As many of you will already have seen, yesterday Charisma Carpenter made a statement in support of Ray Fisher, accusing Joss Whedon of abusing his…

The historical fantasy series streams on HBO Max from April 11, It begins with a wordless opening scene in which people wander about in old-timey frocks for several minutes, but hang in there: The fun soon starts as out Victorian-era heroines seek out a child who may be cursed by the devil. That leads to an acrobatic fight scene packed with luminescent hand grenades and weaponized parasols, setting the tone for an adventure full of kick-ass women taking on sinister baddies.

For sure, The Nevers is of a piece with Whedon’s kickass-girl-power oeuvre, which includes Buffy and Dollhouse, as well as elements in Angel, Firefly and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The period drama, which premieres Sunday (HBO, 9/8c) focuses on a (primarily female) group of 19th-century Londoners who have been mysteriously “touched” by a force that bestowed assorted powers upon them.

Set in Victorian London, The Nevers explores a world where few individuals — mostly women — awaken supernatural abilities, ranging from visions to annihilating power. However, these gifts leave them vulnerable to a white male-run society determined to eliminate their kind. Under the guidance and protection of seer Amalia True (Laura Donnelly) and steampunk inventor Penance Adair (Ann Skelly), the Touched form a collective to protect each other. But not all Touched ones find a benevolent way to process society’s persecution of them.

There’s one Angel character who stands out from the rest – both literally and figuratively – and he wasn’t even intended to exist in the first place. Though demons tend to get the pointy end of the stick in the Buffyverse, Andy Hallet’s fast-taking, aura-reading, green-skinned demon Lorne has stood the test of time and emerged as one of Angel’s most unlikely standouts with his infectious energy and quick wit.

Twenty years have passed since the events of Serenity shifted the Firefly universe into a new direction. But it turns out that the timeline hasn’t changed all that much. In that time, Zöe Alleyne Washburne has taken command of the titular Serenity ship.

It’s a great show. It’s beautiful, expensive, in the great HBO tradition, in Victorian England with girls with superpowers. I play a sort of mad scientist. He’s not really crazy, but definitely got some interesting sadistic streaks. It’s a a great character, and an amazing look. Michele Clapton, who did Game of Thrones, did our clothes. I’m happy to get to shoot six more episodes in June.

“Set 20 years after the events of Firefly, Serenity soars the ‘Verse once again with a new captain – Emma, the daughter of Wash and Zöe! The old crew of Serenity has gone their own way and now Emma is working to prove herself to Zoe. alongside a new crew of castaways and misfits just trying to stay afloat. But when Serenity takes a job from a familiar face, they discover their new, living, breathing cargo is far more than they bargained for… and might bring them into conflict with Alliance once again!”