'm guessing James said Tetris and the journalist misspelled it. But - that is so NOT how you play Tetris! It's not about getting thru walls, it's about building straight lines out of angular pieces. Right? Actually, it sounds more like he's talking about Snake. It's amusing that he'll bring up these things he doesn't actually do - like when he used to be all "The casting process was a bit like Elimidate!" and the interviewer asked him if he actually watches the show, and he said no, "but it's self-explanatory".

Tee hee. I love picking apart the things he says! I've missed this. More interviews, please.

Eureka Unscripted, the writers' blog, is having a Q&A. So if you have questions about James or Dr Trevor/Charles Grant, ask away! Questions answered on Friday by the writers.

Lots of reactions to James on Eureka all over the place, most notably on Twitter. Most of it is delightfully positive, and amusingly, James' popularity is up over 200 % at imdb. I don't think I need imdb pro to know why! However, perhaps since Twitter only allows 140 characters, the comments are mostly pretty bland - "James Callis is on Eureka?!" or alternately "Gaius Baltar is on Eureka?!!" It annoys me, maybe because I've known for four months now that he's gonna be on the show, or maybe because it's so hot and everything annoys me. But come on people, doesn't anyone else use twitter search but me? Easy way to find out that yes, it is indeed James Callis and you're not the only one who noticed. His accent is loved and hated, but like I said, I declare it good and end of story. (I think many people don't consider that it's a 1940's accent, not a modern American one.)

In two days, we'll see how Trevor Grant changes the town and perceives our time! This Saturday I will be at a family thing all day, so don't expect any posts about the new episode until Sunday the earliest. I still maintain the right to stop posting if I'm exhausted or depressed, but it feels like the Facebook/fan crisis clusterfuck may finally be over. I apologize for any inconvenience it may have caused.

I guess that would be all - but if more comes up, I might want to edit this post instead of making a new one. I'll notify on Twitter in such case.

*While I was writing this post, the cat under my care almost went out the window. (I live in the third floor.) I had to pull him in by the rump. James fandom can jeopardize your pets!*

"Founders Day" James Callis Picspam

OK, I have to post more of these, because he looks so good and there are such great expressions. So just - plain old picspam with no text. Eureka season 4, episode 1 "Founders' Day", James Callis as Dr Trevor Grant. Copyrights gleefully infringed!

Most of the episode happens a) in the past and b) at night, so it's quite sepia and dark. I hope the next episode is mostly in present time so we get a bit more color in.

James Callis on Eureka: I'm So Excited And I Just Can't Hide It

(Well, when can I ever?) It was AWESOME! Oh yes, there will be spoilers.

And yes, all of the pictures are sepia tinted, because that's how they shot the 1947 scenes. Sorry if they're a bit dark.

And I mean, the whole episode was good. It was funny. It was exciting. It was entertaining, it was not drawn out or boring or overly sappy. I actually enjoyed watching Eureka. I even liked Colin Ferguson. He actually has good comic timing - maybe I should cut him some slack.

James was just... wow. I'm so proud of his American accent, because it wasn't great at first, and he's really stepped it up a few notches. He sounds natural, it doesn't interfere with his performance, it still sounds like him but it also sounds like an American person. That's great work. (Some people think it was terrible, but whatever. I declare it good. It's official!) Also, I hope he continues to call Carter "sport", because that's just hilarious. Carter is understandably annoyed, which I like. There wasn't a lot of friction between them just yet, but I'm sure there will be in future episodes.

I'm still confused about the name. Apparently he's now Dr Trevor Grant, after all. But the Eureka Writers blog said Charles Grant, and we had a clip of him saying "I'm Dr Charles Grant". So we'll see! Maybe he's going to use the name Charles now that he's stuck in the future? Or maybe he's got split personality? Or he's duplicated? Anything is possible on Eureka.

James plays a physicist who worked with Albert Einstein to build the town of Eureka! He comes from 1947. After the regular cast gets stuck in that year, he helps them get back, and gets accidentally drawn with them into 2010. Since he is the founder of the city, it feels natural that he gets a pivotal role in the episode; it's not too "*gasp* It's James Callis from Battlestar Galactica!!!" Jack doesn't realize what happened at first, and thinks it's just some modern guy in a suit. Grant seems to think he's nuts at this point, and possibly dangerous. He is an unauthorised visitor in a military area.

Carter: "Sorry, I thought you were Henry Deacon."

Grant: "No, I'm Doctor Trevor Grant."

Carter: "Nice to meet you, Trevor. Nice suit!"

Grant: (chilly) "I prefer Doctor Grant."

:D :D Their whole discussion is just brilliant. Also, I love how people keep commenting on the suit because I can't stop thinking about it. It's so perfect and well-made and looks just right for him. (Of course, it probably was made just for him by the costume people, so it makes sense.)

(Is that a scar on James' lip, or some kind of wrinkle from smoking a lot? That's interesting. I keep getting sidetracked with his physique, but it doesn't stop me from admiring his performance.)

So what's Grant like? He's a good guy, used to being the leader, he has authority and is quite suave with the ladies - or at least with Allison. I really enjoyed their scenes together. Some great chemistry between James and Salli Richardson-Whitfield. Also: as we've already seen, he dresses really well. I'm almost ready to say that 1947 James Callis is the hottest James EVER. But we'll see what's coming.

"Why is it that a woman of your... [stares at her butt for a moment] SKILLS... is still only a nurse?"

Also, he smokes a LOT. I enjoyed this aspect very much. In the olden days, everybody smoked, it wasn't frowned upon or a health scare thing. I love that he smoked in almost every scene and that it wasn't an issue. Of course, in 2010 it might become an issue, but we'll see.

He did get to smile! Both smugly - and seductively - and out of excitement!

Did they really set up a satellite before the world knew about it?

"Yes we did - and it wasn't even that hard."

It's strange how these pictures remind me of YoungJames performances. He still looks young, even if he's not as skinny, and I think he's only gotten hotter over the years. Maybe I'm reminded of YoungJames because he did some army stuff - Soldier, Soldier and In the Heat of the Sun - with similar short hair. Well, no, it was much shorter then. Here it's just... short yet fabulous.

I especially liked this smile. Boyishly excited. (L)!

The regular cast show up in Eureka when it was still a military camp, so they're mistaken for spies. Grant is very suspicious at first, but becomes excited when he realizes they're from the future. You can tell he has some scientific curiosity about it. He even helps them get back into their own time. His behavior becomes a lot more laid back and sympathetic.

:D This is, like, one of the patented James faces (tm). Look at him! :D

Excited that they're from 2010. It's a bit surreal to see James together with this cast, like worlds are colliding. It's an interesting feeling.

Some people are going on about how it's "another doctor", or "another scientist", just like Gaius Baltar arrrghh. That is really the only similarity, so yes, let's focus on that aspect. *eye-roll* But I was delighted to see some people tweet that James made them forget Gaius Baltar, and that they forgot he was putting on an accent. While I can't really forget it's James, I definitely forgot to listen for the accent at times.

And now a moment only I have been waiting for: tummy outline pictures! Eeeee! I can see it and it's glorious! *beams*

Hee! This one really came out like "ROARR, I'm the king of the jungle!" while the others hide from his power. He's actually trying to hide Carter and Henry and is shouting at a soldier outside...

He has his hand on it! That is even hotter! I bet it feels soft. *gush*

Also, Salli is totally cute in her nurse's uniform. Somehow James always looks even hotter with a hot girl by his side. (See also: Tricia.)

OK, I'll try to keep the tummy comments to a minimum but really, it's just beautiful. I am happy.

James Callis on Eureka: Sneak Peek!

Sneak peek! It looks a bit too small in the blog frame, so if that bugs, check it out here.

OK, this looks great! James' American accent sounds pretty solid now. I like the way the character is acting here; he doesn't seem overly aggressive or macho, and James is playing the amazement well. I'll be excited to see more of this!

Some more promo photos! I think there should be a rule from now on that James must have a cigarette in each picture, and preferably also hold the lighter to the viewers like that. Mmmmm. (I think I see the belly too, there. Maybe it's the vest, but then again maybe not. Droool. )

Why is this so sexy?! Is it the hat? The earnest look at the viewers? The suit? I can't figure it out, but either way GUSH!

A couple of other updates too:
A new interview. And what do you know, he quotes Shakespeare!

There's advice that Polonius gives Laertes in "Hamlet" where he essentially says, "Above all else, to thine own self be true." That's what you have to do. People can take you or leave you.

Heee! Oh, Professor James. It's good advice though, and something I wish I could live up to.

This is a lot more wry, and that's one of the reasons I really liked it. The lines are smart and funny, and the delivery is always perfect. I can hardly act next to Colin Ferguson because he has me laughing on stage, off stage.

I wish he'd mentioned that there was a lot of humor on BSG too, especially around Gaius. But it's fun to hear how the show cracks him up - I hope it'll be fun to watch too. What I've seen in my recent James searches is that the Eureka cast get along well and have fun making the show, and that's always a good sign.

My Therapist Loves James Callis, Part 2

I spent my therapy talking about James Callis, again. And I feel better, again. I know I already went thru this facebook thing there, but it's been only two months and I really haven't had a chance to deal with it. Or maybe I had to put it away for a while and focus on other stuff so I could deal with it when the first feelings are over.

My therapist really has a positive image of James through me - and he mentioned checking some of James' work as well, to see what he's like. He said James seems kind and empathetic, but I must remember how much he has going on with the work and the family and traveling. He wouldn't have the time or mental energy to form a similar bond with me that I feel with him, even if he probably reads my blog and appreciates it. I need to be realistic about what I can expect. I can't necessarily know what boundaries he's laid out long before I became a fan. I have to separate the private James and the public James - the former I may never get to know. And even if I dream about it, it probably wouldn't feel as good as I imagine; I'd overanalyze my own behavior with him and his behavior at me. I may not be able to take it. Robyn also said this.

James Callis on Eureka: Lots of Updates!

(Note: I'm not feeling too well and am trying to deconstruct the fandom into something manageable and positive. So I may or may not blog much in the near future. Bear with me if there aren't any updates. Check the links in the right margin.)

This post contains spoilers. If you want to jump into the new season of Eureka as fresh and innocent as the day you were born, skip it.

Eureka 4th season, official promo pic! Beautiful. I love James' coat (the buttons! They're red!) and his pose here. Someone said he looks villainous, but I think it's more "I am what I am and I will tolerate no bullshit". He looks kinda sensitive though, under the surface.

Spoilery discussion of the first two episodes at Slice of Scifi. Looks like we've got time travel all right! This could be good. It's a favorable review, and James' role sounds pretty central.

He's also in a pivotal role in the season 4 poster. All eyes on our boy! *proud*

Also: New promo! "I'm Dr Charles Grant." (This, of course, doesn't explain why some sites list him as "Trevor". Maybe it's like how Mason Duryea on Numb3rs was first "Stephen".)

James is doing an American accent again, but it's hard to tell how it sounds from such brief flashes. Overall, he looks and sounds like someone who's firm (yet kind?), polite, with a good heart. I like him, based on what we've seen. One thing though - I hope he gets to smile a little. He looks so stern and serious in all promos. (And take that vest off once in a while, but I already discussed this in the previous post.)

Also also: More details from James himself: IGN has an interview article up!

I'm in the same place, in the same studio [in Vancouver]…my trailer's in the same place. I live next door to where I used to live. The whole thing is very odd.

It's a bit odd for the fans as well, actually, because it's the same channel and some of the same people working for him. Also, it came very suddenly and now he's doing a whole season. I was a BSG fan first and James fan second - of course, it's the other way around now - but with this show, I'm not sure I can fangirl the entire cast, premise and plot. But I trust that James will do well and bring something new into it. If I still can't fangirl the show after that, that's OK, though. I didn't realize I was so used to seeing him as a part of BSG specifically; it feels downright odd to see him in another ensemble show for a whole season.

He definitely comes with a past. Indeed. But meets Allison and Allison has now become his present and his future, if I can put it that way. Or at least he'd like her to be.

Yes, we know, time travel. I love how he's dancing around it; sounds like he wasn't allowed to reveal it. (And we're probably still not supposed to know, but it's somewhat obvious from the way he's dressed in the pictures.)

So who is Dr Grant? He is "not a push-over", he's from a time when things weren't so "metrosexual" (hee, that's a term people sometimes use to describe James himself. I'm not sure what he means by it here). He's going to be a love rival and antagonist for protagonist Jack Carter (Colin Ferguson):

You know, want your rival to manifest in all these ways that justify your hatred but Grant doesn't do that. So it makes things more difficult. You want to really despise his traits, but the then you realize that he's not that dissimilar to your own. Damn! And then that's even more irritating. Both of their hearts are in the right place. They just go about things in very different ways.

I already love the way James talks about this show; you can tell he's done a lot of thinking on the role. Personally, I'm not a big fan of Carter's - a bit too macho for my liking, for one thing - so I might actually enjoy this kind of setup.

Did people recognize him when he was in FlashForward?

Callis: They did recognize me, but it wasn't like "wasn't that James Callis?" It was more like, "Wasn't that Gaius Baltar?" I think that's possibly what I'm going to have to put up with, maybe, for the rest of my natural life. Even with Eureka there will be people who are going to say, "Gaius Baltar's on Eureka!"

They're already saying that, and really, I'm getting used to the idea myself. If I'm still a fan in ten years' time, it's possible people will go, "Oh, isn't that Gaius Baltar on [some future show]?" It's both a blessing and a curse, I guess. What does bug me is when people compare every character to Baltar like "Oh, this is EXACTLY like Baltar!" Which means that either James is a bad actor who's stuck in a rut, or he's doomed to repeat the same role for the rest of his life. I don't know. Maybe it's easy to make statements like that about stars you don't really follow.

So, this Friday then! I will be watching, and I may be blogging, or I may leave that til later when I've got my head cleared up. (Meanwhile, I may be discussing the fandom deconstruction at my LJ, so if you're interested in fan analysis, visit Deniselle's Droolateria.) I'm still here though, and will be updating the links in the margin and my Twitter.

I'm not a huge Eureka fan, but let's say I'm semi-excited over the premiere anyway. Eeek! James as someone new! We'll see how this turns out.

James Callis on Eureka: Photos of Episode 1!

Photo by Eike Schroter.

We have promo photos of the first episode of Eureka, season 4! See what it looks like HERE.

OK, so I'm a bit confused. James is obviously dressed in period garb, something 40's or 50's perhaps? But then if it is the Founders' Day, are they all dressed in period garb in a kind of fancy dress thing? Or are they transported back in time? SyFy is being very tight-lipped about things, so we've got no real spoilers other than that James is an "ex-inhabitant" whose return is "cause for concern". Hmmmmm. I'm very curious about this.

He looks pretty sad or sensitive in the pictures. So maybe we have an old-timey gentleman who's polite, kind and calm, and underneath a little sad? But then James' eyes easily do that "sad puppy dog" thing when he's showing emotion, so we'll see. I like the way he looks in the role so far - not overly aggressive or arrogant, more like a kind and gentle guy. But we'll see.

Either way, he looks SO handsome in this kind of clothing. English (??) gentleman! I love the vest. I may well have a vested interest in this role, heh heh. OK, it's not a very good pun, and some people are calling it a "waistcoat" rather than a vest, so I don't even know if I got the terminology right. In a way, I also hate the vest, because it covers his belly and it's hard to make out what he has underneath there. There's some rise in the middle, so it's not all flat or anything... *takes out microscope* Hmmm... OK, I just hope there's a science-induced wind that causes for all of their clothes to fly off, or become invisible, or something like that, in a future episode.

Also: Hat Man!!!

Also also: Smoking fetish!

Also also also: Still not sure on the hairdo. But the hair looks full and luscious, like it's just waiting to spring out of that do. And that I Love.

Eureka season 4 premieres on July 9th. (Why do I feel like I'm doing an ad for the show?)

Gaius Baltar: "Everybody Loves Me"

OMG awesome! Jesuit24, who made the Gabriel McDow "Can't Touch This" vid, has made a Baltar video. I'm in love with this style - the use of closeups is remarkable. You don't see a lot of fanvids that actually have their own style, so it's special.

Also, great song choice, LOL! Very Baltar.

James Callis on Eureka: Full Name and Picture!

OK, news are trickling in pretty slowly - less than a month til the Eureka season 4 premiere, and we don't have a lot to go on. BUT: Eureka Unscripted (the writers blog) reveals the character's full name: Dr Charles Grant. So we have a first name! Sounds like a dignified kind of guy, doesn't it?

And here's the first cast picture with James! Wearing the same brown outfit he had in the promo, looking calm, gentlemanly and mild-mannered. We'll see if he acts that way on the show! Either way: he's looking very handsome indeed.

Also: in this post at Eureka Unscripted, there's a picture of James on set! He's not in character in this one, but rather "discussing character motivation" - I can imagine that's a long, detailed discussion. James looks adorably tiny in this photo, but then the producer is called "Sasquatch", so maybe he's gigantic? Also: James' hair looks like it's beginning to grow a little bit. Our hirsute man! :D (I love how his pants are just a little bit too long on him.)

I wasn't going to be excited about Eureka, but I'm ... getting more and more excited, I must admit. I'll be on vacation when it starts, so I'll have plenty of time to scrutinize his performance, hair, weight, and all other important aspects!

EDIT: OMG, I forgot to add this! Main actor Colin Ferguson gushes on James on Twitter:

James Callis is probably the nicest man on the planet.... He bought gifts for everyone for the break10:53 PM Jun 12th via web

What a sweetheart!!! (L) (L)

(Yes, I looked, and I'm really not sure based on these photos if he's the same, thinner or chubbier than in FlashForward. But he's looking damn good either way. Who knew brown suts him so well?)