Within one day of launching on Indiegogo, Alan Tudyk's Con Man - a webseries promising elements of Galaxy Quest, The Guild, and yes, Firefly - reached its funding goal of $425,000. Within two days of launching, the funding sailed past the million dollar mark, and with 30 days left for funding as of this post, it looks like slathering fans (like me) yearning for just a crumbs worth of more Wash and Mal will be treated to a full "season" of episodes
Con Man revolves around an actor and his friend, both of whom starred on a beloved, cult-status science fiction series -- Spectrum -- that was cancelled "TOO SOON" (SOUND FAMILIAR??). The series follows their divergent paths, with Alan Tudyk's character ("Wray Nerely") eeking out a living on the margins of the world of genre conventions and Nathan Fillion's character ("Jack Moore") having achieved "Matt Damon Action Hero" status. The sci-fi community and convention culture play a central role, according to Tudyk. "If you’ve gone to a sci-fi convention, you’ve only seen half of it,” said Tudyk. “’Con Man’ delivers what convention ‘All-Access’ passes have only promised in the past. I’ve been to conventions from San Diego to Dubai and I have so many great experiences to share through the world of ‘Con Man.’ The sci-fi fans have changed my life and I want to give them a chance to see a new view of the world they built.”
Palpable Bromance.
It's that kind of Galaxy Quest geek love (not this kind of Geek Love) that will draw viewers and deepen the fandom. "Firefly" alums Alan Tudyk, Nathan Fillion, Sean Maher and Gina Torres are slated to reunite for this very small screen project, with Felicia Day, Seth Green, James Gunn and Amy Acker. There is some serious adorable going on in the promotion video. In fact, there is so much geek crack in this project, it's hard not to, well...:
The chemistry and love between Tudyk and Fillion is palpable, as is their shared excitement about the project. That excitement, which kind of defines geekdom, is often the recipe for a delightful geek-centric product. In an interview with EW, Fillion gushed about Con Man. "As an audience member, this is exactly the kind of thing I want to see. I want to see a guy who gets kicked in the nuts all the time. I want to see a guy whose life just keeps handing him lemons. I love watching him suffer and Alan, this is one of his niches. He can do a lot of things but he can suffer very well."
The series will stream on Vimeo, with backers receiving early and unlimited access (for 90 days) to the hi-def broadcast. The perks of the campaign range from posters and T-shirts to the "Mogul" level, which includes celebrating Tudyk and Fillion's birthdays with them. For a superfan, is $25,000 really too much?
Joss Whedon himself has already given his blessing to the project.
And if you needed ANY more convincing to either contrbute or consume this close-as-we're-going-to-get-to-a-Firefly-relaunch: “There’s a lost episode of Spectrum that gets released within the show,” shares Tudyk. “That’s done in a funny way—but there are actual scenes of me flying a spaceship and Nathan captaining.”
On the Serenity Spectrum
