It was announced today that veteran British actor Michael Culver passed away on February 27th at the age of 85, ending a career of over 50 years of stage, television and motion picture performances - the best known of which was perhaps his brief 1980 appearance in The Empire Strikes Back as an apologetic Imperial Captain. Thank you for your service, Mr. Culver.
- Sid
Shout out to the 2024 Disney squad: sister-in-law Stefanie, myself, Karli the Birthday Girl, and Karli's best friend John, who had never been before and made the experience new again for the rest of us! (And, of course, BB-8, who is just a joiner.)
- Sid
My previous posting told a slight lie. I did in fact purchase another souvenir item during our time at Disneyland - I finally succumbed to temptation and invested in the Black Spire outpost version of a Coke. Hmmm...I wonder how much it costs Disney to have the Coca-Cola Company manufacture a custom product which is presumably only for sale at two refreshment carts on opposite sides of the United States?
- Sid
No light sabers this trip, no helmets (although I noticed that there was now an alternate version of the X-Wing pilot's helmet that I purchased on our last Disneyland visit for sale) - my only souvenir shopping was the impulse buy of an Ahsoka t-shirt from a vendor located in one of the underpass tunnels that lead to Galaxy's Edge.
I hate to say it, but after watching the Ahsoka series on Disney+ that provided the graphics for the t-shirt, I found myself siding with Team Ashley regarding the casting for the titular character.
No offense to Rosario Dawson's performance, but after you've painted someone orange, stencilled marks on their face, and covered their hair with montrals and striped lekku*, their voice suddenly becomes a strong point in the character's presentation. In this case, Ashley Eckstein's extended run as Ahsoka's voice in the Clone Wars and Star Wars: Rebels series would have cemented the connection in the character's transition to live action, much as with Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy's move from the animated Batman series to video games.
And who knows, she might not have been so grim all the time - I know that Ahsoka's history weighs her down, but I also think of the adult version of the character in Rebels as having achieved some emotional balance, although perhaps through the Force rather than weekly counselling sessions.
- Sid
* In case you'd been wondering what the horns and fleshy head-tails were called. (Never forget, in the Star Wars Universe, EVERYTHING has a name.)
The first time that we visited Avengers CAMPUS at Disney's California Adventure in 2022, I found that it didn't quite meet with the expectations that had been established by Galaxy's Edge - or even its next door neighbour, Radiator Springs. Whereas both of those attractions had created consistently evocative environments that immersed the visitor in that world, Avengers CAMPUS somehow fell flat - it just didn't pull me in the same way.
However, this time I was fortunate enough to see more of the MCU Avengers-related character performances, which very much redeemed my opinion of the CAMPUS.
Disneyland has done some very effective casting, particularly in the case of characters like Loki, Thor, Doctor Strange and the Black Widow, who can't rely on masks to define their look. I was particularly impressed by the Peter Quill stand-in, who delivered a deadly accurate imitation of Chris Pratt in the Guardians of the Galaxy dance-off show, and also did an excellent job of interacting with the audience.
The Doctor Strange Mysteries of the Mystic Arts performance was equally impressive. The magic was simple but effective, there were some clever ad-libs by the Stephen Strange cast member during his conversations with the crowd, and the brief Captain Marvel cameo was a nice touch.
The dramatic Wakandan Dora Milaje Warrior Workout also captured the attention of the crowd, as did the Avengers Assemble encounter, which features members of the Avengers fighting off an array of thugs, including the Taskmaster.
In addition to the scripted performances, Marvel-costumed cast members roam the CAMPUS, chat with guests, and pose for photos, much as Mickey Mouse et al. in the Disneyland park.
In spite of the high quality of the tribute performances done by these Disney cast members, I'd like to encourage the original actors to step up and make some unscheduled personal appearances. After all, Johnny Depp used to show up at Pirates of the Caribbean in his full Jack Sparrow regalia - imagine how excited my wife would have been to have her picture taken with Tom Hiddleston's Loki?
- Sid
As you get older, it's harder to really play, or at least play
publicly in the way that children do. A lot of that desire gets sublimated into activities with a sort
of grown-up veneer of acceptability: cosplay, paintball, tabletop and video gaming, D&D,
LARPing, and all the other loopholes that allow us to say "let's pretend"
as adults.
For a lot of people, Disneyland is that urge to play writ large, and for me, Galaxy's Edge is the perfect venue to fully experience that. It's a testament to the detail and consistency that Disney's creative people have put into this little alien outpost so that, when I'm there, I feel like I'm actually on another planet, even when surrounded by people in mouse ears and sweat pants.
Part of me wants to explore Galaxy's Edge all on my own, because it would leave me free to enjoy it as if I were part of that world, to quote Ariel. As it is, Karli sometimes worries that I’m not having fun when I'm there, whereas the joke is that I couldn't be enjoying myself more. However, being a dangerous rebel who could be in a life-or-death confrontation with storm troopers at any moment tends to make me look a bit grim - after all, we're not playing around here, this is serious stuff.
Smugglers Run is another good example. I tolerate the lines and waiting and so on in order to get to where I want to be, but when I sit down at the controls of the Millennium Falcon, I'm not having a simulated experience, I'm flying a starship. As such, when the controls prompt me to perform an action such as take off, go to hyperspace, or steer the ship through an asteroid field, I do it with a certitude, confidence, and gravitas that's appropriate to what I'm doing.
And, hopefully, with a certain degree of style - after all, even if you're just playing at being the Falcon's pilot, you're still playing in the big leagues.
- Sid
P.S. Welcome to the future - the boots and background alien heads in the above photo were created by the Photoshop AI. However, the AI won't accept certain prompts, so I had to do the gun belt and weapon the old-fashioned way.
For Karli's 50th birthday this year, she decided that there was no place she would rather go than Disneyland. Planning was simple - Karli has become a seasoned veteran in terms of Disney visits - and we invited Karli's best friend John and her sister Stefanie to join us. John had never been to Disneyland, so he was eager to take advantage of our collective experience to introduce him to the park.
We had all been checking the forecasts for the weather during our upcoming visit, but it was only when I took a look at CNN the day before we left that I discovered that California was currently in the midst of the most serious storm that it had experienced for quite a long time. Record-breaking rains closed airports and caused flooding and mudslides, there had been four fatalities, and a state of emergency had been declared in Los Angeles and seven of the surrounded counties. Even more ominously, Disneyland had experienced closures due to the emergency. Obviously not an ideal time for travel, but it was too late to cancel, so we decided to carry on and hope for the best.
Surprisingly, we experienced no delays as a result of the chaotic weather conditions. Our flight left on time and landed without any problems, our Uber seamlessly delivered us to our Disney-adjacent hotel, and Disneyland was scheduled to be open over the course of our three-day passes (although rain was on the forecast for the first day and part of the second day).
Fortunately, Karli had the foresight to purchase rain ponchos for the group just in case, which turned out to be the ideal garment for the weather.
As forecast, rain was definitely the theme for our first day at the park - not quite torrential, but certainly a steady solid downpour.
The result? Limited attendance at the park, and far shorter lines than the norm.
We all got a bit wet - even the best rain gear will only keep you so dry over the course of a full day - and we obviously couldn't go on any outdoor rides, but we were generally comfortable, and the lack of crowds allowed us to visit favourite rides like Smugglers Run and Indian Jones multiple times.
It was one of those rare occasions when clouds actually had a silver lining.
- Sid
"I first read science fiction in the old British Chum annual when I was about 12 years old."
A. E. Van Vogt, The Weinberg Interview
From a scholarly perspective, the Golden Age of Science Fiction is considered to run from 1938 to 1946, at least in the United States, and at least according to Wikipedia.
However, there's an alternate position. Reactor Mag (née tor.com) recently reminded us that many years ago, SF fan Peter Scott Graham commented that "The golden age of science fiction is 12." (Alternate versions cite 13, but still.)* It feels like one of those facile statements that would look good on a t-shirt, but it's easy to see the point that Mr. Graham was making.
Glibness aside, let's for a moment take it as a definitive measurement, in terms of what novels came out in 1973, when I was 12? To be fair to all parties, we'll let the clock run to the end of 1974, since my birthday is in September.
A little research reveals a surprisingly prestigious lineup.
1973 saw the publication of the following classic novels, featuring some of the most famous science fiction authors, almost all of which have a place in my little library at home:
1974 does just as well in terms of classics and well-known names:
It's a bit surprising to see that each of these lists covers a single year, it's such a wide-ranging selection of authors and styles. Some of my favourite books are represented here, which certainly feels like proof of concept for the whole "golden-age-is-12" hypothesis - and, a bit sadly, it all makes me aware of the fact that it's been 50 years since I was 12, which puts me squarely in the silver age, at least in terms of hair colour.
- Sid
* There's a surprising amount of debate regarding this simple statement, which has been attributed to several people and several dates over the years. Short answer, very probably Peter Scott Graham, and somewhat probably around 1960.
** Not well known, but definitely one of my top ten favourite books, along with his 1971 novel, The Pastel City.
*** And, AND, she also won best short story for The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas in 1973, another classic entry for the Golden Age score card.
**** If anyone is surprised to see six of these novels over a two year period, you probably haven't read any of them. They're enthusiastic pastiches of Edgar Rice Burroughs' Mars series that have an entertaining creative life of their own - they're probably not for everyone, but I have fond memories of discovering the series. Honestly, I suspect that Kenneth Bulmer could knock one of them off in two or three months without breaking a sweat.
I was saddened to discover that talented science fiction and fantasy author David Drake had passed away on December 10th of last year at the age of 78 - saddened and a bit surprised that, in spite of his prolific and noteworthy career, it had taken almost a month for me to hear about his passing.
Drake was one of my favourite authors. His books were eminently readable - they may not have explored great philosophical issues, but their strong foundation in realism and historical research gave them a weight and believability that appealed to me.
I always felt that Drake was a guilty pleasure - so many of his books were set in a military framework, and by and large the science fiction community tends toward the pacifist. This viewpoint was reflected in his early struggles to sell short stories that were rooted in his personal experience of combat while serving in Vietnam. Eventually he was able to find a market for the gritty realism of his Hammer's Slammers series, which told the story of a far-future mercenary regiment from a wide range of perspectives.
After he gained a foothold in the market with the Slammers stories and novels, he demonstrated his range as a writer by creating a multitude of fictional worlds: the Northworld Trilogy, the Reaches books, the Tom Kelly and Venus novels, and his fantasy series Lord of the Isles, and The Books of the Elements, along with a variety of one-off novels, such as The Forlorn Hope, Redliners, Old Nathan and The Dragon Lord.
Drake also collaborated on the General series with S. M. Stirling, providing a plot outline for the original five books that Stirling then completed, an approach which he repeated with Eric Fint and the Belisarius novels.
In addition, Drake created what I would consider to be his own subgenre of science fiction: Romans encountering aliens. Although this has an unfortunate Cowboys Vs. Aliens feel to it, the three novels that used this concept - Ranks of Bronze, Birds of Prey and Killer, along with the short story collection Vettius and His Friends - convincingly created storylines in which the Romans come out on top when confronted with extraterrestrial opposition, proving that technology doesn't necessarily provide superiority.
At the time of his retirement from writing due to health issues in November of 2021, Drake had completed 13 novels in his Republic of Cinnabar Navy (RCN) series, which featured the adventures of Daniel Leary, an officer in the RCN, and his companion Adele Mundy, who goes from being a librarian to a member of the espionage branch of the Republic. Leary is Drake's Horatio Hornblower, a young officer who advances his naval career through a combination of cleverness, bravery, aggression and charm, in spite of his estrangement from his highly placed father, Speaker Leary of the Republic.
The RCN books are well-written, well researched stories, rooted in actual historical events that Drake cleverly translates into the world of the Cinnabar Navy and its interstellar encounters with the Alliance of Free Stars. I sincerely hope that no one decides to find another writer to finish the series - or add to any of Drake's other stories, for that matter. They could try, but it would be impossible to find a match for the talent, experience and intellect that made David Drake such a great author - and a great loss.
- Sid
Idris: Are all people like this?
The Doctor: Like what?
Idris: So much bigger on the inside.
The Doctor's Wife, Doctor Who
- Sid
As part of my selection of Christmas gifts from Karli, she cleverly picked up a pair of tickets for the award-winning Space Explorers: The Infinite virtual reality event currently being presented in Vancouver. Located at the Rocky Mountaineer Station, The Infinite presents an immersive experience of the International Space Station from a wide range of perspectives and viewpoints.
Arriving at the location at our appointed time, the event staff set us up with what's essentially the same Quest 2 VR headset that I have at home, with a networked sensor add-on to the front of the unit, a bar code (presumably for the tracking ID) and enhanced earphones. The experience uses a simple system - the rest of your group appears in VR as a yellow avatar, other guests are blue, and cast members are green.
Once equipped with a headset, you are introduced to a shadowy ghost of the ISS, populated with glowing spheres.
By touching a sphere, you can activate a virtual reality movie clip showing various aspects of life on the space station, such as donning space suits and working on the outside of the station, along with commentary from the astronauts on the station*. There are also periodic changes of setting, displaying breathtaking orbital views of and from the station in the overhead area.
To transit the guests out of the VR space, the experience ends with a seated panoramic view of the ISS in space, after which the headsets are returned and you exit the VR environment.
I enjoyed the freedom of being able to actually walk around in VR, something that my home usage hasn't permitted. That being said, it was surprisingly crowded, to the point that it was a bit challenging to avoid other
avatars. I suppose that logically, dumping a couple of dozen people
into the actual ISS wouldn't leave that much extra space either.
Sadly, I fell prey to a couple of technical issues that shut my headset down due to heating problems, so I did miss a few minutes of the show. In both cases I was quickly assisted by staff members, full points for rapid response in a time-sensitive situation.
Although I found The Infinite to be an amazing experience, I would liked to have interacted with a more fully rendered version of the ISS interior. (Which certainly exists, as per the ISS program that I have loaded on my personal headset.) However, I can appreciate that the star of the show is the actual VR footage of astronauts on the ISS, both inside and outside - better to see the real thing than a simplified rendering.
Minor issues aside, The Infinite offers a spectacular perspective on the ISS and its daily activities. If you're looking for a unique opportunity to experience life in space, I would fully recommend picking up tickets to the show - but don't wait too long, it's a popular event, and it's only available until March 19th.
- Sid
* In one of the clips, Canadian astronaut David Saint-Jacques comments
that the ISS is "like camping in your backyard. Mars is our Everest."
I'm sorry, David, but at best Mars is a week at a provincial park -
let's save Everest analogies for when we eventually get out of our own solar system.
Obi-Wan: Anakin, Chancellor Palpatine is evil!
Anakin Skywalker: From my point of view, the Jedi are evil!
Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith
Lucasfilm has announced that they have come to an agreement with the Dakota Ojibway Tribal Council and the University of Manitoba to release a dubbed Ojibway version of A New Hope, the original Star Wars movie. (If you happen to be a fluent speaker of Ojibway and have theatrical ambitions, now is your chance: you can apply at http://starwarsojibwe.com/)
The producers chose Ojibway because it is one of the most widely spoken indigenous languages, with approximately 320,000 speakers in North America. The Ojibway version of the film will see theatrical release across Canada, and will eventually be broadcast on Canada's Aboriginal Peoples Television Network.
It's interesting to imagine an indigenous re-write of the entire series, with the Empire recast in the model of a colonial power that has undertaken a program of ruthless conquest across the galaxy. In this version, Anakin Skywalker becomes a Lost Generation child, swept up in the equivalent of the 60s Scoop and stripped of his aboriginal identity. His romance with Amidala then becomes a double secret, not just due to the strictures of the Jedi code but because of prejudice and discrimination against his indigenous background.
But where do the Jedi fit in this retelling of the story? It's an easy out to have the Sith stand in for the Catholic Church, but a stark examination of the prequel trilogy makes it just as easy for the Jedi to be guilty of the same sins - let's face it, Qui-Gon Jinn essentially takes Anakin away from his mother and drops him into residential school at the Jedi Temple.
With the narrative changed to an indigenous perspective, Anakin turns out to be correct when he tells Obi-Wan that the Jedi are evil, and his conversations with the Supreme Chancellor about similarities between the Sith and the Jedi gain a new resonance. The good news is that in the aboriginal retelling, Anakin is no longer guilty of killing the younglings that he encounters at the Jedi Temple - instead, he rescues them. And after that, it's a whole new story...
- Sid
Every now and then I let myself reference my fandom at work - sometimes you just have to represent.
- Sid
Spock: V'Ger must evolve. Its knowledge has reached the limits of this universe and it must evolve. What it requires of its god, doctor, is the answer to its question, "Is there nothing more"?
Star Trek: The Motion Picture
Welp, I guess all the serious Star Trek fans in the audience know where THIS is going to end up...
- Sid
As part of the celebration for the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who, the Radio Times magazine interviewed Tom Baker, who played the Fourth Doctor from 1974 to 1981.
When I saw the accompanying photos, I was so surprised by how changed he was from his appearance in the 50th Anniversary Special that I actually spent some time trying to confirm that the shots were legitimate, rather than some kind of AI generated extrapolation of how he would look.
I know that time has its way with us all, and after all, he is a 90 year old man. Regardless, there's a kind of sad irony that an actor made famous by playing a near-immortal time traveller would so obviously fall victim to the effects of days and years gone past.
- Sid
While we're doing Game of Thrones quotes, this is one is a favourite - and so TRUE.
Heritage Auctions just notified me that my remote auction bid of one dollar made me the winner of a Star Trek: Generations movie poster in their weekly Sunday Movie Poster Auction.
The dollar price quickly becomes an illusion, as the house tacks on a $29 USD auction fee, but I have no regrets, it still feels like a score.
- Sid
(UPDATE: And as of six months later, they have yet to charge me a shipping fee, which I feel DEFINITELY makes it a score.)
