A few weeks ago, I posted about a travesty: that Entertainment Weekly kept Babylon 5 off it's 25 Best Sci-Fi of the Last Twenty-Five Years list. Excluding it was insane.
If you've already forgotten, read it here here. Don't worry, I'll wait for you.
Well, they followed up in the June 1, 2007 issue with fan reactions (something I admire the mag for doing when it makes lists of nearly all kinds). They listed the Top Ten Sci-Fi shows/movies fans felt should have been on it and an explanation of why they weren't (in the order of number of responses).
Here it is (along with EW's explanations for why they didn't make the list):
1. Stargate. Longevity (it is the longest running sci-fi show ever) doesn't mean quality.
2. Farscape. Stopped watching the show because of the puppets (see my rant below).
3. Babylon 5. The epic story turned them off; it was too insular (see rant #2 below). But they admitted it should have been on their list.
4. The Fifth Element. Too much flash and not enough substance.
5. Buffy The Vampire Slayer (or Angel). Concluded that it was not sci-fi.
6. Gattica. Great film and would have been on a longer list.
7. Dark City. A beautiful film, but didn't compare to The Matrix.
8. Dune. Too much of a mess.
9. Independence Day. Lost credibility when having the heroes download a virus from a PowerMac to defeat the enemies. (See rant #3)
10. 12 Monkeys. Didn't feel Terry Gilliam needed two movies on the list, and they liked Brazil better.
And my rants, in order:
#1. Didn't watch the show because of the puppets? Are you F-Bombing kidding me? If they really did stop watching, they missed a fantastic show. Inventive, crazy, shocking, and wonderful are just three words I'd use. If you like Han Solo and not having any clue about what could happen next, check this show out.
#2. Firstly: props for EW for saying this show should have made the list and that it was a mistake that it didn't (the only entry on this fan's response list the mag said it would do over). Secondly, the epic storyline was what made it work. Watch it from start to finish, and get a story. Aside from a few cast and timing things, this series was, from start to finish, what JMS wanted it to be. A truly landmark series in that regards (and we're seeing a trend for letting producers end shows on their terms after they've told the story with current shows like Lost, Battlestar Galactica, The Sopranos, and The Shield).
#3. Independence Day? Really!? Yeah, sometimes fans have it wrong. Was it fun? Okay, I'll give it that. But was it a great movie? No. Great Sci-Fi? No again.
Okay, there you have it. Again, nice work, EW, for admitting your mistake.
On a related note: one film that made the mag's Top 25 was one I watched this past week. Children of Men was only sci-fi in the loosest sense (set in 2027 with very, very little different than 2007 and has a fertility plague), but it was good. Really, really good. If you do or even if you don't like sci-fi, I highly recommend it.
I admit I don't understand directing completely, but I know Alfonso Cuaron worked some serious magic. The long takes were absolutely amazing, and I didn't even notice them until near the end of the film. And Clive Owen's character was probably the most real movie hero to come along in some time. No Bruce Willis or Arnold Schwarzenegger ass-kicking here. Just a guy who starts down a path reluctantly and has to find the hero within to save another life-- all while wearing flip-flops.
I'm not sure if it deserved to be in the Top 25 Sci-Fi movies/TV of the last 25 years, but it should fall into one of the best movies of the last few years (and it did make a great number of critics' Top 10 films of 2006).
And one, final, off-topic diversion. The issue of EW I referred to above also had an article about the decline of ratings; going so far as to say our viewing habits with "timeshifting" (using DVRs and checking episodes out on the Internet) has lowered ratings.
Let me just say this: timeshifting is the only way I can watch TV due to the fact that I have a family, and my TV watching doesn't happen until after 9 pm. It's also the only way I can watch as much as I do (an hour-long show is about 42 actual running time minutes). I highly recommend watching TV this way, and who gives a crap unless you report your viewing to Neilsen? They don't count what I-- or the vast majority of you--watch; we're all lumped into the averages of the viewing that the people Neilsen get reports from watch.
So people aren't watching as many commericals. Sorry, but seeing the Lexus ad on Studio 60 has not made me rush out and buy one. Or the Tide, Budweiser, or Viagra ads, either. Entertain us (or, at least stop airing them hundreds of times) during the commercial breaks, and maybe we won't FF through them.
No comments:
Post a Comment