mjm wired :: Television

Battlestar Galactica is Bad Fiction

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:15:19 -0400

I've been watching BSG since it premiered as a mini-series. I admit that the show is entertaining and has just enough mystery/curiosity in it to keep me watching it. What I do find horribly annoying is that it's science-fiction is nonsensical (they have FTL, but nothing else). They try to merge in some quasi-allusion to religion (Neo in Matrix was bad enough). And the worst thing is that the characters have nothing concrete about them, they keep changing dynamically from a show-to-show basis. And somehow all the "critics" say that the show is sooo edgy and provocative. Hmmm, would they say that about a Soap-Opera???

I saw this post about "clues" being hinted in the recent episodes, and out of all the fanboys only one commenter wrote reply that made sense:

But seriously, what would I call this other than "hard sci-fi"? Bad fiction for one. The stories are so damn pat, and they've been following the "Issue of the Week" formula since half way through the second season. It's like some after school special in space, except with angsty speeches. Their idea of character development is to have people wake up one day and say "I'm going to cause unexpected, out of character mayhem today because dagnabit; everything's going to be back to normal tomorrow anyway." People need to stop mistaking conflict , emphatic voices, deus ex machinas and self-righteousness for good writing.

Yes, I'll bet he'll keep watching the show till the finale as will I. And while some fans have already admitted being immensely "sad" about the impending culmination, I, for one, will feel relieved that I have one less obligatory sci-fi show to watch.

Stargate: SG-1 Finale

Mon, 25 Jun 2007 19:24:06 -0400

Well as most science fiction fans know last friday was the series finale for Stargate: SG-1, ending the longest running sci-fi series ever. (Yes, longer than the X-Files - which was very lame to begin with) In any event, it was incredibly disappointing. On so many levels.

First of all let's ignore the issue that the series should have culminated at the end of season 8 when all the "bad guys" were defeated and every unique plot line and character seemed to have some closure. But NO, they introduced a new villian in season 9, bumped off several main characters, added new ones and just dragged it on.

Back to the point. The biggest issue is that the finale did not really finalize anything at all. Several big plot changes occured in the second half of this season alone. IMDB tells me that 2 straight to DVD movies will be made for Stargate. The first of which will conclude the plotline and after that who knows? Am I really anxious? No. But I would still like to know how it all ends. And if they were going to make 2 movies anyways, why not just end the show and create some cool movies that potentially newcomers could watch (perhaps something like Serenity)?

And how did it all end? ... The problem with many science fiction storylines is their over-dependence on time travel. Stargate ended (I don't care if I spoil it) with a scenario playing out where every main character ran the full extent of their lives. Probably something like the finale of Six Feet Under but with less satisfaction. Well here they were "trapped" but of course it "didn't happen" because they can go back in time and fix it! Yeah, how convenient.

Well anyways, I'm glad the show is over now. Once upon a time friday night could mean 3 or 4 different sci-fi shows to catch up on. Tough life for a geek. I'm glad there's one less. So now, I'll wait for the DVD's.

In all fairness, Stargate: SG-1 was a great show in its prime with the original cast. Highly entertaining, not too much mumbo-jumbo and great characters. Next to ST:TNG, it was probably one of the best sci-fi shows ever. I'll miss it. But after 10 years, its time to move onto something else.

American Idol: Season 6

Thu, 15 Feb 2007 12:28:08 -0500

I can't beleive I'm confessing on my blog that I am actually watching America Idol for the first time in my life and I actually enjoying it. Past few weeks were pretty entertaining with all the humiliation and belittling (sad fact of our human nature). But anyways, I've never watched the show before . I saw 15 minutes of Fantasia performing when I was in India in 2004 and otherwise I really have not found many "Idol's" very impressive. So last night the final 24 (12 girls and 12 boys) were selected. And the picks made for some possible interesting television.

During the auditions Indian siblings, Shaymali and Sanjaya Malakar both made it. And even though both thought the older sister (Shaymali) was the better singer, her brother proved to be the shining talent when she was cut. However sadly for this desi, this is American idol and as much as I think he's a good singer, I doubt he'll make it. After all america wants people like Katharine McPhee who sit very suggestively on the cover of their debut CD's.

Otherwise outside the obvious indian talent, I'm rather impressed by Chris Sligh - the christian wanna-be rocker who's got a killer sense of humor. Sadly he reminds me of Jack Osbourne and I think he'll struggle in the sex-appeal department as well. And even though I doubt I'd ever buy her music, I was very much impressed with the vocal ability of Melinda Doolittle. An honorable mention to Sundance Head, who had an awesome audition but really went south during the infamous "Hollywood Week".

Oh well, there are some obvious one's who won't get very far including bare-foot boy and the young Antonella. But I'm sure there will probably be some fun with the i-can't-beleive-i'm-not-beat-boxing Blake Lewis. And I feel sorry for the kid who apparently his mother didn't love him until he auditioned for American Idol, too bad he got cut.

I can't believe I've been sucked into this gimmick. What have I become?

Digital Cable Newbie

Sun, 28 Jan 2007 21:15:45 -0500

"Nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there." Everytime I visited a friend or relative with digital cable, I always thought "how cool". Yeah, so I have digital cable now, I didn't choose to get it, it's sort of just there, so I sort of use it. And it's somewhat of a disappointment. Yeah, not as nice as the brochure.

Biggest pain: It effectively killed my urge to channel surf. You know when there isn't anything on, but you just want to flip? Now it takes like 2 seconds for the image to display and for the "information" to show. And worse, sometimes the channel doesn't update on the screen, so it jumps like 2 or 3 channels. A co-worker recommended I start flipping through the "tv guide" menu and read the words. Unfortunately, its not quite the same.

The On Demand Movies feature is very disappointing. The free movies are either all black and white or they are those movies that no one really wanted to watch. Chances are if it's good, I have already seen it. So the new movies are all $3.99 - but in 10 minutes I can rent the DVD for $3.00 in wide screen and 5.1 surround sound. Worse yet, the fast forward and rewind are incredibly non-responsive. And to add insult to injury the sound sometimes "blips" and on occasion there is some digitization or loss of frames.

So you pay more for a premium service right? The TV channel guide actually has ads!!! It shows 3 channels and their schedules and in the forth row is a little banner for another TV show or movie. And I watched a (free) On Demand horror movie and every 30 minutes at the bottom flashed an advertisement for Fear.net. Not small - taking up a quarter of the screen.

So everyone who has had digital service probably already knows this, but to me I'm shocked how pathetic it all is. I remember reading in the early 90's how cool this technology would be, unfortunately it has quite a ways to go.

Selling Bikes without Selling Out

Mon, 22 Aug 2005 21:55:48 -0400

I was watching the news the other night and I saw Paul Sr., Paul Jr. and Mikey from American Choppers. I can't recall the details of the interview but one question was asked to Paul Sr. about the difficulties they handle and how it feels to be so successful. The one comment he made that caught my attention was about how to keep doing what they do (good bikes) withouth "selling out". Not sure what he meant, but it's pretty obvious that the Teutul family is revelling in their fame and fortune. Turn on the radio and hear how the "7-11 Big Gulp Slurpee" is the only thing that can calm down Paul Sr. And go to any major store and see their merchandise (note the logo t-shirts). ... Hey! It's genius. Once upon a time it took them weeks to build a custom chopper and cash in after hard labor and tight deadlines. Now they can do the same with a 15 minute endorsement.

Sellouts? Well the jury is still out. Success, it's a great thing.

'Chappelle's Show' is over

Thu, 04 Aug 2005 07:23:06 -0400

I didn't think I really cared at first, but to say the least I'm shocked. Chapelle's Show is over! I wonder what will fill the void?

I Gotta Have More Cowbell, Baby!

Wed, 04 May 2005 19:26:15 -0400

Mark you calendars: the seasoned comedy pro will return to SNL on May 14! Don't get your hopes up, he's only hosting.

Shutting Down the Warp Drive

Tue, 12 Apr 2005 18:59:09 -0400

Permanently! So Paramount has finallized that Star Trek:Enterprise will be cancelled and this 4rth season will be it's last. I must shed a tear ... of joy. I cannot emphasize how much disappointment this show brought me. The reasons may vary but the truth was that it just not as good as the 3 (technically 4) series preceding it. Some may ask: Why then did you ever watch it? Simple: obligation.

There is a deeper effect to all of this. Enterprise recently moved to friday nights and the SciFi Channel premeired 2 new shows last fall - also on friday! So each weekend I had to watch Enterprise, Stargate:SG1, Stargate:Atlantis and Battlestar Galactica. Now my burden is lighter: 1 less show. And to make things even better, all SciFi Channel shows have had their season finales. I can finally get some rest and do some work now. Ummm...

Multitude of Opinions as Facts?

Fri, 01 Apr 2005 19:03:09 -0500

An opinion is an opinion? Right? What if one opinion is accepted by majority, then what? ... So I'm reading Bill O'Reilly's April 1rst Talkings Point Memo and he, like most news stations, was giving his view of the Terri Schiavo case:

Now all over America, people have chosen sides, which is your right to do. "Talking Points" hopes that you base your opinion on provable facts, not speculation and emotion. New scientific poll by FOX News/Opinion Dynamics indicates the following.

If you read further what this scientific polls asks you will find 4 questions: (1) If it were you, would you want the feeding tube removed? (2) Could Terri improve? (3) Who would you choose as Terri's gaurdian? and (4) Do you think Terri told her husband that she did not wish to live in such a state?

Now the first question is pure opinion and it is a valid question when considering each one's personal life, however the remaing 3 are just plain stupid questions. How does a poll of seemingly scientifically sampled people determine the validity of one's actions? Or even medical issues for that matter? I don't understand why people think she could improve? It was permanent brain damage. Isn't it wrong to let someone beleive there is hope when there really isn't? I can understand that family members couldn't let go, but wasn't she already gone? How does a poll help me know if she could have improved?

And what bothers me more is attacking the establishment of gaurdianship and the basics of that relationship. If this woman told her husband something, how can he even prove it? She could have told him countless things how can people possibly know what she said to him? It's almost as if they were never married in the first place and some random person was entrusted with this woman. That marriage was a binding establishment ever prior to courts reaffirming it.

I'm not saying what happened was wonderful or that I liked the outcome. However I do think this opinionated fury fueled by media attention and innocent arrogance really hurts society as a whole. The situation was depressing, but the fact that people cared was nice. I just hope that this case's influence on science, life and law isn't based out of opinion or scorn but rather understanding and rational thought.