<DIV>The release of both his horror flick <I>The Cabin in the Woods</I> and the box-office sensation, <I>Marvel's The Avengers</I> saw the return to creative and critical success of Joss Whedon.<BR>After establishing himself as a premier cult creator, the man who gave us great television with <I>Buffy the Vampire Slayer</I>, <I>Angel,</I> <I>Firefly</I>, <I>Dollhouse</I> and web series <I>Dr Horrible's Sing-along Blog</I>, as well as comic books including <I>Fray</I> and <I>Astonishing X-Men</I>, finally became the filmmaker he'd long dreamed of being. Drawing on a wide variety of sources and making use of psychologist Howard Gruber's insights into the nature of the creative process, <I>Joss Whedon, A Creative Portrait</I> offers the first intellectual biography of Whedon, tracking his career arc from activated fan boy to film studies major, third generation television writer, successful script doctor, innovative television auteur, beloved cult icon, sought-after collaborator, and major filmmaker with Marvel's The Avengers. Film and television scholar and Whedon expert David Lavery traces Whedon's multi-faceted magic from its source - the early influences of parents and teachers, comics, books, movies, collaborators - to its artistic incarnation.<BR></div>