Sci Fi Musings

Let's start with the winners of this year's Nebula Awards:   

Novel: Uprooted, by Naomi Novik (Del Rey).  
Novella: Binti, by Nnedi Okorafor (Tor.com).
Novelette:  “Our Lady of the Open Road,” 
      by Sarah Pinsker (Asimov’s 6/15).
Short Story: “Hungry Daughters of Starving 
     Mothers,” by Alyssa Wong (Nightmare 10/15).
Andre Norton Award for Young Adult SFF: Updraft, 
     by Fran Wilde.

Congratulations ladies and fine colleagues. (And more about Naomi below.)

== Even good popcorn can make big mistakes ==

Moving from literary masterpieces to... fluff. Apparently evil just won't stay dead.  Perhaps reflecting the state of US politics and morale, Disney and Lucas film show signs of bringing back the most horrendous character in the history of cinema... Yoda.  Just look at the purported (of course, fictional) body count that results from this vile green oven mitt's "wise" decisions.  And across the years I have defied fans to bring up one - even one - bona fide WISE thing that nasty/grumpy lawn-gnome-thing ever does or says.

Along similar lines... Nothing is more winning and charming... and despair-worthy... than this image of Mark Hamill riding the back of a doughty and strong and fiercely impressive (!) Daisy Ridley, in a pose reminiscent of Luke Skywalker's tutelage under that vile green gnome, Yoda.  Why despair-worthy? Because it is emblematic of the stunning lack of imaginative verve not only of the creators of the third trilogy, but its zealous fans. 

Oh sure, I kinda liked The Force Awakens for its characterizations (J.J. Abrams is brilliant at that vital element) and color and lack of evil lucasian messages. (Huzzah for that last bit!) But everyone instantly saw that its plot was a tiresomely slavish and unnecessary utter remake of Ep IV A New Hope. Yet, instead of merely enjoying it, but with a polite-apropos yawn, people actually kvelled! There was jubilation! Why? For a remake? Albeit a well-made and fun one. Still, come on.

Now? All signs suggest that Episode VIII will slavishly remake the excellent Empire Strikes Back.  Truly. Making me ask: Is no one furious that they wrote a story arc in which Luke Skywalker - instead of learning from the horrific blunders of his "masters" - deliberately and knowingly repeats every single blunder committed by both Yoda and Obiwan, down to every last detail?

Oh, sure, dear sweet Luke was always a dim bulb, like falling for it when Yoda fakes his "death" (to avoid answering Luke's questions.) But THAT dim? To recreate an isolated Jedi Order that puts all its eggs in one basket, then lets an emotionally ditzy "apprentice" kill all the pupils. Followed by the master throwing up his hands and going into exile, instead of facing his duty to clean up the mess he made? If this is what Jedi masters do, every single time? Then make the order extinct!

== From Tolkien onward == 

Since 1999 we’ve heard tales about Kyrill Yeskov’s THE LAST RING-BEARER – his riff (in Russian) on Lord Of The Rings, retelling JRRR Tolkien’s classic from the point of view of Mordor.  In this version, the wizard Gandalf “is a war-monger intent on crushing the scientific and technological initiative of Mordor and its southern allies because science “destroys the harmony of the world and dries up the souls of men!” He’s in cahoots with the elves, who aim to become “masters of the world,” and turn Middle-earth into a “bad copy” of their magical homeland across the sea.”

In fact, this interpretation gets some support from – of all people – JRRT himself, who confesses that the Elves were the cause of all the trouble, from the start.  Still, as I explain in my own Salon appraisal – “J.R.R. Tolkien, enemy of progress” --  he could never bring himself to side with modernity; it was just too painful. (Indeed, had I been at the Battle of the Somme, I might have turned against modernity, as well.)

Finally in 2010, Yisroel Markov posted his English translation of “The Last Ringbearer” as a free download.

Moving on... Always Human is a romantic science fiction webcomic about two young ladies growing to know each other and falling in love in a society where nanotech is widespread and used for everyday things like changing your appearance, improving memory, and the like... but some people have too strong an immune system and cannot use the nanotech mods. 

See a lovely profile about my SF writer colleague and this year's Nebula winner for bets novel Naomi Novik, whose series about Napoleanic era sea captains – with dragons – is selling great guns.  

I’m a bit dubious that the copyrights truly are being respected.  But if they are? Well, this is cool.  The Internet Archive's amazing Pulp Magazine Archive now includes all 176 issues of If, a classic science fiction magazine that ran from 1952 to 1974.

== Sci Fi and Time Travel ==

So weird it could be sci fi. Otto Skorzeny, the Nazi special forces chief who sprang Mussolini after he was deposed and put SS agents into US uniforms, later became one of the Mossad’s most valuable assets. A former lieutenant colonel in Nazi Germany’s Waffen-SS and one of Adolf Hitler’s favorites, he later helped Israeli intelligence demolish German companies helping Nasser’s Egypt to build missiles. id Harry Turtledove ever do anything with this guy?

Genuine alternative universe sci fi. The San Francisco to New York Burrito Tunnel! Except that Carter would have been re-elected if this happened.  

I have a weak spot for low budget, indie sci fi flicks that try to do some thinking.  Time travel seems a favorite, with the recent "Predestination" standing out as a faithful expansion on Heinlein's "All You Zombies." I highly recommend the very cerebral and inexpensive "Primer." And from the sublime to the stupid-but-kinda-fun, we recently watched a British semi-pro called "Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel."  It's madcap and silly and immature...

... but I'll still note a few things. For example, they speak of "editors"... fanatic, time-traveling fans who go back to see their favorite geniuses, and kill them just after their paramount moments, so they’ll never suffer later disappointment. One of the characters says: "So they'd do Kevin Costner, right after Dances With Wolves?"

Okay, given what Costner directed next, that's when I started listening. Then the male loser character meets a young woman in a bar, who gushes how cool it is to meet her hero in his youth, before his fame... which is exactly the scenario – almost perfectly cloned in part – from that story I wrote with Gregory Benford called "I Could've Done Better."  (See it in Insistence of Vision.)  After a few more twitches of recognition, I had to ask: if you guys want to send me a message, try going to http://www.davidbrin.com, scrolling down and sending me an email?

And... um... don't you at least owe me a dinner?

== Final Notes ==

I’m not a huge rap fan, but I sure like Gift of Gab and Blackalicious, especially their excellent pop-rap song “Powers,” which is joyful and stunningly original. So, hey, why would I not follow Gift of Gab over to The Mighty Underdogs doing “Droppin’Science Fiction!” Enjoy an extended epic of sci-fi hip-hop!  Seriously!

Oh, want help moving along your own ambitions to do SF? Alex Bear... whose parents are authors Greg and Astrid Bear, …and whose grandfather was Poul Anderson, the best storyteller I ever knew... has a business copyediting for writers all over the globe. “Copyeditors exist to make any piece of writing flow with correct grammar, spelling, punctuation, and readability. Whether you're writing your first short story or your twelfth novel, all writing needs that last bit of shine.” Set your prose free of reader-halting errors!

And finally... here's a kinda cool Kickstarter  (now ended) – a new, two person card game called NEOLITHIC keeps you busy drawing and using new techs like goat taming and pottery in order to rise up the ladder of civilization.  Not quite as ambitious and challenging – and anthropological – as my own game called TRIBES, which takes eight or more players several hours, replicating the fundamental forces of Darwinian advantage that motivated our ancestors. Get both!  And report back if you find a neat way to combine the two. 

J.J. Abrams Awakens the Force

Okay we saw it.  Star Wars: The Force Awakens (SW:TFA), on Christmas Eve.  And although I am lead author — and “prosecuting attorney” — of the book Star Wars on Trial, and hence a leading critic of the series, I must admit that: 

(1) The newest installment of the franchise — directed by J.J. Abrams under Disney management — has none of the deeply objectionable traits of Episodes I, II, III and VI that I denounced in that controversial tome. Abrams and Disney shrugged off the lunacies George Lucas compulsively preached in those vividly colorful-yet-wretched flicks.

(2) On the other hand, TFA had less than I had hoped for, of the magic and brilliance of Episodes IV and V.  Alas.

But let’s do a scorecard of this film's Good aspects, its Okay ones, the Bad… and the Ugly.

WARNING: TOTAL SPOILERS AHEAD!  Including some if you've already seen the film.

The GOOD:

  Characters! … Character is J.J. Abrams's strong suit. We knew this from LOST, where we cared deeply about them all, despite there being no sense to the story. And to be clear, Mr. Abrams did the Star Trek characters very well, too -- individually and interacting, one-on-one.  Hence, no surprise, he worked the same magic here, in SW:TFA. These people were all well crafted, the actors well-directed, and I could feel them. Moreover, let there be no doubt that characters are the most important element in all types of drama, especially film. This alone made The Force Awakens worthwhile. 

More on characters, below. Grade A-

(Why the A-minus? Because after all, well, it is Star Wars and Abrams had a limited character palette to work with. But he worked it well.)

   Effects and visuals... These were always George Lucas's fixation and the one area where he always came through. The team he built delivered nicely in this latest film. Grade  A.

    Music...  I listened carefully for the themes for the new characters. They were nice, but did not tug at the heart quite as powerfully as I felt the riffs for Luke and Darth and Leia, back in the 1970s. All right, I was younger then. Solid Williams. Grade A-

The OKAY:

    Dialogue... I had so hoped for the sizzle of Laurence Kasden's earlier script, with the great Leigh Brackett, for The Empire Strikes Back.  Clearly, Mr. Abrams wanted it too, in re-hiring Kasden for another go!  Alas, while the script for SW:TFA is serviceable, getting us from point to point, it contains almost nothing truly memorable, this time.  

Well, at least it wasn't memorably awful, like the dialogue in Lucas's cringeworthy prequels. So, in fact, "serviceable" came as a huge relief. Grade B

     Memory lane indulgences... oh preserve us from the stunning need of all series directors to slavishly show us every beloved character in every possible coincidence, like the way Mr. Abrams made every classic Enterprise bridge officer be part of the very same Starfleet Academy class, and then bringing in Carol Marcus and Khaaaan. Oy.

Still, I give Mr. Abrams some credit for self-control this time. In fact, there were fewer of these self-indulgences than I feared, in SW:TFA. Just way too many.  (Though I admit it was a shock to re-encounter Edna Mode from The Incredibles in this flick, doing pretty much the same work. She does get around.)  C+

     Messages…. There were almost none! Which came as a relief, given how deeply George Lucas dived into propagandizing demigod-worship and spitefulness toward democracy or citizenship or common men and women. (ref: Star Wars on Trial.) I knew neither Disney nor Abrams would repeat that sickness — but there was no correction, either.  

Mind you, I kept hoping to hear that the Republic Fleet might show up and neutralize the First Order Armada, so that our heroes could do their thing. Would that have hurt?  Three extra minutes and some added battle-sizzle, while showing that the Republic and its quadrillion citizens can actually do something. Even in a supporting role?

But the damage to our notions of civilization self-confidence runs so deep that I do not blame Abrams for never thinking of it.  C+

     Sci Fi….  What’s to grade? This is not science fiction. Except briefly, in Episode V, The Empire Strikes Back, it never was. For example where does the First Order get its money, its industrial base? Where do these gigantic war machines suddenly appear from? Do folks on planets resent having their sons stolen to become janissary Storm Troopers? If one henchman - Finn - can refuse to shoot a couple of villagers, might another, somewhere in the guts of that giant weapon, balk at helping to kill billions? 

A sci fi flick might have contemplated realistic ways that conflicted good overcomes ornery-plausible evil. Star Trek has taken on that question in countless nuanced variations. 

Heck, if J.J. Abrams were ever to ask my advice (and he never will), I would suggest a plot device of a villain seeking to technologize access to the Force! How much more interesting that would be, than just inserting another Sauron-style emperor and another Darth Vader wannabee.

But Star Wars is not science fiction! It is fantasy of the old school: Good and Evil are archetypes of utter simplicity. Pure light versus pure dark. Sweet folk versus red-glowing eyes.  Pretty=good and ugly=evil. The Force Awakens does all this about as well as other flicks that wallow fantasy-obsessions like "long-ago" lords and mages and mystical mumbo, e.g. Tolkien, except that in Star Wars the wizard wands are light sabers.  

Oh, this could have been science fiction. But hey, that boat sailed long ago and so let's take the franchise for what it is. And heck, why deny myself a bona fide pleasure? I can enjoy a good fantasy wallow.  Grade___ pass. 

(Oh, can you dig it? In this photo I'm wearing the crew jacket from Kevin Costner's The Postman flick.  Don't get me started on THAT!)  

The BAD:

    Plot....  Lord help us, we should have known what to expect, after LOST and Star Trek: Into Darkness... If characters are J.J. Abrams's genius strong suit, plotting is pretty much hopeless.  

Star Wars: The Force Awakens (episode VII) is essentially a remake of Star Wars: A New Hope (ep.IV), starting with a dreamy youngster stuck on a desert world wearing beige-offwhite, who rescues a fugitive droid from scavengers and storm troopers. A droid containing a secret that might save the rebellion. Followed by a cantina scene, then a Millennium Falcon swoop-escape, then some tentacled monsters. After which we observe a helmeted baddy first report to an ugly-hissing hologram of an evil emperor, then see him leer and grill a captured princess aboard a giant planet-killer. At which point goodguy infiltrators lower the shields and have fun with a trash compacter...

... all of it culminating with a little ship diving or shooting into a big ship to blow it up from the inside.

Seriously, this makes FOUR out of seven flicks in which that happens. Four… out…of… seven. 

Really? Must you? Sure, character is more important than plot. Still, plotting matters. And here TFA gets a Grade D+

The UGLY... and a missed opportunity:

There were moments, alas, when I just had to fiercely quash all critical faculties in order to stay in the spirit of the film. I succeeded! (I get plenty of practice, alack.) But these tucked-away moments did come to mind, later. 

One was an embarrassing scene in the rebel base -- (will we ever see Leia actually use some force?) -- when some rebel warrior asks incredulously (I paraphrase) "But... but... isn't this just another damn Death Star?"  

To which came the lame answer - delivered in a voice that I swear sounded apologetic -  "But can't you see? This one is much BIGGER!" 

Seriously? The dial now goes to Eleven? Even the minor human characters are complaining and rationalizing, from inside the film itself!

But most of the lame scenes involved the lead villain: Kylo Ren. I mean, when he removed his helmet for the first time, transforming muffled echoes into normal (perchance rather whiney) tones, did you expect to find Rick Moranis under there? A part of me did. A part I hated! Because I really wanted to enjoy this flick...

...and I did! Truly, I did. Especially Max Von Sydow (!!!) doing his impression of Obiwan, first as a desert hermit, then getting struck down by Darth Junior. Only to come back later, more powerful than we can imagine? Oh Please? 

Still, dang, you couldn't have given Max Von Sydow a soliloquy? Just a little one? I mean... were you aware of the fact that you were aiming a camera at ... Max... Von... Sydow?

 ("There comes a time, barbarian, when jewels cease to sparkle, when gold loses its luster, when the throne room becomes a prison, and all that is left is a father's love for his child." Now that was a movie!)

But getting back to Kylo Ren. Um, we’re supposed to be impressed that Ren’s light saber has teeny little cross guards? Feh. Get a midichlorian fix, dude. Grade D-

Summing up:

Sure, this flick was essentially a remake of A New Hope, punctuated with other borrowings. In fact, next time you watch ep.VII, try to count the number of scenes that weren't homages to other SW flicks. Like Rey going underground to encounter the Force, the way Luke did on Dagoba. 

Or like another father-son confrontation on a bridge. That wasn't a bad idea, actually, though meh-executed, deserving far better attention to masterful dialogue. At least Han could have done a remise on the most-famous line by saying: “remember your mother.”  

(Good death scene for Han, though.)

My favorite part of SW: TFA? The very last scene. It was well done and a fine capper. (And possibly Mark Hamill’s best acting, ever.) 

Still, ask yourself this. Did Luke have to repeat Yoda’s path so precisely? Allowing one apprentice to kill all his other apprentices and then, instead of fixing the problem, going into a sulking exile till some new-hope trainee shows up? Um, didn't Obiwan do that, too? I mean, how many such things must repeat endlessly before fans start to stir, take notice and demand… 

...okay, okay, the answer to that question, I already know. 

Know it, so do you. 
Obvious -- and sad -- it is. 
Never, will they demand better.

But let's end up positive, here! Another set of high points were Rey’s confrontations with Ren. Cool stuff. Well drawn and acted and directed. I like her. 

And Finn. And all the women in my life vote for Oscar Isaac's character "Poe" who has the "force" of enviable masculinity. As I said, J.J. Abrams knows characters! He is brilliant with characters, as George Lucas was brilliant with visuals. And yet, as Clint Eastwood said - so-wisely - in Magnum Force: “A man’s got to know his limitations.” 

Clearly, J.J. Abrams knows this (Lucas did not.) Hence Abrams hired Laurence Kasden to work magic. And it worked, somewhat.  Extra credit points for good intentions.

The crux?  

I’ll not bother railing against this one — nor shouting joy, as I did after the anomalously wonderful Empire Strikes Back.  This newest installment is a decent-entertaining flick, benefiting from near complete absence of earlier Lucasian poisons.  A solid, fun, self-indulgent and utterly repetitive-cliched good investment of twenty bucks and a couple of hours of lifespan.  I regret nothing… 

…partly because my expectations were so low, to start with.