The Sirens of Titan
{4.5/5} “Winston Niles Rumfoord had run his private space ship right into the heart of an uncharted chrono-synclastic infundibulum two days out of Mars. Only his dog had been along. Now Winston Niles Rumfoord and his dog Kazak existed as wave phenomena — apparently pulsing in a distorted spiral with its origin in the Sun […]
China Mountain Zhang
{4.5/5} “I am impure, a mongrel. I am an imposter. And there is more that he doesn’t know. When I tell him what I am, he will look foolish because he has mistaken me for Chinese, he will lose face. We will pretend that nothing was ever said. Then when this job is finished he […]
Stargate Atlantis (season 2)
{4.5/5} “I’m not crazy, I just have another consciousness inside my brain.” In “Aurora” they find an Ancient ship with all of its crew in stasis. When McKay discovers that they’re communicating with each other in stasis, Sheppard goes into stasis himself to find out what they’re saying. In “Duet” McKay and Laura Cadman are […]
10 memorable short stories
A few years ago I wrote about 10 memorable science fiction and fantasy stories. Now it’s time for another 10. In terms of collections of related short stories, The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury and City by Clifford D. Simak are both 5/5. “The Pedestrian” by Ray Bradbury (in The Golden Apples of the Sun) […]
Impossible Things
{4.5/5} “All it took was somebody walking past and stepping in a puddle, and the worm’s whole life was changed. Do you think things happen like that? That one little action can change your whole life forever?” Impossible Things was published in 1993. It’s a collection of short stories, mostly science fiction, by Connie Willis. […]
Stargate Atlantis (season 1)
{3.5/5} “You’re right. If only we had a magical tool that could slow down time. I foolishly left mine on Earth — did you bring yours?” Stargate Atlantis season 1, aired in 2004-05 I watched all of Stargate SG-1 last year so I thought I’d check out the rest of the Stargate franchise before moving […]
Attack the Block
{4.5/5} “Even if it is an alien invasion, they’re four foot high, blind and got kicked to death by a bunch of kids. We got nothing to worry about.” Attack the Block, released in 2011 Moses is the leader of a gang of teenagers in London. They start the evening by mugging a woman named […]
Prometheus
{4/5} “Big things have small beginnings.” Prometheus, released in 2012 Archeologists have found evidence in multiple places on Earth that aliens have visited in the past. It’s possible that the aliens even left us a clue as to where to find them. In the late 21st century the Weyland Corporation sends a ship to that […]
Wonder
{4.5/5} “Although we seemed to exist in different universes, I came to understand that to be an illusion. I am as much a part of the Milky Way Galaxy as she is; the electrons and photons of which I am made, although intangible to both her and me, are real… Despite these disparities of space […]
Watch
{4.5/5} “Back on the African savannah, those who mistook every bit of movement in the grass for a hungry lion were more likely to survive than those who dismissed each movement as nothing to worry about. If you always assume that it’s a lion, and nine times out of ten you’re wrong, at least you’re […]