(1) Watch out for bi-Klingual train conductors!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DgR_I8Yggk
A Trek-referencing TV commercial is nominated for a national award in Austria reports Nina Horvath at Europa SF.
What is it all about? Two men dressed up as Klingons go by underground railway (yes, it is the underground railway, although it goes above-ground in this scene) in Vienna, when they find out that a ticket controller is around. As they haven´t bought a ticket, they decide to confuse the ticket controller (by the way a pretty blonde woman) with Klingon language. But she also replies to them in Klingon and seems to know enough about Klingon culture, to call them “dishonourable worms”. What follows is an advertisement for the “Volkshochschule Wien”, a school where adults can take several courses, e.g. on languages. (Probably also Klingon …?)
Public voting for the winner continues until November 3 here (German language website).
(2) Richard C. White, in “World Building 101: The Village” at Black Gate, vents about cliché adventurers who return to the local village to spend their newfound treasure.
If you’re like me, that scene sounds awfully familiar. It’s appeared too often in bad fantasy stories, bad fantasy movies, and WAY too many role playing games. “But Rich,” you say, “the party has to have somewhere to spend their treasure. Otherwise, there’s no point in giving it out?”
And my response is, “You’re absolutely right, but for the wrong reasons.” Let me explain what I mean. (Good, otherwise this would be a darn short blog entry – Editor).
The biggest problem is, that scene above should be taking place in a large town or at least a small city. A medieval (or pseudo-medieval) village is not going to have jewelers or places to sell magic items (if you’re doing that kind of fantasy). The tavern is not going to have a bevy of barmaids and taverns do not traditionally sell food — that’s what the inn was for (if there even was an inn). And why in heaven’s name would you have a village that close to a dungeon populated by evil creatures anyway? Most sensible villagers would have packed up and moved to safer places years ago (if they hadn’t all been killed in their sleep by the monsters). No, this village in the scenario above seems to have only one purpose — to provide adventurers with a place to stay while they’re off looting the local dungeon de jure. Not only is that not realistic — it’s boring.
(3) A New Yorker profile of Guillermo del Toro from 2011 begins with a LASFS connection —
[Forrest J] Ackerman founded a cult magazine, Famous Monsters of Filmland, and, more lucratively, became an agent for horror and science-fiction writers. He crammed an eighteen-room house in Los Feliz with genre memorabilia, including a vampire cape worn by Bela Lugosi and a model of the pteranodon that tried to abscond with Fay Wray in “King Kong.” Ackerman eventually sold off his collection to pay medical bills, and in 2008 he died. He had no children.
But he had an heir. In 1971, Guillermo del Toro, the film director, was a seven-year-old misfit in Guadalajara, Mexico. He liked to troll the city sewers and dissolve slugs with salt. One day, in the magazine aisle of a supermarket, he came upon a copy of Famous Monsters of Filmland. He bought it, and was so determined to decode Ackerman’s pun-strewed prose—the letters section was called Fang Mail—that he quickly became bilingual.
Del Toro was a playfully morbid child. One of his first toys, which he still owns, was a plush werewolf that he sewed together with the help of a great-aunt. In a tape recording made when he was five, he can be heard requesting a Christmas present of a mandrake root, for the purpose of black magic…
(4) The Martian remains in first place at box office, however, several other genre movies failed on their opening weekend.
Four new films, including Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension and Vin Diesel’s The Last Witch Hunter, crowded into theaters this weekend and were swiftly pulverized and left for dead.
And John King Tarpinian says he saw only seven people in the audience at a showing of Bill Murray vehicle Rock The Kasbah.
(5) On Reddit — Author Becky Chambers will be joining us in SF Book Club to discuss The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet on October 28!
Details are yet to be fully worked out, but will look something like the rest: she’ll come in the morning to post a thread where we can ask questions, then come back in the afternoon/evening to answer the posted questions and interact with folks for a while.
(6) David K.M. Klaus questions the taste of using a formation of stormtroopers on the Great Wall of China to promote the next Star Wars film.
The Guardian: See video of 500 stormtroopers lining up the Great Wall of China in a #StarWars promotional campaign. https://t.co/gMWbHga8tS
— Champ (@originalchamp) October 22, 2015
Yeah, this is cute — except that it looks just like the mass exercise and marching China used to have and North Korea still does — and “Imperial Stormtroopers”, had they existed, would have been used to rout the students and destroy the statues of the Goddess of Democracy in Tianamen Square in 1989.
Today “Tank Man” blocks the path of an AT-AT walker.
Thanks, Disney! Unfrozen, conventionally-buried-at-Forest-Lawn Unca Walt is a veritable whirligig in his grave right now.
(7) John Hertz responds to the notice in the October 23 Scroll about the passing of Harriett Klausner:
Of more immediate interest to us, Klausner was a pillar of Barry Hunter’s reviewzine Baryon, which came in the mail (Ned Brooks R.I.P.) for years. She read and wrote fluently and much, and wherever I formed an opinion of my own, well; she had few companions, perhaps no equals. I don’t believe I’ve seen a later issue than B 129 in 2014, but that if accurate is hardly conclusive in Fanzineland.
(8) I received this link to “The 40 Most Awesome Supergirl Covers” at Comic Book Resources with the admonition “For Historical Reference ONLY.” I’d say the covers are pretty tame – it’s CBR’s own Supergirl header that tends toward the cliché.
(9) Tufts University political scientist Daniel W. Drezner looked at the Star Wars trailers and concluded that the rebels were “guilty of poor post-war planning” in “’Star Wars, Episode VII’: The Rebel Alliance’s catastrophic success”.
The evidence is right there in this trailer and the previous two. The desert planet of Jakku does not seem to have benefited all that much from the three-decades-old Rebel victory. Daisy Ridley’s character, Rey, appears to be a scavenger, and the planet is just littered with Imperial wreckage. If that hasn’t been cleaned up after 30 years, it’s a good sign that the Rebel Alliance has failed at statebuilding.
He also wonders why they didn’t revive the Senate or let the people know that Darth Vader switched sides minutes before he died.
(10) Time to move to Canada? Netflix will stream Star Wars: The Force Awakens there in 2016.
Fortuitously for Netflix Canada subs, the company’s deal with Disney started with 2015 releases after the previous agreements for the pay-TV window with Corus Entertainment and Bell Canada expired. A Netflix rep confirmed “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” is slated to come to the service in the country; under the terms of the deal, that will occur approximately eight months after the movie leaves theaters.
(11) Political scientists should also be looking at the world’s newest nation – it’s in a remote corner of Utah.
There is a four-acre piece of land in northwestern Box Elder County that very few people know about. Even fewer people recognize it as what it’s meant to be — its own country.
A decade ago, Zaq Landsberg, a man from New York, bought the land online with a unique goal in mind.
“The conceptual goal is I want it to become a real country,” Landsberg said. “I mean, that goal is not going to happen. It’s impossible, but going through the motions, (I’m) trying to make that happen.”
The area is known to Landsberg as the Republic of Zaqistan, and he is its president….
Zaqistan has its own flag, a border patrol gate, a supply bunker, a robot sentry that guards the land and even official passports.
“Zaqistan works the best, I think, when it’s wedged up against the real world, and when the passports circulate,” Landsberg said.
The passports look and feel real. You can even get them stamped when entering and exiting his land.
(12) What, wait, what? William Shatner was The Chairman on the original Iron Chef USA?
(This attempt to import the popular Japanese series preceded the later, successful Iron Chef America.)
There’s a short clip from an episode on YouTube. Chairman Shatner mugs for the camera starting at about :10.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJAWjtktv0w
(13) Ann Leckie fans have reported a great disturbance in the force!
https://twitter.com/kiplet/status/658425768263815169
https://twitter.com/ann_leckie/status/658425935880847360
https://twitter.com/ann_leckie/status/658422319312859136
https://twitter.com/ann_leckie/status/658423864343465985
(14) While we’re in the midst of this Ann Leckie festival, take a listen to Comedrinkwithme’s musical rendition of “It All Goes Around”.
[Thanks to Martin Morse Wooster, Gregory Benford, Will R., Jim Henley, John King Tarpinian for some of these stories. Title credit goes to File 770 contributing editor of the day Daniel Dern.]
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OK, maybe not
let’s try this
@Chris S. Seconding JJ’s remarks, I’ll just note that Howey has called the design of the silos “sinister.” 🙂
“Apocadystopia” is indeed a great neologism, and it reminds me that Howey recently co-edited a three-volume series of apocalypse tales that includes some familiar names. Fun reading for anyone with a predilection for dire outcomes.
I did enjoy Drood – Simmons going off the rails but in a good way.
Sylvia Sotomayor:
I don’t have any other recs, but I would really like some too. I get really tired of HUGE STAKES all the time, just like those half-hour action sequences that every other movie now has to end int. They make me sleepy.
Hm. The Vorkosigan series is sometimes like this, but some character’s notions of “just have a life” are exceptionally complicated.
John Lorentz:
I feel all sorts of reading envy here at the File, but really, there are no such people. It’s like having a baby “when you’re ready”, you never are, you just do it anyway (if you want to). How is Twain’s autobiography, other than massive?
Anna Feruglio Dal Dan:
Which did what, if you’re up to saying?
Eve:
V ybirq gur Zvyrf cnegf, gbb, abg whfg orpnhfr v ybir gur gval glenag, ohg orpnhfr gung’f jurer gur erny urnyvat tbg qbar. Vg zvtug or gung V’z trggvat byq, ohg V ybirq ubj gur cnfg jbexrq urer, gur frpergf, gur pbzvat gb grezf, gur jnl Neny’f inevbhfyl funcrq funqbjf (naq yvtugf) uhat vafvqr rirelbar.
Vg’f cebonoyl abg gur orfg va frevrf (V guvax gung’f Zrzbel, sbe zr), naq V jba’g ernyyl xabj jurer gb enax vg gvyy V’ir unq gvzr gb trg bire gur furre funyybj ohoyl rkpvgrzrag bs fcraqvat gvzr jvgu gurfr crbcyr ntnva. Gurer’f abg n ybg bs cybg gurer, va gur hfhny frafr, ohg V’z bxnl jvgu gung. V guvax V zvtug, va gur raq, yvxr vg orggre guna gur bgure nyzbfg rkpyhfviryl-ebznapr bs gur frevrf, N Pvivy Pnzcnvta, orpnhfr fb zhpu bs gung qrcraqf ba gur pbzrql-bs-reebef-rzoneenffzrag-uhzbe, juvpu vf na bs-gur-zbzrag guvat zber guna qrnyvat jvgu gur cnfg.
ROT13’d for slight thematic spoilers.
It’s difficult to pinpoint it. I liked the style, I liked the characters, I liked the story, but I found myself frequently bored. I skipped a lot. Oh no, not another magical fight – skip. I don’t really need a detailed description of the quarry where the character used to dive as a child – skip. I am also a bit annoyed at the overuse of the cliffhanger. Once or twice, ok. Too much, and I start to get cranky.
So I am not rushing out to read the next one as I did when I read Ancillary Justice, but then not a lot of things compare to Ancillary Justice.
And besides, this is his first novel I think, so maybe he gets better.
[Three Parts Dead]
It is his first novel, and I liked the next one more, although I kind of whizzed through them all, so I can’t tell you if they’re actually improving.
I get the thing about the skippy bits: I get that from action and suspense, a lot. Thrillers are not my thing. I think it’s the slightly too speedy pace to the Craft Sequence that keeps me from ranking these up there with, say, City of Stairs.
I really loved Abelard, though.
@Camestros–Awesome! Can’t wait to see what that entails.
A year with Ancillary Sword, The Goblin Emperor and City of Stairs is a very good year.
I loved the pirate vampire. “What are you doing, woman? Have you never heard of consent?” Adorable.
My weekend entertainment was video, as my reading lately has been devoted to editing That Damned Book. (I don’t resent it, but deadlines have been battling my need to come up for air.) At least Book One is locked now – unless Book Two edits require tweaks to it – and the first short story went live today, so I hit those deadlines!
Jurassic World was better than I expected, and I found the whole “running around in heels” thing mostly logical given how the plot unfolded. She’s very much a “behind the glass” executive, and they never had much of a chance for her to acquire sensible footgear. I completely bought her going out in heels, because she was only going out “for a few minutes” to tell
StarlordOwen she needed him to inspect the paddock. The rest snowballed from there.The Man in the High Castle sticks in my craw for the theme music, because I can’t tell whether it’s a mistake or a subtle hint that looks like a mistake. For the uninitiated, “Edelweiss” is often mistaken for traditional folk music, and appears to be used that way here, but it isn’t. It was written for The Sound of Music – which, of course, was never made in the High-Castle-verse. But then there’s the Grasshopper footage. So… did Amazon goof, or are they trying to tell us something?
Rev. Bob: “Edelweiss” is often mistaken for traditional folk music, and appears to be used that way here, but it isn’t. It was written for The Sound of Music – which, of course, was never made in the High-Castle-verse. But then there’s the Grasshopper footage. So… did Amazon goof, or are they trying to tell us something?
I think it was probably a decision made out of ignorance, akin to CCR’s “Fortunate Son” being used for a Wrangler jeans commercial, or Burger King using Judas Priest’s “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” to promote a two-fer deal.
The person who chose it probably thought, “Oh, Edelweiss, that’s associated with the von Trapps escaping from the Nazis, so we’ll use a sinister version of that song to indicate that the escape from the Nazis didn’t happen in this world”.
@Susana
Yes. Bujold often seems to me just like you said. The Lee/Miller books, too.
I also like ensemble casts. I think TV SFF does this more than written SFF – Farscape sort of fits, and Firefly. I would love to find more written SFF that does this.
@ Susana @ Eve
re: Gentleman Jole…
I’m still digesting, too. I was surprised, then thought “But it makes complete sense.” These are, also, some of my favorite characters.
It occurs to me that there are not many more stories to tell here without striking out into whole new territory. I wonder where Bujold will go next? I’d really like more of the Chalion fantasy world. From what others have said here, The Sharing Knife wasn’t that popular (maybe because a romance was more prominent?), but I loved that one, too.
Bujold is one of my favorite authors. I’ll buy whatever she writes, she’s never let me down.
@junego:
Since you wanted me to keep you posted on a certain project’s progress, this link may be of interest. The Kindle edition’s available now, but the Smashwords distribution doesn’t kick in until Halloween.
For the uninitiated, “Edelweiss” is often mistaken for traditional folk music, and appears to be used that way here, but it isn’t. It was written for The Sound of Music – which, of course, was never made in the High-Castle-verse.
Perhaps there is an alternate version of The Sound of Music in the High-Castle-verse that recounts the brave actions of Captain von Trapp as he commanded a naval vessel against the nefarious Allies on behalf of the glorious Reich while his loyal wife and children rallied the populace on the home front with their singing.
“I can’t tell whether it’s a mistake or a subtle hint that looks like a mistake.”
Phil himself was very, very good at such details.
@Will:
Exactly my point…
@ Rev Bob
Thanks for the link. I’ll check it out.
FILE 770 LIVE-ACTION TV TOURNAMENT AND BRACKETS
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
Chuck (16)
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (3)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Pushing Daisies (11)
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
Stargate SG-1 (10)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic]
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Pushing Daisies
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Third Rock from the Sun
1. SPY VS. SPY
Abstain
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Mystery Science Theatre 3000 (Brief application of forehead cloth, but I got a lot of laughs out of Joel/Mike and the robots.)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
The X-Files! (Really looking forward to the new episodes.)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (I wish this had run in the era of long arcs, like DS9.)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Abstain
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Abstain
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (ARGGH! I don’t think Vincent and Catherine will get out of this bracket, sadly, but I must cast my vote for them.)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (Let’s misbehave, y’all.)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Abstain on the rest — I ‘ve only seen one of each pairing
Spinward Region – Round One
1. The Prisoner
2. Night Gallery
3. X-Files
4. Star Trek: The Next Generation
5. abstain
6. Eureka
7. Stargate SG-1
8. Firefly
Huh. 3 brackets where while I’m familiar with the shows, just get a great big “Meh” from me.
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Wonderfalls (3)
Oh you’re kidding me. Love TNG, despite it’s tendency for preachiness and unevennes early and later on, but gotta (futilely I’m sure) go with Wonderfalls, which was just soooo fantastice.
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Pushing Daisies (11)
Easy one. Eureka was just too anti-intellectual for me.
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Still not too sure about the Ori arc, but still an overall brilliant show.
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
While it was over-rated, it’s still better than 3rd Rock
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
Chuck (16)2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (3)5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Pushing Daisies (11)7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
Stargate SG-1 (10)8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner
This isn’t even close for me.
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Mystery Science Theater 3000
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
Brisco is better in just about every way.
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic]
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Pushing Daisies
I can’t vote against the Pie Man.
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
Chuck (16)
Dem bones, dem bones…
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
There was this one about a Nazi and a painting… And he figured a way to will himself into it to escape… Except he went into the wrong painting…
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (13)
I enjoyed Wonderfalls as much as the next person, but it never really made any sense to me and it seemed kinda full of itself, like tweeness and incomprehensibility to be cool. Which struck me as the opposite of cool.
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Pushing Daisies (11)
And sometimes twee can really, really work.
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
Oh, Firefly. You would’ve won, anyway, even if I didn’t kind of hate John Lithgow.
Brackets:
1. Prisoner, but shouldn’t this have been the sixth slot?
2. Night Gallery, because it’s Serling plus Tales from the Darkside.
3. Oooh. Brisco, for the actors. I mean, Ash and Gomez?
4. Wonderfalls, dammit. Because I still remember the wax lion.
5. Classic Who, for Seven.
6. Eureka, just because.
7. SG-1.
8. Firefly in a heartbeat.
FILE 770 LIVE-ACTION TV TOURNAMENT AND BRACKETS
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
Chuck (16)
Abstain
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
Abstain
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
Abstain
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (3)
It has to be Picard!
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)
Abstain
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Pushing Daisies (11)
I never saw PD. Eureka was sometimes hilarious fun that actually tweaked some tropes, e.g. the smartest guy in town was a black auto mechanic with numerous PHDs.
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Abstain
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
Third Rock was funny sometimes, but I loves me some well done space opera.
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Abstain
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic]
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
abstain
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original]
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Wonderfalls (3)
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
abstain – While I’ve seen a few episodes of The Prisoner, like a startling number of British shows, I just didn’t connect somehow. And I haven’t seen the other.
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
While I can appreciate the goofball humor of MST3K, I still remain haunted by a number of Night Gallery episodes. And I always loved the “art criticism” intros.
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
abstain – as with #1, I’ve only seen one and it didn’t do much for me.
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (3)
Poor Wonderfalls, what a match to draw!
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)
Hmm, this one is tricky. If it were the more recent run of Who, I’d come down solidly for it. Classic Who had a certain low-budget charm but wasn’t quite as much on my wavelength. I rather liked the Dresden Files tv series (unlike the books) but I think I’ll have to call this one a tie.
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
abstain — haven’t seen either
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
Stargate SG-1 (10)
This would have been tougher if it had been the Stargate movie (which had one of the best movie-linguist scenes ever), but I was very struck by the modern myth-making aspect of B&tB.
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
This was a nearer thing that I might have thought. Third Rock managed to hit my intellectual-snark buttons on a regular basis. Whereas I binged on the entire run of Firefly on DVD one weekend when I was feeling depressed and needed distraction. (This was a very Bad Idea.) So I never had that drawn-out emotional investment of someone who had watched the series as it came out.
1. The Prisoner
2. Mystery Science Theater 3000 (Although I would like to stress that I I like Night Gallery a great deal too)
3. The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
4. Abstain
5. Classic Doctor Who
6. Abstain
7. Abstain
8. Third Rock From the Sun
Heather Rose Jones: I binged on the entire run of Firefly on DVD one weekend when I was feeling depressed and needed distraction. (This was a very Bad Idea)
Oy. Watching Bushwhacked, The Message, and Heart of Gold when depressed. <cringe> I hope you had someone nearby to help cheer you up afterward. 🙁
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Wonderfalls (3)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
Chuck (16)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
(Dresden Files is probably my second favorite of the 10 I’ve seen in this region but classic DW is first.)
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner
Haven’t seen Chuck, so Patrick McGoohan gets the vote on nostalgia.
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery
Never seen MST3000, so another nostalgia vote.
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files
Never even heard of the Briscoe thing so, despite the hilaribad end seasons, the X entity gets my vote for the Vancouver seasons, when it showed such promise.
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Abstain
Can’t honestly vote for ST:TNG; it had some good individual episodes and the incomparable Patrick Stewart, but it never tickled my fancy like ST:TOS.
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic]
How could I vote against the Doctor?
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Abstain
Don’t know either of these.
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Missed the initial seasons, caught some episodes in the middle somewhere, missed the last seasons. I think I saw one episode of B&tB, but it didn’t interest me.
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
This was the headcloth choice for this set of brackets. In the end Firefly lost out for setting up the Chinese influence thing and going nowhere with it except as an excuse to swear on TV. Where were the Chinese characters?
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
I was really turned off by the first episode of X-Files. That was enough for me. On the other side Bruce Campbell. Uncyclopedia got it right there.
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Mostly because Stargate was as bad as the movie.
FILE 770 LIVE-ACTION TV TOURNAMENT AND BRACKETS
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Pushing Daisies (11)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Third Rock from the Sun (15)
Because I’m not that fussed about either of these shows, but Third Rock never made me angry.
@AnnaFDD: I read Three Parts Dead and felt like I ought to have loved it, but I found it just a little bit lacking in what Jo calls I-want-to-read-it-osity. I’m currently very near the end of Last First Snow and I would say he definitely gets better.
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
Chuck (16)Never seen Chuck but it would take quite a lot to make me vote against Number Six.
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Night Gallery (8)Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)Never really seen either of these, but I guessed that X-Files would be the more popular, so….
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
Wonderfalls (3)5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
Dresden Files (14)And it would take even more to get me to vote against either incarnation of the Doctor.
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Pushing Daisies (11)7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Beauty and the Beast [Original] (7)Stargate SG-1 (10)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Third Rock from the Sun (15)Another round already?
1. The Prisoner (sorry, Buy More guys)
2. Night Gallery (MST3K didn’t do SF movies always)
3. Arghghggh… X-Files, under greatest protest, many forehead cloths, and a fond memory of that year when these were sequential. Great Friday nights.
4. ST: TNG
5. Doctor Who (OG)
6. Eureka
7. B&TB (OG only)
8. Firefly
Wow. Only one of those hurt.
1. The Prisoner (1)
2. Night Gallery (8)
3. X-Files (5)
4. Wonderfalls (3)
5. Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
6. Eureka (6)
7. argh! Tie.
8. Firefly (2)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. The Prisoner (1)
2. No opinion
3. X-Files (5)
4. Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
5. Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
6. Tie
7. Stargate SG-1 (10)
8. Firefly (2)
Already need some damp cloths!
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
I really liked Chuck, but the The Prisoner is just too much of a classic.
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (9)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. (12)
Was always kinda meh about X-Files, and I love Bruce Campbell!
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Wonderfalls (3)
Oh, this was tough! If it had been TOS instead of TNG, I might have had to go with the Trek. But since I was the first to nominate Wonderfalls, I think I have to stick with it for now.
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Dresden Files (14)
I know, I know, but I actually sort of enjoyed the show, because I carefully didn’t read the books till I was done watching it. And I really don’t care much for old Who. Not that my vote will matter here.
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Eureka (6)
Ow, ow, ow! This isn’t fair! I like both a lot better than I like either of the previous pair!
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
Another really hard choice. Ask me tomorrow, and I might vote the other way.
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
Spinward Region – Round One
1. SPY VS. SPY
The Prisoner (1)
2. THE HORROR, THE (OTHER) HORROR
Pass
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
X-Files (5)
4. PRIME DIRECTIVE OR PRIMO DIRECTIONS
Star Trek: The Next Generation (4)
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Doctor Who [Classic] (3)
6. LAW AND CONSIDERABLE DISORDER
Pass
7. HIDDEN WORLDS
Stargate SG-1 (10)
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly (2)
3. SH;T GETS WEIRD
Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
5. *SOMEBODY* THINKS IT’S THE WRONG ACTOR
Dresden Files
8. ONE THEME SONG WAS NOT A HIT
Firefly