Shocking news from the Smallville set: Kristin Kreuk and Allison Mack are friends.

Not only do they get along on the set, but they're about to go into business together on a website geared to college students. The two are teaming up with Edgemont's Sarah Edmondson and Battlestar Galactica's Nicki Clyne for the project and have hit the interview circuit to talk it up. Only they won't say exactly what the site is.

"A lot of stuff about the website is actually quite secret," Mack told Buddy TV. "We want to keep our ideas close at hand so that we can really keep it unique and individual."

Meanwhile, Clyne has developed a survey to find out what college students would like to see on the site. I know what I'd like to see, but I doubt I'd get it even if I lied about my age. If any AfterEllen.com collegiate types would like to participate, here's the link. … continue reading

Much as I love watching Katee Sackhoff chew up scenery as Sarah Corvus, I miss the campy nature of the original Bionic Woman. I'm a big fan of shows that don't take themselves too seriously. That's one of the multitudes of reasons why I loved Xena and Buffy. The folks involved in both of those shows could do the serious-make-you-think kinds of episodes, but they weren't afraid to poke a little fun at themselves either. I think that's also one of the reasons I lost interest in The X-Files after a time; they started taking themselves too seriously far too often.

Why am I bringing this up? Because I have started to wonder what happened to my favorite superheroes of days gone by, the ones that clearly were as capable of laughing at themselves as they were of saving the world. I remember watching Wonder Woman in her invisible jet, hearing the telltale bionic sound effect when Jamie Sommers broke into a run, and very briefly catching a glimpse of Electra Woman and her faithful sidekick Dynagirl. So, where did the ladies who portrayed these super femmes disappear to, anyway? Or did they really disappear at all?

Since Bionic Woman sent me off on this tangent, it's only fair that I start with the original Jamie Sommers, Lindsay Wagner.

These days, Wagner can be seen hawking sleep number beds (and looking less than enthusiastic about it, if you ask me) and tearfully accepting awards from the folks at TV Land. … continue reading

Fresh from Planet Lexicon, there's a new superhero on the scene whose mission is to fight for justice and build your vocabulary. The Amazing Colossal Adventures of WordGirl debuted on PBS last year as a series of shorts within the PBS cartoon Maya and Miguel. It was enough of a hit to trigger a full development deal. A preview episode aired on Labor Day, and the show launches on Friday, Sept. 7.

WordGirl (aka fifth grader Betsy Botsford, when she's not fighting crime and poor word usage) is the newest superhero in PBS's battle against insufficient language development. With the help (or as she might say, "assistance") of her monkey sidekick, Captain Huggy Face, WordGirl uses her superpowers (super-strength, hearing, ability to fly at the speed of sound ... the usual) to overpower villains. But first she uses her super vocabulary (she knows all of the words in the dictionary, plus some hieroglyphics) to distract or confuse them.

For example, when WordGirl faces her archenemy the Butcher in the pilot, she distracts him by explaining that the free barbecue he provides to lure customers and security away from banks and jewelry stores is just a diversion. The dim-witted Butcher doesn't get (or "comprehend") it. But repeated and varied explanations teach the word "diversion" to the audience. (Eventually, she defeats the Butcher by luring him to a vegetarian restaurant. The patrons are not tempted by the free barbecue, and Captain Huggy Face is able to overpower the Butcher with tofu. And the audience learns what "vegetarian" means.)

Can I just stop to exclaim how great this is? … continue reading

Looking for a fun way to kill some time (besides reading this site)? This new create-your-own-superhero tool on ugo.com is truly inspired, if a little overwhelming. There's a dizzying array of choices to make, from the type and color of your character's leggings, boots, insignia, weapon, and even facial expressions, to what kind of sidekick you want.

To test it out (all in the name of "research"), I created a lesbian superhero called the "AfterEllen Avenger," whose mission in life is to destroy bad lesbian movies (it's a dirty job, but someone has to do it!) Naturally, her companion is a cat.

I also got a kick out of this "She Hulk" created by a ugo user: … continue reading