Skip to main content

Top of the list this week has to be William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. While it is not Sci-Fi, I think having conversations with ghosts counts as Fantasy, but there is an even better reason to add this to your collection: This is the version staring David Tennant and Patrick Stewart. It also just aired this past week in the US on PBS, and you can watch it online any time you like at PBS or embedded here (at the bottom of this entry).

For comedy films there is Tooth Fairy, starring Dwayne Johnson as a man who bursts the mental bubbles of children by telling them Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny do not exist. As his punishment, he is forced to be a real tooth fairy for a week.

In the TV series category, the Saving Grace Collection becomes available on Tuesday. This is actually a repackaging of seasons one and two, released together where they were previously released separately, gearing everyone up for the release of the final season in June. If you are not familiar with this series you want to be; you can start by watching episodes online (the direct link goes to a “series so far” video, you can watch full episodes there).

While it should have been a series or miniseries, The Fallen were built as a couple of made-for-TV movies and originally aired at ABC Family. Like Samurai Girl from the same network, this involves a high school student having to go to war with the forces of good and evil (on a celestial level, in this instance). If you missed them when they originally aired, now is your chance to see them.

There are a couple of interesting entries in the 17+ category this week. The Ultimate Pleasure Box from Surrender Cinema is a collection of R rated films that pretended to be porn but were actually Sci-Fi and Fantasy films with periodic breaks for some soft core action. As near as I can tell they used the porn aspect to get the funding to make the films, and instead created some modern B movie SF/F classics. In case there was any doubt, there is nothing socially redeeming in any of these movies, but they are good clean dirty fun. The other one is Space Girls in Beverly Hills, which seems to have started out like the other set but never got the funding.

For Anime releases this week, most (like Darker than Black) are re-releases, sometimes because the original release was recalled. The exception is Rozen Maiden + Rozen Maiden Traumend DVD Complete Set, available in a single package for the first time.

Are you ready for the future? Futurama, that is… I am looking forward to a new season of this one. And doesn’t the second video remind you of what music would have evolved into had the music boxes mated with the player pianos? Throw in a steam power source and you would have an elegant music system.

It began April 14th, and runs through July 4th of this year; the Reallusion Sci-Fi Machinima Filmmaking Competition, based on the iClone Animation software package. Build your best Sci-Fi animation segment and submit it for a shot at $10,000 in prizes. And yes, the software package in question is a bit pricey to get the latest and greatest version, but you can pick up fully functional LE versions for cheap or free from partners like Daz 3D Studios or included on disks from magazines like 3D Artist. And there are also a ton of free online tutorials from many sources to help get you up to speed, including the 2nd Life Machinima Resources. Good luck in the competition!

A year before Akira made the world aware of Anime, a little known masterpiece was the first film released by Gainax: Royal Space Force: The Wings of HonnĂȘamise. I just re-watched it and was amazed all over again at just how good this movie is, and not only for its time. This is a story of mans first steps into space as told from an alternate history that diverged from our own a little before World War I. The artwork and animation are excellent, the characters are well rounded, and the story will draw you in. If you missed it, this one is worth spending the time to watch and enjoy. If you are a fan of the Moonlight Mile manga and anime series, you really want to see this one, to learn where some of the inspiration and attitude came from.

This weekend is the first ever DC Comic Con in the Washington, DC, suburbs. It takes place on Sunday, May 2nd, and has some good guests lined up. This one is a small, one day event, no doubt testing the waters to see if they should expand next year.

Tampa, FL. has the Vulcan Events media con, which interestingly enough does not seem to have a single primary Star Trek actor, but it does have a ton of stars of other programs (and a few have been in Trek episodes or movies). In Charlotte, NC, is this weekends Twighlight Con for those looking for a different flavor of media con.

Nashville Anime fans will be holding forth at the Middle Tennessee Anime Convention, which is a much more complex and well rounded event than a first glance would indicate. With a large assortment of tracks, and every one of them full of events and entertainments of all sorts, this is one I need to try to attend next year. I would pay the full price just for the music track concerts, panels, and other events, and wedge in as much other fun as I could squeak in. It looks like staying awake for the full 72 hours would be the only acceptable option for this one.

Other Anime Cons include the No Brand Con in Eau Claire, WI, Chibi Con in Virginia Beach, VA,