23 years of this site still chugging along...
British Invaders podcast – “Quatermass, Part 1”
by Doc on Oct.03, 2007, under Audio
I thought I’ve mentioned this podcast before, but apparently it was only in the comments in this thread. British Invaders is a podcast that discusses some of the classic British Science Fiction series, including Doctor Who and Star Cops. The latest episode discusses Quatermass, the 1950s series that had a few revivals, including the 2005 remake mentioned in the last article…
Illusion on-demand network goes live
by Doc on Oct.03, 2007, under General News
The new on-demand science fiction network Illusion (first mentioned here) officially lit up today, carried at least on Verizon FiOS and possibly several other networks. Check out their official site for programming, and you can watch some of it online as well. I can see some classics like the original Doctor Who (starting in January 2008) and Day of the Triffids are there, along with newer fare like Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere. Looks interesting, but I don’t have Verizon FiOS quite yet (invested in several hacked DirecTV TiVo units so I can watch programs on whatever TV I need to, and don’t have an HD TV yet to justify the change).
David Hewlett’s A Dog’s Breakfast on DVD
by Doc on Oct.02, 2007, under General News
I hadn’t heard of this before, but now I have to get a copy. David Hewlett, best known as Dr. Rodney McKay on Stargate Atlantis, wrote and directed A Dog’s Breakfast, and included a number of his co-stars in it. It’s a comedy about the obsessive Patrick (Hewlett), who goes killer crazy when his sister (real life sister Kate Hewlett, who appeared in Atlantis as – shocking – his sister) introduces her fiance (Paul McGillion, Dr. Beckett on Atlantis), who is the star of a real cheesy SF show called The Starcrossed. It also features Rachel Lutrell (Stargate Atlantis) and Christopher Judge (Stargate SG-1).
Complete Next Generation DVD set tomorrow
by Doc on Oct.01, 2007, under General News
For the Star Trek geek with (a LOT of) disposable income and haven’t bought any of the previous iterations of DVDs yet, Paramount releases the 49-disc Star Trek: The Next Generation – The Complete Series DVD set. All seven seasons in one box. Prefer the older, larger packaging? You can still get all 7 season sets in one package (currently $5 more), and check out the Sci-Fi TV Store if you just need to fill in some seasons…
Eureka gets third season
by Doc on Sep.28, 2007, under Television
The SCI FI Channel has announced another 13 episode season of the original series Eureka. The show, about a hidden town with the smartest people on Earth running their experiments which always seem to go wrong, has an enjoyable comedic bent to it, but for some reason SFC limits it to 13-episode runs.
Knight Rider returning – again…
by Doc on Sep.27, 2007, under Television
NBC Universal, whose initials perhaps should mean “Nothing But Clones”, announced the next re-imagining of an old series – Knight Rider. After the success of Transformers (for which they’ve already announced a preliminary release date of June 26th, 2009 for the sequel), NBC wants Doug Liman (The O.C.) to come up with a new version of the 1980s David Hasselhoff vehicle (literally). No word on actors at this point, but they are planning a two-hour backdoor pilot, and wish to explore the “evil car” aspect more. Makes me think that the cars may have some other-worldly origin, instead of just technology.
Batman crewman killed
by Doc on Sep.25, 2007, under General News
A special effects technician working on the upcoming Batman Begins sequel, The Dark Night, was killed in London when the camera platform truck he was driving during a practice run struck a tree.
Premiere Week is here
by Doc on Sep.25, 2007, under Television
It’s the start of the 2007-2008 season, and we’re loaded for bear. We even get started with NBC tonight with Chuck (probably not really SF, but we’ll see), the sophmore Heroes, and Journeyman; Nothing new on Tuesday (second to last episode of the season for Eureka, with special guest Michael Shanks); Wednesday brings us Bionic Woman; we get Thursday off, and then Friday brings us the next season of Stargate Atlantis, with the return of Colonel Carter to the franchise, along with a new episode of Flash Gordon. Speaking of Flash, I’d like to hear some opinions. I think its decent, but I can see they are keeping mostly Earthbound, which keeps budgets low – which may limit the storytelling for a bit. And where are the spaceships…
Lucas talks some more on the Star Wars TV series
by Doc on Sep.20, 2007, under Television
In the second part of an interview for TV Guide, George Lucas talks about the two upcoming Star Wars TV series. For both Clone Wars and the unnamed live-action series, he hopes to write and film 100 episodes of each – whether the series have been sold to an outlet or not.
New web site, debut for The Sarah Jane Adventures
by Doc on Sep.19, 2007, under Television
The new web site for the next Doctor Who spinoff, The Sarah Jane Adventures, is now online. The new show, aimed as a children’s show and featuring Elizabeth Sladen as former companion Sarah Jane Smith, debuts on Monday, September 24th, on BBC One. No word on whether BBC America or another network may pick up the show in the U.S. Torchwood is now airing on BBC America, as is the 2nd series of Doctor Who while the SCI FI Channel has the 3rd series, and I only just learned that a local PBS station (WENH in New Hampshire, always friendly to Who fans) just completed airing the 1st series.