Site of the Week -- April 24, 2000
The Official X-Files Web Site is one of the few professional sites whose style and substance approach the depth of the series it seeks to promote.
Undoubtedly aware of the fan sites against which it competes, the good-looking site is saturated with information. Its major sections mirror those of fan sites: episode guide, discussion boards, actor and character bios, fan club and news. But where the X-Files site succeeds--and where other pro sites usually fail--is in the extras. The site's designers have access to information fans can only dream of, and they use it wisely.
In the Vault, fans can find interviews with Gillian Anderson from the set of "all things," conversations with the Lone Gunmen about "First Person Shooter" and other audio-video nuggets. The individual episode write-ups are bland--there's none of the passion found on amateur sites--but again, it's the extras that will attract fans. Almost all of the write-ups include stills and video clips, and many of the later-season ones include goodies like research links and staff/actor Q&As.
-- Kenneth Newquist
Site of the Week -- April 17, 2000
here are a lot of comic books to read out there, and
Psycomic, "The Final Word on comics," wants to
help comics lovers take it all in.
Psycomic seeks not only to satisfy diehard
fans--whose input it more than welcomes--but also to be
useful to anyone looking for an introduction to the
world of comic books. Yet, while the site's
ambitions are both exciting and
impressive--with news, reviews,
columns, forums, fan art, interviews and a
retailer database--they are still somewhat unrealized
and poorly organized.
The information, a great deal of
which is very good and substantive, is scattered across
many and various pages. A number of the site's main features (like
its database of comic book titles) are still under construction. And while
Psycomic does have a decent amount of comics-related
graphics and pictures, its overall aesthetic design is
nothing to write home about.
It'll be interesting to see what Psycomic becomes once it's
finished getting itself together; it certainly has
the potential to be very cool.
-- Matthew McGowan
Site of the Week -- April 10, 2000
tarship Modeler is a pleasantly designed and content-rich site devoted to science fiction and space kit building. The site features an illustrated newswire that covers in depth the flow of new kits from the world over, kept current with twice-weekly updates.
Even more impressive is the richly detailed catalog of model kits, complete with descriptions, photographs and reviews. It's broken out by franchise and context, making it easy to find that Babylon 5 Omega-class destroyer (it's under "Babylon 5, Earth Alliance"). Alongside the catalog is a gallery showing completed versions of many of the kits, plus a reference section showing the "originals" of the modeled ships. The site also provides a helpful section on how to buy SF kits, including listings of hobby shops and model manufacturers. There's even a trading post to help those scrounging (or selling) hard-to-find items.
Starship Modeler is a superb resource for those who enjoy building the future with their own hands.
-- Mark Wilson
