This is just my own personal list of what I'm thankful for — feel free to add your own things you're thankful for in the comments.

1. That maybe, just maybe, movie audiences are developing some good taste.

I know, I know. Transformers: The Revenge of the Fallen made about $833 million. And New Moon just had the third biggest opening weekend ever. Not exactly strong arguments for the intellect of the filmgoing public. But even so, both of them still came up short when compared to The Dark Knight, which set all manner of non-Titanic box office records. And for all the financial success of Transformers 2 and New Moon, I think there's a solid argument to be made that neither really compares to the cultural impact of The Dark Knight.

The Twilight franchise has its extremely devoted fanbase, but almost no crossover appeal. To be sure, tons of people saw Revenge of the Fallen, but how many people now remember doing so? The Dark Knight, on the other hand, launched a ton of memes, established the definitive version of the Joker for years to come, and won a ton of awards, assuming you care about that stuff. (I don't particularly, but evidence is evidence.)

And let's look at all the movies that aren't sequels. District 9 made $200 million on a $30 million budget thanks to a clever viral marketing campaign, strong word of mouth, and the fact that it was actually a good movie. All the standard industry reasons to assume a movie like District 9 wouldn't make money — it's too political, it's too violent, it's too South African — turned out to be completely wrong, and I'm just going to be a ridiculous optimist and assume that the quality of the movie was the reason for its success.

Finally, there's Star Trek. If anything, the fact that it was the eleventh movie in the franchise just meant it had more baggage to overcome, and yet it was the first bona fide hit of the summer, making $384 million. The fact that it did all that while gleefully reveling in the very same continuity that had sunk so many previous revival attempts, all because the movie was just so damn fun... well, yeah, I'm pretty thankful for that.

2. That Dollhouse somehow, against all odds, got a second season.

Sure, it's a shame that Dollhouse is coming to a close, but that show had no business making it past season one. Hell, it probably should have, by rights, been canceled about six episodes in. The show wasted its first five episodes on variations on the personality-of-the-week theme before launching into the master plot — admittedly because of network interference, but still — and then proceeded to unfold its convoluted, off-putting mythology that left the show without a clear central hero and a whole lot of really uneasy questions the audience had to answer. And it did all this while comfortably settling into #132 in the ratings, bringing in a paltry 3.73 million viewers per episode.

And then, thanks to favorable internet numbers, some decent critical buzz, and maybe some lingering Fox guilt about the fate of Firefly (nah), it got a second season, and Joss Whedon went full tilt at making it the craziest, most nerderiffic show ever. I mean, look at all the guest stars. Jamie Bamber! Michael Hogan! Alexis Denisof! Keith Carradine! Summer Glau! Ray Wise! More Alan Tudyk and Felicia Day! Not to mention the fact that the show is, if anything, even better, crazier, and more gleefully off-putting than last season. Dollhouse might be going out, but under the circumstances, you can't really say it isn't going out on its own terms.

3. That Doctor Who and Futurama are coming back, and everything will be (never) the same again.

It's a been a long year, with so little new Doctor Who to get excited/thrilled/confused/conflicted about. But now "The End of Time" is coming to close out David Tennant and Russell T. Davies's tenures with the show, and it clearly promises to be the most bonkers thing ever made. And then the Steven Moffat and Matt Smith era officially begins, and I really can't wait.

I got into Doctor Who in 2003, back when the show was still very much in the wilderness and the closest thing to new Who were a bunch of audios starring Paul McGann. (Sure, they were pretty good, but they were also pretty far from the real thing.) As such, I'm probably one of the very last people who can even somewhat legitimately call themselves "old school" fans of Doctor Who, and though I can't exactly claim a long memory of the time before the series returned, I remember just enough to be eternally thankful that the show is simply back at all.

Meanwhile, Futurama is finally completing its long road back. It's survived one cancellation, come back for four direct-to-DVD movies, at least two of which were pretty good, gotten picked up by Comedy Central, and muddled through one hell of a tense negotiation with the voice actors. A decade after it began, this show has even less business than Dollhouse still being on the air. Yet...here it is. With lots more crazy stories coming! And the original cast back! And maybe a decent budget to work with! Honestly, at this point, it's all gravy anyway.

4. That this happened.

Nothing like a little Nathan Fillion fan service to put a smile on my face. And hey, Castle isn't exactly bad! (It's not exactly good either, but that's besides the point.) I'd still gladly trade every show I've loved for the past seven years just for another season of Firefly, though. Yes, that includes you, Battlestar Galactica!

5. Starcraft II is coming.

So what if it's "just" a computer game? I'd happily argue Starcraft is at least one of the five best works of science fiction in the last twenty years. At least. And now it's got a sequel coming? I can barely contain my excitement, and it's still months away. I mean, just look at this:

You know, I'm going to really miss my productivity. But I'm thankful it'll be put to such an important use - helping the Terrans defeat the Zerg! (And then, once that is completed, helping the Zerg defeat the Terrans!)

6. That, no matter what Roland Emmerich does to them, I'll still have all my Foundation books.

You know, in a world of seemingly endless unnecessary adaptation and pointless remakes, this is probably a very useful thing to keep in mind.

Not only is there a title, but Joss, Zack Whedon, Jed Whedon and Jed's wife, Maurissa Tancharoen have all worked out a few songs, and Fillion has heard a few verses. But he's mum on the potential title.

Says Fillion:

Joss, I was talking to him right before we won the Emmy. He said that he's finished writing a song or two. He told me a couple of verses to the song...It's going to be great. I know a bunch of cast members of Dr. Horrible who would love to get back into it.

See the video interview at MTV.

Wonder Woman traces a fairly familiar version of the character's origin story. When fighter pilot Steve Trevor (Nathan Fillion) crash lands on the Amazon island of Thermyscira, he represents the first man any of the Amazons have seen in over two millennia. Queen Hippolyta (Virginia Madsen) organizes a contest to determine who will escort Steve back to man's world, and her daughter Diana (Keri Russell) emerges victorious. Eager to learn more about the world outside Thermyscira and to foster a new dialogue between the genders, Diana quickly finds nothing but disillusionment upon her arrival in New York City. Meanwhile, Ares (Alfred Molina), the god of war, has escaped from his Amazonian prison with plans for revenge against his captors and endless war for all humanity.

Minus the addition of Ares, it's a well-known, well-worn take on the character's origins, but it's a story that lacks the iconic sweeps of Batman or Superman's beginnings. The Wonder Woman story is full of a lot of potentially tricky elements, such as the heavy reliance on Greek mythology and the presence of some complicated gender politics. Wonder Woman's triumph lies its in willingness to embrace these same elements that have likely stymied so many previous adaptation attempts; Gail Simone and Michael Jelenic's screenplay places the Greek gods front and center, and Diana is true to her status and beliefs as a warrior princess.

The entire voice cast is strong, although the standout is, unsurprisingly, Nathan Fillion. At the panel after this Friday's screening, producer Bruce Timm noted that casting Fillion created the danger that Steve Trevor would steal the entire movie. Keri Russell's Wonder Woman is strong enough to hold her own, but it's certainly true the film succeeds in large part because Steve Trevor bridges the gap between the audience and the less readily accessible parts of the Wonder Woman mythos. This is partially because he never takes the stately Amazons terribly seriously, delivering a bunch of lines that are often incredibly, wonderfully dirty. Wonder Woman is the kind of movie where the lasso of truth compels Steve Trevor to tell Hippolyta, "Your daughter's got a nice rack." If you know anything about Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston (and if you don't, this link is well worth clicking), it's hard to think this is not exactly what he would have wanted.

It's also the sort of movie where Wonder Woman tells a little girl to "Unleash Hell!" in a play swordfight, where one of the Amazons calmly reminds Hippolyta they could have kept Diana on the island by shooting her in the leg, and where half the bad guys in the movie end up getting decapitated, including a minotaur. This is probably the most violent animation ever to bear the DC name, and director Lauren Montgomery manages to keep the violence hardcore but never gratuitous. Indeed, that is the general secret to Wonder Woman's success – the film always manages to strike with its complex elements, whether it's exploring gender relations without sermonizing or embracing Wonder Woman's mythological origins while avoiding too many stilted explanations from the Amazons. The film is also resolutely accessible, requiring no prior knowledge of the characters in a way that wasn't really true of Superman: Doomsday or Justice League: The New Frontier (although there is a cameo at the end that will have any Wonder Woman fans cheering).

Wonder Woman is a film that boldly pushes the DC animated cosmos into more mature territory without sacrificing the sense of joy and, well, wonder that should accompany the introduction of such an iconic character. I can't imagine anyone making a better Wonder Woman movie, although I'd love to see this cast and crew give it a whirl. Bruce Timm mentioned at the panel that, if sales are good enough, there is the possibility of a sequel. I'd be willing to go one better. If ever there was a project deserving of another Timm-helmed animated series, Wonder Woman is it.

It's difficult to separate an actor from her character, especially when the acting is of high caliber. Of course, actors deserve to have private lives just like all other creative professionals, and if some of them don't read the Lord of the Rings trilogy every year (like Dominic Monaghan), well, that's just who they are. But it's a special gift from actor to fandom when the people who play beloved heroes turn out to be more than a little like the heroes themselves. They might not fight caped evil in their daily lives, but these eight actors possess that crucial bit of understanding that keeps them from phoning in their roles — and convinces their admirers that they're worth every jaw-drop and swoon.

Kristen Bell
After three years as teenaged noir super-sleuth Veronica Mars, Kristen Bell had to move on to something different — and she chose Heroes. Having watched the show since day one, Bell told the minds behind the show that she was a huge fan; the rest, as you know, is history. She's living proof that part of being a great actress is having a deep personal investment in the story you're being paid to tell. Audiences appreciate the hell out of that. And in a fantastic interview with the A.V. Club, Bell further showed her respect for her fans:

The bottom line is, everyone's a loser in their own right. Here's why I like geek culture: People like what they like because they like it. They're not trying to fit into any mainstream likes or dislikes. You want to dress up like a Star Wars character and go to Comic-Con? Do it, if that's what makes you happy. People might look at you as super-weird, but if that's your obsession, go for it.

Damn straight, Kristen! And I expect to see you in our next cosplay round-up.

Wil Wheaton
The man you know as Wesley Crusher just might be the poster boy for actors-in-fandom. Whether or not you like his Star Trek character, you have to admit that his subsequent work as a blogger has made the lives of many geeks, nerds, and fans very happy. He's written extensively and thoughtfully on his experiences in the world of Star Trek and in real life, producing three books: Dancing Barefoot, Just a Geek, and The Happiest Days of Our Lives. He currently blogs at Wil Wheaton dot Net in Exile.

David Tennant
Nobody had to explain Gallifreyan customs to David Tennant when he took the role of the Tenth Doctor on BBC's Doctor Who. He'd already been watching the program for years. In fact, he is a self-described "Doctor Who junkie" and once cherished a Tom Baker action figure. Now an action figure himself, Tennant took us through the production history of the show in a memorable episode of Doctor Who Confidential entitled "Do You Remember the First Time?" — and by the way, it turns out that pretty much everyone on the team these days was a childhood fan.

Felicia Day
You may know her as Dr. Horrible's lost love Penny or a Potential Slayer from Sunnydale, but it turns out that Felicia Day's geekiest — and awesomest — work yet is the creation of the online web series The Guild. Her tribute to gamers is adorable, hilarious, and subtitled in Chinese, Japanese, Italian, French, and German. Yeah, she's one of us.

Nathan Fillion
One of the hallmarks of devoted sci-fi fandom is allowing a fantastic story to become your reality. So Nathan Fillion, who played Captain Malcolm Reynolds on Firefly, endeared himself to me forever when he started making posts to internet fan forums and signing them "The Cap'n." The Serenity star is my kind of man: He devoured comics as a child, holds frequent Halo tournaments as an adult, and has this to say about his experience as the leading man of a sci-fi western (from Firefly: The Official Companion):

I put on my costume in my trailer and took one last look in the mirror. They called me to the set and I remember coming right from my trailer to inside the door of the set. When you walked into the studio, the ship was just to your left with the big open cargo bay door looking at ya. I remember walking up the cargo bay door for the first time in costume. I believe it was David Boyd, our director of photography, who turned and saw me walking up and turned back around to the crew and said, "Captain on deck." Some people clapped and it was kind of neat. It was a reception I will remember always.

David Duchovny
Nothing says commitment like writing two episodes of the show you star in, directing three others, and contributing to the story of five more. He may have left The X-Files a bit too early for some of our tastes, but Duchovny and creator Chris Carter were very much in cahoots as far as this celebration of unexplained phenomena is concerned — and that demands some respect. As Duchovny told the Los Angeles Times, it's an honor to be part of sci-fi culture:

The X-Files was said to be the first Internet show. We had chat rooms and fan sites and all that. Look, I'm usually five or six years behind whatever is hip. So it was around 2000 that I started doing e-mail and finally started understanding what all that was about. ... My initial response — and I still hold this to be true — is that it takes the place of some of the functions of a church in a small town: A place where people come together, ostensibly to worship something. But really what's happening is you’re forming a community. It's less about what you're worshiping and more about, "We have these interests in common." Someone has a sick aunt and suddenly it's about that, raising money to help her or sharing resources to make her life easier. That's what it was about with The X-Files on the Internet.

Ben Browder
Ben Browder's starred in the much-loved Australian-American series Farscape and American-Canadian series Stargate SG-1. Other actors in his position might bitch about being pegged as a sci-fi actor, but not Browder; he was heavily invested in both series, and seemed to have as much fun making them as people did watching them. He snagged a story credit for SG-1 and wrote two episodes of Farscape. As you can tell from the panel recording below, Browder learned his stuff while doing it: he says, "when people tell you that some long arc show which is five years in making is planned in every detail from the beginning, they are full of it!"

Simon Pegg
Simon Pegg will be Scotty in the J.J. Abrams Star Trek film, and is one of the creators and stars of the tongue-in-cheek sitcom Spaced — he plays a sci-fi enthusiast and aspiring comic book writer. He certainly brings a lot of talent to both sides of the screen, and when he guest-starred in Doctor Who, Pegg told the BBC:

Doctor Who was a big part of my childhood ... I'd got into Doctor Who just before Jon Pertwee regenerated into Tom Baker, and as a kid I never remember the special effects being as primitive as they were. It scared the hell out of me but I loved it. I particularly recall monsters like the Sontarans, who had very strange heads; the giant insects in "The Ark in Space" and in one episode, Julian Glover tearing his face off to become this one-eyed creature.

He's speaking, of course, of alien menace Scaroth, who manipulated human history for his own ends in the serial "City of Death." If that brilliantly campy special effect impressed Pegg, he had to have been totally immersed in the story, and that is true sci-fi cred any day.

Salutes all around for these glorious nerdy thespians! Now — who'd I miss?

Thanks to tipsters Heather, Sarah, Ellen, and Lily!

Image from Adventures in Time and Space.

He went on to explain — off camera — that he doesn't mind being called Captain Tightpants, either. That was his nickname on the set of space western Firefly, where he played Captain Malcolm Reynolds, a major badass and wearer of tight pants. These day, he admitted to us, he no longer wears tight pants because "my ass would split them." When we asked if that explained why he'd done a nude scene, he said yes — "My pants had just split at the seams so it was the only thing we could do," he said with a winning smile.

Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog will be a series of three 10-minute webisodes about "a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he's too shy to talk to," Joss revealed on Whedonesque, his fansite. Neil Patrick Harris will play Dr. Horrible, Nathan Fillion will play Captain Hammer, and Felicia Day will play Penny. Plus "a cast of dozens!"

Joss wrote Dr. Horrible during the writers' strike, with the help of his brothers Jed and Zack, plus Jed's fiancee Maurissa. Even though Joss is now busy prepping Dollhouse (his amnesiac agent show starring Eliza Dushku) with a May start date, and he has many comic book scripts due, he's somehow managed to start shooting on Dr. Horrible as well. No word on when we'll actually get to sing along with Dr. Horrible. But is it terribly wrong that I'm already anticipating this cyber-musical as much as Dollhouse, or maybe even a bit more? [Whedonesque, via SFX and IllusionTV]