So in light of the major media hype over mass animal deaths recently, I had to check something. Let's see....






...yeah. Nearly 40 years later, it's STILL an incredibly stupid concept. Because if you're just going to put natural stuff in domes, why not just put it in domes on Earth?

It just doesn't make sense. Even as a government make-work project it makes no sense. It makes so little sense that Bruce Dern looks sane in comparison. It's something so silly only a 1970s audience could take it seriously.

Screw it. I'm gonna go watch Godzilla and Forbidden Planet instead to wash the taste of Silent Running out of my mind.

The following video remix of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Twilight is interesting, not only for the editing and humor, but also because as a mash-up, it's compare and contrast as social commentary. It really points out the creepy nature of Edward's advances that Twilight fans tend to handwave away, and in the process, does more to comment on the misogynist nature nature of the horror genre than Buffy the TV series seemed to.

And oh yeah, it's pretty funny as well.

( Watch Video )

racerxmachina and I are watching "Auntie Mame".  She hasn't been able to close her mouth all film.

I think it's a bad influence on her.

Ever since the classic "Do2" troll inspired months of humor and a D02 rpg, people on rpg.net have had fun doing over-the-top silly slams on games.  But they needn't bother anymore, because after this, it's all downhill.

Everyone's favorite vigilante reviews D&D 4E.

Geeky satire just doesn't get better than this.

Courtesy of metafilter:

I already knew about "Airplane!",   the parody of the 70s "Airport" series.  What I didn't know, is that "Airplane!" is also a very close remake of the 1950's film "Zero Hour!".  In fact the serious dialog in "Airplane!" is practically word-for-word from Zero Hour.  It says a lot about 1950's drama that it needs very little twisting around to make an excellent comedy.

And courtesy of Youtube, we get a comparison of the "dramatic" scenes from "Zero Hour!" and "Airplane!".  Scary, isn't it?

Those strange and strangely enthusiastic  Japanese fans have done it again. In this case, it's the cast of Watchman, turned into Bishoujo-style girls. It's evidently a page describing the background of characters in anticipation of the upcoming movie, and is all part of the grand japanese fan tradition of taking serious concepts, and making them cute by turning them into girls.

At least we're not talking about making tanks or aircraft cute by turning them into girls.  This time.




Hmmm...I wonder if I could turn this into an icon....

So you've always wanted to be dark, seductive and dangerous, but you come across as Janine Melnitz rather than Ava Gardner? Well despair no more, because here's a handly little guide: How to be a Femme Fatal. It covers voice and inflection, clothing, hair annd where to hang out to get that noirish "woman of mystery" quality.

Practically, this is a nice little guide for cosplaying, LARPing, or playing a Femme Fatal in a tabletop game. Just taking some of the suggestions can be useful for building a memorable character.

And don't forget your character model!

I never thought I'd actually say it.

Or really, that I'd have to. 

After the rumor that Keanu Reeves was planning to create a live-action "Cowboy Bebop" movie hit Metafilter:

"Uh guys? Your geek rage is at 11, and I need down to about a 6, OK? Thanks. "

My boss has given me the job of cold-calling potential clients.

I have an infection in my right ear, that seems to be moving over to the other ear now.

I still have to print out and collate the character sheets for the LARP characters, even the ones we don't have players for.

And now...

And now, we have this: The "Avatar the Last Airbender movie will have an all-white cast. Along with the LJ reaction.

...right.  That does it.  Final straw, people. 

I'm going out to the car and take a nap.

Over on io9, there was a discussion about bad science leading to good stories...which for some reason had a picture of Jeri Ryan involved. this lead of course to comments about her being biologically impossible, or a silicone-based cyborg.



But really, the article should have been about bad science leading to bad stories...because never mind the cheesecake factor of Jeri ryan, what's always ticked me off about the Borg is that they are so utterly STUPID. Yeah, this race of beings tht absorbes the cultures and technologies of a thousand civilizations has the strategic sense of a three-year old.

The ironic thing is, if the Borg were written with any sense, if they weren't so artificially stupid, Jeri Ryan would probably be the model for most of them, not the walking tin men. Smart Borg wouldn't come on like B-grade communists in their clunky, evil-looking cubes. They'd have sleek, cool-looking ships, and they'd have advance PR involving Jeri and equally hunked out guys, smiling and welcoming. They'd be cooperative, helpful, and have a message.

"Hi, we're the Borg. How would you like to expand your capabilities a thousandfold? How would you like to have the knowledge of a thousand civilizations? How would you like to never be lonely again? Try us: we're the future, and we're here for you." And of course anyone who voluntarily joins the Collective would also be smiling, and so happy they'd never want to go back.  really. 

Or more simply, "Hi, I'm Seven of Nine. Fly me."

But that's the difference between stupid SF and smart SF; the latter actually requires thinking about the concept a little bit. Stupid SF is fast and easy, and it's not hard for it to touch on a concept in a shallow manner. SF that actually gets you to think about something requires more effort than most scriptwriters are willing to give.
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