This book is an anthology of short stories by different authors so I cant follow my standard format on this one. All of the short stories in this book follow the same theme: witches in suburbia. The various authors use their own take on witches of folklore, and project them into modern times in the suburbs. The result is hilarious and all of the stories were a lot of fun to read. This a great book to pick up when you don't have a lot of time to devote to a story but still want something good and funny to pass the time. It is also good for introducing you to many authors at once.
Witch Way to the Mall is the first book in a series of three so far and if some of the stories leave you wanting for more just pick up the next book. Many of them have sequel stories with different themes. The books in this series are Witch Way to the Mall, Strip Mauled, and Fangs for the Mammaries. I will be writing reviews for them next.
These books will appeal to people who enjoy modern fantasy, I would say urban but by their nature they are suburban.
The books can be purchased in print or as an e-book at www.amazon.com
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Monday, December 30, 2013
The Long Earth by Terry Pratchett and Steven Baxter
This book is a frontier style science fiction novel, but with a delightful twist. The frontier is all different versions of earth. This book explores the concept of many worlds in a new and unique way. It follows a protagonist on a journey of exploration, but unlike most many worlds science fiction he is not the person to discover stepping between worlds, and most worlds do not have humans already on them, but are instead unsettled wilderness.
My only complaint about this book is that it takes a while to get interesting and there is a lot of character building before anything particularly interesting happens. Despite this when the pace does pick up the book is well worth it, and the reason for the character building becomes apparent. I just wish that the process had been more interesting at the beginning.
The plot of this book is that of an exploratory journey into new frontiers. The main character, Joshua, is approached by an emancipated AI named Lobsang, who claims freedom based on being a re-incarnated motorcycle repair man, to accompany him on an expedition as a backup way of getting home. Joshua is one of the minority of people who have found they don't need a device to step, and he has traveled the worlds more extensively than most. During the voyage they discover non-human races of steppers who all appear to be fleeing back in the direction of our world, and eventually determine what they are fleeing from. This book is more about what is learned on the journey, and exploring the possibilities of a limitless frontier than the actual journey itself. It is a great look at how things could go in a modern frontier when the cost of travel is achievable.
This book will appeal to science fiction fans who enjoy world building, and colonization novels. I bought it because I enjoy reading both authors work, and I was not disappointed.
This book can be found in print or as an e-book at www.amazon.com.
My only complaint about this book is that it takes a while to get interesting and there is a lot of character building before anything particularly interesting happens. Despite this when the pace does pick up the book is well worth it, and the reason for the character building becomes apparent. I just wish that the process had been more interesting at the beginning.
The plot of this book is that of an exploratory journey into new frontiers. The main character, Joshua, is approached by an emancipated AI named Lobsang, who claims freedom based on being a re-incarnated motorcycle repair man, to accompany him on an expedition as a backup way of getting home. Joshua is one of the minority of people who have found they don't need a device to step, and he has traveled the worlds more extensively than most. During the voyage they discover non-human races of steppers who all appear to be fleeing back in the direction of our world, and eventually determine what they are fleeing from. This book is more about what is learned on the journey, and exploring the possibilities of a limitless frontier than the actual journey itself. It is a great look at how things could go in a modern frontier when the cost of travel is achievable.
This book will appeal to science fiction fans who enjoy world building, and colonization novels. I bought it because I enjoy reading both authors work, and I was not disappointed.
This book can be found in print or as an e-book at www.amazon.com.
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Elysium Movie Review
Elysium is a truly classic science fiction movie in that it takes the biggest troubles of the time and uses a story about the future to talk about where those issues could lead. The movie is sad and hits very close to home in our recent economic recovery. The effects are very good and for the most part the science is even accurate.
The only problem I had with the movie is that I can't see how things would get as dystopian as they are presented in the movie. First it presumes that somehow the inhabitants of the space station Elysium completely disenfranchise most of the world including the people of the united states, after fleeing it. This seems a bit far-fetched considering that the major space powers would not allow the kind of technology that would allow that to happen without having similar technology to counter it. Second the people of Elysium seem too disconnected to be believable. Their hoarding of miraculous medical technology in particular seems particularly cruel.
The plot of this movie is a mixture of the Savior archetype, and the Prometheus archetype. Basically the richest people in the world have fled to the luxurious space station named Elysium. There they have robotic servants, and disease free nearly immortal lives brought about by medical technology that has the capability of completely rebuilding a body from the faintest spark of life. Cancer, Birth defects, and deadly radiation poisoning are all quickly and easily fixed. In contrast the people on earth are left with modern medical technology or worse, and must deal with massive overpopulation and a poisoned biosphere. Meanwhile the people of Elysium rule over and profit from the people of earth as a permanent lower class. The hero of the film is not a good man, but at the start he has cleaned up his act, gotten a job, and is trying to better himself. When he is exposed to a lethal dose of radiation on the job he is given pills that will allow him to function for the rest of his now very short life and fired. This is done despite the fact that the company has the means to cure him. Due to his criminal past he has contacts that allow him to do something about it instead of waiting to die like a good slave. A plan is launched to steal an Elysium citizens identity giving the underground access to billions of dollars. In the end the hack yields more than they ever bargained for, and he is presented with a choice. Save himself, or save the world by taking control of Elysium. In the end he decides to save the world by making all earth residents Elysium Citizens.
This film addresses some of the biggest issues facing America today. The rampant inequality and disparity of access to health care are currently dividing this country at an accelerating rate. While things have not gotten nearly to the point that the movie portrays, it is frighteningly easy to see parallels to our current problems.
Science fiction lovers and people who see the current inequality building in our society as a bad thing will likely love this film.
This movie can be purchased digitally or on disk from www.amazon.com.
The only problem I had with the movie is that I can't see how things would get as dystopian as they are presented in the movie. First it presumes that somehow the inhabitants of the space station Elysium completely disenfranchise most of the world including the people of the united states, after fleeing it. This seems a bit far-fetched considering that the major space powers would not allow the kind of technology that would allow that to happen without having similar technology to counter it. Second the people of Elysium seem too disconnected to be believable. Their hoarding of miraculous medical technology in particular seems particularly cruel.
The plot of this movie is a mixture of the Savior archetype, and the Prometheus archetype. Basically the richest people in the world have fled to the luxurious space station named Elysium. There they have robotic servants, and disease free nearly immortal lives brought about by medical technology that has the capability of completely rebuilding a body from the faintest spark of life. Cancer, Birth defects, and deadly radiation poisoning are all quickly and easily fixed. In contrast the people on earth are left with modern medical technology or worse, and must deal with massive overpopulation and a poisoned biosphere. Meanwhile the people of Elysium rule over and profit from the people of earth as a permanent lower class. The hero of the film is not a good man, but at the start he has cleaned up his act, gotten a job, and is trying to better himself. When he is exposed to a lethal dose of radiation on the job he is given pills that will allow him to function for the rest of his now very short life and fired. This is done despite the fact that the company has the means to cure him. Due to his criminal past he has contacts that allow him to do something about it instead of waiting to die like a good slave. A plan is launched to steal an Elysium citizens identity giving the underground access to billions of dollars. In the end the hack yields more than they ever bargained for, and he is presented with a choice. Save himself, or save the world by taking control of Elysium. In the end he decides to save the world by making all earth residents Elysium Citizens.
This film addresses some of the biggest issues facing America today. The rampant inequality and disparity of access to health care are currently dividing this country at an accelerating rate. While things have not gotten nearly to the point that the movie portrays, it is frighteningly easy to see parallels to our current problems.
Science fiction lovers and people who see the current inequality building in our society as a bad thing will likely love this film.
This movie can be purchased digitally or on disk from www.amazon.com.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
google chromecast review
For Christmas my wife got me a Google Chromecast. After I figured out that my tv has one working HDMI port it was a pretty neat device that let me stream from Netflix, Hulu Plus, or Youtube from my tablet.
Despite liking it there seem to be some big limitations to what it does. The biggest is that it does not seem to run any apps locally meaning that you have to stream from another device. Not only that but the application must be programmed to support it.
I also had some issues setting it up and using it. First when it says it wants you to set up the device with a phone or computer it means it. It would not set up from my android tablet. Probably it needs the Bluetooth to set up a connection to your WIFI. Another frustration was that android chrome will not stream to chromecast. Apparently that is beta and only available as a desktop chrome extension.
The thing that makes it really neat though is that the desktop version of chrome does have an extension that makes chrome chromecast enabled. Basically anything you can open with chrome is castable. This makes me hopeful for the future of the device. Chromecast is very new and in the future I could see android having the chromecast ability baked into the operating system, and all google apps supporting the feature. This device does not currently replace my Roku, but it also does something my Roku will not. It streams anything on the web to my tv.
I definitely recommend getting this device if you watch video on the web. It can be found at local retailers, or at http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromecast/.
Despite liking it there seem to be some big limitations to what it does. The biggest is that it does not seem to run any apps locally meaning that you have to stream from another device. Not only that but the application must be programmed to support it.
I also had some issues setting it up and using it. First when it says it wants you to set up the device with a phone or computer it means it. It would not set up from my android tablet. Probably it needs the Bluetooth to set up a connection to your WIFI. Another frustration was that android chrome will not stream to chromecast. Apparently that is beta and only available as a desktop chrome extension.
The thing that makes it really neat though is that the desktop version of chrome does have an extension that makes chrome chromecast enabled. Basically anything you can open with chrome is castable. This makes me hopeful for the future of the device. Chromecast is very new and in the future I could see android having the chromecast ability baked into the operating system, and all google apps supporting the feature. This device does not currently replace my Roku, but it also does something my Roku will not. It streams anything on the web to my tv.
I definitely recommend getting this device if you watch video on the web. It can be found at local retailers, or at http://www.google.com/intl/en/chrome/devices/chromecast/.
Monday, December 23, 2013
1632 Book Review
This science fiction alternate history story is a fun adventure that makes you appreciate just how far America has come. By throwing together modern Americans with Germans in 1632 during the 30 years war Eric Flint can compare and contrast the societies in a very interesting way. The reactions on both sides serve to highlight both the good and the bad that can be find in the modern American system. It even gets into how you must act to keep and spread the freedom we all take for granted. I have read this book many times over the years and frankly there is nothing I don't like about it.
The story starts with the West Virginian town of Grantville being mysteriously transported to 1632 Germany in the middle of the 30 years war. It is the answer to the question "What if you dump a load of American Coal miners who self identify as rednecks into the mess of early Germany?". What is the answer you ask? They kick ass, take names, and spread American style freedom backed by modern firearms, vehicles, and political thought that's what. This does not mean that everything that the uptimers(What people from the modern era are called in the book) do is good because in a whole town there are bound to be some bigot's and intolerant people. The leaders of Grantville must deal with both internal and external threats, and work to ensure that the American melting pot mentality prevails. One of the big threats that the main character Mike Stearns sees is the trap of fortress America. If they are to succeed in making their new home a place they want to live they must resist the urge to hide in a bunker and instead spread their ideals to make the rest of the world more hospitable to their way of thinking. In this book Eric Flint is truly remaking the world of 1632 and he does a great job of it.
This book will appeal to alternate history fans, science fiction fans, and anyone who likes to see a new fictional world come to life. While there is quite a bit of violence the overall tone is positive, and while reading it there was never a sense of hopelessness that this sort of story could evoke if done poorly.
This book can be found on www.amazon.com in print or as an e-book. As of right now this book is free as a kindle e-book.
The story starts with the West Virginian town of Grantville being mysteriously transported to 1632 Germany in the middle of the 30 years war. It is the answer to the question "What if you dump a load of American Coal miners who self identify as rednecks into the mess of early Germany?". What is the answer you ask? They kick ass, take names, and spread American style freedom backed by modern firearms, vehicles, and political thought that's what. This does not mean that everything that the uptimers(What people from the modern era are called in the book) do is good because in a whole town there are bound to be some bigot's and intolerant people. The leaders of Grantville must deal with both internal and external threats, and work to ensure that the American melting pot mentality prevails. One of the big threats that the main character Mike Stearns sees is the trap of fortress America. If they are to succeed in making their new home a place they want to live they must resist the urge to hide in a bunker and instead spread their ideals to make the rest of the world more hospitable to their way of thinking. In this book Eric Flint is truly remaking the world of 1632 and he does a great job of it.
This book will appeal to alternate history fans, science fiction fans, and anyone who likes to see a new fictional world come to life. While there is quite a bit of violence the overall tone is positive, and while reading it there was never a sense of hopelessness that this sort of story could evoke if done poorly.
This book can be found on www.amazon.com in print or as an e-book. As of right now this book is free as a kindle e-book.
Friday, December 20, 2013
Oath of Swords by David Weber Book Review
This is the first book in the War God series by David Weber. As with his science fiction he creates a world, and populates it with extraordinary characters. This series is a fantasy epic that centers around the conflict between the gods of light and the gods of the dark. Unlike some fantasy stories however the main character does not want to be a hero, nor anything to do with gods. The war god actually has to go through significant effort to get noticed by the hero, and when he does he is basically told no, and questioned as to why a god would need him.
The only thing that I didn't like about this story is that it didn't have enough explanation as to how their religious system worked, but since the main character comes from a race that feels that the gods have abandoned them it is understandable.
This story is the beginning of a heroic journey for Bazhell and his companion Brandark. The two are unlikely hero's since they are Hradani. Hradani were originally an elf like race that lived in harmony with the land, but in the last wizard war they were twisted by dark wizards to have the rage, which manifests as murderous fits that cannot be controlled by the person afflicted. Because they are basically ticking time bombs the other races exterminated them where they could and the survivors by Bazhell's time are one step above savages. It has seemed that even their gods had abandoned them since they had not seen one since the war. Time heals all things however, and the gods have been working to change the rage to something that can be controlled. When Bazhell fights the servants of a dark god for the sake of a servant girl, the god of war and justice decides that the time has come to help Bazhell and the rest of the Hradani. The problem is that Bazhell doesn't want the help he is quite bitter towards the gods, and the war god must prove to him that he is a captain worth following. In the end when Bazhell is faced with an evil from outside his world he realizes that those who would stand for the light must stand together or be destroyed by the darkness. During the battle he takes the god up on his offer. The followers of the dark should be very afraid because when a Hradani that controls the rage is backed by the god of war the very world cannot help but change.
This book will appeal to fans of David Weber's science fiction work, Classic fantasy fans, and anyone who likes a good adventure. Bazhell is a fun hero to read about because he never set out to be one, he only wanted to do what was right.
This book can be found at www.amazon.com as an e-book or in print. It is currently free as an e-book since it is part of Baen's free library, which has many first books in a series. Their hope is to hook you and that you will buy the rest of the series, but a free book is a free book.
The only thing that I didn't like about this story is that it didn't have enough explanation as to how their religious system worked, but since the main character comes from a race that feels that the gods have abandoned them it is understandable.
This story is the beginning of a heroic journey for Bazhell and his companion Brandark. The two are unlikely hero's since they are Hradani. Hradani were originally an elf like race that lived in harmony with the land, but in the last wizard war they were twisted by dark wizards to have the rage, which manifests as murderous fits that cannot be controlled by the person afflicted. Because they are basically ticking time bombs the other races exterminated them where they could and the survivors by Bazhell's time are one step above savages. It has seemed that even their gods had abandoned them since they had not seen one since the war. Time heals all things however, and the gods have been working to change the rage to something that can be controlled. When Bazhell fights the servants of a dark god for the sake of a servant girl, the god of war and justice decides that the time has come to help Bazhell and the rest of the Hradani. The problem is that Bazhell doesn't want the help he is quite bitter towards the gods, and the war god must prove to him that he is a captain worth following. In the end when Bazhell is faced with an evil from outside his world he realizes that those who would stand for the light must stand together or be destroyed by the darkness. During the battle he takes the god up on his offer. The followers of the dark should be very afraid because when a Hradani that controls the rage is backed by the god of war the very world cannot help but change.
This book will appeal to fans of David Weber's science fiction work, Classic fantasy fans, and anyone who likes a good adventure. Bazhell is a fun hero to read about because he never set out to be one, he only wanted to do what was right.
This book can be found at www.amazon.com as an e-book or in print. It is currently free as an e-book since it is part of Baen's free library, which has many first books in a series. Their hope is to hook you and that you will buy the rest of the series, but a free book is a free book.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Good Luck Girl Anime Series Review
Good luck girl is a hilarious comedy about a spoiled girl who has an overwhelming overabundance of good fortune, and the misfortune god who is sent to restore balance. Through the series the girl with the good fortune slowly learns to trust people and become a better person. The whole series is a good illustration of the yin-yang concept of balance because Ichiko ( the mortal with outrageous fortune energy) and Momoji (the misfortune god) have the same amount of opposing energies.
I really like this series, but as with many anime's there are a lot of dirty jokes, and quite a bit of sexual tension. This comprises a lot of the comedy, and while it is tame for its type it may offend some people which is a shame because it is a good story.
As I said the plot is about the conflict between Ichiko and Momoji and Ichiko's personal growth because of it. At the beginning of the series Ichiko is not easy to sympathize with. She seems to be extremely spoiled by everything always going her way, and she feels she is better than everyone else. It quickly becomes clear however that everything is not as it seems. While really bad things can't happen to her, she is very isolated and not well liked by any of the people around her unless they are worshiping her. About the time she realizes that she is lonely Momoji shows up and throws her life into an uproar, which turns out to be just what she needs. Since their energies are on par with each other Momoji must try to either trick Ichiko out of her fortune, bargain with her for it, or get her to distribute it voluntarily. They fight throughout the series, and have some awesome battles, but they come to be friends by the end even if Ichiko will not admit it. Through their interaction Ichiko becomes a good person, and makes lots of friends.
This anime is supernatural in nature so would probably be enjoyed by people who like fantasy and paranormal stories. It is not really the best show for young kids because there are a lot of dirty jokes and sexual humor, but it is fairly tame compared to some anime I have seen.
This series can be purchased at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream.
I really like this series, but as with many anime's there are a lot of dirty jokes, and quite a bit of sexual tension. This comprises a lot of the comedy, and while it is tame for its type it may offend some people which is a shame because it is a good story.
As I said the plot is about the conflict between Ichiko and Momoji and Ichiko's personal growth because of it. At the beginning of the series Ichiko is not easy to sympathize with. She seems to be extremely spoiled by everything always going her way, and she feels she is better than everyone else. It quickly becomes clear however that everything is not as it seems. While really bad things can't happen to her, she is very isolated and not well liked by any of the people around her unless they are worshiping her. About the time she realizes that she is lonely Momoji shows up and throws her life into an uproar, which turns out to be just what she needs. Since their energies are on par with each other Momoji must try to either trick Ichiko out of her fortune, bargain with her for it, or get her to distribute it voluntarily. They fight throughout the series, and have some awesome battles, but they come to be friends by the end even if Ichiko will not admit it. Through their interaction Ichiko becomes a good person, and makes lots of friends.
This anime is supernatural in nature so would probably be enjoyed by people who like fantasy and paranormal stories. It is not really the best show for young kids because there are a lot of dirty jokes and sexual humor, but it is fairly tame compared to some anime I have seen.
This series can be purchased at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream.
Epic Movie Review
Epic is an entertaining family movie that both kids and adults can enjoy. This animated good vs evil fantasy film hides some good lessons about balance, and interdependence. To be honest I cannot think of anything bad about this movie. It made for a very enjoyable family movie night.
The story is about the struggle between life and death in a forest, and about the relationships of parents and children. The main character MK is having issues with her father due to his belief, and obsession with, the tiny people who care for a nearby forest. She is forced to believe when she ends up getting caught up in the succession battle between life and decay in the forest, and is shrunk to the size of one of the tiny people. MK must ensure that the next ruler of the forest is on the side of life, and at the same time repair her relationship with her father who it turns out was right all along.
This movie will appeal to anyone who likes a good fantasy, and particularly anyone looking for a good movie on family movie night. The movie is very well animated and you find yourself wanting to believe in the world presented. The plot has plenty of action to keep even your three year old watching, but has enough deeper meaning to be interesting to everyone else.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream for rental or purchase.
The story is about the struggle between life and death in a forest, and about the relationships of parents and children. The main character MK is having issues with her father due to his belief, and obsession with, the tiny people who care for a nearby forest. She is forced to believe when she ends up getting caught up in the succession battle between life and decay in the forest, and is shrunk to the size of one of the tiny people. MK must ensure that the next ruler of the forest is on the side of life, and at the same time repair her relationship with her father who it turns out was right all along.
This movie will appeal to anyone who likes a good fantasy, and particularly anyone looking for a good movie on family movie night. The movie is very well animated and you find yourself wanting to believe in the world presented. The plot has plenty of action to keep even your three year old watching, but has enough deeper meaning to be interesting to everyone else.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream for rental or purchase.
Monday, December 16, 2013
Pacific Rim Movie Review
This movie is a fun, science fiction, giant robot vs monster movie. I rented it last night and really enjoyed watching it. The technology for the the giant robots, called yeagers, is a bit out there but the way the research was portrayed was interesting. I particularly liked the concept of there needing to be two pilots to share the load of running the yeager.
That being said I had real trouble believing that the yeagers( the giant robots) would be possible in the time frame that the story seems to portray. There is a reason we use tank treads instead of walkers. The sheer power and resiliency of the yeagers is more befitting an organic system than a mechanical one. Despite this the movie manages to be quite entertaining. The giant robots are cool, and the special effects are really good.
The plot of this movie is that the world is being invaded by giant monsters from another dimension, and the world built giant robots to combat them. The movie is a little different from other giant monster movies because they are being deliberately sent as an invasion force to destroy our civilization. The aliens who want colonize send giant monsters through a dimensional rift that they opened at the bottom of the pacific ocean. The humans responded by building yeagers to stop them. This works for a while but eventually more capable monsters are sent and yeagers start to fall. The governments of the world decide to build giant walls to hide behind at this point, and the remaining yeagers end up in Hong Kong fighting the monsters. The twist is that just as the yeager program is winding down the monsters break through the wall. It seems that they are preparing to send a wave of monsters against the world and destroy our civilization once and for all. The only thing standing between the world and its fate is a rag-tag group of the remaining yeagers, and their pilots.
This movie is a classic example of the giant robot/giant monster movie done in modern times. Most science fiction or action movie fans will like this movie. It is not however very original in its plot. basically it is neon-genesis evangelion meets independence day, so if you expect to be surprised by the twists you will probably be disappointed. If you want a great Friday night popcorn movie though this could be a winner.
This movie is available on disk or as a streaming rental or purchase at www.amazon.com
That being said I had real trouble believing that the yeagers( the giant robots) would be possible in the time frame that the story seems to portray. There is a reason we use tank treads instead of walkers. The sheer power and resiliency of the yeagers is more befitting an organic system than a mechanical one. Despite this the movie manages to be quite entertaining. The giant robots are cool, and the special effects are really good.
The plot of this movie is that the world is being invaded by giant monsters from another dimension, and the world built giant robots to combat them. The movie is a little different from other giant monster movies because they are being deliberately sent as an invasion force to destroy our civilization. The aliens who want colonize send giant monsters through a dimensional rift that they opened at the bottom of the pacific ocean. The humans responded by building yeagers to stop them. This works for a while but eventually more capable monsters are sent and yeagers start to fall. The governments of the world decide to build giant walls to hide behind at this point, and the remaining yeagers end up in Hong Kong fighting the monsters. The twist is that just as the yeager program is winding down the monsters break through the wall. It seems that they are preparing to send a wave of monsters against the world and destroy our civilization once and for all. The only thing standing between the world and its fate is a rag-tag group of the remaining yeagers, and their pilots.
This movie is a classic example of the giant robot/giant monster movie done in modern times. Most science fiction or action movie fans will like this movie. It is not however very original in its plot. basically it is neon-genesis evangelion meets independence day, so if you expect to be surprised by the twists you will probably be disappointed. If you want a great Friday night popcorn movie though this could be a winner.
This movie is available on disk or as a streaming rental or purchase at www.amazon.com
Thursday, December 12, 2013
The Quantum Connection by Travis S. Taylor
This book is the even more action packed sequel to Warp Speed. While it is a sequel it stands alone quite well. I actually read it first and was not confused at all. The book picks different characters to focus on and at the beginning they do not even know about the crew from the first book. The book is a fun read if you want a classic style science fiction story where the good guy wins, and the bad guys are left in the dust by the hero's mighty intellect and wise tactical or technological decisions.
This book's strength is also its weakness because the bad guys don't really have much of a chance despite having an initial advantage. This is really a geek, techno-fantasy, superhero style story with some real science at its heart.
The book is the story of how Steven Montana(the hero) saves the world. At the start of the book Steven is a gamer geek and college student studying computers when the warp war from the first book breaks out. In the fighting his entire home town with everyone he knows is wiped out and he is told it was because of a meteor. He slides into a spiral of depression and only begins to come back out of it when a chance encounter gets him a job working on reverse engineering a strange circuit that turns out to be a quantum supercomputer. When a background check fails due to him having no-one to vouch for him he has a major relapse and heads into the desert after taking all of his "happy pills". At this point the book takes a bit of a turn because he is abducted by aliens that have been experimenting on him for years and were the ultimate cause of his depression. Because of the pills he took he is able to wake up from their sedation and take over the ship. The research ship turns out to be run by a quantum supercomputer, the very thing Steven was just studying. Using the supercomputer and the nanotechnology on board the research vessel he enhances himself and a female fellow captive, and together they take off to save the world. Soon they meet up with the crew from warp speed, and god help anything that threatens earth from that point on.
This book will appeal to classic science fiction, and comic book fans. To be honest the writing reminds me of some of Heinlein's stories. The action in the book never stops, and there is not a lot of time spent on introspection. This book also has a little bit less explanation of the science behind whats going on than warp speed so it may not appeal to hard science fiction fans as much.
This book can be found at www.amazon.com as an e-book or in print.
This book's strength is also its weakness because the bad guys don't really have much of a chance despite having an initial advantage. This is really a geek, techno-fantasy, superhero style story with some real science at its heart.
The book is the story of how Steven Montana(the hero) saves the world. At the start of the book Steven is a gamer geek and college student studying computers when the warp war from the first book breaks out. In the fighting his entire home town with everyone he knows is wiped out and he is told it was because of a meteor. He slides into a spiral of depression and only begins to come back out of it when a chance encounter gets him a job working on reverse engineering a strange circuit that turns out to be a quantum supercomputer. When a background check fails due to him having no-one to vouch for him he has a major relapse and heads into the desert after taking all of his "happy pills". At this point the book takes a bit of a turn because he is abducted by aliens that have been experimenting on him for years and were the ultimate cause of his depression. Because of the pills he took he is able to wake up from their sedation and take over the ship. The research ship turns out to be run by a quantum supercomputer, the very thing Steven was just studying. Using the supercomputer and the nanotechnology on board the research vessel he enhances himself and a female fellow captive, and together they take off to save the world. Soon they meet up with the crew from warp speed, and god help anything that threatens earth from that point on.
This book will appeal to classic science fiction, and comic book fans. To be honest the writing reminds me of some of Heinlein's stories. The action in the book never stops, and there is not a lot of time spent on introspection. This book also has a little bit less explanation of the science behind whats going on than warp speed so it may not appeal to hard science fiction fans as much.
This book can be found at www.amazon.com as an e-book or in print.
The number of the beast by Robert Heinlein book review
This story is a non-stop adventure through space, time, and a whole bunch of parallel realities. As with any Heinlein book there is quite a bit of philosophy as well, but unlike his earlier books where the characters mostly state their philosophy, his later books (of which this is one) demonstrate it through the actions and reactions of his characters, and in bits and pieces of conversations they have. If you pay attention you can find it all over. This particular book explores the concept of parallel realities, and the idea that all possible things will happen in some universe. The story illustrates this point by linking many of Heinlein's story-lines, and a few other fictional universes together using a device that allows for dimensional hopping. There is even a trip to Oz thrown in there.
As with most Heinlein books there is not really anything I don't like about this book. That being said some of the technological concepts that it is based on have long since been surpassed particularly in the field of computers, and the way they operate. On the other hand the things that he has the outdated hardware doing are still largely out of reach today. Personally I think that the two things balance out, but it could be jarring for some if this is their first Heinlein book.
This book is a story about a group of people who discover a way to hop between dimensions. They are not the first to obtain this technology, and their excursions are almost immediately noticed. The main characters Zeb, Deety, Hilda, and Jacob are thrown into a fight of flight situation in Zeb's modified ( read armed) roadable aircraft. Jacob rigs the air-car for dimensional travel and they are off keeping one step ahead of the black hats. Whenever they think that they have lost them they show up again. As I mentioned earlier they make stops at several fictional universes along the way where they augment their capabilities and move on. In the end their problems start to get resolved when they meet up with Lazurus Long (from time enough for love), Mike(from the moon is a harsh mistress), and several other Heinlein hero's. Throughout the story the concept of parallel realities making all things be real things is explored. This book will really make you think about the reality you see around you, and ponder the 'what if's' of your favorite stories.
This book will appeal to any Heinlein fan, and any science fiction fan. It will also appeal to people who like action adventure or fan fiction since the book is full of references, and interactions with characters or worlds from other works.
This book is available at www.amazon.com as an audio book or in print. I could not find it in E-book, so if you see it in that format please let me know where.
As with most Heinlein books there is not really anything I don't like about this book. That being said some of the technological concepts that it is based on have long since been surpassed particularly in the field of computers, and the way they operate. On the other hand the things that he has the outdated hardware doing are still largely out of reach today. Personally I think that the two things balance out, but it could be jarring for some if this is their first Heinlein book.
This book is a story about a group of people who discover a way to hop between dimensions. They are not the first to obtain this technology, and their excursions are almost immediately noticed. The main characters Zeb, Deety, Hilda, and Jacob are thrown into a fight of flight situation in Zeb's modified ( read armed) roadable aircraft. Jacob rigs the air-car for dimensional travel and they are off keeping one step ahead of the black hats. Whenever they think that they have lost them they show up again. As I mentioned earlier they make stops at several fictional universes along the way where they augment their capabilities and move on. In the end their problems start to get resolved when they meet up with Lazurus Long (from time enough for love), Mike(from the moon is a harsh mistress), and several other Heinlein hero's. Throughout the story the concept of parallel realities making all things be real things is explored. This book will really make you think about the reality you see around you, and ponder the 'what if's' of your favorite stories.
This book will appeal to any Heinlein fan, and any science fiction fan. It will also appeal to people who like action adventure or fan fiction since the book is full of references, and interactions with characters or worlds from other works.
This book is available at www.amazon.com as an audio book or in print. I could not find it in E-book, so if you see it in that format please let me know where.
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Conrads Time Machine Book Review
This book is a retroactive prequel to the adventures of Conrad Stargrad series. It is basically the story of how the civilization that made the time machine Conrad stumbled into began. It is a very good story about three nerdy friends who discover and develop time travel together. Like the Conrad series this book stays mostly upbeat and stays happy while still being interesting, but there are some very unfortunate personal consequences for the main characters from the development of time travel.
This book still has an element of everything going right for the main characters, but not to the extent that the Conrad series had. In fact there are some very sad parts for one of the main characters. The part I really didn't like was when in the course of the story advanced inter-dimensional aliens taught them how to do time travel right, so that they didn't pollute the alien's homes. I think that the story would have been better without it.
This book tells the story of Conrad's Uncle Tom, and two of his friends Ian and Jim, who discover and develop time travel. Soon after its initial discovery the societies that the three of them will start show up to help, and the time travel paradoxes, antics, and tragedies begin. This book explores both what happens to a people when they know their future from the day they were born, and the havoc reckless time travelers can cause. The book also explores a lot of the spin off technologies that warping space and time creates. This story explains why Tom is so willing to help his relative Conrad in the Conrad Stargrad series. It is not just because they are related, but because he knows first hand the damage, and the good, a little bit of knowledge from the future can cause. He wants to make sure he helps the good come about.
This book will appeal to Leo Frankowski fans, and to people who like a good engineers tale. Large parts of the book are devoted to figuring out technical problems, and this may not be the sort of thing action adventure lovers would like.
This book can be purchased in print or as an e-book at www.baen.com or www.amazon.com.
This book still has an element of everything going right for the main characters, but not to the extent that the Conrad series had. In fact there are some very sad parts for one of the main characters. The part I really didn't like was when in the course of the story advanced inter-dimensional aliens taught them how to do time travel right, so that they didn't pollute the alien's homes. I think that the story would have been better without it.
This book tells the story of Conrad's Uncle Tom, and two of his friends Ian and Jim, who discover and develop time travel. Soon after its initial discovery the societies that the three of them will start show up to help, and the time travel paradoxes, antics, and tragedies begin. This book explores both what happens to a people when they know their future from the day they were born, and the havoc reckless time travelers can cause. The book also explores a lot of the spin off technologies that warping space and time creates. This story explains why Tom is so willing to help his relative Conrad in the Conrad Stargrad series. It is not just because they are related, but because he knows first hand the damage, and the good, a little bit of knowledge from the future can cause. He wants to make sure he helps the good come about.
This book will appeal to Leo Frankowski fans, and to people who like a good engineers tale. Large parts of the book are devoted to figuring out technical problems, and this may not be the sort of thing action adventure lovers would like.
This book can be purchased in print or as an e-book at www.baen.com or www.amazon.com.
Monday, December 9, 2013
The Adventures of Conrad Stargrad Series by Leo Frankowski Book Series Review
This is a very good science fiction world-building adventure series. Unlike some stories in this sub-genre this story stays upbeat even when things are grim. The main character has some flaws, but none big enough to bring the tone of the story down. Sometimes its nice to have a series that is just fun, but still has enough plot and action to keep you guessing as to what will happen next and engaged with the characters. For me this series filled that role.
There are only a few parts of the story that I don't really like. The first is the fact that everything seems to go just right for the main character. Part way through the series it becomes very clear why though and makes it believable again. It must be nice when your great uncle owns a time machine. The other part is that this book could be considered a bit of guys fantasy as it seems like all the attractive women in the book love the main character, and hes not shy about partaking. To be honest the second one doesn't bother me all that much but it does limit the audience somewhat. Despite these issues, and somewhat because of them, I really like this series and have read it many times. It is particularly good for when I am feeling down because the books never are .
The series explores what happens when you accidentally send a modern industrial engineer to medieval Poland ten years before a mongol invasion, and don't figure that out for ten years. That's exactly what happens to American educated Polish engineer Conrad Schwartz( hes from StarGrad) in this story. He was on vacation hiking through Poland when he got drunk at a certain inn and stumbled into a time machine searching for the bathroom. Once he figures out where and more importantly when he is he does what any good engineer would do: He jump starts an industrial revolution in medieval Poland to turn back the mongol hordes. This is quite a surprise to his uncle Tom, who is one of the inventors of the time machine used to send him back, when he showed up to observe the mongol invasion. Since he was observed at the battle that becomes a fixed point in time, and Conrad must stay in the past. The question is will he be able to turn back the mongol hordes, and more importantly if he does what just happened to history?
This book will appeal to science fiction and adventure fans. It is a very good world building story, and a lot of fun. Some people may not like it due to the main characters harem forming tendencies, but if you don't mind that I definitely recommend this series.
These books are currently a little difficult to find as I just discovered. I have some very loved but worn copies from years ago. The original series if you can find it is composed of the following titles in order:
I did a little digging and it appears the books can be purchased at www.amazon.com or www.baen.com in print or as an ebook as two compilations titled Conrad StarGrad :The Radiant Warrior, and Conrad's Lady. The original six book series appears to be out of print otherwise.
There are only a few parts of the story that I don't really like. The first is the fact that everything seems to go just right for the main character. Part way through the series it becomes very clear why though and makes it believable again. It must be nice when your great uncle owns a time machine. The other part is that this book could be considered a bit of guys fantasy as it seems like all the attractive women in the book love the main character, and hes not shy about partaking. To be honest the second one doesn't bother me all that much but it does limit the audience somewhat. Despite these issues, and somewhat because of them, I really like this series and have read it many times. It is particularly good for when I am feeling down because the books never are .
The series explores what happens when you accidentally send a modern industrial engineer to medieval Poland ten years before a mongol invasion, and don't figure that out for ten years. That's exactly what happens to American educated Polish engineer Conrad Schwartz( hes from StarGrad) in this story. He was on vacation hiking through Poland when he got drunk at a certain inn and stumbled into a time machine searching for the bathroom. Once he figures out where and more importantly when he is he does what any good engineer would do: He jump starts an industrial revolution in medieval Poland to turn back the mongol hordes. This is quite a surprise to his uncle Tom, who is one of the inventors of the time machine used to send him back, when he showed up to observe the mongol invasion. Since he was observed at the battle that becomes a fixed point in time, and Conrad must stay in the past. The question is will he be able to turn back the mongol hordes, and more importantly if he does what just happened to history?
This book will appeal to science fiction and adventure fans. It is a very good world building story, and a lot of fun. Some people may not like it due to the main characters harem forming tendencies, but if you don't mind that I definitely recommend this series.
These books are currently a little difficult to find as I just discovered. I have some very loved but worn copies from years ago. The original series if you can find it is composed of the following titles in order:
- The Cross Time Engineer
- The High Tech Night
- The Radiant Warrior
- The Flying Warlord
- Lord Conrad's Lady
- Conrad's Quest for Rubber
I did a little digging and it appears the books can be purchased at www.amazon.com or www.baen.com in print or as an ebook as two compilations titled Conrad StarGrad :The Radiant Warrior, and Conrad's Lady. The original six book series appears to be out of print otherwise.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Surrogates Movie Review
Surrogates explores the idea of tele-presence taken to the extreme. Its bleak vision of a future where people no longer interact or go anywhere for fear of getting hurt, but instead send out powerful androids controlled remotely through a virtual reality interface, is a frightening reflection of our growing fearfulness as a society. It is a trap that we as a people could all too easily fall into.
While I really like the depiction of the technology in this film, and the way that it highlights some potential problems with this type of technology, I do not like the one sided view this story portrays. It only explores the bad parts of the new society, not the beneficial parts.
The plot of this movie is that after society embraces surrogates for safety reasons someone is murdered by a virus uploaded to their surrogate that kills the operator. The action follows a FBI agent named Tom Greer, who is investigating the case. While investigating his surrogate is destroyed by anti-surrogate activists forcing him to carry on in real life. In the course of the investigation Greer reconnects with the real world and realizes how hollow his existence has been. In the end it turns out that the virus was created by the same man who made the surrogate technology. He now feels that it is being used incorrectly, and has decided to undo the damage he has done by destroying all surrogates and their operators. The climax of the movie is that this man uploads the virus to every surrogate, and Greer must find a way to halt it. In the end Greer opts to let the virus destroy all surrogates, but boots all users before they can be killed.
This movie was entertaining, but it could have been a lot better, and the ending was terrible. I would have liked to get a more complete picture of the effects of the technology on society. This movie will likely only appeal the science fiction, and crime drama fans. The action is ok, but takes a back seat to the investigation. It is basically a cop movie with a science fiction twist.
This movie is available at www.amazon.com on disk or streaming as a rental or purchase.
While I really like the depiction of the technology in this film, and the way that it highlights some potential problems with this type of technology, I do not like the one sided view this story portrays. It only explores the bad parts of the new society, not the beneficial parts.
The plot of this movie is that after society embraces surrogates for safety reasons someone is murdered by a virus uploaded to their surrogate that kills the operator. The action follows a FBI agent named Tom Greer, who is investigating the case. While investigating his surrogate is destroyed by anti-surrogate activists forcing him to carry on in real life. In the course of the investigation Greer reconnects with the real world and realizes how hollow his existence has been. In the end it turns out that the virus was created by the same man who made the surrogate technology. He now feels that it is being used incorrectly, and has decided to undo the damage he has done by destroying all surrogates and their operators. The climax of the movie is that this man uploads the virus to every surrogate, and Greer must find a way to halt it. In the end Greer opts to let the virus destroy all surrogates, but boots all users before they can be killed.
This movie was entertaining, but it could have been a lot better, and the ending was terrible. I would have liked to get a more complete picture of the effects of the technology on society. This movie will likely only appeal the science fiction, and crime drama fans. The action is ok, but takes a back seat to the investigation. It is basically a cop movie with a science fiction twist.
This movie is available at www.amazon.com on disk or streaming as a rental or purchase.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
The Sorcerer's Apprentice
This comedic live action take on the old mickey short is very good. It will make you laugh with and cheer for Dave the young Sorcerer's Apprentice. The classic scene is there, but there is much more to the movie. The story is really about Dave finding his self confidence and the will to use his power to resolve a centuries old conflict. Something I really like about the movie is that Dave grows up to be a scientist and that this plays an important role in the movie.
The only thing I didnt really like about the movie is that the villains are not complex characters. They are bad guys who like being bad guys. I would have liked to see more reason for them being the way they are.
The plot of this movie is that centuries ago Merlin and two of his three apprentices Balthazar and Veronica, attempted to defeat Morgana le Fey and Merlin's other apprentice Horvath. In the fight Merlin dies and Veronica sacrifices herself by merging with Morgana so that she can be trapped in a nesting doll. In the end Horvath is also trapped , and Balthazar is left to continue alone, searching for the heir Merlin spoke of that can defeat Morgana. The movie then skips to the near present day where Dave as a child runs into Balthazar right as Horvath escapes. Balthazar saves Dave, who he recognizes as the heir, by trapping himself and Horvath in a magic vase for a number of years. Dave's confidence is shattered when no one will believe him about what happened, and he is deemed to have had a mental breakdown. When Dave is older, and studying physics as a grad student, the two wizards finally escape and the story begins again. Balthazar begins teaching Dave Magic, with a few comic mishaps including the classic cleaning scene, but it goes to his head and he quickly ends up in a bind. His confidence is badly hurt by this latest failure on top of years of being thought crazy. In the end he must overcome his inner demons and combine science and magic to defeat Morgana and finally set things right.
This movie should appeal to fantasy fans, and would be great for family movie night. Its plot and side stories will keep the adults engaged and the kids will love the battles between wizards, and the good verses evil theme.
This movie can be bought on disk, or as a streaming rental or purchase on www.amazon.com.
The only thing I didnt really like about the movie is that the villains are not complex characters. They are bad guys who like being bad guys. I would have liked to see more reason for them being the way they are.
The plot of this movie is that centuries ago Merlin and two of his three apprentices Balthazar and Veronica, attempted to defeat Morgana le Fey and Merlin's other apprentice Horvath. In the fight Merlin dies and Veronica sacrifices herself by merging with Morgana so that she can be trapped in a nesting doll. In the end Horvath is also trapped , and Balthazar is left to continue alone, searching for the heir Merlin spoke of that can defeat Morgana. The movie then skips to the near present day where Dave as a child runs into Balthazar right as Horvath escapes. Balthazar saves Dave, who he recognizes as the heir, by trapping himself and Horvath in a magic vase for a number of years. Dave's confidence is shattered when no one will believe him about what happened, and he is deemed to have had a mental breakdown. When Dave is older, and studying physics as a grad student, the two wizards finally escape and the story begins again. Balthazar begins teaching Dave Magic, with a few comic mishaps including the classic cleaning scene, but it goes to his head and he quickly ends up in a bind. His confidence is badly hurt by this latest failure on top of years of being thought crazy. In the end he must overcome his inner demons and combine science and magic to defeat Morgana and finally set things right.
This movie should appeal to fantasy fans, and would be great for family movie night. Its plot and side stories will keep the adults engaged and the kids will love the battles between wizards, and the good verses evil theme.
This movie can be bought on disk, or as a streaming rental or purchase on www.amazon.com.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Thor Movie Review
The movie Thor is an adaptation of the Thor Comics by Marvel, and it exists in the same world as the Iron Man series, Captain America, and The Avengers. This movie serves as the introduction of Thor and the Asgardians including Loki, and Odin. I really like the fact that Thor has to find a reason bigger than his own ego to regain his power.
What I didn't like about this movie and the comic series was that while the asgardians take the name and some of the characteristics of the Norse gods there are also some issues that make this impossible. Things that very old Norse stories speak of are told as current events, and some of the relationships are not correct. If you ignore that the movie is very good.
In the movie Thor is presented as a very powerful warrior who has arrogance and ego to match his strength. When the frost giants attempt to retrieve their most powerful weapon from Asgard Thor is enraged and goes to their home to pick a fight, nearly restarting the war between Asgard and the frost giants. As punishment Odin strips his son of his hammer and his strength and banishes both him and the hammer to earth. Thor can regain his power, but only if he can shed his ego, and learn to be worthy of his power. On earth Thor runs into(literally) a young scientist named Jane Foster who is studying wormholes, which is the true form of the bifrost used to transport him to his exile. While Thor attempts to regain his power, and make Jane his girlfriend, on earth Odin Slips into a coma when Thor's brother Loki discovers that he is really a small frost giant that Odin stole. Being Odin's non-exiled son Loki takes power and sends a fire automaton to kill Thor in exile. This, combined with his humbling experience on earth, allows Thor to finally become worthy of his power by nearly getting killed defending a town from the rampaging automaton.
This movie will appeal to anyone who likes action adventure, Superhero and comic fans, Science Fiction fans, and Fantasy fans. It is an easy move to watch and the special effects are great. Except for the violence this would be a great movie for anyone. As it is anyone but very small children should enjoy it.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com as a disk or for streaming rental or purchase. If you have Prime it is available as a free video right now. It is also available as an instant stream on www.netflix.com.
What I didn't like about this movie and the comic series was that while the asgardians take the name and some of the characteristics of the Norse gods there are also some issues that make this impossible. Things that very old Norse stories speak of are told as current events, and some of the relationships are not correct. If you ignore that the movie is very good.
In the movie Thor is presented as a very powerful warrior who has arrogance and ego to match his strength. When the frost giants attempt to retrieve their most powerful weapon from Asgard Thor is enraged and goes to their home to pick a fight, nearly restarting the war between Asgard and the frost giants. As punishment Odin strips his son of his hammer and his strength and banishes both him and the hammer to earth. Thor can regain his power, but only if he can shed his ego, and learn to be worthy of his power. On earth Thor runs into(literally) a young scientist named Jane Foster who is studying wormholes, which is the true form of the bifrost used to transport him to his exile. While Thor attempts to regain his power, and make Jane his girlfriend, on earth Odin Slips into a coma when Thor's brother Loki discovers that he is really a small frost giant that Odin stole. Being Odin's non-exiled son Loki takes power and sends a fire automaton to kill Thor in exile. This, combined with his humbling experience on earth, allows Thor to finally become worthy of his power by nearly getting killed defending a town from the rampaging automaton.
This movie will appeal to anyone who likes action adventure, Superhero and comic fans, Science Fiction fans, and Fantasy fans. It is an easy move to watch and the special effects are great. Except for the violence this would be a great movie for anyone. As it is anyone but very small children should enjoy it.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com as a disk or for streaming rental or purchase. If you have Prime it is available as a free video right now. It is also available as an instant stream on www.netflix.com.
Monday, December 2, 2013
Pitch Black Movie Review
This movie is both a terrifying trip through a gauntlet of things that lurk in the dark, and a trip to redeem the soul of a man who at first identifies more with the monsters he faces than the people he is with. Through the trip the main character a criminal named Riddick finds some things that reinforce his disillusionment, but others that stimulate his sense of honor.
The story is good but I find it a little too dark and Riddick is always a little too cold for me to get comfortable with it. The fact is that Riddick is not a hero, and the story does not transform him into one. At the beginning he is a dangerous monster of a man, and at the end he still is one, but he has found people he feels worthy of living, and that he grudgingly cares about. It shows that in the end even a monster can help his fellow man.
The show starts out with a cargo ship being disabled and having to crash land on a deserted planet. One of the passengers is the dangerous criminal Riddick who escapes. The rest of the passengers find a deserted settlement, and signs that things did not end peacefully. The settlement has a spaceship, but no power cells. It turns out that the planet they are on has three suns, and they are heading into a rare time when night will fall. With the fall of night Monstrous creatures emerge, and Riddick, who can see better in the dark, rejoins the survivors, and begrudgingly helps them retrieve the power cells from the crashed ship. During the journey some of the survivors die, and fights erupt. At one point Riddick must step in to save a girl that was in disguise as a boy from being used as bait. In the end Riddick has decided to leave the planet without the people but the pilot says she is willing to risk her life for them when Riddick asks. This impresses him and he helps her save them. In the process Riddick is overtaken by the monsters, but the pilot dies trying to save him. He manages to win his fight with the monsters, decides to save everyone to repay her sacrifice, and regains some of his humanity in the process.
This movie will appeal to science fiction fans who like horror and suspense films as well. It will also appeal to action fans because of the fight scenes. This is not a movie for kids.
This movie can be found a www.amazon.com on disk or for streaming rental or purchase.
The story is good but I find it a little too dark and Riddick is always a little too cold for me to get comfortable with it. The fact is that Riddick is not a hero, and the story does not transform him into one. At the beginning he is a dangerous monster of a man, and at the end he still is one, but he has found people he feels worthy of living, and that he grudgingly cares about. It shows that in the end even a monster can help his fellow man.
The show starts out with a cargo ship being disabled and having to crash land on a deserted planet. One of the passengers is the dangerous criminal Riddick who escapes. The rest of the passengers find a deserted settlement, and signs that things did not end peacefully. The settlement has a spaceship, but no power cells. It turns out that the planet they are on has three suns, and they are heading into a rare time when night will fall. With the fall of night Monstrous creatures emerge, and Riddick, who can see better in the dark, rejoins the survivors, and begrudgingly helps them retrieve the power cells from the crashed ship. During the journey some of the survivors die, and fights erupt. At one point Riddick must step in to save a girl that was in disguise as a boy from being used as bait. In the end Riddick has decided to leave the planet without the people but the pilot says she is willing to risk her life for them when Riddick asks. This impresses him and he helps her save them. In the process Riddick is overtaken by the monsters, but the pilot dies trying to save him. He manages to win his fight with the monsters, decides to save everyone to repay her sacrifice, and regains some of his humanity in the process.
This movie will appeal to science fiction fans who like horror and suspense films as well. It will also appeal to action fans because of the fight scenes. This is not a movie for kids.
This movie can be found a www.amazon.com on disk or for streaming rental or purchase.
Sunday, December 1, 2013
Independence Day Movie Review
This is an older science fiction alien invasion story, but in my opinion it is one of the best alien invasion movies I have ever seen. There are a lot of very sad moments, and great depictions of heroism in this movie. The way it shows humanity pulling together in the face of the threat is how I hope it would happen if something like this were to become reality. I really like that the aliens in this movie are here for resources and we just happen to be in the way. They are basically acting like colonial Europeans. This motivation is much more understandable than the motivation in some of the alien invasion movies I have seen.
What I didn't like about this movie was the depiction of computer technology, programming, and the reliance of the aliens on our own communication satellites for a synchronization signal. To me this is a flaw in the plot that almost breaks suspension of disbelief. First off nobody who has shields is going to use our satellites to bounce an important signal. They will drop off their own and have secure communications. This doesn't mean we can't intercept it and do some hacking, but using our own hardware makes it too easy. Second what kind of rinky dink invasion force lets a scout ship that's been MIA for 50 years with life signs aboard dock without communicating to the people inside? I mean that's some impressive hacking, programming, and translation that had to go into that. The time frame there is just implausible. In this movie the aliens are woefully stupid when it comes to information security. I suppose that this is plausible if their culture never came up with hackers. If this is the case then many of the issues with the plot disappear. These elements aside the movie was really good and they had to fit all the action in a movie somehow.
The plot of this movie is really simple. The aliens attack and destroy most of our major cities and military bases. We then regroup and counterattack using a trojan horse to disable their main advantages which lets us win. It has been done lots of times mostly badly. Independence day does it right however. It uses the human angle and follows small groups of survivors and combatants to give a good feel of what is going on, and the human cost of what has happened. The ending Trojan horse comes in the form of an alien scout ship that crashed in Roswell New Mexico, and a talented computer geek who learns how to break into their systems and shut down their shields. Once that is down our weapons are plenty destructive and the tables turn.
This movie will appeal to most Science Fiction fans, and some Action Adventure fans. It may not be the best movie to watch with small children because of the destruction of cities, and one creepy alien scene, but families with older children should enjoy the show.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream for rental or purchase.
What I didn't like about this movie was the depiction of computer technology, programming, and the reliance of the aliens on our own communication satellites for a synchronization signal. To me this is a flaw in the plot that almost breaks suspension of disbelief. First off nobody who has shields is going to use our satellites to bounce an important signal. They will drop off their own and have secure communications. This doesn't mean we can't intercept it and do some hacking, but using our own hardware makes it too easy. Second what kind of rinky dink invasion force lets a scout ship that's been MIA for 50 years with life signs aboard dock without communicating to the people inside? I mean that's some impressive hacking, programming, and translation that had to go into that. The time frame there is just implausible. In this movie the aliens are woefully stupid when it comes to information security. I suppose that this is plausible if their culture never came up with hackers. If this is the case then many of the issues with the plot disappear. These elements aside the movie was really good and they had to fit all the action in a movie somehow.
The plot of this movie is really simple. The aliens attack and destroy most of our major cities and military bases. We then regroup and counterattack using a trojan horse to disable their main advantages which lets us win. It has been done lots of times mostly badly. Independence day does it right however. It uses the human angle and follows small groups of survivors and combatants to give a good feel of what is going on, and the human cost of what has happened. The ending Trojan horse comes in the form of an alien scout ship that crashed in Roswell New Mexico, and a talented computer geek who learns how to break into their systems and shut down their shields. Once that is down our weapons are plenty destructive and the tables turn.
This movie will appeal to most Science Fiction fans, and some Action Adventure fans. It may not be the best movie to watch with small children because of the destruction of cities, and one creepy alien scene, but families with older children should enjoy the show.
This movie can be found at www.amazon.com on disk or as a stream for rental or purchase.
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