[jdjtcagle]

Mine:

1. Humanoid Aliens (the less humanoid, the more alien)

2. Why does every habitable planet have to look exactly like earth? (why can't they throw some "other" color in the atmosphere or something)

Example of good planet, IMHO


3.  Laser guns, phasers, something that shoots light from a pistol...  I just don't llike it, I'll believe somthing like matrix tech.

4.  teleportation - not my deal  

5.  Robots that can think for themselves...  Star Wars, I like there droids.

6.  Mystical powers... STAR WARS!!! "Use The Force"

7.  Saving your dream on a computer, Final Fantasy...

Well that's all I can think off...

[Tiara]

Well, apparantly you dislike the entire concept of mainstream sci-fi

[jdjtcagle]

I hate to admit your right...

Do you have any Tiara?

Does anybody share my beliefs?

[Thorn]

Originally posted by jdjtcagle
Mine:

1. Humanoid Aliens (the less humanoid, the more alien)

//Unless you want them all to be CGI, its very difficult to make non humanoid aliens.//

2. Why does every habitable planet have to look exactly like earth? (why can't they throw some "other" color in the atmosphere or something)

//Well, where the hell else can they film it?//

3.  Laser guns, phasers, something that shoots light from a pistol...  I just don't llike it, I'll believe somthing like matrix tech.

//Watch Stargate then...//

4.  teleportation - not my deal  

//Plot device.. meh..//

5.  Robots that can think for themselves...  Star Wars, I like there droids.

//er.. they can think for themselves too..//

6.  Mystical powers... STAR WARS!!! "Use The Force"

//plot device//

7.  Saving your dream on a computer, Final Fantasy...

//buh?//

[Impurial]

Sci-fi Pet Peeves?

I'd say the racism/specism.  Aside from THHGTTG, I'm not sure if there's any sci-fi universe that isn't about one group of "aliens" killing another group of "aliens".

But then again... I don't think I could stomach the idea of a sci-fi soap opera....

[jdjtcagle]

You obviously don't share them, Thorn...

There Pet-Peeves, not suggestions to what to watch that has these.
They can make better aliens, thats not humanoid...

Let me explain the AI issue I can deal with Robots that can act on information formated to them, but not wisdom...

I guess the "only" way to do these right IMO is with computer

[Stryke 9]

Tiara: Lies. There's plenty of perfectly good SF out there that has none of the above.

And yeah- basically everything JD listed, along with all other hallmarks of "soft" science fiction. Soft SF was only cool when Bester did it- everyone else needs to at least make the effort to be rooted in reality, or otherwise have overwhelming redeeming value to the absurd hypothetical to make it worth inserting. Things that just "sound cool" are Satan.


That said, humanoid aliens don't bother me too much, 'cos there was a decade or so there where all the good books were basically oriented around the whole divergent evolution thing, where they'd basically take the human template and change one or two significant things about the environment to make a freaky new race. And they did it really elaborately and well, and said a lot of very clever things about psychology in the process, so it was forgivable. Nowadays it's just an excuse to have another race of God-damn catpeople, and judging by the frequency they're crowbarred in catpeople are evidently a highly desirable aspect of a novel, but yeah, at least it has distinguished origins.

[Tiara]

Originally posted by Stryke 9
Tiara: Lies. There's plenty of perfectly good SF out there that has none of the above.

I said MAINSTREAM SCI-FI[/size], not ALL SCI-FI[/size].

[Ford Prefect]

1. Instantaneous space travel. (*cough*JUMP NODES*cough*)

2. Space combat that looks like WW2 dogifighting. Motion in space is not like motion in air. When you give something a push, it keeps moving until you push it a different way, so things happen very slowly in space. If we ever have space fleet battles, it will most likely be groups of large ships drifting slowly in front of or beside each other, attempting to cripple each other or kill off the crews.

3. Science fiction that exists primarily as a technological showcase. Truly great science fiction usually serves as a vehicle for a universal theme, a primary example being AI: Artificial Intelligence.

[Kamikaze]

Originally posted by jdjtcagle

7.  Saving your dream on a computer, Final Fantasy...

There are such things as memory download services now (in Japan iirc, not sure how intact the memories are). It's quite feasible to be able to record dreams in the future.

[jdjtcagle]

Interesting...

I would like to start a discussion about this Ford Perfect.

EDIT:  Kamikaze, tell me more

[Stryke 9]

Tiara: LIKE I SAID, LIES.

Unless you only count things printed last year as "mainstream", that is. I don't read those, and never will, because they suck, so I can't say for sure how many of those have that "Technology=magic!" **** in them.

Clarke is mainstream. Asimov is mainstream. Dick is mainstream. Miller was thoroughly mainstream. Sturgeon was mainstream. All of them wrote at least some science fiction that reflected a realistic perception of reality. Most of 'em did it damn near all the time. And there's a hell of a lot more names. Would you like me to list them all? It's a very, very long list, and it'll be very dull, both for me to compile and you to read.

[jdjtcagle]

please don't, we get the point...

[Stryke 9]

Good. I really didn't want to make a list.

Oh, and while it might qualify more as a general literature grievance, the heroic protagonist is a trend that's really gotta go. Enough with the singlehandedly saving the world and the knowing everything relevant to finishing the plot right from the get-go is lame, lame, lame. And I've seen it far more in SF than anywhere else.

[Ford Prefect]

All hail 2001: A Space Odyssey!

jdjtcagle: Start a discussion about what?

[Falcon]

Originally posted by Kamikaze


There are such things as memory download services now (in Japan iirc, not sure how intact the memories are). It's quite feasible to be able to record dreams in the future.

You would have to give me a link for me to believe this.

[jdjtcagle]

Originally posted by Ford Prefect
All hail 2001: A Space Odyssey!

jdjtcagle: Start a discussion about what?

Here if you got smarts, post them here and lets get the most logical conclusion...
http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,25674.0.html

[Tiara]

...

That is not mainstream. Ask 10 random people outside who read their books. Maybe 1 or 2 say that they have. MAYBE. Ask anyone if they know Star trek, Star Wars, Babylon 5, X-files etc etc and you'll have at least 8 out of 10. THAT is mainstream sci-fi.

At most the 'average' people know of Asimov than ks to the movie I, Robot.

[jdjtcagle]

ok, lets get over it, I agree with Tiara, but this is not what this is about...

[ShadowWolf_IH]

my biggest pet peeve in sci fi would have to be the plethura of B grade movies.  like Cyborg...with what's his name...that gymnast who thinks he is a martial artist.

ok, now i understand that to apreciate sci fi we have to suspend our beliefs long enough to say....given these circumstances...this could happen.....but some of the garbage that passes for sci fi?  The reactions of a human to any given situation would pretty much run mainstream.....no matter the time period.  getting set up by your date so that someone can murder you would elicit the same reaction from me no matter what......i certainly wouldn't trust her enough to sleep with her AFTER i find out what's going on.  

also.....why is it so hard to find a fallable hero in sci fi?  the hero is so often perfect.  let's try to make em real k?