Updates.

"Welcome to Britbox!"

And so, in the fullness of time, I subscribed to Britbox.  It was a bit puzzling, given that the service at the Airbnb in Whistler was more of a TV channel than a streaming service, but I have access to all the content, and all's well that ends well.

Given the vintage status of some of the shows that I've watched (gosh, Blake's 7, remember Blake's 7?) they're quite soft compared to the crisp 4K images that I've gotten used to, but that's a minor criticism given the comprehensive nature of the library.  My more serious complaint is that, unlike most of the other streaming services that we subscribe to, the app doesn't have a filter for science fiction content.  Surely by now the company that produces Doctor Who must realize that those fans might well be interested in similar content.

Missed one (insert Stormtrooper accuracy joke here).

In my post addressing Star Wars "space guns", I neglected to include the Imperial T-21 light repeating blaster  - also known as the Lewis gun, an iconic vintage WWI era machine gun.  

As with most of the repurposed weaponry from A New Hope, they left off the magazine, and in the case of the Lewis, kind of just stopped there.  But the real question is, why in the world is the Stormtrooper on the left side carrying his DL-19 upside down?

"Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid."

Speaking of space guns, the rebuilt Han Solo blaster prop from A New Hope brought a winning auction bid of $1,057,500 USD.  Take THAT, Captain Kirk!

They knew the job was dangerous when they signed up.

After discovering a hydrogen leak in a quick disconnect linkage between the launch system and the SLS, NASA has delayed its Artemis I launch again, this time until September 23rd.  We appreciate their commitment to safety, even though the only passengers on the rocket are a mannequin named Commander Moonikin Campos and two dummy torsos named Helga and Zohar.

Can we start calling it the OASIS yet?

It's rumoured that Meta is going to release a new VR headset in 2023 - originally there was going to be an upgraded Quest 3, but apparently now there will be a whole new product line, which is currently being developed under the code name Project Cambria.  The new Quest Pro headset will reportedly have higher resolution, mixed AR/VR features, and include feature tracking to accommodate avatar expressions, all at a significantly higher price point than the Quest 2.  In fact, that may be why the Quest 2 has recently gone up in cost - what a strange strategy for making a new product seem less expensive by comparison!

- Sid

7 of 9.

One of the lesser known geek holidays.

- Sid

"I need a time machine...I need a time machine!"

Today, Karli and I attended the Vancouver matinée show of the RuPaul Drag Race Werq the World 2022 tour, skillfully hosted by Season 13 finalist Rosé, who definintely displayed charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent over the course of the afternoon.

Photo by KT

The time-themed sets piqued our curiousity, but all was explained once Rosé completed her opening number and started the show.

It turned out that she'd inherited a time machine from Asia O'Hara, who had apparently transitioned from drag queen to drag mad scientist at some point since her fourth place finish in Season 10.  Rosé's plan is to use the time machine to travel back in time to the Season 13 finalé and overturn the results so that she is the winner - perhaps not the best use of the opportunity, but not everyone wants to see the Titanic before it sinks.

Sadly, as so often seems to be the case with time travel, it didn't quite work* out like that, and we ended up bouncing across time and visiting Caribbean pirates, the Spanish Empire, the Boston Tea Party**, 1961, the Mesozoic Era, and the year 3000, with performances by Naomi Smalls, Jorgeous, Kim Chi, Jaida Essence Hall, Lady Camden and, of course, Rosé herself, who is very much the star of the entire show.

Ultimately, the moral of the story is that you should live in the present and not dwell on the past, and the show ends on that note with an all-star revue performance.

Photo by KT

Although the majority of the cut sequence time travel animations featured the iconic DeLorean from the Back To the Future franchise, I was surprised and touched to see one sequence where a blue British police box gyrated across the time vortex.  Although, really, it shouldn't be surprising - if you're inclusive of everyone who falls under the LGBTQIA2S+ umbrella, you probably have some love to spare for nerds and geeks.

- Sid

* Or werq.

** You get used to some unusual costumes if you watch Drag Race, but seriously, dressing everyone as tea bags?