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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

I have a confession.  I don’t like The Princess Bride.  Or rather, didn’t.  You see, the first time I saw it was in a movie theater on my very first date ever, and the whole thing was just tainted with family shock and horror at my dating and the idiot boy who brought a six-pack of beer to my house when we were fifteen.    But!  I caught it on TV the other night, and I finally, finally had the opportunity to be charmed by it.   If you need some very silly fantasy to watch with your family during the holidays, you may want to revisit this classic.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

For all those Red Dwarf fans that, like me, never thought we’d be seeing another episode of Red Dwarf again, Red Dwarf is back, this time on your mobile phone. These animated mobisodes feature the return of all your favourite characters, including Rimmer, Cat, Lister and Kryton. And for those of us that aren’t able to get these mobisodes which are currently in the UK and only certain other markets, check out YouTube for clips

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

Fritz Lang’s Metropolis may be getting a remake soon.  Thanks to Coyotegoth for alerting me to this one.  It’s one of my most beloved films, having seen the Giorgio Moroder version with a group of friends for my twelfth birthday (I was weird).  On the one hand, I am absolutely horrified by the prospect.  On the other, it could potentially be very interesting, at least if it had any of the directors that my friends have mentioned as their choices for the project, including Peter Jackson, Baz Luhrmann and Mira Nair.

To me there are several key issues in a Metropolis remake including a committment to sparse dialogue; thorough comprehension of class issues and structure; a willingness to make Maria and False Maria powerful and unique while also hewing to the religious allegory inherent in their characters; and a respect for the occult and political tinges of the original.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

USA Today published a great essay from the book Serenity Found. This essay was written by Nathan Fillion, where he talks about his experiences of working on Firefly and being captain of Serenity. It’s a cool little piece and just goes to show how incredible it is that such a short-lived show could go on to live in so many people’s hearts. I dunno about you, but this makes me want to break out my Firefly DVD’s.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

This replica flux capacitor, currently on pre-order is almost too cool for words! I’ve wanted on of these things since I was five and frankly, I still don’t think I can live without one.

Entertainment Earth is currently taking pre-orders for this super-cool piece of Back to the Future memorabilia. It’s only $274.99 and comes to us from Diamond Select.

LINK

Flux Capacitor

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

The trailer for the Wachowski Brothers’ take on Speed Racer has dropped. My reaction? Um… I know I’m a fussy and sensitive gal– really, I’ve the tendencies of a grandmother– but is this too “too” or what? Check out the blaring colors, nonstop music, and overall frenetic wonkiness.

Or if you fear your head exploding from sense stimuli–and you’re not wrong to as I honestly think a wee bit of brain matter dropped from my nose during viewing–look through some photos that USA Today has up.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

To Boldly Go Where Someone’s Already Gone BeforeTo Boldly Go Where Someone’s Already Gone BeforeTo Boldly Go Where Someone’s Already Gone BeforeI know I’ll probably upset a few people, but I sat down watching Star Trek: New Voyages this weekend, and it really got me thinking. What’s the point in re-imagining a show? With New Voyages, I knew exactly what I was getting. And honestly, less than halfway through the episode, I pretty much forgot that I wasn’t watching Shatner et all, playing these roles. Yet it still felt like Old Trek to me. My concern with J.J. Abrams re-imagining is, will it feel like Star Trek? I don’t mind seeing different actors playing Kirk and Spock, but I don’t want to see J. J. Abrams version of Star Trek. However, I would love to see J. J. Abrams version of another cool space show. This was also a big problem for me as far as Battlestar Galactica. The new series traveled so far from the concept (as cheesy as it was) of the 70’s show, I had to wonder, and I still do, why bother? Why not just do your own cool show/movie and trust that you will get the viewers? I certainly can’t deny the huge following that Galactica has, nor that they haven’t carved out their own unique show that has nothing to do with the original. But why bother associating yourself with another show? For one thing, I guarantee that Katee Sackhoff would’ve gotten a lot less hassle from fans if she were playing a character not named Starbuck in a show not called Galactica. Now, I’m not saying that I’m not also eagerly listening to the latest casting news for the new Trek movie, but it is definitely with a certain amount of trepidation. What is J. J. Abrams version of Star Trek? And is it going to be anything like Roddenberry’s vision?

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

The December issue of Starlog has a brilliant article by Joe Nazzaro on the upcoming Star Trek: New Voyages episode entitled “Blood and Fire”. If the episode itself is half as interesting as the behind the scenes story of this script, then this is sure to be an exciting episode. Originally intended for a first season TNG episode, but deemed unsuitable by the powers that be, this script has floated around conventions for the past 20 years. Now it is finally making its debut as a TOS episode for New Voyages, directed by Dave Gerrold, who also wrote the script. I won’t say anymore, because this article really is worth taking a look at, but I will say that in general with all this talk about a new “re-imagined” Star Trek movie, I’m honestly more excited to get to see more New Voyages episodes. At least with New Voyages, we have a show created by the fans and for the fans. Many Star Trek cast members have made appearances including Walter Koenig and George Takei (Blood and Fire features Denise Crosby), and writers such as TOS writer D.C. Fontana have also contributed scripts. So while I sit back and wonder what J.J. Abrams has in mind for his re-imagined Star Trek, I at least know that I can always look to New Voyages for the TOS that I remember.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

For decades the debate has roared from camps in favor of the blue boyscout and the dark knight. Frank Miller pitted these titans of the tabloid against each other in The Dark Knight Returns to no clear end. Loeb and Lee tried again in Hush, with the world’s greatest detective gaining a slight upper hand. Now the battle has been taken to the Illusion Community Forums in Batman vs Superman THE POLL!

Can Batman’s keen intellect and understanding of superman’s weaknesses overcome the brute strength of Superman? Have fanboys and fangirls forgotten that Superman is also a super-genius? The world is watching as these potent publishing icons prepare for the poll.

Vote, post and enjoy some Thanksgiving Turkey.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

I was reading up on Star Wars Galaxies, the MMORPG currently available on Sony’s portal, and found an interesting free online Star Wars game called Star Wars: Combine. It’s an online rpg simulation game similar to the old classics like “StarFlight”. It’s massive, it’s multi-player, and it’s free!

Some of the features include custom character building, ship customization, space and ground combat, an economic system and more than fifty character classes.

This is no flash hack game, this is a fully featured Star Wars online gaming experience and I highly suggest you check it out.

LINKS:

www.swcombine.com 

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

Wired.com has a great little top ten cheesiest creatures from Star Trek: TOS. Very fun little article. I’m from the TNG era, so I was surprised to find that I remembered all of those creatures on the list. The salt vampire was my favorite. What better way to encourage a person to consume less salt than a vampire that chooses its victims based on their salt consumption?! Ahh, but then there’s also the mugato, the gorn captain, the tribbles. With all this talk about the new ‘reimagined’ Star Trek movie, you know one element they’re not gonna have is the cheesy yet memorable monsters. Yes, this list just makes me want to break out the DVD’s and watch some good ol’ classic Trek.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

Cartoon Network has confirmed that a  new Transformers animated movie will premiere in the US on December 26th at pm est.

From Cartoon Network:

“Optimus Prime and his small crew of Autobots come into possession of the AllSpark, a powerful Cybertronian artifact that attracts the attention of their long-forgotten enemies the Decepticons and sends them crashing to a strange and distant planet known as Earth.

“Set on Earth in the near future in Detroit, the alien Transformers are thrust into a world populated by humans and automatons. As visitors to Earth, the Transformers — Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Prowl, Bulkhead and Rathcet– work in the human world, interacting with the Œnatives¹ in exciting and humorous ways. Transformers Animaed has been created to showcase the heroic Autobots working together to battle the evil Decepticons and save Earth with kid-relatable plot lines filled with humor, distinctive character personalities, and dynamic action.”

The movie will kick off a new Transformers animated series.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

Vivendi and Sony are teaming up to make a game based on the “Ghostbusters” franchise, to be released in fall of 2008 under the Sierra label for all major consoles and PC.  The two media conglomerates are hoping to capitalize on the profits made from recent classic film-based video games like “Scarface: The World Is Yours” and “The Godfather.”  All four of the actors who played Ghostbusters: Harold Ramis, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Ernie Hudson are giving voice and likeness rights, as well as supporting actors Annie Potts, William Atherton, and Brian Doyle Murray.  The film’s plot is set in the early 90’s during a ghoul invasion following the events of “Ghostbusters II.” 

I’m glad they caught on to this idea before the whole “take a film classic and turn it into a video game” idea got overplayed.  I’ve always wondered why they never made a “Ghostbusters III,” so hopefully this game will fill that void in my life.  It shouldn’t be hard to improve on that impossible “Ghostbusters” game they made for NES.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

All that talk of Tesla coils before got me thinking about the first place I heard Tesla’s name, playing the PC game, “Blood.”  “Blood” was developed by Monolith Productions in 1998 and is part of that great golden age of violent PC first-person shooters following in the footsteps of “Doom.” 

The game’s main character is Caleb, a darkly shadowed figure with a tench coat, wide-brimmed hat, and glowing read eyes.  Caleb is a resurrected gunfighter who belonged to a cult which had been dedicated to the god, Tchernobog.  He was destroyed by the ancient god for some unspecified slight, but following resurrection Calebbegins a quest for revenge.  Most of the settings in the game’s first episode look like something out of a Western, but the sequel would reveal the year of the first game’s setting to be 1928.  As a result, weapons range from the old reliables of pistols and shotguns to Tommy guns, voodoo dolls, and Tesla cannons.  “Blood” was one of the first games to employ the second fire mechanism and a guns akimbo feature which pops up a lot in modern first person shooters.

Maybe the most memorable element of “Blood” is its frequent references to horror and sci-fi culture from the H.P. Lovecraft-inspired gods to quotes from “Army of Darkness” to zombie canisters from “Return of the Living Dead.”  The game is full of great nerd-gasmic Easter eggs and humor on top of all the violence and gore.  It ranks right up there with “Duke Nukem 3D” for being frequently hilarious and fun.

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

Tesla coils are pretty cool all by themselves, but if you add Mario Bros. to that equation, you get some sweet results, like this:

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Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

After surfing the Illusion forums for a bit, I’ve been disappointed to find how few of our posters are familiar with the now-classic NBC series, “ALF.”  “ALF” was not only a hilarious (in a corny sort of way) show with spin-off comics and a Saturday morning cartoon, but also a great piece of sci-fi.  For instance, most people forget in the shuffle of memories that ALF was the title character’s nickname, an acronym for Alien Life Form (like ET, but different).  His name was Gordon Shumway of Melmac, a planet six parsecs past the Hydra-Centaurus Supercluster.  He was taken in by a suburban family, the Tanners, who hid and protected him from government authorities while he tried to find a way home.  Later it was revealed that Melmac had been destroyed in nuclear war, which made ALF the planet’s last survivor (like Superman, but different).  The writers managed to communicate his heartbreak while maintaining the show’s sense of humor.  Season four ended with ALF being captured by the US government with a “To Be Continued” subtitle promising a conclusion to the story.  This conclusion would not come, however, until 1996 when the made for TV movie, “Project ALF,” was aired on ABC. 

Not only does “ALF” make for some good viewing, but the show, the movie, and 9 of the cartoon’s 26 episodes have been released on DVD.  At times the show can be a little strained and the jokes a little dated, but “ALF” was as much ahead as it was a product of its time.  While “Seinfeld” is widely regarded for having a “no hugging, no sharing” writing policy, plenty of “ALF” episodes ended without a moral lesson or some other element of sentimentality.  Just this once, let’s not complain about what’s not on DVD and appreciate what is. 

Socialize:

Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

So I was at the comic store picking up my latest round of “Countdown” and “World War Hulk” tie-ins, and I got to thinking about the good old days.  Remember when major events used to happen in comics, but they told the stories in the regular monthly ongoing books instead of launching four different mini-series and one-shots on top of the tie-ins?  I do, in fact they’re the reason I got into comics in the first place.  With that in mind, I decided to come up with a list of my personal favorite crossovers that managed to get told without sucking an extra ten bucks a week out of my allowance.

5.  “Avengers Disassembled” - This was a great story that had an impact not only on the publishing of the Avengers, but on the rest of the Marvel Universe, and you really only needed to buy “Avengers” to keep up with it.  There were related stories in “Spider-Man” and some of the Avengers’ solo books, but you didn’t have to pick them up to get the gist of things.  “Disassembled” also set up the next two summers’ worth of crossovers: “House of M” and “Civil War,” both of which took longer and cost a lot more money to keep up with.  This is probably the most recent example of the contained crossover with the exception of the current Green Lantern “Sinestro Corps War,” but I ignored it for the moment since that particular story has yet to end.

4.  “Maximum Carnage” - Back when Spider-Man had four monthly titles, Marvel decided to add a quarterly one as well, because they knew we would buy it.  They secured their investment by putting the first and last parts of “Maximum Carnage” in “Spider-Man Unlimited” numbers 1 and 2, respectively.  Marvel never had to put a gun to our heads to get us to buy a Venom or Carnage appearance, but for that summer, New York City ran red while Carnage and his evil gang terrorized the city with Spider-Man, Venom, Black Cat, Captain America and a ton of guest stars in close pursuit, and you were one sad kid if you couldn’t pick up every single issue to see how close Spidey would come to finally putting Cletus Kasady out of business.

3.  “Batman: Knightfall” - Superman had just died, so DC was out of juice.  They couldn’t do anything else to surprise us, until Bane, a villain who scared a whole generation away from steroids, broke the Bat.  We all wondered who could stop him after Bats got taken out of the picture, when all of a sudden a minor anti-hero called “Azrael” took up the mantle, redesigned the Batman costume and cut Bane’s cord.  Not only did Jean Paul Valley make the Batman family as unstable as the Manson family, but this crossover set the stage for a golden age of great summer Batman crossovers. 

2.  “X-Men: X-Tinction Agenda” - Not my personal favorite X-Men crossover, but it set the stage for bigger things to come.  The coolest thing about X-Tinction Agenda is that after years of the X-Teams being a loosely-related scattering of mutants around the world, we finally see them come back together.  This X-over saw the return of X-Factor’s lineup of original X-Men returning to Xavier’s, the last great mission of the New Mutants, who would go on to become X-Force, and the tying-up of loose ends like Storm being turned into a child and Havok losing his memory.  “Agenda” set the tone of the X-Men that catapulted to stardom in the 90’s with the Gold and Blue teams and the ever-expanding X-Family.

1.  “The Death of Superman” - I have a special attachment to this storyline because it’s the reason I started collecting comics.  It was a big thing even in the comics world, though, regardless of what people say now.  Superman got killed, and there wasn’t a miracle cure at the zero hour or some weird time-warp solution.  The Man of Steel was gone.  Not only was it one of the biggest events in comics history, but they managed to tell the whole story without a one-shot or a mini-series.  You just had to pick up a couple of extra issues of the Justice League.  Sure, the whole thing is responsible for inflating the cost of comics and putting the second market under a financial strain that would ultimately burst, but when you think about how DC upped the ante and showed us that even their flagship character could be killed, I think we saw the beginning of a grand tradition.

Socialize:

Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

I didn’t know anything about “Babylon A.D.” until I came across this article from Dark Horizons.  The delay in marketing probably has a great deal to do with a number of issues over the course of the film’s development.  Now that filming is complete, however, director Mathieu Kassovitz (”Gothika”) is butting heads with Fox because they want him to cut the running time from 160 minutes to a maximum of 130 minutes, at least for the American cut.  The film, based on a French novel entitled “Babylon Babies,” is about a mercenary played by Vin Diesel who is hired to escort a young woman and a nun from Russia to China.  What Diesel’s character doesn’t know, however, is that the young woman is host to an organism which is worshipped by a secret cult that wants to use it to produce a genetically modified Messiah.

I usually side with the artist in situations like this, but when the lead in the film is Vin Diesel conversing with Gerard Depardieu and Michelle Yeoh, I can’t see the dialogue holding my attention.  Unless this movie is 160 minutes of explosions caused by Diesel, I would go ahead and edit out almost all dialogue and sub-plots and just focus on laser-sighted gun battles.  You’ll have it down to that 89 minute mark studios love, and you can just release the uncut edition on DVD.  I’ll watch it out of morbid curiosity.  The release isn’t set until August of next year, so we’ll see how this one shakes down.

Socialize:

Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

This has been buzzing around the net this morning, and it’s just screaming for a post. This video is an actual political ad for Christopher Knight during the Rockingham County, North Carolina Board of Education elections. Obviously Mr. Knight loves himself some Star Wars… to say the least. Watch and be amazed.

Socialize:

Originally published at Better Living Through Science Fiction. Please leave any comments there.

After some healthy input from our community forums I’ve compiled a list of the 10 worst Sci-Fi shows ever developed. As always, this list may be incomplete.

THIS LIST HAS MOVED TO THE NEW FORMAT,  CLICK HERE

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