Good morning, gentle readers ... and -- yes, yes, yes -- it's yet one more Monday on the road of life! Woohoo! Why not go and greet it with both arms open wide? Embrace it! Embrace the challenges that go with it, big and small. No matter what you think, it's certainly better than the alternative, am I right?
And how was your weekend? Did you squeeze in every possible bit of rejuvenation that was humanly possible? I know that I did. Well ... to be fair ... it isn't as if I did tons of things. The wifey and I caught a Saturday afternoon matinee of the (non-SciFi) film The Holdovers. We'd wanted to see it since it came out to positive reviews, but we hadn't had the time. Before you knew it, the flick was gone from the cineplexes, but then the recent Academy Awards announcements gave it a little bit of second life, and we jumped at the chance. How was it? Well ... meh. One critic had proclaimed it good enough to be inserted into the regular holiday season as an 'all-new classic,' and (sorry) I'd strongly disagree with that. Don't get me wrong: we enjoyed it, but it was a bit long, a bit slow, and a bit really depressing in spots. The holiday vibe is really one of the things that saved it from being a bit too formulaic -- in my opinion -- and, still, I wouldn't christen it as a must-see every silly season. It's definitely the kind of production that Hollywood used to embrace on a pretty regular basis, so I'm happy for that. Otherwise? Meh.
Sunday evening, I found a film I'd read about on Netflix -- Orbiter 9 -- and I watched that (as the wife was away). It was quite good -- not at all what I was expecting -- and I'll probably pen a short review on it this morning. As a SciFi, it also had a touch of romance along with a healthy side of conspiracy whatnot; and it was exceedingly well put together. A solid thumbs up experience.
And how was your weekend? Did you squeeze in every possible bit of rejuvenation that was humanly possible? I know that I did. Well ... to be fair ... it isn't as if I did tons of things. The wifey and I caught a Saturday afternoon matinee of the (non-SciFi) film The Holdovers. We'd wanted to see it since it came out to positive reviews, but we hadn't had the time. Before you knew it, the flick was gone from the cineplexes, but then the recent Academy Awards announcements gave it a little bit of second life, and we jumped at the chance. How was it? Well ... meh. One critic had proclaimed it good enough to be inserted into the regular holiday season as an 'all-new classic,' and (sorry) I'd strongly disagree with that. Don't get me wrong: we enjoyed it, but it was a bit long, a bit slow, and a bit really depressing in spots. The holiday vibe is really one of the things that saved it from being a bit too formulaic -- in my opinion -- and, still, I wouldn't christen it as a must-see every silly season. It's definitely the kind of production that Hollywood used to embrace on a pretty regular basis, so I'm happy for that. Otherwise? Meh.
Sunday evening, I found a film I'd read about on Netflix -- Orbiter 9 -- and I watched that (as the wife was away). It was quite good -- not at all what I was expecting -- and I'll probably pen a short review on it this morning. As a SciFi, it also had a touch of romance along with a healthy side of conspiracy whatnot; and it was exceedingly well put together. A solid thumbs up experience.
Folks, like so many of you, I had an immeasureable fondness for a whole lot of Star Trek. I grew up watching the original in TV syndication as a young guy, and Star Trek: The Next Generation had enough of the old and the new to make it appointment viewing throughout its entire run. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had its moments, too -- as did Star Trek: Voyager -- but I just couldn't quite get into Star Trek: Enterprise's vibe. I gave it two seasons, and I've even tuned in and watched some of what came after that; but it just didn't quite preserve the magic the way those earlier incarnations did.
Still -- also like many of you -- I can see a stinker for what it is ... and, sure, Trek has had a few of those along the way.
In fact, one of the episodes of Star Trek TNG that's been almost universally dubbed as "one of the worst hours of the entire franchise run" turns an astonishing 30 years young today: on this day all the way back in 1994, Beverly Crusher came centerstage in the horrifically looney "Sub Rosa," a Gothic-style (kinda/sorta) ghost story (kinda/sorta) that gave her a spectral entity as a would-be lover. Good Lord, how many non-Trek elements can you pile into a single hour? Well, "Sub Rosa" would have you believe all of them, and it was just so terribly inadequate you won't imagine until you see it ... if you dare.
To compound matters for the Trek legacy, the franchise also endured another blemish to its complexion when on this day back in 1996 Tom Paris and Captain Kathryn Janeway found themselves not only turned into giant salamanders but also copulating (talk about your unprofessional relationships on the job) in an adventure called "Threshold." Good grief, was that another tepid assault on our senses or what? I know, I know, I know: there are folks in Trekdom who think "Threshold" is actually an interesting idea, and so be it. As I always say, to each his own. But for me? No thank you very much. No, no, no thank you very much.
Still -- also like many of you -- I can see a stinker for what it is ... and, sure, Trek has had a few of those along the way.
In fact, one of the episodes of Star Trek TNG that's been almost universally dubbed as "one of the worst hours of the entire franchise run" turns an astonishing 30 years young today: on this day all the way back in 1994, Beverly Crusher came centerstage in the horrifically looney "Sub Rosa," a Gothic-style (kinda/sorta) ghost story (kinda/sorta) that gave her a spectral entity as a would-be lover. Good Lord, how many non-Trek elements can you pile into a single hour? Well, "Sub Rosa" would have you believe all of them, and it was just so terribly inadequate you won't imagine until you see it ... if you dare.
To compound matters for the Trek legacy, the franchise also endured another blemish to its complexion when on this day back in 1996 Tom Paris and Captain Kathryn Janeway found themselves not only turned into giant salamanders but also copulating (talk about your unprofessional relationships on the job) in an adventure called "Threshold." Good grief, was that another tepid assault on our senses or what? I know, I know, I know: there are folks in Trekdom who think "Threshold" is actually an interesting idea, and so be it. As I always say, to each his own. But for me? No thank you very much. No, no, no thank you very much.
The older one gets, the more one's prone to look back at formative years and realize, yes, we had it pretty good.
And back in my day, gentle readers, actor Marc Singer was one of the genre heavyweights to rule the big and small screens. I realize that maybe TV's V wasn't exactly up-to-snuff, as they say, but for those of us who dug it Marc Singer was the adventurous lead we needed for the time and the place. Launched by two successful miniseries and morphed into a single season on broadcast television, V put a modern spin essentially on the whole 'War Of The Worlds' idea by having the Visitors take over our world with their charm instead of those huge tripods of the H.G. Wells tale. Humans actually joined forces with them, so it became increasingly difficult to know who to trust, and this is what made for some compelling stories. Heck -- if I remember correctly -- the program had a series of novels to flesh out the idea some; and there was even a short-lived comic book series.
But V wasn't Singer's only foray into the realms of the Fantastic, and fantasy fans definitely remember him as the hunky Dar in The Beastmaster franchise. The first movie was popular enough to spawn two lesser sequels, and there was even a short-lived television series that expanded upon the man's abilities to 'talk to the animals' in ways each of us wish we could do. While I wasn't a huge fan of the first film, it does have its charm; and I'd never say it isn't worth the time. It's a fun flick, but it doesn't have the textual depth that Conan The Barbarian or even Conan The Destroyer mustered in their time on the silver screen. Consider yourself warned.
And back in my day, gentle readers, actor Marc Singer was one of the genre heavyweights to rule the big and small screens. I realize that maybe TV's V wasn't exactly up-to-snuff, as they say, but for those of us who dug it Marc Singer was the adventurous lead we needed for the time and the place. Launched by two successful miniseries and morphed into a single season on broadcast television, V put a modern spin essentially on the whole 'War Of The Worlds' idea by having the Visitors take over our world with their charm instead of those huge tripods of the H.G. Wells tale. Humans actually joined forces with them, so it became increasingly difficult to know who to trust, and this is what made for some compelling stories. Heck -- if I remember correctly -- the program had a series of novels to flesh out the idea some; and there was even a short-lived comic book series.
But V wasn't Singer's only foray into the realms of the Fantastic, and fantasy fans definitely remember him as the hunky Dar in The Beastmaster franchise. The first movie was popular enough to spawn two lesser sequels, and there was even a short-lived television series that expanded upon the man's abilities to 'talk to the animals' in ways each of us wish we could do. While I wasn't a huge fan of the first film, it does have its charm; and I'd never say it isn't worth the time. It's a fun flick, but it doesn't have the textual depth that Conan The Barbarian or even Conan The Destroyer mustered in their time on the silver screen. Consider yourself warned.
And yet, folks, there's more ... there's a lot more ... all of it you can be thankful for and worthy of celebrating on this day in Science Fiction History. I point it out, well, because that's what I do here. That's my day job, as they say, and I'm thrilled to share it with all of you. By all means, head on over to the Daily Citation Page and check it out. There's a lot waiting for your discovery. Here's the helpful link ...
As always, thanks for reading ... thanks for sharing ... thanks for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
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