I feel that most of North America was introduced to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy when this version of the novel, adapted from the BBC radio broadcast, jumped the pond. I remember 1980, at Christmas the novel was under the Christmas Tree for me. I may have been a little young for it at…
Son of Dracula (1943) – Robert Siodmak
A mustachioed Lon Chaney Jr. takes over the role of Dracula in Son of Dracula, and while people insist he sounds like a foreigner he doesn’t sound like the Dracula we’ve been introduced to before, but perhaps he’s just another incarnation of the same creature. The Count, under the assumed name of Alucard (come on!)…
Stargate SG-1 (1999) – The Fifth Race, and A Matter of Time
Poor Jack (Richard Dean Anderson). O’Neill becomes infected with an alien database when they travel to one of the possible ally worlds of the five races allied against the goa’uld system lords. Written by Robert C. Cooper, The Fifth Race first debuted on 22 January, 1999. He begins to speak in an alien tongue, and…
Northern Exposure (1991) – Animals R Us, and Jules et Joel
Ed (Darren E. Burrows) struggles with his cinematic dreams, questioning whether he can actually make a film or not in Animals R Us. Written by Robin Green this episode first debuted on 14 October, 1991. There are a couple of narrative threads woven into this story, but the main one centers on Maggie (Janine Turner)…
What’s Next? (2024) – Melissa Fitgerald and Mary McCormack
I loved The West Wing, even if I came to it late. I remember working in the video store and as each season came in, cutting one for rent. I was fairly oblivious in my 20s, but as I grew, I became enchanted with Aaron Sorkin’s writing, and needed to watch the things he’d written….
Stargate SG-1 (1998) – Spirits, and Touchstone
When an SG team goes missing on a mining expedition SG-1 is sent to investigate and find themselves encountering a a transplanted tribe of Indigenous peoples who have very strong views about the SGC turning their mountain into a mining site. Written by Tor Alexander Valenza, Spirits first aired on 23 October, 1998. Before SG-1…
Phantom of the Opera (1943) – Arthur Lubin
It’s the first color Universal Monster movie! Phantom of the Opera is presented in gorgeous technicolor, this is the only one of the original Universal Monster movies that won the Oscars it was nominated for, Best Cinematography (Color) and Best Art Direction (Color). While one could argue that the Universal Monster series started with the…
Invisible Agent (1942) – Edwin L. Marin
The next Universal Monsters movie (that I haven’t previously seen) is Invisible Agent, and honestly, it feels like a huge step up from The Invisible Woman, but too often goes for the comedic angle instead of playing itself as a straight thriller, which I think it could have done brilliantly. This time we are introduced…
Dark Skies (1997) – Strangers in the Night, and Bloodlines
The penultimate episode of Dark Skies has a couple of weaving narrative threats as John Loengard (Eric Close) and Juliet Stewart (Jeri Ryan) are given a new mission by Bach (J.T. Walsh). They have to head into the Soviet Union to investigate what has happened at Majestic’s Russian counterpart. Written by Brad Markowitz, this episode…
The Mummy’s Tomb (1942) – Harold Young
Working as a direct sequel to The Mummy’s Hand, The Mummy’s Tomb is supposed to take place some thirty years after the previous film as Karis the Mummy (now played by Lon Chaney JR.) is used to hunt down the members of the party that defiled the tomb in the previous film. That means archeologist…
The Mind Reels 