TL;DR
– After a long pause
during the 2000s we are seeing a new golden age for Sci-Fi as shows go back
into space and more.
A New Golden Age of Science Fiction on Television
Article –
The other day I was working on a review and then something dawned on me, for
the first time in a long time I was excited by the many different Science
Fiction shows coming out of television. We were going into the stars, exploring
the future, and in some cases just getting plain weird. It was a joyous moment
because I remember a time when it was like this before and the long valley in-between
the two peaks. So today, I wanted to take a moment to talk about where we have
come from, what is so exciting about now, and why we are seeing this new Golden
Age.
TL;DR – This is a well-made
animation, with an interesting story, world and characters. Full of interesting
juxtapositions like magic and technology.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review –
I was thinking the other day of my joy at the old Monkey Magic stories. It had me wonder that it has been a long time
since I have seen a good travel story where a group of disparate people are
brought together through fate and then discover all their flaws and joys in the
face of shared adversity. Well as fate would have it just a couple of days
later a little surprise dropped on Netflix which was everything I didn’t know I
wanted.
So to set the scene, we open in on a desert wasteland on an alien (maybe)
planet with a disintegrating moon floating in orbit. Our first clue that this
is an interesting place is the image of a giant bull trampling across the
plains in search of a toilet. We cut to a town on the frontier full of dust,
wood, and a casual disregard for life. There are humans and other creatures,
and all sorts of robots, mechs, and mechanical augmentations. In the streets
walks Sam (A Special Associate Model) (Kamali Minter) from the faraway kingdom
of Botica. She does not seem to fit the tone of the local area, making friends
in a land of gunfights and wanton murder. But she is on a mission to find a
lost prince and the one person who can help her do that Philly the Kid (Kenn
Michael). One issue is that he does not really want to help, also he is cursed
and can’t die, also he had a large bounty on him that everyone is trying to
collect. So Sam, Philly, and Casey (Kamali Minter) a maintenance droid head off
on the mission in their pink coin-operated Mustang that can transform into a
bull. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will
be some [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR – A campy schlocky mess
at times, but also kind of endearing when it hits its groove
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Review –
We have been living through an interesting time for Science Fiction on TV, with
the rise of streaming services we have seen a plethora of new shows and ideas
that both look to the future and reinterpret the past. Today we are getting a
Sci-fi show that kind of does both, building upon very real concerns in the
world but framing it in a style of Sci-Fi that we have not seen in a long time.
With that in mind let’s jump in and explore the full first season.
So to set the scene, we open with a normal day on Earth in the not too distant
future after the world has been devastated by a second great depression and the
great flood. Things are starting to return to some sort of normalcy when an
alien ship smashes through the atmosphere flies across the USA and crashes into
a field transforming itself into a huge crystalline lattice. Months later, they
are still no closer to finding out what the artefact is or wants, but they have
picked up a transmission to the Pi Canis Majoris solar system. To work out what
to do they send the USIC Salvare under
the command of Niko Breckinridge (Katee Sackhoff) out to investigate. Niko had
to leave her daughter Jana (Lina Renna) and her husband Erik (Justin Chatwin)
behind as Erik is leading the scientific mission at the crash site. But before
too long things start going wrong, and we still don’t know if the aliens are friends
or foe. Now from here, we will be
looking at the season as a whole so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR – This is one of those
Sci-Fi shows that has you wondering what the hook is going to be and then it
hits you.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Review –
While there have been a lot of issues, one of the best things to come out of
the new streaming world has been a new wave or really interesting Science
Fiction TV shows. At the heart of this, but by no means the only contributor,
has been Netflix that has had a huge slate of really interesting Sci-Fi
content. Well, today we get to take a look at its newest addition Another Life with an exploration of its
pilot episode Across the Universe.
Overall, there was a lot of interesting facets in this first episode, but one
thing I really liked was the production. The design for the Salvare has facets
that are instantly recognisable but also are a little unique. The rings have a
visual language of a rotating gravity ship, but there is internal gravity so
there is an interesting juxtaposition. The standing sets are also really
interesting mixing a bland of high-tech and also
maybe-we-filmed-this-in-a-warehouse-somewhere that kind of works. Also, I am a
sucker for astronomy, so you had me sucked in the moment you stopped at Sirius
A, which they showed in all its glory.
TL;DR – A fantastic addition to the base game that really improves the exploration phase.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review – Last year I got back into Stellaris a 4X space strategy game, a combination that feels like a video game designed just for me. Over the years it has had a lot of improvements building upon the strengths of the base game. Since then there have been a couple of expansion packs and DLCs and today we are looking the latest addition for the game Ancient Relics.
The core component of this new story pack is the addition of archaeological digs and from this the addition of minor and major artifacts. As you explore out at the start of the game you may stumble across archaeological digs on random planets. These require a science ship to work them much like anomalies but with a little twist. There is a random element in the process where you have a chance to improve until you crack the next level. Most of the digs have multiple levels that you have to progress to before you can complete it and earn research points, resources, or more.
TL;DR – It builds on
the season before and becomes a much more intense show that maybe holds its
cards bit too close to its chest.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review –
Early last year I got a chance to watch the first Netflix show to come out of
Scandinavia. The Rain had a fantastic
premise with strong characters, overarching story, and design work. Though it
was a show where it would have been great to see it take some more risks and
chart a more independent course. Flash forward to a week ago and the second
season dropped onto the service and at once it captivated me back into this
world of post-apocalyptic Denmark.
So to set the scene, one day everyone’s lives in Denmark and at least Southern
Sweden changed for the worse. For that day it started to rain, nothing new in
Scandinavia, but this time the rains did not bring life, but death. Something
we are reminded about in the opening moments of Season Two when we see the carnage
once more to give us perspective moving forward. We jump back into the story
just when Season
One ended with Simone (Alba August), Rasmus (Lucas Lynggaard
Tønnesen), Martin (Mikkel Følsgaard), Jean (Sonny Lindberg), Lea (Jessica
Dinnage), and Patrick (Lukas Løkken) escaping from the Apollon headquarters
along the barrier wall in Sweden. Just when all hope is lost, Simone and
Rasmus’ father Frederick (Lars Simonsen) gives them a location where they might
get some help, moments before he himself is killed. So with a plan, they set
off for this hidden base, but there could be an even worse danger within
because the virus in Rasmus is adapting and changing and it is destroying
everything in its path. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a
whole so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR – This is a movie that is contemplative, tension, and fascinating as all get, a must watch for any fan of the science fiction genre.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
Motherhood is a concept that does not get as much exploration in the science
fiction world. Yes, of course, there is the waring mothers of Aliens, but they tend to be the
exception rather than the rule. So when you see a science fiction post-apocalyptical
film titled I Am Mother, you immediately
sit up and take notice and thankfully the final product is such an amazing work
of film.
So to set the scene, at some point in the future humanity finally did it, we
went and killed ourselves off in an extinction level event. Thankfully, some
people saw this coming and hid a facility away in the mountains filled with embryos
in stasis and a backup carer if no one could make it. With that Mother (Rose
Byrne & Luke Hawker) is activated and sets the process going for the first
new human birth, even as the bunker shakes with the last throes of the
conflict. Many years later and Daughter (Clara Rugaard) has grown up, living
her life under the care of Mother. However, one day something bangs against the
airlock and everything she knew gets thrown into chaos.
TL;DR – An example of a great concept and acting, not quite working due to the format.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
As a fan of Science Fiction, I really enjoy seeing new ideas brought to the
screen, even if they don’t always work out as well as they hoped. Today we get
to look and just such a film that is filled with heart and some really
interesting ideas, but maybe a film was not the right format to properly
express it. With that in mind let’s delve into a story about a boy and his gun.
So to set the scene, we open in on Elijah “Eli” Solinski (Myles
Truitt) who lives in Detroit with his adopted father Hal (Dennis Quaid). Eli
has been struggling at school, he is a good kid but he has anger management
issues (well if kids were making fun of your dead mother, I would not be shocked
if you threw a punch or two). One day as Eli was stripping out some wiring from
an abandoned factory we stumble across the site of a battle between two alien
forces. On the ground are a number of corpses and on box shape gun that Eli
drops when one of the bodies move. Back home Hal lets him know to set another
plate for dinner because Eli’s older brother Jimmy (Jack Reynor) just got out
of prison, but Eli needs to be careful around Jimmy. Which is not an
unreasonable statement because what they don’t know is that Jimmy is in debt to
Balik (James Franco) a local gangster to the tune of $60,000 for protection
while he was in jail and soon Jimmy brings that damage into the house.
TL;DR – This is fun adventure flick in the tradition of saving the world being thrust upon young people. A fun cast, a good set up, and a good use of world building.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
If you have read this site before you will know I am a fan of the alien
invasion genre, indeed Independence
Day is one of my top ten films of all time. So I am always interested
to see different takes on the genre, to see where they can take the formula. Today
we are looking at the newest Netflix film based around this very scenario, but
also more than many films I have seen this year, Rim of the World both knows what it is and what it wants to do, and
at all times it succeeds in these core drives.
So to set the scene, we open on the first day of summer camp as kids from
around Los Angeles and further come together to have a fun time away. Alex (Jack
Gore) is a space enthusiast who likes to live in his world of screens, but
there is a reason for his isolation. Zhen Zhen (Miya Cech) has secretly flown
across the Pacific to attend the camp in an attempt to overcome her disappointed
father. Dariush (Benjamin Flores Jr.) is full of bluster, the rich kid that has
it all, and cares more about his sneakers than other humans, but then it is all
a shield. There is also Gabriel (Alessio Scalzotto) who no one quite knows why
he is here. Rim of the World adventure camp is full of zip lines, canoe rides,
and camp counsellors that may have needed more of a background check before
starting work, so your usual summer camp. However, while all that is happening
the International Space Station is being destroyed because entering high orbit
is an alien mothership and as people will find out as the sky explodes, they
are not here to make new friends.
TL;DR – A sci-fi film that excels in creating atmosphere in both world building but also in creating a suffocating feel.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
I don’t think it is any great surprise that I am a fan of science fiction, I’ll
take it any way I can get it. However, it is a rare film that captures my attention
for doing things a little different and Prospect
is such a film. Instead of big battle scenes and space opera set pieces, it
focuses on building atmosphere and exploring the lives of its characters.
So to set the scene, we open in space convey ship as Cee (Sophie Thatcher) is
listening in to some music only to forget to be back in their pod in time. She
lives on the edges of society with her father Damon (Jay Duplass) trying to scavenge
whatever they can to stay afloat. They are over a moon that is covered in a
forest (the green) that produces toxic spores that make it impossible to breathe
for more than a few seconds. However, it is home to some biological gems that
are quite profitable if you can find a site that was not picked clean during
the rush. Landing off course, they have to go overland to their job site when
they run into Ezra (Pedro Pascal) and his crew. Setting off a tense scene
because the Convoy ship is leaving in three cycles and it is not coming back
which is just the moment everything falls apart.
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