Outlander

Per Omina Saecula sure has the math right on this one:

Beowulf + Predator = *Outlander

I agree. It's gonna upset the history purists as well. A few years from now, we'll have students in medieval literature classes all over the country claiming Grendel was really an alien because they saw this movie.



I will of course sharpen my special mocking quill for this one. I'm sure I can find a few vikings to invade the movie theater with...

*The movie title also kind of upsets me. I'm an "Outlander", meaning I live in the Kingdom of the Outlands in the SCA. Did they ASK our persmission before using it? Noooo...well, that's vikings for you. I think we've been pillaged.

Doomed Sci-Fi TV pilots

I'm not totally a medieval girl - I like the Sci-fi too! I used to watch all kinds of shows on TV like Buck Rogers, which is just uber-cheesy to watch today. The following clips are ALL cheese, with one having a bit of medievalism: Morgan Le Fay. Why she takes orders from a talking Godzilla I can't seem to figure out...

I really appreciate that some network executive yanked these projects before any unsuspecting viewers were harmed. I mean, this much cheese could be fatal.

A little BSG for the Sci-Fi enthusiasts

The FINAL season approacheth...why is it that all the GOOD stuff on TV gets canceled or ends too soon? At least this will have lasted longer than Firefly...



Bring on the Cylons!!

The Future Soon

Nary a post to be seen here in a loooong time... mostly due to life throwing a rod while I was upshifting.

At least I'm pretty sure it's NOT West Nile virus that has taken its toll on me.

But this dark, sick, funny cartoon has broken my spell of despair!

Space Junk

Psssst! Hey, wanna buy a used transport shuttle? Only driven on Sundays! For five decades, space junk from countless films has ended up in a junkyard in North Hollywood, CA. What lost treasures of the silver screen await, glinting in the sun like twinkling stars? Or rusting away into obscurity?

Not the Ariel Ambulance. Not anymore. The Firefly shuttle has been found, reclaimed and is in restoration due to one fan's diligence and desire! Browncoats are nearly as obsessed as SCAdians, so I'm not surprised.

There may come a time when the human race colonizes planets other than Earth. Unfortunately, the technology is not yet available for interstellar travel because I'd be in line for the Mars colony if it were. Then I'd start the first interplanetary SCA Barony. I'd love to be the Baroness of MARS!

I remember hearing a filk song years ago about "Pennsic in space", where Kingdoms were fighting with ships instead of rattan swords. It warms my heart to think the SCA could get intergalacticly medieval. Can you imagine zero-g bellydancing? Cooking with a replicator for an entire feast? Spacewalk fencing?

Maybe I should take a trip out into the junkyard myself, and start tinkering. Anyone got a spare warp drive real cheap? Mars is awfully far away after all. I'd like to be back in time for the weekend.

Star Trek vs. Star Wars

I know that the never ending discussion of 'Which is better? Star Trek or Star Wars?' will never end. But I find this video an amazing example of what you can do with a simple video editor. Too bad it wasn't Kirk though. That would have all the nerds rioting in the streets.




Oh, wait, here's Kirk, giving George Lucas a bit of a roast. Riot away...

A message from Joss Whedon to all Firefly/Serenity fans

Thought I'd repost this missive from the Lord of Sci-Fi. Check out Joss' blog if you simply must read more...

Well boys and girls and boys dressed as girls and girls dressed as Kaylee, the time is almost upon us. This Friday we take that old rust-bucket out of the shipyard and see if she can breach atmo.

It's been a long (to paraphrase a band I like) strange trip, and it'll be nice finally to show everybody what it is we've been tinkering with all this time. You already know you have my thanks, from the hardcore fans to the softcore... fans.... let me try that again. From the people manning the booths, buying DVD sets for their friends, getting banners seen everywhere on Australian TV, raffling artwork for ticketholders (Adam Hughes, take a bow), to the most casual fan who just wants to see the flick and won't ever even read this.

You guys are the fuel in the engine, the Fire in the Fly, the weird green stuff coming out of Serenity's butt. (Hmmm. Forget that last one. I'm a little bit out of control here.) Everyone needs something to keep them going. Mal has his ship. Zoe has her integrity. Jayne has Vera. And I've got you guys.

So what now? There have been so many posts about seeing it, seeing it again, the first weekend, the second weekend, being enthusiastic without being obnoxious (and yes, it IS hard to see over the pom-pom of a Jayne hat), buying tickets in advance, making a noise... I honestly wouldn't know what to add. I can tell you this: the movie will play in about 2200 hundred theaters, which is a good number. Too many, and you get empty theaters with no energy -- not enough, and you get, well, not enough. It may be hard to find in some areas but it'll be out there. Leave no multiplex unturned!

This is going to be a ground war, peeps -- we have to hold the valley for a long while. However it opens, it needs to HOLD. Instead of the Alliance we'll be fighting viewer apathy, fear of something new, the urge to wait for DVD, and Jessica Alba in a bikini. (Although I have it on good authority that she spends 90% of the film in a huge wooly parka. Make sure that gets out.)

The day this puppy opens, I'll be seeing it with my family (don't worry, there's a lot of them, and they're all paying) and then I'm off to Europe to learn the word 'Browncoats' in nine different languages -- 'cause like I said, it's all about holding. I'll never be far from a computer, though, so I can check in with y'all. Thanks for every damn thing.

And remember, amidst all the urgency to make this an event, all the work and the worry, to take two hours and just enjoy yourself. That is, after all, what all this fighting's about.

-joss.

Spaceship chart

Ever wonder just how big your favorite spaceship is?

Here's a handy reference chart.

WHAT?! No Firefly? Aww, man. Somebody needs to update this a bit.

Thanks Publicola, for the heads up on the cool space geekery...

Movie Review - Revenge of the Sith

Nearly 30 years ago, as I sat with my then 30-something parents in our old station wagon at the drive in theater, something wonderful happened...

I became aware of science fiction via the lush and exciting world of "Star Wars". Up until that time it was just fairy tales and Judy Blum, but after, oh my, did I ever want to be a ship's pilot or captain like Han Solo. I had tons of the action figures, and I would play all day long, my body on the earth, but my mind in space.

Come full circle we have with "Revenge of the Sith". I know it's not really the last movie, but it is a damn fine way to wrap up Lucas' vision of this reality.

Technology has come so far since the original Star Wars, that Lucas can now pretty much do anything he wants, limited only by his imagination. Personally I love the new CGI creatures and aliens that he rolls out on each new episode. And the lava effects during the fight between Anakin and Obi-Wan are stunning. Oh, and the WOOKIE ARMY is not to be missed.

This was very entertaining, but maybe it's because I've ALWAYS wanted to see more of the dark side. Most of the other movies have been Jedi-centric, and I always wondered HOW one got to be evil. Were they twisted to begin with? Were they manipulated by other more powerful evils? Did they just have a bad day?

Seriously though, the first time you hear Darth Vader breathing through that black mask ( after being found by Darth Sidious and 'repaired' from his near fatal fight with Obi-Wan ) it will send chills up your spine.

Lucas knows just what to do to illicit emotional responses like this from his audience. There are several moments like this during the movie that you can't help but get caught up in the action. And you get to watch Anakin's fall to evil, which is great. And Jar-Jar never once opens his mouth.

Firefly is coming to the SCI-FI Channel!!

FOX, you could've had a great show on your hands, but nooooooooo, you had to cancel "Firefly" after only ONE Season! Jesus, didn't "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" teach you anything about Joss Whedon?

Well, guess what? The SCI-FI Channel knows what we need, and it's giving it to us!

FIREFLY (FOX) - The Sci Fi Channel has landed the repeat rights to all 15 hours of the short-lived FOX series (and basis of the upcoming "Serenity" feature film). The network's July schedule lists the series as joining its Friday lineup on July 22 at 7:00/6:00c where it will precede original episodes of "Stargate SG-1," "Stargate Atlantis" and "Battlestar Galactica."

Can't wait? Get the whole thing here..

Orbital Nightclub

OrbitalNightclub
Originally uploaded by anachronista.

Space. The Final Frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Anachronista.

Wouldn't it be awfully fun to have an orbital nightclub?

Zero or partial gravity dancing would probably be very interesting. How would drinks be served? In packets?

Until we've got the real thing, I'll stick with Second Life. At least there you don't die horribly if you happen to fall out of the airlock.