Date: Mon, 20 May 2002 15:27:51 -0400
From: "Michael Walsh" <MJW at mail.press.jhu.edu>
To: <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>
Subject: [WSFA] Re: Culture
Reply-To: WSFA members <WSFAlist at keithlynch.net>

> StrongL at MTMC.ARMY.MIL 05/20/02 02:24PM
>	Mike and I are discussing culture in SF, especially noir.  Many
>people are pessimistic about life, but I take the opposite view.  While
>there are a number of contributing factors to my Pollyanna view, two of =
the
>biggest are a study of history and reading science fiction.  History =
shows
>that people can make things better -- yes, they often make things worse =
=AF
>but the general trend is, IMHO, upward.  We live longer, heathier lives;
>democracy is spreading around the world; and science is advancing daily.
>True, there are negative trends, particularly the growth of bureaucratic
>governments and proliferation of armmaments among marginalized peoples, =
but
>my reading of history teaches me that there is room for optimism.  =
Reading
>(and watching SF) reinforces this by pointing the way to a brighter =
possible
>future ahead.  So, I've seen _Blade Runner_ 4 times as often as I've seen
>_Conquest of Space_ but watch the former as an interesting discussion of
>ideas and a warning while working towards the latter.

No question that we are living in a far better world now than 50 or 100 or =
whatever years ago.  Otto Bettman - founder of the Bettman Archive, now =
owned by Microsoft - produced a book entitled: The Good Old Days - They =
Were Terrible.

>	I believe that you quoted _The Scalehunter's Beautiful Daughter_
>before.  Dwelling on heartbreaks causes one to discover heartbreak even =
in
>happy things.

Well, I have my reasons for downside viewing . . .

>	You found the underside of Corescent "too 'pretty'."  Not sure how
>to interpret this one, kemo sabe.  Sarcasm?  Statement that the colors =
were
>too bright?  What?

No . . just that it was all too . . . clean.  It's hard to explain, but =
essentially with Blade Runer one felt as if there really was dirt in the =
future, while Lucas just can't seem to do it.  Speilberg had the same =
problem with AI.  Just too . . .organized?

 I took Lucas' introduction of the underside as an
>important note of realism.... which, is, I believe, one of the principal
>arguments for noir and cyberpunk (Y/N?).

I wouldn't say "for", rather perhaps one way of defining the style.

>	_Bubblegum Crisis_ is considered a classic of cyberpunk Japanese
>anime.

Ah so . . .  I have never watched any anime.
Zippo.
Nada.
 . . . a missed cultural experience I'm sure, but no time, no time . . .

>It features 4 women in power armor fighting renegade robots called
>boomers in future Tokyos and dealing with classic cyberpunk issues =
including
>political corruption, irresponsible corporate power, police ineffectivenes=
s,
>vigilantism, mercenary values versus noble values, and so forth.  Many
>elements are derived directly from _Blade Runner_, including the name of =
the
>leading warrior Priss, who sings with the Replicants band.  Good stories,
>drawn in clear anime style with character development and mature sexual
>situations amidst the action and flash.  IMHO, the original version, set =
in
>2032-34, and its sequel _Bubblegum Crash_ is some of the best SF anime =
ever
>done.  The remake, _Bubblegum Crisis Tokyo 2040_, is adequate, but less =
so
>than its predecessor.  I will be glad to loan you some or all of my VHS
>casettes if you would like.

One of the interesting pieces of collateral damage that VCRs have created =
is the blue screen.

Neuromancer opens: "The sky above the port was the color of television, =
tuned to a dead channel."  which before VCRs was what us old pharts would =
call "snow".

mjw