Gnorb.NET

Talk about one heck of a week! I know you probably haven’t been wondering about why I haven’t posted all that much recently (well, other than “why hasn’t Gnorb posted more? Hmm…”), but I’ll explain anyway.

This has been one really screwy week. I’ll start with last night and sort of jump around from there.

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I just finished watching the first season of the new Sci-Fi Chanel version of Battlestar Gallactica. I wrote about it before, after having seen the opening movie, and while I wasn’t too impressed, I liked what I saw. (Luckily in sci-fi there are only two kinds of movies: good movies and funny movies. The first are usually intentional and very well planned out. The second usually aren’t.) I borrowed a copy of the DVDs from a friend (Thank you, Dora!) and decided to spend one night watching the whole season. Thankfully, while not a sci-fi nerd, The Wife likes sci-fi just enough to watch the series with me. What follows are a few observations I made regarding the show. This isn’t a review, so don’t expect one. Also, don’t expect it to be very serious: while the observations are real, remember than in sci-fi there are never any bad moments: only good ones and funny ones.

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New year, new episode of the Gnorb.NET incidental series, Le Linkage, where I collect some of the more interesting links I find through the Web and share them with you people, whom I’ve never met but who I feel the need to entertain and share stuff with. (I’m sure there’s more than one psychological study waiting to happen right there.) This is episode 13 (my favorite number), which I’ve dubbed “The Sci-Fi Edition,” since it features links for sci-fi and links for stuff that might have been sci-fi. Aside from one Star Trek related link, everything else here is original, so don’t expect any Firefly or Star Wars. Anyway, read on and enjoy.

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I just finished watching the first DVD of the first season of Battlestar Galactica. For months now, just about every sci-fi fan I know has been gushing to me about how incredible this new version of the show has turned out to be. Finally, I was able to borrow a copy from a friend, to see what all the commotion was all about.

First impression: after seeing just the opening movie, I’m… not all that impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I totally dig the story line and seriously liked the movie — I certainly plan to add it to my collection — but I guess after everything I heard I sort of expected this to be better. The dangers of being put on too-high a pedestal, I guess.

Side Note: Did anyone else notice the similarities — in both storyline and scenery set up (particularly when it came to the hangar in the Galactica) to the storyline and scenery used in the old show Space, Above and Beyond? (Can I get a show of hands of people who actually remember that show?) What about the officers’ quarters, is it just me, or do they remind anyone else of the officers’ quarters in some of the Star Trek ships? I’m thinking mostly the design of the walls here. Finally, did anyone else notice that the weapons being used by the Cylons consisted mostly of 50-megaton nukes against cities and 50-kiloton nukes against the ships? Didn’t the Russians have missiles in the 200-megaton range in the 1960’s?

While watching this, I started thinking:

1. Why isn’t it that we see more of the technologies being developed (or thought about) in real life in sci-fi shows and movies?
2. What technologies, if any, would I consider the most likely to come to pass?

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I was reading an article today on the whole comic book cross-over bit (you know, where two of your favorite comic book heroes get together for one amazing, action-packed piece of what’s almost always crap, but you want to read it anyway), and saw the following, which, as both a Star Trek and X-Men fan, made me laugh out loud:

I was originally planning to wrap things up by talking about some insane comic book crossovers I’d love to see, but the simple fact is, there’s nothing I could come up with that’d be crazier than what’s already been done. There are very few ideas too stupid or backwards for them to actually put to paper, so it’s nearly impossible to come up with an idea so bizarre that it’s hilarious simply for its inherent unfeasibility. And if something hasn’t been done, and you’ve thought of it, chances are some writer or editor has too, and it’s already in the works.

I mean, look, they did an X-Men/Star Trek crossover ten years ago, and writer Scott Lobdell probably pitched the idea SOLELY because he wanted to write the following scene: “Wouldn’t it be cool if — ?”