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.
— Scott Edelman, Editor-in-Chief
Send us your letters!
Got a gripe about something going on in the science fiction world? Want to call attention to an overlooked genre gem? Do you disagree with one of our reviews? Would you like to tell the editor of Science Fiction Weekly what a great job he does? Write a letter to the editor and send it in! You'll have the satisfaction of knowing that your letter will be read by thousands of SF fans. Doubtless, fame and fortune will follow (fame and fortune not guaranteed). If you would like to submit a letter, please use our feedback form or send a message to scifiweekly@scifi.com.
ne thing you can be sure of is that the debate about something being fantasy or science fiction will never end ("Sci-Fi and Fantasy Rules Rule", "Blame the Fan in the Mirror", "Lowest Common Denominator Wins Again", "Sci-Fi Fans Shouldn't Become Snobs", "Rings and Slayer Are Not SF" and "SFX's Fave List Lacks Character"). For instance, I created a community-access television show called Sci-Fi Visions. I covered topics which included horror, fantasy, science fiction and even some action adventure. Should I have called the show Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Horror, Action Adventure Visions? Sounds kinda stupid huh?
Sometimes, the nonreal genres get lumped together as sci-fi. Sometimes even stuff like the supernatural and fortune tellers and mystics get included in the sci-fi genre.
Whether it's Star Trek, Lord of the Rings or Halloween, it's all nonreal. What is nonreal? Maybe it's just somebody's fantasy. If that fantasy includes technology or sorcery, transwarp drive or ghosts, so what? It's still a fantasy. I would certainly enjoy seeing Lord of the Rings on the SCI FI Channel more than John Edward and The Dream Team. But then aren't they all someone's fantasy?
Joe Castleberry
castleberry.joe@ssd.loral.com
t 8:30 a.m. on Friday, my phone rang. It was Marvel Comics conducting a poll. According to the caller, Marvel had gotten my name and number off a list. As I haven't subscribed to any magazines since the advent of the Internet, what list was this?
The question: Who would win in a fight, Batman or Daredevil?
When I mentioned that the Caped Crusader had a fully loaded utility belt and the Man Without Fear did not, the pollster reminded me that "Daredevil has sticks."
Stick this. What in the world is "sci-fi entertainment" coming to? While DD may be an interesting movie, how good can it be if Marvel has stooped to bringing up Batman on Super Bowl weekend?
The Oakland Raiders all the way.
Kevin Ahearn
KEVTOMA@aol.com
att Frey certainly wrote quite a humorous take on The Lord of the Rings ("Hollywood Hacks Tampering With Tolkien"). The thought of Eddie Murphy as Gandalf is weird, to say the least.
But Dave also brought up an interesting point about the differences between
sci-fi and fantasy ("Sci-Fi and Fantasy Rules Rule"). Most sci-fi/fantasy films or shows can generally be slotted into one or the other. But sometimes they can be so balanced between the two that it is hard to tell. Star Wars in particular. Star Wars has lots of sci-fi elements such as the ships, the Death Star, aliens and lasers. But it also has fantasy elements such as the force grip, levitation and lightning hands. So what is Star Wars? I'm still not sure. All I know is that it is classic saga.
Back to the Lord of the Rings. The story is essentially fantasy. But it could
easily become sci-fi, given the right descriptions behind Middle-earth. As such we would assume that Middle-earth is, in fact, Earth thousands of years ago in an era now lost to us. But it could also be thousands of years in the future. Here is a brief LOTR alternative with an altered history that would make LOTR a completely different story.
Middle-earth is Earth 10,000 years in the future. The Hobbits, Elves, Dwarves and Orcs are genetically modified humans. As are the weird animals and plants in Middle-earth. Sauron is a transcendent lifeform, or highly advanced AI that was created by us originally as a defense computer. The Ring is made of extremely tough nanobots that alter the brain signals of anyone wearing it. [See Wil McCarthy's column, "The One Humvee", for further exploration of the science of The One Ring.]. Then there is the humans. They are us, trying to come to terms with the forces that we ourselves have unleashed.
My analysis proves that sci-fi and fantasy, while different, are closely related and can even merge.
Darren Simpson
darrensimpson10@hotmail.com
received an e-mail that stated the SCI FI Channel is thinking about continuing the television show Battlestar Galactica. This would be a very welcome rebirth! I have been and always will be a huge fan of BG. I have every episode recorded on VHS, and would love to see more!
I know I am not alone in this. BG has a huge following of fans that remember the old series ("New Galactica Isn't Family Fare"). I am certain that with modern technology younger generations will join the current fans. This could be bigger than Trek and Star Wars combined!
Joan Kearney
JOANI72JK@aol.com
have heard the rumors through the Internet that Screen Gems Studio is working on a sequel to Starship Troopers. As I am a true sci-fi fan and love the 1997 movie very much, I was overjoyed. But then I heard from other fans that no actors from the original cast would get a role. How can there be a Starship Troopers sequel without any of the characters we love? Especially, how can Screen Gems think about doing the movie without Casper van Dien as Johnny Rico?
Starship Troopers was a smash box-office hit not only because of the controversial story and the wonderful, overwhelming special effects. It affected us so much because we could relate to the characters, especially to Johnny's struggles to cope with the situation he was thrown into, the way he dealt with his losses and how he matured from a naive boy to a mature man who showed real leadership qualities. None of us SST fans can imagine a sequel without Casper van Dien! I think that many science-fiction lovers throughout the world would love to see a sequel to SST, but with the original cast.
Warm regards from Germany,
Sabine Diebenbusch
RoSaDi@t-online.de
his letter is in response to Nathan Brazil's "Enterprise Bound by Formula". There is no question about it, Star Trek as a franchise is formulaic and increasingly uninteresting. But there is also no question that this is what the majority of their target audience, younger and casual science-fiction viewers, enjoy: Standalone episodes that are neatly resolved by the end of the hour, moral issues that do not require genuine sacrifice, plots that are not intricate but have an intellectually tantalizing idea, an overarching story that is easy to follow, stagnant characters that undergo minor changes, a crew who get along quite well and are even friends, aliens who are seemingly irrational but really just culturally misunderstood and a vision of the future filled with hope and promise.
This formula seems to work quite well. The more creative science-fiction shows that broke this formula either failed or had to struggle every season: Babylon 5, Lexx, the original Star Trek and Farscape. In my opinion, these were the best science-fiction shows. Why? They took risks, were exceptionally creative, had complex and inspired storylines that reciprocally interacted with the characters' development, were rooted in something beyond themselves (like mythology or the current events of the day) and substantively engaged philosophical ideas. Remember that the formula worked with the quintessentially formulaic and absolutely dreadful Voyager, and that lasted seven years! I should also mention that just because a show breaks the formula does not make it interesting or inspired, just look at Earth: Final Conflict.
The writers and producers of Enterprise know that the franchise is not doing well. Yet they do nothing about it. But why should they? It's doing well enough so that it's still on the air. They don't care if hardcore science-fiction fans (like most of the people who read this site) are turned off. We are just a small minority and we'll probably tune in anyway. They are concerned with the casual viewer, the type of person who likes Star Trek and has a passing interest in science fiction. They want to make sure they don't alienate that type of viewer. They know the consequence of being creative or breaking the formula—unemployment. So they stick to the formula, keep their jobs and the show continues, albeit with a smaller but stable audience.
Almost everyone's happy.
Peter Boghossian
pete@boghossian.com
onths ago, I heard Patrick Stewart say that with Star Trek Nemesis complete, it was now up to the fans as to whether there would
be another film in the series.
Well, I finally got around to seeing it, and I'd like to tell Mr. Stewart, "No, it is not the fan's responsibility to carry that burden and help Paramount add to their pile of an estimated $1 billion they have already made off the franchise. The responsibility lies with the studio, writer, director, etc., to make a good movie that will appeal to the audience."
Through this whole film, I kept thinking "Star Ho-Hum Trek."
What saddens me is that the Star Trek universe is very rich, but each movie, the same. Earth, the one planet which if destroyed will bring down the Federation. Sheesh, I hope Starfleet has back-up command centers on Vulcan, and other worlds if Earth is that damn important. I'm surprised that the
other members of the Federation don't turn on the Earth themselves. If they got rid of it, maybe alien races would leave the Federation alone.
I would like to see a story that includes some exploring and a sense of wonder. Think big! Please get a writer who has read some science fiction!
I can't end this letter without mentioning my one pet peeve. Before every Star Trek movie comes out someone from the studio states that there is a fantastic "you won't believe it" space battle scene in this one. If they ever create a "director's cut" of this film they might think of bringing the off-stage fleet into the scene. Having those seven ships getting destroyed by the Predator would make it a little more "fantastic."
One ship destroying a fleet would add some urgency to the story, plus it would be a proper explanation of how it was weakened enough to allow it to be destroyed by the Enterprise.
Just my little nitpick.
Louis Sivo
scifi_reader@yahoo.com
ike all the other Star Trek: The Next Generation movies, I thought Nemesis felt more like a good episode rather than a good film. By comparison, the original cast's film had a much more epic feel. I think this is partly due to the choice of villain. The epic feel of the earlier Treks are there because the epic is continuing. The villains familiar to the series help to continue the story just as much as our heroes do.
The success of The Next Generation series was partly due to the (ahem) "soap opera" style-story telling that brought back the same villains again and again to continue foiling our heroes' good intentions. These over-arcing storylines along with the "monster-of-the-week" episodes let The Next Generation enjoy a long life on the tube. However, the TNG films insist on introducing a new nemesis with every film. Kirk and the gang were (for the most part) pitted against those damned ol' Klingons in just about every film they made. The result felt like a true sequel, embracing the beloved Star Trek universe.
No, I haven't forgotten The Borg were in First Contact or that the humpback
whale-friendly aliens were never in a Star Trek episode. But for the most part, my theory holds true: These new villains lack history and, therefore, fail to hold much interest in the continuing Star Trek saga.
Andrew Brown
andy@auditionsinteractive.com
s a long time SCI FI Channel fan, I watched last Friday's episode of Farscape (as I faithfully do every Friday), "Terra Firma." Without a doubt, this episode epitomized the unequivocal quality and brilliance of the Farscape series. I have never before written to any network or cable channel to express my convictions, but my appreciation for the genius of this show compel me to submit my opinion.
"Terra Firma" proved once again that Farscape is the most intelligently written science-fiction program on the air today. Its visual splendor, irreverent humor and masterful acting combine to make it the most creative series on TV irrespective of genre.
As a 38-year-old professional educator with a master's degree, I applaud the SCI FI Channel's daring to give life to such an innovative program. That is why I implore [them] to reconsider [their] position to discontinue the series. Truly, the loss of a program of this quality will be shared by a tremendous number of passionate and steadfast fans. Sadly, I'm inclined to believe that for every letter [the SCI FI Channel has] received from a disappointed viewer, there are two who will have never taken the time to relay their sentiments. I do not have a Nielsen box nor have I ever known anyone who has. But I can assure you, the number of devoted and loyal Farscape fans are astounding. The Internet can attest to this!
Thank you for the airing of Farscape over the past four seasons. I hope [the SCI FI Channel] can be convinced of the value of Farscape and the massive fan base it commands. Thank you for your time.
Jim Poulin
jimpoulin@netsupport
nother wonderful Friday night thanks to a new episode of Farscape. "Twice Shy" brought back the best parts of an episode from season two—"Crackers Don't Matter." I loved seeing John smile and be so full of hope, if only
fleetingly.
I find that Farscape is one of the very few quality shows on television today. It is also one of the few shows to concentrate on character development. That draws me to your channel every Friday night for one hour. As I don't watch much television, and only one show on your network, I'm new for your advertisers.
I noted that last night's episode was sponsored by Honda, with advertisements from Burger King, Applebee's and Dell. I make sure they know I watch and I spend my disposable income with them.
Great television is a rarity. Please continue to bring new episodes of Farscape to SFC, including a fifth season. Farscape is great television!
Karen Copp
kcopp@pressenter.com
Back to the top.
