Spike TV had their Ultimate Fighter live finale last night. What does that have to do with Blade? Well, Spike TV used the opportunity to promote the hell out of the show. Besides having trailers and previews during nearly every commercial break, they had Kirk Jones (Blade), Jill Wagner (Krista), and Neil Jackson (Marcus) there to promote it even more. After certain fights they even had Joe Rogan, one of the fight announcers, interview a cast member about the new show.

Kirk Jones talked about the intense training he had to go through to prepare for the show. He specifically mentioned kickboxing, martial arts, and wire training. His "interview" was quite brief and besides the training information, he really just talked about how much he enjoyed the UFC and how he believes it will take over boxing.

A few fights later Jill Wagner was asked a few questions, also focusing on her training. She said how she didn't have to do much training for martial arts because her brother is a big martial arts guy and he had trained her a lot already. She also talked about how she has a gun collection and that she's very comfortable holding guns onscreen.

I did mention that Neil Jackson was in attendance, but Rogan didn't speak with him. We actually only saw him when the camera was focused in on Kirk and Jill with Neil poking his head in from the side. That shot actually showed Jill being very friendly with Kirk, with her arms wrapped around his and leaning all over him. Actors often show affection like this to the cameras without it meaning anything more than friendship, but it'll be interesting to see if an onscreen romance translates into something in the real world as it often does.

All in all, it was good to see Spike TV putting in a good amount of effort to promote the show. It's been said that they spent a lot of money on the pilot and are backing it 100%. Hopefully these are all good signs of it becoming a successful show.

Over at another of my blogs, Almost True News, I had previously posted this made up news story about how Wesley Snipes was suing Spike TV because he claimed the Blade TV series was based on his real life experiences as an actual vampire.

Obviously the story isn't true and just for entertainment purposes only, so don't take it too seriously.

[tags]wesley snipes, blade tv series, Spike TV[/tags]

Below is the list of the main cast members with some background info as well as details on their roles for the Blade series.

Kirk Jones (aka Sticky Fingaz) as Blade
Blade won't be played by Wesley Snipes for the television series. Instead, Kirk 'Sticky' Jones will take on the role as "Daywalker", the half human, half vampire vampire hunter. He has the typical strengths associated with vampires, such as their strength and healing abilities, but none of their weaknesses (save for the craving for blood). His ability to be exposed to sunlight is the reason for his "Daywalker" alias.

Major roles that Kirk Jones has played include Maurice "Smoke" Williams in the TV show Over There, Jeremy in Flight of the Pheonix, and Kern Little in The Shield.

Jill Wagner as Krista Starr
As a former US army sergeant, Krista Starr has the training to make an impact on the war with the vampires. The problem is, her loyalty is a grey area that even she struggles to figure out. One the one hand, she wishes to avenge her brothers death (a death most likely by the hands of vampires). On the other hand, she is conflicted with instincts that convince her to continue being a member of the evil Chthon. Blade may be her only chance, but will she let him help?

Wagner's previous roles include Rachel in Shifted and Millicent in Junebug.
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I just want to emphasize that I'd like this blog to be very open and inviting for people to contribute either by posting comments or by using the contact form. It'd be great if we can get some good conversations going in the comment sections, as I'm sure there'll be a lot to talk about after each episode.

Also, with this site being extremely new, don't hesitate to send me any suggestions, bugs, or anything else you can think of. I really am hopeful that this place will be great place for people to come and get the latest and greatest Blade series news and info. If there's any features you like to see, leave a comment here or shoot me an email via the contact form. Also, if you've got any good news tips or topics you'd like me to write about, I'd love to hear it.

I'm in the final stages of setting this blog up, so please excuse the mess. In case you're curious what this place is (which should be obvious from the title), you can hit up the about page. If you're too lazy to click the link, below is a bit of what I plan on doing with the site.

Like the title and domain says, this place is all about Spike TV's new television series Blade. If you want you can head on over to Spike TV's official Blade site, though the information there is quite limited. There is a nice trailer to wet your appetite and a bit of background information, but nothing you probably haven't seen or heard already.

If you haven't yet watched the movies, I'd highly recommend it. There hasn't been word on how closely the series will relate to the movies, though the series is rumored to take place after the third movie (Blade: Trinity).

Anyway, back to what this site's purpose is. Basically, I'm a huge fan of vampire movies and vampire television shows. I'm not one of those people that pretends to be a vampire, dressing in all black and drinking blood, but I do love a good vampire flick. I'm especially fond of the Blade movies and am definitely looking forward to the television series.

With that, I decided to start up a blog that will include the latest news, interviews, editorials, humor, and other goodies relating to the television series. I'll also be doing a recap and "review" of sorts of each episode. I hope to be adding many new features along the way so that this place is always fresh and interesting.

Yes, it's kind of odd to be creating a fansite of a show that isn't even out yet, but I figured if I want it to be a semi popular site that I should get as early a jump as possible. For the days leading up to the series opener on June 28th, I'll be posting all the news and information I can find so make sure you check back often.

[tags]Blade tv series, Spike TV, Blade movies[/tags]