Sun Jul 18 08:00:01 EDT 1999

J. Michael Straczynski speaks at Wizard World Chicago

J. Michael Straczynski appeared at Wizard World Chicago this past weekend (July 16-18) to promote his new comic, "Rising Stars" (Top Cow). In addition to the usual round of signings and promotion, Straczynski gave a one hour panel presentation Saturday afternoon.

Despite it being a comic book convention, a number of Crusade fans were apparently in attendance, as Straczynski was asked "a gajillion" times about the fate of Crusade. According to Steven N. Orso, who was in attendance for the panel, Straczynski's response during the panel may be summarized as follows:

Yes, the options on the actors' services have expired; the thirteen episodes that have been filmed will air on TNT; and when the ratings on all thirteen episodes are in hand, the Science Fiction Channel or some other network may pick up the series, in which case all the actors' contracts will have to be renegotiated.

Orso adds:

As to whether there really is any chance that some other network might yet pick up *Crusade*, it should be noted that when someone asked him how the *Crusade* arc would have developed had TNT not canceled the series, [Straczynski] declined to answer in the hope that he would still get a chance to develop that arc in a continuation of the series on some other network.

*Words attributed to Steven Orso are taken from a special adapted version of a post to uk.media.tv.sf.babylon5 on 19 Jul 1999 01:52:25 GMT, and are used here with his permission.