THE 5 BEST AND WORST THINGS ABOUT STAR TREK

Daughter Jessie hangs with the Klingons

I had a blast last weekend playing the part of Big Time Author at the Shore Leave Science Fiction Convention in Hunt Valley, Maryland. I signed books at the Meet the Pros event and in the Dealers’ Room, geeked out at a session with DEFIANCE stars Jaime Murray, Tony Curran and Jesse Rath (the love-to-hate-’em Tarr family) and sat on three pro panels with other authors.

I had the most fun at one of those panels: The Best and Worst of STAR TREK and STAR WARS. The panel was originally supposed to be a Battle Royale between fans of the various TREK incarnations, in which I am always prepared to defend The Original Series above all others. But an overabundance of panels meant we had to combine ours with one about the best and worst of STAR WARS. Which meant we ended up with  fans of the two largest franchises in SF history in the same room. Anyone unfamiliar with SF might be naïve enough to ask why that is a problem. (Mundanes often confuse  the two anyway.)  Anyone else knows to batten the hatches.

Well, it’s not like the old days. Everyone played nice and left the bat’leths and light sabers at home. Many of the writers on the panel had written pro novels in both universes. But it did give me an idea for this blog.

So, here, IMHO, are my five best and worst things about TREK:

BEST

--Characterization. In particular, Kirk, Spock and McCoy are the Holy Trinity of characters, representing, depending on your perspective, Mind, Body, Spirit; Id, Ego, Superego; Thesis, Argument, Synthesis; Physical, Emotional, Rational. Need I go on?

--Technology. The special effects might have been less than stellar in the early going, but you can’t discount the inspirational effect of TREK’s tech. The communicator is now in everyone’s hands because a guy who watched that show wanted to make it happen and invented the cell phone. NASA, computer labs, biotech firms and engineering companies everywhere are full of people who grew up on TREK and want to see that stuff become reality.

--Vision. And talk about inspiration. Not just the tech, but the kind of world we want to create, with a bridge full of diversity and a mission to explore, not dominate. 

--Adult Perspective. This may seem a strange quality to praise in a show that has spawned generations of cosplaying, action-figure-collecting fans, but the concerns of TREK are not coming-of-age, finding our true roles in life, accepting/rejecting our fathers’ choices or any of the other concerns of young adults. They are more about accepting the “evil” that may be part of us, negotiating difficult relationships with others, leading men and women through impossible hardships, the immediacy of war vs. the delicacy of diplomacy, the nature of love, responsibility, duty, friendship. (Let’s hope J.J. Abrams remembers this before it’s too late.)

Picard and Dathon at El-Adrel

--“Darmok”.  One of the best episodes in TREK comes not from TOS, but from NEXT GENERATION in “Darmok.” Captain Picard and the Enterprise encounter an alien culture that communicates entirely in allegorical phrases, negating the ability of the translator to help them bridge the communication gap. This episode stands out because the aliens in it truly think differently. And for once, TREK’s tech is of no use; only the human ability to make an intuitive leap saves the day. Kirk would have been proud. 

WORST

--Wesley Crusher. See “Adult Perspective” above. The presence of Wesley on the bridge seriously disrupted the TREK force. Chekov came close to this annoying role in TOS, but he was older, and everyone had permission to ignore or abuse him.

--Similarly, anytime there were children on TOS Enterprise, trouble—and bad acting--ensued. “And The Children Shall Lead” comes to mind.

--Cheesy effects. We all know they did the best they could on TOS, but sometimes you just have to close your eyes and ears. And, seriously, if the turbulence is that bad, couldn’t you just install seat belts? So many bodies on the bridge!

--ENTERPRISE. Almost everything about it. I love Scott Bakula, but he was seriously miscast in this murky “prequel” to TOS. We went nowhere and we did it tentatively, hounded by Starfleet Command back home and the interfering Vulcans along the way.

--Hippies in space. (“Journey to Paradise” TOS) Abuse of the holodeck (multiple epidsodes TNG,VOY). Ferengies. (DS9) Impenetrable politics. (DS9) Sorry, I couldn’t decide which was worse.

So, what do YOU say? What are the best and worst of TREK in your opinion?

And, since I’m not a huge STAR WARS fan, I leave it up to our resident STAR WARrior, Laurie, to give us her list of the best and worst of SW.  I can just kick it off by offering my best—Han Solo—and worst—JarJar Binks—may he be encased in carbon forever.

Cheers, Donna

Life on Mars? We'd like to think so...

The red planet has fascinated us Earthlings for many years. I watched John Carter just a few weeks ago. I kno, I know. But I prefer to wait for the DVD, you see. Anyway, it was a fun movie, with the intrepid American adventurer finding himself on far off Barsoom fighting for a Martian princess. And in the end, of course, love conquers all.

It was altogether a more comfortable experience than The War of the Worlds, H.G. Wells's turn of the last century masterpiece. It has been filmed many times, with varying degrees of success.

Of course, now we know that the Martian canals don't exist, that Barsoom is fiction, and that the octopus-like aliens in their tripod machines came from one man's imagination. So far, we haven't even confirmed a microbe on Mars.

But we just can't let it go. Humans recognise patterns. Pareidolia is probably a hard-wired defence mechanism, very useful for primitive man. These days, it tends to manifest as seeing people where there aren't any. The man in the moon is one example. If you clicked on the link to pareidolia you will have found the reference to the face on Mars. Naturally, that one had the plot bunnies up and running, and a movie was made (Mission to Mars - not one that made it to the Oscar nominations). The real explanation for the face is rather more prosaic.

Now we have a new example - the ghostly woman on Mars. It seems the UFO-hunters are freaking out. Maybe the princess on Barsoom is real? It doesn't take a very vivid imagination to come up with a plot incorporating the lady. Perhaps a sentinel warning off the alien invaders. Maybe there's something underground that triggered a hologram when the rover came too near? Or... ooh ooh ... perhaps it's a welcoming committee?

What do you think?

Tuesday Teaser - Cajun #Zombie Problems #YA #paranormal

While I continue with my summer book binge and spending time with my three monsters, here's another excerpt and featuring an altogether different kind of monster. Here, my teen zombie hero Luke as passed out in the swamp after an encounter with a weird black shadow that's been following him around. But the shadow's no longer the problem...

I can hear the frogs. Above me, the moon is so fiercely white and full, it hurts my eyes. It's also jerking across the sky between the branches of the cypress like someone's hauling on the leash of a disobedient hound. I frown at it, and then realize it ain't the moon moving. It's me. Something's got a hold of my leg and is dragging me along.
Glancing down sets me yelling. A gator has my right ankle in its jaws as it pulls me down to the river. A small one as alligators go and probably why he hasn't dug himself a hole in the mud to hibernate. I guess he's planning to stick me under a log until I rot and tenderize a little more. But I ain't planning to end up in his stomach. Not when I might still be conscious all the way through digestion.
I twist and latch onto a nearby tree. I'm so slick with mud that sheer strength and bloody minded stubbornness are all that keep me clinging on.
My resistance earns me a growling from the gator, and he yanks all the harder on my foot until I can hear my joints popping as they threaten to snap. He shakes his head, hoping to break my hold, and my damn fingers slip. I feel things parting in my ankle. Shit, I can't afford to lose my foot. I let go of the tree but I kick him in the head with my free leg, hard enough that he lets go. Most gators wouldn't give up a meal so lightly, but I hit a damn site too forceful to be classed as easy. He growls and goes for another bite, but my next kick breaks his jaw. Bleeding, several teeth missing, he scuttles away into the river, more than his pride hurt. I sit and stare until the ripples he made smooth out into stillness. Then I check the damage.
His teeth have gone deep, leaving a pretty pattern and some of my flesh torn. I don't have nothing to patch it up, and I don't much care. I've lost Annabelle. I should have just let the gator take me.

A YA Zombie Novella
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When Influence Lingers: Post-Mortem Characters

This week, I'd like to take a look at something that's general not associated with Science Fiction Romance.

Ghosts.

Not all ghosts are banished to the Paranormal realm in fiction. Sometimes the most influential characters in a novel, other than the MCs themselves, are those of the departed. And sometimes the lingering presence of the departed plays a very big part in SF/R.

Think about it.

Luke Skywalker destroyed the Death Star when the spirit of Obi Wan Kenobi told him to "use the Force, Luke!"

In Contact, Dr. Ellen Arroway becomes obsessed with the stars and "really big antennas" because of her deep grief at the loss of her father-mentor, who taught her about astronomy and ham radios at a young age.

The obscure backstory in Aliens (cut from the original movie, but touched on in the extended version) revealed that Ripley, driven by grief and guilt over the death of her daughter--a daughter she had last seen at age 10, who had matured and died during Ripley's 57-year stasis aboard the drifting Nostromo shuttle--resulting in her strong maternal bond with Rebecca "Newt" Jorden, a young survivor of the alien-infested LV-426.

Let's take a closer look at how strongly the dead can influence the living.

A Post-Mortem Character (PMC) is often someone who was close to the character, a relative, friend, or teacher. Or they could also be an idol (Elvis, Princess Di) or a person of political or cultural influence (Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa) or someone they admired…or despised. Any departed soul who is in a position to influence a character’s life, decisions, actions or plans could be a PMC. They can take an active role in the plot, taking on personality traits through flashbacks, memories, dreams or interaction with living characters. Or they can take a passive role through the living character’s thoughts. The influence of PMCs can take many forms.

The Mentor. The PMC can act as an active voice that lingers, guiding the character with their remembered wisdom. The character maintains a dialogue with the Mentor, whether real or imagined. The character might hear The Mentor’s voice in their head, see them in dreams or visions, or ask what would you, [insert name of dearly departed PMC], do in this situation? The aforementioned Obi Wan Kenobi was a Mentor PMC. Another example is in The Outback Stars. When Sergeant Terry Myell is close to death he is visited by his mother who calls him by his special name—Jungali—and gives him hints about the choices he must make.

The Inspiration. The character is compelled to complete a journey the PMC began, but could not complete themselves due to death. A son who takes up his father’s sword and vows to finish his quest is a common theme, sword being a symbolic word for cause. Although similar to a Mentor, there is no imaginary dialogue between the character and the PMC, but the PMC’s influence is evident by the character’s motivation. In Inherit the Stars, not only are Zaviar Mennelsohn's son, daughter and brother compelled to carry out his great vision, but the entire consortium called "The Network."

The Conscience. The PMC’s memory prompts the character to do things or make choices that would make the PMC proud, etc. This is probably the most universal and passive PMC influence. My father always told me to… My mother wanted me to be… What would my grandmother think if she knew I…

The Reshaper. The grief of the PMCs passing results in life-altering changes in the character. The character might move away, change their lifestyle, because of--or to avoid facing--the memory of the departed one. The death of Duke Leto Atreides in Dune sends his young son Paul into exile, where he raises an unlikely army of Fremen in the quest to avenge his father’s murder.

The Lingerer. This sort of PMC may incite the opposite effect of a Reshaper when the character holds on to their memories too tightly, whether or not he/she should, and this also causes life-altering events or conflict. In Ann Aguirre’s Grimspace, navigator March is affected by the memory of his late Grimspace navigator/partner, while his new navigator, Sirantha Jax, still stings from the loss of her own pilot/partner/lover, Kai, a situation that causes a rift between them and threatens their freshly minted do-it-or-die alliance.

The Reverser. Not all PMCs are someone admired. Another aspect of a PMC affecting a character is when they vow not to behave like the departed, not to make the same mistakes, or carry the same negative traits. In contrast to a Reshaper who sends the MC off in a different direction or spurs them to begin their initial quest, a Reverser sends the character into gear-slamming reverse. In this case, the PMC lives on as an example of what not to do. Though it's not SF/R, a classic example might be The Lord of the Ring's Aragorn and his determination not to fall prey to his ancestor's (Isildur's) weakness in failing to destroy The One Ring.

The Haunter. This PMC can have the effect of the Mentor, Inspiration, or Conscience but they do so more directly—through fear. They mentally or physically haunt the character with lingering nightmares, apparitions or poltergeist activities. They may be adversaries, villains, abusers, or victims, but not always. The tone is threatening, but not all Haunters are evil. In the motion picture Dragonfly, the deceased wife of the MC haunts her husband through her former child patients and household objects, goading him to take a journey to South America to discover something very precious that he believed lost—their infant daughter.

In a twist on the PMC, the characters themselves may already be deceased, but that fact is concealed until the shocker ending when their lingering influence on others is revealed. In fact, this isn’t all that rare. Do these movie titles sound familiar? The Sixth Sense. The Others. 

Have you read a recent SF/R that has a PMC? If so, let us know the title and what form of influence the PMC had on a central character.

Now, here’s the real challenge. Can you think of a major novel or motion picture that didn’t have a character somehow affected by a PMC influence?

Good luck with that. ;)

Have a great week.