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.
-- Scott Edelman, Editor-in-Chief
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Boulle's Book Must Not Be Forgotten
ierre who? Tim Burton, Charlton Heston, Stan Winston, Mark Wahlberg and company seem to have forgotten that the "literature of ideas" begins in the mind and heart of an individual reinventing the universe. First and foremost, science fiction is words. Without them, all the beautiful stars and innovative directors and special effects and CGI programs and snazzy costumes and dazzling props and pushy posters and advertising glitz in the galaxy become a collection of Christmas ornaments in want of a tree.
That a writer of one of the most imaginative works of the last century could be forgotten and ignored as yet another interpretation of his breakthrough masterpiece is being viewed by millions is a travesty and an outrage that cuts to the very fountainhead of science fiction. But that's what happened this weekend. The French know better. The same country that gave birth to Jules Verne and worships Jerry Lewis also produced a writer whose POW ordeal in World War II brought forth Bridge Over the River Kwai in 1952. (Condemned as heresy by many POW survivors, in the novel the bridge is left standing as a symbol of the futility of war, but in the interest of a slam-bang climax, Hollywood blew it up.)
Further inspired by the repression of white Allied prisoners by their brutal Japanese captors, in 1963 the author turned a distant world in the far future upside down. Pierre Boulle's Monkey World "combined a captivating story with a pessimistic view of human endeavors and absurdities."
The rest is history.
Except, of course, Pierre Boulle himself. Talk about "getting off at the wrong stop." It's as if Planet of the Apes had been written by Jerry Lewis!
Kevin Ahearn
KEVTOMA@aol.com
New Planet Delivers Better Apes
K, go see Planet of the Apes. Aside from a couple of science inconsistencies (which I'm sure a few will nitpick to death), it was terrific. The story is told completely differently from the original 1967 version, but it's just as entertaining, witty, funny and worth seeing on the big screen. You'll love the clichés, the one-liner takeoffs from the original movies, and most of all, you'll love the simians themselves. The special effects and makeup are better than the original. And, yes, Charlton Heston is in the movie. You can't mistake his voice. Go see it, it's fun.
Joe Castleberry
castleberry.joe@ssd.loral.com
Entertainment Must Still Make Sense
've been noticing a disturbing trend in the Letters forum. It seems that when anyone offers a critique of a science fiction move or film, it is an inevitability that the next week's Letters will have a post from someone (or some several) complaining that it's only entertainment and that the only thing that matters is that it entertains.
I'm sorry folks, but if only being "entertained" is your only criteria for enjoyment, you may as well just go ahead and shoot some heroin. Good entertainment does not merely stimulate our pleasure centers, it stimulates our minds, our emotions and (for desperate lack of a better word) our souls. It does more than merely fulfill a two, or so, hour slot in our day.
By critiquing a movie, or a book, or any other artistic venture, one demonstrates more than a merely passive involvement in the work. Indeed, it is only by the process of critique that those who make movies to aspire to higher standards. After all, why ought they bother if they only need to pander to the lowest common denominator who only wants to waste some time looking at nifty effects and listening to easy-to-digest dialog?
Of course, it is important to stress that critique is not merely finding ways to bash the work of others. Good critique also points out those cases where a project exceeds our expectations or otherwise surprises us. Good critique encourages such things as movies to constantly strive to better and better. Good critique is a positive venture.
Most fundamentally, when we look at something with a critical eye, it is only then that we can truly appreciate what has been set before us. And when we find something that not only lives up to our critical scrutiny, but which also fulfills our expectations at all levels, it is then, and only then, that we can experience the highest joy to be had from the experience. That, my friends, is a pleasure for deeper and more worthwhile than merely being "entertained."
Andrew Lias
anrwlias@hotmail.com
Mists of Avalon Needed Balance
he Mists of Avalon was a joke. Never in a thousand years would you get me to believe that Arthur and Sir Lancelot were that weak. I admit it was great to see the story told from a woman's point of view but I would rather have seen the women on equal footing to men, versus being shown as the Earth-shakers and true power in the world. The fight scene at the end of the movie was one of the most disappointing scenes I ever had the displeasure of watching. Sir Lancelot is one of the greatest knights that ever walked the planet and you do not even get to see him fight and die at the end. If the movie was true to the book then I know some books I will never be reading.
Henry Lewiws Jeter
HLJeter@hotmail.com
Mists Portrays Camelot Truthfully
ersonally, I really enjoyed this slightly short miniseries [The Mists of Avalon]. I think my only complaint was that they could have stretched it a little bit to maybe six hours as opposed to four (not including commercials). But visually it was beautiful. I was glad it avoided corny, overdone special effects--too many stories have been ruined that way. In my mind, it was superbly cast and acted by all participating. Mists has always been my favorite portrayal of the Camelot story, seeing Arthur and Lancelot as well-meaning pawns in a larger story revolving around Camelot itself, and the women in the tale giving the full story--not just the good, heroic idealistic bits.
AJ
californiabrit@hotmail.com
Mists Made an Overdue Payback
o Edwin Astacio ("Avalon's Men Are Eunuchs and Wimps". Thank for describing so well how women have felt for decades at being relegated to the "screaming, crying, bowl of Jell-O, eye candy" in such films.
Irritating, isn't it?
Judy Erp
comanchewolf@yahoo.com
Ellison Editorial Isn't Accurate
adly, I must disagree on the topic of Harlan Ellison ("Why Harlan Ellison is Essential"). He is a talentless bore, just like David Gerrold. Legends in their own minds, but nowhere else. No wonder they clashed with Gene Roddenberry. He was a visionary; they were, and are, hacks.
As for The Mists of Avalon, better named Twists of Amazon, I have never seen a more odious piece of Feminazi, revisionist tripe. Upcoming projects like Planet of the Apes, Enterprise and The Lord of the Rings had better be good, or SF is in big trouble as a genre.
Mike Spurlock
jazzgreat@altavista.com
Klingons Should Be Consistent
was a little disappointed to learn that the producers of the forthcoming Enterprise series have decided to make the Klingons appear as the Star Trek: The Next Generation version rather than as they appeared in the original series. That is to say, they will have the now familiar forehead ridges and not the more human looking features. I understand that the look of the Klingons has now been established and, of course, they want to continue that look. However, there was a Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode, which was a tribute to the 30th anniversary, I believe, where Sisko and the others went back in time to save Kirk during his encounters with the Klingons and the Tribbles. I think
it was Bashir and O'Brien who asked Worf why the Klingons of Kirk's era looked so much different than in their own time. Worf's very amusing response was, "We don't like to talk about it."
That was a hilariously clever way to dodge the issue. Over time I speculated on a way to link the
two versions with a more detailed explanation. The best story I came up with was this: After hundreds of years of conquest, pillaging, and yes, raping--the Klingons were bad guys, remember--the purity of the Klingon gene pool was diluted by the many races they had conquered. Perhaps there was a coup on the Klingon homeworld, maybe the Emperor was overthrown and the Council was first formed. Then there was a cry to return to the purity of the Klingon species, back to the tougher, caveman roots. Through extensive genetic manipulation, all living Klingons, including Kor and Kane and the rest, were changed to the version we've seen in the Next Generation. This idea is still flawed because we saw Kahless in an episode of the original series, the one I call "the Abraham Lincoln episode." There, Kahless appeared in the human form, and in the Next Generation episode featuring the clone of
Kahless, he had the forehead ridges. I was hoping that the writers of Enterprise might have addressed the issue creatively, something more in depth than "We don't like to talk about it"!
Sigh ... Oh well, it's fun to speculate anyway, and it's no big deal. I am looking forward to the new series. I always greet the Star Trek franchise with an open mind, and I can always find something to like about it, even among the apparent flaws!
M. Kroll
aradyn@hotmail.com
Watch Enterprise Before You Rant
his is getting to be too much. I didn't even look at the contributor's name, I got mad long before that. Enterprise hasn't even had a chance to air and this person ("Enterprise Puts Trek On Last Leg") has slammed it as an "also-ran," expecting Orion slave girls and sex in every episode. My message to you is: Turn off your TV and leave Star Trek alone.
What I think you are forgetting is that Paramount, Braga and Berman are in this to entertain people and make skads and skads of money. Not necessarily in that order, either. Everyone expects the Star Trek franchise to break new ground and cater their personal whims. It is not going to happen!
With every incarnation of Star Trek, including the original series, the stories, the characters and creator (or creators, in the spin-offs) have been attacks. If any of you don't remember, the original series was attacked as being derivative and tacky, Shatner's acting was considered
wooden, etc., so on.
This has gone on with every succeeding show as well. Picard wasn't as good as Kirk, Sisko is a weak commander and shouldn't be in Starfleet and I don't even want to touch the way so-called "fans" have vilified Janeway.
If you don't like Star Trek, that's fine. I can't make you and I don't want to make you. My gripe is that you have to at least watch the show you are complaining about. Enterprise hasn't even aired yet! Please allow it to air once before you start slamming it! If you don't like it then, fine! Tell the world! I will.
Keith M. Kitchen
BoyoKlaatu@aol.com
Babylon 5 Inspires Devotion
'd like to say that I wholeheartedly agree with David Holness' comments in "Trek Writers Should Take B5 Lessons." Writers of other SF shows would do well to take lessons from J. Michael Straczynski and other Babylon 5 writers. Babylon 5 has it all, a great SF plot--it definitely has continuity--and an ongoing story arc with a beginning, middle and end. It has interesting characters whom you can't help but care about. It'll move you through a spectrum of emotions from laughter to tears. It's one of the best SF shows ever made for TV. Although I love Trek, it never moved me or inspired the kind of devotion I feel for B5.
Lisa Cypert
necro1@primenet.com
A.I.'s Cloning Problem Solved
irst to everyone talking about time travel: the rules, and the reality. Come on, everyone knows you can't travel back in time, the Langoliers would get you. They're a lot more vicious in reality.
Something I would like to point out about the aliens in A.I.: Artificial Intelligence is, they had the technology to clone a human. However, the clone could only last a day because they already existed, etc. Now I'm no geneticist, or a genius for that matter, but with the technology to isolate DNA and build yourself a human, how hard would it be to take DNA, say, from anywhere in North America, and then go to the other side of the world, to lessen the chances of creating a pre-existing human, and combine them. Therefore creating a human that never existed before. Now, one can argue that a human that never existed before would not genuinely represent the human race, and you would be right. However, since the aliens can download the memory of an entire human life. Just clone yourself genetic donor A, and genetic donor B, download their memories and put it in mind of the brand new human. What better way to learn how to be human than to have the memories of your parents?
Now, I can't blame the aliens for not thinking of this, after all, humans are superior!
Jim Mann
sol463@hotmail.com
A.I. is P.U.
.I. is P.U.! Another mistake by people who should know better. If anyone else had made this film, it would be savaged or ignored and forgotten as it deserves, but the tendency to tell the emperor his new duds look great prevails. It may be technically good movie-making, but it is not a good movie. Their screenplay ambled its way into a corner, fell and couldn't get up. It raises some interesting questions, but so do those surprises that stick to the bottom of your shoes.
Michael Orick
brokenarrows@prodigy.net
Fantasy
Plot Was Not Animated
aving just saw Final Fantasy, I have to say the animation was amazing. Too
bad the story was awful. Why did they make the aliens ghosts? How were their guns able to kill things that were already dead? What was it that was inside the captain at the beginning? What were these eight spirits they were collecting? They should have just stuck with aliens, because some parts were good. When they were sneaking around old New York or the scene where they were trying to escape from the city while it was being invaded. One other thing: the title Final Fantasy. It sounds more like a adult store video then a sci-fi movie. Too bad they didn't put half as much effort in the script as
they did the animation.
Rick Haney
erhlah@aol.com
D&D Borrowed from Dying Earth
erhaps the reviewer was not as versed in the history of RPG's as those who actually play them, but the Dying Earth style of magic memorization was the inspiration for the original Dungeons & Dragons style of magic. In a way, things have come full circle as the Dying Earth RPG is using the D20 system that has been refined for Dungeons & Dragons Third Edition, even to the extent of lifting many of the spells straight back from D&D.
Otherwise, I thought the review was pretty much spot on.
Frank Lazar
fmlazar@copytoneonline.com
JP III is Predictable But Fun
enjoyed Jurassic Park III for exactly what it was, a fun summer escape. But two things about the film bothered me. [WARNING: Spoilers follow.] The first was you knew exactly who was going to end up as DinoChow. It was almost as bad as the "red shirts" on the original Star Trek who always met doom in one form or another. As an inside joke, Paul Kirby's character should of been renamed "James Kirby," just so one of the other characters would of been able to utter that famous line "he's dead, Jim."
My second problem was, who in their right mind would hang-glide off the coast of an island full of meat eating reptiles? I have to withdraw that comment however, as I read in today's newspaper an Associated Press wire report that Australia is considering a law making it illegal to come within 100 meters of a dead whale. It seems tourists are going up to dead whales, either by boat or walking on the carcasses, and are petting great white sharks who are eating the dead animal. The Australian government is understandably upset that some people cannot tell the difference between a puppy and a meat-eating predator.
Yes, if there really was an island full of dinosaurs, the general public would be performing all sorts of silly stunts. Perhaps Jurassic Park IV should be entitled: Jurassic Park Meets Survivor!
Joseph O'Neil
joneil@multiboard.com
Farscape Delivers Surprises
think that Farscape is the best, most original and one of the top 3 best written sci-fi shows ever! The other two on this list would be (in no particular order) Dr. Who and Star Trek (with The X-Files as an honorable mention).
What I love about Farscape is that you never quite know what's going to happen. Nothing is ever written in stone. Instead of suffering from "the reset button syndrome," that Star Trek has been suffering from, it thrives on the revolutionary "load new program" button. It's constantly re-inventing itself (better than Madonna has ever done). It pushes the envelope. It stretches the limits of sci-fi to its very core and I love it!
Sure, it uses the "lost in space" theme as its main motivation, but it uses it the way it should have always been used since the real Lost In Space and Star Trek: Voyager were on TV. A shipload of people desperately trying to get home at any cost, even if it means doing something immoral every now and again. And it handles it with realism. Do you think that if the U.S.S. Voyager were real and really lost, it would've took them seven years to get home? Hell, no! It would've took two, three years tops. It would be nice to think that we would've tried to make "nice, nice" with the natives and cooperated with almost the entire quadrant. But let's be real. If Earth people don't give
a frel about their own planet in the 21st century, then chances are low we would care about other planets and peoples a mere three centuries later, especially if it was after WWIII.
But even so, I still look forward to Enterprise's premiere. However, I find myself looking more and more forward to Farscape, every week that it's on. I can't wait to see what happens next! I haven't been this excited about a show since Star Trek: The Next Generation.
So, even though I will be a Trekkie for life, I now will also be a Scaper. Yes, you saw it here first, folks. A new word for our lexicon. Scaper: A person who is a fan of the TV show Farscape. (Whispers: "Pass it on!")
Adam Boudreaux
TrekAdamG@webtv.net
Lexx May Rival Original Trek
exx has been a priceless breath of fresh air in the too-often tepid world of sci-fi entertainment. I have always believed that any sci-fi screenwriter should be required to watch every original Star Trek episode before their first job. The special effects were lousy, but who cared? Instead, it presented us with such richly drawn characters and relationships that they have become national treasures. Lexx seemed well on the way to such an accomplishment. However, the way 790 is behaving in the new season is worrisome. In the past he has been both charming and obnoxious. Now he is vicious and nasty. Lexx writers should take a lesson from Star Trek ... don't ruin 790. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Carolyn Blake
tardis@austin.rr.com
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