TV – Page 2 – The Science Fiction Review

Flash Forward Thursdays on ABCFlash Forward Thursdays on ABC

September 26, 2009| Stettin| 0 Comment| 4:52 pm

Flash Forward

When I first heard of Flash Forward, I was intrigued. Time travel stories always have piqued my interest. This new show isn’t a typical time travel story. One day all of humanity is knocked unconscious, and most of them see what appear to be hallucinations (2:17 minutes worth) of the future. The rest of this pilot episode is the main characters picking up the pieces from the fallout of this event. Can you imagine the scale of destruction if that would really happen? Interestingly enough, by the end of the day everyone is home and contemplating what their visions actually mean. I would think they’d be busy cleaning stuff up for weeks after all of the crashes and looting that took place. I’m not sure if it was poor scripting or what, but quite a few times I felt like I was being spoon-fed information and “insights” as the actors tried to piece things together.

For example, some of the visions were disturbing. They didn’t like what they saw and were afraid the vision of the future would come true. The flipside of this is also touched on, but what about those that had no vision? Also, how will seeing the future affect the future? It is apparent that some will fight FOR the future, while others will fight AGAINST it. Who will win? Can both sides succeed? I am waiting to see how the writers can add a unique twist of their own.

Anyway, give it a try and judge for yourself.

Flash Forward – No More Good Days – Full Episode

President Obama depressed after the Battlestar Galactica Series FinalePresident Obama depressed after the Battlestar Galactica Series Finale

April 4, 2009| Stettin| 0 Comment| 1:49 pm

If you read my last post, I was a bit disappointed now that Battlestar Galactica is over. I’m glad I’m not the only one!

I guess we’ll all have to wait until the new content comes out.

News story link

What The Frack Starbuck? Are you FRAKKING kidding me!? – The Battlestar Galactica Series FinaleWhat The Frack Starbuck? Are you FRAKKING kidding me!? – The Battlestar Galactica Series Finale

March 21, 2009| Stettin| 0 Comment| 11:18 pm

First, let me say that Battlestar Galactica is by far my favorite Sci-Fi TV series of all time. I was addicted from the beginning of the 2003 miniseries and followed it up until the series finale this week. I liked it so much that prior to season 4.5, I re-watched all of the previous seasons so I would have them all fresh in my mind. In doing so, I managed to get my wife addicted as well and took her along for the ride. I highly recommend everyone watch the entire series.

Let me start off with a huge ***SPOILER ALERT***

continue past the break for my rant 🙂 (more…)

Star Wars The Clone Wars directed by Dave FiloniStar Wars The Clone Wars directed by Dave Filoni

November 11, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comment| 8:33 pm

I was a bit torn when I heard that the first installment of the new CGI Clone Wars TV series would be released in theaters. My first thought was that George Lucas was trying to milk Star Wars fans for even more money. I’d like to think of myself as a pretty loyal Star Wars fan, but to a point. Let me give you a little background on my Star Wars movie collection before I move on to the review.
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Slave Leia outfit to be featured on Deal or No Deal April 28thSlave Leia outfit to be featured on Deal or No Deal April 28th

April 18, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comments| 9:14 pm

I’m not a big fan of rehashing old game shows, but I will have to make an exception very soon. Deal or No Deal will be having a Star Wars theme on Monday April 28th at 8PM Eastern Time. The highlight for me will be the dozens of models in Slave Leia outfits. Hopefully my wife will understand when I tell her this episode can’t be missed. Aside from the Slave Leia outfits, Darth Vader will be the banker and Chewbacca and R2D2 are supposed to show up some time as well. Carrie Fisher (the original Leia) will even play some type of role. I think that Lucas is trying to drum up some more PR in preparation of the new Clone Wars series and theater premier. Found via TVGuide

This news story reminded me of a website I ran across a few years back. If dozens of models on TV in Slave Leia costumes isn’t enough for you, head over to the Leia’s Metal Bikini homepage. The link has some PG-13 pictures, nothing you wouldn’t be able to see on broadcast TV. There are links to plans for making the costume or even ordering it pre-made. Off of the video page I noticed the Slave Leia girls had a massive photo shoot at Star Wars Celebration IV last year. How did I miss this? Check out the video at GameTrailers.

—edit—

Well, the episode aired and I noticed the folks at Collider updated their post with video from the episode. Head over there and check it out.

Beyond the Red Line – A Battlestar Galactica flight simulatorBeyond the Red Line – A Battlestar Galactica flight simulator

April 16, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comment| 7:49 pm

Ok, I’m going a little bit Battlestar Galactica crazy this week. This made me look up an old project that I found during Season 3. Just over a year ago I ran across an amazing new demo of Beyond the Red Line (BtRL). This flight simulator uses the revamped Freespace 2 Engine and a TON of fan made models and mods. There are only 3 campaign missions, but there is multi-player support. I played this a lot back in November/December of 06. Sometime after that I moved on to other things, partially because it became harder to find good multi-player games to join. It looks like the developers have kept up their hard work, and have been rewarded with the #1 Independent Game of the Year for 2007 over at ModDB. (more…)

Battlestar Galactica is back with Season 4Battlestar Galactica is back with Season 4

April 15, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comment| 4:38 pm

I didn’t realize that Battlestar Galactica Season 4 technically started with the Razor double episode. I guess they needed to satisfy starving BSG fans because we’d have to wait until April this year for the rest of the season to pick up. I debated between waiting until season 4 was done, then watching season 1-4 back to back or just watch the new ones as they come out. I discussed this dilemma with my wife, and she suggested I just watch them as they come out, then I could do both. That sounded like a good plan, because I found I don’t have the willpower to wait. I’ve watched the first 2 episodes (following Razor), and I’m hooked once again. At the end of season 3 I was pretty sure who the last Cylon model was, but now anyone seems to be fair game. Many fans have whined about BSG ending with season 4, but I don’t agree with them. I’d rather have 4 good solid seasons than have it dragged out like Stargate SG-1. Check out Sci Fi Channel’s BSG page for more info, or the video page to watch the last 2 full episodes at Sci Fi Rewind. Actually, they have the last 3 episodes of season 3 as well. For Razor, you’ll have to catch it on TV, find recording, or check out the unrated extended dvd.

Battlestar Galactica Razor (2007)Battlestar Galactica Razor (2007)

April 9, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comment| 7:46 pm

It had been a few months since I watched Battlestar Galactica: Razor, so I figured I would watch it once more before finally reviewing it. I of course watched the Unrated Extended version. I wonder why they even bother releasing the regular cuts. Does anyone buy them? Anyway, I’m just a bit behind because I wanted to review it prior to the season 4 premier. There are four separate storylines told with lots of flashbacks involved.

From the Battlestar Wiki:

William Adama’s mission at the end of the first Cylon War.
Helena Cain’s loss of her family at the same time.
The events on Pegasus during and shortly after the Fall of the Twelve Colonies.
The events surrounding the Battle of the Guardian basestar, set in the time period between “The Captain’s Hand” and “Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I”. (more…)

So I have been a bit behind with my reviewsSo I have been a bit behind with my reviews

February 7, 2008| Stettin| 0 Comment| 5:43 pm

I’ve been a bad reviewer lately. I usually try to write my reviews right after viewing or reading but I haven’t had as much time to write them lately. I’ve been playing World in Conflict quite a bit lately, which competes with my reviews here. I should actually do a review for that sometime, since I spend so much time playing it. It takes place in an alternate reality where the Soviets invade the US in 1990. For more information in the meantime just click the link above.

So, here are the things I have watched so far, but have yet to review:

Blade Runner – The Final Cut: (I’ve watched the movie, which was awesome, but I still have to work through the rest of the special features on the last disc)
I am Legend (2007) – I’ve actually watched this twice, once with my Father while on vacation, and again with my wife
Battlestar Galactica: Razor – Unrated Extended Edition

I’m also in the process of reading two books: Children of Dune by Frank Herbert, and The Age of Spiritual machines by Ray Kurzweil. The latter is not really science fiction, but I’m about half way through it and many of the ideas probably seemed like fiction back when it was published in 1999. Many of the predictions Kurzweil makes in the first half are fairly accurate, so I’m interested to see what he will say in the second half.

My next major milestone will be to read Chaos Theory, Asimov’s Foundations and Robots, and Herbert’s Dune: The Fractal Aesthetic of Epic Science Fiction.

That should keep me busy for a little while.

Frank Herbert’s Dune (2000) SciFi Channel MiniseriesFrank Herbert’s Dune (2000) SciFi Channel Miniseries

December 4, 2007| Stettin| 14 Comments| 5:47 pm

Overall, the Sci-Fi Channel miniseries is far more faithful to Frank Herbert’s vision for Dune than the 1984 movie. With a run time of almost 4.5 hours (6 when viewed with commercials), most of the major plot elements are covered. The events are laid out much like the novel, and don’t feel rushed like the 1984 movie. With that said, the miniseries does have a few faults, most of which can be forgiven. (more…)