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Any show that lasts for more than a couple of seasons is really going to have a good chance to dig into the lives of its characters, whether main, secondary, or even smaller than that, if the producers so choose. This was certainly the case with much of what happened on Star Trek: The Next Generation across seven seasons, but it turns out that one of the big Worf storylines of the series almost didn't get a spotlight at all, and now we know why.

The Next Generation was only the second in what would become a very long line of live-action Star Trek series to follow members of Starfleet as they explored new worlds and, often, found themselves embroiled in conflicts with a diverse population of non-Earth-based races. It was also the first Trek show to give fans a new, slightly softer view of the Klingons, with the previously villain-only race now having a member among Starfleet and serving on the Enterprise: Worf.

The character ended up being very important to Trek for many years beyond TNG, but as writer / supervising producer Ronald D. Moore recently told The Hollywood Reporter, one of Worf's biggest stories almost never saw the light of day. Worf and the Klingon civil war were the focus of the Season 4 finale and Season 5 premiere, "Redemption, Parts I and II," but as Moore just revealed, Star Trek mastermind Gene Roddenberry was not cool with that idea, at all. As he tells it:

Well, it would be hard to fight against the man who created Star Trek, but I think we're probably all glad that Ronald D. Moore (with a mighty assist from The Next Generation's executive producer Rick Berman and showrunner Michael Piller, as Moore explained) managed it, otherwise we might not have had the story which truly helped the Klingons become way more than just another humanoid race of Star Trek villains down the road.

While I'm certainly glad we got this big, fat, intensely wonderful Worf / Klingon story, I can sorta see where Gene Roddenberry was coming from. If you envision your series in a certain way, it's probably difficult to see beyond that. Star Trek: The Original Series was Kirk's story, and he saw TNG as Picard's story, so it's understandable that Roddenberry wouldn't mind Worf getting the spotlight here and there, but not in an all-important season finale / season opener, and certainly not for what would be the show's landmark 100th episode.

A major, two-part episode needed to focus on Picard. Why wouldn't the captain of the Enterprise be at the center of a war story?

Luckily, those around Ronald D. Moore, who wrote the dual Worf-centric episodes, saw the benefit in what he wanted to do, and made sure it came to fruition. It's hard to imagine the character's story without the reveals about his family and the intricacies of Klingon politics that were made in "Redemption, Parts I and II," and I'm sure most fans feel the same.

You can relive the glory of Star Trek: The Next Generation on a host of streamers, including Paramount+, but for more to watch, check out our 2021 summer TV premiere guide!

Adult fantasy fans rejoice! Yet another popular fantasy series is making the jump to TV screens everywhere, with none other than one of The Godfathers of fantasy fandoms behind the project. Outlander creator and Battlestar Galactica vet Ron Moore is adding to his extensive resume by writing the tv series adaptation of Sarah J. Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses, this time for streaming on Hulu.

According to a post by A Court of Thorns and Roses author Sarah J. Maas, she and Ron Moore will both be involved in the writing of the series and are currently working on a script for the pilot episode. Check out the author’s Instagram post for yourself:

In Sarah J. Maas’ caption, she mentions that Ron Moore is an idol of hers, and I mean, rightly so. Even if you aren’t a fan of his, albeit more nerdy, work on the iconic Battlestar Galactica and Star Trek franchises, you may have fallen more into the fandom of his more recent genre-bending Outlander series, which has helped a new audience dip their toes in the sci-fi genre.

We can expect the small-screen adaptation of A Court of Thorns and Roses to be more in line with the Outlander series, as it is unmistakable as an adult romance series with a science fiction and fairy tale edge. Also like the Outlander series, there are a number of novels in the series to draw inspiration and script content from - Ron Moore will be far from working with a blank slate. Unlike Outlander though, the novels that make up the A Court of Thorns and Roses are more recent, with the first novel having been released in 2015 compared to Outlander's 1991 debut. Both series, though, are still ongoing, with new novels on the way.

A Court of Thorns and Roses already has a pretty big following, even with it being so recent. Fans of the series have already had an eventful year, with the most recent novel dropping in February and, with the Hulu series now announced, existing fans appear to be full of excitement.

Comments on Sarah J. Maas’ post are full of uncontainable joy and also a bit of fear. Fans are pleading that the series stay true to the books so that their favorite series isn’t ruined for them. Those fears can be somewhat alleviated by the involvement of Ron Moore, though, as the writer has proven through Outlander that he does justice to a novel series, and some fans did acknowledge that they trust him with A Court of Thorns and Roses.

We’ve got some time to before we see the result of the new Ron Moore and Sarah J. Maas team-up, as they are only now writing the pilot. There is no cast list or release date as of yet, but we will be sure to stay on top of this story and keep you in the loop of news to come! Until then, be sure to read up on the series if you aren't up to date.

Ronald D. Moore might not be immediately recognizable to you by name, but if you're a lover of science fiction television, you've probably watched his work in the 30 plus years that he's been active as a producer and writer. Moore has helped to bring fans the Star Trek series The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager, plus the still beloved (except for that wild ending) Battlestar Galactica reboot on SyFy, as well as the time traveling romance Outlander, and the Apple TV+ show For All Mankind. Now, Moore is opening up about possibly working on a Star Wars TV show, nearly a decade after a failed project with George Lucas.

While Ron Moore clearly has an undeniable connection with some of the most beloved sci-fi / fantasy shows to ever air on the small screen, one big genre nut he was unable to crack was Star Wars. Moore had worked on a project with George Lucas in the years leading up to Disney's eventual purchase of Lucasfilm, which happened in 2012, to try and bring a television show to ABC. Moore recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter, and when asked if he still wanted to work on a Star Wars project, especially now that several live action shows are on the air or in the works, Moore said:

If you loved watching any of Ron Moore's shows in the past, and are also a lover of Star Wars, how could this idea not thrill you? It's obvious that Moore is still very much interested in being able to sink his writer's teeth into the wide variety of stories still possible in the world of Star Wars, but he feels like right now, with The Mandalorian already a huge hit and another 10 shows in development, it's just not the right time to try and dive into whatever idea he may have.

However, it does sound like Moore had a lot of fun working on the previously planned ABC series, and considering that he got to write for Darth Vader, it's no wonder. Details on that failed project were always very secretive, but, it was said to have been set between the prequels and the original trilogy, and dealt with "rival families struggling over the control of the seedy underside of the Star Wars universe and the people who live within the subterranean level and air shafts of the metropolis planet Coruscant."

Apparently, the reason why we're not still watching this fantastic idea unfold on TV right now has a lot to do with the overwhelming cost of the potential series, along with Disney not wanting to stretch the franchise too thin prior to the release of the Rey / Finn / Poe sequel trilogy and other films like Rogue One.

For his part, Ron Moore might not be willing to try his Star Wars pitch right now, but he's still very enthusiastic about where the franchise is going, and added:

Neither can we, Ron Moore. Neither. Can. WE. You can watch two seasons of The Mandalorian on Disney+ right now, with shows like Andor starring Diego Luna, a possibly Donald Glover-filled Lando, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Rosario Dawson's Ahsoka (and many more) coming along in the near-ish future.

Since its creation in 1966, the Star Trek universe has seen wild expansion. Even though the original series only had three seasons, Star Trek sparked a huge fandom that has its own culture, and it is still as relevant as ever with the creation of new films and series that expand on the original universe. Now, Ronald D. Moore, who had a large hand in crafting the shows that were running in the ‘90s including Star Trek: The Next Generation, has spoken out about one problem he sees with Star Trek going to the big screen.

The majority of Ronald D. Moore’s work with Star Trek has been within the TV realm and, apparently, he doesn’t connect with the films as much. According to Moore, the universe of Star Trek just doesn’t translate as well to the big screen because it’s hard to capture the humanizing ethical dilemmas the characters face in weekly episodes in one big feature. Here it is in the producer’s own words:

Ronald D. Moore may not be alone in his thoughts, either. Even though the films have added to the universe and the fandom has supported them as well, one of the big draws of the universe is the importance out on deliberating choices based on ethics and morality, which are less focused on in the films in favor of big stories, special effects, and action sequences.

Even so, Ronald D. Moore did write the screenplays for two Star Trek films back in the day. In the same interview with Trek Movie, he was asked what he would do if he was given a big budget to do another Star Trek film, and he says he simply does not know. If that were to hypothetically happen, he says he would have to basically make a reboot and get back to the roots of Star Trek. In the writer’s own words:

There have been numerous changes to Star Trek since Ronald D. Moore’s time behind the wheel -- a whole now movie franchise as well as a slew of new series. It certainly would be a “tall order” to go back to the basics of such a huge universe that is so beloved.

But if anyone were up for the job, Moore would be our man. He’s basically a sci-fi god. Since his time with Star Trek, he has given us a reimagined (but equally large) Battlestar Galactica universe. He’s also behind the popular Outlander series and has created a new series, For All Mankind. With a resume like that, tall orders seem to be his speciality.

There are a lot of things fans love about Starz's Outlander. There's the undying romance between Jamie and Claire, their world-traveling adventures and plenty of side characters who make us laugh, to boot. However, there's one thing I personally love about Outlander that people don't really talk about that often. I feel as if it's high time we start noticing and marveling over the fact that among TV programs, Outlander's opening credits stand out as the best on TV.

It's not just that Outlander uses Bear McCreary's "Skye Boat Song" featuring enchanting vocals by Raya Yarbrough, although the music fits the tone of the popular drama quite well. What I like most about the opening credits sequence is that it keeps the magical imagery of women dancing around the time travel stones that brought Claire to the past and her future, but the music itself changes, and every single season, a slew of additional imagery also changes to reflect what is actually happening on the show.

Sometimes TV credits are an extension of the show itself, intended to get you excited about what is to come. Prestige TV, and cable TV in general, is a lot better about using its opening credits to create an atmosphere, but Outlander takes that idea a step further, because its opening credits often act as a teaser for what is to come. For instance, during Season 3 Bear McCreary and co. finally dropped the bagpipes, and then during Episode 9, when the series moved to the Caribbean and specifically Jamaica, the percussion in the opening song also changed to reflect influences from that area.

Sure, the changes may be a whole lot subtler than when Weeds dropped "Little Boxes" as its theme song, but it's cool that the creative team and studio behind Outlander allow Bear McCreary so much freedom with that particular TV score. Besides, it's not just the score that changes frequently in Outlander's opening credits. Showrunner Ron Moore and co. also throw in footage from the season that helps the series to tease what is to come in a fun way.

For instance, if you watch the opening credits for Season 1 below, you should notice the heavy bagpipe influence in Bear McCreary's music, but also shots of Claire stitching up wounds, swordfights and even a shot of a car being driven in the forties, when Claire first disappears.

Pretty great, right? When the show was set in France for part of Season 2, there were French influences to the opening credits that were also intentional on Bear McCreary's part. However, if you skip ahead to the latter half of Season 3, you can hear those Caribbean influences I previously mentioned, and you can see them, too. Suddenly there are palm fronds, and there is sunshine glaring down. There are shots of Claire washing ashore, as well as lost and wandering through the jungle. It's all very compelling stuff.

There are a lot of shows that have memorable openings. Dexter's opening featured innocuous objects and activities being presented in ways that reminded us of murder and violence. Shows like The Simpsons, Game of Thrones (and sometimes The Simpsons spoofing Game of Thrones) have memorable opening credits, or at least cool opening credits that totally fit into the narrative of what the show is going for, such as FX's Atlanta, whose opening credits offer snapshots of what the big, brash city has to offer. Still, to me, right now it's Outlander that is on top of the credits game, and I can't wait to see what the Starz drama does in Season 4.

Those of you who have read Diana Gabaldon's novels should know that the show is not finished switching locations quite yet. There are a lot of changes to come in future seasons of the series, and we can't wait to see what Ron Moore, Bear McCreary and co. cook up next. Outlander will return to Starz (a network that has quietly been creating great opening credits for years) for Season 4 later in 2018. For now, you can see what the subscription cable network has coming up with our midseason schedule.

Outlander has been taking viewers back to the 18th century for the past few years. Claire's accidental journey through time from the 1940s to the 1700s resulted in a love story that has taken her and her husband Jamie all throughout Scotland and France. The upcoming third season will take the lovebirds farther than ever before, and it turns out that the show was able to crossover with Starz' Black Sails in a pretty unexpected way. Executive producer Ron Moore revealed the way Outlander crossed over with Black Sails at San Diego Comic-Con, saying this:

Yes, the two Starz series will soon have ships and sets in common as well as a network. Traveling on the ocean was obviously a huge deal for Black Sails, and it seems that the Outlander crew was determined to make sure that its scenes at sea will look just as intricate and genuine. Outlander spent months down in South Africa filming on the Black Sails sets, with even the Black Sails crew and techs on hand to help them out. If the scenes on deck are going to look and feel as authentic on Outlander as they did on Black Sails, I think we'll be able to understand why poor seasick Jamie was so stricken.

Given that Black Sails actually came to an end in April after four seasons, the sea-faring scenes of Outlander might be a fun blast from the past for fans of both series. Ron Moore's comments are also good news for readers of Diana Gabaldon's book series, as it sounds like Season 3 will be able to do justice to what amounts to a huge chunk of the third book.

Warning: spoilers ahead for the third book of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander saga, called Voyager.

In Voyager, Claire and Jamie end up leaving Scotland behind and setting sail after young Ian Murray is kidnapped and taken to the West Indies to be sold as a slave. The book definitely earns its name, as there are plenty of voyages to be found in Voyager, and the characters go for quite a while without spending much time on solid ground. Diana Gabaldon has already said that Season 3 will be more faithful to her books than Season 2 was, so fans have had reason to expect some fantastic episodes with Jamie and Claire at sea. The Black Sails crew and sets should allow Season 3 to deliver something truly spectacular.

The early footage for Outlander Season 3 (which we broke down in gif form) is focused on reuniting Claire and Jamie after their heartbreakingly long separation. We haven't gotten a look at the Black Sails ships just yet, and we may have a while still to wait. A lot needs to happen before Claire and Jamie set off on the next leg of adventure together. When last we saw them, they weren't even in the same century.

Outlander will return to Starz for Season 3 on Sunday, September 10 at 8 p.m. ET. Check out our rundown of what we know so far about Season 3 for a peek ahead, and swing by our fall TV premiere schedule for all the other dates for returning TV series.

Syfy debuted a show in 2004 that would become a classic of science-fiction with Battlestar Galactica. Although technically a reimagining of the 1978 series of the same name, the new Battlestar Galactica would delve into matters of faith, theology, and awareness in a way that few sci-fi projects ever had. As it turns out, however, BSG was originally going to be quite different from what audiences eventually saw. Showrunner Ron Moore recently appeared on a Battlestar Galactica reunion panel at San Diego Comic-Con, and he had this to say about how the show would have been different if everything had gone according to plan:

Apparently Battlestar Galactica could have been drastically different if Ron Moore and Co. had a bigger budget to play with during production. Perhaps there would have been more grand space battles or explosions or interiors of spaceships other than Galactica. For all that Battlestar Galactica was a fantastic series that can stand up against pretty much any sci-fi TV project ever produced, it's limited budget did show at times.

That said, the fact that Galactica wasn't a gleaming starship that could engage in constant grand space battles or survive endless explosions might have played in the show's favor. We were following the stories of refugees fleeing Cylons who wanted nothing more than to finish the destruction of the human race that they started when they destroyed the Twelve Colonies. The characters were running out of resources the longer the show ran, and Galactica was already so old that she was on the verge of being decommissioned anyway. The improbable victories ultimately felt all the sweeter for how the fleeing humans cobbled together solutions mostly out of courage, creativity, and spare parts.

Ron Moore wasn't the only member of the Battlestar Galactica team who was expecting more variety out of a higher budget. Mary McDonnell played Secretary of Education-turned-President Laura Roslin on the series, and she revealed one way she expected the show to be different:

Alas, poor Roslin had to deal with the pressures of an unexpected presidency, the burden of cancer, a contentious early relationship with Adama, and a very limited wardrobe. The fleet of refugee ships was pretty small to begin with, and the Cylons (with their eternally ambiguous plan) took out many more ships as the series progressed. Maybe that shopping mall ship really did exist but was destroyed before Roslin got a change of work clothes.

Mary McDonnell and Ron Moore weren't the only ones to reveal what might have been different on Battlestar Galactica. Executive producer David Eick and other members of the cast recently weighed in on what they would change about the series if they could, and one of the actors shared the hilarious way he discovered that his character was secretly a Cylon.

If you're now in the mood for a re-watch of Battlestar Galactica, you can catch the whole series streaming on Hulu. If you're a little fuzzy on the details of how the series ended, swing by our breakdown of how the Battlestar Galactica finale left off for our characters. Check out our summer TV guide for your current viewing options as well.

Along with the news that the TV adaptation of Diana Gabaldon's international bestselling Outlander series has begun production comes this photo from the set. The down side is, it doesn't feature any of the stars, so we'll just have to wait to see how Caitriona Balfe and Sam Heughan look together as Claire Randall and Jamie Fraser for Starz and Sony's TV series. But the good news is, the photo from the set does give us a look at executive producer Ronald D. Moore, along with a mighty sword and a glimpse of what appear to be shields in the background.

Moore's probably best known for developing the reboot of Battlestar Galactica to great success for Syfy. These days, he's got two highly anticipated series on his plate, as he's executive producing Helix for Syfy, and Outlander for Starz, the latter of which has started filming on location in Scotland, and is set to air on Starz in 2014.

Based on Gabaldon's book, Outlander stars Caitriona Balfe as Claire Randall, a married combat nurse from 1945 who's on vacation with her husband when she finds herself whisked back to 1743, in war torn Scotland. She's then forced to marry a chivalrous and romantic Scottish warrior named Jamie Fraser (Sam Heughan), who she eventually falls for, despite having a husband she loves back in the future. The story is said to be a mixture of genres, from romance to historical and of course, science fiction when we factor in the time travel. Both past and "present" in this novel put the story into the period genre for TV. And considering that's worked out well for Starz in the past, I'm thinking -- or hoping -- that Outlander will be a good fit for the premium cable network, which also gave us Spartacus, Da Vinci's Demons and Magic City. Ron Moore's involvement certainly doesn't hurt. Battlestar Galactica's emphasis on human drama, which included romance, family struggles and a fight for survival, are surely what made the series such a success, reaching beyond the sci-fi fan base to an even broader audience. With that in mind, Moore has set the bar high for himself, but I'm truly hopeful that Outlander will be another must-watch series.

Moore sounds determined to deliver a good adaptation with this series, stating, "Day One and the battle is joined. We fight to do justice to the material and the fans. We'll return with our targes or on them.”

Yeah, I had to look up the word "targe," which my spellcheck keeps trying to change to target. Merriam-Webster says a targe is a light shield used especially by the Scots. Is that what we're looking at behind Moore's head? Looks like they come with matching bags. (Check out a bigger version of the above photo by clicking the thumbnail below).

With production started, we can hope that Starz and/or Sony will be generous with the promotional content going forward, and that it won't be long before we get our first glimpse of Jamie and Claire in costume.

We've seen quite a few men added to the cast of Ronald D. Moore's anticipated TV adaptation of Diana Gabaldon's best-selling Outlander books, including the male lead for the series, but the question of who would play the lead role of Claire Randall remained unanswered until today. Starz has announced that Irish actor Caitriona Balfe has been cast to star in the novel, playing the "quick-witted, stubborn but lovely, English 'sassenach' Claire Randall," who finds herself sent back in time during a vacation with her husband. Balfe joins previously cast Sam Heughan, who will play Claire's love interest Jamie Fraser.

Gabaldon's novel begins in 1945 and introduces us to former combat nurse Claire Randall, who's on her second honeymoon with her husband when she touches a boulder and is promptly and mysteriously thrown back in time and dropped in war torn Scotland in 1743. She ends up being forced to marry Jamie Fraser, "a chivalrous and romantic young Scottish warrior." Of course, Claire's a married woman in her past (or rather, future) life, which complicates matters, as her relationship with Jamie evolves into a passionate affair. The story merges genres with elements that are historical, romantic and a bit sci-fi.

While we've known for a couple of months that Heughan will play Jamie, we've been waiting to hear word about the female lead, and today comes confirmation that Balfe will play the part. Her credits include Super 8, Now You See Me and the upcoming Schwarzenegger/Stallone flick Escape Plan. If Outlander takes off for Starz, this role could really put her on the map. And from what Moore says, it sounds like she's perfect for the part:

Given that the series is set to start filming this month, it sounds like they found their Claire in the nick of time. In addition to Heughan, Balfe joins previously cast (Frank Randall/Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall), Graham McTavish (Dougal MacKenzie), Gary Lewis (Colum MacKenzie), Duncan Lacroix (Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser), Annette Badland (Mrs. Fitzgibbons) and Stephen Walters (Angus Mhor). Ronald D. Moore's penning the first two episodes of the series, with John Dahl on board to direct.

Game Of Thrones actor Tobias Menzies has signed on for Starz’s new drama, Outlander, and it looks like the actor may need to brush up on his (lack of) archery skills for the new gig. The British actor has joined the new drama to play not one, but two roles, starring in the drama as both Frank Randall and Jonathan “Black Jack” Randall.

If you haven’t read Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander novels, you might think that since Menzies' two characters share a last name, they might play twins. However, the plot in Outlander is quite a bit more complicated. The series focuses on a woman named Claire who is married and living in 1945, but who is eventually sent back in time to 1743, where she is asked to marry a young Scottish warrior named Jamie Fraser. While the time hopping component of the series is intriguing on its own, it will be especially important for Menzies, who will play Claire’s husband in the present and a dark, angry Scottish warrior in the 18th century.

According to THR, Frank Randall is a historian living in the 20th Century who has a particular knack for genealogy. No one’s expressly saying the man is timid, but he definitely seems to be more of an intellectual person and less of a warring man than his 18th century counterpart. Black Jack is described as a captain in the English army who has a violent streak.

Menzies joins Sam Heugan in the drama, which was put together by Battlestar Galactica producer Ronald D. Moore back in July of last year. With Boss cancelled and Starz’s other prominent drama, Spartacus, ending its run, the subscription cable network has been busy looking for new original content. With the popularity of both Moore’s TV work and Gabaldon’s novels (which have sold over 18 million copies), it’s not shocking that the project moved forward to series. Starz finalized the news this June and is even giving Outlander a 16-episode run for its first season. Sixteen episodes is a huge deal for cable, but especially subscription cable. To put this in perspective, another of Starz's recent dramas, Magic City, only earned an 8-episode run for its first season.

It’s looking like Starz is willing to gamble a little bit on the Outlander series, kind of in the same manner that HBO did with Game of Thrones when the network needed to produce at least two seasons in order for the show's budget to make sense. With plotlines revolving around, sex, intrigue, and even warfare, Outlander should be a series that works for both genders. Even with the warfare components in the series, I love that this one revolves around a female character, first.

Outlander is expected to hit the schedule in 2014. That may seem like a pretty vague premiere date so far, and it is, but at least Starz is doing better than Syfy, which is filming Moore’s Helix right now with no idea when the show will hit the schedule. We’ll keep you posted when both of the networks get their shit together and announce premiere dates.

Nearly a year ago, we learned that Battlestar Galactica showrunner Ronald D. Moore was working on a small screen adaptation of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series for Starz Today comes word that the premium cable channel has ordered the pilot to series, and Starz subscribers can expect Season 1 to premiere sometime in 2014. The series will begin filming in Scotland this fall.

Gabaldon's novel blends romance, sci-fi and history as it centers on Claire Randall, a married combat nurse in 1945, who touches a boulder and is whisked back to 1743 in war torn Scotland. She's eventually forced to marry Jamie Fraser, a chivalrous Scottish warrior, which ignites a passionate affair, and a complicated one, considering she has a husband in the future.

Great sci-fi is all about human drama, and it sounds like there's going to be plenty of that in this story. While the romance element sounds like a bit further away from Battlestar Galactica - though the series did feature some great romantic arcs - Moore did prove his ability to tell compelling human stories in a sci-fi setting. From the premise, it sounds like Outlander will give him the opportunity to that in a period setting, with a very different kind of war being waged.

Sex and warfare on Starz? There's something kind of very familiar about that blend. Starz's announcement of the series order indicates that they're teaming up with Sony Pictures TV for the drama, and that the first season, which is expected to debut in 2014, will consist of 16 episodes. That's a pretty hefty episode order for a Starz series. By comparison, both Boss and Magic City debuted with eight episodes. Spartacus began with thirteen episodes for Blood and Sand, but its later seasons consisted of ten episodes. So 16 is noticeably big for the pay-cable channel, especially for a first season.

It's exciting to see Starz moving forward with another interesting-sounding concept - and one that gives me a reason to bump Out up on my Kindle to-do list - and it's also incredibly exciting to hear that Ron Moore's heading up another series. Since Battlestar Galactica wrapped up, he served as an executive producer on the prequel series Caprica and developed a pilot called 17th Precinct, which didn't go to series. Not only do we have Outlander to look forward to next year, but he also has Helix set for Syfy. Watch the trailer for that below:

Adventure seems to be the name of the game for Starz. The premium cable network has taken its time in its efforts to establish its identity with its original programming, but looking at Spartacus and now Da Vinci's Demons and the upcoming pirate drama Black Sails, adventure seems to be a common thread… also swords. Among the projects in development for Starz is a series adaptation of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander. The popularity of the series alone may be enough to draw an audience, but factor in Ron Moore's involvement and we have even more reason to hope this one earns itself a green light at the network.

Deadline says there's no green light yet, however they're speculating that Starz is eying the adaptation for a potential straight-to-series order, which wouldn't be so out of the ordinary for Starz. Deadline is basing this theory on word that Moore, who's likely best known for rebooting Battlestar Galactica with great success at Syfy (or then, Scifi), has hired four writers to work with him on the Outlander project.

Written by Diana Gabaldon, Outlander begins in 1945 and centers on a married woman, Claire Randall, who served as a nurse during World War II. While traveling with her husband, she finds herself transported back to Scotland in the year 1743 when clan wars have torn apart the country. Her path crosses with James Fraser, a warrior who might be her only chance at survival in this drastically different setting.

Joining Moore in developing the potential series are Toni Graphia (Battlestar Galactica), Matt Roberts (Caprica), Ira Behr (Alphas, Crash) and Anne Kenney (Greek). Looking at their credits, it seems Moore has some experience working with some of these writers, and Behr has some experience writing for a Starz show.

I haven't read the book yet, but the setting makes it sound like a great fit for Starz, and as a fan of Ron Moore and Battlestar Galactica, I'd love to see what he does with a pay-cable series. It'll also be interesting to see who's cast to star, should Starz opt to move forward with this project.

It looks like Diana Gabaldon’s time traveling Outlander book series has found a TV outlet and will be moving forward in development. After buying the rights to the book series, Sony Pictures TV has worked out a deal with the subscription cable network Starz to develop the drama project. Battlestar Galactica creator Ron Moore is still attached to pen the adaptation for television.

Back in July, it was announced that Sony Pictures TV had bought the rights to the book series with the hopes the company could find an outlet to adapt it to TV. As a Ron Moore fan, I had high hopes for the series, but without a solid network lined up, it seemed like the Sony/ Ron Moore project might land on the pile of book adaptations that go nowhere.

Luckily, this doesn’t seem to be the case. According to Deadline, Jim Kohlberg’s Mining and Supply Co. is set to produce the project. The series will follow a woman named Claire who steps back in time from 1945, ending in 1743. While a time traveling component is complicate, Claire will also find herself torn between two lovers in two very different time periods.

Outlander is only the newest in a slew of series Starz has in the works to broaden its programming initiative. Other projects and series in the works include Black Sails, Da Vinci’s Demons, Marco Polo, and The White Queen. TV Blend will keep you posted if the Outlander project continues to move forward at Starz.

After Battlestar Galactica ended its epic run in 2009, series creator Ron Moore has had a little trouble getting new shows to resonate with audiences. Granted, Caprica did earn one season on Syfy, but his newest idea, the cop drama 17th Precinct--which would have featured BSG alums Tricia Helfer, James Callis and Jamie Bamber--never made it past the pilot phase. Despite neither show earning six seasons and a movie, Moore has shown an unwillingness to give up, and hopefully his newest project will make its way to series.

Sony Pictures TV has just nabbed the book rights to Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander series, which features a young woman time traveling from 1945 to 1743. Along with the time travel component, the woman, Claire, also finds herself in a love triangle spanning over each time frame. With the series selling over 20 million copies, an eighth book on the way, and fan tours running in Scotland, the book series is prime real estate and Sony has grabbed some good people to pitch a potential show to the networks, although they may think about changing the name so as not to confuse people with Jim Caviezel’s performance in the 2008 film Outlander, which often gets reruns on cable.

According to Deadline, Ron Moore is being hired to adapt the series to the small screen. Additionally, Jim Kohlberg’s Story Mining and Supply Co. are set to produce the project.

I think most of us love a good time travel story, and adding a romance component could gear the Outlander series to a female-skewed audience that may normally avoid a science fiction premise. Hopefully for Moore, this endeavor will prove a winner for the small screen.

TNT may already have a resident cowboy in Justified's Raylan Givens, played by the Emmy nominated Timothy Olyphant, but with a new Western on the horizon the network has got to start filling some saddles. The potential new Western from the network is called Gateway, a story about three brothers who try to keep law and order in the titular town after their Pa, the Sheriff, is gunned down. And now we know that Cam Gigandet will be playing one of those law enforcing brothers.

Deadline reports that the actor will play Jake, one of the three sons of a murdered lawman in 1880s Colorado, in the Bruce C. McKenna and Danny Cannon penned pilot. Known for his role as the evil vampire James in the original Twilight film, Gigandet showed off some impressive skills with a gun as Hicks in this summer's vampire-action-adventure flick Priest. Despite having been in several features, it seems that television might be a better fit for the young actor.

For some reason, television suddenly became very interested in the wild west with TNT's Gateway, Ron Moore's Hangtown at ABC and the still very vague Peter Berg-Liz Heldens 'female centric' Western at NBC. Why any network would want to get into the Western business now remains kind of a mystery. HBO's Deadwood (starring the aforementioned Timothy Olyphantastic) couldn't survive beyond three seasons and that's just about as good a TV Western as you're ever going to get, especially with the added realism and benefit of relaxed content restrictions that HBO provides. However, with three different series exploring the genre, at least one will be a hog-killin' time (it's a Old West phrase, for fun... sorry).

Deadline has reported that ABC has purchased a pitch from Battlestar guru Ron Moore. Moore's new project, Hangtown, is a western procedural from Sony Pictures TV, where Moore is under an overall deal. Moore, who was a developer and executive producer of Battlestar Galactica and also a writer for the Caprica prequel, will be an EP for the new project. Hangtown will feature three unlikely crime-fighting characters.

In a similar vein to HBO's Deadwood of a few years past, Hangtown will focus on a lawless frontier town undergoing sudden change. Rather than dealing with the politics of annexation, however, Hangtown is experiencing rapid growth due to a coming railroad and is set a bit later, in the early 1900s. The program's unlikely trio of main characters consists of a marshal (no surprises here), a doctor, and a young writer. The marshal is described as a Matt Dillon or Clint Eastwood type who follows his gut. The doctor comes from the East Coast and will bring old school forensics for solving crimes. The writer is a young woman trying to sell "dime novels" to East Coast publishing houses about crime in the Wild West.

Hangtown is only the latest western to join the fray. ABC has already bought the 1880s Western Gunslinger from ABC studios. AMC has an 1860s Western on the way, called Hell On Wheels. TNT ordered a pilot for the 1880s Gateway and NBC recently purchased a female-centric western in addition to showing interest in Moore's new project. Wow! Needless to say, if you're a fan of westerns you've got your hands full for the small screen in the near future.

NBC has some good news and bad news for geeks today. On the positive side the network has renewed Chuck, the spy show that's perpetually on the cancellation bubble but has managed to build up a small but loyal audience over the course of four, soon to be five, seasons. Word has it that the fifth will be the last for Chuck, a solid run by any measure. Unfortunately for geeks of the sci-fi stripe, the network has also passed on 17th Precinct, which would have been a miniature Battlestar Galactica reunion, with creator Ron Moore behind it and Tricia Helfer, James Callis and Jamie Bamber all starring.

According to THR the network had to choose between potential fantastical dramas, and 17th Precinct, which took place in a town where magic and supernatural elements are more important than science, lost out to Grimm, a procedural in a world where fairy tales are real. That show was picked up yesterday, so i suppose the writing has been on the wall for 17th. The THR article also has a full list of everything NBC has been picking up, including the Laura Prepon-starring Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea and Bent, a single camera comedy starring Amanda Peet. With the network upfront presentations to advertisers coming next week, there's lots more TV news where this came from.

Welcome back to FlixWorthy, your guide to Netflix streaming. I've been AWOL for a few weeks with a very pregnant wife, but I'm back with another crop of new and notable picks from Netflix's streaming catalogue. Some will be classics, some will be little-seen gems, some will be shows you might have missed, and some...some will be crap so awful they simply has to be seen to be believed. Here's what's FlixWorthy this week, kids.

Battlestar Galactica

(2003 - 2009, Not Rated, Four Seasons, HD)

Say what you will about the controversial ending, but for much of its run Ron Moore's reimagining of the cheesy '70s space opera Battlestar Galactica was simply amazing. While certainly not the first show to present a serious drama couched in science-fiction trappings, it was one of the highest profile and most successful attempts in recent memory. Sure, Battlestar Galactica was full of space battles and killer robots, but it wasn't about those things. It was, like all the best stories, simply about the human condition, as examined through a handful of complex, well-written characters trying to find their place in it. While it has its off moments -- the boxing episode wasn't a highlight -- it succeeds far more often than it fails, and its ambition is much to be admired. If only more SF television followed in its footsteps by realizing that genre is just another way to tell a story, equally as valid (and certainly more interesting) than yet another show about horny doctors or quip-heavy forensic investigators. All four seasons of the show are available streaming, but if you want to check out the standalone movies Razor or The Plan, you'll have to actually request the discs for those.

Double-Feature It With:

Farscape

(1999 - 2002, TV-14, Three Seasons Available)

Given that the SyFy line-up these days is littered with wrestling and "reality" shows, it's easy to forget that the network has produced some actual, honest-to-gosh science fiction over the years. Battlestar Galactica may have gotten all the critical buzz, but Farscape is still one of the best genre shows of the past several decades, and I challenge you to find an onscreen couple with better chemistry than John Crichton and Aeryn Sun. Look upward, and share the wonders I've seen...although you won't be able to see season four, which isn't available streaming for some reason.

Paranormal Activity

(2007, Rated R, 99 min.)

I still haven't seen this one, so this recommendation is based solely on internet buzz and that it seems to be one of those movies you just sort of have to see at some point. If so, watching it for "free" via Netflix is as good a way as any. Our own Perri Nemiroff was a big fan of the tale of a couple being haunted by a very unfriendly presence. Following in the footsteps of The Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield, Paranormal Activity is shot as "found footage," in this case recordings made by Katie (Katie Featherston) and Micah (Micah Sloat) in hopes of catching evidence of the malicious entity that has begun tormenting them. Wait until it's dark outside, turn off all the lights, and watch this one alone for best results. Just make sure any pets are locked up so they don't knock anything over in the middle and give you a heart attack.

Double-Feature It With...

The Devil's Backbone

(2001, Rated R, 108 min.)

If you're in the mood for a more traditional ghost story without all the pseudo-documentary trappings, The Devil's Backbone is one of the creepiest films of the past decade. Co-written and directed by the ridiculously talented Guillermo del Toro, the film is set in 1939 Spain during the end of the Spanish Civil War, and centers around paranormal goings on at an orphanage. That's all I'm going to tell you about it. Go watch.

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call - New Orleans

(2009, Rated R, 121 min.)

Another blind recommendation on my part, I have yet to hear anyone have less than effusive praise for this not-a-sequel from director Werner Herzog. To read some of that effusive praise, you can check out Nick's Blu-ray review or Josh's theatrical review. The main attraction is Nic Cage in the lead role, by all accounts giving the sort of performance that reminds you that he actually does have some acting chops when given the right material and not in close proximity to bees. Cage stars as New Orleans police sergeant Terrence McDonagh, a crooked cop dating a hooker, addicted to gambling and assorted drugs, and not terribly good at the whole protect-and-serve thing. This is a snapshot of a man on his way to the bottom, stopping only to pick up a shovel along the way.

Double-Feature It With:

The Rock

(1996, Rated R, 136 min.)

Yeah, remember how I said Cage wasn't a bad actor with the right material? The Rock isn't really the right material, but that doesn't mean it isn't a good time.

Damages

(2007 - 2009, Not Rated, Two Seasons Available, HD)

Continuing this week's theme of "stuff I really should have already watched by now," we come to FX's legal drama Damages, a show that my friend Jason has been pestering me to watch nearly as long as the show has been on the air. Glenn Close stars as cutthroat lawyer Patty Hewes of the prestigious New York firm Hewes & Associates. She takes on a new protege named Ellen Parsons, and the stormy relationship between the two forms the spine of the series. Unlike most legal dramas, Damages tackles only one case per season, similar to the approach used by Murder One back in the day, and focuses on what happens behind the scenes rather than any of the usual courtroom antics. The show also makes extensive use of nonlinear storytelling techniques. It is, according to the aforementioned friend Jason, the second best drama FX has produced so far (just behind Sons of Anarchy). Let's all find out if he's right, shall we?

Double-Feature It With:

The Riches

(2007 - 2008, TV-MA, Two Seasons Available)

If you're looking to pair Damages with another FX drama, I highly recommend this short-lived series starring Eddie Izzard and Minnie Driver as a pair of roving gypsy con artists who tackle the biggest scam of their careers: taking over the identities of a wealthy suburban family nobody but them knows is dead. It only lasted two short seasons, making it perfect if you're looking for something to fill a few nights of viewing. If only it had lasted longer...

Destination Truth

(2007 - 2009, Not Rated, Three Seasons Available)

I know I was badmouthing SyFy's "reality" programming up at the top of the column, but Destination Truth is a highly entertaining exception. While I'm a long way from a believer, I've been a sucker for these "monster-hunting" shows since I was a kid, and Destination Truth is one of the best of its kind. Each week host Josh Gates hops to a different corner of the globe in search of some creepy bit of local folklore such as the chupacabra or the thunderbird, armed with all manner of night-vision cameras and motion trackers. What makes the show so much fun is that neither Gates nor his companions take themselves or their mission too seriously, which is crucial since most of the "evidence" they come away with is questionable at best. Getting video evidence of a real-life leprechaun isn't really the point here; the fun is simply seeing what manner of trouble Gates will get himself into, getting glimpses of some truly gorgeous and rarely seen corners of the world, and letting yourself believe -- however briefly -- that there still might be mysteries lurking in the dark out there. Also, if anyone ever invents a drinking game for every time the crew has vehicular trouble, there are going to be a lot of cases of alcohol poisoning amongst the Destination Truth audience.

Double-Feature It With...

MonsterQuest

(2007 - 2010, TV-14, Four Seasons Available)

If Destination Truth hasn't fully scratched your cryptozoological itches, The History Channel's equivalent has so far logged four seasons of critter-hunting, including obvious targets such as the Loch Ness Monster alongside more obscure choices like the "Ohio Grassman." I'm presuming that's not just somebody's pot dealer.

To read the FlixWorthy archives, click here!

We've already berated Universal good and hard for their decision to hire Ron Moore to write the script for their prequel for The Thing, but not to direct it, because when you have the guy behind Battlestar Galactica on your movie, shouldn't you give him absolute power? But clearly no one listened to us, and director Matthjis Van Heijningen is still on board to make his directorial debut.

And according to Production Weekly, that's happening soon-- production begins in March and will move to Toronto in June. We still don't know exactly what Moore's take on the story, which originated as a novel and is most famous as the 1982 John Carpenter movie, but the simple tale of some Antarctica researchers terrorized by an alien being definitely has room for reinvention. Is Van Heijningen the guy to do it? Is the production cursed by the very fact of not hiring Moore to direct? We're getting all the closer to finding out.

We finally have confirmation on how we’re going to consume the end of Battlestar Galactica. In early January Ron Moore discussed how the finale would be three episodes in length, but Sci Fi hadn’t decided how to run the schedule. I mean, do they do all three in one night and cut off everything else? Perhaps, the network is expecting the BSG finale to be the highest rated thing they’ve ever done.

The guys over at SyFy Portal got word from Sci Fi that the BSG finale will air over two weeks. Part one will air on March 13, with the finale two showing up on March 20. And for those who want to watch the entire three hour finale part one will air before the others on March 20. Making for a long night of BSG joyness for us all.

The mini-series that kicked off the show was also a three hour event, so it’s nice that Sci Fi has given Ron Moore and company the free reign to use whatever air time they need to tell the end of the story. We’ve known for awhile that this was the plan, now we know how we’ll watch it. The final question of what the frak will happen remains though.