Weekly Sci-Fi Thread (10/25/09)

Weekly Sci-Fi Thread (10/25/09)

Mon:
8/7 -- Heroes -- NBC

Thurs:
8/7 -- Flashforward -- ABC
9/8 -- Fringe -- Fox

Fri:
9/8 -- Dollhouse -- Fox
9/8 -- Stargate Universe -- SyFy
10/9 -- Sanctuary -- SyFy

Also there are variety of scifi shows on www.fancast.com

I was under the impression that they were going to the planet just to die later (even if they had children, they’d still eventually die), or by some incredible chance find a ‘local’ stargate and integrate into some civilisation they found, given that there wasn’t a need to continue the human race or anything like that.

Also, I don’t know if there were 9 women on that entire ship, and I’d guess only Chloe and the young Air Force girl (Vanessa?) and maybe the medic would be likely to be fertile enough for those purposes. That is, if they weren’t on some birth-control option like the depo shot (hey, if you were in space and didn’t know when you might have to run to another planet at a moment’s notice or leave stuff behind, that’s what I’d do considering the alternative) in the first place.

“Oh, yes I prefer I-store I-Apple I-macsyfy look much better.”

‘Properly lit’ does not mean ‘Apple designed the set’. ‘Properly lit’ means that you don’t notice the lighting - think of shows like Firefly or SG-1. Because our eyes automatically adjust to light we can still see detail in all but the darkest situations, but lose color perception in darkness. So, if you film a scene in proper lighting and apply a grey or blue-grey filter the viewer’s brain interprets it as ‘dark’ but none of the image quality is lost. There’s a much more detailed explanation in some of the behind-the-scenes stuff in the extended editions of the Lord of the Rings movies if you care to find it.

‘FlashForward’ has been better than I had expected even as East Coast/West Coast intrigues are starting to rear their ugly heads. There’s definitely a terror cell/hit squad going after the FBI’s L.A. Office and it will be fun seeing how each agent’s future pans out.

‘Fringe’ is just getting better and better with each episode as Olivia remembers more and more of her visit to alternate Manhattan.

‘Dollhouse’ is starting to pull out all the stops by not focusing on Eliza Dushku’s Echo and providing more back stories to secondary characters, Sierra, Topher and Victor. A very smart move, but I doubt it will keep the suis at FOX from axing the show after this season.

‘Sanctuary’ seems to be finding its stride. Haven’t seen ‘SG:U’ since the franchise should have called it quits after ‘Stargate: Atlantis’.

Was never a huge gan of the original ‘V’ and I don’t believe that having ‘Firefly’’s Inara in Jane Balder’s role is going to create a hit.

Jack.

I was under the impression that they were going to the planet just to die later (even if they had children, they'd still eventually die), or by some incredible chance find a `local' stargate and integrate into some civilisation they found, given that there wasn't a need to continue the human race or anything like that.

That's rather pointless and depressing, though it certainly fits in with the narcissism point earlier in the thread. It makes sense of their behavior in the show but I consider it silly. Isn't there anyone on that ship thinking beyond themselves and the next day or two? The only one character who raised "gender" seemed more interested in improving her odds and possibly some sort of affirmative action than anything else. Heck, now that I really think about it (I've only thought about this from an individual character perspective), it's also quite depressing that none of the men chose to stand aside and give women their slot or a better shot at a slot. The chivalry of the Titanic days are clearly dead. Congratulations, feminists, men are now happy to push women aside so they can live, instead.

Also, I don't know if there were 9 women on that entire ship, and I'd guess only Chloe and the young Air Force girl (Vanessa?) and maybe the medic would be likely to be fertile enough for those purposes.

The medic is in her 20s. There are plenty of other young women there, as seen in the various scenes around the ship including the praying scene and including one young woman who was actually picked by the lottery. There are quite a few more than 9 young women in their 20s or early 30s on that ship.

That is, if they weren't on some birth-control option like the depo shot (hey, if you were in space and didn't know when you might have to run to another planet at a moment's notice or leave stuff behind, that's what I'd do considering the alternative) in the first place.

Depo-Provera shots last for three months. Implants could last for a few years, as can an IUD, but both can be easily removed by a medic. Of course the women should be asked if they want to have children in that sort of environment and they should certainly be allowed to opt out if they don't want to go along. Women (and men) who can't have children could maybe have a shot via lottery at the odd spot, but I'd be curious how they'd justify their inclusion beyond "Me! Me! Me!" narcissism.

I saw it more as a positive attitude, that they wouldn’t give up as long as there was even the tiniest shred of hope left. Also, if you look at Chloe’s reaction to the pilot saying she should get a seat because of her father’s position, I don’t think she’d have any better reaction to someone telling her she should get a seat because of her gender. At the same time, although it would have been the chivalrous thing for the men (aside from the pilot, and maybe farm boy) to stand aside, once the ship landed it would have been quite useful to have men on the planet itself. So, since the attempt to make some kind of settlement on the planet would function best with both genders, IMO the only fair way to go would have been to make it completely gender-neutral.

I don’t think reproduction would have been a goal for several reasons. First of all, I and many other women would probably rather die in a star than die from complications with childbirth on a desolate planet with a minimum of medical supplies. Second of all, that brings up the rather awkward point that after a couple generations, the family tree wouldn’t have any branches... even with 8 men and 8 women for maximum genetic diversity that probably wouldn’t be enough.

It is nice to have at least one character to relate to in a show, and that's totally missing in this mess.

There is one character that is interesting, it's the ship, Destiny itself...

That said, I first must admit that I don't "like" this series, either conceptually or in its implementation. However, this episode was an improvement and if it continues to improve it might be watchable, particularly since the PTB's at "Sciffy" have made certain that fans of more traditional "hard" science fiction simply have no other choices. I will probably continue watching simply because there isn't anything else to choose from.

That forced lack of choice is the real issue that I believe fans will desert and cause the SyFy franchise to eventually dwindle away into the forgettable memory-hole along with most of the other superficial pablum characteristic of most other cable programming.

What SyFy execs have tried to spin as a "re-branding" of the network is ironically probably going to result in the simple dissolution or disintegration of a once recognizable brand with a committed fan base into an incoherent hodgepodge of soapy sci-fi/fantasy dramas, contrived reality scare-fests, CGI monster B-flicks, and wrestling. The only things missing are a syfy cooking show and a syfy shopping program... /g

At the same time, although it would have been the chivalrous thing for the men (aside from the pilot, and maybe farm boy) to stand aside, once the ship landed it would have been quite useful to have men on the planet itself.

Which is why I suggested a roughly even split in my original suggestion.

So, since the attempt to make some kind of settlement on the planet would function best with both genders, IMO the only fair way to go would have been to make it completely gender-neutral.

The settlement would not function very well with 13-14 guys and 3-4 women, one of whom is a lesbian, either, unless they are all completely, uh, "gender neutral" and just don't think about or have sex.

First of all, I and many other women would probably rather die in a star than die from complications with childbirth on a desolate planet with a minimum of medical supplies.

So are you expecting celibacy, because unless one of those supply boxes contains condoms or birth control pills, a pregnancy is certainly likely? As for dying from the complications of childbirth, much of that gets mitigated by basic surgical tools and antibiotics, which the team hopefully has, or even simple infections and injuries can quickly become deadly. And let's not forget that there are plenty of other nasty and brutish ways to die in such circumstances, including everyone getting old and slowly less able to take care of themselves.

Second of all, that brings up the rather awkward point that after a couple generations, the family tree wouldn’t have any branches... even with 8 men and 8 women for maximum genetic diversity that probably wouldn’t be enough.

You can keep the family trees apart pretty well with 8 men and 8 women, even if they stay reasonably monogamous, as long as they all have quite a few children. That's not to say that there wouldn't be genetic issues at all, just that they wouldn't necessarily grind everything to a halt.

I understand your point that not every woman would want to have a half-dozen or more children and possibly die doing it, and that again leads back to the narcissism point. What's survival all about? Individually living a few more days?

“So are you expecting celibacy, because unless one of those supply boxes contains condoms or birth control pills, a pregnancy is certainly likely?”

Well, in my experience, celibacy is not that difficult, especially when pregnancy is a possible outcome, or if you know that you wouldn’t be able to avoid your ex if you break up. Plus, guys who live in their mother’s basement and can’t get laid still don’t seem to die or anything from lack of sex...

But, I think when it comes down to it, survival isn’t about some noble, abstract desire to continue the human race, it’s just a really basic instinct that says “Don’t die!” People just naturally don’t want to die, and that’s good, because otherwise our ancestors would have just given up and bemoaned how fast animals could run instead of running or hiding or fighting back when chased by predators, or people today wouldn’t try to get out of burning buildings, and so on.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.