Is Science Fiction always Fantasy?

You've all heard the expression of how magic is simply science we don't understand. Science is the study of something, and if you study fantasy, there must be a science to it, even if it's all theoretical. Fantasy runs on its own rules that often break our real-world physics, but they still have some rhyme or reason. Sci-Fi as a genre doesn't need to have the tropes that it's often known for, like space aliens and robots, but it's not unexpected in the genre if these things show up. Couldn't these things be present in the fantasy genre as well? Aren't they already present in the genre?

Sometimes, you'll see the two genres lumped together as "Sci-Fi & Fantasy". Amazon Prime does this, and if they can't figure out how the fuck to destinguish the two, then how do you distinguish the two?

Loab (terrifying AI-generated images)

Holy fuck, this is terrifying. I hope this link is clickable. If not, try googling Loab AI machine learning nightmares.... maybe try entering that into Google Images. I think there will be more and more images appearing online, in the near future, as they tweak the programming. I have no idea what the hell I'm talking about here, it just sounds reasonable to me. If I'm wrong, good. Anyway, here, try clicking on this: https://itsonlydark.substack.com/p/loab-explained

The vortex in Philadelphia Experiment

The experiment itself causes a vortex. A hole in the sky of sorts that sucks in air and acts as a bridge between the two times, 1943 and 1984. The visual of that hole in the sky sucking in the clouds and air around it is something that always intrigued me. Imagine how frightening it would be to see something like that in real life...

For a sci-fi theory, I always wondered about that hole. Was the 1984 hole sucking in air, only to send the air back to 1943? If so, would 1943 have more air in its atmosphere? And if so-so, would that extra air justify that the 1984 present doesn't have less air even after losing that air to the past, on account of all the extra air 1943 got from this very event? Does the amount of air stay exactly the same?

Is Mad Max "Sci-Fi"?

It counts for the challenge because IMDb says so, but forget what they say. Dystopian movies aren't always sci-fi, are they? Presented as what-if fantasies, but that doesn't make them part of the 'fantasy' genre. All movies aren't real, but they can't all be labeled as fantasy.

What about Max Max neccessitates the label of "Science Fiction"? What is scientific about the movie? Society does not have technology at this point. What do you say, mate?

Brainscan

When you're a kid, you don't always have control of what you get exposed to. I'd seen this movie when I was like... 6 or 7? Suffice to say, it left an imprint on me at that age. I always thought Eddie Furlong was the coolest. He had that bad-boy teenage drama that I always envied. Girl problems, a misfit way of life, and an otherwise seemingly dope lifestyle.

He plays "Michael", and Michael's room always seemed like a cool place to me. He lived in the attic with a lot of "cutting edge" mid-90s technology, and even his own damn refrigerator up there. I was always kind of fascinated with that aspect of his life. Plus, his dad was never around, so he basically lived by himself. I always thought it would be cool to live in an attic room like that, but in real life, most attics are just cramped spaces with itchy insulation.

A lot of the movie is centered around horror fandom. It's very much a Fangoria-inspired movie, and the horror genre itself is obviously a major part of it. Michael runs a "Horror Club" at school where he would screen splatter flicks. Anyone ever watched horror flicks in school? Let alone on a regular basis? It's got to be a sweet life for Michael.

The writers needed to give Michael a handicap in order to balance the universe, so they gave him a leg injury. I distinctly remember being terrified of that brief scene of knee gore, always fast-forwarding that scene when I watched it on tape. A recorded tape that was borrowed from a neighbor and never given back. Of course, that gore scene is very brief and tame by today's standards, but I still felt unsafe watching it.

This movie is very much a time capsule of the horror culture in the 90s. It isn't necessarily a great movie, but I've always loved it, even if that Trickster guy isn't as cool as he thinks he is. He's like a really ugly version of an 80s glam rocker, but he has his moments. Langella doesn't do much in the movie, but I appreciate his presence nonetheless. And the protagonist's friend "Kyle", I always recognized that guy in a Halloween M&M's commercial. If that's all he ever did, I would count that as a fulfilling life.

IMDb Trivia:

Director John Flynn did not get along with Edward Furlong during filming. He later recalled, "Eddie Furlong was a 15-year-old kid who couldn't act. You had to slap him awake every morning. I don't want to get into knocking people, but I was not a big Eddie Furlong fan."

Edward Furlong's aunt Nancy Tafoya and half brother Sean Furlong lost custody of him to his mother in 1993, after the duo consistently fought with Furlong during the filming of this movie.

#Review

The Boys, season 3

For those who don't know, The Boys is an Amazon series based off a comic series. It's about corrupt superheroes and a handful of pissed off regular folk who want to kill them. What if superman was a narcissistic asshole murderer? What if Aquaman gets molested and realizes how fucking lame he is? Well, it's a pretty ride, and season 2 left off with the best cliffhanger of all time:

Our "superhero" goes on top of a building, looks over the city, and jerks off all over it... to the thought of himself. If that doesn't leave you wondering "What happens next?", then what more do you want?

What's the deal with Zach Braff?

What a little cunt. Seriously, fuck him and his dick nose. Sick of seeing him on that Tubi ad with that other unfunny piece of shit from Scrubs. Makes me wanna watch more Amazon Prime, where there are far less ads.

Blue Steel (1990)

That was a damn good movie. Kathryn Bigelo is one of the few female directors who understands action and tension. With some of that good ol' Eric Red writing, you get a tense and well-paced thriller about a wall street guy who snaps one day and fixates on a beat cop he saw take down a bad guy.

Jamie Lee does a fantastic job here. Nobody believes anything she says except for good ol' Clancy Brown. He usually shines in villain roles, but he goes for a good-cop role this time, and it works. Ron Silver is the wall street guy who slowly descends into madness as he toys with our protagonist cop lady the entire movie, often discrediting her every chance he can get so he can ruin her life in whatever way seems to get him off. You really hate this guy the whole time, and it's great.

The other cast is full of people you'll recognize, and it even has a Brad Fiedel score. If that guy had scored any of the post-T2 sequels, those movies would probably be a lot better. So with all these great ingredients, why haven't I seen this movie sooner?

#Review

A Twilight Zone Episode

Imagine, if you will, a day in the life of a working man. A man who saves every penny so he can enjoy an early retirement. However, a mere day in the life wouldn't reap the rewards of the endgame, thus the working man works for it, and continues to work for it to such an extent that he may work himself into an early grave.


Mr. Smith is on the commute home from the bank after making a hefty withdrawal. His life savings, to be more precise, some odd hundred thousand dollars. He doesn't have a care in the world, but a celebration can only go so far as the vehicle's capacity, and the vehicle needs gas.

As luck would have it, Mr. Smith finds himself in the proximity of a local gas station. The price lists $3.49, which by yesterday's standards is an outrage. Sure, Mr. Smith can afford it, but he elects not to. Just because you can doesn't mean you should, in his miserly opinion. There are far better things to spend one's earnings on, and Mr. Smith thinks about these things regularly, because he's a 66-year-old man, and he just retired.

Enter the runaway vehicle. A plot device that can be substituted by various more plausible scenarios in the immediate vicinity, but for the sake of this tale, the turnabout comes in the form of a school bus. The vehicle collides with Mr. Smith's modest automotive, sending Mr. Smith spiraling into a coma.

"Oh no!" Mr. Smith shouts as he sits up in his hospital bed, "Not my modest automotive!"

The nurses call the doctors and try to calm the disoriented man.

"How long was I out?" he panics as the realization of his accident sets in.

"A week," says the nurse, "It's a miracle you survived. You suffered various injuries, such as..."

Mr. Smith pays no attention to the trivial babblings of a trained professional, opting instead to consider his time frame. "I'm rich!" he cheers, ripping the IV's out and disconnecting himself from the equipment as he sits up and tries to stand. Muscle atrophy has set in, but Mr. Smith disregards this as he crawls out of the hospital room with a big smile on his face, ready to reap the rewards he's worked his whole life for.

After a gradual period of readjustment, Mr. Smith has wobbled his way into the lobby, struck by the notion of an impulse buy. "I sure am hungry," he says, eying the nearby vending machine. He pulls out his wallet. From where, we do not know. As he is about to tender the appropriate amount of cash, he is astounded at the cost. "A 1-ounce bag of chips should never cost this much," he decries, putting his wallet away, "I may be rich, but I'm no sucker!"

Mr. Smith storms out of the lobby in his hospital gown as everyone can see his wallet, tucked tightly between his ass cheeks. Leaving the site of a price gouging would seem therapeutic, though nevertheless, his dilemma was only beginning.

"Hey man," intrudes one of various beggars about the lot, "Gimme a hundred dollars."

"A hundred dollars?" Mr. Smith gasps, "Why, that's outrageous! Maybe ask someone for a dollar at most, but not a chunk of their paycheck!"

"Man," the bum dismisses, "Get outta here..."

Mr. Smith finds this man's rhetoric intolerable, until he sees a sign from above. In the literal sense, gas prices are listed at $349 a gallon. Mr. Smith is in shock, collapsing to his knees. "You maniacs!" he screams, pounding his fist to the ground, "You blew it up! Ah damn you... God damn you all to hell!"

The cityscape is littered with signs of horrendous values. A cheeseburger combo at the local fast food joint: $799. Local produce, apples selling for $299 per pound. A gumball in candy machine: $10. Here he was working his life away, and now his savings totaled less than the new minimum wage. A lot can happen in a week. Even outside of... the Twilight Zone.

I think this episode was cut because it was a rip-off of that other TZ episode about the guy in the future trying to get the gold bars that were now worthless. Also, not sure why that guy was sticking his wallet up his ass, but that might have had something to do with it.

The Next Karate Kid (1994)

I avoided this one for a while because I figured it would be bad. Nobody ever really talks about it, so what gives? I guess Daniel San isn't a kid anymore, so fresh blood was needed. This time, we get Hilary Swank, and you know what? She does a damn fine job.

Julie Pierce is an angry teen. She's been recently orphaned and has a rough time in high school. Violent male stalkers, poor attendance, unsympathetic teachers, the works. However, when Mr. Miyagi is shoe-horned into her life, things start to turn around for her. You know how these movies go.

Of course, there must be a villain, and it's a bunch of testosterone tough guys led by a hate-mongering Michael Ironside. Was this guy born to play an asshole, or what? Here, he's filling in the need for a Kreese-like character. He's training his male students to seek out revenge over the stupidest transgressions. Try to help someone who got hurt? We'll make him pay for that! Seriously, what a bunch of dumbasses.

It's hard to reboot a franchise without its "main" character, but Swank does a great job, and she's looking fine in this movie. What a tight body. And it's perfectly legal for me to say that, because she was 20 when she made this movie.

As the last known student of Mr. Miyagi, I think it would be a great move to bring her into the show sometime. Hell, maybe even bring Michael Ironside back too (for moral support, I doubt he's very physical these days). And for good measure, they should also bring back Walton Goggins mostly useless side character, because it's Walton Goggins. He'll steal any scene you give him.

Not a bad movie. Don't try to get me to watch the Karate Kid remake though. I'm not that brave.

#Review