You know that old saying, "the villain is the hero of his own story"? Well, here it is, only a click away: the musical tale of Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris) and his ongoing quest to gain admittance to the Evil League of Evil (this year he’s got "a letter of condemnation from the deputy mayor…that’s gotta have some weight"), while awkwardly wooing Penny (Felicia Day), the girl of his dreams, and battling his arch-nemesis, Captain Hammer (Firefly’s lantern-jawed Nathan Fillion, pictured). And because all of this is coming from the geekalicious mind of Joss Whedon (and his terribly talented siblings) it is an Epic Win*.
Shimmy through past the jump to find out how awesome NPH truly is (which we already knew), the wonders of backlot locations, and why "Epic Win" has an asterisk.
First, let me just say that it’s nice to see NPH (I always want to use his initials as a rate of speed) back in a doctor’s whites. And that those goggles are awesome. Secondly, without someone as magnetic as NPH, this series would fall completely flat; the first few minutes are just him in his crazy-chintzy lab-lair talking into the camera, reading viewer mail, keeping us up to date with his various schemes, and unless you’ve got an actor who can nail Whedon’s blend of sincerity, awkwardness, and wit, you’re dead in the water. (Much like the water created by Horrible’s buddy, Moist, whose power seems to be the ability to create humidity.) But NPH delivers—and, he’s got a wicked-awesome voice.
And the songs are kinda perfect, in the same imperfect mold as the songs from the "Once More With Feeling" episode of Buffy (Act One’s climactic number—a three-way between Horrible, Penny, and Hammer—is very reminiscent of the Giles/Tara "duet" of "Under Your Spell/Standing"). And it’s those imperfections—the odd phrasing here, the weird key shift there—that give the songs a humanity that bleeds over into the characters. The use of the patently artificial-looking Universal backlot sets gives everything a MGM-musical feel.
To top it off, the thing is damned funny. Fillion, especially, is hilarious as the completely-infatuated-with-himself Captain Hammer. He’s all wavy-haired, finger-to-ear bombast, the perfect complement to NPH’s haggard, lovestruck loser.
(As for the asterisk, it’s only because The Venture Brothers has been handily lampooning the hero-supervillain dynamic for years now—the Monarch and Dr. Horrible feel cut from the same cloth—and gets the edge only because it got there first. But it’s no slight against either to mention them both in the same sentence.)
So, what did you think? Will you be tuning in for Act Two tomorrow (7/17) and the Act Three finale on Saturday (7/19)? Will you buy the inevitable DVD after Dr. Horrible disappears from the internet on Sunday? Are you already humming the songs? (I am.)
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Not only did I already watch it twice, I bought the whole thing on iTunes (each ep will download when they are available) for only 4 bucks, so I can continue to watch even after its gone on Sunday. Awesometeen.
Watched it so many times I crashed the site. Sorry ’bout that!
Two best quotes:
“Bad Horse! Bad Horse! The throughbred of Sin!”
and
“It’s curtains for you. Lacy, wafting curtians”
LOVED it…I bought the itunes season pass too. So far the best $4 I’ve ever spent. Joss, NPH, and Nathan are gods.
I watched Act I three times yesterday and cracked up each time. NPH is so perfect in this. His evil laugh gets me every time. Moist is hilarious. Worst evil power ever. I will so be snagging this on iTunes. One thing I have to know…who are the three guys singing the Bad Horse song?
i wasnt really one who caught on to the phenonmenon that was Buffy but i do read Joss Whedon’s Astonishing X-men, so I do know that he is extremely talented in the writing department and Dr. Horrible comes off as no suprise… that sh*t is damn funny and the music is pretty damn good too! NPH and Nathan Fillion are hysterical… cant wait for the second part
I love NPH but was losing interest until Captain Hammer showed up. Fillon’s got the braggadogio of a comic book hero down pat man! I’ve been digging this man’s work since he was on Firefly, and gained all love for NPH when he did Harold and Kumar. Pair them up with Whedon at the helm and huzzah! The result is more than the sum of its parts. I’m really digging on this series and anxiously await part II.
Anyone else feel a little weird to be rooting for the villain? Not since Gargamel and Wile-E-Coyote have I wanted the villain to win this badly.
Love it! Love it! Love it! Then again, you can’t go wrong with the entertaining trinity that is NPH, Nathan Fillon and Joss Whedon. Anything that gets NPH singing and keeps NF working will always be appreciated by me but this really spotlights the endless talent these two actors have. It only makes me wonder why on earth Nathan Fillon isn’t a huge star already! Anyway, if the next two Acts are as good as the first (and I image they will be) I will definitely be purchasing the DVD which I understand is supposed to contain a lot of extra goodies from the evil geniuses behind this little gem. Can’t wait for tomorrow! Until then, I’ll probably watch this several more times so I can fully annoy everyone at work by singing the songs out loud in my cubicle.
Awesome is about the only word to describe Act I. I suspect that I’ll be wordless come the end of the show.
Joss Whedon, do more musicals!
Just wanted to check back in to see anyone needed anything dampened or made soggy.
Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris and Joss Whedon! Is there any way they could make this into a series?
I bought it on iTunes even before I saw the free version. I don’t have to worry about making time on Saturday to catch the end now…although I think that’ll probably be the first thing that I do, anyway.
I’m glad that Joss is back, even if it’s only briefly (until Dollhouse, that is.) I’ll be buying the DVD when it comes out, because I HAVE to hear the promised musical commentary.
Already bought the season pass on iTunes. LOVED ACT I!!!! Can’t wait for Act II tomorrow!
Took a little while to get started for me, but once it did, it was fun. Looking forward to the rest of the webisodes and to Dollhouse.
That was fantastic!! I’ve been waiting for this for sooo long! And yes, I will definitely buy the DVD, if only to support the awesomeness that is Joss Whedon!
“And it’s those imperfections—the odd phrasing here, the weird key shift there—that give the songs a humanity that bleeds over into the characters.”
Clearly influenced be Whedon’s favorite composer (and mine), Stephen Sondheim.
I absolutely love the series so far, know all the songs (couldn’t get them out of my head yesterday as I went to join my instructor/friend and classmate for a brief while to plan out some choreography for our musical theatre class’ showcase – and having these songs in my head prevented me from thinking too much about choreography), purchased the series on iTunes, and will be buying the dvd. Can’t wait for midnight to come around!
Mwhahaha! Evil laughs are important, you know. Dr. Horrible is brilliant! I loved Act I. I’m eagerly awaiting to see what happens next. And yes, I probably will buy the DVD.
LOVED Act I. NPH and Nathan Fillion were perfect and hilarious. I love that Whedon did this, because it’s so silly and just so much fun! Can’t wait to see Act II and III!
Lovedddddd it.
“Balls.”
I don’t know which one I love more…Neil Patrick Harris or Nathan Fillion! Squee!
Squeee is right! OMG that was terrific! Felicia Day was on Buffy season 7 as a potential, so gotta love the way Whedon stays loyal to his peeps! Now we just need a musical with Jayne, the hero of Canton!
This is the real reason Whedon took a year to write one arc of Astonishing X-Men, isn’t it? (Because Buffy Season 8 clearly doesn’t take much time.)
Fan of whedons but. Liked it. didnt love it. I’ll watch acts 2 and 3 but dont plan on buying the dvd. I just dont enjoy whedons music.
Did I like it and will I be watching parts two and three? Ummmmm, that is a resounding yes! I have watched part one over ten times now(so I’m obviously humming the tunes) and am staying up to watch part two tonight at midnight! Joss is Boss, after all:) NPH is incredible, Felicia Day is adorable and charming, & Nathan Filion is the hottest, funniest, most talented man on this planet. It’s been apparent for years but this makes it official… In fact, I’m going to go watch it again!
Erm, that’s Fillion with two L’s, not just one. Me stoopid.
Squeeee!!!! OMFG that was HI-larious! Loved NPH, lust for NF, the duet was awesome!
And, “Balls”. lol
Part One wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be, but Part Two was awe-some!!! Legendary!
NPH is amazing….ACT II is absolutely fantastic, I love it that Doogie Howser is blogging again!
I only wish it was on the UK itunes too as i would definately buy it! And then buy the DVD when it comes out too! I’m all for Joss…and NPH is awesome!
Oh boy, Act II is definitely an improvement over Act I. “I have a PhD in Horribleness!” Dr. Horrible’s blog was funnier this time around and Nathan Fillon’s delivery of the hammer euphemisms monologue was high-larious! Loved NPH’s song at the end too. I’m all anticipation for the final installment now!