Can you say...redo?

Ok, now I love sci-fi and fantasy books, movies, tv shows, etc...if it has swords, magic, Dragons, spaceships, aliens, or anything else from these two genres, I'm pretty much on board to at least check it out. So of course I troll through the various blogs, news sites, and zines, looking to see what the new latest and greatest is going to be. There is a very obvious trend, which has been the case for the last few years, towards remaking old ideas, or revamping old series and coming out with squeals.

Now, I have no problems with that, trust me! Some of the older ideas were really awesome. But when I think back over the last year or so, and look at what's in the works right now, well..... GI Joe movie, Indiana Jones 4(and apparently 5 is on the drawing board), a new Tron movie(waayyy over due if you ask me!), Transformers, a new take Star Trek movie(great by the way)....the list goes on.... and now I see they are 'rebooting' Highlander, the V tv series, and today I see 'Predator Reboot'. *blink* *double take* Like I said, no issues with remakes and such here, but...where are the new ideas to go along with these? Where are the next group of fresh ideas, new characters etc? Have these genres become nothing but repeat, redo, reboot, remake material? Is there no new, fresh, young talent that has their own ideas?

Just my thoughts, take them or leave them as you like. :)

Until next time,

Robert

Tron: Legacy

Most of you probably know about Tron II, also known as Tron: Legacy, the sequel to one of my all time favorite classic sci-fi movies, Tron. Well, the release date was announced, and our wait is going to be less than we originally thought. December 17th of this year!

Also coming out that weekend will be the Green Hornet movie, a movie remake of the old time TV and Radio show series of the same name about one of the original crime fighting heroes. I for one can not wait!

I also saw a note that Smurfs the movie will come out that weekend... now, don't get me wrong, I use to watch the cartoon Smurfs when I was a kid, and who could forget the Smurfs and the Magic Flute, but...a movie? Really? I guess they are going to remake every TV show, Cartoon, and movie from our childhood, and put new spins on them with the latest digital effects and see if they can recapture that old magic. Might work in some cases.

So when are they going to remake WKRP in Cincinnati? :P

Just my thoughts, until next time...

RD Williams
Author of 'The Lost Gate'
http://rdwilliams75.wix.com/rdwilliams

Absolutely amazing! Must see!

Ok, I know I usually try to keep my blog posts to things related to Sci-Fi/Fantasy, writing, and things like that...but this story was just so amazing, inspirational, and...well I can't come up with the proper words to describe it. You have to see the video for yourself. It's about a man and his son, Dick and Rick Hoyt, and the real power of love. I'm tearing up again just thinking about it. Please watch the video...

http://bit.ly/T3UVH

World Fantasy Award Nominations...

The World Fantasy Convention is approaching(Oct 29th - Nov 1st), and they've announced the nominees for the 2009 World Fantasy Awards.

Here's the one that I always like to see, the Best Novel Award. Nominations are:

• The House of the Stag, Kage Baker (Tor)
• The Shadow Year, Jeffrey Ford (Morrow)
• The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman (HarperCollins; Bloomsbury)
• Pandemonium, Daryl Gregory (Del Rey)
• Tender Morsels, Margo Lanagan (Allen & Unwin; Knopf)


If you want to see more about the other categories, go to the below link:
http://www.worldfantasy2009.org/?page_id=10


PS: only a month till Dragon*Con!

RD Williams

It's coming...

It's almost that time of year again, time for all the Fantasy and Sci-Fi fans to unite once more. September 4th thru 7th, thousands of Fantasy/Sci-Fi movie, book, comic-book, etc, fans will descend on Atlanta GA for the 2009 Dragon*Con!



Click the link above for more information, including guests, etc...

One small step for TV, One giant leap for Sci-fi...

The date, September 8th, 1966, fans of Science Fiction gather round their TV's and watch the premier of a new sci-fi series that would mark a change in Science Fiction programs for generations...a course that we are still moving forward on as a community at full warp speed.

Star Trek wasn't considered a 'hit' at the time, and in fact NBC threatened to end the Enterprise's five year mission only three months into the show. But the fans would not be denied at that time, and the show continued for three years. Perhaps if the fans of that day had not flooded NBC with letters to try and save the show during that first year, Star Trek may have become nothing more than a small footnote in the history of Sci-fi TV. The names of Kirk and Spock, McCoy and Scotty, Sulu and Chekov, Uhura and Chapel, wouldn't have come to be as recognized as they are today. Yet, the fans stood up and made their voices heard, our parents and in some cases grand parents. We as a younger generation have them to thank, for without them we might not have had the old shows to watch as children, wouldn't have grown up with Captain Picard and crew bringing us an updated way to boldly go where no one had gone before.

How would Science Fiction TV, literature, and internet sites differ if Star Trek had died out after those first three months, fading away into the past like a burned out star? Would the Sci-fi industry even be the same as it is? Just think for a moment, no Trek conventions, no Trek influence on writers, bloggers, actors, screen play writers...no ST: TNG, no DS9, no Voyager...*gasp* no Klingons at general Sci-fi conventions...no Trek movies...

In my mind, it was Star Trek that has made the Science Fiction genre and culture what it is today. Just think, how many other shows, books, movies, artwork were inspired by Star Trek? This is why I am so glad that Trek is still showing no signs of dying out. From time to time it wans, but it continues. There are no current TV series, yet if you go online you can find fan project films, episodes, novels, short stories, etc, etc, etc... and now the new movies, the prequels if you will, which bring us into an alternate time line. Ah yes, the brain child and phenomenon born of the imagination of Gene Rodenberry all those years ago still lives on...and is thriving!

RD Williams

"Course heading Captain?"

"Second star to the right...and straight on till morning..."

Farrah and MJ...RIP

I had been following Farrah Fawcett's struggle with Cancer, the brief mentions that there would be of how she was doing, posted pics with short blurbs showing a smiling Farrah, yet a Farrah that you could tell was fighting to the death. Yesterday was a sad day, finding out that she had finally lost that battle, yet what a double hit for the people of my generation, loosing not only one of the remaining female icons, but also to loose the King of Pop as well.

Farrah we knew we were going to loose...it had become only a matter of time, yet MJ was a surprise. For those of you who are in my generation, those who grew up with these two bright stars shinning for our entertainment, you know as I do that we've lost two very unique individuals. For the younger crowd, I hope you have had the chance to find out what you missed, they were worth listening and watching.

Rest in Peace Farrah and Michael, June 25th, 2009

Relay for Life of Second Life

For those of you who might not know, I hang out a bit in a virtual community called Second Life(if you haven't heard of it before, it's great, go to www.secondlife.com for more info). In this virtual environment, I discovered last year that it is possible for me to help out one of my favorite charities while online! Relay for Life, which is a major fundraiser for the Amercian Cancer Society, has been represented in Second Life for the last 5 years now, and is GROWING!

This year I am Captaining one of the teams along with my wife. If you have a Second Life account, please consider donating either monetarily or of you time to help out this worthwhile cause. If you do not play Second Life, there is also a website where people can donate via Credit Card. www.relayforlife.org/secondlife

Also, be sure to check out the front page of that site. When you see the notice about a third of the way down the page, about a character named Rendal Constantineau....that's me! And yes, my avatar is wearing a dress as part of a challenge to help inspire our team to raise more money.

Until later,

RD Williams

The David Gemmell Legend Award

There is a new award out there for Fantasy novels. The DGLA(David Gemmell Legend Award) will be presented for the very first time in 2009, recognizing the best of 2008. The DGLA was named after the late David Gemmell, and his most famous novel, Legend. The DGLA, founded by a group of 18 Fantasy authors, is chaired by Stan Nicholls, author of Orcs, and administered by Deborah J Miller, author of the Last Clansman, and Swarmthief.

The annual award will acknowledge the best Fantasy novel of 2008, voted on by the readers at large, of the Fantasy genre. That's right, WE get to vote on it, which, imho, should keep some of the politics out of it that seem to creep into awards committees and the like.

For more information, or to vote, go to:
http://gemmellaward.com/

You can even create a page on thier site if you want to become a member, though it's not required for voting.

Pass along the info so that we can get all the fans of the Fantasy genre to vote!! :)

RD Williams

And the best supporting actor is.........

Ya know, usually I am one of those that say the "Awards Season" gets a little ridiculous, what with all the awards shows and what not, and so, I gave up watching most of them a long time back(when MTV got involved it was just too much for me).

Yet, I have noticed that something remarkable happened regarding this year's Golden Globe Awards(one of the few awards that I think should be legit). A lot of times Hollywood Politics seem to rear it's ugly head when it comes to who gets what awards and so on, and there are always actors/directors/moves/etc. that are overlooked for nominations(IMHO). Yet sometimes there is a shinning star that can break it's way through those Politics, and I think that is what happened this year in the Best Supporting Actor category.

Heath Ledger, an actor that showed us he could play versatile roles, an actor that proved he had the ability to bring a character to life, an actor who's life ended tragically young. I look at the roles he played, of which I have been a fan since he was in 'The Patriot', and I wonder, what else could he have done? How bright could this star have shown one day? Sadly we will never know.

I didn't see Dark Knight in the theaters, and for a while I heard people say that everyone was making a 'big deal' about Ledger's role as the Joker just because of the fact that he was gone. Others tole me that wasn't true, that he had earned the acclaim he was getting for it. So, I sat down to watch the long awaited Dark Knight at long last, with my wife at my side, and popcorn in hand. I have one word for the performance that Ledger delivered...stunning! Sometimes an actor will play a part, a part that others have done before, and they will try and replay it as their predecessors did, others try to blend the role, or change it, or in the case of the Joker, make it overly comical. Ledger took the character as we knew it, the crazy clown of the old Batman TV series, Nicolson's demented and scared Joker, and seemed to lift certain things from them, certain qualities, yet not too much, and added to it. The result, a completely unique creation, a character that could entertain and yet scare the socks off you at the same time, a character that he brought to life in that movie oh so well.

I hail Heath Ledger receiving the Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe Award posthumously, not as a memorial for his life or his career, but because he earned it with his performance.

Just my humble opinion,

RD Williams

First post of the New Year & Dr. Who?

Greetings everyone, and Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season.

First off, for any of you fellow Dr. Who fans that might not yet know, the next Doctor has been chosen! That's right, you all know that Tenant is leaving the season after doing the specials for 09, well a young, relatively unknown, Matt Smith is going to take up the torch and the key to the Tardis.

I, unfortunately, know next to nothing about Matt Smith before this(Matt Smith...John Smith's younger brother??), other than that he is the youngest actor to ever receive the role. He looks like he'll fit into the role, face and hair and all that, though that's secondary to the personality and acting. The Doctor isn't just a set of clothes that gets put on, he's something that has to be brought out from within.

Anyway, I'll leave you with a link to an interview clip with Matt Smith concerning his new role as the Doctor. http://www.fantasysfblog.com/fantasysf.php?zone=103091

Until next time, keep reading!

RD Williams