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Something to Watch: DVD’s

There are a few movies being released on DVD this week, but only one of any real importance. The first is Sci-Fi High: The Movie Musical, which supposedly was in theaters last April, but none anywhere near me. Even IMDB doesn’t seem to know anything about this one, so it will be a pass for me. As will be Wolvesbayne, another redundant 1800s vampire versus werewolf film. The movie worth adding to the collection this time around is Howl, the beat generation anthem and poem and the story of Alan Ginsberg’s obscenity trial in the 1950s because of it. This legal battle had fear and repression driving the prosecution and freedom of speech upholding the defense, in what would be a verdict that would help change the direction of what was permissible in America closer to true freedom for all. This one isn’t sci-fi, but it is an important milepost on the path of literature and the development of a culture.

The TV fictional pick of the week is the Sarah Jane Adventures: The Complete Third Season. They have just finished up season 4 in the UK, and the first season was aired in the US on the Sci-Fi Channel, but not seasons 2 or 3. Nor do they appear to have been picked up by BBC America, at least not so far. So the DVD’s may be the only way we get to see them for a while; at least the UK has acknowledged and signed off on season 5 for 2011.

Into the Universe with Steven Hawking is another Science of Science Fiction type educational program which covers such topics as alien intelligences, wormhole transportation systems, time travel requirements, and the evolution of life in radically different physical environments than ours. Obviously, the narrator’s voice is not that of professor Hawking, but the program is quite entertaining as well as providing scientifically rigorous and accurate speculation about many aspects of the currently unknown. Particularly useful if you were considering writing any science fiction books or screenplays of your own. You can watch segments of the program online at that link.

There are three restored superhero movie serials being released this week, all from 1940. Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe was the third Flash Gordon serial to be made; The Green Hornet Strikes Again! preceded the 1960s TV show by two and a half decades but Keye Luke was no Bruce Lee, and The Green Archer bears a striking resemblance to The Green Arrow. For those too young to remember, a movie serial was a series of 12 or so episodes, 15 to 25 minutes long, which would play before the feature presentation in a movie theater in the 1930s and 40s. Many of them were science fiction of one flavor or another, and they translated directly to television in the 1950’s, creating the template for the episodic TV series still used to this day. Their most famous feature was the cliffhanger ending, intended to draw audiences back the following week to find out how the hero escaped near-certain death this time, again utilized in TV.

In Anime, Koihime Muso – Complete Collection is a kind of Hidden Dragon versus bandits story line, not quite genre but not quite not, with combat grade heavily armed women protecting the innocent from outlaws and violence. The Tsubasa OVAs collection also becomes available this week, bringing us several more stories involving the protagonists crossing from world to world through the multiverse seeking to solve the mysteries affecting them.

Dirty Pair – Collection 2 completes the original Dirty Pair series with the final 12 episodes, but depending on which site you go to it might be coming out this Tuesday, February 1st, or February 8th. In any event, the original Girls with Guns destroying everything in sight series will be completed soon.

Singularity Music: Part 4

The Alice Files is the first performance I know of that combines smart phone apps with musical instruments and video processing and display in real time for stage presence, all from only hand held devices. For the example included here, Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland was the narrative starting point, and I managed to locate both of the parts. And then there was the Doctor Who theme song…

Something to Do: Movies and TV

A project with a reasonable budget hits the broadcast TV screens on January 9th: The Cape. This one looks like it will be a lot of fun, as you can probably tell by looking at the trailer. And it has Summer Glau in it, always a draw for me, and I think this time she even gets to play a normal human… sort of. Also, on the first BBC America kicks off season 4 of Primeval: Back from Extinction. This is their second attempt to turn the series in a whole new direction, and the tag line is in part a play on words both from the plot line (since two of the characters, Abby and Connor, return from the prehistoric to rejoin the rest of the cast) and the fact that they had been canceled at the end of season 3. With season four, they also bring Alexander Siddig to the party.

This months major hits have already hit the big screen, but you would think there would be one left for the final weekend. As it turns out, there is: No Sanctuary is the tale of a group of strangers pinned down in a church, trying to protect a girl with incredible powers from an army of the undead. I don’t hold out much hope or even interest in this one; you would probably do better to catch up with a movie you had previously missed this week.

Something to Watch: DVD’s

In the movie selection section we have Resident Evil: Afterlife; the theatrical version was in 3D, but very few DVDs have been released in that format so far (my local Best Buy just set up a display with 16 titles last week for the first time ever, even though they have been selling the TVs and DVD players for months and months). Which has to be kind of rough on the sales people who are depending on a commission for selling you an entertainment system that has very little actual entertainment you can play on it. Cable 3D offerings so far are one sports channel, and the Discovery Channel which also pioneered Hi-Def over a decade ago and currently has the largest HD title library of any cable channel.

The other movie worth noting this week is Legendary Assassin, about a female cop and a martial arts drifter she befriends. Shortly after they encounter one another, all hell breaks loose as the town starts to come apart around their ears. The final film I should mention is Chrome Angels: Cyborg Conquest, a cyborg sexploitation flic that appears to have an actual logical sci-fi plot line to it that leads to a fully realized conclusion, somewhat rare for the program category it exists within.

For live action TV this week, there is a mention that Dr. Who: The Complete Davros Collection will be re-released (originally issued in 2008) several places around the web, but the only site I could find that mentioned having disks in stock or coming anytime soon was in Australia, so that is probably just a rumor as near as I can tell.

Gintama – Collection 3 starts off this week’s set of new anime releases, with the continuing story of alien invasion and takeover in 17th century Japan. Disarming the samurai and turning the majority of the population into slave labor for their factories, while distracting them from their fate by introducing health care, graphic novels, and TV, is a ploy we have seen in this world as well. Sakata Gintoki, or Gin, is a vagrant samurai addicted to Shonen Jump and Anime, who is getting by with his odd-jobs company. Animation is good but not spectacular, audio bed is good, but the main draw here is the combination of historical events in our parallel universe (you may have noticed we didn’t get the alien invasion) with the make-you-think aspects of two radically different cultures colliding who were also not even close on technology levels.

Dragonaut: The Resonance- The Complete Series compiles the two previously released seasons into the entire package for the first time. The premise is that the Earth is about to be destroyed by an incoming asteroid, and the teams of Dragons and Dragon Riders are our best hope of survival. But as usual, it isn’t really that simple. Animation is excellent even if the character designers are of the Barbie School (not even close to anatomically reasonable for the female form), music is good, and the story is about the conflict between two totally different evolutionary tracts (with life forms from each side trying to determine if they can co-exist, and working together to survive). This one is surprisingly better than you were probably expecting.

There are several titles being re-released in more economical sets this week. Baccano! – The Complete Collection is one of the better animes released in the US this year (2007 and 2009 in Asia), about immortal mafia, monsters, and alchemists (and several other groups) who hunt each other down across history, with the main body of the tale taking place in the 1920s and 30s in and around NYC. Each episode gives you slivers of stories from various characters perspectives, leaving you to assemble the mosaic in your mind as each new piece of the puzzle is revealed. The animation is excellent, the incidental music does its job to perfection supporting the mood of each scene without pulling attention away from the action, while the primary music is spot on, and most of all, the story being told grabs your attention as it unfolds.

Finally, Ragnarok The Animation is a typical quest type fantasy, and all the usual suspects are involved. The only thing I can find to recommend about this one is the discounted price, although if you prefer this genre it may be worth checking out.

A Christmas Carol and Blackadder’s App; Season’s Greetings!

I hope the holidays find you happy and with loved ones. I wanted to remind everyone that Doctor Who: A Christmas Carol will actually air in the US on Christmas day, mere hours after it airs in the UK. BBC America made that promise about Torchwood for the last miniseries, but failed to follow through with it. Hopefully this time they will do better. I should also mention they will roll out season 4 of Primeval on New Years Day, so there are good things to look forward to on TV this holiday season. In addition, I also wanted to let you know that the new Blackadder Soundboard App By BBC Worldwide is now available to install on your iDevice. With a ton of the best Blackadder quotes, including some from Blackadder’s Christmas Carol and Blackadder Rides Again, this one is just in time for some holiday fun (and at 99 cents it is not overpriced).