Joss Whedon, Doogie Howser, and Web 2.0

Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.

SciFi fans, web content fans, and cult musical fans will all have something in common this summer: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog . No one but Joss Whedon could have cooked up something so completely bizarre, yet virtually guaranteed to take the Web by storm as well as push the envelope of online content.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog will "air" online in three parts, with the first part premiering on 15 July, the second part two days later on 17 July, and the third part on 19 July. All three segments will be removed on 20 July and later repackaged as a DVD with all sorts of commentary and extras. Whedon, creator of such cult favorites as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Firefly, developed the concept during the writers' strike, and describes the creation Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog:

Frustrated with the lack of movement on that front, I finally decided to do something very ambitious, very exciting, very mid-life-crisisy. Aided only by everyone I had worked with, was related to or had ever met, I single-handedly created this unique little epic. A super-villain musical, of which, as we all know, there are far too few.

Whedon favorites Felicia Day and Nathan Fillon star, as well as Neil Patrick Harris, best known from Doogie Howser and How I Met Your Mother. The appearance of the web segments only to have them disappear in days is a unique distribution strategy for online content. Other shows, like South Park, have realized that most shows will end up pirated and on torrent sites anyway, so they may as well provide quality versions and make ad revenue by serving them to fans. The release of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog may be a gimmick to see how many viewers will tune in for a very limited release, and it may give creators a better idea of what can be done with online distribution.

Related coverage: Online Media Cultist