Strange Horizons presents 2008 in review, where the reviewers review their reviews. And that is the most recursive sentence I have ever written, but strangely true. Be aware, this is Armageddan Week on the History Channel; vote for your favorite way for the world to end, and follow it with Life After People. I support the AFI, and hope a lot of you do as well. This is a small slice from one of their members-only events; Mike Meyers introducing Sean Connery at his lifetime achievement award ceremony. Note the reaction to the Zardoz part of the intro.
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The other day I mention the tune on SciFi Songs called Grasping for the Wind (The Linkup Meme Song), a song filled with SF review blog names. What I didn’t know at the time (for someone who lives in the future I can be awfully slow about some things) was that this was the name of the blog built by John Ottinger that put together the entire project. The list is getting huge, and continues to grow. To help you with sorting through it, the Crotchety Old Fan Reviews the Review Blogs, complete with links to each conveniently placed next to its review. I knew there was a reason I liked the internet, and thanks to Sheila at Wands and Worlds for making me aware of what I was missing. As Holly said in Red Dwarf (Queeg, episode 5 of season 2) “I may be slow, but I get there in the end”. BTW, did you know the Red Dwarf team was putting together some new specials?
Movies this time instead of TV; John Scalzi has a nice double list of 2009 movies; the double part is one list of movies he is looking forward to, one he isn’t. IO9 has an interesting new-years post, which they call the greatest and wrongest spoilers of 2008. You have to appreciate someone willing to tell tales on themselves like that.
Happy new year! John Scalzi is hoping for some original SciFi movies for the new year, but right now the pickings look slim. There are some TV series returning in 2009, including Battlestar Galactica, The Eleventh Hour, Fringe, Lost, and Burn Notice. I am a bit surprised that Fox hasn’t killed Fringe yet, and keep hoping that Dollhouse actually makes it to the air.
I have posted several times on the Battlestar Galactica webisodes, with a storyline that bridges the gap between the two halves of the final season. There are some other webisodes worth a visit, including The Recruit. This one tells the story of the Marines who volunteered to be guinea pigs in hopes of gaining powers to make them better soldiers, and is running between the two story arcs in the current Heroes season. They are also running a lot of other quality related material, including another webisode series, Hard Knox. Another fun webisode set is from Chuck, with a series of Buy More Employee Tips. Not all great webisodes are from NBC/Universal; Lisa Kudrow has an excellent new series online called Web Therapy you should take a look at, with all the biting humor you have come to expect from her.
There is an interview at Sci-Fi London with Neal Asher covering all kinds of topics. Neal is the author of The Skinner, Cowel, and The Gabble, among others. The Doctor Who Christmas Special wasn’t enough, someone had to create this Dalek Xmas Tree…
Unbelievable Dalek Christmas Tree from Lindsey J. Testolin on Vimeo.