The Letters to the Editor department is intended to be a forum for our readers to express their own opinions and ideas. While we appreciate the many complimentary letters we receive each day, you won't find them on this page. Instead, you will find letters that go beyond or even contradict what we have written, letters that offer a different perspective and provide a different view of science fiction. If you would like to submit a letter, please use our feedback form or send a message to scifiweekly@scifi.com.
-- Craig E. Engler, Editor
Beware Of Brainwashing Pocket Watches
love science fiction--movies, books, television, etc.--but I'm also continually amazed by what is becoming science fact. It seems like every week something is popping up from the world of science that just the week before was the subject of some SF yarn.
Just the other day on a news page on the Web I read something that gave me the willies. An AP medical reporter from Washington reported that medical researchers have been conducting studies on humans using a small device the size of a pocket watch that's implanted in the chest and has wires that snake up to base of your brain that zap a nerve at a preprogrammed interval. Originally developed to prevent epileptic seizures, they've discovered that this zapping can actually treat depression. Other uses for this device that are being explored are improving memory and curbing appetite. And get this, the company who manufactures this is called Cyberonics Inc. Let's just hope this technology doesn't fall into the hands of some evil overlord bent on world domination or we could all end up as brainwashed slaves or soldiers doing his bidding.
I guess I'm writing this letter to encourage all my fellow SF enthusiasts to keep an eye on these "non-fictional" scientific advances. Or someday you may wake up wondering why Star Trek: Voyager is your favorite program when just last week you wrote Science Fiction Weekly a one-thousand word essay stating how much you hated it. But it'll be too late.
Andy Brown
Galactor@hotmail.com
Galactica Fans Demand Original Cast
len A. Larson is now talking about an Imax Battlestar Galactica film? Although it sounds like an interesting idea, he just doesn't get it. The fans don't want anything that doesn't include the original cast and themes. Richard Hatch realizes that. That's why he's the one the vast majority of fans are supporting.
Paula Kennedy
galacticafan@hotmail.com
Your Review Misplaced The Bronze Age
would like to write a quick correction of the review by Patrick Lee of Evolution's Child.
In his review, he repeatedly referred to the "discovered frozen seed" as that of a Bronze Age man. He then illustrates all the fanciful "possibilities" of inter-breeding with a pre-historic man. The Bronze Age was the time of Homer, Xenophon, Thucydides, et al. Not only a period of history, but one of exceptional human achievement. But I'll forgive this as a simple mistake of phrasing. Maybe the show's producers were the first to coin this term because it sounded cool. But please, to your reviewers in future, look up what some of these terms mean. It'll enhance your credibility with what I assume is a fairly well educated audience.
David Herschel
skyngangor@aol.com
Opinions Are Fine, But Stay Open-Minded
think that SF shows are being over criticized. I'm all for opinions, but
just as long as you draw the line. Remember
(those who have bad opinions) that there are people out there who like the
shows. Don't push your ideals on them.
Also, to those people who don't approve of a writer's plans for a show,
simply stop watching and find something more appealing. My favorite show is Farscape. I've read good and bad reviews of it, but as far as I'm
concerned, I am delighted with the characters and actors, as are many fans.
SF is here to entertain us; the shows are manifestations of our
subconscious, of our will to explore other states of reality than the one
that we
are faced with. If you truly feel you can do better, write your own
stories,
even if it's just for yourself. I'm not saying that writing your feelings
down for others to know is bad, I just want people to be more open-minded. After all isn't that what SF is all about?
Rhia Lindsey
Rrreima@aol.com
This Island Earth Reflects '50s Politics
ark Wilson wrote a very good review of a classic, This Island Earth. I especially like the fact
that he sees Exeter as the true "hero" of the film and
the ethical dilemmas he faces. The fact that when he
is introduced you are not sure if Exeter is a villain or
hero adds to the complexity of what was supposed to be
a simple science fiction film. I wish, however, Wilson would
comment on the idea that the SF films of the '50s
especially reflect the politics of the era in which
they are made. I think in This Island Earth the leader of Metaluna represents Stalin. This was
the beginnings of the Cold War and the treachery of our
former ally whose ultimate goal had been always to
invade the United States. The aliens who are attacking
Metaluna are the Nazis. This is not as farfetched as
it sounds. Notice too the absence of other races in
this film, and note the Earth racial groups which are
depicted in The Day the Earth Stood Still which
reflects the hope of the new United Nations.
Alice Reviere Smith
a.smith@popmail.csuohio.edu
Battlefield Earth Is Progressing Well
noticed that one of your readers was asking about
Battlefield Earth and
I
wanted to give you some of the latest information
regarding it. Author
Services Inc. is a Hollywood-based agency that
represents all of the
literary, theatrical and musical works of L. Ron
Hubbard, who wrote
Battlefield Earth. We licensed half of the novel rights
to be used in the
creation of the film to Franchise Pictures.
The film is scheduled for release May 5, 2000. This is
the official date
that Warner Bros Studios is planning to release
Battlefield Earth. This
is
the same date that both The Mummy and Deep Impact
were released in
earlier years.
The Battlefield Earth novel has sold over five million
copies and has been
translated into 20 different languages, including:
Estonian, Bulgarian,
Chinese, Danish, French, Spanish, Italian, German,
Brazilian-Portugese,
Japanese and others.
If you haven't read the book, it would be good to do so
before the film
comes out. The filmmakers have tried to keep the film
as close to the
book
as possible, but only the fans will be able to decide
what "close" means.
Javier O. Ruiz
Senior Vice President
Author Services Inc.
Janeway Keeps Everyone Sane
was glad to see a letter in defense of Star Trek: Voyager and
Captain Janeway in the last issue, just so I could
believe I wasn't crazy after all, because I like
Voyager and Captain Janeway. A few years ago, Voyager
disappeared from St. Louis, and I lost track of it,
except to hear from fans in other cities that Voyager
wasn't nearly as good as Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Then, after DS9's final
episode, Voyager reappeared in St. Louis. The long
hiatus enabled me to watch Voyager from a fresh
perspective, and to appreciate how the show has
changed.
Voyager's crew and captain are under incredible stress.
The other Star Trek shows recapitulate our own naval
and political history, but Voyager's crew is subject to
a type of stress that is unheard-of in history:
snatched away from their home territory without
warning, and faced with a 70-year trek to return home.
This is science fiction at its best: a ship's crew
thrown into a situation which no human beings have
ever faced before. Even in the Age of Sail, a crew
circumnavigating the globe could expect to return home
in five or ten years, and they were all volunteers.
In a sense this is a ship of the living dead, a Flying
Dutchman; they are as dead to their friends back home.
It is literally Voyager against an entire galactic
quadrant, with no back-up, no support, no dry-dock, no
R&R. Why don't they self-destruct or go native? That
is where the tension comes in. That is where Captain
Janeway comes in. She is what is holding Voyager's crew
together, and they know it. She is clinging to sanity
by her fingernails, and the crew puts up with her
overbearing personality, even coddles her, because they
know that without her they don't stand a chance.
Who says a starship captain has to be likeable? I say
the story has to be believable, and a happy ship with a
likeable captain just wouldn't be believable in this
situation.
Steve Block
ironhand@stlnet.com
Male Or Female, Janeway Behaves Badly
n his Issue No. 131 letter "People Can't Accept A Female
Captain," Leonard Hume suggested that the real problem
people have with Captain Janeway is that she is a
woman. Speaking for myself, nothing could be further
from the truth. My problem is with the character's
behavior and with the actress who plays her. When the
male captains of the Star Trek universe behave in
similar manners I get annoyed with them as well. Kirk
was often wrong in the original series. For a while I
thought Sisko and Janeway were in competition for
Galaxy's Worst Captain. Sisko for poisoning a habitable
planet for 50 years in order to pursue a personal
vendetta, and Janeway for giving aid and comfort to the
enemy (The Borg. If Starfleet ever finds out, she could
be shot for treason.)
It doesn't matter what a character's gender is if she
is written inconsistently. And as for Kate Mulgrew, she
can't act and has an annoying voice. I can think of
several actresses I'd have rather seen in the role.
Beebe Newerth springs to mind.
And now a word about Naomi Wildman. Come on folks,
let's not kid ourselves. Sure she's half-alien, but
that's not why she grew up so fast. The writers wanted
a character and couldn't wait for her to grow up
naturally. It happens all the time on soap operas and it
always stretches credibility to the limit. That being
said, I love her. Scarlett Pomers is charming and
adorable. I say put Naomi, Seven, and the Doctor in a
shuttle and blow up the rest of the ship.
Dominic Lopez
dominic_lopez@yahoo.com
Voyager's Crew Strives To Remain Civilized
n response to Todd Caldwell's Issue No. 130 letter
"Voyager Lacks A Central Theme," I would have to disagree. I think
Star Trek: Voyager, more than any of the other series, displays
the basic human(oid) instinct to strive to overcome
unbearable obstacles while still maintaining the
foundations and philosophies they hold dear. That was
displayed in an episode last season, when Voyager met
up with another Starfleet vessel which had abandoned
the principles of the Federation.
Dan Ware
djpw1@yahoo.com
Voyager Writers Glorify Despotism
eonard Hume makes the flagrant claim
regarding criticism of Janeway that "most people cannot
and will not accept the female in the captain's chair" in his Issue No. 131 letter "People Can't Accept A Female Captain." I'd like to
know where he gets such deep insight into the mindset of her detractors.
Whatever problems I have with the character of Janeway
stem not from
her gender, but from her characterization as a little
tin god, blithely
self-assured and refusing to accept any input or
guidance from those who
share her plight. If she were a little wiser or more
benevolent,
perhaps her dictatorial ways would be acceptable,
considering the plight
of the ship. As it is however, we are watching a show
that merely
glorifies a despot.
I wouldn't care if Janeway were a man or even a spotted
mandrill; such a
moral vacuum at the core of the crew would put me off.
What makes it
unforgivable is that the writers have proven themselves
blind to this
fault.
James Ellis
ellisj@cadvision.com
Voyager's Travel Is The Show's Flaw
f you had never seen Star Trek: Deep Space Nine or
Star Trek: Voyager, and someone explained each show's
starting premise to you, Voyager would seem much more
intriguing.
DS9 would be explained something like this: "A series
that takes place on a rickety old ex-Cardassian space
station whose captain has to deal with the challenges
of commanding his crew and dealing with Bajorans who
see him as a sort of religious icon."
Voyager would be explained thusly: "Two crews...one
Federation, one Maquis...find themselves stranded on
the other side of the galaxy, where they attempt to
find a way home while exploring uncharted space."
DS9 and Voyager had about equally good premieres, but
here is where Voyager falters: After the debut of
Deep Space Nine, the groundwork had been laid for
relationships that would deepen and develop over the
next seven years. But after Voyager's premiere, what
are we left with? "Caretaker" tells an interesting
story, but it is a self-contained one. The Ocampa, the
Kazon, and all the stuff in the episode are barely
followed up on, because the ship is hurtling away from
them at warp speed.
This is the built-in flaw with the show's concept: an
episode may contain an intriguing planet or species,
but it will almost always be gone and forgotten by the
next episode. (Whatever happened to water being a
valuable, much-sought commodity?) DS9 has given us
Vorta, Ferengi, Cardassians, Bajorans, Changelings, and
Jem Hadar (and a bit of the Klingons and Romulans.)
Each of these species has had quite a few episodes
about them, and we know many of the little details of
their societies. Voyager has given us dozens of
one-shot, one-note species, only a few of whom (the
Videans, for example) are at all intriguing.
I would like to add one more to the list of starting
concepts that were eventually ignored: After the first season, there
was no tension whatsoever between the Federation and
Maquis crews. I would have liked to see slowly rising
tensions, similar to that between Starfleet and the
Dominion in DS9's middle years, only on a smaller
scale.
One of DS9's strong points was its supporting
characters: Dukat, Rom, Nog, Garak, The Female
Shapeshifter, Damar, Kai Winn, Brunt, Martok, the Grand
Nagus, Admiral Ross, Weyoun,
Gowron, and many others added a
lot to the show. Voyager only had two continuing [supporting]
characters that I can recall, both of whom are now
dead: Seska, the exposed Cardassian spy, and Lon Suder,
the Betazoid murderer. Suder was nothing like any
characters who had come before, and the unique problem
his situation presented (what to do with a criminal
when Starfleet prisons aren't within reach) was
fascinating.
Voyager hasn't really gone through many changes,
either. After its premiere, in addition to its
evolving storylines, DS9 introduced the Dominion, lost
Jadzia, gained Worf, Ezri, and the Defiant, brought in
Section 31, introduced new supporting characters, went
through a war from start to finish, and uncovered
Julian's genetic engineering. Besides Kes' departure
and the addition of Seven, Voyager has pretty much
remained static.
Paul Neet
pjneet1@aol.com
