by Brian Logee
November 25, 2009 in Decor, Fandom, tv/series by Brian Logee
For years now I felt someone should make a toaster as the ideal merchandise for Battlestar Galactica. Finally someone produced a frakkin toaster. Thankfully it’s not the killer robot kind.
by Brian Logee
August 18, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee
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Dragon Art | Star Wars Dancing | G.I. Joe | Gothic Little Red Riding Hood | The Raven | DC vs. Marvel | Legend of the Seeker | Battlestar Galactica | Rosario + Vampire | and Community Comments on Speculative Fiction Today.
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by Brian Logee
July 30, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee
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William Shatner | Mario | Dollhouse: Season One, Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead, Torchwood: Children of Earth, Knight Rider, Green Lantern: First Flight, Dragonball: Evolution, Battlestar Galactica: Season 4.5 | Alice in Wonderland | Planet 51 | Dead of Night | Dr. Seuss the Lorax | Legend of the Seeker | Dollhouse | Sanctuary | Star Wars | Criss Angel Mindfreak | Queer as Folk | Kiss | and Community Comments on Speculative Fiction Today.
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by Brian Logee
July 28, 2009 in Movies, tv/series by Brian Logee
Out this week we have seven DVDs to feature: Dollhouse: Season One, Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead, Torchwood: Children of Earth, Knight Rider, Green Lantern: First Flight, Dragonball: Evolution, Battlestar Galactica: Season 4.5.
: This is a great show, Joss Whedon does it again. It received mixed view based on the first few episodes which are not the best but that is due to Fox forcing rewrites and re-shoots on Joss’ vision. The fans have lovingly come to refer to those episodes as Fox’s Dollhouse and the rest of the show as Joss’ Dollhouse. After about episode five this show really opens up and develops. This set includes the original pilot episode plus the episode Epitaph One. A must own!
: a special episode of David Tennant Doctor Who when the Doctor and his fellow passengers are mysteriously transported through a wormhole to a planet inhabited by an endangered anthropomorphic species. It’s on the top of my Netflix que if not an owner unseen.
: I love this series, this is a five episode mini-series picking up for season three of Torchwood. It’s on the top of my Netflix que if not an owner unseen.
: This was a light, fun show with fast changing cars and action. It started with some promise of having substance with gay characters and interesting subplots it just unfortunately suffered from too much studio tampering and test audience death and lost it’s substance. Watch it here on Hulu.
: another DC Comics animated project bringing us the Hal Jordan Green Lantern. It’s on the top of my Net Flix que and almost an owner unwatched because of how good the past animated DC projects are.
: a fun Dragonball movie, a lot of reviews trashed this movie but they missed the point and that is Dragonball is a niche film and made for fans of Dragonball. If your not sure about the Dragonball series then it should be a renter, for fans an owner.
: The conclusion of season four and the Battlestar Galactica show. I really liked how this show grew into it’s own and tackled some interesting topics. I wished it had been bolder with some of the social and philosophical topics addressed. My issue with this product is it’s an overpriced 1/2 of a season set.
by Eric
May 21, 2009 in Featured, Headline, tv/series by Eric
Ok, I am so surprised how excited I am about this series. The Trailer looks great, sort of an Independance Day meets Battlestar Galactica meets V.
29 ships surround the world. I love the way the ship switches over to display its message on its underside.
I wondered how they were going to update the series to reflect the times. Framing the coming of the Visitors with the human longing for a savior is a brilliant move.
I am curious to see how they are going to answer it in the series.
Alan Tudyk is in the trailer for all of 2 seconds. Look carefully he is in there.
The short clip of the Visitors true face looked great! I think this will work out.
by Eric
May 14, 2009 in Fandom, Featured, Headline, Movies by Eric
I was a little afraid to see the new Star Trek Movie. All of the materials they sent me to hype the movie either bored or annoyed me. I started getting a little excited about the movie after the early screenings started returning good reviews.
Sitting in the theater as boring trailers, my anticipation ramped up as film crept ever closer. I love Star Trek. It is probably my favorite franchise. I really hoped they wouldn’t mess it up.
It took me a while to write this review, because I wanted to make sure I got past my fanboy response to the movie and was able to talk about the movie with a bit more distance and clarity.
Gene Roddenberry’s concept of Star Trek was a simple formula:
But it should also tackle all of the most important issues of the day. (You can read more about this in my post: More Proof J. J. Abrams Doesn’t Get Star Trek). The early publicity left me with many concerns.
I was really confused about the nature of the film when they started calling is a prequel/sequel/reboot.
That is a strange thing to say, and alone, a statement that doesn’t make sense, but for this film it works.
I am not sure I like the classification of this movie as a reboot. Battlestar Galactica was a reboot, this was more of a return to the core of what made Star Trek great in the original series. If this is a reboot so was:
If you would count each of these major revisions of the setting as a reboot, than this movie is a reboot. To me, this sequel/prequel.
Abrams, Kurtzman anf Orci all said they wanted to turn bring more Star Wars into Star Trek, but I don’t think they got there. I love both series, and I am familiar with the main qualities of both, and I don’t think they brought much if anything from one to the other.
I was afraid that is was going to be more of a Lethal Weapon in Space, Speed: Warp 10, Star Wars: The Vulcan Chronicles, or Cloverfield 2: The Future of the Beast (WTF Star Trek Super Bowl Ad!?!). There is not a scene in this film that I could see easily fitting in one of the earlier films or the original television series.
Maybe they originally thought of Nero’s ship as a sort of Death Star, but it is no more than Probe from The Voyage Home, V’ger from the Motion Picture, or the Son’a ships from Insurrection. Other than that, I just don’t get it.
I was excited when I saw the clip of Uhura telling Kirk off in the bar. I hoped Kirk would get his butt kicked and he so did. I was concerned about the stripping clips of Uhura in the trailers but I love the way the dealt with her.
I loved the relationship between Uhura and Spock. It made sence, and it served to dehumanize Spock in an interesting way. The juxtaposition of her emotions and his total lack of emotions really hilighted the difference between humans and vulcans.
I know there are a lot of people who didn’t like her depiction in this movie, but Uhura was always a more laid back member of the crew.
I loved the adverse reaction that Kirk had to the Vaccine that McCoy gave him. It was a flashback to the kind of humor the original series thrived on. It was silly, light hearted and interfered with the characters ability to do what they needed to do.
WTF were they thinking when they designed the engine room. It was funny, but I agree with Gwen DeMarco regarding the fate of the writer who came up with the idea for these scenes…
I could go off on a long string blue words, but I will let the others who have already done that do it. I just thought this was a blemish on an otherwise great film.
Brian and I argued about this fro a long time after the movie. Personally, I think Nero was just a MacGuffin to give an excuse for the story to happen. Neither he nor his crew are intgral to the plot and could have been replaced by anyone else with any other motive using any other means. Nero is not important. They obviously didn’t give his subplot any thought, and frankly, the movie would have been better without the distraction.
I wish the film would have had a real 3 dimensional villain, but I honestly didn’t expect one from a J. J. Abrams movie. He has never done villains well. Every movie and show that he has ever touch has had a weak, impotent, or flat villain. A better director would have insisted on a better antagonist, but the story didn’t matter, the action did.
Some people have complained about Spock having Kirk put in a life pod and jettisoned from the ship. If I really wanted to defend the movie here I would say that this was a symptom of Spock’s frustration that Kirk should not be on the ship at all. I think that could be argued.
Once more, this is another symptom of Abrams’ half-assed directing style. He needed to have Kirk on the planet to meet Spock and this was the quickest and most “visually exciting” way to do it. Let’s be honest, this was an excuse to have Kirk chased by a Cloverfield reject so he could talk to Spock in a cave. It was not thought out.
Nero’s motive for attacking Vulcan are nothing less than laughable. He was a stupid man on a stupid ship with the horridly named “Red Matter” who wants to destroy Vulcan rather than save his homeworld.
Maybe he thought he could do both. Rid the Empire of the threat of the Federation and save his homeworld. I think the reallity is a lot simpler.
Like most of the annoying things in this film it just wasn’t well thought out. It was a flimsy excuse for a Nero to be a villain and commit a terrorist act without having to think about whether or not he has a good (or at least understandable) reason or not.
Nero is a flat, empty character and I can tell you why. This movie is nothing more than:
This story follows the plot of Wrath of Khan beat by beat with several notable exceptions:
This movie is to Wrath of Khan what the Next Generation episode “Naked Now” is to the Original Series episode “Naked Time.” It is a good remake, but it is not as good as the original.
Let’s measure it against Gene’s definition
√ Action
√ Adventure
√ Basic wants and needs
√ Tackle all of the most important issues of the day.
That last check might be a little controversial, but I thought the show dealt with the random nature of terrorism and the emotional cost it has on people.
I am glad to say that Star Trek has been reborn, much as it was when Wrath of Khan came out. I loved the movie.
Orci and Kurtzmen have already signed on to write the next movie in the series, but that are not sure if it will be a Prequel, Sequel, or Reboot to this movie. They said they are waiting to see what the reaction to this film is. And there is one more thing:
Kurtzman: The very last scene when Spock and Spock meet each other, finally. And elder Spock is convincing young Spock that he couldn’t interfere, because it would have diverted [Kirk and Spock] away from their friendship. And that their friendship is the key to the whole sort of shebang.
Orci: He gave him a recorded message from Kirk.
Kurtzman: He [elder Spock] said, “Don’t take my word for it.” And he handed him [younger Spock] a little holographic device and it projected Shatner. It was basically a Happy Birthday wish knowing that Spock was going to go off to Romulus, and Kirk would probably be dead by the time… (Topless Robots)
That could be the set up for the next movie. Personally, I don’t want another movie. I want a TV series.
by Brian Logee
May 1, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee
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Imagine That | Save Chuck | Chuck Review | The Confessed | Playing in the Dollhouse | Dollhouse meets Star Wars | Stargate V. Battlestar Galactica | Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood | Star Trek Game | and Community Comments on Speculative Fiction Today.
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by Eric
April 30, 2009 in Featured, Headline, tv/series by Eric
@akzidenzgrotesk asked: Is Stargate any good? How does it compare to something like Battlestar?
It is almost unfair to compare Stargate with Battlestar Galactica.
The sheer volume of Stargate dwarfs Battlestar Galactica and makes any fair comparison difficult at best, but they do share several things in common.
Both Stargate and Battlestar Galactica are military scifi series that pit the human race against a hostile alien force that threatens to destroy the human race.
The biggest difference between the two settings regarding the struggle to protect the human race is:
I know a lot of people are going to challenge my characterization of Battlestar Galactica, but its portrayal of human frailty in its many forms constantly brought the colonists to the brink of doom. While that added to the drama and tension of the series, it made most of the characters into melodramatic stereotypes who arrogantly or ignorantly put their own petty wants and needs ahead of the survival of their people.
I am not saying that is a bad thing, it is the way the show is. In fact, Scifi marketed of the spacey soap opera quality of the show.
While Battlestar Galactica focused on melodrama, Stargate focused more on character and military actions, tactics, and research.
Both series dealt primarily with characters in the military, but their use of the military was very different:
For me, this is where Stargate moves ahead of Battlestar Galactica.
I am the kind of person who loves a good character, and for me the characters in Stargate are much more well rounded and interesting. With the exception of O’neil, I cannot think of a character that I wouldn’t mind seeing an entire series about. The stories about each character really interested me, especially in how they interacted and affected the others.
Battlestar Galactica had many interesting characters too, but I never felt they went into the depth they need to have for me to completely fall in love with them. Starbuck was my favorite, as was Adama, but I didn’t feel like they revealed enough about them until the season finale.
I suppose the easiest way to understand what I am saying is that to get a good perspective on a character, I like to see them, both under stress and at rest, maybe even at play to get a full picture of who that character is. I never felt like Battlestar Galactica allowed for that.
Neither series could be considered Science Fiction, they are Scifi.
Science Fiction is a genre where science is integral to the plot, and both series rely heavily on technology that has little connection with actual science. That is not a bad thing, but if you are looking for a series that takes science seriously, Stargate comes closest, but neither really is.
A major difference between the two series is how they treat plot arcs.
Again, this is where Stargate moves ahead of Battlestar Galactica.
While I watched Battlestar Galactica, I never felt like the series went anywhere. There was no sense of accomplishment. I found it impossible to get emotionally attracted to any of the characters because I knew that anything good that happened to them would quickly be undone.
I know that many were able to get over this, but I like a series with triumphs and defeats and Battlestar Galactica was for the most part a collections of defeats with triumphs few and far between.
With Stargate, I was able to become emotionally attached with the characters and share in their gains and losses.
In the end, we end where we began:
That is a matter of taste and for me mood. When you compare the two series, you have to find the show that best fits you.
Stargate |
Battlestar Galactica |
| spans 3 series (soon to be 4), 16 seasons, 340 episodes and 3 movies (soon to be 5) | spans 1 series (soon to be 2), 4 seasons, 77 episodes (if you count the miniseries as 2), and 1 movie (if you count Razor) |
| focused on the hope that ingenuity, courage, and comradery would find a way to save humanity | focused on hopelessness. Humanity was too full of greed, cowardice, and backbiting to save itself |
| top secret setting forced the military into a struggle between open government and black ops | post apocalyptic setting forced the military into a struggle between democracy and military dictatorship |
| contained balanced military action where they were on the offensive as often as the defensive | contained reactionary military action where they were more often than not in a defensive stance |
| focused on individual characters with their own hopes, merits, flaws, and detailed back stories | focused on groups with prominent individuals whose flaws endanger society as a whole |
|
Neither series could be considered Science Fiction, they are Scifi. |
|
| outlined its plot arcs into self contained stories with numerous subplots | outlined its plot arcs into perpetuating continued stories |
| a military scifi action series | a military telenovella set is space |
If I had to choose between the two, I would have to pick Stargate. Why?
by Brian Logee
April 27, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee
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Boxee update | Angels & Demons trailer | Hunter Prey Trailer | Transformers 2 Promo | Battlestar Galatica | Legend of the seeker | Eureka | Chuck | Brodbingnagin Bards | Eben Brooks | Dead is The New Black | and Community Comments on Speculative Fiction Today.
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by Brian Logee
April 21, 2009 in Podcasts, Speculative Fiction Today by Brian Logee
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