Sci Fi Alert

I never got past book four of Terry Goodkind’s Sword of Truth series.  It just got too boring and convoluted for me.  However, I have to say I continue looking forward to seeing the new series based on the books, Legend of the Seeker.  ABC Studios has released a new photo of the series’ two young stars.  While I think Bridget Regan is perfectly cast in the role of Kahlan, I’m still not sold on Craig Horner.  Regan, in many ways, matches my mind’s picture of Kahlan; Horner not so much.  One, he’s not that attract; and two, he’s too short.  I always pictures Richard Cypher as a tall, muscular guy and Horner just doesn’t match that picture.  Regardless, he’s the one who’s been cast and good acting can make up for imperfect casting.  The series premieres November 1 in syndication.

I guess it was inevitable.  With The Dark Knight now the second high grossing film of all time (second only to Titanic), Warner Brothers is talking about a Superman reboot.  While I actually liked Superman Returns I can see why the studio would want a reboot.  If Batman can gross $400+ million, then why can’t Superman, especially if they take the dark road the two most recent Batman films have taken?
There are some real problems with this idea.  Let’s start with Batman Begins, which barely gross $200 million in the US. Considering the popularity of the Joker I would have expected The Dark Knight to outgross its predecessor, but I really think the reason it has gross over $400 million has a lot to do with the sad death of Heath Ledger.  Would it have done as well if Ledger has lived?  Sure, probably in the $250-$300 million range, but I don’t think it $400 million range.  So I think the success of The Dark Knight is an anomaly, not the norm.
Second, while the mythology of Batman lends itself to the dark knight/vigilante type of film, Superman is not, and has never been, that type of character.  The guy who stand for truth, justice, and the American Way (whatever that means in the 21st century) cannot be like the avenging angel, Batman.
Does that mean a more stark and realistic Superman cannot be made?  No.  In fact, when you look at Superman II, before Warner Brothers got scared and pushed out the original director in order to make a more campy film, you can how Superman might be able to go a little darker.  Even with the campiness there are some dark moments in Superman II:  when Clark is beaten after giving up his powers for Lois; the fight in Metropolis when Zod and his cohorts practically destroy the city, not caring how many innocent are hurt in the process; and the brief moment when we think they may have killed Superman.  It little darker than Superman: The Movie, but not the violent work of The Dark Knight.
Director Bryan Singer has talked about going “all Wrath of Khan” on his proposed sequel by introducing the villain Brainiac to the feature films for the first time.  Star Trek II is another great example of how a sequel can go darker without forgetting it’s roots, humor, and mythology.  The character of Brainiac would be a great villain for the films.  When considered the character’s history to Superman’s home planet of Krypton.  How exciting would it be to see Kandor, Krypton’s capital city, torn from the planet and shrunk down small enough to fit in a bottle?!
If Warner Brothers decided to go ultra dark with Superman I think that would be a mistake.  But I’m not a high paid studio executive, so what the hell do I know?

I may be that I’m being too hard on Sci Fi about the decision not to renew Atlantis. Given their track record with ruining good series, I don’t feel a lot of remorse.
Based on multiple articles I’ve read, it seems it was a mutual decision on the part of Sci Fi and MGM to end Atlantis while it was still on top (in terms of basic cable ratings). That’s probably a good thing when you stand back and look at it. If we could get one or two Stargate movies a year on DVD along with a new series that could be good for the franchise. There is a point to be made about brand saturation, but I don’t think Stargate has reached that level yet. Only time will tell.

I guess  now we know why Atlantis was given the boot.  Sci Fi announced today they have given the green light to a new Staragate series called Stargate Universe.  According to Sci FI Wire, “Universe introduces a new team of explorers who find an ancient unmanned ship called the Destiny. Unable to return to Earth, the crew must fend for themselves aboard the ship, which has a pre-programmed mission taking them to the far reaches of the universe.”  Gee, sounds a lot like Star Trek Voyager.  I guess beggars can’t be choosers.  I was lamenting my lack of a Stargate fix a few days ago and now Sci Fi is giving me what I want.  All I can do now is tune in and see what it’s all about.
Gateworld has more news here.

Everyone seems to be putting a happy face on the cancellation of Stargate: Atlantis, but it still seems like a bad decision on the part of Sci Fi.  I mean, what else do they have giving viewers a reason to tune in?  I’m not one of those people who thinks a series should go on and on until no one is watching.  I always thought it was a wise decision on the part of the Star Trek series to end after 7 season and I think Stargate SG-1 should have ended at season eight, but it just seems like Atlantis is calling it quits too soon.  Surely, another couple of years would have been good.  Oh, well, no use crying over spilt milk.

I don’t know what to think about this.  When you read this article everyone seems happy that the series is being cancelled, but it seems completely out of the blue.  With Atlantis pulling in some of its best numbers it seems like a bad time to take it off the air.  But according to producers, Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie, this is actually a good thing for the series.  Maybe that’s true, but I sure hate to see Atlantis leave the air.
I find myself asking just what Sci Fi will have on the air.  They let BSG go (but I still think it was time) and now Atlantis. I know we have Sanctuary coming in October, which I’m looking forward to, and the BSG prequel Caprica (and even though I very interested in this series I wonder if it can last past one season), but what else?  I mean, I like Eureka, but I consider that a comedy not a science fiction series.  Atlantis was really the last science fiction series Sci Fi had on the air.  Maybe they’re making room for some new and interesting series, but I won’t hold my breath.
Other articles here and here.

John Scalzi’s Old Man’s War is one those books I resisted reading for a long time.  Every time I read a review of Old Man’s War it was compared to the novels of Robert Heinlein and I’m no fan of Heinlein.  The only book of his I can stand was Stranger in a Strange Land, and I really enjoyed that one.  I couldn’t stand the Lazarus Long novels; the ideas of Starship Trooper, which said that citizens should put their well-being into the hands of government in return for the privilege to vote, offended me (but that was Heinlein’s point considering his political view, which was ever changing, at that point in his life); and with the exception of Have Spacesuit Will Travel, I found his juveniles stupid.  I’m getting off the subject here, but you see my point.
Well, a friend finally pushed me to read Old Man’s War and I’m glad I did. I’m not sure where the Heinlein references come from.  Sure, like Starship Troopers, Old Man’s War is in a military setting but unlike Troopers this novel has a more realistic view of the military and a healthy bit of questioning by our characters about what they’re doing and why.  The intriguing concept of this novel is that in this universe Earth has spread across the galaxy and the only way you can see the universe (if your not chosen to be a colonist) is join the Colonial Defense Force at the age of 75.  When you join you’re given a brand new, younger body, but this body has been genetically engineered to be a kick-ass fighter.
Scalzi spends a lot of time in settuing up his concept.  We spend several chapters introducing the main protagonist, John Perry, and several more chapters getting to know the people he meets followed alongthe  process of aclamating both us and the characters to their new surroundings, their new bodies.  There was a lot of humor in this part of the novel as these 75-year-old people experiment with their new, younger bodies.  From acrobatic sex to extreme sports these once old people go crazy with their new bodies.
Once we get to the military part of the novel, which is actually a smaller part of the book than I thought it would be, it goes by very quickly.  This is where the comparisons to Starship Troopers come into play.  There are bloody battles and the soldiers see it as their honor and duty to serve in the CDF, but there’s also a healthy dose of skepticism that you don’t find in Heinlein’s love-letter to a government-run society.  Scalzi also doesn’t spend and extreme amount of time on battle scenes, which makes the read go by quicker.  Really, the battle scenes are little more than vignettes that track Perry’s progress as he moves up the military chain of command.
Overall, I found Old Man’s War to be a satisfying novel on many levels.  There are great characters you can relate to, there’s an intriguing and original universe, and it’s just an interesting concept.  I look forward to reading the sequel, The Ghost Brigade.

Normally, military science fiction is not my thing.  Really, the only military sci-fi I’ve stuck with for any long period of time has been David Weber’s Honor Harrington series and that has more to do with Weber’s wonderful characterizations and great writing.  This summer I’ve found myself enthralled by two military science fiction series.  The first is The Lost Fleet by Jack Campbell (pen name of John G. Hemry) and Old Man’s War by John Scalzi.
So far, I’ve read the first three books in Hemry’s projected six-book series, The Lost Fleet.  The first book, Dauntless, which is the name of the command ship of the lost fleet in question introduces us to an intriguing universe and a very interesting lead character in Captain John “Black Jack” Geary.  Geary was believed to have died a century ago but was actually kept alive in cryogenic sleep.  Discovered by the fleet with his cryogenic unit on the verge failure, Geary is revived into a world and war he doesn’t know — he’s a century out of date.  Through an unexpected occurrence Geary is named commander of the fleet when all the senior military leaders are murdered by the Syndics, a group of worlds that bears a not-so-subtle resemblance to the Communist states of the old or modern China.
The books follow Geary’s attempts to get the battered fleet home while at the same time trying to do as much damage to the Syndic forces, keep his fleet intact, and stay one step ahead of the commanders in his fleet who resent his presence.  I would not call The Lost Fleet great science fiction writing.  In fact, it bears a small resemblance to Battlestar Galactica and utilizes some old, but tried and true, science fiction plot devices.  Where the books succeed is in the main protagonist, John Geary, who is a man raised and trained in a very different time.  Dropped into a fleet that is battle weary and allowed itself to push aside the laws of war in the name of victory at any cost, Geary must slowly instill pride and honor that’s long been forgotten.  
Another area where the books succeed is the adherence to a stricter set of science than you find in most science fiction.  There is faster than light travel, but it’s through jump gates.  There is no instantaneous information like what you see in Star Trek — no view screen to monitor battles.  Information is limited by the time it takes the information to travel at the speed of light know, which is measured by “light minutes.” Unfortunately, this is also one of the negatives for me.  A good portion of each book, sometimes more than half, is spent in battle descriptions that seem to happen in real time, which bogs down story movement.
Even with those minor negative points I’ve become addicted to The Lost Fleet.  I eagerly await the opportunity read book four, Valiant.  For anyone who likes great military space opera science fiction should like these novels.

It doesn’t fall into the category of science fiction so I never talk about one of my favorite series currently on television, Burn Notice.  Since the series came back for its excellent second season we’ve been treated to Cylon Number Six, Tricia Helfer, in an excellent recurring role and this past week we got Michael Shanks in the first of a four-episode arc as the dangerous Victor.  Much like his small role in 24 a couple years ago, it was nice to see Shanks playing something very different from Daniel Jackson and once again he did a great job.  Victor is an interesting character and will definitely be fun to watch.  The best thing that could happen would be an episode featuring not only Shanks but Helfer, as well.  I’m crossing my fingers.

***SPOILERS***
So this was the episode they tried to get Torri Higginson to be a part of?  Well, it’s a damn shame they couldn’t get her back.  I completely understand why Higginson felt betrayed by the producers and refused to return, but this episode would have been so much better, more poignant, if she could have been there.
The basic premise is the Replicator discovered a way to send their consciousness into subspace as a way to mimic Ascension, but it turns out to be a complete disaster and now they are looking for a way to get back into their bodies.  That brings Replicator Weir back to Atlantis where she pretty much takes control and gets a body.  Unfortunately, it’s the body of FRAN (from the fantastic episode “Be All My Sins Remember’d”) so the team isn’t ready to believe she’s Weir.  I have to give Michelle Morgan credit for capturing some of Higginson’s Weir characteristics.
After the rest Weir’s replicator buddies show up and attempt to sink Atlantis, the team allows them to create new bodies, and of course they turn on the team. Mayhem ensues but FRAN/Weir saves the day.  This brings us to the lamest part of what could have been a really good episode.  After spending the entire episode telling us how dangerous the Replicators are and how it would be terrible unleash them on the galaxy once again.  Yet, in the end, FRAN/Weir and the team decide the best way to deal with the last remnants of the Replicator race is to gate into the middle of space!  So do they think no one will find them? 
Other than that lame ending this really was a good episode.  It would have been so much better if they could have gotten Weir back.

I will admit that when I first heard about Ron Moore’s newest sci-fi project, Virtuality, I wasn’t too taken with the idea, but with more information coming out I have to say it sounds intriguing.  Outside of Star Trek, heck even when he was a writer for Star Trek, Moore is not know for writing “the usual” science fiction.  At first, Virtuality sounds like a rip-off of other sci-fi concepts, and maybe it is, but it sounds interesting enough that I’m definitely going to take a look.

Universal announced today that they’ve optioned the film rights to Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series.  It’s about time someone optioned these; although, I’m worried about the idea of turning them into motion pictures instead of mini-series.  If a Peter Jackson type came along and went Lord of the Rings on these books I might be less worried.  I mean, the first few book could be turned into two hours movies, but even then they would need serious cutting.  The later, no way, not unless they cut some characters and plot lines.  Of course, if these turn out to be hugely successful films like LotR then I’m sure Universal will be more willing to do them right.

Maybe I’m just too old, but I think the animation for The Clone Wars movie and television series looks like total crap.  When I first saw an advertisement for Clone Wars I thought it was an ad for one of those LEGO video games.

TrekMovie.com has posted new pictures of four more characters from the upcoming Star Trek film.  I have to admit I’m not all that sold on these new actors playing the classic roles.  Some seem perfect, Zoe Saldana and Zachary Quinto are two examples, but others just seem like odd choices.  Chris Pine is one actor I’m not sold on in the role of Captain Kirk.  In part this is because of William Shatner.  He performance in that role, while over the top, is iconic and not something anyone should try to imitate.  Unlike some of the other actors, Pine will have to create his own version of Captain Kirk and see how the fan base reacts.
Karl Urban is another one who may be in that same position.  With a great actor like DeForest Kelley to live up to it would be hard for anyone to step into his shoes.  Kelley’s performance is no less iconic than Shatner’s but not for the same over the top reasons.  Kelley was simply a great actor put in a role that was perfect for him.  Urban, is an Australian actor who many might remember from The Two Towers and The Return of King, but who might be most remembered by genre fans for playing the blond, diaper-wearing Cupid on Xena: Warrior Princess.  It will be interesting to see what he brings to the role.

When I was kid, my younger brother and I sat down one night to watch V.  He and I, most of our friends, and a good chunk of the country were glued to the sets and were collectively shocked when the big reveal happened.  V certainly isn’t great science fiction but it was a lot of fun and step above most of what you found on television in 1983. Now, it looks like the powers that be want to remake V for the 21st century.  I’m not all that sure how that would turn out.  I’m sure it would be a good film, maybe even successful, but the great thing about the original was the shocking plot twist that revealed what “The Visitors” really were.  Sure, it’s been 25 years since that miniseries aired, but still most people know the original.