Lucas Cats

by on February 6, 2018 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Races of Humanity

The lion-derived Toshi of San Lucas ruled the Hankou continent as warrior-priests for thousands of years. Their history literally begins with the rise of their first emperor, as if nothing existed before that day. Those same histories proclaim thousands of years of wise and benevolent rule following that day, showcasing the great care and concern the various emperors, high priests, and warriors had for the lesser beings they ruled. They had a long tradition of providing free carnivals and plays to the poor, and food was always made available to anyone in need. It was a matter of faith, and fact of course, that Hankou was the most advanced, most powerful, and greatest civilization under the stars. And it was the job of the Toshi to lead the empire into the glorious dawn that was their future under the mountain of the gods.

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Blade

by on February 5, 2018 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Diaries

With the upcoming run of the much-touted “First Black Superhero Movie” from Marvel/Disney, I’ve been going back and watching some of the superhero movies from yesteryear. Wild Wild West. Yeah, I know, not really a superhero movie, but I was looking for Hancock and found it. And I have yet to see the Will Smith movie I didn’t like, so I took one from the Gipper and watched it. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Then I watched Catwoman, and enjoyed it as well. Not as much, and I had more issues with it, but Halle Berry is a talented actress, so it was a good time overall. Today, with so many other people focusing on the season finale of football, I was thinking about something else.

Blade. Yes, the movie about the half-vampire/half-human vampire hunter and general sorta-dogooder taken from the pages of Marvel comics and dropped onto the big screen via the acting talent of Wesley “Tax Dodger” Snipes. I’ve never watched it before, and now that I have I can see how it rests in the annals of superhero movies. It came in at the end of the original Batman movie series, and borrowed the over-the-top stoicism of the titular hero from that franchise. And it came out before the first X-Men film, which shared Blade’s serious, world ending stakes should things go badly. Heh. I said stakes, about a vampire hunting film. 😉

Let me be clear. Blade earns its R rating with orgasmic amounts of blood, limb-chopping and body-exploding violence nearly from beginning to end, and F-bombs galore. I’m betting it skirted the edges of what that rating actually allowed, especially twenty years ago. It also sports a lead character with stoic manliness and few words, a villain with delusions of grandeur, and wise-cracking sidekicks for both of them that end up being both fun to watch and impressively effective combatants in their own rights.

This is not a family movie, in the vein of the new MCU movies with Iron Man and Friends. I’m glad I saw it, but it probably won’t make it onto my repeat-watch list. I prefer more family-friendly fare, but I’ll give it one sword up as a moderately enjoyable film to watch. The enemies gave a satisfying thump as they hit the floor as one of my favorite characters in TV once said. And I did watch a lot of Buffy and Angel in my younger days, so I do enjoy watching a good vampire hunt. There was much to like about this film, even as some of the “special effects” are clearly showing their age.

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The Hope Mission

by on February 4, 2018 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Essential Galactic Atlas

The Hope Mission was a Western Alliance project to colonize three giant stars beyond The Wall on a direct route to The Taurus Gateway in the Alcyone system. Constantinople was already colonizing three systems further out, to act as a bridge to Alcyone, but they had no interest in the three closer stars. They were dimmer and less powerful, but they were needed if the Western Alliance was going to have a secure route to the Gateway. So the Alliance invited Alliance members to bid for the naming rights, the proceeds of which would go into the colonization program. English names were banned from the process, since they wished to diversify the system naming conventions. A consortium of Spanish and American interests won the bidding for one system, which became Espera. The New Japanese and Nigerians won the bidding for the other two stars, and so became Kibo and Ireti. Each name was based on the Spanish, Japanese or Yoruban word for Hope, a central theme that the Alliance hoped would unite the three colonies that would be so far beyond the borders of civilization. They have never been developed as heavily as many other Alliance Core Systems, but they are a safe place for any Alliance ship in need of repairs, refueling, or merely time to rest and relax.

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Julie

by on February 3, 2018 at 12:01 am
Posted In: Character Profiles

Julie never wore sleeveless shirts when I was young. Or shorts. Even after we started playing together, I never saw her in anything less than neck to ankle coverage with my own eyes. My imagination was another matter, and it ran rampant. So I thought it was my lucky day when she gave me that real serious look and started lifting her shirt. Then I saw something my abundant imagination never prepared me for. Bruises. Burns. More I just won’t write, even here. It was enough to make me cry. She cried with me for a time, the kind of heart-rending sobs that portend the end of worlds. Then we skipped school and I helped her pack before her father got home from work. We were at her aunt’s before he found out she was gone, and her aunt may have had a few things to say when he tried to pick her up. I wanted to have words with him, too. Words and more than words. I would have killed him if she’d asked me to. I almost did anyways. But the police wanted some words with him, and so did some nice ladies from child services, and a very firm judge had some choice words of his own. Some people say we gave Julie a new life that day. They’re wrong. Julie started her own new life that day. So did I.

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Lucas Cats

by on February 2, 2018 at 12:01 am
Posted In: The Races of Humanity

The Gangani Empire of San Lucas has seen great change in the last few decades. Humanity’s example has shown them other ways to govern, and they have begun the slow transition from an outright monarchy to a partial representative system. A student of British history would recognize the many steps they have taken, and the many more painful ones they have to make in the future. The industrial revolution that was driving through their culture continues, but the Gangani leadership is fundamentally concerned about change and is slow to adapt. That has handicapped their growth in the new space-based industries, but the Gangani Empire is still the single most powerful native polity in absolute population, economic might, and educational infrastructure. The panther-derived Gangani may not be leading San Lucas into a new space age, but they are quicker at adopting proven technologies and techniques than most onlookers would think at first glance. That will make them a powerful leader in San Lucas politics and industry for decades, and perhaps centuries to follow.

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