Good morning, gentle readers, and welcome me back from a brief respite from the daily responsibilities that are the maintenance of SciFiHistory.Net!
Did you miss me?
Did you even notice I was gone?
Ahhhh. The trials and tribulations of a daily blogger. I know, I know, I know ... "If you were a vlogger, we would've noticed, but you old school types who still insist on slinging words just don't get all the glory ..." I know. Such is the case. But I had a medical test this week that wiped me out (nothing serious, so don't fret), and then I had a lot of volunteer stuff that tied me up on Friday. This is the first I'm actually even getting to the blog in about two days, but I'm thrilled to be back in the saddle, as they say. I've missed it.
Nothing all that much to report from the last few days, though, that's true. I haven't had the time to even check into The Archives to see if I had anything of substance I needed to add for today, so this post is going out there onto the Information Superhighway exactly as I type it right now. So lemme take a quick gander and see what ruckus I was muster.
Did you miss me?
Did you even notice I was gone?
Ahhhh. The trials and tribulations of a daily blogger. I know, I know, I know ... "If you were a vlogger, we would've noticed, but you old school types who still insist on slinging words just don't get all the glory ..." I know. Such is the case. But I had a medical test this week that wiped me out (nothing serious, so don't fret), and then I had a lot of volunteer stuff that tied me up on Friday. This is the first I'm actually even getting to the blog in about two days, but I'm thrilled to be back in the saddle, as they say. I've missed it.
Nothing all that much to report from the last few days, though, that's true. I haven't had the time to even check into The Archives to see if I had anything of substance I needed to add for today, so this post is going out there onto the Information Superhighway exactly as I type it right now. So lemme take a quick gander and see what ruckus I was muster.
The name of Ray Liotta isn't one that's even remotely associated with the worlds of Science Fiction and Fantasy, but for those of who not following quite so closely as I am the talented actor did step into its confines: on this day back in 1994 -- an astonishing thirty years ago today -- he graced the silver screen in a little something-something called No Escape.
Now, I'm not sure how much of a wide release this film got. It seems to me that it, largely, was a small feature that came and went pretty quickly. It didn't muster up a whole lot of fanfare. I suppose there are multiple reasons for such a fate, but -- for my two cents -- it's the kind of thing that SciFi and Fantasy does over and over again. Basically, it's a yarn about the descent of civilization into chaos -- all given a largely Apocalyptic backdrop -- and sometimes it's hard to even get the most ardent fans riled up to see more of the same. I know that I didn't get the chance to see this one in theaters, and I hadn't seen it in its entirety until I received a complimentary new release of it back in 2022. Once I had, I was very glad to have seen it, as it's honestly the kind of thing that -- despite having enduring such circumstances before -- I honestly almost always enjoy.
Having Ray Liotta in it?
Well, the actor did very well in it. I don't think it was much of a stretch for him, exactly, but he still showed up, hit his marks, and made the picture better for being in it.
But, yes, I think it's safe to suggest that genre -- from time-to-time -- overdoes it, repeats an awful lot of the same ideas and stories -- so a bit of, say, Apocalypse fatigue probably sets in on occasion and hurts the forward progress of a smaller feature.
If you haven't seen this one, then you're still encouraged to check it out.
Now, I'm not sure how much of a wide release this film got. It seems to me that it, largely, was a small feature that came and went pretty quickly. It didn't muster up a whole lot of fanfare. I suppose there are multiple reasons for such a fate, but -- for my two cents -- it's the kind of thing that SciFi and Fantasy does over and over again. Basically, it's a yarn about the descent of civilization into chaos -- all given a largely Apocalyptic backdrop -- and sometimes it's hard to even get the most ardent fans riled up to see more of the same. I know that I didn't get the chance to see this one in theaters, and I hadn't seen it in its entirety until I received a complimentary new release of it back in 2022. Once I had, I was very glad to have seen it, as it's honestly the kind of thing that -- despite having enduring such circumstances before -- I honestly almost always enjoy.
Having Ray Liotta in it?
Well, the actor did very well in it. I don't think it was much of a stretch for him, exactly, but he still showed up, hit his marks, and made the picture better for being in it.
But, yes, I think it's safe to suggest that genre -- from time-to-time -- overdoes it, repeats an awful lot of the same ideas and stories -- so a bit of, say, Apocalypse fatigue probably sets in on occasion and hurts the forward progress of a smaller feature.
If you haven't seen this one, then you're still encouraged to check it out.
One other significant reason for genre fans to celebrate February 24th is that the day is the birthday of Edward James Olmos, who appeared aboard Ridley Scott's Blade Runner and pretty much was one of the big headliners for the Syfy-produced re-imagination of the classic Battlestar Galactica.
Olmos as Adama was a great casting choice. While I've admitted time and time again that I wasn't a big fan of this particular reincarnation (I didn't hate it, it just didn't do as much for me as did the original), I've always thought that it had, arguably, one of the best casts in TV SciFi/Dramas of record, and that's saying something considering the wealth of talent that comes our way. Olmos had this measure of gravitas that blessed the production with the level of respectability I think it deserved, and, yes, it was great to see what he could do with some pretty dynamic material.
And don't hate me because I'm an old dog, kiddies, just like Olmos was in this show: I happen to prefer the younger version -- the one who had far more nuance in Blade Runner -- to the elder. Not putting him down in any respect. As I said above, the newfangled BSG just went a bit too obviously political in ways I didn't think really advanced any of its core ideas, but I'm going to leave it at that.
Happy birthday, Mr. Olmos!
Olmos as Adama was a great casting choice. While I've admitted time and time again that I wasn't a big fan of this particular reincarnation (I didn't hate it, it just didn't do as much for me as did the original), I've always thought that it had, arguably, one of the best casts in TV SciFi/Dramas of record, and that's saying something considering the wealth of talent that comes our way. Olmos had this measure of gravitas that blessed the production with the level of respectability I think it deserved, and, yes, it was great to see what he could do with some pretty dynamic material.
And don't hate me because I'm an old dog, kiddies, just like Olmos was in this show: I happen to prefer the younger version -- the one who had far more nuance in Blade Runner -- to the elder. Not putting him down in any respect. As I said above, the newfangled BSG just went a bit too obviously political in ways I didn't think really advanced any of its core ideas, but I'm going to leave it at that.
Happy birthday, Mr. Olmos!
As always, there's more ... in fact, there's a lot more ... over on the Daily Citation Page for February 24th, 2024, and this is the point wherein I encourage everyone to go and check it out ... but I'm always going to take this small opportunity to encourage readers to help me out ... if you know of any other event (birthdays, movie releases, TV airings, etc.) that could be added to this space, don't ever hesitate to drop me a line, eh? I bring this up because someone did so recently but did so rather ... erm ... quietly ... unsure of whether or not he felt it was the right thing to do. Folks, I'm always on the lookout for stuff to add to the space, but mine are only two eyes. If you see something or you know something or even if you're an actor, director, producer, whatever, etc., and would like to see something added to the appropriate page, then I'm always listening. Never hesitate to drop me a line. It never hurts to ask, no matter the topic.
Lastly ... as always, thank you for reading ... thank you for sharing ... thank you for being a fan ... and live long and prosper!
-- EZ
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