Martian Outpost

In a recent interview with Radio 2’s Jonathan Ross, Catherine Tate said that she does not believe David Tennant will come back for another season of Doctor Who. Her exact words were “I think it’s maybe David’s last series.” As you can imagine, the rumor mill is now churning out all kinds of crazy thoughts and ideas as to the future of the show and possible replacements. The BBC has remained silent regarding Tate’s comments.

Those of you who do not remember Catherine Tate, she made an appearance on the December 2006 Christmas special. She played a runaway bride. I thought it was a pretty good episode. According to the BBC, that episode brought in 9.4 million users in Britain. With a population of 60 million people, that is a pretty dang good market share. I can’t imagine a Sci-Fi show in the United States ever getting that high a market share.

Apparently she is a comedian. Being an American, I am not familiar with her at all. Perhaps some of you Brits can fill me in on her past comedic works. She is going to be playing Dr. Who’s new assistant. Apparently this will also be Tate’s last TV series.

On a similar note, Dr. Who fans have voted David Tennant as the best Doctor Who ever. The number of votes accumulated even surpassed the previous favorite Tom Baker.

The Top Five Doctors:

1. David Tennant – 28.2%
2. Tom Baker – 26.5%
3. Christopher Eccleston – 11.4%
4. Jon Pertwee – 9.6%
5. Patrick Troughton – 8.8%

I’ll try and keep you all updated as I find more news. I sure hope David Tennant is staying with the series. I think he has turned out to be a great Doctor.

For those of you who celebrate Christmas, there are only a few days left. Have you gotten your friend or loved one a Sci-Fi gift yet? If not, here are some great TV, Movie, Video Game and Book suggestions.

Recommended Sci-Fi TV Seasons:

1. Star Trek the Next Generation (TNG)
2. Star Trek the Original Series (TOS)
3. Firefly
4. Stargate SG1
5. Stargate Atlantas
6. Futurama
7. Babylon 5
8. Doctor Who
9. The X-Files
10. Battlestar Galactica

Recommended Sci-Fi Movies:

1. Star Wars Movies
2. Galaxy Quest
3. Chronicles of Riddick
4. Star Trek Movies
5. Planet of the Apes
6. Dune
7. Blade Runner
8. Terminator Movies
9. Alien Movies
10. The Matrix Trilogy

Recommended Sci-Fi Video Games (For Current Generation Systems):

1. Halo 3 (Xbox 360)
2. Unreal Tournament 3 (PS3)
3. Mass Effect (Xbox 360)
4. Call of Duty 4 (Xbox 360)
5. BioShock (Xbox 360)
6. Gears of War (Xbox 360)
7. Resistance: Fall of Man (PS3)
8. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption (Wii)
9. Crysis (PC)
10. Galactic Civilization II: Dark Avatar (PC)

Recommended Sci-Fi Books:

1. Dune
2. The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy
3. The Time Machine
4. 2001 – A Space Odyssey
5. Fahrenheit 451
6. Ender’s Game
7. 1984
8. Foundation Trilogy
9. Starship Troopers
10. Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?

Good luck! I’m sure any true Sci-Fi fan would be happy with any of the above listed movies, TV shows, games and books. The games may be a little more difficult as you need a specific console to play them. The books, movies and TV shows are a pretty safe bet. Merry Christmas!

It’s dark, a little dreary and one of the most enjoyable Sci-Fi movies made in the 80’s. Blade Runner was released today in all its glory in high definition on Blue Ray and HD DVD. You can pick up a couple different versions of this movie today. You can choose from the five-disk Complete Collector’s Edition or the five-disk Ultimate Collectors Edition.

The Ultimate Edition comes in a replica of Rick Deckard’s briefcase. Also included is a lenticular motion film clip from the original feature, miniature origami unicorn figurine, miniature replica spinner car, and collector’s photographs, as well as a signed personal letter from Sir Ridley Scott.

Those who like Blade Runner almost speak about the movie in a religious reverence. Blade Runner is considered by many to be one of Harrison Fords greatest movies, even topping Star Wars and Indiana Jones. Although that is debatable, you can’t argue the fact that Blade Runner is an absolute necessity for any Sci-Fi library. Ridley Scott regards Blade Runner as his “most complete and personal film.”

This movie also features the actress Sean Young, who many of you may remember as Chani from the 1984 classic Dune. Sean plays the lovely replicant Rachael. Can you believe this movie takes place in 2019, just 11 years away? We have a lot of catching up to do if we are to have replicants in time for 2019! I really enjoy seeing writers’ and directors’ visions of the future, even if it is often now in our past or in the not too distant future.

You really can’t get much geekier than an argument on who would win between Star Trek’s Enterprise D or E and a Star Wars Star Destroyer. I know this is all Sci-Fi and a ridiculous never-ending argument. I am a huge fan of both genres, so when I got into a friendly argument with my friend at work I reluctantly picked the side of Star Trek.

As this argument ensued at work, people around us started laughing, thinking we had both truly lost our minds. Perhaps we did a little. The argument then turned to Star Wars vs. Star Trek. These were our main arguments in a condensed and far smaller format:

Friend: Star Destroyer big, Enterprise small.
Me: Enterprise faster, more maneuverable.
Friend: Thousands of lasers.
Me: Lasers dude?! You’re kidding me. Phasers kick Lasers in any match.
Friend: Super Star Destroyer and Death Star kill the Enterprise.
Me: Agreed. I don’t think the Enterprise D or C would win those two. So I throw in the Borg.
Friend: <Pure silence ensues.>
Me: Nuff said.

I have found in my own observations that there are a lot more casual Star Wars fans than casual Star Trek fans. I have also found, again in my own observations, that there are a lot more die-hard Star Trek fans than there are die-hard Star Wars fans. This means in most “forum” based arguments on this topic, Star Wars will almost always win by sheer numbers.

Many people try to throw The Force into the mixture. I used to think this was a big deal as well, especially when watching the classic trilogy of Star Wars (ANH, ESB, ROTJ). The Force kicks trash in those movies. Then the prequel Star Wars movies came out. TPM, AOTC & ROTS have changed my mind on this. I now think The Force would be a minuscule influence in any such fight.

In The Phantom Menace we discover that Midichlorians actually dictate one’s power with the force. It’s not something you can get stronger with (except training), unless there are synthetic Midichlorians being produced and injected into the blood stream. You will also discover in Revenge of the Sith that a bunch of clone troopers can EASILY wipe out the Jedi. I can’t even begin to tell you how disappointed I was watching the Jedi get seemingly killed in seconds by a blaster!

A lot of the argumentative stats in this epic battle are taken from non-canon books, video games and other non-canon sources. This includes both sides of the argument. And let’s not throw in the Expanded Universe from Star Wars into the argument. The Expanded Universe of Star Wars books contradict themselves on every level.

I have done my own research and have found the following sites to be useful when determining who would win a U.S.S. Enterprise D/E vs. Star Wars Star Destroyer battle.

List of Ultimate Star Wars vs. Star Trek Sites:

ST-V-SW.net (Great arguments in favor of Star Trek <when looking at sheer firepower and defense capabilities>. Well researched data with sources to back it up.)

StarDestroyer.net (Great arguments in favor of Star Wars. Seems to utilize a lot of non-canon data.)

Answers.com also has a nice article on the subject that you can read here.

There are a lot of awesome ships in the Sci-Fi universe not limited to just Star Wars or Star Trek. Let’s throw an Asgard or Replicator ship into the mixture, or perhaps a Battlestar from Battlestar Galactica. The Battlestars look awesome!

TheForce.net has some great Star Trek, Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica specs, although who knows if the sources are accurate. You can find them here.

Again, I realize this argument will never come to an end, but it sure is fun!

I know I may be a little old for toys, but was recently thinking about my favorite Star Trek toys as a kid, which were made by Galoob. Do you remember Galoob? They were around until 1998 when they were bought out by Hasbro. They made some of my favorite Star Trek The Next Generation action figures. Some of them are even considered to be collector’s items now. I also remember sending in some Cheerios UPC codes to get a classic Star Trek NCC1701D poster with it in front of a starry background. It was a slightly smaller version of the poster seen in Captain Picard’s ready room.

I still have that poster, but it has since bent and ripped over the years. I was lucky enough a couple of years ago to get a hold of a new, still in the plastic wrap, poster off the Internet. Isn’t the Internet wonderful? On the back of the poster were listed all the Galoob Star Trek TNG action figures. I still have the poster in the plastic, but plan on framing it and proudly hanging it on the wall. What can I say? I am proud to be a Star Trek geek.

Once I had the poster, I of course had to get some of the toys listed on the back. Somehow Santa Clause caught wind of this and I got a Commander Riker and a die cast NCC1701D Star Trek Enterprise for Christmas. The saucer section even separated. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. These toys, unfortunately, are now long gone.

Front of Die Cast Enterprise:

Back of Die Cast Enterprise

So what did I do later on as an adult? I got on e-bay and purchased a bunch of these toys for my own personal collection. I probably have 15 action figures and the die cast NCC1701D all in the box with the blister and card still in good condition. E-bay has tons of Galoob Star Trek toys available, with many of them still in good condition. You can find these Galoob toys here.

Some of the action figures were produced differently, making some of them collector’s items. The first release of these toys, in 1988, had a flat blister. The second release of toys had face paint variations and an indented blister. Data went through the most variations.

The first Data released had an almost blue colored face. This is considered to be the most collectible Commander Data. The face was changed by Galoob to make it look more human. The face turned out very dark. Data was later created with lighter skin and yellow lips, like an android. Quality control was a little lax and some of the Datas produced had a speckled-face look. I actually own one of those. You will also notice that some of the Commander Rikers and Captain Picards ended up with yellow lips. Oops!

I hope you have learned a little about Galoob’s Star Trek line of action figures. This site has some great pictures of the different Galoob Star Trek TNG toy variations.

Gears Of War is considered to by many to be one of the best video games ever produced. Released in 2006, its stunning graphics on the Xbox 360 make it a high-def must for any hardcore gamer. The storyline is great and the cinematic are awesome. It’s no surprise that New Line Cinema purchased the rights to produce a movie based on this hit game.

So what is the status of this movie? It appears to be scheduled for a 2009 release, according to the IMDB, but many rumors are circulating around the Internet that Gears of War the movie may be going the way of the Halo movie. Enormous budgets, fears of lost money and other issues seem to be plaguing the movie. I’m happy to say that I think the movie will still become a reality, and here’s why.

It all started with the announced back on March 10, 2007 that New Line Cinema had purchased the rights to the movie. Stuart Beattie, one of the best writers in current cinema, was hired to write the movie script. Stuart Beattie has written scripts for movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, 30 Days of Night and more. I should also mention that he is currently writing the script for Spy Hunter and G.I. Joe. You can read a lot about what Stuart Beattie has to say about Gears of War here.

Watch what Cliffy B has to say about the movie:

Len Wiseman was to direct the movie, but this appears to still be in limbo. He is a genius, directing Underworld, Underworld: Evolution and Live Free or Die Hard. All three are great movies and are highly recommended. He was going to also direct the remake of Escape from New York, but was recently replaced by Brett Ratner. Perhaps this will free up more time for Gears of War.

LatinoReview managed to get their hands on a 22-page draft of the movie written by Stuart Beattie. They have since leaked the draft and have posted it on their Web site. Be aware that there are spoilers. The ultimate draft will more than likely change quite a bit. You can read the draft here.

When talking about Len Wiseman being replaced as director, IESB.net had this to say about the future of the Gears of War movie and Len Wiseman:

Does this mean Len Wiseman will now be moving forward with the highly anticipated Gear of War film? Nope, the IESB has been informed Wiseman is off Gears as well*** and that New Line Cinema will most likely not move forward with the film at all. Our source is saying that the studio has concerns with ballooning budget of the film.

Video game adaptations are not proven blockbusters the way comic book films have become in the last 10 years. Studios have a hard time gambling $100 million dollars plus to a genre that has not been able to break out of the “Uwe Boll” stereotypes.

The best hope that future video game films may have, and this is totally IMO, is to have Michael Bay make Prince of Persia after he is done with Transformers 2 and prove that a video game movie can make $300-400 million in worldwide box office receipts.

Until then be prepared for less than mediocre video game films with hacks as directors.”

I’m not entirely sure where these guys are getting the idea that video game adaptations are not proven blockbusters. I don’t believe there have been enough video game adaptations to warrant this view. It is also false that Wiseman is “off Gears as well.” Although his position as director appears to be in limbo, it looks like he may still with the project.

According to Cineplex.com, Cliffy B seems to still be optimistic that the Gears of War movie will become a reality. He says in an interview posted on the site:

Slamming the lid on the rumours to the contrary, Clifford Bleszinski (alias ‘CliffyB’) wants fans to know that the ‘Gears of War’ movie is still alive and well. It is in the development phase and moving ahead on all fronts.

“We are currently at the point where we have had a couple drafts of the script and now we are talking to different directors and trying to feel out who would be the best fit for it,” Bleszinski told Cineplex Entertainment while he was in Toronto promoting the Windows PC release of ‘Gears of War’.

I certainly hope this movie becomes I reality. I will try to keep you all posted on the status of this movie as information becomes available.

Starship Troopers (Special Edition) is easily in my top 20 Sci-Fi movies of all time. I know the plot is fairly simple and parts of it are just plain stupid, yet it’s awesome! I love watching the troopers in training, the battle with the bugs and the great action shots. I really appreciated Casper Van Dien as Johnny Rico and Denise Richards wasn’t too hard on the eyes either.

Not soon after the movie came out I discovered Roughnecks – The Starship Troopers Chronicles – The Complete Campaigns. I ordered a copy of it on Amazon and now have in my Sci-Fi DVD collection. For the time, the CGI was pretty good. All the episodes were pretty fun to watch, if not for anything else it gave more background on the Starship Troopers world.

Soon thereafter, in 2004, came Starship Troopers 2 – Hero of the Federation. What a huge disappointment. That piece of junk wouldn’t even qualify as a bad horror movie. I have seen some pretty bad Sci-Fi movies and this is right at the top. If you haven’t seen it already, don’t even bother. You’ll thank me. Johnny Rico and the others aren’t in it and the acting is atrocious.

Brenda Strong, who played Captain Deladier in the first Starship Troopers, was the only original cast member to come back. The only thing is that she came back as a completely different character.

After ST2 I was pretty bummed out. I have since discovered that a Starship Troopers 3 is being produced. At first I was afraid this would be another direct to DVD piece of garbage, but Casper Van Dien is coming back! This means I will be seeing it regardless of how bad it may be.

Jolene Blalock, known as Sub-Commander T’Pol to my fellow Star Trek buddies, will be co-starring with Van Dien as Captain Lola Beck.

I’m not aware of an official release date, but I have heard that filming has been going on in South Africa. According to the IMDB it is in pos-production. It will be released direct to DVD.

Casper Van Dien hasn’t had anything too big on his plate lately, except some so-so “Made for Sci-Fi” channel movies. This is probably a pretty good career move for him.

The new Starship Troopers 3 movie, known as Starship Troopers: Marauder, is about Johnny Rico who is now colonel. There will supposedly be a new villain bug, similar to the brain bug from the first movie.

You can read some informational interviews over at StarshipTroopers3.net.

The Star Wars Holiday Special is considered to be the “Holy Grail” for Star Wars fans, but many of them admit it is hard to sit through. Who ever thought so many Wookie grunts and groans could be so painful? Being that it is now December, I felt it appropriate to bring this enjoyable piece of TV history back up. Keep in mind that it is 97 minutes long!

As you probably already know, the Star Wars holiday special is not available on DVD or VHS. The only place you are able to find it is on E-bay as a bootlegged copy or by downloading a torrent. Even the copies you find on E-bay are fairly sub-par. It would be fun to be able to purchase a cleaned-up copy of it, but that will never happen.

It is passed down through Star Wars lore that George Lucas himself said at an Australian Star Wars convention, “If I had the time and a sledgehammer, I would track down every copy of that show and smash it. The holiday special does not represent my vision for Star Wars.”

It is believed by most Star Wars fans that the Boba Fett portion of the Star Wars Holiday Special is the best part of the entire show. Luckily this can be seen on YouTube, although the quality is still that of 1978.

Who knew a Y-Wing fighter had so much room on it and that the front cockpit could detach into a handy boat? It is also interesting to see the Milenium Falcon and the Y-Wing hit the muddy planet at breakneck speed without causing any damage? If only Luke’s X-Wing could have had so much boyency on Dagobah.

My brother-in-law somehow got himself a copy on VHS which I later transferred over to DVD. It still has the old commercials from 1978. That was a blast from the past. Seeing that tape “Star Wars Holiday Special” printed on a label reminded me of the scene from Weird Al’s music video “White and Nerdy” where the two geeks conduct a back-alley transfer of the special on tape.

Good luck in acquiring your own copy. It really isn’t too hard if you know where to look.