Hello, Dark Angel fans -- it is I, Lulu Bates, bringing to you a kind of dated interview with Jose Molina, a staff writer on Dark Angel. The reason it is kind of dated is because Mr. Molina could not train his typing monkeys to churn out episodes quickly enough and it took him a while to get back to me. So it's his fault, but we still love him for doing this at all.
Below is his official bio from the Fox website, just for your personal edification:
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Jose Molina graduated from Yale University with a Bachelor's Degree in English. He came to Hollywood when he won the Television Academy's screenwriting internship, which placed him in the midst of the writing staff of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. After his internship, Jose lived in the assistant world for several years, working at Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox on such projects as The Iron Giant ["I love that movie, so he's okay in my book so far" -- Sars], Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Angel. His first produced credit was on the short-lived ABC drama Strange World. A self-described "sci-fi geek" and a long-time fan of James Cameron's work, Jose was thrilled to get his first full-time writing job on Dark Angel.
And, look, he has his own IMDB entry!
And, finally, the interview; so any grammatical errors are entirely the fault of whoever was typing at the time. ["I've got your backs, hon." -- Sars] And feel free to insert your own pithy rejoinders to his answers, because I was too nice to be a smart-ass to someone who agreed to let me interview them.
Mighty Big TV: Feline DNA?
Jose Molina: Yup.
MBTV: No, really -- feline DNA?
JM: Yup.
MBTV: Was making Jessica Alba "in heat" just a lame attempt to reel in the pubescent horndog Nielsen family members who need more reasons to tune in every Tuesday night?
JM: Yup.
MBTV: Or did you really want to emphasize the sci-fi aspect of the show?
JM: That was definitely part of it. I mean, the girl's part cat. There are a lot of cool things you can do with that. I'm thinking of an upcoming story line where she can't resist a dangling piece of string on Logan's sweater. She pounces on it, the sweater unravels, and wackiness ensues.
MBTV: And if she was going to be in heat, why would she do it with Scrappy Doo?
JM: He had an open can of tuna in his pockets. That part got cut in editing.
MBTV: Do you watch the show? Or do you steer clear of it like I steer clear of anything involving Steve Guttenberg (as in to say, I avoid it like the clap)?
JM: Steve Guttenburg, or "The Gute" as I like to call him, is a close personal friend (of someone's, I'm sure) and I'm very offended by that question. Didn't you see Zeus and Roxanne? The man is a living legend! To answer your question, yes, I do watch the show, every Tuesday night, after Buffy. I'm a big fan of me. Plus, I usually force my fiancé and our friends to watch with me. It's a good time, you should come over.
MBTV: Why does the Jam Pony crew drink Heineken? Did Seattle lose its sense of taste along with its online banking capabilities?
JM: Ah, yes. Well, the reasoning behind that is that we really want to use the sentence "grab a Heiney" in dialogue. We've been waiting to do it all season, so don't act all surprised when we spring it on you.
MBTV: What's your background like? Did you start out in science-fiction writing or soft-core or sitcom writing?
JM: Soft-core porn, actually. I used to write the dirty letters from Showtime's The Red Shoe Diaries. You've heard the line "OH, YES, RIGHT THERE!" That's mine. Actually, Dark Angel is my second professional writing gig. My first was on a short-lived ABC show called Strange World, from executive producer Howard Gordon (of X-Files fame). My episode didn't air here in the States, but it played like a bad boy in Ireland. I have the residual check to prove it. Also read / watched a lot of sci-fi / fantasy in high school. I have my official geek club membership card to prove it.
MBTV: Did you develop and pitch the idea for the show? Or were you hired later?
JM: Jim always consults me first on all his projects. So, of course I was there at its conception. And then they splashed cold water on my face and I came to.
MBTV: If you developed it, where did the idea come from? And did the characters turn out the way you envisioned them?
JM: Um...see [above].
MBTV: How involved is James Cameron? Is he always around, or does he just deign to allow his name to be used in the credits? Is he as lame as he sounds?
JM: Jim is a prince among men, and shame on you for thinking otherwise. He's actually very involved in the stories we do.
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MBTV: Why didn't Max change her name? It would make a lot of sense if she wanted to, you know, go on the lam.
JM: Uh...um...because...well, come on... Max happens to be a very common name among genetically-engineered killing machines. She's just a face in the crowd. question, please.
MBTV: "Bling"? Are you sure?
JM: It's like Bing. Only with an L. Bing is a real name! And look how far that guy has come. If only Bling could sing. Hey, that rhymed.
MBTV: What about all those nasty rumors that Heinlein or Asimov or some other sci-fi heavy wrote a story about a genetically-enhanced, smart-mouthed, trash-talking, doe-eyed bike messenger?
JM: Did they also write about a cyborg sent from the future to utter pithy catch phrases before mowing people down with a machine gun? Because that just goes BEYOND coincidence.
MBTV: Did you make a conscientious decision that the slang was going to be heavily-rooted in the late nineties? Or does it just slip out? I mean, come on -- are they really making Wu Tang references in 2019? Not that they don't deserve a long and lasting legacy, of course, but, really, I don't go around quoting Winger. Or even Whodini. Or not very often, anyway. And they are certainly as worthy as The Wu.
JM: Well, the pulse really hit much earlier than that, and maybe it happened just as the late nineties were coming back into style. Perhaps a resurgence of old school hip-hop was just at its cusp when the lights went out. It's all retro. But I tried to use a Winger line once and was vetoed. Something about "she's only seventeen, but she's old enough for me."
MBTV: Why, oh why, did Cap'n EO have to start walking? Couldn't he be like Professor X and rule the school from a wheelchair? And, besides, is it really so bad to have a hero who is differently-abled? (You've got to love the PC vocab use there.)
JM: I guess this is an older question. How could you lose faith so quickly? Shame.
MBTV: Do you have Michael Weatherly's phone number?
JM: Yes. (Nyah-nyah.)
MBTV: What's your favorite episode of the show?
JM: Mine. Duh. Or Patrick's. He's a good writer. It's 'cause he's British, you know.
MBTV: Do you write the majority of the episodes, or do you take turns like me and amorgan and Kim?
JM: We all break the stories together and then we take turns writing them, like good little girls and boys. But there is a part of all of us in every episode. My GOD, I'm poetic.
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MBTV: Do you read Mighty Big TV because of a masochistic streak? Or were you raised Lutheran and harbor a continued itch for self-abuse? Personally, I would think that reading MBTV is just a bit better than wearing a hair shirt, but I guess I'm biased.
JM: I read MBTV because it's damn funny. My favorite line from one of your Dark Angel recaps is "this show is ass." That is a classic. We use it around the office as much as possible. No, seriously, we do. We've even altered it at times to say "this place is ass" or "this script is ass." Hope you don't mind us taking liberties with your slams.
MBTV: What's with your email address? There's got to be a story in there. Not that I would publish it or anything.
JM: It's kind of our mantra around here, and it has to do with Max always ending up wet in some way on the show. You know...she gets wet and...um...she looks...hot. Therefore, as often as possible, she kicks ass, she gets wet. There you have it. The mystery unfolded. Do you feel a sense of peace now? Or is it just revulsion?
MBTV: What shows do you watch? Which ones do you think are awful?
JM: None of your business! But I think a lot of sitcoms are ass. (See, I did it again!) I think Sex and the City sucks.
MBTV: Do you read a lot of science fiction to get ideas? If so, who do you read?
JM: I used to read a lot of sci-fi, but nowadays I tend to mostly read historical documents from the Plymouth Plantation days. They're fascinating. Did you know that actual Americans spelled words like "color" and "favor" with a "u" back then?! What's THAT about? In any case, I've read Philip K. Dick, Roger Zelazny, Damon Knight, Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, and on and on. Lots of Stephen King, too, but that's not really SF, is it?
MBTV: Does LA suck as much as I think it does?
JM: LA does suck. The traffic sucks. The smog sucks. The schmoozing sucks, except when you can deduct it on your taxes. But it never rains, and you can pretty much do something new every weekend for five years without repeating yourself. Which is a bonus. And every once in a while you go bowling and run into Tim Allen.
MBTV: Do you think Jessica Alba deserved a Golden Globe nomination for best actress in a drama?
JM: What a strange question. Yes. I do. Do you?
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