Spielberg took on the real-world events in 1972 of the Palestinian Black September group’s horrific killing of Israeli Olympic athletes and the resulting action taken by Israeli forces in retribution. Spielberg takes no sides in retelling the event, instead engaging in the human drama at work in the thriller, the effect of the ongoing conflict,…
Tag: humanity
Ringworld (1970) – Larry Niven
I dug into some classic science fiction this week with Larry Niven’s Ringworld novel, which is set in his Known Space universe. I hadn’t explored any of his stories before, but this one was recommended to me from somewhere, and I found the general idea intriguing, a massive ring, instead of an enclosed sphere, placed…
Amistad (1997) – Steven Spielberg
Spielberg returns to another examination of humanity and history with his 1997 film Amistad. Based on an actual event in 1839, the film explores a revolt of Mende captives aboard the Spanish ship La Amistad. When the captives take over the ship they demand that the surviving crew take them back to Africa, but instead,…
Eversion (2022) – Alastair Reynolds
Alastair Reynolds takes the reader on an epic journey across time. Tinging his new tale, Eversion, with hints of Verne, Lovecraftian cosmic horror, O’Brien, and 50s sci-fi Reynolds introduces us to Silas Coade, ship’s doctor, We slide through time, across a variety of vehicles, sailing ships, airships, and spacecraft, but it is always the same…
August Kitko and the Mechas from Space (2022) – Alex White
Orbit Books delivers a loud space opera with Alex White’s new novel, August Kitko and the Mechas from Space. The first in a new series known as the Starmetal Symphony, August Kitko is a fantastic tale that plays like a jazz fusion anime in the mind’s eye. Combining giant robot action, with a joyously crafted…
War for the Planet of the Apes (2017) – Matt Reeves
Matt Reeves followed up his turn on Dawn of the Planet of the Apes with War for the Planet of the Apes, the third film in the new series, which works to tie itself back into the original series, forming one big circle. Andy Serkis dons the mo-cap suit again to bring Caesar, the chimp,…
Eyes of the Void (2022) – Adrian Tchaikovsky
Orbit Books hooked me with Tchaikovsky’s Shard of Earth so I was very eager to dive into the second novel in the series Eyes of the Void. Once again I was swept up in the fantastically told tale, as Tchaikovsky built on what had already happened in the first novel continued delving into the worlds…
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1981) – The Hand of the Goral, and Testimony of a Traitor
Francis Moss pens The Hand of the Goral, which first aired on 26 March, 1981. Buck (Gil Gerard) who still looks a little rough around the edges, but not so bad as the last episode, Hawk (Thom Christopher), and Wilma (Erin Gray) arrive on a far distant world known commonly as the Planet of Death….
Shards of Earth (2021) – Adrian Tchaikovsky
Before I could dig into Eyes of the Void by Adrian Tchaikovsky, available now through Orbit Books, I had to familiarize myself with the characters of the universe he created by reading the first volume, Shards of Earth, also available from Orbit Books. Within pages of Tchaikovsky’s book, I was wrapped up in the imagination…
Star Trek: First Frontier (1995) – Diane Carey and Dr. James I. Kirkland
It has been a while since I’ve explored the final frontier as documented in Simon & Schusters’ Star Trek novels. I’ve been craving lots of Trek recently, so it seemed like a perfect time to dive back into the adventures of Kirk and company. This time around Diane Carey, who has written several Trek novels,…
The Mind Reels 