DVD, Stargate SG-1 S4 (Prodigy)
From the first few minutes until almost halfway I thought this was a money-saving episode. Little happened, there were two separate stories seemingly to give the characters something to do, and everything was as slow and pointless as Cadet Jennifer Hayley found her training for the Airforce. Thankfully, like Hayley's future, things became a whole lot brighter, beginning with Carter taking an active interest in this prodigy, first sticking up for her so she isn't expelled for decking another Cadet (though through all the scenes in General Kerrigan's office I was too busy trying to see if the model in the background was the Enterprise-E or not!), then as she gives her a goal to aim for: the Stargate programme itself.
When she walks in and sees the Stargate for the first time, this epic gateway to the universe beyond her imaginings, it has the same kind of draw as when someone sees the Enterprise for the first time or walks into the TARDIS to discover it's bigger on the inside. It may be because we don't often see the wonder of the technology, it's taken for granted somewhat, and usually it's only peasant aliens that are cowed and impressed by it, so when a genius human student feels the magic you know it's something special. I love the shot of Carter and Hayley walking towards the 'gate seen from the other side of the event horizon in a rippling effect. Effects were very well done in the episode, the light creatures looked real and the featured moon has a planet dominating the sky and seen at different times of day sinking below the horizon with long shadows.
The other story features O'Neill and Teal'c taking over on a mundane science mission to this verdant moon. The teaser with Jack becoming tongue-tied in front of his hero General Ryan, Chief of Staff, is funny, but in the opening credits it says the General is playing himself so was that the real Chief of Staff of the Air Force at the time? I imagine they'd like to reward the programme for it's generating of interest in young people for the service and the positive way the organisation is portrayed, and I'd love to hear the story of that. After that the mission appears as dull as O'Neill's expectations, until these little light creatures start buzzing around.
It becomes a science versus military story, which makes Daniel's absence from the episode seem stranger, but gives some momentum to the story. These scientists, they're so happy to meddle with other lifeforms, then as soon as things turn ugly they come crying for O'Neill to protect them! The apparent harmlessness of the creatures made their ability to cut through any material more devastating and horrible. I saw it coming as soon as they were first spotted zipping through tree trunks, but it was still a terrible moment when one of the scientists gets attacked by a swarm slicing through his body. Reminded me of 'Jurassic Park' and those little compys. By the time it became a base under siege scenario I had forgiven the slow start, though I couldn't quite see the episode as a whole as a strong one, because of that.
I like the way they band together to come up with a last-second plan to electrify the walls, then O'Neill does the heroic thing and allows Teal'c to electrify him with a Zat gun, eventually relying on him to back him up when he tries to activate the 'gate. I wondered why they didn't all get 'Zat-ed,' but the scientist would have been stuck as he couldn't take another blast. Sensibly they didn't have Cadet Hayley be the one to solve the problem and save their skins, as experience is just as important as a high IQ (as Jack would be glad to know!), but I would have appreciated more than the throwaway comments between her and Carter in the last moments to see how she thinks she's going to cope with going back to her mundane training when she knows what's out there. I suppose that was the point, that she now had something to aim for that would test her skills to the max.
***
Monday, 8 August 2011
Sneeze
DVD, Smallville S6 (Sneeze)
Superman's ability to sneeze with as much force as his other powers comes to the fore late in the series, and I can see why they waited so long before addressing it as it's one of those things about the character that's hard to take as seriously as super speed or super strength, becoming more like super spoof, even though it does make sense. Yet it is part of him so they had to address it, and at first it seemed like it was going to be a good episode, a rare comedy-themed episode. This might seem strange after the comparatively weighty events of the season opener, but as I thought about it, it made perfect sense. After last season's descent into (even more) darkness, continued in the opener, it was the right time to lighten things up and have some fun again. That is, right up until Lex gets abducted and held captive by the kind of rubbish, generic baddie we've seen all too often on the series.
The guy's a bully, waves a gun around, rants a bit, tries his best to seem sinister and hard, but is actually just a pawn of someone higher up. What happened to guest characters we can become interested in? The comedy doesn't extend much further than Lois, who looks increasingly like a bumbling idiot that she can't put two and two together. A barn door almost kills her falling out of the sky. It's Clark's barn door. Clark has a cold when he's never had one before. It's not just Lois that doesn't see what's right in front of her eyes - the Daily Planet staff remain oblivious to Clark's visits, that's taken as read, but I wouldn't be so keen to be talking secret stuff with Chloe in a room full of reporters and newspaper staff! It seems crazy, but the flaw drew attention to itself by the way Clark sneezes so that dresses fly up, papers go all over the place and… the inhabitants just look around bewildered for a couple of seconds, not noticing the six-foot guy in red from which this unexpected and unexplained air blast came from!
Maybe that's why Chloe and Clark feel free to talk about anything in their presence: the basement of the Daily Planet must be where all the total idiots work, not having reached a level of journalistic intelligence to notice what's in front of their faces. It doesn't reflect well on Lois either, the way she comes up with some bizarre story and through writing it changes her whole outlook on the journalism profession. Now she wants a career with the Inquisitor! Let's hope she's a better writer than a journalist, or her career could be short-lived. I appreciate the writers wanting to get the character on the path of her known destiny, but to do it in this offhand way in one episode does the character (and the writing) a disservice, forcing pieces into place that would have come naturally with great writing. Even more when she's been so disparaging about the profession in her previous comments.
The storyline of Lex fearing surveillance also began well, a vehicle following him while Lana obliviously accepts an invite to stay at the mansion, and turns into something that is likely to play out further, what I assume is the arc for this third of the season. It centres around an old boarding school enemy of Lex, Oliver Queen, of Queen Industries, obviously a rival company to LuthorCorp judging by the way Lionel threatens the guy. He has a nice rooftop apartment with the rear face of a large clock making for a different set piece, and seems like a bit of a rogue, proving to be the very mastermind behind Lex' capture, but it is suggested he might not be altogether evil since he's against Lex for one thing, which at this stage is not necessarily a bad thing, and didn't want violence used on his captive. He's also a skilled archer, which brings to mind Robin Hood - maybe he's an outlaw, but with a good heart. Maybe. I'm beating about the bush here because, while I don't know the comics, I do know he's the Green Arrow, from seeing the odd episode, and as far as I know, is a hero in the Justice League. So the fact his henchman tells him there was somebody else at the hideout who had special powers doesn't worry me. The back of the DVD suggests they're all going to be buddies anyway.
The generic, ring-fence, dismal, black/blue location Lex is held at was as repetitious a theme as the guy who captured him, but the ending helped to improve my view of the episode, with a nicely done bit of scuffling between Lex, Lana and their adversaries, but even more so when Clark secretly saves them by using his newfound super-breath to blow out the fire that threatened their lives. Good old Clark! I wonder why he never discovered this super-breath when he was younger - when Chloe wants him to huff and puff and blow the door down in a snooping session, he even mentions that it's not a birthday cake, so he's certainly blown the candles out on a cake. The only explanation is, like his heat vision it developed from this particular set of circumstances and time in his life. The superbly whimsical scene in which he blows the clouds away to let the sun beam through at the end felt like the series used to at the close of an episode, all optimism and brightness. Too bad we don't see that more often.
When thinking of the negative mood of the series the name Lana is the biggest thing to come to mind. I thought her discovery of Lex' secret cameras filming her room might drag on into other episodes, creating a rift between them as such stories so often did with Clark, but pleasingly it was resolved within the episode, with Lex promising to remove the one in her room even if he can't take all his surveillance down since that's how he lives. Unless he still keeps a secret one in there… It's a marked contrast between the way Lana and Clark came to be unable to accept any little thing that came up between them. We get the inevitable meeting of Clark and Lana with bad feelings so thick in the air. Even in that brief conversation she questions him and he deflects her probing of a secret, so nothing's changed. Again, it's in strong contrast with the way he and Chloe talk so openly all the time. As ever, only Lois goes around without a clue that all these things are going on around her. It's a simple life for her.
**
Superman's ability to sneeze with as much force as his other powers comes to the fore late in the series, and I can see why they waited so long before addressing it as it's one of those things about the character that's hard to take as seriously as super speed or super strength, becoming more like super spoof, even though it does make sense. Yet it is part of him so they had to address it, and at first it seemed like it was going to be a good episode, a rare comedy-themed episode. This might seem strange after the comparatively weighty events of the season opener, but as I thought about it, it made perfect sense. After last season's descent into (even more) darkness, continued in the opener, it was the right time to lighten things up and have some fun again. That is, right up until Lex gets abducted and held captive by the kind of rubbish, generic baddie we've seen all too often on the series.
The guy's a bully, waves a gun around, rants a bit, tries his best to seem sinister and hard, but is actually just a pawn of someone higher up. What happened to guest characters we can become interested in? The comedy doesn't extend much further than Lois, who looks increasingly like a bumbling idiot that she can't put two and two together. A barn door almost kills her falling out of the sky. It's Clark's barn door. Clark has a cold when he's never had one before. It's not just Lois that doesn't see what's right in front of her eyes - the Daily Planet staff remain oblivious to Clark's visits, that's taken as read, but I wouldn't be so keen to be talking secret stuff with Chloe in a room full of reporters and newspaper staff! It seems crazy, but the flaw drew attention to itself by the way Clark sneezes so that dresses fly up, papers go all over the place and… the inhabitants just look around bewildered for a couple of seconds, not noticing the six-foot guy in red from which this unexpected and unexplained air blast came from!
Maybe that's why Chloe and Clark feel free to talk about anything in their presence: the basement of the Daily Planet must be where all the total idiots work, not having reached a level of journalistic intelligence to notice what's in front of their faces. It doesn't reflect well on Lois either, the way she comes up with some bizarre story and through writing it changes her whole outlook on the journalism profession. Now she wants a career with the Inquisitor! Let's hope she's a better writer than a journalist, or her career could be short-lived. I appreciate the writers wanting to get the character on the path of her known destiny, but to do it in this offhand way in one episode does the character (and the writing) a disservice, forcing pieces into place that would have come naturally with great writing. Even more when she's been so disparaging about the profession in her previous comments.
The storyline of Lex fearing surveillance also began well, a vehicle following him while Lana obliviously accepts an invite to stay at the mansion, and turns into something that is likely to play out further, what I assume is the arc for this third of the season. It centres around an old boarding school enemy of Lex, Oliver Queen, of Queen Industries, obviously a rival company to LuthorCorp judging by the way Lionel threatens the guy. He has a nice rooftop apartment with the rear face of a large clock making for a different set piece, and seems like a bit of a rogue, proving to be the very mastermind behind Lex' capture, but it is suggested he might not be altogether evil since he's against Lex for one thing, which at this stage is not necessarily a bad thing, and didn't want violence used on his captive. He's also a skilled archer, which brings to mind Robin Hood - maybe he's an outlaw, but with a good heart. Maybe. I'm beating about the bush here because, while I don't know the comics, I do know he's the Green Arrow, from seeing the odd episode, and as far as I know, is a hero in the Justice League. So the fact his henchman tells him there was somebody else at the hideout who had special powers doesn't worry me. The back of the DVD suggests they're all going to be buddies anyway.
The generic, ring-fence, dismal, black/blue location Lex is held at was as repetitious a theme as the guy who captured him, but the ending helped to improve my view of the episode, with a nicely done bit of scuffling between Lex, Lana and their adversaries, but even more so when Clark secretly saves them by using his newfound super-breath to blow out the fire that threatened their lives. Good old Clark! I wonder why he never discovered this super-breath when he was younger - when Chloe wants him to huff and puff and blow the door down in a snooping session, he even mentions that it's not a birthday cake, so he's certainly blown the candles out on a cake. The only explanation is, like his heat vision it developed from this particular set of circumstances and time in his life. The superbly whimsical scene in which he blows the clouds away to let the sun beam through at the end felt like the series used to at the close of an episode, all optimism and brightness. Too bad we don't see that more often.
When thinking of the negative mood of the series the name Lana is the biggest thing to come to mind. I thought her discovery of Lex' secret cameras filming her room might drag on into other episodes, creating a rift between them as such stories so often did with Clark, but pleasingly it was resolved within the episode, with Lex promising to remove the one in her room even if he can't take all his surveillance down since that's how he lives. Unless he still keeps a secret one in there… It's a marked contrast between the way Lana and Clark came to be unable to accept any little thing that came up between them. We get the inevitable meeting of Clark and Lana with bad feelings so thick in the air. Even in that brief conversation she questions him and he deflects her probing of a secret, so nothing's changed. Again, it's in strong contrast with the way he and Chloe talk so openly all the time. As ever, only Lois goes around without a clue that all these things are going on around her. It's a simple life for her.
**
Judgment
DVD, Enterprise S2 (Judgment)
The important thing to keep in mind when creating a story is the story, as well as the characters and the journey they go on, not seeing how many names and references can be squeezed in that would be familiar to the viewer. When I first watched this I felt it was merely a collection of stuff, and my already high expectations at JG Hertzler returning to Trek, and the fact it was a Klingon episode, were dashed. It's not fair to compare the film series to the TV versions, the budget was far lower, yet the nature of the story, its reliance on the Klingon legal system, taken from 'Star Trek VI' make such comparisons inevitable.
Seeing this years later, my expectations severely lowered, I noticed things that made edged the episode up in my estimation. Before, I found Kolos the Klingon advocate played by Hertzler, a far weaker character than his best role as Martok on 'DS9,' but this time round I wasn't comparing the roles, instead admiring the detailed makeup and revelling in the fact that he was so different. Scenes in which he talks of the way things used to be, when honour was more important, justice more achievable, made him a sympathetic character, even more so when he chooses to take his punishment like a Klingon, serve a year in Rura Penthe, planning to return to try and change things as a vindicated man. His comment asking if Archer thought all Klingons were soldiers is directed just as much at the audience. There have been vague suggestions of other castes in the Klingon society, but so rarely do we hear of them that the warriors became the default view of the Klingon. Indeed, Klingon Warrior sounds more appropriate than stating 'Klingon' because we're so used to that side of them, so it's fascinating to hear him talk a little about the other sides.
I think I remember reading they were thinking of bringing Kolos back in future episodes, perhaps in a year's time, but for good or ill, with the advent of the new direction of Season 3, the growing brushes with the Empire were halted, one of the few parts of the series that deserved to be continually explored. Don't misunderstand me, this isn't on a par with the earlier Klingon story this season, 'Marauders', and I had hopes that more of Archer's history with the race would be dug up at his tribunal. As it stands there was a thrill to hear them refer back to the pilot, and the way Archer saved their society. It would have been useful if they had addressed the first contact, which we know was supposed to have set off years of animosity, yet seemed to have little bearing on the way the race reacted to humanity - as Kolos notes, they were pretty much without honour, bullies and loose of moral code at that time.
The episode could never be accused of holding back in the mythology stakes. Along with the major visits to both the Klingon court with all the trimmings therein, and the hostile penal planet Rura Penthe (both created for 'Star Trek VI'), we get Captain Duras, a no-good Klingon who commanded the Bortas, is apparently the son of one Toral (if I heard correctly), and worked in the Ty'Gokor system. They really spilled their continuity/reference guts out all over this episode! There's little doubt that this Duras is an ancestor of the despicable traitor of the same name in 'TNG' and that his demotion will be a sore point he'll hold against Archer. There are also painstiks and Targ meat, a reference to some Charter of Koloth, long before the famed 'TOS'/'DS9' Klingon of that name was born, and probably even more.
The outside of Rura Penthe looked great, as did the D5 Battlecruiser Duras commanded in the confrontation with the NX-01. The crew's absence from most of the episode is noticeable, although T'Pol shows her great loyalty for Archer by suggesting she may have to personally 'encourage' one of her Klingon contacts to enable all channels of helping her Captain - quite a sacrifice if she'd have had to go through with such a thing, though it seems she didn't have to. The inside of the penal colony wasn't as realistic, mainly because my eye tends to get drawn to the background aliens who aren't laying in to their pickaxing enough to sell it. It also seems far too easy for Reed to just walk off and find Archer and makes the place seem tiny compared with the version seen in the film. Oops, I shouldn't mention the film!
John Vickery was another recognisable name from several other Trek roles, and judging from the eyes I would guess he played Prosecutor Orok, a suitably toothy and sneering individual. The arc of a man who is past it, being inspired to stand up and be counted again after years of living in inaction, is a good one, but it had been done before. There was a similar plot in the Cardassian trial episode 'Tribunal' ('DS9'), which was better through having more character and connection to what was happening. The advocate in that was very different, long being cowed into complete submission so that he actually enjoyed his work, but that shows how terrible times were on Cardassia. As bad as things in the Klingon Empire are in the 22nd Century, they still aren't the police state of that time and place.
***
The important thing to keep in mind when creating a story is the story, as well as the characters and the journey they go on, not seeing how many names and references can be squeezed in that would be familiar to the viewer. When I first watched this I felt it was merely a collection of stuff, and my already high expectations at JG Hertzler returning to Trek, and the fact it was a Klingon episode, were dashed. It's not fair to compare the film series to the TV versions, the budget was far lower, yet the nature of the story, its reliance on the Klingon legal system, taken from 'Star Trek VI' make such comparisons inevitable.
Seeing this years later, my expectations severely lowered, I noticed things that made edged the episode up in my estimation. Before, I found Kolos the Klingon advocate played by Hertzler, a far weaker character than his best role as Martok on 'DS9,' but this time round I wasn't comparing the roles, instead admiring the detailed makeup and revelling in the fact that he was so different. Scenes in which he talks of the way things used to be, when honour was more important, justice more achievable, made him a sympathetic character, even more so when he chooses to take his punishment like a Klingon, serve a year in Rura Penthe, planning to return to try and change things as a vindicated man. His comment asking if Archer thought all Klingons were soldiers is directed just as much at the audience. There have been vague suggestions of other castes in the Klingon society, but so rarely do we hear of them that the warriors became the default view of the Klingon. Indeed, Klingon Warrior sounds more appropriate than stating 'Klingon' because we're so used to that side of them, so it's fascinating to hear him talk a little about the other sides.
I think I remember reading they were thinking of bringing Kolos back in future episodes, perhaps in a year's time, but for good or ill, with the advent of the new direction of Season 3, the growing brushes with the Empire were halted, one of the few parts of the series that deserved to be continually explored. Don't misunderstand me, this isn't on a par with the earlier Klingon story this season, 'Marauders', and I had hopes that more of Archer's history with the race would be dug up at his tribunal. As it stands there was a thrill to hear them refer back to the pilot, and the way Archer saved their society. It would have been useful if they had addressed the first contact, which we know was supposed to have set off years of animosity, yet seemed to have little bearing on the way the race reacted to humanity - as Kolos notes, they were pretty much without honour, bullies and loose of moral code at that time.
The episode could never be accused of holding back in the mythology stakes. Along with the major visits to both the Klingon court with all the trimmings therein, and the hostile penal planet Rura Penthe (both created for 'Star Trek VI'), we get Captain Duras, a no-good Klingon who commanded the Bortas, is apparently the son of one Toral (if I heard correctly), and worked in the Ty'Gokor system. They really spilled their continuity/reference guts out all over this episode! There's little doubt that this Duras is an ancestor of the despicable traitor of the same name in 'TNG' and that his demotion will be a sore point he'll hold against Archer. There are also painstiks and Targ meat, a reference to some Charter of Koloth, long before the famed 'TOS'/'DS9' Klingon of that name was born, and probably even more.
The outside of Rura Penthe looked great, as did the D5 Battlecruiser Duras commanded in the confrontation with the NX-01. The crew's absence from most of the episode is noticeable, although T'Pol shows her great loyalty for Archer by suggesting she may have to personally 'encourage' one of her Klingon contacts to enable all channels of helping her Captain - quite a sacrifice if she'd have had to go through with such a thing, though it seems she didn't have to. The inside of the penal colony wasn't as realistic, mainly because my eye tends to get drawn to the background aliens who aren't laying in to their pickaxing enough to sell it. It also seems far too easy for Reed to just walk off and find Archer and makes the place seem tiny compared with the version seen in the film. Oops, I shouldn't mention the film!
John Vickery was another recognisable name from several other Trek roles, and judging from the eyes I would guess he played Prosecutor Orok, a suitably toothy and sneering individual. The arc of a man who is past it, being inspired to stand up and be counted again after years of living in inaction, is a good one, but it had been done before. There was a similar plot in the Cardassian trial episode 'Tribunal' ('DS9'), which was better through having more character and connection to what was happening. The advocate in that was very different, long being cowed into complete submission so that he actually enjoyed his work, but that shows how terrible times were on Cardassia. As bad as things in the Klingon Empire are in the 22nd Century, they still aren't the police state of that time and place.
***
Imaginary Friend
DVD, TNG S5 (Imaginary Friend)
You won't like her when she's angry! Actually the sinister side of the story of an imaginary friend turned real wasn't played up. I was expecting all kinds of gremlins in the works, whether it was Troi being dropped in a turbolift for taking Clara away or Picard being 'haunted,' even more so with Brannon Braga's hand in the writing, but none of that happened. Too obvious, perhaps? Such scenarios had been done a few times on the series, but I think it could have done with being a much more disturbing episode. Isabella was very well played by the young actress, coming out with technobabble as well as childish talk, yet always in a stilted, emotionless tone, as if she didn't understand the simplicity of children's reactions, which suited the character's alien nature. The only moment of horror is limited to Deanna being blasted into a wardrobe, but it is enhanced by the Pah-Wraith red eyes and energy beam, modelled most memorably by Gul Dukat in 'DS9.'
Red is certainly the predominant colour for this episode, outside the ship, at least (the arboretum is plenty green in another of its rare appearances!), discounting Guinan's deep orange attire (which was made into one her action figures by Playmates back in the 90s). Commonly, the nebulas seen on Trek, 'TNG' particularly, were blue or purple, the reason being they were usually the same shots reused (often from 'Star Trek II'), so the dark reds of this one, with its cobweb texture and blood-red reflections on the ship, was a visual feast. On that subject, the precision of the effects had improved greatly, enabling the shots of the energy being roaming the ship, in and out of bulkheads, equipment, even little Clara Sutter's head, dancing round plants and generally behaving like most wispy energy beings do.
The concept of an alien race making first contact through a ship's children was a good one, although the story is fairly slow, and if it hadn't been for Picard's heartfelt speech about children, which you could never imagine him saying in the early seasons, I might have considered it an average story. Picard's come on a long way since those early days, and even this season, in 'Disaster,' he showed how he's come to be able to understand children better and not be awkward around them. Guinan gets most of the best scenes, as must have been written into Whoopi Goldberg's contract - how else could she have been so consistently fortunate in her appearances, though that heavy, dancing gleam in her eyes does half the job! This must feature one of the largest roster of recurring characters the series saw: along with Guinan, we also see Alexander and Nurse Ogawa, even Keiko gets mentioned, but isn't seen. You'd think her husband, O'Brien would have been in it more frequently as they must have been gearing up for his move to the new series, 'DS9.'
Noley Thornton was good as Clara, and I instantly recognised her from the 'DS9' episode 'Shadowplay.' Picard's speech reveals something that might not have been apparent through the episode since it mostly occurs from Clara's point of view - that the way adults treat children is with the motive of safeguarding them from dangers they don't know about or understand. It would be nice to imagine that one day that little girl will become and adult, serve in Starfleet and her ship might arrive at that nebula once more and that Isabella will be waiting for her still.
***
You won't like her when she's angry! Actually the sinister side of the story of an imaginary friend turned real wasn't played up. I was expecting all kinds of gremlins in the works, whether it was Troi being dropped in a turbolift for taking Clara away or Picard being 'haunted,' even more so with Brannon Braga's hand in the writing, but none of that happened. Too obvious, perhaps? Such scenarios had been done a few times on the series, but I think it could have done with being a much more disturbing episode. Isabella was very well played by the young actress, coming out with technobabble as well as childish talk, yet always in a stilted, emotionless tone, as if she didn't understand the simplicity of children's reactions, which suited the character's alien nature. The only moment of horror is limited to Deanna being blasted into a wardrobe, but it is enhanced by the Pah-Wraith red eyes and energy beam, modelled most memorably by Gul Dukat in 'DS9.'
Red is certainly the predominant colour for this episode, outside the ship, at least (the arboretum is plenty green in another of its rare appearances!), discounting Guinan's deep orange attire (which was made into one her action figures by Playmates back in the 90s). Commonly, the nebulas seen on Trek, 'TNG' particularly, were blue or purple, the reason being they were usually the same shots reused (often from 'Star Trek II'), so the dark reds of this one, with its cobweb texture and blood-red reflections on the ship, was a visual feast. On that subject, the precision of the effects had improved greatly, enabling the shots of the energy being roaming the ship, in and out of bulkheads, equipment, even little Clara Sutter's head, dancing round plants and generally behaving like most wispy energy beings do.
The concept of an alien race making first contact through a ship's children was a good one, although the story is fairly slow, and if it hadn't been for Picard's heartfelt speech about children, which you could never imagine him saying in the early seasons, I might have considered it an average story. Picard's come on a long way since those early days, and even this season, in 'Disaster,' he showed how he's come to be able to understand children better and not be awkward around them. Guinan gets most of the best scenes, as must have been written into Whoopi Goldberg's contract - how else could she have been so consistently fortunate in her appearances, though that heavy, dancing gleam in her eyes does half the job! This must feature one of the largest roster of recurring characters the series saw: along with Guinan, we also see Alexander and Nurse Ogawa, even Keiko gets mentioned, but isn't seen. You'd think her husband, O'Brien would have been in it more frequently as they must have been gearing up for his move to the new series, 'DS9.'
Noley Thornton was good as Clara, and I instantly recognised her from the 'DS9' episode 'Shadowplay.' Picard's speech reveals something that might not have been apparent through the episode since it mostly occurs from Clara's point of view - that the way adults treat children is with the motive of safeguarding them from dangers they don't know about or understand. It would be nice to imagine that one day that little girl will become and adult, serve in Starfleet and her ship might arrive at that nebula once more and that Isabella will be waiting for her still.
***
The Perfect Mate
DVD, TNG S5 (The Perfect Mate)
The perfect mate? Perhaps, but far from the perfect episode. As an idea, it's strong, if generic, and I can imagine it being done on any sci-fi series - it was remade, even down to the spots, in 'Enterprise' Season 2 ('Precious Cargo'). That had even less care with the issues of the story than this did, and the idea isn't very well realised. Not only that, but it has echoes of 'The Empath' of 'TOS,' another story about a captive empath, and 'Second Sight' from 'DS9.' As usual, the 'DS9' version is best, with a mysterious alien that the main character is attracted to adding more science fiction ideas and providing a mystery beyond simply the woman.
With this iteration the ethics of Kamala's position as a 'gift' who has been betrothed since birth to build peace between two warring races is mentioned, but it becomes much more about Picard, and whether he can resist the perfect mate, and resist interfering in the culture, since she can become whatever any man wishes and reacts to them. That aspect of the story had potential as she is wisely chaperoned by Data who couldn't be manipulated by her charms, and shows how she can appear to Riker, in a brash, no-nonsense way, to Worf as animal-like, to Picard as an intelligent being that can talk him round on any subject, or to the rough miner aliens in Ten Forward where she fits in like some kind of cowgirl or saloon bar type.
The only core of sadness that makes much difference to us is that she has inadvertently bonded to Picard, and rather than becoming what her betrothed husband would see as perfect, she will always be stuck as Picard's perfect mate, yet she must go through with it and sacrifice her happiness to support the peace of her people. The tragedy is strong, but the episode is rather piecemeal, running around from humorous scenes of the reactions she provokes in the other men aboard, the Ferengi's inept attempts to possess her, and the serious attraction she has for Picard and his uncertainty that he shouldn't intervene. It was nice to see the Picard/Crusher breakfasts being kept up, even more so that Beverly provides a shoulder for him to lean on - and a rather trendy tea set, which I'd quite like!
This might not have been the best episode in which to bring the Ferengi back. It already had more than enough elements to draw upon, and so doesn't delve deep enough into any of them for my liking. Max Grodenchik is fine playing his second Ferengi (after 'Captain's Holiday'), looking even more like Rom with that crooked tooth poking out at the bottom, but the race were still being played as idiotic buffoons. It would take an entirely new series, 'DS9,' to turn them into a favourite top-tier race and that definitely wasn't happening here. Another familiar race, though they don't appear, get much inspiration from this episode. The Trill changed from bumpy-headed (seen last season), to take on the spots of the Kriosians seen here, and it's easy to see why, as they are alien, yet not intrusive on the eye. Ambassador Briam looks even more Trill-like when he's out of his finery in sickbay. An interesting note is that actor Michael Snyder who played the other Ferengi, Qol, was also in 'Star Trek VI.' Suitably he played Crewman Dax!
Famke Janssen could well be the template for Dax. She has the spots, she's tall and well-formed and has a wisdom beyond her looks, but also the ability to have fun. Janssen would go on to be more famous for playing Xenia in 'Goldeneye' and starring in the 'X-Men' films. There was one really weird moment when she's standing there admitting that she's a mutant to Professor X, sorry, Picard - It's like they were doing a rehearsal for the roles they'd play so many years later! She was fine as the metamorph, but I found her more creepy than anything else - that she could know and react to however you were thinking or whatever your interests were… Riker shows remarkable restraint, and the only humour comes from Data's attempts at playing chaperone which would have been fun to see more of.
At its root the idea isn't given the space to grow, either in our concern for her as a betrothed person against her will, or for the rights and responsibilities of duty. I even sensed a subconscious level of what could be called racism, though that's probably taking the reaction a bit far: Riker tells Worf not to assign the Ferengi quarters anywhere near his, which is understandable, but Kamala, when describing her character, suggests forcing her not to adapt to each man would be like telling a Vulcan to ignore logic (fair enough), or asking a Klingon to be non-violent! Surely that's only a stereotype? There must be Klingons that aren't violent all the time? It's not meant to be a slur, and it fits with the shorthand of the universe, but it did jump out at me.
Kamala's container, a glowing golden orb, like a giant, elongated egg, tethered to three energy beams, was a good effect that retained a sense of weight and shape effectively. Also, in a line of dialogue it would be easy to miss, Geordi manhandles the Ferengi away from the Ambassador asking if he's seen the dolphins yet - I think these are the dolphins, according to the Tech Manual, that are involved in ship's navigation though I don't think it was ever talked about on screen. Where was Deanna? You'd think she'd be the perfect chaperone for an empath, and somebody who would understand how she felt. That's probably why she wasn't around, it would be too easy.
**
The perfect mate? Perhaps, but far from the perfect episode. As an idea, it's strong, if generic, and I can imagine it being done on any sci-fi series - it was remade, even down to the spots, in 'Enterprise' Season 2 ('Precious Cargo'). That had even less care with the issues of the story than this did, and the idea isn't very well realised. Not only that, but it has echoes of 'The Empath' of 'TOS,' another story about a captive empath, and 'Second Sight' from 'DS9.' As usual, the 'DS9' version is best, with a mysterious alien that the main character is attracted to adding more science fiction ideas and providing a mystery beyond simply the woman.
With this iteration the ethics of Kamala's position as a 'gift' who has been betrothed since birth to build peace between two warring races is mentioned, but it becomes much more about Picard, and whether he can resist the perfect mate, and resist interfering in the culture, since she can become whatever any man wishes and reacts to them. That aspect of the story had potential as she is wisely chaperoned by Data who couldn't be manipulated by her charms, and shows how she can appear to Riker, in a brash, no-nonsense way, to Worf as animal-like, to Picard as an intelligent being that can talk him round on any subject, or to the rough miner aliens in Ten Forward where she fits in like some kind of cowgirl or saloon bar type.
The only core of sadness that makes much difference to us is that she has inadvertently bonded to Picard, and rather than becoming what her betrothed husband would see as perfect, she will always be stuck as Picard's perfect mate, yet she must go through with it and sacrifice her happiness to support the peace of her people. The tragedy is strong, but the episode is rather piecemeal, running around from humorous scenes of the reactions she provokes in the other men aboard, the Ferengi's inept attempts to possess her, and the serious attraction she has for Picard and his uncertainty that he shouldn't intervene. It was nice to see the Picard/Crusher breakfasts being kept up, even more so that Beverly provides a shoulder for him to lean on - and a rather trendy tea set, which I'd quite like!
This might not have been the best episode in which to bring the Ferengi back. It already had more than enough elements to draw upon, and so doesn't delve deep enough into any of them for my liking. Max Grodenchik is fine playing his second Ferengi (after 'Captain's Holiday'), looking even more like Rom with that crooked tooth poking out at the bottom, but the race were still being played as idiotic buffoons. It would take an entirely new series, 'DS9,' to turn them into a favourite top-tier race and that definitely wasn't happening here. Another familiar race, though they don't appear, get much inspiration from this episode. The Trill changed from bumpy-headed (seen last season), to take on the spots of the Kriosians seen here, and it's easy to see why, as they are alien, yet not intrusive on the eye. Ambassador Briam looks even more Trill-like when he's out of his finery in sickbay. An interesting note is that actor Michael Snyder who played the other Ferengi, Qol, was also in 'Star Trek VI.' Suitably he played Crewman Dax!
Famke Janssen could well be the template for Dax. She has the spots, she's tall and well-formed and has a wisdom beyond her looks, but also the ability to have fun. Janssen would go on to be more famous for playing Xenia in 'Goldeneye' and starring in the 'X-Men' films. There was one really weird moment when she's standing there admitting that she's a mutant to Professor X, sorry, Picard - It's like they were doing a rehearsal for the roles they'd play so many years later! She was fine as the metamorph, but I found her more creepy than anything else - that she could know and react to however you were thinking or whatever your interests were… Riker shows remarkable restraint, and the only humour comes from Data's attempts at playing chaperone which would have been fun to see more of.
At its root the idea isn't given the space to grow, either in our concern for her as a betrothed person against her will, or for the rights and responsibilities of duty. I even sensed a subconscious level of what could be called racism, though that's probably taking the reaction a bit far: Riker tells Worf not to assign the Ferengi quarters anywhere near his, which is understandable, but Kamala, when describing her character, suggests forcing her not to adapt to each man would be like telling a Vulcan to ignore logic (fair enough), or asking a Klingon to be non-violent! Surely that's only a stereotype? There must be Klingons that aren't violent all the time? It's not meant to be a slur, and it fits with the shorthand of the universe, but it did jump out at me.
Kamala's container, a glowing golden orb, like a giant, elongated egg, tethered to three energy beams, was a good effect that retained a sense of weight and shape effectively. Also, in a line of dialogue it would be easy to miss, Geordi manhandles the Ferengi away from the Ambassador asking if he's seen the dolphins yet - I think these are the dolphins, according to the Tech Manual, that are involved in ship's navigation though I don't think it was ever talked about on screen. Where was Deanna? You'd think she'd be the perfect chaperone for an empath, and somebody who would understand how she felt. That's probably why she wasn't around, it would be too easy.
**
Monday, 25 July 2011
Cost of Living
DVD, TNG S5 (Cost of Living)
Mrs. Troi is up to her old tricks again, but prior to that the episode starts with teaser of flowing action, the camera panning smoothly, and a buzz of speed and intensity to the dialogue and visuals that isn't common on the series. The episode is well-directed throughout, with visual humour (tiny Alexander coming to the door to find towering Mr. Homn answer it), the unique mix of an unexpected partnership (Lwaxana and Alexander), and some mistakes visible in frame - the boom mike makes an unscheduled career break, and Majel Barrett's covering is just visible in one scene in which she's supposed to be naked. Otherwise, though the story is free to wander where it will, it contains enough goodness to make a strong episode with plenty of themes - many have been mined before, such as the loneliness old age can bring ('The Quality of Life'), the ship's systems being taken over by a parasitic life form of some kind, the Enterprise saving a planet from an asteroid (that's happened quite a lot lately!), transporting lifeforms back to their asteroid field home ('Galaxy's Child'), Mr. Data being the crew's only hope for salvation ('Clues'), and the antics of Mrs. Troi, but they haven't been taken apart and rearranged into one episode before.
Majel Barrett is as good as ever, and I still get a kick out of her talking to herself whenever Lwaxana has a conversation with the computer. As usual she goes through flamboyant dresses at warp speed, flouts rules and regulations, and for one time only, allows Picard a moment of relief when he believes she's going to get married. There are elements which aren't played up - I thought Picard and Data were going to be trapped in the turbolift, Data having to save them before it plummeted to destruction, and I thought it might have been interesting for Alexander and Lwaxana to be trapped in a malfunctioning Holodeck with those crazy characters ( a bit like 'The Thaw' from 'Voyager'), but one scene that worked very well was all parties converging on the errant Mrs. Troi's quarters. It doesn't have quite the level of hilarity that that scene in 'DS9' had, early in Season 2, when the whole cast turn up at Kira's place to see her off, all taking turns to upstage the others, but it's that kind of thing.
Mr. Homn displays more skills we didn't know about, seemingly an excellent tailor, and Lwaxana gets our sympathy again when she opens up to Alexander. Worf is having trouble keeping his son on the strait and narrow, while contending with the nonsense of Mrs. Troi who is in an odd mood. She's decided to marry at last, but her bridegroom comes from a stuffy and rigidly regulated society - you wonder how their personality profiles matched up so well! Deanna also has to cope with her mother, just after she's been mediating between Worf and son, extolling the virtue of parents.
The Holodeck scenes, mud baths aside, are full of fun and whimsical fairytale-like characters, preceding both The Adventures of Flotter on 'Voyager' and the 'Butterfly Girls' from the pilot of 'Enterprise.' The bubble creature and fire sculptor were impressive, indicating the general level of effects has definitely improved this season. When the Holodeck doors open for Lwaxana and Alexander it looks real that they're appearing inside the environment rather than entering from a wall. Equally the fire-sculpting, and even the little scurrying dust that represents the parasites, achieves reality.
The theme Lwaxana has brought in her recent appearances, particularly this and the one last season with Timicin, is the sadness of growing old alone, not only that, but the titles are similar: 'The Quality of Life' and 'Cost of Living' both speak of life, but not just the problems of old age, as Alexander discovers. I wonder if he got anything positive from that rascal Lwaxana, filling his mind with mixed messages ('Open your mind and wisdom will flow in'? More like 'dross will flow in'!). At least he had some fun, and it was an unexpected pairing to play with. Worf's family life hasn't detracted from the series, making it too soapy, as yet, providing more humour than anything else, and continuing his association with Deanna who shares some of the care of his son. I bet he longs for the simple days when all he had to worry about was protecting the ship! They must have liked Albie Selznick's physical comedy as the Juggler since they brought him back to play the gesture-oriented Tak Tak in 'Voyager' episode 'Macrocosm.'
***
Mrs. Troi is up to her old tricks again, but prior to that the episode starts with teaser of flowing action, the camera panning smoothly, and a buzz of speed and intensity to the dialogue and visuals that isn't common on the series. The episode is well-directed throughout, with visual humour (tiny Alexander coming to the door to find towering Mr. Homn answer it), the unique mix of an unexpected partnership (Lwaxana and Alexander), and some mistakes visible in frame - the boom mike makes an unscheduled career break, and Majel Barrett's covering is just visible in one scene in which she's supposed to be naked. Otherwise, though the story is free to wander where it will, it contains enough goodness to make a strong episode with plenty of themes - many have been mined before, such as the loneliness old age can bring ('The Quality of Life'), the ship's systems being taken over by a parasitic life form of some kind, the Enterprise saving a planet from an asteroid (that's happened quite a lot lately!), transporting lifeforms back to their asteroid field home ('Galaxy's Child'), Mr. Data being the crew's only hope for salvation ('Clues'), and the antics of Mrs. Troi, but they haven't been taken apart and rearranged into one episode before.
Majel Barrett is as good as ever, and I still get a kick out of her talking to herself whenever Lwaxana has a conversation with the computer. As usual she goes through flamboyant dresses at warp speed, flouts rules and regulations, and for one time only, allows Picard a moment of relief when he believes she's going to get married. There are elements which aren't played up - I thought Picard and Data were going to be trapped in the turbolift, Data having to save them before it plummeted to destruction, and I thought it might have been interesting for Alexander and Lwaxana to be trapped in a malfunctioning Holodeck with those crazy characters ( a bit like 'The Thaw' from 'Voyager'), but one scene that worked very well was all parties converging on the errant Mrs. Troi's quarters. It doesn't have quite the level of hilarity that that scene in 'DS9' had, early in Season 2, when the whole cast turn up at Kira's place to see her off, all taking turns to upstage the others, but it's that kind of thing.
Mr. Homn displays more skills we didn't know about, seemingly an excellent tailor, and Lwaxana gets our sympathy again when she opens up to Alexander. Worf is having trouble keeping his son on the strait and narrow, while contending with the nonsense of Mrs. Troi who is in an odd mood. She's decided to marry at last, but her bridegroom comes from a stuffy and rigidly regulated society - you wonder how their personality profiles matched up so well! Deanna also has to cope with her mother, just after she's been mediating between Worf and son, extolling the virtue of parents.
The Holodeck scenes, mud baths aside, are full of fun and whimsical fairytale-like characters, preceding both The Adventures of Flotter on 'Voyager' and the 'Butterfly Girls' from the pilot of 'Enterprise.' The bubble creature and fire sculptor were impressive, indicating the general level of effects has definitely improved this season. When the Holodeck doors open for Lwaxana and Alexander it looks real that they're appearing inside the environment rather than entering from a wall. Equally the fire-sculpting, and even the little scurrying dust that represents the parasites, achieves reality.
The theme Lwaxana has brought in her recent appearances, particularly this and the one last season with Timicin, is the sadness of growing old alone, not only that, but the titles are similar: 'The Quality of Life' and 'Cost of Living' both speak of life, but not just the problems of old age, as Alexander discovers. I wonder if he got anything positive from that rascal Lwaxana, filling his mind with mixed messages ('Open your mind and wisdom will flow in'? More like 'dross will flow in'!). At least he had some fun, and it was an unexpected pairing to play with. Worf's family life hasn't detracted from the series, making it too soapy, as yet, providing more humour than anything else, and continuing his association with Deanna who shares some of the care of his son. I bet he longs for the simple days when all he had to worry about was protecting the ship! They must have liked Albie Selznick's physical comedy as the Juggler since they brought him back to play the gesture-oriented Tak Tak in 'Voyager' episode 'Macrocosm.'
***
Alien Breed II
Amiga 1200, Alien Breed II (1993) game
I played this game years ago, back in the 90s when the Amiga was my only non-portable gaming machine, and in recent months, even the last year or two, I've gone back to some of old Amiga games to try and complete them. Last time round I was much younger and less experienced, but this time I still found the game fairly difficult, and I was playing on the 'Easy' setting since there is no middle value which is what I often prefer to start on. In the 'old days' I got to the second tunnel area where you have to dash through a narrow corridor which is a little bit maze-like as you have to choose the right way to go so as not to use up too many keys. The panic of the red security lights blaring, the countdown, and the pressure meant I never got past this before, mainly because there are only two points you can restart from where you're given a code to type in upon reaching the end of four or five levels. This tunnel was just before the second and final restart position and I didn't have the patience to keep playing the same levels over and over back then.
For some reason, perhaps because I was using a CD32 game pad this time rather than a bulky and cumbersome joystick (those were the days!), I found the game somewhat easier, and soon got through the levels and further than I had ever been before. The last few levels were tricky, the aliens a bit tougher, as you'd expect, but once I realised there was no need to hoard my credits, I bought the best weaponry, used up keys with abandon, and bought a first aid kit whenever my health got low - it was simply a case of learning the layout and where to go. Level 17, the last, was a bit disappointing, but that's often the way, even with newer games - it was a far less inspiring one way corridor with swarms of aliens coming for you. The trick was to move slowly and fire off homing missiles constantly and on my third attempt I reached the end-of-game nasty. I beat it on my first meeting without trouble and a short animated sequence of a rescue ship flying off into the clouds played, with a message from the creators of the game.
In terms of weaponry there were several options, my favourite when I first played, and now, being the 'Rebounder' which fired crescent-shaped ammo which would bounce off any walls and create a useful extension of the area you were firing in. The trouble with the game was that you couldn't turn without moving forward, so if an alien was approaching from behind you had to run into it to turn and fire. With the 'Rebounder' you could run away and allow the ricochets to do the damage. The challenge was in spending enough time collecting first aid kits, keys, credits (100 for the dull-coloured ones, 1000 for gold ones), and ammo, but not exploring too much so that these supplies were depleted by the constantly re-spawning alien scum. Aliens didn't vary that much, some were tougher and could take more hits, other, spidery ones were weak, but scuttled around very fast, and the best tactic, I found, was simply firing off rebounders all over the place. That only worked in the closed off corridors of the internal facility. In the few levels with wide open spaces homing missiles were more effective.
The game was a bit pointless in some ways. You go deeper and deeper into this facility until you come out the other side and have another, short level on the Ground, a message telling you you've been through the facility and there was nothing there. While it's nice to find your high-powered weapons make you more than a match for the large helicopters, it makes you wonder why you couldn't have found this other tunnel in the first place and saved a lot of bother to hunt down the alien's hideout. Plot and character weren't as important in those days, especially in a shoot-'em-up, plus there would have been no game if you didn't go round all those levels! Most weren't very varied, but I liked the ones set in the living area, with swimming pools and offices, and the level towards the end where you find yourself without the protection of walls, and at a disadvantage with all these security cannons around and the floor is full of pits and troughs to impede progress. It gives some variety having to take on the big tech thing in the centre. They did half-heartedly try to add in some other tasks, like collecting four orbs or walking across four pads, but the 'puzzles' are very undemanding, and it's purely down to the fight to stay living that makes it a challenging game.
I never really explored the two-player option back in the day and I didn't bother this time. The score can be saved, but you have to copy it to disk which is too much trouble for a fast-paced shooting game. The artwork and music weren't bad for the time, and I do love pixellated design. As a nostalgic step back into a tougher time of games-playing, 'Alien Breed II' isn't bad. Will I go back and try and conquer it on 'Hard'? I don't know, possibly. I'm not in a big hurry to slot the 3.5 inch disks in again, so that probably says something about the game, but it was certainly not a waste of time. The difficulty curve is uneven. It gets quite difficult then in the last two or three levels it becomes easier again, or perhaps that was just me improving! Worth experiencing, especially if you remember it from playing in the 90s, but lacking depth and the satisfaction necessary to keep going back except for the hardcore feeling of being a top gamer.
**
I played this game years ago, back in the 90s when the Amiga was my only non-portable gaming machine, and in recent months, even the last year or two, I've gone back to some of old Amiga games to try and complete them. Last time round I was much younger and less experienced, but this time I still found the game fairly difficult, and I was playing on the 'Easy' setting since there is no middle value which is what I often prefer to start on. In the 'old days' I got to the second tunnel area where you have to dash through a narrow corridor which is a little bit maze-like as you have to choose the right way to go so as not to use up too many keys. The panic of the red security lights blaring, the countdown, and the pressure meant I never got past this before, mainly because there are only two points you can restart from where you're given a code to type in upon reaching the end of four or five levels. This tunnel was just before the second and final restart position and I didn't have the patience to keep playing the same levels over and over back then.
For some reason, perhaps because I was using a CD32 game pad this time rather than a bulky and cumbersome joystick (those were the days!), I found the game somewhat easier, and soon got through the levels and further than I had ever been before. The last few levels were tricky, the aliens a bit tougher, as you'd expect, but once I realised there was no need to hoard my credits, I bought the best weaponry, used up keys with abandon, and bought a first aid kit whenever my health got low - it was simply a case of learning the layout and where to go. Level 17, the last, was a bit disappointing, but that's often the way, even with newer games - it was a far less inspiring one way corridor with swarms of aliens coming for you. The trick was to move slowly and fire off homing missiles constantly and on my third attempt I reached the end-of-game nasty. I beat it on my first meeting without trouble and a short animated sequence of a rescue ship flying off into the clouds played, with a message from the creators of the game.
In terms of weaponry there were several options, my favourite when I first played, and now, being the 'Rebounder' which fired crescent-shaped ammo which would bounce off any walls and create a useful extension of the area you were firing in. The trouble with the game was that you couldn't turn without moving forward, so if an alien was approaching from behind you had to run into it to turn and fire. With the 'Rebounder' you could run away and allow the ricochets to do the damage. The challenge was in spending enough time collecting first aid kits, keys, credits (100 for the dull-coloured ones, 1000 for gold ones), and ammo, but not exploring too much so that these supplies were depleted by the constantly re-spawning alien scum. Aliens didn't vary that much, some were tougher and could take more hits, other, spidery ones were weak, but scuttled around very fast, and the best tactic, I found, was simply firing off rebounders all over the place. That only worked in the closed off corridors of the internal facility. In the few levels with wide open spaces homing missiles were more effective.
The game was a bit pointless in some ways. You go deeper and deeper into this facility until you come out the other side and have another, short level on the Ground, a message telling you you've been through the facility and there was nothing there. While it's nice to find your high-powered weapons make you more than a match for the large helicopters, it makes you wonder why you couldn't have found this other tunnel in the first place and saved a lot of bother to hunt down the alien's hideout. Plot and character weren't as important in those days, especially in a shoot-'em-up, plus there would have been no game if you didn't go round all those levels! Most weren't very varied, but I liked the ones set in the living area, with swimming pools and offices, and the level towards the end where you find yourself without the protection of walls, and at a disadvantage with all these security cannons around and the floor is full of pits and troughs to impede progress. It gives some variety having to take on the big tech thing in the centre. They did half-heartedly try to add in some other tasks, like collecting four orbs or walking across four pads, but the 'puzzles' are very undemanding, and it's purely down to the fight to stay living that makes it a challenging game.
I never really explored the two-player option back in the day and I didn't bother this time. The score can be saved, but you have to copy it to disk which is too much trouble for a fast-paced shooting game. The artwork and music weren't bad for the time, and I do love pixellated design. As a nostalgic step back into a tougher time of games-playing, 'Alien Breed II' isn't bad. Will I go back and try and conquer it on 'Hard'? I don't know, possibly. I'm not in a big hurry to slot the 3.5 inch disks in again, so that probably says something about the game, but it was certainly not a waste of time. The difficulty curve is uneven. It gets quite difficult then in the last two or three levels it becomes easier again, or perhaps that was just me improving! Worth experiencing, especially if you remember it from playing in the 90s, but lacking depth and the satisfaction necessary to keep going back except for the hardcore feeling of being a top gamer.
**
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