Monday, March 28, 2016

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."


Aragorn: Gentlemen! We do not stop 'til nightfall.
Pippin: But what about breakfast?
Aragorn: You've already had it.
Pippin: We've had one, yes. But what about second breakfast?
[Aragorn stares at him, then walks off.]
Merry: Don't think he knows about second breakfast, Pip.
Pippin: What about elevenses? Luncheon? Afternoon tea? Dinner? Supper? He knows about them, doesn't he?
Merry: I wouldn't count on it.
The Fellowship of the Ring
My friend Chris recently informed me that last month the Storm Crow Tavern had opened a sister location more or less in my neighbourhood.  I quite liked the original Storm Crow, but it was a bit of a hike to get to it, and as such I was pleased that they'd added a location closer to home.

Karli had also enjoyed visiting the Storm Crow, so we decided to pay the new bar a lunchtime visit to see how it measured up.  The original Storm Crow was a gamer-friendly location, and we had no reason to expect the satellite bar to be any different, so we packed along a couple of our more portable games.

I found it surprisingly busy and loud for noon on a Sunday - I can only imagine what it's like in the evening. Apparently it's been quite busy from day one:  not a huge surprise, the Commercial Drive location quickly developed a loyal following.


The Alehouse is probably a bit larger than the Tavern, and the decor looked considerably more expensive:  a life-sized copy* of Han Solo in carbonite, a mounted rancor head, and backlit transparencies of Tank Girl, Dengar the Bounty Hunter, and genre movie posters. It's a bit reminiscent of the original Storm Crow during its early days - right now it's looks like everything was carefully planned and set in place, whereas the original has gotten a bit funkier and more lived-in over the last couple of years.

During our visit, a professional Starcraft II tournament** was playing on one of the large TVs mounted around the place - in my mind, a perfectly acceptable alternative to football. Other screens featured the Teen Titans animated series and the first Tron movie - they're obviously doing their best to cater to a mixed audience.

After we finished eating, we played a few rounds of Lost Cities, and we weren't the only gamers there: two people at the next table were having a spirited match of Kings of Tokyo, a kaiju board game - good choice for a geek bar.  For people who don't want to haul along a box, the bar also has a nice selection of games shelved in the back. For old school bar goers, there's also a Game of Thrones pinball machine beside the bar.

 

The owners have been quite faithful to concept in other ways as well.  The menu layout is done in standard Starfleet LCARS format**, and features things like the Brew of Cthulhu, a "non-Euclidean lager" from Red Truck, and cocktails like the Sonic Screwdriver or Nuka Cola Quantum.

However, I have to say that some of the actual menu items didn't impress me as much as the design.  Personally, I think that you should be able to order lunch at noon, and the brunch options didn't completely thrill me. (To be fair, Sunday brunch is probably not a fair test.)  In  addition, our waiter was well-intentioned and eager, but if you'd told me it was his first day, it would certainly have explained a lot about some of the more non-standard aspects of his performance.

Overall, I'd give the new location a B, verging on a B+, and I'm confident that with time things will settle in and they'll work their way up to an A. I'd certainly recommend it to anyone who is looking for something a little different in their evening out.

- Sid

* I assume it's a copy - the original prop is supposed to be touring with the Star Wars Identities exhibition, currently in Vienna.

** Library Computer Access/Retrieval System - it's the distinctively geometric computer operating system interface used in Star Trek: The Next Generation and the related spinoffs.

Saturday, March 5, 2016

"The world is plunged into darkness."



How long would it take you to destroy civilization on Earth?

It took me about 26 days.

As part of the promotional push for its new post-pandemic game The Division, French game developer Ubisoft has created an online simulator called Collapse that graphically illustrates exactly how long it would take for civilization to fall apart based on a single disease-carrying human vector.

The simulator adds a grim twist: it asks for your home address, and then directs you to the hospitals, drug stores, potential vaccine distribution points and airports near your actual location.  Based on your decisions, the site details the number of people you would infect - followed very quickly by the resulting number of deaths.


The simulator uses information from the World Health Organization, NASA, the International Air Transport Association and Open Street Maps to calculate the impact of your actions, and explains the various problems that would arise as a viral apocalypse overwhelmed humanity.


The concept of a global pandemic is almost not science fiction - the simulator bases its infection pattern on smallpox, and as 2014's Ebola epidemic in Africa illustrated, it takes constant vigilance to ensure that the problem is contained in the originating area during the battle to stop an outbreak. Collapse clearly shows just how quickly a similar situation would escalate in a North American urban centre rather than isolated African villages.


And now, you'll have to pardon me - I think I need to lie down.  I seem to be feeling a bit feverish...

- Sid

Saturday, February 27, 2016

Doctor When?


Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
 James 1:2-4
I recently had one of those moments of mild panic when I thought to myself, "Wait, I haven't heard anything about the premiere date for Doctor Who this year - my goodness, did I miss it?"

A little research revealed that there's good news and bad news. The good news is that I haven't missed the start of this year's episodes. The bad news?  There won't be any episodes this year.*

Excuse me?

Okay, here's the deal.  Steven Moffat, who took over as showrunner from Russell Davies in 2009, is in the process of handing the baton over to his replacement, series writer and long-time Whovian Chris Chibnall (who scripted 42, The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, The Power of Three and the YouTube short series Pond Life.) Chibnall was also the co-producer and unofficial head writer for the Doctor Who spinoff Torchwood.  2017 will be Moffat's last season, and Chibnall will take over in 2018.

Which is all very well and good, but what does this have to do with the lack of episodes in 2016?

There was some discussion during 2015 that Season 10 might end up being a bit shorter or delayed  which, interestingly, Steven Moffat vehemently denied at the time.  However, since then, Mr. Moffat has changed his tune, and in January of this year announced his upcoming departure, along with the dearth of Doctor Who episodes in 2016.

I've seen some speculation suggesting that the hiatus is so that details of the handoff can be all worked out, but the official explanation is more peculiar. The BBC, in its infinite wisdom, has decided that it has enough interesting television for 2016, and as such had better save something for next year.  To quote BBC1 controller Charlotte Moore:
“I have decided to schedule Steven’s big finale series in Spring 2017 to bring the nation together for what will be a huge event on the channel. 2016 is spoilt with national moments including the Euros and Olympics and I want to hold something big back for 2017 – I promise it will be worth the wait!”
Sigh...Charlotte, let me explain something to you. People like me watch Doctor Who because we DON'T want to watch things like the Olympics or the European footie championships. Why in the world would you decide to deprive us of what we like just because there's a bunch of sports happening this year?  I will bet good money that you're not dumping the Premier League next year in favour of the Doctor - why are we being punished?

Someone recently asked me to explain the popularity of Doctor Who. I replied that Doctor Who has become the last refuge of the hard core geek - franchises like Star Wars and Star Trek have been absorbed into popular culture, but you still need to be a committed genre fan to follow the Doctor's adventures.

I suppose that these are the challenges that are intended to test that commitment - so be it, then.  All I have to say is that there had better be some damn good episodes next year.

- Sid

* There at least will be a 2016 Christmas episode of Doctor Who, so things haven't gone completely off the rails.