Smallville (2002) – Heat, and Duplicity

The second episode of season two drops us right back into the freak-of-the-week cycle, while continuing to develop the overall character and mythology arcs. Heat first aired on 1 October, 2002 and was written by Mark Verheiden. Clark (Tom Welling) discovers his heat vision, which gets out of control pretty quickly, and hurts Lana (Kristin…

Smallville (2002) – Tempest, and Vortex

Tempest closes out the first season of Smallville. Written by showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar from a story by Philip Levens, season one came to a close on 21 May, 2002. The spring formal is here, Clark (Tom Welling) and Chloe (Allison Mack) are headed out together. And there’s lots of other character stuff…

Stargate SG-1 (1998) – Need, and Thor’s Chariot

SG-1 does its addiction episode with Need. Written by Robert C. Cooper from a story Cooper developed with Damian Kindler. It first aired on 24 July, 1998. When the team arrives on a distant world Daniel Jackson (Michael Shanks) saves a young woman, Shyla (Heather Hanson) from taking her own life. The team is captured…

Sphere (1987) – Micheal Crichton

It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Michael Crichton. There was a time when there were a number of novels on my bedside table that had his name on them but nothing for a couple of decades, and I thought perhaps I should revisit those I knew and explore the ones I didn’t,…

Project: Hail Mary (2021) – Andy Weir

I loved Andy Weir’s The Martian, and happily dug into Project: Hail Mary (I still need to read Artemis), and was completely wowed by it. I haven’t had this sense of wonder and sense of discovery and exploration since I read Clarke’s Odyssey and Rama series. Ryland Grace, former biologist turned teacher wakes up and…

Proxima Command – An Evening’s Sci-Fi Adventure

Ever since I was a kid and first discovered Star Wars, Star Trek, and science fiction in general, I had dreams of stepping onto the bridge of a starship, or spaceship, and exploring, seeking out new life forms, engaging in intergalactic battles, or watching the stunning starscape slip past my windows. I remember sitting at…

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1995) – Starship Down, and Little Green Men

Station log: stardate 49263.5 David Mack and John J. Ordover pen this episode that first premiered on 6 November, 1995. Inside a gas giant, Captain Sisko (Avery Brooks) leads the Defiant crew on a dangerous cat-and-mouse game with some Jem’Hadar ships that were attacking a Karemma ship.As the crew work to elude and outwit the…

Plan 9 From Outer Space (1959) – Ed Wood Jr.

While not necessarily a vampire movie, Plan 9 From Outer Space, undeniably one of the worst films ever made (which in turn made it a cult classic), is the next title in the vampire section of John Landis’ Monsters in the Movies from DK Canada. The film does feature a plan to resurrect the dead,…

Space: 1999 (1975) – Mission of the Darians, and Black Sun

Johnny Byrne pens this episode that first debuted on 30 October, 1975, that sees Moonbase Alpha encountering yet another alien life form (something that they take way too easily in stride as a series. There should be wonder and discovery associated with these things, but instead we just dive into the story – although there…