An alternative to crap sci-fi shows -- and an alternative to crap TV in general -- is books. Authors still write great sci-fi books. But if you want to get into the great sci-fi classics, nothing beats SF Masterworks. It makes also great collectible material (a type of hobby that is sadly getting disused).
Originally Posted by brewbuck:
Reimplementing a large system in another language to get a 25% performance boost is nonsense. It would be cheaper to just get a computer which is 25% faster.
Originally Posted by anduril462
On the first 3 seasons of BSG, I thought it would always be my favorite show. Then with the last episode I felt they turned all the rules of the world upside down. All I could say was "What? There was magic in this world the entire time?!". Up until that point, I had thought the mysticism in the show was just metaphorical, then all of a sudden it was real and twice as inexplicable. I still love the first 3 seasons though.
O_oFringe is also in the procedural crime camp, but I enjoyed it much more, as it had IMO better large story arcs, i.e. I felt it moved better across episodes/seasons.
I don't know if that comment constitutes a recommendation for "Fringe", but I'd have to suggest at least giving it a try.
But then, I adore John Noble; I'd probably enjoy watching him in a football commercial.
Soma
“Salem Was Wrong!” -- Pedant Necromancer
“Four isn't random!” -- Gibbering Mouther
During the tail end of my television watching days, some friends tried to get me into Fringe, but I just didn't take to it. I only saw a few (early) episodes, but I was turned off by how they seemed to rush the plot. One character would say something like, "We need an anti-matter eliminator [or some such fantastical device]", and another character would say something like, "Oh, I have one of those in my locker!". Maybe my memory is exaggerating this occurrence, but I definitely remember seeing that happen at least once. (I was assured the later episodes got better in this regard, but by then I was off the glass teat.)
Defiance anyone?
What can this strange device be?
When I touch it, it gives forth a sound
It's got wires that vibrate and give music
What can this thing be that I found?
For some odd reason, this is always the first song that comes to mind when I think about sci-fi/space-travel.
Eh, good sci-fi in film has always been hard to pull off. I guess that's why I've always preferred the printed stuff - lot's and lot's of great sci-fi books have been written (from authors like Zelazny, Bradbury, Heinlein, Asimov, Clark, Le Guin, just to name a few). The "Hugo Award" collection was always one of my favorites too. Films are often way over-rated - films like 2001 or Dune are considered by many to be "classics" based on this or that artistic merit, but as far as I'm concerned, by credits end I just have this feeling that I've been dragged through the mud or something!
Anyway, though not really a "new" feature, there is this one TV show that was originally created in Japan then adapted for American audiences (in very watered-down form, unfortunately) that was later developed into a pretty fun fantasy/sci-fi/drama cartoon-trilogy.
One really great old film that stands up today just as well as it did when it was first released way back in the 1950's is "The Day the Earth Stood Still". Classic film!
Yeah, I've watched that show off an on for a number of years (decades) now and I *still* don't get it. Course, most diehards will tell you that you just need to sit through a bunch of episodes before it starts to make sense, but whatever, the show's just plain nonsense if you ask me.
Last edited by Sebastiani; 08-29-2014 at 02:46 PM.
Code:#include <cmath> #include <complex> bool euler_flip(bool value) { return std::pow ( std::complex<float>(std::exp(1.0)), std::complex<float>(0, 1) * std::complex<float>(std::atan(1.0) *(1 << (value + 2))) ).real() < 0; }
I didn't realize my thread would become home to such wild heresy. BURN ALL THE HERETICS!! On a serious note though, I think the most off putting thing about Doctor Who is that the main character changes every few years. I'm not sure if this was a planned thing, or because the earliest doctors were so old..Yeah, I've watched that show off an on for a number of years (decades) now and I *still* don't get it. Course, most diehards will tell you that you just need to sit through a bunch of episodes before it starts to make sense, but whatever, the show's just plain nonsense if you ask me.
I've seen a few of the newer episodes just earlier today, and it seems much like I remember it. There does seem to be a few changes in the back story. In the earlier series, there were other Time-Lord people, but now the story is that they were all wiped out a long time ago. Hopefully there's an explanation for it (I'm sure there is, I mean I hope I don't have to look it up to get it lol).
By the way, Zelazny is probably my favorite author ever (next to George RR Martin). I've read Lord of Light enough times that even years later I still have random phrases from the book memorized "Oh Night, protect us from the wolf and she-wolf, and be so good for us to pass" (I probably murdered that quote 0.0).
Ha. That is a great song. I first heard it in a car commerical, of all things.For some odd reason, this is always the first song that comes to mind when I think about sci-fi/space-travel.
I'm with you. I look at the recent Gravity as a boring pseudo-drama of catastrophe strikes person with personal problems and helps her become stronger (also known as, yawn!). The script is also punctuated with the usual Hollywood carelessness. Like a medical doctor being told by someone else what are the physical effects of lack of oxygen because apparently there is no better way to convey that message to the audience. (During the Writers' Strike of 2008 I secretly wished screenwriters would be fired).
As with almost everything the best is hidden. The independent circuit and low budget commercial movies have some genuine pearls to show. Movies like Gattaca, Moon, Dark City, 12 Monkeys and Children of Men, by order of preference.
Speaking of George Clooney; he also plays as an astronaut in another good sci-fi movie (or psychological drama with a sci-fi background), Solaris.
Last edited by Mario F.; 08-31-2014 at 05:20 PM.
Originally Posted by brewbuck:
Reimplementing a large system in another language to get a 25% performance boost is nonsense. It would be cheaper to just get a computer which is 25% faster.
Funny story: I saw that movie a while back with friends. So right as the credits start to roll I let out this exasperated "Finally!". All of the sudden I hear this great applause and for a split second I think that I just touched a nerve with the crowd or something...only to realize that what they were *actually* doing was giving the movie a standing ovation - I was absolutely convinced that everyone must've been as bored as I was with the movie and yet quite the opposite was true! Go figure...
Code:#include <cmath> #include <complex> bool euler_flip(bool value) { return std::pow ( std::complex<float>(std::exp(1.0)), std::complex<float>(0, 1) * std::complex<float>(std::atan(1.0) *(1 << (value + 2))) ).real() < 0; }
"Hello", says a random person (after parachuting out of the sky), "EXPOSITION".
