Our take
A 42 minute musical super-villain tragicomedy blog. How much stranger can a movie’s description be? Dr. Horrible (Neil Patrick Harris) is an aspiring super-villain hoping to get into the infamous Evil League of Evil (ruled with an iron hoof by the terrible Bad Horse). His plan is complicated when he accidentally introduces his nemesis, the incredibly vain Captain Hammer (Nathan Fillion), to the girl he has a crush on (Felicia Day). Released for free online after the writers strike of 2008, Dr. Horrible is funny, well-made, and not devoid of meaning. Joss Whedon (The Avengers, Firefly, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), two brothers, a sister-in-law, and their actor friends had loads of fun making it, and it’s loads of fun to watch. Also, it won an Emmy.
The story
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is a 42-minute tragicomic musical in three acts, each released separately. It tells the story of Dr. Horrible, an aspiring supervillain, Captain Hammer, his superhero nemesis, and Penny, their mutual love interest. The movie was written by writer/director Joss Whedon, his brothers Zack Whedon and Jed Whedon, and Jed's then fiancée, actress Maurissa Tancharoen. The writing team penned the musical during the WGA strike. The idea was to create something small and inexpensive, yet professionally done, in a way that would circumvent the issues that were being protested during the strike.
