Amy Acker Is Another Year Older, Still Adorable: Today In Science & Science Fiction

By David Wharton | Updated

This article is more than 2 years old

AckerJoss Whedon giveth and Joss Whedon taketh away. This is perhaps nowhere more clearly demonstrated than in the life and death and life of Angel’s Winifred “Fred” Burkle, who was spunky and brilliant and funny and brave and then MADE OF SOLID PAIN and then a god. While Joss might have broken my heart in six different places during Fred’s story arc, he did at least introduce me to actress Amy Acker, who has since gone on to appear in such awesome, geeky projects as Alias, Dollhouse, Warehouse 13, The Cabin in the Woods, and of late a recurring role on Person of Interest. She’ll always be a person of interest to us here at GFR, so we wish her a very lovely 37th birthday today! (She’s also from my native Dallas/Fort Worth, represent!) We suggest you celebrate by buying a copy of The Cabin in the Woods on Blu-ray. Or just watch it on Netflix and then mail her a card with like twenty bucks in it to cut out the middle man.

Celebrate with us now by weeping bountiful, spoiler-laden tears…

Uch, I can’t bring myself to leave you that depressed. Here she is being classy and Shakespearean and generally awesome in Joss’ Much Ado About Nothing.

Today in Television

The Returned (Sundance, 9/8c) — “Lucy”
Well I don’t know about you, but after that clip up above I’m in serious need of some more cheerful material. So here’s a French series about people returning from the dead! But not so much in the brain-eating way, more in the confused, angsty, nature-of-existence way. There ain’t jack else on TV tonight, so enjoy!

FLASH! Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!
Now we’re talking! Bright colors! Square-jawed heroes! Villains with awesome facial hair! Yes, Flash Gordon opened in theaters on this day in 1980, starring Sam J. Jones (the real star of Ted), Melody Anderson, Max von Sydow, Timothy Dalton, Brian Blessed, and more. But more important than all of them was the band Queen, which contributed its first great gift to science fiction in the form of that damn catchy theme song below. Seriously, it’s in your head now even if you haven’t pressed play yet. Just embrace it. Welcome the Queen. Then when you get sick of it go listen to all their Highlander songs for a change of pace.

Flash