Black Market Beagles will be accepting pre-orders for the Serenity blueprints starting tonight at 8 pm PST! Adam has 25 to sell, and shipping is free.

Keep checking that page tonight for the sale. In the meantime, check out all the other excellent items he offers. Adam is a supremely talented artist and his Browncoat designs are original, eye-catching, and elegant.

UPDATED: Well, that was quick. 2 hours and he’s down to 4 or so. Seems people are interested in these things…

UPDATED AGAIN: And they’re gone. But fret not, QMx will be selling them April 7, and there may be other preorder opportunities. Keep checking back!

If you just can’t wait till July for your variant Serenity ornament, you can always make your own.

Chris Doyle, he of the amazing LEGO Serenity and the snack-sized Serenity, has produced plans and parts lists to make your very own Reaverized version. 

But that ain’t all. Thanks to a generous donation of a few truckloads of bricks Chris has started on several ambitious projects. First, he’s rebuilding his big ship and documenting it along the way so you can see how to make your own. Second, he’s working on an even bigger one that’s to scale with his Big Damn LEGO Heroes. And he’s creating a ‘versy town for them to visit.

Check out the Browncoat Central section of his LEGO page for details, along with pics of his amazing LEGO Mule.

Well, not the first look, people on QMx’s Insider newsletter got that, which is why you should wander over there and throw your e-mail address in. But darn close.

It’s coming! The official Serenity blueprints: 10 18″ x 24″ full-color sheets in a limited-edition run of 750, signed by creators Geoffrey Mandel (graphic designer, Serenity) and Tim Earls (illustrator, Firefly, and set designer, Serenity). And oh, it’s so nice.

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QMx’s Insider newsletter came out with great news about their replica of Mal’s gun and the future of QMx. Hint: It’s looking pretty good.

First off, after some problems with the last company which caused delays in the release of the pistol and the Dracula ring they’ve offered, they found a new partner who produced a prototype in just a few weeks that included improvements to an already shiny looking piece.

The “bronze” body will now be made of separate components that include metal powder mixed with the resin base so it’ll be “cold to the touch” and hefty. The finish is more long-lasting and durable, and it will be easier to get casts that look the same throughout and don’t obscure the more subtle details.

The steel components - grip, trigger, trigger guard, hammer, etc — will be cast in aluminum and “antiqued” for a much more realistic look and weight. And it’ll still have the real screws and bolts, walnut handle, display stand, etc, as before.

No ship date yet, but this is a promising heads-up. For more information subscribe to the Insider newsletter at insider.quantummechanix.com .

The Prop Store of London launched a redesign of their site. Not a major change — still looks and handles about the same, so you won’t have to relearn anything – but the listings are tighter, easier to scan, and they got rid of the dropdown options for categories for simple menu links, which I like better. It also seems to be faster, which is always nice.

You can still get the complete description by clicking on the item, and now there are options to send to a friend and ask a question about the item. And links now include the name of the item instead of the number, which I assume means that all my links are dead now. Ah, well. Progress marches on…

Now if they’d just start up an affiliate program, I’d be all set.

Wow, deja vu… Without fanfare (or much surprise) Dark Horse has moved the release dates back for both the variant Serenity ship (now shipping July 11) and the PVC set (now shipping July 25).

Don’t think of it as the same maddening delay as last year’s Serenity ornament re-rescheduling. Think of it as more time to preorder!

Since Washtown bought the land next door a few months ago, Browncoats in the virtual 3D world Second Life have whomped up a brand new town. The Firefly ship (the “Raven”) has been moved to the new space port, there are streets laid out, we have a new saloon (the “Fruity Oaty Bar”) and a newspaper (The Washtown Wave), a brothel and a restaurant and a clinic and a monastery… Washtown is growing fast.

And we’re going to have an election, for mayor. I am announcing my candidacy.

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The Prop Store of London is offering a prototype of the message block seen in Serenity, which is pretty cool, although since I recall seeing this a couple of times before I have to wonder if they had a lot of them or if this is the same one, getting sold back and forth, traveling the globe in search of a home… which, come to think of it, is also pretty cool.

Anyway, it’s made from Perspex with a silvery circuit board pattern on one side. There is a slight chip in the side of the Perspex. Measures approx. 12cm x 8.5cm x 1.5cm (4.75″ x 3.25″ x 0.5″).

The Bards are coming to a shindig near you! As long as you’re in the eastern US, anyway. The tour starts on April 19th and includes Baton Rouge, Tallasee (Alabama), Charlotte, Raleigh, and Penacook (New Hampshire). And maybe Philly.

They’ll be holding raffles at each stop, with proceeds going to various charities including Equality Now. Anyone interested in contributing awards, please contact Cedric at fithelere @ aol.com and more details on the tour are available here.

The Bards have been having a good year. Their Firefly-inspired CD “On the Drift” received Best Renfaire Album of 2006 (from the Renaissance Festival Music Podcast), Best Folk Recording of 2006 (according to Celtic MP3 Magazine), #1 Album on the CDBaby Celtic Chart, and a spot on CDBaby’s Top Seller’s Sampler. If you’ve somehow managed to avoid hearing any of it, you can get some samples here and buy it here.

Just mentioned on the Starfury forum: Ron Glass revealed at S4 who did the commentary for the Special Edition Serenity DVD.

Just for anyone who doesnt know at S4, Ron annnounced that the cast commentary for the dvd included him, Joss, Nathan, Adam and Summer.

Nathan hinted at it in his MySpace blog. Glad that got that many, but I would have loved to hear Alan’s comments, I would. Hat tip to Whedonesque for the link.