Is that all you got?

So, having missed a week of Continuum, the new SF series on Showcase, I tuned in to see if the bar had gone up or down while I was doing other things.

As part of the plot of the latest episode, one of the terrorists from the future decides to set a trap for the cop who was thrown back in time with them.  The terrorists are killing people with a specific genetic tag and stealing their pituitary glands in order to create a super-soldier serum, and the forces of justice follow planted clues to find the next potential victim, one Herbert George, only to discover that it's a setup. 

Oh, honestly, Herbert George?  For the non-literary types in the audience, it's an obvious homage to a famous Herbert George, who more commonly went by H. G. - as in H. G. Wells, who introduced the whole concept of time travel to the general public in his 1895 novel The Time Machine.

And that's the best you could do?  Out of the myriad of time travel references you could have picked, you went with H. G. Wells? Instead of something cool and obscure that would have made the bad guy look like a clever psychopath rather than a douche*?  What was your second choice, Marty McFly?  It was painfully obvious - I felt like Admiral Akbar, sitting in front of the television shouting, "It's a trap!"

And even more sadly, none of the main characters got it?  Not even the computer geek who is probably going to invent the damn time machine that they used to escape the future? 

Okay, we'll give these clowns one more week, and then we decide if the circus is leaving town.

- Sid

* Just for the record, I have never before stooped to the use of this particular term in public discourse, that's how unimpressed I was by this whole thing.

Better late than never.

When Monsters Versus Aliens came out in 2009, I pretty much just didn't care. Whether it was because of what I felt was an unimaginative title, bad marketing, or just not having time, I didn't bother to pay the going rate to see it in commercial release.

However, last night while I was putting the finishing touches on Laurie's updated web site, I switched on the small TV that I keep beside my computer - yes, I've kept the childhood habit of watching television while I do my homework. Instantly deciding that I did NOT want to watch - good lord - Jersey Shore Shark Attack on Space, I hopped around the channels until I was stopped by the image of an epic array of military might surrounding a giant Cyclopean robot that's about to be greeted by a Kennedyesque president.

To my intense amusement, the choice of first contact protocols was the Re, Mi, Do, Do, So alien theme from Close Encounters of the Third Kind, nervously (and incorrectly) performed by POTUS on a Yamaha synth, followed by the spread-fingered Vulcan salute. When this display of intergalactic brotherhood is greeted by indifference, the president falls back on Harold Faltermeyer's Axel F theme from Beverly Hills Cop, which naturally results in a robotic rampage that the armed forces are unable to stop.

I was hooked.

To my surprise and pleasure, it turns out that Monsters Versus Aliens is a comprehensive and entertaining homage to every creature, blob, giant insect, ancient horror or THING that ever terrorized an unsuspecting 1950's American suburb, up to and including the 50-Foot Woman. It also riffs off Dr. Strangelove, E.T., The Fly, Fire in the Sky, Independence Day, and other SF mainstays, as well as indulging in moments of just random off-the-wall brilliance.  The mere fact that they tapped Stephen Colbert to be the voice of the President is a strong indicator of the mentality behind the creation of this film.

Meanwhile, Space showed a really bad shark movie…guys, I thought I made myself clear on the whole shark movie thing?

- Sid

P.S. Coincidentally, I designed porta-potty signs for exactly that style of giant robot just last month - who knew?

 

Sith don't Tweet.

We're just in the final stages of doing some updates for Laurie's web site.  Previously it was very much focused on strength training, but since she's gotten interested in yoga, meditation classes, and training techniques involving body weight rather than barbells, we thought that her site should reflect the kinder, gentler Smith Training Systems - different logo, more contemplative colour scheme, and so on.

However, I think it's important that people remember where they've come from, and as such I decided to create a sub-site, a sort of shadow site if you will, to allow Laurie - or La'ri - to continue to service both of her target client groups.

And yes, there's a link to the subsite carefully concealed somewhere on the new Smith Training pages - I have every confidence in the ability of potential Dark Side apprentices to use the Force to discover its location.

- Sid