Site of the Week -- Oct. 4, 1999
lthough often lost under thunderous sound effects and earsplitting
explosions, rousing musical scores generally accompany Godzilla and his
cohorts every time they trash Tokyo. Information on these compositions is
notoriously difficult to find, but, for folks seeking details about the
symphonic sounds that go along with the mayhem, the best resource around is
undoubtedly the Godzilla And Other Monster Music Web site.
The main page covers each of the 22 Japanese Godzilla soundtracks
(nearly all of which are unavailable in the United States), supplying brief
reviews and English translations of the individual song titles. Another
section is devoted to various Godzilla-related compilations and
spin-offs, with popular box-office competitors like Mothra and
Gamera showcased on their own separate pages. A couple of ultra-rare
box sets are also examined, along with scores from a few generic Japanese SF
films and some non-genre recordings from famed Godzilla composer Akira
Ifukube.
The site is enthusiastically maintained by Larry Tuczynski, who regularly
updates the information, sometimes even posting images of new CDs before he
can fully review or translate them. It's an ongoing project, but one done
with obvious love and affection, making Godzilla And Other Monster
Music an informative and entertaining resource for both G-fans
and film score aficionados.
-- Jeff Berkwits
Site of the Week -- Sept. 27, 1999
ake 1980s pop culture, mix in cyberpunk, nuke it for 20 minutes, and you'll
get M-m-max Headroom, vanguard of the New Coke generation and
short-lived television star.
The fan Web site Max Headroom chronicles Max in all his glory,
from his early days on Cinemax to his final hours on ABC. The site is full of
Maxims, from his trademark voice--which sounds like streaming audio on a bad
day--to dark, moody stills from Max's doomed television
series.
Max's stint as the spokesman for New Coke ("C-c-catch the wave!") is
documented in a brief but entertaining section. There are also write-ups for the
13 television episodes that aired on ABC as well as a few Max games, including
a version that diehard fans can run on a Commodore 64 emulator.
The site is missing a few Max tie-ins--notably Doonesbury creator Garry
Trudeau's Max-inspired Ronald Reagan strips and the Max-like animations from
Back to the Future II--but overall the site does an excellent job of
chronicling Max's history while showing how far ahead of his own time he
was.
-- Kenneth Newquist
Site of the Week -- Sept. 20, 1999
he Phantom Menace may be on its way out of theaters, but the Star
Wars shows still go on at the Mos Eisley Multiplex.
The site features links to more than 40 digital short films and skits by Star
Wars fans. Each link includes a brief about the production, and a few have links
to longer behind-the-scenes articles that explain how and why the films were
made.
The multiplex links to some of the most famous underground skits, such as
Troops and SimWars (the Star Wars/Titanic parody), but it has
plenty of not-so-famous shorts as well. Those who never got over Jar Jar
Binks can revel in Killing Jar Jar, a film that shows just how much
abuse one of those plastic Jar Jar heads can take. Those looking for
something more highbrow can take in a Jedi-ified version of Macbeth.
There's a higher-than-average dead link count on the site, but since most of
the download sites have multiple mirrors, this is only a minor
inconvenience.
-- Kenneth Newquist
