BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER 
(Creator, writer, director)

The show that changed the way TV shows were made. The show that gave us one of the most iconic pop-culture characters, ever. The show that taught a whole new generation how to speak (the ‘thingy’ thing to the ‘boring much?’). The show that remains one of Whedon’s best creations. 

In seven seasons, from 1997 to 2003, Buffy Summers, a Slayer, attended the Sunnydale High School, embraced her “calling” under the guidance of Watcher Rupert Giles, and gathered around her a group of loyal friends. Buffy the kick-ass female lead would take charge, have moments of emotional and moral crises, and evolve slowly from a shallow, ditzy high-schooler to a worthy champion.

The supporting cast was exceptional and you felt connected to every character, sharing their happiness and their heartbreak — friends Willow and Xander, boyfriends Angel and Spike.... It had a long-running LGBT couple in Willow and Tara without making a big deal of it or pushing it to the sidelines.

Buffy was funny, poignant, scary and relatable. Especially how the horrors of high school bled into the world of vampires and monsters. Episodes like The Body, dealing with the aftermath of Buffy’s mom’s death, the musical episode Once More With Feeling and the silent episode Hush were works of genius.

Standout female characters: 
♦ Buffy Summers
♦ Willow Rosenberg 

ANGEL
(Co-creator, writer, director)

The Buffy spin-off, which ran for five seasons from 1999 to 2004, focused on Buffy’s antagonist-turned-lover Angel, the vampire with a soul, and his fight against evil in a fictional Los Angeles. It struggled in the first season but picked up in terms of popularity and stories from the second season. We saw a lot of familiar faces from Buffy, like Cordelia and Faith, play major roles while other characters, including Buffy herself, cropped up from time to time.

TOY STORY
(Co-writer)

Did you know that Whedon co-wrote the first adventure of Woody the cowboy and astronaut Buzz Lightyear, in 1995? The film won an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay.
Standout female character: 
♦ Bo Peep 

CABIN IN THE WOODS 
(Co-writer, producer)

You just have to see at least a few slasher films to understand the poetry that is Cabin in the Woods. The film pays homage to the usual slasher tropes but also criticises the cliches. The film sees five college students spending a night in a cabin in the woods, where they face monsters. But the situations are controlled by technicians who are in turn directed by a higher-up power to appease the Ancient Ones. The film is a commentary on the horror film genre where the technicians are the scriptwriters with a director who is trying to appease the audience. It is as meta as meta can be!
Standout female characters: 
♦ Both the women — the “virgin” and the “whore” — were a satire of the typical horror tropes.

DOLLHOUSE
(Creator, writer, director)

The most under-appreciated work of Joss Whedon is this TV show about humans whose memories and personality can be erased, making them a receptacle for whatever qualities, personalities and services — from sexual to security — are required by those who hire them. One of Whedon’s darkest and most unsettling works, the show, which follows the Doll called Echo, raises questions about the effects that technological developments could have on society, making it a true work of science-fiction. The show was cancelled after two seasons. 
Standout female characters: 
♦ Echo
♦ Adele DeWitt
 

 

FIREFLY AND SERENITY
(Creator, writer, director)

This space Western remains the most popular one-season-wonder on television. All of 14 episodes, the show starring Nathan Fillion has a stupendous fan following which convinced Universal to produce Serenity, the film that gave closure to the show and to the fans who are called Browncoats. 

The show follows the swashbuckling anti-hero Mal Reynolds, captain of a Firefly-class ship called Serenity, who leads his team on shady jobs on the fringes of the Alliance. Whedon’s trademark witty one-liners, anti-authoritarianism, moral ambiguity and character chemistry make this series unforgettable. No wonder Sheldon Cooper dedicated every Friday to Firefly and called Rupert Murdoch a traitor when Fox cancelled the show.
Standout female characters: 
♦ Zoe  Washburn
♦ Kaylee Frye 

THE AVENGERS
AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON
(Writer, director)

The Avengers became the third highest grossing film in the world. Age of Ultron had an even bigger opening than the first. Whedon’s magic is audible in those one-liners and visible in those intricate interpersonal relations between the characters. Who else has given us a more captivating and nuanced villain in the Marvel Cinematic Universe than Loki or made a villainous bot with AI so real? Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: Winter Soldier all had his magic writing touch, though uncredited.
Standout female character: 
♦ Black Widow 

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.
(Co-creator)

Agent Coulson from The Avengers isn’t dead. Instead, he now leads a team of S.H.I.E.L.D agents in identifying and investigating strange occurrences and protecting people from extarordinary events taking place on the periphery of the major MCU developments. 
Standout female characters: 
♦ Skye
♦ Melinda May

DOCTOR HORRIBLE’S SINGALONG BLOG
(Writer, director, executive producer)
This internet-based musical mini-series tells the story of aspiring supervillain Dr. Horrible, his nemesis Captain Hammer and their shared love interest Penny. The three 14-minute act series shows the trials faced by Dr. Horrible in his pursuit of Penny and becoming a member of the Evil League of Evil in a video blog format. 

Director Joss Whedon quit Twitter on May 5, following several ugly tweets — including some that asked him to die — from fans furious over plot points in Avenger: Age of Ultron. Many slammed him for portraying Black Widow as a damsel in distress and for her relationship with the Hulk. Whedon later told Buzzfeed that it wasn’t the reason he left. But...

Name: Joss Whedon
Age: 50
Occupation: Screenwriter, film and television director and producer, comic book author, composer and actor.
Known for: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron
Trademark themes/motifs: Anti-authoritarianism, feminism, sacrifice, existentialism, moral ambiguity.
Why we love him: His work is witty, funny, smart, emotional and gives us some unforgettable characters.
Major achievements: 
♦ Nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Academy Awards for Toy Story
♦ Nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode: Hush

Chandreyee Chatterjee
Which is your favourite Joss Whedon show/film? Tell t2@abp.in