A Return to the Small Screen

"Firefly" is getting another chance, thanks to the Science channel. The channel obtained the rights to the complete series and plans to air them in their entirety, as well as segments presented by physicist, Dr. Michio Kaku, on the theoretical science behind the series. This will be the first time since 2008 that "Firefly" will be aired in its entirety on television.

Entertainment Weekly interviewed Nathon Fillion, who played the lead character, Malcolm "Mal" Reynolds, who spoke of his love for the show and fans, as well his willingness to return to the infamous character were Fox to give it another chance.

"Firefly" will premier on Science Channel, March 6.

Read all of Fillion's interview here:http://tinyurl.com/4fvvfg8

Dr. Who Week

Facebook is known for its profile picture month celebrations. Starting on February 13, a member managed to spread an event to fans across the world of the classic British show, to dedicate a week to everything Dr. Who. Fans have been changing their profile pictures, to those of Doctors and companions, as well as famous aliens, such as the Slitheen, and variations of the Tardis.

In honor of Dr. Who week, after conversations with fans, as well as looking at the characters most chosen as a profile pic, I have put together the Doctors and Companions recognized and praised the most during the week:


The Doctors

Ninth Doctor

Though he only got one season, the current Dr. Who would not exist if it wasn't for Christopher Eccleston's portrayol of the infamous character. With the Bad Wolf arc, hints of Torchwood, Daleks, and a final kiss with Rose, what's not to love about his unffortunaetly short season?

Tenth Doctor

David Tennant is possibly the most popular of the Doctors. Picking up where Eccleston left off, he dives right in to the role with memorable jokes and lines. Tennant lasted three seasons, with many specials in between. Continuing the arc with Rose, mentions of Bad Wolf, a daughter, and The Master, the Tenth Doctor remains one of the most pivotal regenerations of The Doctor character.


Eleventh Doctor

Although many were worried for Matt Smith to take over after Tennant's long run, Smith managed to pull together the Eleventh regeneration well. With one season under his belt, he dives into the second with high hopes and Karen Gillian (Amy Pond) portraying his companion again, sparking a record for havnig the same companion in two complete seasons since the original show, before its sixteen year lapse between eight and nine.

The Companions:

Rose Tyler



The first companion since the sixteen year lapse, Rose started off strong, and ended strong. Billie Piper stayed true to the character, making her a well-rounded strong woman who was not afraid to look deep into the heart of the TARDIS to help save The Doctor. As her relationship grew, and though we all missed her during Ten's seasons, she returned, succeded in helping him save the universe, and even managed to live out her years happily with the human form of The Doctor.

Amy Pond

The current companion portrayed by Karren Gillian. Amy is a nice refreshing character, and a nice throwback to the fiestier companions. Although she has lately been critized as being a bit too scandalous iwth her short skirts and thin, black tights, the writers don't plan on changing her character any time soon. She brings a nice balance to the TARDIS and is the perfect counterpart to Matt Smith's portrayal of Eleven.

Romana

A Time Lady from the same planet as The Doctor, she regenerates until she finds the form she desires, and manages to continue her assignment as the Fourth Doctor's companion. While Lalla Ward portrays Romana's second regeneration, her first should not be forgotton. With Douglas Adams as script editor for her regeneration, and the close relationship with the Doctor, Romana is one of the most remembered companions, up there with likes of Sarah Jane, who currently on BBC has her own spinoff show.

X-Men: First Class

The much anticpated origin story of Xavier and Magneto finally released the first trailer. It's great to see how many different characters they are including in the story. Some have never been featured in an X-men film before.

X-Men: First Class

Happy Birthday Jules Verne!

Today marks the 183rd birthday of science-fiction author Jules Verne. Verne was one of the most influential writers, whos ideas not only pushed the genre forward, but made predictions for the future. He wrote about submerienes and air travel before those things were invted and known to the world.

Verne lived in a time when the Industrial Revolution was claiming Europe and science was what was happening. He began writing and studying Latin at an early age. When he was older, he moved to Paris to study law, but found himself torn between his love of theater and writing and work. Once his father found out he was actually writing more than he was studying, he removed all finances from Verne's name. Over time Jules Verne managed to get his work published, and his ideas influenced both fiction writers and scientists around the world.

Now, Verne's work has seen even more praise with the popularity of Steampunk. In fact, The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne, was a SyFy (It was still SciFi back then) original miniseries in 2000, that took place in the Steampunk genre.


As his stories are continued to be remade into movies, by actors such as Brendan Frasier in The Journey to the Center of the Earth, and dropping his name and influence in movies such as Tron: Legacy, Verne lives on and influences the genre of future writers.

Check out this Star Wars influenced superbowl 45 commercial!

Who Shot First?

There are times when I find certain phrases stick out more than others. In the science fiction genre this usually means they were repeated and/or of incredible importance. Examples are "So Say We All." (Battlestar Galactica) or "No power in the 'verse can stop me." (Firefly) The one I found myself debating over with a friend recently was: "Han shot first."

The phrase stems from an arguement over the character Han Solo in Star Wars' first installment, "A New Hope." George Lucus is known for going back to his original triology and editing scenes here and there. Every time he does this, the fans of the series burst in a large amount of outcries, calling for the original to stay the way it was made.

While a majority were upset over the editing of changing David Prowse as Darth Vader's spirit to Haden Christensen's younger image of Anakin, the one that seems to be debated almost as much as "Did Luke and Leia have a thing?" is "Who shot first? Han or Greedo?"

To those who watch "A New Hope" many times, it is almost undeniable that Han Solo shot Greedo first. As Greedo explains how he is going to collect Solo as bounty, Solo, unbeknowest to Greedo, removes his blaster from its holster and holds it hidden behind his left leg, propped on his right. Before Greedo can argue, he fires under the table. No one in Mos Eisley Cantina objects, simply because Solo pays the bartender the fee for clearing the corpse, and walks out the door.

Lucas argued that Greedo shot first, and that Solo "had no choice" but to fire. To back up this claim, in the remastered 1997 release of "A New Hope" it shows Greedo firing before Solo. He siad he wanted to make it clear to children that Solo would not have fired unless attacked. However, fans questioned Greedo missing at such a close range, and argue that by changing the shot, it in turn destroys Solo's morally ambigous character, as well as his transition from anti-her to hero.

Although Solo still makes a drastic change into being a hero, whether or not he was morally ambigous, I feel, is the center of the issue at hand. In the world of Tatooine, and Star Wars 'verse at the time after the fall of the Republic, it was more or less a killed or be killed universe. Solo's lifestyle, before Luke and Leia, was not one that ever allowed for moral actions. He was a smuggler, "reckless mercenary" and debeter to Jabba the Hut. Had he not killed Greedo, he would have surely found himself mounted on Jabba's wall way before the end of "The Empire Strikes Back."

True, changing or tweaking the scene so Han leans left and they fire at the same time changes the character of Solo. however, in the long run it does not change it drastically. Solo is still ambiguous as to where he stands until the end of "A New Hope" and continues developing his cahracter until he is full encased in carbonite. Not to mention the Han Solo Triology written after the films to further delve in his backstory and smuggling days with Chewbecca.

Since returning the scene to its original form in the 2004 release, the phrase "Han shot first" has now become as common as "Frakin' toasters." Even appearing on T-shirts such as this one:

Devoted fans are always willing to forgive and forget Lucas for his edits and tweaks to the films here and there.

Decide for yourself:

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