Welcome back to the recaps! This week, I’m looking at “Charlie X,” which does a very good job of why we shouldn’t give superpowers to children.
Star Trek Recaps: TOS, “Charlie X”
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The Trailer Park: Hidden Figures
It’s been a while since I last wrote about a trailer. Mostly this was because I hadn’t seen any film trailers that sparked my interest. Until I watched the trailer for Hidden Figures.
Hidden Figures, directed by Theodore Melfi and written by Melfi and Allison Schroeder, tells the story of three women: Katherine Johnson (Taraji P Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer), and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe), and is based on the non-fiction work by Margo Lee Shetterly. These three women were mathematicians who worked for NASA and were crucial to a number of projects. It looks like this one focuses on John Glenn’s orbit around the earth in 1962.
The movie looks like most of the focus is going to be on Johnson, but Vaughan and Jackson appear to be getting a good amount of screentime as well. I will admit, though, that I had no idea who these women were until I watched this trailer, but I did look them up on Wikipedia and they’re actually pretty interesting. Obviously, being women of color in a field dominated by white men, they experience that lovely intersection of racism and sexism, and the film doesn’t look like it’s going to gloss over that.
It also helps that it looks funnier than hell. I think my favorite part of the trailer is when the three meet John Glenn (Glen Powell), and Jackson checks him out as he walks away. Johnson asks her, “How can you be ogling those white men?” and Jackson replies, “It’s equal rights. I have the right to see fine in every color.”
Also, while I am admittedly unfamiliar with Taraji P Henson and Octavia Spencer’s work, I am excited to see Janelle Monáe here. I love her work as a singer, and she just seems to be a really awesome person all around.
The current release date for Hidden Figures is January 13, 2017. I will probably be seeing it, and I’m most likely going to be looking up the book in the near future as well.
Star Trek Recaps: TOS, “The Man Trap”
Welcome back to the land of Star Trek recaps! This week, I’ll be taking a look at the second aired episode, “The Man Trap.”
Katie Plays Stuff: This Is The Police
(First, some business. I have a new patron on Patreon! Christina Kortes (full disclosure: my sister) recently pledged five dollars a post. Please email a post idea to katjapants@gmail.com and I will write a post on it. If you would like to give me some money, you can go to my Patreon page or my PayPal. Thanks!)
This Is The Police shows you what it’s like to be a police chief for a corrupt force. And that experience is mostly really, really boring.
About Me
Hi! My name is Katie. I am a thirty-something living in northern Minnesota.
I am a huge nerd, and have been one for pretty much my entire life. I grew up watching numerous sci-fi series like Star Trek and Babylon 5, as well as a number of movies of the same genre. I also read a lot of sci-fi and fantasy novels, and have been very into video games since I was about 18. Those are the topics that I generally tend to blog about. I also have two weekly features: Mythology Monday, where I talk about various myths and folklore; and Short Story Saturday, where I summarize and talk about a different short story.
I currently have a Patreon, but also operate a PayPal and Ko-Fi account if people would like to show support with a one-time donation.
Also, social media!
So, welcome! I hope you enjoy.
Again? Seriously, Again?
Well, another female celebrity has been chased off of social media by harassing troglodytes. This time, the star of Star Wars: The Force Awakens Daisy Ridley was forced to shut down her Instagram account. Her horrible crime? She had that audacity, the absolute nerve, to make a post decrying gun violence.
According to the above link, the post (which can still be found on her Facebook page) reads thusly:
Thinking about how lucky I am like……… Serious bit: as I sat in the audience yesterday tears were streaming down my face at the tribute to those that have been lost to gun violence. I didn’t get a great picture of the incredible group that came on stage but they were so brave. It was a true moment of togetherness. We must #stoptheviolence
So, apparently because she had an emotional reaction to a tribute at an event she was attending (the Teen Choice Awards) and decided to post a call for peace, that’s apparently too fucking political.
The comments on her Instagram are no longer there, naturally because her Instagram is no longer there. However, her Facebook is still there, and still getting comments. I think this one is probably my favorite:
This guy, this fucking guy, is apparently so divorced from reality that he somehow thinks that Ridley using a fake laser gun in a goddamn movie suddenly invalidates what she’s saying above.
Oh, but it gets even better. Apparently, some people have taken to harassing her co-star and friend John Boyega, trying to get her to come back. Boyega, naturally, gave a very classy response supporting her decision:
It’s just, I really would like to be able to stop talking about this. I really would. But it just keeps fucking happening. It happens every day to people who aren’t celebrities (who, by the way, are people too). And people just brush it off, saying it’s just the Internet and we should stop talking about this. Except, that’s bullshit, because unless we talk about harassment and shame the fuck out of the people who do the harassing, this is just going to keep happening. And will most likely get worse.
I close with a thought I had when something similar happened to Leslie Jones on Twitter (except without the delightful added element of racism, this time): The Internet is part of real life. The people that are behind the screen are real people, with real feelings, and who experience real hurt when people pull this shit.
Star Trek Recaps: TOS, “The Cage”
(First, just a quick reminder that I have a Patreon page! While this blog is very much a labor of love, I also have the goal of it being my career some day. If you like what I write, please consider making a contribution. Thanks! Now, on to our regularly scheduled post.)
I may have mentioned once or twice that Star Trek was a pretty huge part of my childhood. A large part of our family time when I was a kid was spent watching the various series that were one when I was a kid (The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager), and my mom used to watch the original series when she was a kid.
I do have to admit, however, that I actually haven’t watched very much of the original series, and it’s actually been quite a long time since I’ve watched any of the others. That (along with listening to the podcast Women At Warp which you should all be listening to because it’s amazing) has spurred me towards this little project.
Once a week, for the foreseeable future, I will be recapping one episode of Star Trek, beginning with the original series, and going straight through to Enterprise. I will be including the animated series, and I may cover the movies (I’m undecided on this point).
To that end, I will start with the TOS unaired pilot episode, “The Cage.”
The Trailer Park: Wonder Woman
So, yeah. Not sure how I’m going to be able to really write this post without devolving into complete and utter fangirlism.
Admittedly, I haven’t seen very much Wonder Woman-related media. I’ve watched episode of Justice League and do have some familiarity with the 70s TV show starring Lynda Carter. My oldest sister is actually a huge Wonder Woman fan (largely due the aforementioned TV show), but I’m still familiar enough with the character to be really excited about this.
See, while there have been a TV series as well as animated Wonder Woman movies, there have never been any live action, theatrical films about the character. Which is a shame, seeing as how she’s one of DC’s most popular heroes.
This film, simply titled Wonder Woman, stars Gal Gadot as the titular princess of Themiscyra. She had played the role previously in the Batman V Superman movie, but didn’t really get the spotlight there. Apparently, people are starting to realize that women-led action films can actually do well, so hopefully we will be getting more in the future.
I also like what they’ve done with the costume. I haven’t seen BvS, but in the trailers for that one her outfit seemed kind of dull. In Wonder Woman, it looks very colorful and like her most well-known costume form the comics. Also of interest is that it is also being directed by a woman, Patty Jenkins.
Judging from the trailer, it looks like it’s set during World War 2, which makes sense since Diana first appeared in comic form in 1941. Chris Pine is also in the film as Steve Trevor, who is frequently appears as a love interest for Diana.
The current release date for Wonder Woman is June 2, 2017. And I will definitely be seeing it.
Gamer Asshole May Go To Prison Over Threats
You know, with all the recent news that’s been coming out about bullshit like harassment and threats, I’m starting to think that maybe the Internet was a mistake.
What I’m talking about this time is the fact that some douche in Sacramento named Stephen Cebula apparently thought that it was a good idea to send a very threatening message to Blizzard saying he was going to shoot up the place with an AK-47.
What prompted his sending the popular game publisher these threats? The fact that they silenced him (basically rescinded his ability to use chat functions) in Heroes of the Storm.
The New Star Trek Series Now Has A Title
Remember how a new Star Trek series was announced last November? Well, we finally got a title for said series, and that title is Star Trek: Discovery.
Quite interestingly, the series is not set in the alternate universe of the reboot films, but rather in the “prime” universe (i.e., the one that all the other series take place in). It follows a brand new ship (the USS Discovery) with a brand new crew. According to the article above, “[t]he new series will not be episodic, but will instead tell stories like a novel chapter by chapter.”
They also released a short teaser, which gives us the first glimpse of the new ship (though, as also noted in the linked article, this isn’t necessarily the final design).
I am ridiculously excited for this. As I may have mentioned before, Star Trek was a huge part of my childhood. Seriously, the last time I got together with my sisters, we spent a not inconsiderable amount of time watching the movies. So, upon hearing more news about this series, I basically had this reaction:
Star Trek: DIscovery (being abbreviated as DSC, basically to avoid obvious STD jokes) is set to air January 2017. The premiere is going to air on CBS, after which it will exclusively stream on their All Access service.
Katethulu's Cave Of Mysteries 