Site of the Week—October 25, 2004
television fan site whose creators are based in Finland, Drakh.net is devoted to the top SF shows from the past decade, from beloved-but-defunct '90s classics like The X-Files to brand-new viewing like Jeremiah.
This site tracks news items about its chosen TV programs, as well as offering mini-profiles of the shows themselves. Some of these profiles hover on the edge of being sketchy, while others have complete cast and episode guides (the site owners are actively looking for more fan writers
to help them catch up). All the profiles list the last episode aired, fan picks for top five episodes and random quotes from the show (these are sometimes hilariously out of context).
Drakh's sensibility is quiet and restrained. Its layout is cool and easy on the eye, and its episode recaps are serious, never sarcastic. The discussion forums have a moderate level of traffic—cheerful chatter about books and music as well as the SF programs that bring this community together. Rather than directing visitors to the zanier side of SF fandom on the Web, the links page on Drakh is mostly devoted to official sites for shows, movies and traditional SF magazines like Asimov's and Analog.
Similarly, Drakh's list of TV shows covered is select: ten new shows, a handful of miniseries and perhaps two dozen canceled programs. There's nothing fringe, nothing slightly fantastic. Looking the list over, fans will see some shows in this TV graveyard that got to fully explore their premise over a stretch of seasons, and others whose runs were cut cruelly short, like Firefly and Birds of Prey. By following only the past 10 or so years of TV, Drakh reminds visitors that the break-out success of The X-Files and the advent of the SCI FI Channel in the U.S. triggered an explosion of top-rate SF TV ... one that may now be ending. With reality TV making inroads into narrative television's turf, televised SF may be headed for something of a decline.
But if it is true that a smaller number of good shows are premiering in the SF genre today—and even if an ever-smaller proportion of these fledgling programs survives the cutthroat sensibilities of their parent networks—fans can be sure Drakh will be there, finding the best SF on the air and, with affection and patience, covering it in detail for fans around the world to discuss and enjoy.
— A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—October 18, 2004
poofpark's SF-themed cartoons are classics of the Web, a grab bag of Southpark-esque images that poke fun at Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Stargate SG-1 and a handful of other SF film and TV icons.
These images have an odd flavor, as if they are already somewhat retro: This is what nostalgia for the current decade will look like in 25 years' time, they seem to say. Strangeness of tone aside, the cartoons offer a few minutes of lighthearted fun, poking fun at Indiana Jones, The Blair Witch Project and shows like The X-Files and Star Trek. (Be sure to check the cast portraits in the upper left-hand corner of each screen ... and to click on the link for Cartoons in any sections that don't seem to have images.) Visitors will find themselves hearing Cartman's voice when reading word balloons in any given 'toon.
Aside from the cartoons, there isn't much to look at on the Spoofpark site—its creators had big dreams and a cool design sensibility, but they promised far more than they delivered, never quite getting around to generating much in the way of content. There are some con reports and costume links, though, as well as an FAQ and a guestbook that lets fans read comments from other site visitors.
— A.M. Dellamonica
Site of the Week—October 12, 2004
aking pride in being silly—but never stupid—while firmly asserting that anything that cannot survive silliness isn't worthy of being taken seriously, Concrete Elephant reviews, skewers and parodies the SF genre ... and anything else that gets in its way.
This site is a textual buffet for SF fans, containing an odd mixture of frivolous essays and serious criticism. It offers a little of everything—an essay on the writing of Gene Wolfe, a lighthearted interview with author Paul Cornell, a list of little-known and very peculiar English words, satirical retellings of classic TV moments and even cartoons about
little green men.
Concrete Elephant's focus is a little fuzzy, wandering in and out of SF, but always returning to the genre fold. Its coverage of Doctor Who in all its available formats—DVD, audio adventures, comic strips, even the classic drinking game rules—is always insightful. Visitors can also find commentary on the political undercurrents of the Star Wars trilogies, a cartoon that offers some important alien-finding advice to Agents Mulder and Scully of The X-Files and a survival kit for socially challenged Buffy fans.
The images on this site are not only silly but hilarious. Cartoons show how to transform a banana into a penguin before eating it, send up characters from Shadow of the Vampire and The Phantom Menace and dress Wallace (of Wallace and Gromit) in a Doctor Who-worthy outfit.
As one of the Web's older SF sites, Concrete Elephant is sadly lacking in new silly content, but it still provides plenty of laughs to willing Web surfers.
— A.M. Dellamonica
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