Dr. Horrible

Another piece of smart and funny literature - yeah, that's right, I said "literature" - from Joss Whedon and company was released into the wild this month.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along-Blog is a first of it's kind, three-part, Internet video "movie".

And it's BRILLIANT.

Neil Patrick Harris was hilariously funny and emotionally engaging as the not-so-villainous villain; Nathan Fillion was spot-on and just-campy-enough as the not-so-heroic hero; and they both knocked my socks off with their singing!

The story and songs and dialogue were goofy and funny and compelling ... and deeper than you might expect - if you don't know Joss.

Yes, I gush.

I can't help it. I seriously adore everything Joss Whedon and it's been waaaaay to long since I had my last "fix".

So, I probably would have enjoyed "Dr. Horrible" even if it was just a campy, cheesy, fun little Internet romp.

But I should have known better. The man does not know how to create anything shallow. I have no idea how he manages to convey such depth of story and character and theme in just 42 minutes of storytelling, but I am SO glad he does it.

I was deliberate in my word choice when I called Dr. Horrible "literature". Like so much else that Joss has created, it is high-quality storytelling.

Other writers - and readers - tend to turn their noses up at television and scoff at the idea that TV can be "art". And with millions of Americans glued to "American Idol" and other such riff-raff every week, I can understand why.

But Joss is a master of the medium. He uses every aspect of it to enhance his stories. And they ARE quality literature in the true sense of the word. They just happen to be on video instead of on paper. But the elements of a great story are all there. And he weaves them together beautifully.

I joke that being a fan of Buffy and Firefly/Serenity and other Whedon creations is my dirty little pop-culture vice. Friends who are not fans tend to give me the raised-eyebrows look when I "confess" to it.

I get why. Because, on the surface, those shows - and Dr. Horrible - seem like just bubble-gum fare: Vampires and cheerleaders and space cowboys, oh my!

But, like I said, Joss doesn't do shallow. Nothing he creates is is just.

Don't believe me? Check it out for yourself: You can now watch Dr Horrible on MySpace.

Enjoy the ride. :)