Digital Distractions

The first Austin Powers movie was funny. The sequels started off well but grew more crude and obnoxious as they went along. Why Mike Myers found Fat Bastard and Goldmember funny is a question I've been asking myself for years. Why the audience flocked to these movies is another question I've never been able to answer.

Actually, there is no Dr Who this week. It is a holiday weekend and there is a SG-1 marathon on in that timeslot. Flash Gordon WILL be on but they are replaying the same ep they showed last week, not showing the new episode you listed. Both Dr Who - Family Of Blood and Flash Gordon - Assasin will be shown on 9/8.

You're right! The original guide I got had the shows listed as you see above but as of now there will be a Starggate marathon.

That sucks about Friday. Not only do I not get my Martha and th Doctor fix. But they pull this break in the middle of a two parter, left last week on a cliff hanger. Gotta agree about Flash Gordon. And actually I liked Sliders better. Especially when Jerry O'Connel was still on it. The whole series was better cast, better written, and even back then had better effects. No one on the cast really makes an impression. The girl who plays Baylin's the only one who appears to be trying. And who are any of these people anyway. It's like they spent their whole budget on getting the rights to that Queen song, they only use in the promos and had nothing let for casting. While some of the Mongo centered plots have potential, though they need better casting and directing need to be stepped up, the schlocky Earth based comedy needs to go. I suppose when you consider one of the producers was a writer for Charmed a litte schlock was to be expected. But frankly the cheesy sitcom it becomes everytime they're Earth is just boring and ill fitting with the Mongo parts. This series has all the parts of a good series, but they need to find somebody who knows how to put them together. It's a shame there is matrial and potential there but the Scifi channel or the producers don't seem to put much effort behind it. A surprise too considering the advertising campaign they've put behind it. All in all I find when I watch this I'm wishing I was watching Farscape a show similar in concept, but far superior in execution.

I agree about Flash Gordon. What a disappointment! I actually find myself trying too hard to watch it only to be let down. They totally missed the ball on what made/continues to make Flash such a great character - a sense of being off in space, by himself (ok, with Arden and Zarkoff), trying to save his planet from pending doom. Sci Fi, instead, seems to think the names are cool so just decided to scrap the 60 years of source material...I pulled it form my DVR recording schedule last week. What a shame, it had potential. Guess I'll have to wait for TORCHWOOD to fill the gap.

Flash Gordon was so over the top Sci-fi when it first manifested, it just doesn't fit to make it more "realish" That's like making a Batman movie with a man dressed in black camo fatigues and handing out bat signia business cards! Get overboard on the scifi, but serious, and give ming the fu manchu makeover (PC be damned!!!) and trap them in the friggin Ming universe!

I'm ambivalent to Flash Gordon at this point. I've only seen the pilot. Were it NOT Flash Gordon in name and presented as an original story ( which it mostly kinda is, really, sorta . . . ) then I'd say I liked it well enough. It is pretty different than any Flash Gordon I've known before, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing. I'll give it a few more episodes before deciding on sticking with it or dropping it.

They could have called it "Blarfeecoo--An Original Story" and that "Flash Gordon" pilot *still* would have sucked.

To each their own. And other cliches.

I don't care if they give Ming the Fu Manchu treatment. But do they really have top give him the John Denver as evil warlord treatment. I can't see this dude scaring a five year old. Check out Scoripius if you want to see how it's done. Or that dude from Prison Break last season. Wayne Pygram(Scorpius) may even be available. Apart from Ming. The Mongo stuff is at least fun, campy but fun. And I agree with rojam, it would be a lot more interesting, and a lot less off putting if Flash, Dale, and Zarkoff were stuck on Mongo full time. Separated from anything familiar, stuck out in the wilderness with no one to count on but each other and whatever allies they can make along the way. Hell, just getting rid of the cutsy Earth scenes would be reason enough. Joss Whedon clearly aint writtin for this series. And really it's hard to growth potential in a hero goes back to childhood bed every night. Taking the priciple characters out of their comfort zone is pretty much the point of writing fiction. That's why Baylin's the only in the group one I can half way pay attention to. Actually, if it weren't for the Flash Gordon name and some of the elements from that serial, I don't think I'd be holding out hope this long.