1984 was an awesome year for me. I moved to a tropical country, and because there was no regular television there, and everyone else seemed to have one, my family bought it’s first VCR. And from there I was able to explore countless genre’s to my heart’s content. And seeing as there were so many…
Tag: robots
Gog (1954) – Herbert L. Stock
DK Books’ Monsters in the Movies beings me another mechanical menace, as I am introduced to Gog, in this 1954 science fiction film, that despite it’s terrible pacing, story, and acting hints at tech that is currently in use today, like stealth planes, solar energy, and malware. We are introduced to Dr. David Sheppard (Richard…
Space: 1999 (1976) – Seed of Destruction, and The AB Chrysalis
Broadcast on 11 November, 1976, Seed of Destruction, penned by John Goldsmith lets Commander John Koenig (Martin Landau) indulge into that classic sci-fi trope, the evil twin. He and Carter (Nick Tate) are investigating a strange asteroid that Maya (Catherine Schell) reports is giving off a strange energy reading. While Carter works on the Eagle,…
Space: 1999 (1976) – Journey to Where, and One Moment of Humanity
Moonbase Alpha continues to hurtle among the stars drawing us with them as Koenig (Martin Landau), Russell (Barbara Bain), Alan (Nick Tate), Maya (Catherine Schell), Tony (Tony Arnholt) and the rest of the crew try to survive. Trouble rears its head this week in Journey to Where, penned by Donald James this episode first debuted…
Goliath and the Vampires (1961) – Sergio Corbucci & Giacomo Gentilomo
Monsters in the Movies, by director John Landis and available from DK Canada, keeps the vampire films coming as I continue to stake my way through the chapter on the undead. That brings me to this odd and dubbed entry from Italy that adds (?) to the sword and sorcery genre with some strange trappings…
POPnology at the Ontario Science Centre
It’s summer vacation, time for camps, bike rides, beaches, family trips, seemingly endless days spread out before the young to enjoy, to forget the long reach of scholastic achievement, teachers, and books. So how can you make learning fun, and ensure that the entire family is entertained? Combine education with entertainment, with movies, and pop…
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1992) – The Quality of Life, and Chain of Command Part I
Captain’s log: stardate 46307.2 Airing on 16 November, 1992, The Quality of Life feels pretty familiar to previous episodes. Written by Naren Shankar from material by L.J. Scott, this episode sees the Enterprise arriving at Tyras 71 to help out in a mining project taking place there. Working from an orbital platform the mining facility…
Doctor Who (Peter Capaldi) – Robot of Sherwood, and Listen
The Doctor (Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) embark on a bit of a lark with Robot of Sherwood. Written by Mark Gatiss this episode first aired on 6 September, 2014. Clara has always wanted to meet Robin Hood, which the Doctor insists was made up. To prove the point he takes her to Sherwood Forest…
The Twilight Zone (1963) – In Praise of Pip, Steel, and Nightmare at 20,000 Feet
It’s time to dive into the fifth and final season of The Twilight Zone. The Complete Series on blu-ray, available from Paramount Pictures unveils the first three episodes of the season this week, as the series returns to a twenty-five minute runtime per episode as opposed to the fifty minute episodes of the previous season….
Doctor Who (Matt Smith) – The Eleventh Hour, and The Beast Below
Matt Smith steps into the TARDIS this week as the new Doctor. Following our brief glimpse of him at the conclusion of The End of Time, the story picks up moments later with the blue box plummeting to Earth and into a story written by Steven Moffat. The episode first aired on 3 April, 2010,…
Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973) – The Magicks of Megas-Tu, Once Upon a Planet, and Mudd’s Passion
Captain’s log: stardate 1254.4 Long before the search for Eden and God led the Enterprise to the Final Frontier in Star Trek V, Captain Kirk (William Shatner), Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and McCoy (DeForest Kelley) encountered a similar adventure in a similar location. Written by Larry Brody, this episode aired on 27 October, 1973. The Enterprise…
Doctor Who (David Tennant) – School Reunion and The Girl in the Fireplace
The Doctor (Tennant) and Rose (Billie Piper) go back to school, and the Companion gets a look at a possible future in School Reunion. Airing on 29 April, 2006 the episode was written by Toby Whithouse, and it brought back a couple of fan favourites. When strange happenings occur at Deffry Vale High School the…
