(1) TALES OF LONG LONG AGO. Ethan Mills knows it’s “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year: Getting Ready for Star Wars!”
In watching The Empire Strikes Back, I was reminded of this post from several months back: “The Dress: Episode V – Han Solo’s Jacket.” It turns out the science fiction fans have their own version of that dress that destroyed the internet in February of 2015. In the Hoth scenes, there is some dispute about whether Han’s jacket is brown or navy blue. On my TV last night it looked brown to me, but now in this picture it looks navy blue. Go figure.
(2) THE LIST’S AFOOT. Miriam Burstein has posted a list of the interesting things she read this year, “My Year in Books” at The Little Professor. Sf is among the many genres she covers. Holmes pastiches are another.
Most self-sabotaging novel: Dan Simmons’ Sherlock Holmes pastiche The Fifth Heart, whose characters are awfully insistent that the Holmes stories aren’t very good.
Really, you can stop now: The Sherlock Holmes pastiche industry, which is not improving in quality as it goes along.
…Well, perhaps except for you: Robert Ryan’s Watson series is quite enjoyable.
(3) VINTAGE LINES. “Here’s What the 1977 Star Wars Line Looked Like In Los Angeles” from LAist.
Lines were forming to see Star Wars films right in the very beginning, when the first installment of what would become a massive franchise hit screens in 1977.
They also have a compilation video of news reports about Star Wars lines as the series progressed.
(4) SLOW-PACED COURTSHIP. And how long did people wait in line for the opening of The Force Awakens in Hollywood? Here’s a clue: local fan Obishawn (Shawn Crosby) officiated at a Star Wars wedding today by the entrance of the Chinese theater in Hollywood…
(5) PUNCHBOWL FLOATER. Guess who will cheer Stephen L. Miller’s “Star Wars: Revenge of the Social Justice Warriors” at National Review Online? It’s about PC types who are prepared to bash the new Star Wars film and finding little to bash.
With the long-anticipated Star Wars: The Force Awakens opening tomorrow, news outlets and social media have been abuzz with the expectations of a new generation of fans. But with The Force Awakens as the first of the films to be released in the age of social justice, the question must be asked: At a time when the slightest violation of PC orthodoxy can set off a deluge of listicles, cable-news segments, and general media outrage, can Star Wars survive such an onslaught launched from the Social Justice Media’s veritable Sarlacc Pit — more commonly referred to as Twitter?
(6) CONCESSIONS LAST STAND. Washington Post writer Drew Harwell, in “The business of ‘Star Wars’ comes with a huge catch”, tells how movie theaters are responding to Disney’s giant slice of the revenue pie by offering Star Wars-related swag and snacks (Marcus Theaters in the Midwest offers the “Wookiee Smash Burger” for only $12.59).
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens” may become the highest-grossing premiere in history, but it comes with a huge catch. Disney is demanding movie theaters hand over a much bigger cut of box-office revenue than usual, carving into cineplexes’ profits at a time when they need all the help they can get.
So theaters have gotten creative about the moneymakers they control. One small theater chain, Studio Movie Grill, is offering a daily “Star Wars”-themed brunch, including cinnamon-and-sugar Princess Leia Buns, a Tuscan Raider Quesadilla and cocktails such as a $9 tequila Yoda-Rita, with lime wedges hooked on the rim to mimic the Jedi master’s ears.
(7) ESCAPED PATIENT. The Onion found (invented?) the one fan who brings a fair and balanced approach to the movie — “Fan Just Going To Keep Open Mind About Whether New ‘Star Wars’ Best Or Worst Movie Ever”.
(8) ODYSSEY WORKSHOP. “Odyssey Writers Workshop Application Period Opens” – see details at the SFWA Blog or the Odyssey website.
Odyssey is for writers whose work is approaching publication quality and for published writers who want to improve their work. The six-week program combines an advanced curriculum with extensive writing and in-depth feedback on student manuscripts. The director and primary instructor, Jeanne Cavelos, was nominated for the World Fantasy Award this year for her work teaching and running Odyssey. Top authors, editors, and agents have served as guest lecturers, including George R. R. Martin, Jane Yolen, Robert J. Sawyer, Nancy Kress, Ben Bova, Holly Black, Catherynne M. Valente, and Dan Simmons.
This summer’s workshop runs from JUNE 6 to JULY 15, 2016. Class meets for over four hours each morning, five days a week. That time is split between workshopping and lectures. While feedback reveals the weaknesses in students’ manuscripts, lectures teach the techniques necessary to strengthen them. In-depth lectures provide advanced insights into the elements of fiction writing. Students spend about eight hours more per day writing and critiquing each other’s work.
The program is held on the beautiful campus of Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH….
The workshop’s Writer-in-Residence will be Mary Robinette Kowal. Lecturers include Meagan Spooner, Patricia Bray, N. K. Jemisin, Deborah DeNicola, and Scott H. Andrews.
(9) DANIEL CHAPTER THREE. The third installment of Daniel’s Castalia House blog series “Safe Space as Rape Room: Science Fiction Culture and Childhood’s End” is a series of nonsequitur sophistries constructed for the purpose of smearing John Scalzi.
(10) ENTIRELY COINCIDENTAL. Today John Scalzi was not only using his Twitter trolls for cannon fodder but for artistic inspiration. At least I think that’s art….
Now some more of these dude's friends are trying to pile on, MANLY STYLE. It's adorable! I just want to pinch their manly cheeks!
— John Scalzi (@scalzi) December 17, 2015
@scalzi This is the best I could do on short notice. Next time give me a heads up when you need a new author photo. pic.twitter.com/qNWeSPFalo
— Tom Lommel (@tomlommel) December 17, 2015
(11) THE SATANIC VERSUS. “’Star Wars’-themed church service to highlight ‘parallels’” at MSNBC.
Members of the congregation at Berlin’s Zions Church will be greeted with the theme music from the blockbuster series and can expect to hear about “the juxtaposition of good and bad, light and dark” during the one-hour event, church minister Eva-Maria Menard told NBC News.
Short excerpts from trailers and the George Lucas movies will be shown on a screen below the pulpit.
Vicar Ulrike Garve said that the service will expose “the theological motives and parallels in the Star Wars episodes.”
Garve and colleague Lucas Ludewig plan to highlight Romans 12:21 from the Bible, which states: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”
(12) DICKINSON OBIT. The SF Site News obituary for British author Peter Dickinson (1927-2015) who died December 16 notes that his novel The Ropemaker won the Mythopoeic Award for Children’s Literature in 2002, and he was twice nominated for the World Fantasy Award. Dickinson was married to author Robin McKinley. More at the post.
(13) CHECKING IN. In the first 10 days, the “We Are ALL SF Con 2016 Startup” Indiegogo appeal has raised $230 to help launch a fan convention inspired by the motto coined by Lou J. Berger and Quincy J. Allen. They need $9,000.
The operational leadership is Spence Smith, convention chair, and Suzy Thommarson, assistant convention chair. Advisors are Pat and Doug Booze of Norwescon, Shawn Marier of Norwescon and Anglicon, and Chris Nilsson, of Anglicon and Rustycon. “Plus we occasionally pick the brains of some of the old time Worldcon con runners,” adds Karen Junker.
They plan to hold the event November 4-6 in Ocean Shores, WA.
(14) JOVIAN AWARDS. SF Site News lists several pros who announced on Facebook that they received Jovian Awards — each of whom posted a photo of the award and wrote that they didn’t know who it came from.
Neither The Jovian Award website nor The Jovian Award Facebook page sheds any light on the presenters. What the winners who revealed themselves have in common is that they were Hugo nominees who finished second to No Award.
Hell of a nice looking award, though.
(15) LUKE I AM YOUR FENDER. Jay Leno’s Garage had a visit from Hot Wheels’ real-life Darth Vader car, “which is what you get when you morph Vader’s helmet and other components into a car.”
(16) POSTERS. New Batman v. Superman posters.
#BatmanvSuperman pic.twitter.com/seVdBBMh7x
— Ben Affleck (@BenAffleck) December 16, 2015
I welcome you into my dream. Here's an exclusive new Wonder Woman banner for @BatmanvSuperman. pic.twitter.com/3wYP2KfWI4
— Gal Gadot (@GalGadot) December 16, 2015
(17) ANNOYING COMMERCIAL. James H. Burns asks —
Am I the only one who hates the Geico Peter Pan ad? I generally really like the company’s spots, and I realize that in some interpretations, Peter can be a real wiseguy… I wondered why this bugged me so much, and I think it’s two reasons: One, I just don’t like seeing Pan being such a twerp… But more importantly, the second worse thing about being Peter would have to be watching your mortal friends pass on… (There is, however, a pretty neat Tink here!)
[Thanks to Steven H Silver, John King Tarpinian, Martin Morse Wooster, and Alan Baumler for some of these stories. Title credit goes to File 770 contributing editor of the day Daniel Dern.]
Update 12/19/2015: Corrected name of city to Ocean Shore, after having the typo carefully explained to me (the subtler attempts having gone over my head.)
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YMMV – while gentle criticism* works fine without calling out specific commenters, I’m not so sure strong criticism** works using the same method, although I do understand the urge not to put someone or someones on the spot. Both of them run the risk of catching unintended targets but the strong criticism usually leads less to conversation about the merits of the criticism and more to irritation at the broad brushiness of it.
*Like Heather Rose Jones’ comment awhile ago about strawpuppying, or many, many comments by Peace on generally calming the rhetoric down.
**Like the ‘pearl clutching’ comment in this thread or the comment about the discussion of the military from a few days ago.
@ BGHilton
re: podcast
That was funny, in a sick and twisted way. Not that the hosts were but that I laughed so much at a sick and twisted book by a sick and twisted author. Zamboni love! Desk holiday! Label makers! Boston travelogue! I’ll be checking out more of their casts. 😀
Laura Resnick on December 18, 2015 at 6:19 pm said:
As they say, you owe me a new keyboard.
@Greg Hullender
I disagree — I think the issue of whether or not Worldcon fans are thought to represent “all of fandom” is a puppy straw man. “Hugo voters claim to represent all of fandom! But they don’t!”
The refutation of the puppy “silent majority” claim does not require Worldcon to represent fandom as a whole. It’s more like — you can’t possibly be a silent majority of fans in general, because you weren’t even a silent majority of Hugo-voting fans. You might recall that some of their wound-licking talked about how small Worldcon’s numbers are compared to events like Dragoncon or San Diego Comic Con. Hugo voters already know this perfectly well, of course, and met this argument with a shrug and sometimes a chuckle at the implication that the younger, media-saturated fandom at those mega-cons would be more friendly to the Puppy message than Worldcon fans.
The Hugo Award is prestigious because of its legacy. That prestige was decades in the making.
The Hugo Award is prestigious because of its legacy. That prestige was decades in the making.
The Hugo Awards are prestigious because they are seen as prestigious. Like black pearls, they are valuable (or not) based entirely on perception. This is true of pretty much all awards, and is probably why the Pups don’t want to create their own award: They know everyone would regard it as a joke.
@Jay Blanc:
Hot glue isn’t strong enough to hold together glass paperweights.
I wouldn’t denigrate the skills of whoever put the Jovian Awards together. They look far nicer than those sad little 3-D printed crumpled rockets someone handed out earlier. Some thought went into them.
‘Fandom’: I don’t think there is one thing that is fandom. Puppies are right in saying that, in plain English, ‘fan’ just means ‘person who likes the stuff’, and that Worldcon does not represent all fans in this sense. (Neither do the Puppies, of course, but still.) Now, in reality Worldcon was never claiming to represent all fans in this sense; when Worldcon people said they represented fandom, they were using the word in a different way. But this is genuinely confusing to outsiders; it’s not just people with an agenda whom are sometimes puzzled by it. If you think that ‘fan’ means ‘enthusiast’, and you hear people talking as if only members of an active fannish community were fans, you can take them to mean that others are not real enthusiasts; they don’t mean that, because that use of ‘fan’ isn’t salient for them, but it can still cause distress.
The matter is also complicated by people who are members of active fannish communities, but not the same one; what LJ/Dreamwidth/Tumblr calls ‘fandom’ is something very different from fandom in the traditional sense, though it overlaps.
It seems to me that the right answer is to accept that there are many (overlapping) fandoms, and Worldcon represents only one of them. But a lot of people seem to want to hold to the idea that there is just one thing called fandom, and to insist that Worldcon ought to represent the whole of it, and is failing if it doesn’t. One complaint I’ve seen quite often – not only from Puppies – is that Worldcon places too much emphasis on books, since books are not the major interest of many active fans.
(The Puppies seem rather confused about which silent majority ought to be represented; everyone who reads and enjoys science fiction, or – as their emphasis on DragonCon suggests – everyone who is actively fannish about anything, not necessarily written science fiction. These are clearly not the same group of people. But then, they are confused about many things.)
Yes, anyone can. Doesn’t mean these don’t look nice, even in the event that they weren’t difficult to make.
And many people do give out awards. That’s why it’s not unreasonable when non-Puppies suggest that the Puppies start their own.
Giving out prominent, respected awards takes more work, though. Things like imprimatur and track record come into play. Which is why the Puppies don’t want to put in the work — they’re not, apparently, terribly well respected by the field at large and their track record at identifying excellent work has been poor.
12) I wanted to write a bit about author Peter Dickinson’s passing. In part because he’s a long-time personal favorite, in part because he’s somewhat overlooked in America. I used to stock up on UK Penguin editions of Dickinson books on fan trips to Toronto.
Dickinson wrote a fair pile of YA fantasy. In his earliest work “The Changes” trilogy, Britain turns against machines, smashes them all, and reverts to a medieval state of life, while the rest of the world wonders what the heck happened. I’ve given a handful of copies of this series to the children of friends. The first two books in story order, “The Devil’s Children” and “Heartsease”, are the best, both stories I cherish, especially the horse-and-boat race to the sea at the climax of “Heartsease”. “The Weathermonger”, which reveals the cause of Britain’s disruption, was Dickinson’s first book and I find the explanation unsatisfying.
Other YA titles which come to mind are “The Gift” (telepathy), “The Blue Hawk” (coming of age fantasy story), “Eva” (mind/body transfer after a fatal accident, this one is pure SF). “A Flight of Dragons” was a coffee table book which purported to be a scientific investigation into the subject.
Fantasy themes crept into Dickinson’s adult mysteries as well. The James Pibble detective series uses science-fiction-ish techniques to explore murders set in closed communities with extravagant, exotic elements — I call them “bottle worlds.” “The Green Gene” explored racism and the English/Irish relationship. “King and Joker” set the mystery in an alternate-history British royal family.
As someone who grew up well after pearls were the vogue, while I understand what is being said by “clutching at pearls”, like someone “suffering from the vapours” the imagery is so anachronistic it is not something I really associate with sexism or ageism except in the vaguest of ways. I certainly wouldn’t associate with any women I actually know.
Now I think of it, I would probably associate it more with camp gay men, and there the meaning shifts a bit to less of a genuine upset, to more of a fake affectation of outrage… Which is probably no better.
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@Ken Josenhans
That was lovely. Yes, Dickinson is very highly regarded here in the UK – he’s one of seven people to win two Carnegie Medals and the first of only two to do so in consecutive years. I’m sad that he isn’t so well known in the USA!
@tintinaus
I think ‘fake outrage’ is rather less kind an accusation than ‘silly but genuine outrage’, so I hope (and assume) the latter was what was intended in this thread. Dismissing concerns is one thing, calling the people expressing those concerns liars is quite another.
I’m glad you brought that up as a possible connotation. I wouldn’t have thought of it otherwise and I wouldn’t like to imply something I didn’t intend if I could help it, and I use that phrase from time to time.
Meredith,
Perhaps my use of ‘fake’ wasn’t quite right. The dismay/outrage is real but I think of ‘pearl clutching’ as being part of a OTT peformance to show the emotion. It has very much a ‘look at me’ness to it. For a non-OTT visualisation I would normally go with ‘hand wringing’.
@tintinaus
Hmm, so genuine but exaggerated?
@Meredith
Personally, I’ve used it in both circumstances (fake outrage as well as over the top) . The commonality would be that in either case, it’s done – IMO of course – as a performance piece.
Jay Blanc: But looking over the “What a nice design for their award” comments, I can’t help but ask “Are decorative glass paperweights not a thing in the US?”. You can get ones like these in charity shops for around $10 over here in the UK.
The art glass paperweight pictured in the photo above would not have been inexpensive. It’s made with a reasonable amount of skill, appears to be the standard size (3″ or 80mm) and includes a significant amount of gold or aventurine dust (it might be dichroic, but it’s had to tell, though I don’t think it is). It would have likely cost between $100 and $200 USD each, unless they got a bulk discount from the glassblower. Andrews and Burnside both posted photos showing identical paperweights, so it’s a safe bet they weren’t acquired at a charity sale.
@Tasha Turner: “I can’t take much more of this celebratory fun and excitement over SFF.” – LOL, I hear ya! There’s almost too much love at times, isn’t there. 😉
@Jay Blanc: Heh, we have lots of glass paperweights in the U.S., yes. I’ve seen lots of bad ones, though; this one looks quite nice and shiny to me. I thought it was mass-produced and bought from a store. If it’s hand-made like it seems some folks believe, then my hat’s off – easy or not, it looks groovy and IMHO professionally made.
ETA: As @JJ says. I don’t believe these were $10 things.
Kendall: If it’s hand-made like it seems some folks believe, then my hat’s off
Almost all art-glass paperweights are “hand-made”, by glassblowing (some involve encasement in glass of lampwork glass items such as birds or flowers, or of slices of millefiori cane pieces). The question is in the quality of the ingredients (lead crystal vs silica glass, which will affect the clarity and color of the glass) and the level of skill (which will affect the regularity of the pattern inside, and the uniform shape of the paperweight itself).
@Peace Is My Middle Name: That’s not really the meaning that’s sunk into my brain over the years. Clearly I chose a poor turn of phrase.
@Petréa Mitchell & @Lisalc: I’ve rarely heard it applied solely to women (as an individual or a group). I’ve never heard of an “older women” connotation! I think of pearls as expensive, if anything, but I don’t think of the phrase at being a dig at rich people, either.
I know no one’s ages here and am horrible at guessing ages, so I don’t. I’m also bad at guessing genders from aliases (the only Stevie I’ve ever met was a guy), so for a lot of folks here, I’m still not sure about gender – and don’t feel I need to know. So that wasn’t intended as a dig against women, let alone older women. ;-(
Anyway (bowing to Peace, Petréa, & Lisalc) I’ll avoid “pearl clutching.”
@Meredith: I didn’t think that was strong criticism, but I was on the fence about posting it; perhaps I made the wrong choice. Repeated attempts to, as it felt to me, stifle criticism (of Jovians or anything else) push my buttons, especially when the criticism I read in this thread (of the Jovians) seemed pretty mild.
Hmm, that’s probably how I should’ve put it, come to think of it. Oh for a time machine.
@tintinaus, @Meredith, & @snowcrash: Interesting to see folks’ different interpretations – none really matching mine. Anyway, again, clearly a poor choice of phrase by me.
I hadn’t made the connection. I read all of those when I was younger on the strength of the BBC adaptation – which was brilliant (based purely on what I remember of it).
@JJ: I didn’t realize this sort of thing was almost always hand-made; that explains the pricing I tend to see. Thanks.
@Kendall
I should be clear that I don’t think there’s anything wrong with strong criticisms (and on the continuum, I think yours was much milder than the military example – perhaps moderate criticism would have fit better..?), I’m just not sure that strong criticisms work well when offered without clarity, at least not when lots of people have been expressing opinions that could easily be what the criticism is referring to.
Criticism is necessary to keep communities healthy, but it helps if it can be used to improve, or understood well enough to thoughtfully criticise in turn, instead of leaving people guessing about what exactly was meant by it. 🙂
Book update.
AbductiCon Fun, concom accurate in my limited experience, aliens stealing a hotel and flying it around the moon, great discussion on the laws of robots, and can be read in an afternoon. I enjoyed the book. The author has a good sense of humor and handles the lack of hard science well. Some may find the multiple POVs confusing especially when switching from outer space & earth but I found them easy to adjust to. Thanks for the recommendation.
Re: Abducticon — I’ve not read it but based on Tasha’s description, does it put anyone in mind of Phil Folio’s piece about aliens abducting an SF convention? (I distinctly remember that in it, Kelly Freas kept asking for more Cobolt Blue paint, which it turned was important because of [spoiler]…)
Anyone? (And does anyone remember what the Foglio piece was called, and is it actually available anywhere? I only ever saw it as a slideshow at conventions, years ago…)
Cassy B.: Re: Abducticon… does it put anyone in mind of Phil Folio’s piece about aliens abducting an SF convention?
I’ve not heard of the Foglio piece, but here is the AbductiCon summary from Amazon:
The Kindle version is only $2.99 right now, and I thought it sounded like a riot, so I bought a copy on the strength of the description.
AbductiCon sounds delightful. Presumably the aliens vacuum-proofed the hotel, or it’s a short, tragic book.
To more succinctly answer whoever asked several pages back: no, the Scientologists did not complain about the outcome of the vote. And they didn’t try again.
I don’t know why a book award given out by DragonCon would be preferable/more prestigious to a book award given out by Worldcon. DragonCon is a fine and delightful thing, but not so much about the books and more about all the other ways to fan. Watching TV shows and spending all day on Tumblr is perfect fanac for DragonCon.
I know they have author/book panels, but they’re not the main focus; if I went there, it would be for movies and TV and costumes. I wouldn’t be talking about what was in last month’s F&SF, I’d be talking about how dreamy the male Avengers are. 🙂 (Dueling Chris pecs, yum.) I know I would find many ladies and a few gents who’d have that conversation with me.
@ Cassy B: “Gremlins don’t exist!”
I saw the slideshow once, a long time ago. I remember it as funny and charming.
Delightful. Yes sealed so environment is stable. Definitely not short, tragic.
I remember that Foglio slideshow! Am I misremembering, or was there some sort of unexpected cheer when it was announced the con was being taken over by aliens?
I suspect it’s been a long time — those were real slides.
I wonder if the Foglios ever put it online?
Peace, yes, as I recall (it’s been a long time) the aliens make a speech to calm the terrified earthlings… and are bewildered when the earthlings are not only not terrified, but exhilerated. I seem to remember there was cheering and confetti.
I would LOVE to find a copy of this.
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“Gremlins don’t exist!” “The Gremlin concurs, and asks for more cobalt blue.”
“The Capture”, by Phil Foglio and Bob Asprin. It apparently was available as a coloring book.
Cally on December 20, 2015 “The Capture”, by Phil Foglio and Bob Asprin. It apparently was available as a coloring book.
Interesting. I wonder if there are any copies floating around.
Well, looky here. According to a comment made on an internet blog known as The Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy:
Steven on November 20, 2010 at 8:54 pm said:
Just last month, Baen Books published Myth-Interpretation, a collection of stories by Robert Lynn Asprin. And, included between pages 205 and 211 is “The Capture,” including illustrations.
Et voilà.
Cally: Apropos of today’s comments about “The Capture,” a few years ago I wrote a post “Lost: My Mind” about the day I couldn’t remember its gremlin catchphrase.
Some good stuff in the comments on that post, too.
OH good more to buy & read & look File770 comes to the rescue when looking for obscure information. I’m really glad I found this place.
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
Star Wars (1977)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Serenity (2005)
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
King Kong (1933)
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Start Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Back To The Future (1985)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
Gravity (2013)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
Brazil (1985)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Dark City (1998)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Robocop (1987)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
Frankenstein (1931)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
The Fifth Element (1997)
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Serenity (2005)
You can’t take the sky from me.
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
No Award
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dark City (1998)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
King Kong (1933)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
Gravity (2013)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
Brazil (1985)
Is T2 still in? Oh well, fingers crossed
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dark City
Luckily for DC I changed my mind. I had crossed it out and all.
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Robocop (1987)
My id tells me to go with Forbidden Planet but I know that is something I need to keep a check on
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
Gah, those dice are cruel! I’ll change my mind 50 more times, but here you go. I gotta get some sleep, so here goes (with help, sometimes ignored, from my spouse):
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Star Wars (1977)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Start Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Are you freaking kidding me?! I keep thinking the whale one was better, but then I haven’t seen KHAAAAAAN in so long, I don’t really know. Remember what the Sci-Fi Channel said (when it was called that) – “even-numbered Trek films don’t suck.” Oh hell, I voted for IV in a previous round and voted for something else over II, so I’ll keep doing that. (My spouse says Kahn’s better, though.)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Back To The Future (1985)
Are you freaking kidding me?! My spouse says one can’t compare them – too different, one’s a comedy after all – but chose “Back to the Future” since it’s not a sequel, LOL. I really can’t decide, so I’m going with that. Plus, Star Wars movies can’t alwayswin. . . .
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
I haven’t seen “Brazil,” but I think I must vote “The Terminator,” which I expect to lose to “Brazil” anyway.
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dark City (1998)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
Time Bandits (1981)
Oh good grief. Movie I didn’t like as much (well, honestly, don’t remember!) or movie that is fantasy darnitall. Ugh. “Escape” it is. Plus my spouse feels the combination of (a) Adrienne Barbeau’s rkcybqvat gvgf and (b) Kurt Russell trumps “Time Bandits.”
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
1. Galaxy Quest
2. Star Wars
3. Serenity
4. King Kong
5. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
6. The Empire Strikes Back
7. Gravity
8. The Terminator
9. 2001
10. Dark City
11. Forbidden Planet
12. Star Trek: First Contact
13. Aliens
14. Escape From New York
15. Twelve Monkeys
16. Bladerunner
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Serenity (2005)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
Gravity (2013)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
The Fifth Element (1997)
Getting harder now…
1. Young Frankenstein
2. Alien
3. Metropolis
4. King Kong
5. Voyage Home
6. Empire
7. Iron Giant
8. Brazil
9. Guardians of the Galaxy
10. Dr Strangelove
11. Robocop
12. Bride of Frankenstein
13. Frankenstein
14. Time Bandits
15. Jedi
16. Bladerunner
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Young Frankenstein (1974)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
Brazil (1985)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Robocop (1987)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
abstain
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
The trick is to pull the plaster off quickly
I suspect I’m going to be voting for a lot of losers this round.
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Tie
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Tie
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
Brazil (1985)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Pass
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
Oh my god, why am I doing this to myself? There’s hardly any pairings here that aren’t going to cause me great pain to choose between. *sigh*
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Galaxy Quest (1999)
No sir, I don’t like it. Not gonna do it. You can’t make me. A Krya-tie vote for the behinderest.
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
Star Wars (1977)
I can’t do this one either. Second Kyra-tie!
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
Even though I reluctantly voted against it last round, this time I can cheerfully put my vote down for the great classic.
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
I’m amazed this is still in the running, but since it is, I’m still voting for it!
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Yeah, I know it’s cheesy. It’s still my favorite of the series.
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
This was painful, but had to be done.
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
With great reluctance, but I think this one has more rewatchability, so I choose you!
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
Brazil (1985)
If T2 were still in the running, this would have been a harder choice. Still not easy, but there it is.
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
I’m sorry, Dave. I have to vote for Groot.
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Ow!
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
I didn’t vote for it last round, and I felt extremely guilty, so I’ll vote for it now. But this is under extreme duress, I’ll have you know!
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Neither one. I choose They Live instead.
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
Reluctantly, and only because I have doubts about Time Bandits’ claim to be SF.
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
Probably futile, but I have to vote for this.
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
Bad dice! Sorry, Leeloo, I would have voted for you over so many things, but not this. All these things will be lost in time. Like tears in rain.
Brackets the third:
1. Eurgh. I’ll take one GalaxyQuest platter with extra ham and a side of crushed dice, please.
2. Egads. I wonder what effect Force lightning has on Sith dice? Star Wars, and my new hope is for a fresh case of forehead cloths.
3. Then again, maybe a calming dose of Serenity will restore my cherub-like demeanor.
4. KOOOOOONNNNNGGGGG! Get down from there, before you bend the antenna!
5. From Hell’s heart, I spit at the nuclear wessels. Khan all the way.
6. Ooh. Ouch. My, that stings… but I’ve gotta go with Back to the Future, for never having a Special Edition.
7. Iron Giant.
8. Terminator. The cloths are helping tremendously.
9. I knew it couldn’t last. 2001 is more significant, but Guardians was cooler. I am Groot!
10. Dark City, easily.
11. RoboCop, almost as easily.
12. Mmph. Sorry, Elsa, but you don’t have Roy Orbison on your side. First Contact it is.
13. Going old-school with Frankenstein. The bug-hunt was cool and all, but Ripley never had to contend with Bud and Lou.
14. Ultimately, who doesn’t want to Escape from New York?
15. Return of the Franchise.
16. Blade Runner.
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Young Frankenstein (1974)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Star Wars (1977)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Serenity (2005)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
King Kong (1933)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dark City (1998)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
The Fifth Element (1997)
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
pass
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Start Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
Back To The Future (1985)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
Gravity (2013)
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
pass
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
The Fifth Element (1997)
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
Nice.
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Metropolis (1927)
Sorry, Mal, this is the end of the line.
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Whatever.
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Chuck Berry was a singular genius, so fuck Back to the Future forever.
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
Brazil (1985)
Brazil gets a worthy opponent, but it’s still Brazil.
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
Is anti-2001 voting a hipster thing? If so, I accept the label.
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dark City (1998)
This is the rare forehead-cloth experience for me. Picking Dark City for its greater humanity and the sense that it’s the underdog.
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Robocop (1987)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
Do you think I’d be working here if I could afford a real bracket?
(whimper) Cally, please tuck that fort tightly around me…
SCIENCE FICTION MOVIE BRACKET – THIRD ROUND
1. PARODIES MADE WITH LOVE
Young Frankenstein (1974)
Galaxy Quest (1999)
2. FIGHTING ON SPACESHIPS
Alien (1979)
Star Wars (1977)
Argggggh! No! No! A Kyra-tie, please.
3. ALL SEVEN DEADLY SINS
Serenity (2005)
Metropolis (1927)
4. ONE CAN PROTECT HIS IDENTITY, ONE HAS A HARDER TIME
King Kong (1933)
A Scanner Darkly (2006)
5. ENTERPRISE VS ENTERPRISE
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Start Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
This is a little easier, and the whales are KHAAAAAAAN’ed into submission.
6. THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK TO THE FUTURE
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
Back To The Future (1985)
7. CLEAR SKIES WITH A CHANCE OF DEBRIS
The Iron Giant (1999)
Gravity (2013)
Abstain.
8. THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE
The Terminator (1984)
Brazil (1985)
Regret vote for T2 (sob)
9. MONOLITH VS INFINITY STONE
Guardians of The Galaxy (2014)
2001 (1968)
10. DENY THEM YOUR ESSENCE
Dr. Strangelove (1964)
Dark City (1998)
Abstain
11. THERE WILL BE… TROUBLE!
Forbidden Planet (1956)
Robocop (1987)
Abstain
12. CREATIONS GETTING CLOSER TO HUMANITY
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Bride of Frankenstein (1935)
13. MESSING WITH MONSTERS
Aliens (1986)
Frankenstein (1931)
14. WHY DOES THERE HAVE TO BE EVIL?
Escape From New York (1981)
Time Bandits (1981)
15. LOOKING FOR SMALL FURRY CREATURES
Return of the Jedi (1983)
Twelve Monkeys (1995)
16. BATTLE OF THE NOODLE STANDS
Bladerunner (1982)
The Fifth Element (1997)
I’m going to lie down now.