While, at least in theory, we cheer for the victory of the heroes, it is often the villains that define a work, and certainly the villains tend to get the best lines, best music, and commonly the coolest "style" in a work. This probably partly stems from the fact that villains are more "free" than the heroes; they get to do what they want rather than what they should or must. In addition, the villains tend to be in control, the ACTIVE force, in the story, at least up until the end; the heroes spend much of their time reacting [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: Flash Gordon
October 7, 2013 By 1 Comment
"Will you destroy this… 'Earth'?" "Later! I like to play with things a while… before annihilation…" Perhaps best known for its awesome rock soundtrack by none other than Queen, Flash Gordon is a cult favorite movie beloved for its unabashed and magnificent cheesiness. Based – with, as to be expected, considerable latitude –on the classic comic strip and old movie serials, Flash Gordon tells the story of Earth natives "Flash" Gordon (quarterback, New York Jets), journalist Dale Arden, and scientist Dr. Hans Zarkov [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: One Piece
October 2, 2013 By 1 Comment
Wealth. Fame. Power. The man who had achieved everything in life, like none before him, was the Pirate King, Gold Roger. The few words he spoke at his execution drove people the world over to take to the seas: "My treasure? If you want it, you can have it. Seek it out! I left everything in my life at that place!" The anime and manga One Piece, by Eiichiro Oda, is a shonen (boy's) adventure series which follows the adventures of Monkey D. Luffy and his peculiar crew across one of the most bizarre worlds ever [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: The Stainless Steel Rat
September 30, 2013 By 2 Comments
"James Bolivar DiGriz, I arrest you on the charge –" I was waiting for the word charge; I thought it made a nice touch that way. As he said it I pressed the button that set off the charge of black powder in the ceiling, the crossbeam buckled and the three-ton safe dropped through right on the top of the cop's head. He squashed very nicely, thank you. The cloud of plaster dust settled and all I could see of him was one hand, slightly crumpled. It twitched a bit and the index finger pointed at me accusingly. His voice was a [ Continue reading... ]
Under the Influence: The Incompleat Enchanter
September 25, 2013 By 3 Comments
Fletcher Pratt and L.Sprague deCamp were well-known authors of science fiction and fantasy in the Golden Age. Separately they both produced well-respected works for many years. But together they created something truly amazing: the world of the Mathematics of Magic, featuring Harold Shea and Reed Chalmers – two masters of mathematical logic who theorize that mathematics and logic and perception dominate reality, and thus if one can encode the logic of a particular world into one's calculations, one could in theory travel to the [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: Big Trouble in Little China
September 20, 2013 By 3 Comments
"You know what Jack Burton always says?" "Who?" "Me. Jack Burton. Jack Burton always says… ahh, what the hell." Kurt Russell's played many roles throughout the years – from the Computer in Tennis Shoes to Snake Plissken to Colonel O'Neill in the original Stargate. But in many ways my favorite is his two-fisted everyman trucker, Jack Burton, who gets into a pulp-fiction adventure way over his head… all because he wins a bet and agrees to do a favor for a friend on the way to collect. Big [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: My Neighbor Totoro
September 18, 2013 By 1 Comment
In any discussion of anime, there are very few names that are spoken with almost unqualified awe and pleasure. There is Osamu Tezuka, "Anime no Kami", the founder of the industry in many ways. One could make a case for Leiji Matsumoto, creator of Space Battleship Yamato (Star Blazers), Galaxy Express 999, and Space Pirate Harlock. And there is Hayao Miyazaki, sometimes called the "Japanese Disney", creator of some of the most wonderful, magical films ever made (which I will review later), including Laputa: Castle in [ Continue reading... ]
On My Shelves: Galaxy Quest
September 16, 2013 By 6 Comments
"By Grabthar's hammer… by the suns of Warvan… you shall be avenged!" Galaxy Quest is a parody and tribute to the original Star Trek (with some added flavoring from Next Generation). For those unaware of the basic "setup", it takes place in a world like this one, in which the famous classic SF TV show was called "Galaxy Quest" which featured a fancy starship called the NESA Protector which had a crew featuring a womanizing captain, an alien science officer, and a token female communi... er, comPUTER officer,, and [ Continue reading... ]
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