This post does NOT contain any major spoilers. I talk about the characters and series in general, but I don’t reveal any secrets that makes the series so fun. Fear not, read on!
When it premiered on ABC in April of 1990, Twin Peaks captured audience’s imaginations and set off a wave of “Peaksmania” across the country. The show centered on the murder of a high school girl named Laura Palmer in the sleepy north-western town of Twin Peaks. Amidst this on-going murder investigation by Special Agent Dale Cooper, played brilliantly by Kyle MacLachlan, the minutiae and seedy underbelly of its many denizens is revealed. Both audiences and critics have hailed Twin Peaks for over two decades as one of the best television series of all time. Thanks to its recent release on Netflix streaming, I decided to take a trip to the strange destination that is Twin Peaks.
When Carl Sagan’s ground-breaking PBS series, Cosmos, aired in 1980, it inspired an entire generation of children to learn more about the world and universe around them. The 13-part series made science accessible to the masses and presented complex concepts in easy to understand ways that are still taught in classrooms today.
Now comes word from WIRED that Sagan’s widow, Ann Druyan and Seth MacFarlane of Family Guy fame (both of whom are concerned about the growing anti-science sentiment in American society) are teaming up to produce a sequel to the series to air in 2013. Hosted by noted astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, the new show will strive to bring science to a new generation, exploring the universe on a grand scale.
The catch of course, is that because of MacFarlane’s involvement the new series will air on FOX in primetime. How will a science show devoted to discovering the wonders of the known universe fair against today’s dumbed-down TV fare? Unfortunately there’s no way to predict if audiences will tune in, we only wish Carl was around for the challenge. Here’s hoping the producers once again enlist the help of noted composer Vangelis to set the score for the series and that Tyson sneaks in at “billions and billions” at least once or twice.
William Shatner and Adam West almost starred together in a show based on the life of Alexander the Great. It didn’t get picked up of course, but here’s a look at these two giants of television history sharing a scene.
I know what you’re thinking, “There’s no sport in science fiction!” You’re wrong, bucko. There’s a fine tradition of athletic competition in the genre we love, from variations on basketball to fencing and what can arguably be described as “polo on brooms.” Here are six of my favorites.
Pyramid/Triad – Battlestar Galactica
Pyramid is a close-quarters ball game played by two teams or two individuals on a pyramid-shaped court. Points are scored by getting the ball into the top of one of several triangular goals along the court’s edge. Full contact is allowed (unless a player is in one of three designated “neutral zones”), and any player holding the ball can only take “three paces” without shooting, passing or grabbing a rebound.
In the re-imagined series, Starbuck and Sam Anders often played pickup games of Pyramid aboard the Galactica (they’re playing on Caprica above*). Before the second Cylon War, Anders played Pyramid professionally with the Caprica Buckaneers. Other pro teams included the Picon Panthers (Adama’s favorite team) and the Tauron Bulls.
Star Trek: The Next Gen – Season 3, Ep 22 Data is abducted by a collector of rare and unusual items as the Enterprise crew struggles with his apparent death.
It is said that he who dies with the most toys wins. In the 24th century, where money doesn’t exist and all of one’s wants and desires are just a replicator away, what counts as toys? For space-faring trader Kivas Fajo (played by Warehouse 13‘s Saul Rubinek after some tragic, last minute re-casting) those toys include rare paintings by Vincent van Gogh and sentient Soong-type androids like Lt. Cmd. Data of the Starship Enterprise.
Next week we’ll release episode 52, in which we’ll discuss Joss Wheadon’s ill-fated series Firefly. To get you in the mood and prepped to listen, we’ll be tweeting bits of trivia and interesting Firefly facts all week. Join in the fun, Browncoats.
Doctor Who fans are about to seriously get their geek on thanks to a new line of playsets from Underground Toys. Scheduled to arrive in November of this year, the toys feature some of Doctor Who’s most memorable villains such as the Daleks, the Cybermen and even the Weeping Angels. There are even mini-figs of Matt Smith as the Doctor himself and Karen Gillan as Amy Pond.
Potential buyers beware however. These playsets may look like official LEGO products, but they definitely are not. If you were planning on rocking them out with the latest Batman or Indiana Jones LEGO adventures, you’re in for disappointment. Prices can also be a bit steep so be sure to save up some coppers before placing your pre-orders which can be done today from BigBadToyStore.com
How could we not include this stinker from SyFy? Actors Stephen Baldwin (playing David) and Vanessa Johansson (playing Laura) venture to Venice, Italy to search for David’s father, who disappeared unexpectedly. While floating through the canals on a boat, David sees a large dorsal fin. Of course, he and an Italian man named Rossi (which must be Italian for “Red shirt”) enter the canals in wet suits. The shark re-appears, bites David and devours his doomed Italian companion.
From there, the plot borrows heavily from several Indiana Jones movies. David escape to a cave, evades traps and finds treasure. He then makes his way to a hospital but is then sent back to the cave for more looting.
It’s not easy to do a live-action shark character. Animated, sure. Look at Finding Nemo’s Bruce, for example. Huge, threatening and all teeth. Put Bruce in a Brooks Brothers suit and have him walk upright, however, and you’ve got trouble.
Bro’os, whose nickname is “Teeth” (what else), suffers from this misfortune. He first appeared in the eighth episode of Buffy’s sixth season, Tabula Rasa, and holds the distinction of being one of the very few characters to be considered an enemy by both the Scooby Gang and the Angel Investigations Team.
Star Trek: The Next Generation featured compelling characters, delightful storytelling and whacky – and we mean WHACKY – costumes. Fortunately, we needn’t try to remember them all because Fashion It So has taken on the task.
This wonderful blog is a screenshot-tastic history of Next Generation costumes, sorted by episode. Re-live Picard’s famous jumpsuit and whatever this is. Enjoy!
