Boldly Going, More or Less Fans of [easyazon_link identifier=”B002PQ7JQK” locale=”US” tag=”londonthoug-20″]Star Trek[/easyazon_link] have never really been happy with the newer editions of Star Trek. We all have these fantasies where NBC doesn’t cancel Star Trek and we get another season or two of the Original Series. Star Trek Continues is a group of those kinds of fans that are imagining a fourth season of Star Trek. There are four episodes so far and I have to admit that I like them a lot. They are very much in the meladrama format that Star Trek did so well. Tear jerking episodes that…
Tag: star trek
Space’s Orphan Black
How would you feel if you woke up one day and discovered that you are not as unique in the world as you thought? Instead of being a one of a kind, it turns out your a clone, and you have no idea how many other ‘you’s are out there. This is the basic premise of the Canadian science fiction show Orphan Black airing on Space and BBC America. Clones were a big deal in science fiction in the 1970s, lots of movies, lots of books, and even a throwaway line tossed into Star Wars about Obi-Wan fighting with…
Dreams with Sharp Teeth
Harlan Ellison is odd fellow. At age 72 when Dreams With Sharp Teeth was put together, he seems just this side of madness as he rants and raves about the world around him. But then, he has always ranted and raved about the world around him. I have never been a huge fan of Harlan Ellison’s writing. I can’t name even a single story of his that I can remember reading, though I must surely have stumbled across one or two over the years. No, it’s more stories about Harlan Ellison than story by Harlan Ellison that spring to mind.…
Falling Skies
I’ll watch just about any science fiction that doesn’t feature giant robots that turn into cars. Falling Skies from TNT and Steven Spielberg is the story of Earth after the fall of humankind to an alien invasion. The aliens are called Skidders and most closely resemble one of the twisted toys from the original Toy Story. They have an upper body with a head and two arms, but then have a lower body composed of several legs. We learn that the key to killing them is to disable as many legs as possible. Falling Skies is basically a post apocalyptic…
Huckleberry Finn and the N Word
The latest blow for Political Correctness sees a college professor edit Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn to remove the currently offense terms ‘nigger’ and ‘injun.’ At least he didn’t add zombies or vampires or sea monsters. Auburn University English professor Alan Gribben says that he always felt uncomfortable with Mark Twain’s choice of words so he plugged in the words ‘slave’ and ‘Indian’ to create his sanitized versions of Huckleberry Finn and Tom Sawyer. I was watching Blazing Saddles not too long ago and the word ‘nigger’ was bleeped each time it came up. Since this is one of the running…
NASA-Not What It Used To Be
When I was a kid being an Astronaut was a big deal. Rocket launches were a big deal. It was easy to believe that all those Science Fiction stories about living on the moon and exploring the universe were going to become reality. And not in some distant future, in the here and now. NASA in the here and how is kind of a joke. I love Space Center Houston, but at the same time, I hate that they rent themselves out for Corporate Events and Birthday Parties like they are a branch of Disney. I know that Space Center…
George Hurrell thoughts
George Hurrell is most famous for taking Hollywood Style Glamor shots in the 30s and 40s. He never met a light he didn’t like and his images are full of hair lights, kickers, background lights, and multiple key and fill lights. His stuff is just amazing. I read somewhere that he took the publicity photos for the pilot of Star Trek with William Shatner seen here. It has all the classic Hurrell touches of strong light and shadow control, as well as a pretty blurred background. Of course, Hurrell was not the only guy shooting this stuff and his style…