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Tuesday, August 13, 2002

RALPH HEMECKER TALKS WITCHBLADE FINALES

By Rob Allstetter / The Comics Continuum

Ralph Hemecker, producer of TNT's Witchblade television series, told The Continuum that the season's final two episodes promise to be among the best in the show's two years.

Hemecker talked about the finales and a possible third season on Monday during a telephone interview with The Continuum.

Following is the interview:

The Continuum: What can you say about the final two episodes?

Hemecker: I think the last two episodes are pretty quintessentially Witchblade. They're pretty bizarre, and you don't really know where they're going.

The Continuum: And Conchobar comes back?

Hemecker: Yeah, he does. In the second-to-last episode, the 11th episode, called "Palindrome," Conchobar comes back. He's the same guy, but circumstances play out differently this year. But he and Sara Pezzini still have a very intense attraction for each other. It's a really cool episode.

The Continuum: TNT provided photos of "Palindrome." Can you explain them?

Hemecker: Yeah, they're in this thing called the Spartacus Ring, which is a Fight Club of sorts. And we'll get to see Danny and Jake and perhaps even Conchobar fighting. It's a really, really, really good episode.

The Continuum: Did you write or direct either of the last two episodes?

Hemecker: I'm involved in all the stories, but I co-wrote the last episode. I did not direct this year.

The Continuum: Are you going to be able to top last year's finale?

Hemecker: I think it's equally bizarre, equally unexpected. I think it will rival last year's. Should we go again for a third season, it will leave the door open for a lot of challenging story-telling.

The Continuum: The finale has something to do with a web site?

Hemecker: Yes.

The Continuum: Cyberfaust.com?

Hemecker: Yes. Sara finds out who's behind Cyberfaust. There's a woman from an alternate line of wielders, an evil line of wielders, who attempts to get the 'Blade back.

There's also a Roshomon-esque thread of different versions of dreams. Sara has a dream, Nottingham has a dream and then the dream actually happens in reality. There's interesting stuff happening in that episode.

The Continuum: One of the more controversial aspects of the season was the treatment of Kenneth Irons.

Hemecker: (Laughs) A lot of people were sort of disgruntled that Irons got killed. But, toward the second half of the season, he becomes a fairly strong presence. And, like I tell people, "It's a Witchblade world. If somebody dies, that doesn't mean they're going to stay dead."

The Continuum: If there is a third season, you're interested in coming back?

Hemecker: Absolutely. Absolutely. The show's a lot of fun.

The Continuum: Do you already have plans?

Hemecker: For the third season? We've got a lot of plans. We've already started to develop stuff for next year should we go again.

The Continuum: How do the two seasons compare?

Hemecker: I'd say that the actors came to inhabit their characters this year. I'd say that the shooting crew got into even more of a great groove. And we experimented with different kinds of stories, and learned a lot. We ended up skewing again this year back toward the mythically oriented stories, which we find work better for the show.

The Continuum: How difficult was production with the hiatus in the middle?

Hemecker: It was a little challenging from a production perspective, but everybody pulled together and we made our air dates, got all our shows in the can and everything came out pretty well.

The Continuum: Do you have a favorite episode?

Hemecker: I'd say the last two episodes this year are definitely amongst my favorites. I thought we had a lot of good episodes this year. I don't know if you say "Veritas," but I thought that was pretty cool. I thought the first two were pretty cool, and I like the episode that airs tonight (Monday). It's hard to answer that question because I like them all in different ways, but I definitely think the last two are pretty spectacular.

The Continuum: Are you finished with the season?

Hemecker: We're still posting. I just locked picture on the 12th episode today. And I'll be involved in the sound mix, and then I'll have a little respite if we come back for another year.

The Continuum: If there's a third season, you'd probably start shooting early next year?

Hemecker: Probably the same kind of production cycle as this year. We'll probably be cracking stories and writing scripts in December and January and go into production around January or February.

The Continuum: Do you have time to be involved in any other work?

Hemecker: I've been immersed in this. The answer, for now, is no.

The Continuum: You must be enjoying it?

Hemecker: Yeah, it's pretty cool. It's a lot of fun. You get to make 12 separate little movies.

E-mail the Continuum at roballs@aol.com



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