Review: Elfin Lied

Elfin Lied is based on a Japanese manga series  originally serialized Weekly from June 2002 to August 2005, with the 107 chapters collected into twelve tankōbon volumes. 

Elfen Lied focuses on the "Diclonius" who's appearance is similar to humans, but with several key differencese, namely horn-like protrusions on the forehead and telekinetic  arms called "Vectors". One such Diclonius, Lucy, is the main character of the series: Initially held in a facility built for experimentation, located off the coast of Kamakura, she manages to escape and wreak havoc, but is injured in the process, an event which causes her to develop a secondary, childlike personality known as Nyu.

Lucy is found by two locals, Kohta, who studies at the local university, and his cousin Yuka. They take her in, and become involved with the numerous, often brutal, attempts to recapture her by a Special Assault Team and a number of other Diclonius, who shift frequently from oblivious to murderous.

It is obvious even with this short description, that Elfin Lied has a great deal going for it.  An engaging tale with characters that are both interesting and easy to identify with.  

However the very things that make this series work also work against it.  Taking 107 chapters and making 13 episodes should set off the warning bells quickly.  The main character goes from a quiet introvert to one that exudes confidence and does so in a very short order.   Nyu is a wonderful foil but it is never quite believable that Nyu is the blood drenched "Diclonius" Lucy.   Episode 13 comes quickly, so much so that one is very confused because it does not seem to have a contiguous timeline.

Don't get me wrong, Elfin Lied was far and away one of the better series I have watched to date.  I really think that generally this series will be found entertaining.  However the flaws will be evident early on.  So out of a possible 10 I would list it a 7.

Review: Future Diary Anime Series

 Review by Ninthgate_Show

So you're an antisocial, nonathletic, Japanese wallflower with really no ambition besides writing inconsequential sightings in your cell phone diary. No? Well, if you were, you would likely be Yukiteru Amano, the main protagonist in the anime Future Diary/ Mirai Nikki, one of most intense and disturbing sci-fi series in the last couple years.

ABC Orders Nine More S.H.I.E.L.D.s

Sci. Fi. Storm is reporting that:

• ABC has given a back nine order for Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D., bringing the series up to a full season of 22 episodes. The show has been the best drama so far this year in the 18-49 demographic, and it was the highest rated debut in nearly four years.

From the Wiki article:

• created for ABC by Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen, based on the Marvel Comics organization S.H.I.E.L.D. The series ... is set in the Marvel Universe, sharing continuity with the films in that franchise.

Warehouse 13 Gets a Half-Heated Renewal

Fans of Warehouse 13 that have been holding their collective breaths wondering if the show would garner enough support for a renewal can rest, well, easier.  I have good news and bad news.  The good is this quirky sci-fi offering has netted a renews, but in the most back handed way possible....only six episodes.  Yep you read that correctly.  The fifth season of Warehouse only garnered six new episodes, and that is the bad.  

This is what Mark Wilson of About wrote after finding this choice piece of crap.

• Syfy honcho Mark Stern nonetheless had the chutzpah to praise the show and its special place in Syfy's heart.

No Mr Stern, I think you mean another orifice presently blocked by another part of your anatomy.....

Here by the way is a link to Mark's article HERE

Lost Girl Good For Season Four

Fans of the fantasy series Lost Girl rejoice!  Mark Wilson over at About.com writes that SyFy has renewed the series for a fourth season.  Production should resume in April 2013 but don't look for the new episodes until 2014. 

Thirteen episodes have been ordered so we can look for a complete season.   No word on what we can expect plot-wise, however executive producer Jay Firestone assures us a roller-coaster ride.  Main character "Bo" alliances will be challenged and everything she thought she knew about her past will be turned upside down.

Fringe, We Gona Mis Ya

Again for those that might have lived in a cavern over the past several years, I am writing about Fox's sf series Fringe. Staring Anna Torv as Olivia Dunham, Joshua Jackson as Peter Bishop, John Noble as Dr. Walter Bishop and a cast that enjoyed many recurring as well as regular appearing characters.  Check out the wikipedia here. 

Fringe is a secret government project that investigates very odd and strange occurrences  that don't make any sense.  This in itself is a twisted plot device.  At first they are attacks from possibly a parallel dimension, but there are other things going on that point to very strange individuals, from someplace even stranger!

What it comes down to is that in it's run, Fringe is and was a very smart program.  Even when there were occurrences the science seemed so plausible  even if it does fall under the general field covered by as Rucker calls bogocity generators (I just LOVE that term!)  

Now a lot of shows did what Fringe did....but no where  did they dare do it all at the same time.  Not that Fringe didn't have plot arcs, because it did, but they were like Russian nesting dolls, one inside another.  

Yes, it was a very smart program and one that I put off ending as long as I could.  For those of you that would like to catch up on fringe you can find it on Hulu and Fox.  If you haven't seen the last season or the last few programs, you own it to yourself.

SyFy Kills More Original SF - More Wraslin To Follow

Michael Hinman over at Airlock Alpha is reporting that after two seasons, "SyFy, according to a network source,  has decided not to renew 'Alphas' for a third season," 

The statement goes on to load on the BS about how proud SyFy was to carry the program and thanked the fans for their support.  (why does that statement make me feel like I just performed a particularly vile and disgusting sexual act?) 

Oh and hey fans of the show, don't be looking for any clean up of plot lose ends, SyFy is really cutting Alphas off at the knees.  

I really don't know how to comment on this.  Am I surprised?  No, not really, the network has a really well developed track record when it comes to science fiction, yep, they like wrasslin.   But I would not put it past them to showcase the newest southern phenom. mudcat hand noodlin.  Mark my word...    

Airlock Alpha article

Review : Btoom! anime series

Anyone ever catch the latest Predator movie? The last one remember? Where

people wake up not knowing where they are or why. Periodically a c130 flies over and drops supplies. You "win" when you destroy the mysterious alien bent on killing you. This is where the review gets a little strange because to some extent I have been describing the anime series Btoom! In Btoom! Main character Ryōta wakes up hanging in a parachute harness. Once free he finds that everyone he meets wants to kill him. There are no guns or knives but different "flavors" of hand thrown explosive. Ryōta is know a one of the best players of an online game called "Btoom" and strangely enough the island and the online game seem to mirror each other. Ryōta realizes that if he plays the game on the island he may be able to go home. Throughout the first few episodes Ryōta gains allies and begins to think that he might be able to get back. The only downside is each player wears a crystal embedded in their hand. when they dye the crystal releases. When you have killed 8 other players you can get off the island. Btoom! is much better than I make it out to be. The plot is far superior to the regular anime angst in high school. The premise keeps you attention and the action, though sometimes ultra violent, leave you in anticipation of the next installment. Though I might want to warn some of the faint of heart, the Mature warning is not all for the violence. There are some very adult situations as well. Many of the "players" on the island feel that the isolation is carte blanche on any type of behavior. It soon becomes evident why the women trapped on the island and forced to play, do not trust men at all. Well it soon is clear to all that the people on the island were chosen for their playing ability of Btoom! With many in fact knowing each other! I thought this series very inventive and entertaining in many ways. I would give it an 8.5 just wondering why some of the theme items are REAL close to the Predator movie. Nit picking I know. Watch it, you will not be disapointed!

Oh, and the ending is way wide open!  Only 12 episodes and almost none of the strings are tied up!
Bummer!

Fringe Ends Run in January of 2013

According to Mark over at About sci-fi / fantasy, Fringe will end its run in January of 2013.  Fox has set the Fringe series finale: to Friday, Jan. 18, and it'll be a two-hour windup.  

However we know that not everything on Fringe is what it seems and that plays true with the final episode.  The double episode will in truth be the twelfth and thirteenth of the season. It will actually be the last two-thirds of a three-part story arc that starts on Jan. 11.  And as you can guess no new shows during the holiday  season.  

I am sorry, but the rest of the article reads like an obit and that just depresses the crap out of me.  You can read it all HERE

Review: Sound of the Sky anime series

Review of anime series Sound of the Sky

Directed by Mamoru Kanbe

Original run January 5, 2010 – March 22, 2010
Episodes 12

The story takes place in a post-apocalyptic world after a great war in the fairly distant future as evidence by the "tank", which is considered a relic from a earlier time but hints at tech far in advance of that available in the present, that the series character and one in particular is working to restore to operational status. The "world war" regressed humanity to early 20th century technology. It also appears that the world is slowly running down. Each year there is more desert and less arable land.

The main character is called Kanata who is motivated to join the Helvetian (seems to be another name for Switzerland) Army after hearing a talented bugler. Joining she is assigned to the 1121st Platoon.

Peace talks with "Rome", but they speak German, have collapsed and their army is on the move towards Helvetia. There are sub-plots and character interactions and one is general, that of the Tower Maidens, which the story seems to slowly revolve around.

There are only 12 episode spread across 4 dvd disks, but that is enough to build characters that are complex and heart-warming. There is also enough time to evolve a strong plot of people and circumstances.

The anime art is pretty standard but overall done well. The characters are easy to identify with and the story is long enough for you to familiarize with them.

There are no extra to account for, but the story is interesting and entertaining enough to make up for. I would be tempted to call it young adult anime but it is adult and complex enough to keep an adults interest.

If you are looking for a weekend rental...this would do the job as long as you can get all four disks. That was my complaint was that on a budget plan it took a while to see all the episodes, so maybe it would be worth a purchase if it could be had at discount.

Guess Who's Coming for Dinner

Mark Wilson writing in About SF reports that the SF channel's Lost Girl has been renewed for a third season!  Yaaaaaaaaaaae!

And even better news is that Linda Hamilton of Terminator and Chuck fame will be, as Mark puts it, guesting as Acacia, a ruthless assassin.  So far Acacia is slated for just one episode.  (please let there be more!)

I know, not much to report, but as a Lost Girl fan and also always happy to know that Linda "Sarah Connor" Hamilton is still going strong, was a double payday for me. 

So look for her in an upcoming episode of Lost Girl on SyFy.

COMMENT: Goodbye Eureka

Wow, last episode. I am going to leave the "how

disapointing" or "how disappointed I am with SyFy" and just for a few minutes ponder the loss of another great show. Eureka was always a quaint proposition in the first place. They took their science from the Star Trek school of physics most of the time and often the show was blatant morality plays. But if you were a fan, you were a FAN. The people were easy enough to identify, if you didn't get it right off, our everyman Carter was there to "this is what I do...." But they managed to go out in style, yes a tear jerker at times, I know, but the closed loop at the end?!!! I am SOOOOO loving that.

So not so much as losing a close friend, the feeling for Eureka at the risk of being anthropomorphic, was having that close friend move away.

The sting will fade as it has before with better, far better shows, but if you have enjoyed the years, then you know the characters you have come to enjoy aren't there. TV Science Fiction is plainer for it.

Good bye Eureka

Oh and thanks to Kallamis for the graphic find!  Sweet!

Lost In Space's Robot Has Lost His Voice

Airlock Alpha reports that the iconic voice of the 60s classic Lost in Space's robot has died. Dick Tufeld who's famous lines like "Danger, Will Robinson" and "That does not compute"  died Jan. 22 he was 85.

Tufeld worked on many of producer Irwin Allen's productions such as Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and  The Time Tunnel though, as AA points out, his work often went uncredited.

Tufeld is survived by two sons, two daughters and six grandchildren.   His wife Adrienne died in 2004.   

Pioneer One tv Series still alive and well.

Back in August of 2010 I reported on this odd little series, a bit more than webisodes but not quite network tv called Pioneer One It had one episode out and, curiously was asking those that liked the show, to help fund it.

The first episode centered around a strange "satellite" that crashes into Edmundton CA. Instead of a satellite however is is a Soviet era space craft containing the lone survivor of a lost Soviet mission to Mars.

The first episode was dark, mysterious and full of political tension. Good stuff, but I didn't hear any more about it.

Well it would seem that Pioneer One is going strong with five episodes ready for viewing and the sixth in production!

So if you like your sci fi dark with lots of tension....check out the Pioneer One website here
Plus if you caught the first one but lost track as I did, you will like how the show is progressing!

Beam Me Up Episode 281 now online

This episode for the first week in October 2011, as usual I go in for stories that are seasonal I think you would say.

With that in mind the first story of the evening is the conclusion to The Dark InSpectre written and read by Jason Kahn. This is episode 17 of Unfinished Business in which our intrepid psychic detective Jack Garrett puts the finishing touches to one of the most horrific murders he has ever seen.

The second story this week is a classic piece from the pages of Analog Magazine call “Am I still Here?” by James R. Hall. Here, in a tale set into the near future where any and everything can be repaired or replaced in a human body, the question is asked…when do you stop being you and become something or someone else that just thinks it is you?

In news…Earth Sky speaks about water flows on Mars and the makeup of mysterious rogue waves. I read the impressions of some NASA astronauts that have taken the ride home in a Soyuz capsule.

From the Blog

Doug Hilton sends us a note on his news short story collection: How We Play Football in Alabama And Other Short Stories. Mark Wilson over at About SF writes that The movie Source Code is coming to the small screen as a series. The giant particle accelerator The Tevatron is shutting down 9/30/11 and a great project becomes victim like SETI, to budget cuts and apathy.

Thats episode 281 of Beam Me Up

Source Code to Become a Series

Mark Wilson over at About SF writes that The movie Source Code is coming to the small screen as a series. The new series is being developed by Mark Gordon (he was a producer on the film) at ABC Studios and has been sold to CBS, with the pilot being written by Steve Maeda (Lie to Me and Lost). The skinny is that there will be 3 former federal agents who involved in the top-secret program. It really is starting to feel more Quantuum Code ummm I mean Leap. The idea has been pitched and sold to CBS but there is no long term info on who will head up the series or the cast, just the pilot is being considered right at this moment.

Eureka Canceled?! Say it ain't so!

Mark Wilson over at About SF has some pretty distressing news for SF fans. One of the best shows to come out of SYFy's writing stable has been the quirky Eureka - a secret DOD facility in the guise of a small town, rife with ubber geeks and weird science. Mark reports that SY FY has backed out of any commitment past season 5, effectively ending the show at the end of season 5.

The really aggravating thing however is that this decision was not precipitated by ratings lagging but by the new merger ala wrastlin....

Warehouse 13 was renewed though...but Eureka?!!! come oooooooooonnnnnnnn!

Anyone else out there feeling as betrayed by Sy-Fy's actions as I am? Damn...I really like this show!

Mercurymen: New Syfy online series

I was reading through Boing Boing and I found a heads up for a new series from SyFy that is web only. The movie was made on a shoestring and harkens back to the old big screen movie serials. From the article:

• The Mercury Men is a ... new Web series made for under $10,000 in Pittsburgh with ray guns, evil aliens and even a brain in a jar. It’s a modern homage to the black-and-white serials of the early 1900s featuring a mild mannered engineer who normally toils away at an office in obscurity until he stumbles on a plot by The Mercury Men to destroy Earth. It was picked up by Syfy for distribution and began running online lat week at SyFy.

There are seven episodes available so far. The first one is number 101 kind of tongue in cheek I guess (is it 101 episodes or 5. 101 in decimal is 5). I have seen the first couple of episodes and its campy, but not overboard like the network Batman series. The Steam Punk dress and weapons certainly are fun enough. I am certainly not adverse from watching more.

Click the article title to go to the website.

Review: Witchblade: The Anime Series

Ok, before you say omg and stop reading, I am not talking about the TV series or even the Top Cow graphic novel that had similar plot lines, Nope, I am talking about full on mature viewers only Gonzo anime. Now, for you that don't remember the waste of photons that was called Witchblade, it and the Top Cow graphic novel followed Sara Pezzini a tough as nails NY cop who comes into possession of the Witchblade, a supernatural, sentient artifact with immense destructive and protective powers. The weapon has bonded with various other women throughout history. Ok, well I never saw the graphic novel, but did catch a season on TNT and it was a major yawn. So why am I talking about this snore of a tv series, well when I first heard about the anime series I though that I was in for 24 episodes of the same crap as the tv show.

So let me tell you was I surprised! Witchblade is nothing like the tnt Debacle. In the Anime series, set in a future Tokyo that has been mostly destroyed by a mysterious force six years ago. Masane and her daughter Rihoko Amaha were the only ones who survived the titanic explosion that was Toyko's downfall. Masane has no memory from before only that she wears an odd bracelet. Masane is hired by Yuusuke Tozawa to hunt down biological fighting machines that some how went rouge. So we find out Masane is wearing the Witchblade which we find out may be killing her. I really just sat on the series for a long time until I broke over a couple evenings ago...lol

I really don't want to give away to much, because the series in anime is surprisingly good. Now I saw it on Hulu so I did didn't get any extras but even so, the 24 episodes (you can get them in dub or sub) but I would still rate this a 9. Worth checking out! not the tv crap Japanese anime with lots of bare skin (hence the mature audience) I think you might like it if your into Anime.

Last Gasp and Those That Have Breathed Their Last...

Mark Wilson, from his About.com sci-fi & fantasy blog, gives us the run down of shows that get a small reprieve from the bone yard and shows that they are already shoveling dirt onto as we speak.

Chuck: It would seem NBC has renewed 'Chuck' for a 13-episode, in their words, fifth and final season. I know I will miss this one. The quirky plot-line and even qwirkier supporting characters. Plus we know that NBC has opted out of the Wonder Woman series.

V, No Ordinary Family and The Event have had no such luck with 11th hour reprieves. V barely made it out of the blocks and No Ordinary Family in my opinion shot itself in the foot. I liked the show and after the first couple of episodes it became torturous to see the show self destruct. It might have been No Ordinary Family but it was all to ordinary plot lines. Should she tell, will he tell, damn I never could tell and how could you not tell.....after half a dozen episodes of this and I was damn glad I keep the gun and ammo in different places. - cause it was either me or the tv and I like that tv.......