I was very fortunate to chat with Ben Mauro when he appeared at Toronto’s Fan Expo. And I have just finished the first installment in his Huxley saga. Filled with world-building and fantastic art, Mauro takes some familiar science fiction tropes, and incorporates them in a new way. The trade paperback is composed of the…
Tag: sentient
A Closed and Common Orbit (2016) – Becky Chambers
I couldn’t wait. I had to dig into the second book of the Wayfarer series by Becky Chambers. The first book was just so powerful in its portrayal of friendships and family set against the stars and sensibilities of space opera. I didn’t want to wait and read something else, I had to devour the…
Stargate SG-1 (2000) – Watergate, and The First Ones
Marina Sirtis guest stars as a Russian scientist, Svetlana Markov, who asks Stargate Command for help in Watergate. First airing on 11 August, 2000, it was written by Robert C. Cooper. When Stargate Command is unable to activate their gate, they trace a signal to Siberia where there seems to be an open gate! And…
Stargate SG-1 (2000) – Pretense, and Urgo
Skaara (Alexis Cruz) returns! He escapes and reaches the Tollan who are going to hold him for triad, allowing the council to decide whether Skaara or his Goa’uld to claim his body. Pretense was written by Katharyn Powers and it debuted on 21 January, 2000. The Tollan, represented by Narim (Garwin Sanford) reach out to…
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022) – Serene Squall, and The Elysian Kingdom
Serene Squall lets the Enterprise crew have some fun as pirates take over their ship, and they inspire a mutiny to free themselves, but it also has ties not only to The Original Series, but to Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, tying those narrative threads together to make a cohesive tapestry. Written by Beau…
Sourcery (1988) – Terry Pratchett
I head back to Terry Pratchett’s wonderful fantasy realm of Discworld for this week’s book. The fifth book in the series is as much a delight as the first, and gives us another day of the inept wizard, Rincewind. When the eighth son of an eighth son is born a sorcerer walks the lands for…
Star Trek: Voyager (1997) – Revulsion, and The Raven
Captain’s log: stardate 51186.2 Lisa Klink pens this Doctor (Robert Picardo) episode that first aired on 1 October, 1997. The Voyager receives a distress call from a lone survivor aboard a damaged ship. The crew is stunned to discover that the survivor, Dejaren (Leland Orser) is a sentient hologram, not so dissimilar from their own…
Space: 1999 (1976) – The Mark of Archanon, and The Rules of Luton
A strange discovery beneath the surface of the moon gives Alpha a fun story to explore. Lew Schwartz penned this episode that first aired on 16 October, 1976. Carter (Nick Tate) discovers a pair of encased bodies with a strange mark on its casing. Here’s where I start to have a problem because Tony (Tony…
Doctor Who (Peter Capaldi) – The Zygon Inversion, and Sleep No More
Peter Harness and Steven Moffat pen the conclusion to the story begun last week in The Zygon Invasion, airing on 7 November, 2015, the episode left the Doctor (Capaldi) in a precarious predicament, the Zygon replacement of Clara (Jenna Coleman) had just launched a rocket at the President of Earth’s (the Doctor) plane – with…
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1992) – The Perfect Mate, and Imaginary Friend
Captain’s log: stardate 45761.3 Airing on 27 April, 1992 this episode was penned by Reuben Leder and Michael Piller from a story by Rene Echevarria and Leder. The episode features two exemplary guest stars, Famke Janssen, and Tim O’Connor. The Enterprise is ferrying Ambassador Briam (O’Connor) and his special cargo on a diplomatic mission. When…
The Mind Reels 