Angel ~ The WB Wednesday 9:00pm ~ David Fury, Steve S. DeKnight, Drew Goddard

The WB is very excited to be receiving the talents David Fury, Drew Goddard and Steven S. DeKnight to the Angel writing team. All three men are making the transition from Buffy this season and with such episodes as “Seeing Red”, “Gone”, “Lies My Parents Told Me” and “Dead Things” under their belts we can only hope for a continuation of the fantastic story lines, drama and comedy they brought to Buffy. With their well established Buffy history and fantastic literary skills the three are sure to make this season one of the best of both shows.

David Fury is perhaps the perfect example of that old adage, “If at first you don't succeed then try, try, try again”. Originally starting his working life as an actor rather than a writer, David turned down the opportunity of working with Joss on his new found success series BtVS not once but twice. Listening to the advice of his agents and taking work on an alternative show led to David not actually becoming a regular on Buffy until Season 3 where offered his services as a freelance writer as opposed to the usual writing partnership he shared with his wife, Elin Hampton. The first episode he offered as part of his solo package was the pivotal piece “Helpless” from where his reputation grew leading to him becoming Producer and then Co-Executive in a brief three year period. He made his directorial debut with the Season 5 episode “Gone”. Writing for Buffy played right into David's personal love of the comedic and horror genres. Originally born in Denton, Texas but raised in Old Bethpage, New York, David initially pursued an acting career as opposed to putting pen to paper. The comedy troupe Brain Trust he co-founded in Manhattan before taking it to L.A. tested his improvisational skills and soon David found that people were knocking on his door for his literal scripts as opposed to asking him to appear on stage. His early credits include The Jackie Thomas Show, Dream On, House of Buggin' and the animated hit, Pinky and the Brain. Never one to miss an opportunity to step in front of the camera though David can be seen singing about the joys of the dry cleaners as The Mustard Man in “OMWF” as well as making a cameo appearance in the Angel episode “Reprise” as a goat-sacrificing demon worshipper.

Steven S. DeKnight should be nicknamed Mr. Controversy rather than the affectionate pet name ŒPantsless' that has affectionately been given to him by the fans of The Bronze Beta Website. Steve has been working on Angel for a season now and is the man responsible for some of the most talked about episodes of Season 4. Whether it be The Beast rising to inflict untold misery, Cordelia bedding Angel's son or the long awaited return of Angelus, in some way or other, Steve has been a part of some of the most crucial episodes of the year. Yet anyone who follows his work should not be surprised at the twists and turns he has injected into Angel. From his first episode on Buffy, “Blood Ties” to his directorial debut in Angel episode “Inside Out”, Steve's taste for the dramatic has been evident and a far cry from his humble beginnings as a writer on MTV's Undressed. Just like Fury before him, Steve originally wanted to be in front of the camera rather than behind it but realised early on that that wasn't where his talents lay. Born and raised in South Jersey, Steve moved to the West Coast but unfortunately found work hard to come by resulting in him taking a job as an ESL (English as a Second Language) at a small Japanese school for a little bit longer then he originally planned. The aforementioned MTV Undressed paid the wages for a while before a Buffy script he penned found its way onto the desk of Whedon and led to an interview initially for the Buffy animated series that never was. He only worked on Buffy for two seasons before moving to Angel where he was given the small task of having to find a way of bringing our hero from the depths of the ocean in the Season 4 premiere!

Don't let the relatively new name of Drew Goddard mislead your expectations, he single-handedly took out one of the most beloved characters of the Buffy-verse when he killed off Jonathan, a character extra who appeared in the very first episode of Buffy and continued throughout its entire run only to become a key player in the controversial episode “Ear Shot” and the outstanding comedic ep of Season 4, “Superstar”. Actor Danny Strong [Jonathan] humorously approached Drew during a Question & Answer panel at the San Diego International Comic Convention to ask, Œhow it felt to be a murderer', to which Drew jokingly replied, “You know, not that bad.” Drew is also responsible for Buffy Season 7 standouts: “Selfless”, “Never Leave Me”, “Dirty Girls”, and the now classic, “Lies My Parents Told Me” which he co-penned with David Fury.

Gilmore Girls ~ The WB Tuesday 8:00pm ~ Jane Espenson

Another name synonymous with the outstanding penship of Buffy the Vampire Slayer episodes is Jane Espenson who has been a regular writer on the show since the beginning of Season 3. Like Tim Minear before her, Jane knew that writing, specifically writing for television, was a forte that she wanted to indulge in from a very early age. Like the fan fiction writers of today, Jane would often recreate episodes of her favourite shows such a Welcome Back Kotter or Get Smart.

Growing up in Ames, Iowa, Jane graduated from UC Berkley and immediately turned her attention into pursuing her career choice successfully selling a story to Star Trek - The Next Generation with her first attempt. Although her story never actually made it to screen in terms of an actual episode, it set Jane off on her vocation path where she successfully wrote episodes for shows such as Star Trek Deep Space Nine, Monty and Me and The Boys. Jane generally considers herself to be a comedic writer and uses her flair for the funny when writing for situation comedies such as Ellen. When that particular show ended its successful network run, Jane did consider dipping into drama for a while but a meeting with Whedon's development executives George Snyder and Jeff Bynum changed her way of thinking. Turning down the chance to work on Mad About You, Jane met with Joss to discuss the possibility of working on Buffy taking a couple of story ideas with her. One of the ideas pitched turned into the ever so popular episode “Band Candy” and propelled Jane into the Buffy-verse where she has written some of the funniest episodes aired as well as contributing to fan favourite “Room With A Vu” over on Angel where she collaborated with Tim Minear.

Now that Buffy is over. Jane Espenson joins the team of Gilmore Girls this fall, which adds to her already fantastic resume. Jane has proved her worth as an excellent writer, after all this is the woman who bought us “Superstar”, “The Replacement” and many, many more! With her innumerable talents we are sure she will bring many more great stories in to this already well established show. Set in the fictional town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, Gilmore Girls follows thirty-something Lorelai Gilmore. She is doing her best to bring up her teenage daughter - and best friend in the world - Rory [Alexis Bledel, Tuck Everlasting] and to make sure she doesn't follow in her footsteps. Although the two have comparable interests, Rory is more serious than Lorelai, but similarities, especially in the more romantic side of life clearly show she follows in her mother's footsteps. Lorelai was only Rory's age when she became pregnant and made the life-changing decision to raise her daughter alone. This bold move caused a split between her and her old-money parents, Emily [Kelly Bishop, Dirty Dancing] and Richard [Edward Herrmann, The Cat's Meow] a spilt which had to be swiftly reconciled in dire need of funding for Rory's tuition. Now, in its third season, Rory prepares for college and Lorelai prepares for the trials and misadventures that entails. The perfect platform for Jane and her comedic wit.

Tarzan ~ The WB Sunday 9:00pm ~ Mere Smith

”Gym class was cancelled due to the extreme dead guy in the locker”- An immortal quote taken from the Cordelia Chase manual of classic quips and a defining moment in the creative crossroads of writer Mere Smith's career path. It was upon hearing those words from Queen C's lips in the Buffy opening episode “Welcome to the Hellmouth” that Meredyth put pay to her aspirations of being a successful actress and turned her attentions to the world of writing for television instead. Born in Houston, raised in a small Floridian town before living in Brooklyn, New York for a year. Mere has one of those rare privileges that most fans would give their right arm for - she has made the transition from armchair Œdo not disturb me when Buffy's on' fan to an actual writer on its sister show Angel! A former poster at the official Buffy web site The Bronze, Smith joined the staff of Angel during Season one as script co-ordinator before moving to full Staff Writer in Season two contributing to some very memorable episodes including her first effort “Untouched” and the critically acclaimed “Redefinition”. Her affinity for clever scripts and her ability to keep viewers on the edge of their seat continued into Season three in episodes such as “Fredless”, “Birthday” and “Loyalty”. Season four continued in a similar vein as she takes credit for episodes “Ground State”, “Long Day's Journey”, “Calvary” as well as the excellent face off between Angel and Angelus in “Orpheus”.

Tarzan is her latest project and takes a new twist on an old tale. Jump forward two decades from the day the infant John Clayton was abandoned in the jungle and set the scene as New York City. We now find Tarzan defending this new jungle with the primal force, which elevated his status in the Congo. But what is Tarzan without his Jane? For the modern Tarzan she is found in the dedicated police detective Jane Porter, beautiful and tough she spends life fighting her own battle between head and heart. With an unmistakable attraction to Tarzan but a fiancé in the force, Jane is torn between love and loyalty whilst simultaneously fighting the filth that is the crime of the City. Laura Ziskin, producer of Spider-Man and Pretty Woman, brings this epic tale to the small screen in the tradition of Smallville, alongside writer/co-executive producer Eric Kripke, director/executive producer David Nutter [Smallville, Without A Trace] and executive producers David Gerber, P.K. Simonds [Party of Fiv]). Tarzan stars Travis Fimmel {Tarzan] and Sarah Wayne Callies [Jane Porter].

Smallville ~ The WB Wednesday 8:00pm ~ Drew Z. Greenberg

Before the spandex and lycra-wearing Superman there was Clark Kent [Tom Welling], a somewhat typical teenager growing up in the rural town of Smallville. Clarks powers are guarded, and guided by his adoptive parents, Jonathan [John Schneider, The Dukes of Hazzard, Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman] and Martha Kent [Annette O'Toole, Superman III, 48 Hrs.] along with his best friend Pete Ross [Sam Jones III, Zigzag]. The show follows Clark as he learns to use his ever-growing powers under the watchful eyes of his friends and family at the same time as going through the teething pains of the typical teenager. His love live is as complicated as his secret one as he strives to remain loyal to Chloe Sullivan [Allison Mack, Opposite Sex], his close friend and Smallville High newspaper editor, whilst pining for Lana Lang the beautiful girl next door.

Drew Z. Greenburg, a seasoned screen writer, and Buffy teamster since Season one joins the Smallville team this fall in what will be a great addition to the already outstanding writing team. Drew has contributed to some of the best episodes of Buffy including “Him” and “The Killer In Me” and with his ability to inject both comedy and drama into his shows we look forward to his contributions and creative ideas this season that could give the boy of steel a good run for his money. There may not be demons in Smallville but evil beware, this talent comes packing, and it's the Œgreen' Kryptonite, the only variety potentially fatal to Superman, which induces lassitude and inertia followed by death if not removed in time from his presence. Could Drew ask for anything better? We think not.