ConNotationsVolume 12 Issue 5 ConNotations Page 1 ConNotations In This Issue News & Reviews SF Tube Talk 1 ReAnimation 1 FYI 2 CASFS Business Report 2

Volume 12 Issue 5 ConNotations Page 1

ConNotationsIn This IssueNews & Reviews

SF Tube Talk 1ReAnimation 1FYI 2CASFS Business Report 2Musical Notes 3ConClusion 424 Frames 8Videophile 12In Our Book (Book Reviews) 15

Special FeatureWallace and Ladmoby Shane Shellenbarger 6

Convention & FandomClub Listings 18Convention Listings 20Convention Registration Form 20

Art WorkSherlock Front page

( Cont’d on Page 13 )

SF Tube Talk

By Lee Whiteside

Volume 12, Issue 5October/November

2002The Bi-Monthly Science Fiction, Fantasy & Convention Newszine of the Central Arizona Speculative Fiction Society

ConNotationsCentral Arizona Speculative Fiction SocietyPO Box 62613Phoenix, AZ 85082

Non-Profit Org.US Postage

PAIDPermit 839

Phoenix, AZ

ReAnimationAnime ReviewsTV News & Previews

( Cont’d on page 9 )© Sherlock

ConNotationsis

Evolving!

ConNotations will be going throughsome changes over the next few issues tomake it more useful to its readers.

Some changes to look for are:More news stories that pertain to fans

of SF/FMore feature stories on Local authors,

artists, stores and fansThe addition of The Bazzar – low cost

classified adsAn expanded Gamer’s Corner, with more

info on new games, video games and RPGs.An improved calendar to keep an eye

out for upcoming conventions, books andgames.

HoroscopesComicsAnd more published submissions,

including letters , poetry , art & fiction,Additionally we will need your help to

make all these changes a reality. We needmore people willing to contribute to theabove mentioned areas, or if you haveideas of your own and want to be a regularcontributor please let us know bycontacting:

Joe [email protected]

Thank you,The Staff of ConNotations

visited Earth in the 1950’s. Starting offOctober is the episode “Minefield”,written by former X-Files producer JohnShiban. In it, Lt. Reed is trapped by an

**** Batman Beyond:Return of the Joker

**** Batman & Mr Freeze - Subzero***** Sherlock Hound Case File II***** Sherlock Hound Case File III***** Sherlock Hound Case File IV**** Digimon The Birth of Guilmon***** El Hazard: The Wanderers TV

Series Vol. 1: Adventure Begins***** El Hazard: The Wanderers TV

Series Vol. 2: The UltimateWeapon

***** El Hazard: The Wanderers TVSeries Vol. 3: The WindsOf War

***** Card Captor SakuraThe Movie**** Tenchi MuyoRyoko’s Arrival

Batman Beyond - Return of the Joker(Uncut Version)

Warner Home Video, 77 min, NRVHS $14.94: DVD $ 19.98

For those who are unfamiliar with theWB’s animated show “Batman Beyond,”here’s an overview. There’s a new Gothamcity and a new Batman to go with it.Barbara Gordon has long ago turned in herbat-suit and is now the PoliceCommissioner and Bruce Wayne, whilestill a millionaire, lived alone in WayneManor with his Great Dane, Ace. Highschool student Terry McGinnis is Bruce

The fall season is underway and thenew shows are trying to stake a claim ontheir time slots. We’ve also got somesurprising non-renewals for cable justannounced plus the biggest genreminiseries ever with Steven Spielberg’sTaken on SciFi Channel.

In the early Trek Universe onEnterprise, we’ve seen the resolution ofthe first season’s cliffhanger and arevelation that T’Pol’s great grandmother

© Paramount

Page 2 ConNotations Volume 12 Issue 5

Who’s Who This Issue

Managing Editor: Stephanie BannonCo-Editors: Sue Martin & Gary SwatyGraphics Editor: Craig L. DyerFilm & Video Reporter: Barry BardStaff Writers: Pam Allen, Barry Bard,Catherine Book, Craig L. Dyer, MichaelGriffin, Shane Irons, Daryl F. Mallett, SeanMartin, Shane Shellenbarger, Tom Tuerff,Lee Whiteside, Randall Whitlock, MikeWillmothLayout & Design: Stephanie L. BannonKeeper of the Mailing List: Craig L.Dyer and Doug CosperContributors: Matthew Andrews, LucHenderson, Tanya GrochenourLabeling Crew for Volume 12 Issue 4:Stephanie Bannon, Richard Bolinski,Catherine Book,Craig L. Dyer, Ray Gish,Bob LaPierre, Sue & Jo Martin, AprilRice, Walter Sanville, Gary Swaty, GusTalbott, Bill WhitmoreAbout ConNotations: ConNotations is thefan published newszine of the CentralArizona Speculative Fiction Society(CASFS) an IRS-recognized 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Circulation isestimated at 4,000 readers for this issue,primarily CASFS members and attendeesof recent AZ sf/f conventions.Subscriptions: The newszine is currentlysent free of charge to anyone who hasattended a CASFS or LepreCon sponsoredconvention in the last two years and to allCASFS members. Subscriptions are avail-able. Cost for a six issue subscription is:USA: $12/bulk.Copyright: Articles, fiction, photos andartwork in this issue are copyright © of theauthor/artist and cannot be reproduced inany manner without their written consent.If no author or artist is credited the artworkor article is copyright ©of the CentralArizona Speculative Fiction Society.Publication: Publications dates areFebruary, April, June, August, October &December. Publication date of this issue is09/25/2002; mailing date is 09/30/2002Advertising: ConNotations reachesapprox. 4,000 science fiction, fantasy,gaming and horror fans throughout thePhoenix metro area, the Southwest andnationwide. Our ad rates are:Back cover/$150, $100/full page; $70/two-thirds page;$50/half page; $35/one-third page; $25/one-fourth page; $18/one-eigth page. Moreinformation can be obtained by contactingStephanie L. Bannon, PO Box 62613,Phoenix, AZ 85082-2613 Phone or FAX;(602)973-2341; Email: [email protected] Info: Writers and artists areencouraged to submit work for publication.While we cannot pay you for your effortsyour work will be seen by over 4,000 fansacross the Southwest and the country. Youwill retain the copyright to your work forfuture publication. To submit your work orfor more information please write to:ConNotations; PO Box 62613, Phoenix,AZ 85082-2613 or contact us via Email [email protected] Information: ConNotations andits contributors can be contacted by mail atPO Box 62613, Phoenix, AZ 85082-2613or via email at [email protected]

FYI

Pick up your copy ofConNotations

at these locations:

All About Books and Comics5060 N. Central, Phoenix, AZ(602) 277-0757810 S. Ash, Tempe, AZ(480) 858-94474022 E. Greenway, Phoenix, AZ(602) 494-1976Amazing Discoveries 2545 E Speedway #155, Tucson, AZ(520) 320-0338Book Connection 6434 S McClintock,Tempe AZ (480) 820-2953Book Exchange Plus 2601 E Bell #14,Phoenix, AZ (602) 867-1018Borders Book Stores2402 E Camelback, Phoenix, AZ (602) 957-6600870 N 54th St, Chandler, AZ(480) 961-49151361 N. Alma School Rd., Mesa, AZ(480) 833-22444555 E. Cactus Rd., Phoenix, AZ(602) 953-96997320 W. Bell Rd., Glendale, AZ(623) 487-9110699 S Mill Ave, Tempe, AZ( 480 ) 921-8631Discount Book 3650 W Glendale Ave,Phoenix AZ (602) 589-0188Game Depot 3136 S McClintock#11, Tempe, Az 85282(480) 966-4727Game Keeper Metro Center Mall, 9617N Metro Pkwy W., Phoenix AZ(602)944-2073Imperial Outpost 4212 W Cactus Rd#1111, Phoenix, AZ (602) 862-9683Michael’s Magic 3617 E SouthernAve #8, Mesa, AZ (480) 325-7485Samurai Comics 5024 N 7th St,Phoenix AZ 602-265-8886Stalking Moon Comics &Collectibles 5775 W Bell Rd #B-6,Glendale, Arizona (602) 896-9992Things For Thinkers 4500 ESpeedway Blvd #36, Tucson, AZ(520) 326-7679

ConNotationsISSN: 1082-7765PUBLISHED: Six times a yearBY: Central Arizona SpeculativeFiction Society, PO Box 62613, Phoenix,AZ 85082ISSUE NUMBER: Volume 12 Issue 5SUBSCRIPTION: $12 for 6 ISSUES

BOOK DISCUSSION GROUPSCASFS Sponsored Groups

GLENDALE PUBLIC LIBRARY:1st Thursday of each month at 5959 WBrown in Glendale at 7PMOctober 3: Ancient of Days by MichaelBishopNovember 7: Tea With the Black Dragonby R.A. MacAvoyDecember 5: The Two Towers by JRRTolkienFor more information on the Glendalegroup contact Sue Martin at 623-939-7815

Other Book Groups

BORDERS OTHER WORLDS BOOKDISCUSSION GROUP

Third Thursday at Borders, 2402 ECamelback at 6PMFor more info contact Eric 602-957-6660 [email protected]

BORDERS FANTASY & SCI-FI BOOKDISCUSSION:

Fourth Wednesday at Borders, 7320 WBell Rd in Glendale. at 7PM.October 23: Passage by Connie WillisFor details contact Tanya 623-487-9110

INFORMATION LINE: For up to dateinformation on each month’s CASFS andfan sponsored sci-fi related events call(602)973-2341 and select option 7 for a pre-recorded message. There is also a weeklyemail update. If you wish to receive theemail update send your email address toStephanie at [email protected]

What is CASFS?What is really behind putting on a convention? What the funds raised by aconvention used for? Why not attend a meeting and find out? We’re the sponsor ofConNotations, CopperCons, HexaCons, SmerfCons and other conventions. We are acharitable, non-profit organization that exists to further science fiction, fantasy andscience fields in Arizona. CASFS currently meets at the JB’s Restaurant at 2560 WIndian School Rd in Phoenix (NW corner of I-17 and Indian School). The meetingsbegin at 8PM and are held on the last Friday of the month Jan. Through Sept. Andon the second Friday of the month Oct through Dec. Everyone is invited to attendtwo meetings as a guest (non-member). Membership rates are $12/year plus an initial$3 application fee and rates are pro-rated for the amount of the year remaining. Formore info Call: Stephanie L. Bannon (602)973-2341 Webpage: www.casfs.org email:[email protected]

CASFS Business ReportSeptember 2002

Supernal Readers,HexaCon and CopperCon are over and

the news is good.HexaCon 12 has given us all a little

more security. In addition to the return ofall advances, payment of seed money andpass throughs to HexaCon 13 and $1500 toCASFS Main Account for insurance andoverhead, HexaCon 12 has made severalthousand in actual profit which also goesto the main account. This reduces thedanger that one bad convention woulddestroy CASFS.

CopperCon 22 shows every sign ofhaving of having done well also. KimMartin, the Banker, is certain that the seedmoney and pass throughs to CopperCon23 and the overhead to CASFS MainAccount are covered. Any actual profitremains to be calculated. CopperConCharity Auction generated about $1000 tobe split between Reading is Fundamentaland Ronald McDonald House.

Both conventions went well. A goodtime was had by all. We likely even learnedsomething. The next CASFS Convention isHexaCon in July 2003. The Next ArizonaConvention is TusCon in November.

At the July CASFS meeting we electedJoe Levee and Kim Martin as Chair andBanker respectively of CopperCon 24 andJo Levee and Stephanie Bannon as Chairand Banker respectively of HexaCon 14.

Until Next TimeThe Busy Scribe


( Cont’d on page 7 )

Musical Notesby Tom Tuerff

Nancy Louise Freeman“Blues for Dumuzi”

www.cdbaby.com/nlfreeman( see ad on page 14 )

It’s been over five years since NancyFreeman released her last CD, “Logick,”and in that half-decade she’s been a verybusy person. In addition to writing justabout all of the songs on this album in thattime, she also wrote, composed, cast andperformed (several times) her mysterious,werewolf-and-magic-saga folk opera,“Stardust County,” to appreciativeaudiences around the state. She’s alsotraveled a lot - literally from Iceland toMongolia. And while these influenceshave yet to filter into her music I suspectthat they will soon.

Another place Nancy did a lot oftraveling to was Grass Valley California,specifically the home studio of Jeff andMaya Bohnhoff, where she recorded all thetracks on this spiffy new CD.

“Blues for Dumuzi” is a blues album,to be sure, but not in the three-chord, my-baby-done-left-me-’cause-I-drink-too-much variety. Think more of blues in aBillie Holiday vein, where the mood is

what captures the feeling rather than thesong structure.

If you’re familiar with Nancy’sprevious stuff, the first thing that strikesyou is how good she sounds singing infront of a full band (actually Jeff Bohnhoffon literally every instrument on therecording). Her vocal delivery is muchmore mature and powerful than it has beenin the past, the vocal pyrotechnics of“Logick” making way for more feeling andwarmth.

Freeman is fascinated with ancientmythology, especially that of Greece andSumer. The title cut here is sung from thePOV of the Sumerian goddess Inanna,lamenting the loss of her love, Dumuzi.This is followed by laments from Dumuzi’ssister and mother, represented here bydynamite performances from MayaBohnhoff and Debbie Baudoin. (I’ve said itbefore and I’ll say it again-will somebodyPLEASE put Debbie B. in front of a New-Orleans-style barrelhouse blues band?Yowza!)

As the album progresses, one noticesthat nobody, men in particular, fares toowell in these songs. Hearts are broken(“Book of Hearts”), souls are lost(“Beggar’s Quest”) and on the lighterside, computers crash (“IncompatibleSoftware Blues,” in which Nancyspeculates that Windows is a plot out toget her personally as revenge for possibly

turning down a date with Bill Gates in highschool).

All in all this is another solid effortfrom one of the best songwriters in filk, orfolk, or music in general. And unlike a lotof “filk” albums, you don’t have tonecessarily know the reference material toget something out of the song. Definitelyworth picking up for the solid productionjob by Jeff Bohnhoff. Which brings me tomy next CD

Jeff and Maya Bohnhoff “Manhattan Sleeps”

available at cons and through filk dealers

To the uninitiated, the concept of“Filk” music baffles people. They think it’s1% science-fiction parodies and 99%songs about cats. As any experiencedfilker will tell you, that’s a bunch of hooey.Only 95% of it is about cats. But thatOTHER 5%, let me tell you, can be aboutanything.

Which is what makes Jeff and MayaBohnhoff’s new CD so compelling.Entertainers and musicians extraordinaire,they play clubs around their home a lot,and since one cannot survive in a barplaying sci-fi parodies, they have a fullrepertoire of songs about other things.“Manhattan Sleeps” is a complete 180-degree turn from their first CD, “RetroRocket Science,” which WAS all parodies

(and all wonderful, BTW).These songs are frequently requested

of the Bohnhoffs at conventions, althoughnone of them necessarily have anyscience-fiction or feline elements to them.

Social commentary is front and centeron this album, which covers everythingfrom the desire for peace in the MiddleEast (“Road to Jerusalem”) tohomelessness (“Manhattan Sleeps”) toyou name it.

Maya Bohnhoff’s vocals are exquisite;she harmonizes very well with herself andher husband’s arrangements and choice ofinstruments on each song are really neat.

Most compelling”Shiraz,” a greatmelody, mysterious words and a kind ofmiddle-eastern-hip-hop-meets-rock feelthat’s a real surprise. Close runner-up inthis category is “Persian Rose,” a realcrowd pleaser that gets the full studiotreatment here.

Working again from his home studio,Jeff Bohnhoff has worked up a very niceproduction here that sounds every bit asgood as a giant studio production, andallows Maya to really cut loose, which itcan sometimes be tough to do in a filkcircle. If you’re a firm believer that therereally is no discernable difference between“filk” and just plain good music, thenyou’ve found a friend in this CD. Go buyit.


ConClusion

ConKopelliWestercon 57

July 2-5, 2004Litchfield Park, Arizona

C.J. Cherryh - Author Guest of HonorDavid Cherry - Artist Guest of Honor

Heather Alexander - Music Guest of HonorJohn Hertz - Fan Guest of Honor

Our Theme: Mythology of the SouthWest

Location:

Wigwam Resort300 Wigwam Blvd.

Litchfield Park, Arizona623 -935-3811Rooms: $105Suites: $135

Room rate includes gratuity for bellman(check in/out), maid service, as well as

unlimited use of the Health Facilities, Valetand Resort Parking, Bicycles, Shuttle toWigwam Outlet Mall, Croquet, Putting

Green, Basketball Court & In-room coffee.

Contact Info:

ConKopelliWestercon 57PO Box 67457

Phoenix AZ 85082602-973-2341

[email protected]: www.conkopelli.org

Membership:

Supporting: $30Attending: $50 thru 12/31/02More later and at the door

Convention Newsby Lee Whiteside

News on the local convention sceneincludes an Arizona Westercon andGuests announced for CopperCon 23.News from Worldcon includes the 2005Worldcon, a change in the Dramatic Hugoand the Hugo and Chesley awards.

The Arizona in 2004 Westercon bidsponsored by the Western Science FictionAssociation was successful and will bebringing Westercon back to the metrophoenix area for the first time since 1992.The convention has been dubbedConKopelli and will take place July 2-5,2004 at the Wigwam Resort in LitchfieldPark, Arizona. Author Guest of Honor willbe C. J. Cherryh, Artist Guest of Honorwill be David Cherry, Music Guest ofHonor is Heather Alexander and FanGuest is John Hertz.

CopperCon 23 announced that it willbe returning to the Embassy SuitesPhoenix North location September 5-7,2003. Author Guest of Honor will beConnie Willis, Artist Guest of Honor willbe David Mattingly, and Music Guest isLarry Warner. Look for two or moreguests to be added soon.

The 2005 Worldcon will be held inGlasgow, Scotland, the weekend ofAugust 4-8, 2005. Glasgow ranunopposed and will call the conventionInteraction. With the Worldcon being outof North America in 2005, next year’sWorldcon in Toronto will see a vote on a2005 NASFiC convention. Currentlypromoting bids are Seattle, Washingtonand Charlotte, North Carolina. Bids for the2006 Worldcon also being voted on nextyear are for Kansas City and Los Angeles.www.worldcon.org will get you to info onall upcoming Worldcon’s and bids.

Also at Worldcon, the World ScienceFiction Society ratified a motion to splitthe Hugo award for best dramaticpresentation into two categories, a shortform (less than 90 minutes) and a longform (greater than 90 minutes). This willallow TV episodes a chance to win anaward against similar competition insteadof going up against big budget movies.For example, Lord of the Rings: TheFellowship of the Rings easily won thisyear’s Dramatic Hugo while the Buffy TheVampire Slayer musical episode, OnceMore With Feeling, would have likely wona short form Hugo, coming in second toLOTR.

Hugo Winners NamedThe Hugo Awards for best science-

fiction works in 2001 were presented Sept.1 at the 60th World Science FictionConvention, or ConJose, in San Jose, Calif.Named for magazine editor HugoGernsback, the annual awards aredetermined by nominations from and apopular vote of the membership of theconvention.

The John W. Campbell Award,

sponsored by Dell Magazines, is not aHugo Award, but appears on the sameballot as the Hugo Awards and isadministered in the same way as the HugoAwards. A full list of winners follows.Best NovelAmerican Gods by Neil GaimanBest Novella“Fast Times at Fairmont High” by VernorVingeBest Novelette“Hell Is the Absence of God” by TedChiang

Best Short Story“The Dog Said Bow-Wow” by MichaelSwanwickBest Related BookThe Art of ChesleyBonestell by RonMiller and Frederick C.Durant III, with MelvinH. SchuetzBest DramaticPresentationThe Lord of the Rings:The Fellowship of theRingBest ProfessionalEditorEllen Datlow, SCIFICTIONBest Pro ArtistMichael WhelanBest SemiprozineLocus, Charles N.Brown, ed.Best FanzineAnsible, DaveLangford, ed.Best Fan WriterDave LangfordBest Fan ArtistTeddy HarviaBest Web SiteLocus Online, Mark R.Kelly, ed.John W. CampbellAward for Best NewWriter of 2000 or2001Jo WaltonChesley Art AwardsGiven OutThe Association ofScience Fiction andFantasy Artistsannounced thewinners of the 17thannual ChesleyAwards, which werepresented at the 60thWorld Science FictionConvention, orConJose, in San Jose,Calif., over theweekend. The awards,named afterastronomical artistChesley Bonestell,recognize artworksfirst published ordisplayed in 2001. A

full list of winners follows.Best Monochrome UnpublishedTom Kidd for The Faeries of SpellcasterBest Color UnpublishedAnne Sudworth for The Snow TreeBest Three-DimensionalJohnna Klukas for Hall of the MountainKingBest Art DirectorPaul Barnett for Paper Tiger BooksBest Interior IllustrationTom Kidd for The War of the Worlds by

H.G. WellsBest Cover Illustration, MagazineJames C. Christensen for The LeadingEdge, No. 41, April ‘01Best Gaming-Related IllustrationDonato Giancola for Shivan DragonBest Product IllustrationKinuko Y. Craft for Die WalküreBest Cover, PaperbackDonato Giancola for The Hobbit by J.R.R.Tolkien

( cont’d on page 5 )


Best Cover, HardbackDonato Giancola for Ashling by IsobelleCarmodyAward for Artistic AchievementDonato Giancola

San Diego Comic-ConInternational 2002: I Wish I Were

Cloned Part 1By Shane Shellenbarger

A long time ago (1973), at an islandnear the San Diego Airport (HarbourIsland), a convention was held where therewas an Art Show, a Hucksters Room, aMovie Room, and a Programming Room.You could see just about everything at theconvention in one or two days. Decadespass and the S.D.C.C. (San Diego Comic-Con) grew strong with the Force, drawingto it many apprentices and practitioners,adding to all areas and creating new ritesand rituals such as the Artists’ Alley, theAutograph Area, the Blood Drive, Gaming,Japanimation, and the unstoppableMasquerade. What was once easilycontained in one hotel on a small islandwas now spread out across a city,threatening to engulf it and to utilize everyhour of everyday merely to cross its vastdistances. Could any force less than agreat army of clones hope to see all thatcan be seen? With sixteen tracks ofprogramming the best an attendee canhope for is that no more than threeoverlapping events will be competing fortheir attention at one time. Sadly, such wasnot my experience. I suffered programoverload from nearly the moment I got toComic-Con until the time I left. It’s just tooenormous!

The best I can give you is a samplingof the panels I did attend and referencesome of the panels I wish I could haveattended. Here goes . . .

Thursday, August 1st, 200212:00 p.m. Swingin’ with Spider-Man!Editor Axel Alonso, Paul Jenkins (writer,Peter Parker: Spider-Man), Ron Zimmerman(writer, Spider-Man’s Get Kraven), and J.Michael Straczynski and John Romita, Jr.(writer and artist respectfully on AmazingSpider-Man.)

The panel opened with a commentmade by Axel Alonso that Marvel Comicswas scaling back their exhibit space sothat they could afford to bring more of thecreators to the show. Much of the panelinvolved comments about AmazingSpider-Man #36, the September 11th issue.Firefighters and teachers rose from theaudience and commended Marvel ingeneral and Joe Straczynski and JohnRomita, Jr. specifically for the grace,elegance, and humanity they showed increating that issue. After watching theevents unfold from the streets in front ofthe Marvel offices, only two miles from theWorld Trade Center, the Marvel editorsfelt that someone should deal with 09/11 ina comic book format and since Spider-Man

is a New Yorker, he would be the bestchoice. Straczynski told how he initiallyfelt he couldn’t write issue #36. “I don’tknow how to do that,” Straczynski said.“The words are in the dictionarysomewhere, but which ones they are andin what order, I don’t know.” When he haddecided to accept the assignment andbegan the work he wrote it in about forty-five minutes. Saying the book isn’t hisstyle, Straczynski likened the experience totranscribing. “The story came fromsomewhere outside me,” he said. JohnRomita, Jr. stated that he didn’t want todraw issue #36 until he read the script.“Drawing it was difficult,” he said, “Istruggled with it, but ultimately I found itinvigorating.”

On a more personal note, Romitawanted to point out that when he and hisfamily were putting together a charityevent to benefit his niece who is sufferingfrom brain cancer, Straczynski boughtRomita’s first sketch and donated it backto the charity event. Straczynski alsoprovided comic books signed by himself,Toby Maguire, and Kirsten Dunst. Thispanel should be noted as the first face-to-face meeting of J.M.S and John Romita, Jr.

Romita commented on drawing someof the humorous scenes written byStraczynski, such as when an airport guardquestions the purpose of the webshooters and Aunt May explains them as adevice for gynecological needs. Romitasaid it required him to tone down hisdrawing so that the reader will look at theword balloons before they notice the art.When asked about his style, Romita saidthat he was conscious of a style, but hewas influenced by the art work of hisFather, Sal Buscema, and Jack Kirby.

In answer to questions from theaudience, Straczynski stated that he wouldlove to write for Dr. Strange, new Spider-Man monthly books by Straczynski andRomita are planned, Paul Jenkins andStraczynski will continue to explore thepersonal lives of the characterssurrounding Peter Parker and Spider-Man,Jenkins alluded to a seminal moment in theGreen Goblins life will be happening soon,and Straczynski said he chose to revealPeter Parkers Spider-Man identity to AuntMay because Peter got his physicalstrength from the spider but his strengthof will from Aunt May and Uncle Ben andthat those close to us usually know whensomething out of the ordinary ishappening in our lives.http://www.ninthart.com/display.php?article=323http://www.dragoncon.org/people/jenkinp.htmlhttp://www.digitalwebbing.com/news/072602-3.htmlhttp://babylon5.warnerbros.com/cmp/bios.htmhttp://worldsofjms.com/http://www.geocities.com/romitapage/home.htmhttp://home.wanadoo.nl/pafrankn/jrj_intro.htm

1:00 p.m. Do You Have What It Takes To

Write For Star Trek?Dr. Joseph Di Lella (writer of theunpublished, Tao of Trek), Jimmy Diggs(writer, ST: DS9 “Dr. Bashir, I Presume”;ST: Voyager “Infinite Regress,” “OmegaDirective.”) and Dr. Harry Kloor (ST:Voyager: “Drone,” “Scientific Method,”“Raven” and developed “Earth: FinalConflict”.)

This panel started with Dr. Joseph DiLella and Jimmy Diggs giving advice onhow to write for Star Trek, how to get yourwork seen by book publishers andtelevision producers, and what pitfalls toavoid along the way.1. Find a niche, fill a void. Scrutinize themarket you are endeavoring to break intoand write something that can fill anopening in the genre.2. Unlike the previous three series,Enterprise does not take unsolicited specsubmissions, so you have to go in thebackdoor. Try getting an agent and submitthrough them. If you are over forty yearsold, female, or an ethnically diverse personapply for a Writers Guild of Americainternship.3. Legitimate people in the industries makeyou money they don’t cost you money. Ifsomeone wants a fee to represent youthen keep looking for someone whodoesn’t.4. Query letters should WOW them in thefirst line. Dr. Di Lella gave this example:Star Trek can take you to more places thanto outer space; it can also take you to theinner recesses of your soul. Follow upwith your credentials, a synopsis of yourproposal, and then signoff.5. Two books on script writingrecommended by Diggs are The CompleteBook of Script writing by J. MichaelStraczynski and The Screen writers Bibleby David Trottier.6. When writing for Star Trek, the storiesshould revolve around exciting charactersand show a new or novel side to anestablished character.7. On the series, a great deal is happening,all at the same time. After a writer makes apitch to a producer it may be two weeks toa month before the script is bought andgiven a go ahead. Then, a script isexpected to be written in two weeks andshot over a one month period of time.While all of that is going on, there is oneepisode in pre-production, one inproduction, and another episode in post-production.8. Don’t write a script for the show you’repitching to because the writing staffknows their show well and they’ll pickyour script to pieces. They’ll look for awell defined character arc, clearlydelineated characters, and they’ll want thecharacters to each have a distinctivevoice. It was suggested that a West Wingor C.S.I. script is a good option for adramatic series pitch. Diggs knows a guywho was hired on the spot for a staff jobon a comedy series by writing an I LoveLucy script.9. Ron Moore is the Executive Producer forthe upcoming Battlestar: Galactica series.

This isn’t general knowledge, but Diggsknows it because of his contacts withinthe industry, on the internet, and becauseof publications like Variety and TheHollywood Reporter. Research canprovide a writer with outlets for futurework as well as current work.10. A Star Trek pitch should put the entireship in danger and it should show anestablished character in a way we’re notused to seeing them. Harlan Ellison’s Cityon the Edge of Forever is a prime example.Not only is the ship in danger, but so isthe history of Humanity! Also, we’venever quite seen Kirk so in love that he issorely tempted to sacrifice everything heis and everyone he knows for the love of awoman.11. A pitch should be three paragraphs inlength and it should contain a beginning,middle, and an ending.12. A first pitch may last twenty minutesand you should have four to six ideasready. Diggs has seven to ten ideas readyand he does his best to stretch the pitch toforty five minutes.13. Don’t jump into the pitch immediately.Chit-chat and small talk is expected. Lookaround the room and if you havesomething relative to comment on aboutthe decor, speak up. The producer will letyou know when they are ready to talkbusiness.14. “Bottle shows” can be good sellers.Giving a show a script that usesestablished sets and characters can savethe production money that can be spenton a big budget season finale.15. High concept can also sell a script.Would you be interested in watching ashow about a Klingon Pacifist? Diggs hasan idea that explains how the classic TrekKlingons came to look like the Klingonswe first met in Star Trek: the MotionPicture, but he isn’t talking.16. Finally, here are some don’ts: No non-humanoids because they have to be eitherpuppets or computer animated whichdon’t look right, are costly, or both. Nocrossovers from other Star Trek seriesbecause the staff writers want those jobs.No violation of the Prime Directive, seeprevious sentence. Don’t bring in relativesthat haven’t been heard from before, seeStar Trek: the Final Frontier.

The room was packed as it has been inprevious years. It would be a goodcandidate for expansion into a larger room.http://www.allexperts.com/displayExpert.asp?Expert=34701http://www.photo-synthesis.com/direct_aim/graphic/jimmy/http://www.writersofthefuture.com/news/awards97/page06.htm

2:30 p.m. Intro to 3D Computer ModelingJeff Broz

Jeff Broz gave an expansive,technically advanced talk about 3Dcomputer modeling and animation. Herepeated his past excellent performance

ConClusion ( cont’d from page 4 )

(Cont’d on page 7 )


The Once and Future KidsShow The Last

Wallace & Ladmo ShowBy Shane Shellenbarger

Long before he was Wallace Snead(pronounced Sneed ) on The GoldustCharlie Show he was Bill Thompson, butthat s another story for another play, the(as yet unproduced) third play to bespecific. The first play was about PatMcMahon, Hub Kapp and the Wheels,and how the grass isn’t always greener onthe other side of the hill, but again it sanother story for another play. The LastWallace & Ladmo Show is the secondproduced play and third play in the trilogyof plays written by Ben Tyler about theArizona kid s television show that aired forover thirty-five years. Confused? Thenyou ve been kept in the dark or you didn’tgrow up in Arizona before December 29th,1989 when the final episode of TheWallace and Ladmo Show aired.Illumination is just ahead.

From March 3-19th, 2000 The Wallace& Ladmo Show a play by Ben Tyler,written in collaboration with PatMcMahon & Bill Thompson with materialfrom the original Wallace & Ladmo Show,was staged at Desert Foothills Theatre-Cactus Shadows Fine Arts Center in CaveCreek. The production proved to be so

and possibly every rehearsal of bothplays.

Lauren and I leave our friends Lindaand Kandy to their front row seats andhead up to row G seats 10 and 11 when Inotice who is seated in G12Pat McMahon.Can it get any better? We exchangepleasantries with McMahon and sit down.I do my best to contain the thrill of sittingnear this local legend and resolve to actcool and not to bother him with questions.Only later did I see this as a missedopportunity. While we were waiting for theplay to begin, a family of three seatedbehind McMahon all but gushed over him,which he took with grace and genialitywhile never being condescending, despitethe lack of socialization evident in theadolescent boy. The theater grew dark andthe play began.

The play opens as preparations takeplace for the taping of the final Wallaceand Ladmo Show. Bill Thompson is readyfor retirement, Pat McMahon has his radioshow and commercial work, but Ladmo sfuture opportunities are more nebulous,while his family responsibilities are moredemanding. Returning from California forthe show is Mike Condello (ChristianMiller reprising his role as both participantand narrator), who became the showsMusical Director at the age of 15.Crowding into the office/prop room isWallace (the returning Wes Martin)playing straight-man to the comedic

characters embodied in RandyMessersmith’s Ladmo, Ben Brittain’s PatMcMahon, and Helen Hayes s CathyDresbach/Jody. Act I is a near recreationof the last show broadcast on December29th, 1989, followed by the Wrap Partywhere things get complicated by Stan, anentrepreneur who wants Ladmo to lend hisname and persona to the sale of cookies.

Act II turns dark when Stan suesKPHO Channel 5 for restraint of trade, withLadmo backing the cookie mogul andWallace and Pat testifying for KPHO. Thebest friends have a falling out leading to afive year rift only bridged when Ladmo swife, Patsy, calls Bill, Pat, and Mike toLadmo s deathbed. At Ladmo s funeral, apregnant woman receives a tribute Ladmobag just before she goes into labor.

Christian Miller and Wes Martin returnto their roles with an evidentunderstanding of their characters. BenBrittain steps in to the role of PatMcMahon, vacated by Bob Sorenson(Fully Committed) whose mimicry andpersonifications of the characters createdby Pat McMahon are sorely missed here.Helen Hayes does a serviceable job asCathy Dresbach and her character Jody.Dion Johnson does well as Dolan Ellis, thebutt of the shows jokes, and Julie Cottonholds up admirably in her roles as Nurse

( cont’d on page 7)

popular that it was restaged fromDecember 21st, 2000 - January 7th, 2001 atThe Herberger Theater Stage West inPhoenix. The play takes place during early1964, when due to the popularity of thecharacters of Hub Kapp and the Wheelson the It s Wallace? show, Pat McMahon,Mike Condello, Bob Dearborn, Rich Post,Ray Trainer recorded a 45 singlecontaining the songs Lets Really Hear Itwritten by Bill Thompson and Work, Workwritten by McMahon and Condello. Whenthe record sold 5,000 copies in the PhoenixMetro area, unseating the Beatles from thenumber one spot, Capital records becamevery interested in the group. The Wallaceand Ladmo Show tells the tale ofMcMahon and Condello s brush withnational fame on The Steve Allen Show,Shindig, and Hullabaloo. The play alsospeaks about loyalty and friendship.

We now flash-forward to August 16th,2002 and the opening night of The LastWallace & Ladmo Show at Theater Worksin Peoria. My wife, Lauren, is in the WillCall line, picking up our tickets, while Istand off to one side, reading a bulletinboard over a gentleman s shoulder. Hemoves to leave, I stand aside, my breathcatches in my throat, I get Lauren sattention, and grin pointing out thegentleman who is just passing me, PatMcMahon. At the intermission I learn fromplaywright/critic, Mark S.P. Turvin thatMcMahon has been to every performance


Jeanie, Miss Karen, and the KPHO lawyer.Ladmo is portrayed by RandyMessersmith with great pathos. Otherreviewers have commented that Ladmocouldn’t separate the character from thecomic, the make-believe from the man. Ithink that Ladmo was a caring,compassionate man who saw the characterhe portrayed not only as a way to makemoney, but as an outward representativeof who he was on the inside.

All of the design work is wellintegrated with Matt Marich on scenicdesign once again nearly recreating theseries set on the stage, Benjamin Monradon sound design, Margret Emerson oncostume design, April Smith s props, theblending of video inserts by Cheryl Colan,and the musical direction of GavinMcLeod.

One of the highlights takes place in thesecond act. Wallace (Wes Martin) does adouble-take when he sees the eveningsguest Judge none other than the manhimself, Bill Thompson! Another highlightwas sitting next to Pat McMahon duringthe second act and seeing him visiblymoved.

To clear up the confusion I startedearlier, the first produced and secondchronological play was The Wallace &Ladmo Show, the second produced andthe third chronological play is The LastWallace & Ladmo Show, and the thirdproduced and first chronological play willbe It s Wallace? While there is no date onwhen we can expect this next delving intofond childhood memories by Ben Tyler, Idid overhear Pat McMahon tell the familywith the uncivilized child that KAZT(AZTV) Ch.13 will be carrying The Best ofWallace & Ladmo on Sunday s beginningin October. I look forward to revisitingwith some old friends.The Wallace & Ladmo Show Timelinehttp//www.fortunecity.com/lavender/python/999/timeline.htmlWallace & Ladmo Websiteshttp//www.theaterworks.org/TWPlaying.htmlhttp//www.durantcom.com/pressroom.shtmlhttp//www.wallaceandladmo.com/http//www.johnnyfranklin.com/wallaceandladmo.htmlhttp//www.wranglernews.com/wallaceladmo.htmlhttp//www.goldfishpublishers.com/GPRev.htmlhttp//www.goldfishpublishers.com/WallaceandLadmoShow_DFT.htmlhttp//www.goldfishpublishers.com/WallaceandLadmoShow_SBP.htmlhttp//www.azcentral.com/ent/arts/articles/0821ladmorevu21.htmlhttp//www.azcentral.com/ent/arts/articles/0714artspeople14.htmlhttp//kjzz1.wm.llnw.net/riostations/kbaqaudio/200208/Wallad.wmahttp//www.geocities.com/hidenchef/WallaceandLadmo.htmlhttp//www.geocities.com/watchking/wallaceandladmo.htmlhttp//www.fortunecity.com/lavender/python/999/home.htmlhttp//hometown.aol.com/jbcynic/

Wallace & Ladmo(Cont’d from page 6)

ConClusion ( Cont’d from page 5)

and the room was standing room only.http://www.jdbgrphx.com/Next time:5:30 p.m. The Rise, fall, and Rise of StarTrekFree Enterprise’s Mark A. Altman andRobert Meyer Burnett, FilmThreat.com’sChris Gore, and Talk Trek’s DarenDochterman.http://www.madcon.org/altman.htmlhttp://www.moviepoopshoot.com/retinalfetish/http://www.filmthreat.com/http://www.trektoday.com/

Friday, August 2nd, 200210:30 a.m. Novels from the Reel WorldNancy Holder (writer, Buffy the VampireSlayer: The Journals of Rupert Giles), JeffMariotte (writer, Angel: EndangeredSpecies), Peter David (writer, Of Stuff),Andy Mangels (writer, Star Trek: Lost Era“Book One: Excelsior”), Rebecca Moesta

legendcity.htmlhttp//groups.yahoo.com/group/wallaceandladmo/Mike Condello http//www.mikecondello.com/Cathy Dresbach http//www.rlpg.com/models/stable/dresbach/HoHo!HaHa!HeeHee!HaHa! The Wallaceand Ladmo Show35 Years of Laughterhttp//www.viewdesigns.com/mainpage.htmlhttp//www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/096423551X/qid%3D1031336036/sr%3D11-1/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F1/103-9449553-3969418HubKapp and the Wheels 45 Record http//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=904504874

(writer, Buffythe VampireSlayer: “LittleThings”http://www.jeffmariotte.com/main.htmhttp://www.peterdavid.net/http://www.andymangels.com/http://www.wordfire.com/index.htmlAnd more. ToBe Continued .. .

Musical Notes (cont’d from page 3 )

BroceliandeSir Christémas

Songs of the Season ****www.broceliande.org

If you’re looking for something newand fun to play this yule, Broceliande tothe rescue. This Oakland-based group ofCeltic carolers features filk favoritesMargaret Davis, Kristoph Klover, KarlFranzen and Cellist Kris Yenney.

Herein are 16 holiday cuts played onacoustic instruments, and played bothwith respect and originality. These aresongs of mostly the secular holidayvariety, ostensibly to appeal to damn neareverybody from hard-line pagans to bible-belting Baptists to agnostic Jewish guyslike me.

Unless you’re a Christmas song junkie,chances are most of these songs will benew to you, as they were to me. Indeed,only “The Holly and the Ivy” and thealbum’s closer, “Away in a Manger,” werefamiliar to these ears. Which makes thisalbum one that can probably be played fora much longer time than the usualThanksgiving-to-New-Year sentence thatmost holiday CDs are doomed toexperience.

The whole band can not only sing likebirds but they play beautifully together.As they should, since they’ve all workedtogether in other Bay-area ensembles,most notably, Four Shillings Short.

Producer Klover delivers aprofessional sound with everything mixedlike a good cup of cider with cinnamon andnutmeg, and boy, do you feel good afterlistening to this CD.

Add this one to your holiday CD list.But don’t be surprised if it’s still in yourCD player next July.

-----Tom Tuerff reviews CDs, tapes, or whatever forConNotations. If you’d like something of yoursreviewed, send a copy to the publication, or justchase Tom down in public and beat him over thehead with it.


In an update to last issue’s report oncomic book movies, the latest scoop onWarner Bros. DC Comics properties lookslike the Superman movie may go intoproduction first. J. J. Abrams has turnedin the script which will be a full originstory, told with state of the art specialeffects according to the movie’s directorMcG. He plans to start production afterhe’s finished with Charlie’s Angels 2,currently in production.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machineshas completed principal photography,ending with filming of the final battlewhich takes place in a public bathroomwhere Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cyborgdoes battle with new female Terminator,played by Kristanna Loken. In aninterview with SciFi wire, both actorsindicate that the big fight scene reallyshows what the two cyborgs can do, bothto each other and just general destructionof their surroundings. Look for it to hit thetheaters in early July.

In production for Universal is thesupernatural comedy, Bruce Almighty.Jim Carrey stars as a New York televisionreporter who is discontented with nearlyeverything in life, to whom God (MorganFreeman) hands over the power to rule theuniverse. Catherine Bell (J.A.G.) andJennifer Aniston (Friends) also star.Look for it sometime next summer.

Disney’s movie version of Pirates ofthe Caribbean will feature Orlando Bloom(Legolas in the Lord of the Rings films),Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush in thesupernatural adventure film. It is beingdirected by Gore Verbinski for Disney,with Jerry Bruckheimer producing.Bloom will play the role of Will Turner,who teams up with the swashbucklingCapt. Jack Sparrow (Depp) to rescue thegovernor’s daughter when she iskidnapped by pirates who are battling anevil curse, according to Variety.

One more TV remake is in the works.Jonathan Frakes has signed on to direct alive action version of Gerry Anderson’ssupermarionation series Thunderbirds.Frakes says it will have “a Spy Kids meetsJames Bond kind of vibe.”

The trend to make movies available onIMAX screens continues. Late Septembersaw Apollo 13 turn up on IMAX screensand starting November 1st, selectedIMAX theatres will be screening EpisodeII: Attack of the Clones.

And in the comics to movies toBroadway department comes Batman:The Musical. The New York Post reportsthat Tim Burton is putting together amusical version of Batman intended toarrive on Broadway in 2005, with out oftown openings in 2004. It will featuremusic by Jim Steinman (Bat Out of Hell)and will supposedly feature Robin, the

Joker and Catwoman.Movie previews for Oct & Nov

A late September release not noted lastissue is the much moved around JackieChan action comedy The Tuxedo. Chandons a magical tuxedo that makes him amaster spy. Also having opened in somemarkets at the end of September is theanimated Japanese film Spirited Awayfrom acclaimed director Hayao Miyazaki(Princess Mononoke). It tells the story ofa girl named Chihiro who travels into theworld of gods to find a way to turn herparents into human form after they wereturned into pigs.

The Fall movie season starts to warmup in October before it kicks into high gearin November. Early October sees theFourth Pokemon movie, “Pokemon4Ever”. The movie features the regularPokemon crew as well as a new creaturewith powers over nature as well as overtime and space. Opening the sameweekend is “Tuck Everlasting”, based onthe award winning book by NatalieBabbitt. It tells the story of Winnie Foster(Alexis Bledel), a girl on the verge ofwomanhood who discovers a family, theTucks, living in the woods near her house.She falls in love with Jesse Tuck(Jonathan Jackson), but soon discoversthe family secret. They are immortal. Themovie features a stellar cast (SissySpacek, Ben Kingsley, Amy Irving,William Hurt & Scott Bairstow) to gowith the two young actors. It isbeautifully photographed and is wellworth seeing. It makes a nice change fromthe fast paced action movies dominating

history... everyone who’s seen its contentshas died within seven days.

Finishing out the month of October is“Ghost Ship”, where a boat salvage crewdiscovers the eerie remains of a grandpassenger liner in a remote region of theBering Sea that was thought lost for morethan 40 years. Once onboard, the crewmust confront the ship’s horrific past andface the ultimate fight for their lives. In“Time Changer”, the year is 1890, andBible Professor Russell Carlisle (D. DavidMorin) has written a new manuscript,“The Changing Times”. His book is aboutto receive a unanimous endorsement fromthe board members of the Grace BibleSeminary... until Dr. Norris Anderson(Gavin MacLeod) raises an issue over a“difficulty” he has with something Carlislehas written. Dr. Anderson believes whatCarlisle has written could seriously affectthe future of coming generations. Using asecret time machine, Anderson sendsCarlisle more than 100 years into thefuture; offering him a glimpse of where hiswriting will lead..

November opens with the latest TVremake, I Spy, starring Owen Wilson andEddie Murphy in a big screen version ofthe 1960’s spy show starring Bill Cosbyand Robert Conrad. It has to do betterthan Pluto Nash. Maybe. Also openingthe first of November is “The Core”, inwhich Geophysicist Dr. Josh Keyes(Aaron Eckhart) discovers that anunknown force has caused the Earth’sinner core to stop rotating. With theplanet’s magnetic field rapidly

24 FramesMovie NewsBy Lee Whiteside

Opening November 15th is HarryPotter and the Chamber of Secrets. Do Ineed to say more? Opening a week later isthe latest James Bond movie, “DieAnother Day”. Pierce Brosnan returns asBond with Halle Berry, Judy Densch,John Cleese, and Rosamund Pike. FromHong Kong to Cuba to London, Bondcircles the world in his quest to unmask atraitor and prevent a catastrophic war.

Hitting the screens right beforeThanksgiving is Disney’s “TreasurePlanet”, a space age update of the classic“Treasure Island” complete with halfcyborg pirate John Silver. The sameweekend is “Solaris” which sees GeorgeClooney directed by Steven Soderbergh ina remake of the classic Russian movie.Upon arrival at the space station orbitingan ocean world called Solaris, apsychologist discovers that thecommander of an expedition to the planethas died mysteriously. Other strangeevents soon start happening as well, suchas the appearance of old acquaintances ofthe crew, including some, like thepsychiatrist’s wife, who are dead....

Next issue we’ll have details on thetwo big December movies, Star Trek:Nemesis and Lord of the Rings: The TwoTowers and another live-action version ofPinnochio.

Upcoming Movie Release Dates(Subject to Change)

Sept 27 - The TuxedoOct 11 - Pokemon 4Ever, TuckEverlastingOct 18 - Hansel & Gretel, The RingOct 25 - Ghost Ship, Time Changer

the theaters.Another family movie coming out in

October is “Hansel and Gretel”, based onthe classic Brothers Grimm tale. It featuresTom Arnold, Bobcat Goldwaith, GeraldMcRaney, Howie Mandel and VanessaRedgrave as the Wicked Witch. For morethrills we’ll have “The Ring”, based on avery successful Japanese movie where Afemale journalist (Naomi Watts) discoversa disturbing videotape with a bizarre

deteriorating, our atmosphere literallystarts to come apart at the seams withcatastrophic consequences. To resolve thecrisis, Keyes, along with a team of theworld’s most gifted scientists, travel intothe Earth’s core in a subterranean craftpiloted by “terranauts,” Major Rebecca“Beck” Childs (Hillary Swank) andColonel Robert Iverson (BruceGreenwood). Their mission: detonate adevice that will reactivate the core.

Nov 1 - The Core, I SpyNov 15 - Harry Potter and the Chamberof SecretsNov 22 - James Bond 20: Die AnotherDayNov 27 - Treasure Planet, SolarisDec 13 - Star Trek: NemesisDec 18 - Lord of the Rings: The TwoTowersDec 25 - Pinnochio


alien mine on the hull of the Enterprise andArcher works to free him. We encounterRomulans in this episode, but theEnterprise crew doesn’t see them. In“Dead Stop”, the recently damagedEnterprise docks at a fully automated alienrepair station, where services are renderedat a heavy price. Look for a CGIrepresentation of the repair station’scomputer in addition to some new aliens.“A Night in Sickbay” sees Captain Archerspending the night with Porthos insickbay when Porthos takes ill andlearning a lot more about Doctor Phloxthan he really wanted to know.“Marauders” brings back the Klingonswhen Captain Archer and crew help acolony of deuterium miners defendthemselves against Klingon raiders. In“The Seventh”, T’Pol recruits CaptainArcher and Ensign Mayweather to assisther on a mission to complete someunfinished business from her earlier careerin covert operations. There will be morenew episodes for November sweeps andlikely one dealing with the Temporal ColdWar, but no info on them at press time.

Elsewhere on UPN, Buffy TheVampire Slayer continues with it’sseventh (and likely final) season. A fewbits of news has surfaced about later on inthe season, the most notable is the newsthat Eliza Dushku will return as Faith onboth Angel and Buffy. According to onereport announce her appearance, Faith willbe appearing on Buffy in the final fiveepisodes of the season having appearedon three Angel episodes. In the firstcouple of episodes, Spike returns with therevelation that he now has a soul, but howhe deals with that will be an ongoing storythread. Willow spends the first couple ofepisodes in England with Giles dealing

with her Magic overuse. Episodes inOctober include “Same Time, Same Place”which sees Willow returning from Englandbut is not able to see or be seen by herfriends. In “Help”, Buffy takes on the jobof a school counselor and finds out morethan she wants to know about some of thestudents who come to her for advice. Afterthat is “Anya”, focusing on Anya,obviously, including flashbacks to her lifeas a vengeance demon, a musical numberleft over from last year’s musical episode,and the truth about Anya’s fear ofbunnies.

Elsewhere in the Buffyverse, Angel’sfourth season (now on Sunday nights)begins with “Deep Down”, which takesplace some time after the season finale,when Connor dumped Angel into theocean and Cordelia ascended to a higherplane of existence. Angel has a series ofdreams, all ending badly, as he is in hisunderwater cage. Cordelia enters the lastdream in order to help Angel escape. In“Ground State”, Angel works to try tofind Cordelia, realizing she is not on thisplane. He runs into a demon witch whotells him about “The Axis” which will helphim to find Cordelia. While searching for“The Axis”, Angel also runs into a lostsoul named Gwen Raiden, who has a verysurprising effect on him. Specific episodeinfo is sketchy past the first two, but theydo include Cordelia returning to this realm,without her memories, an episode wherethe Angel Investigations crew goes to LasVegas and meet up with Lorne, and Fredfinds out that her trip to Pylea may nothave been an accident, but was set up bya college professor who was intimidatedby Fred’s genius. Also, expect Wesley andLilah to continue their relationship as Wesremains outside of Angel Investigations.Connor will be a continuing presencewhich may develop into an Angel/

Cordelia/Connor love triangle.In Joss Whedon’s new show, Firefly

on FOX, the Entertainment Weeklypreview for the show indicates that thefirst six episodes have been designed aseasily accessible stories to bring viewersinto the Firefly universe. Episodes willexplore the love/hate relationship betweenSerenity Captain Mal (Nathan Fillion) andthe ship’s “companion”, Inara (MorenaBacceran), delve into the enhancedabilities of River Tam (Summer Glau) whowas rescued from the government in theunaired pilot episode by her brother SimonTam (Sean Maher), who now serves as theship’s doctor. We’ll also learn about thethreat of the Reavers, dangerous outlawswho you don’t want to come into contactwith. Other characters are the worldlypreacher Book (Ron Glass), the ship’spilot Wash (Alan Tudyk), second incommand Zoe (Gina Torres) and theship’s engineer Kaylee (Jewel Staite). In“Shindig”, Mal, Kaylee and Inara take in afancy ballroom dance on the planetPersephone. A wealthy local businessmantakes a liking to Inara and when he getsjealous of Inara’s affection for Mal,challenges him to a sword duel. Theepisode “Safe” will focus on Simon Tam.In “Our Mrs. Reynolds” we’ll find out thatCaptain Mal has an Amish wife, namedSaffron. In the episode “Jaynestown”, theFirefly crew encounters a town wheremercenary Jayne (Adam Baldwin) is a localhero, including a ballad about his exploits.“Jaynestown” is written by Ben Edlund(“The Tick”), and looks to be a veryhumorous episode. Look for the originalpilot movie to air sometime in December asa special “Origin story” of some sort. FOXwill likely air it without much fanfare.

Back on The WB, Smallville haskicked off it’s season with Clark savingLana from the tornado, Lex saving his

about to let the whole world know abouthis discovery. We’ll also meet some newrecurring characters, Dean, who will beinvolved with Lana’s Aunt Nell and histen-year old son, Travis, who Lana will bebabysitting. In “Red”, we get RedKryptonite introduced into the Smallvilleuniverse, which turns Clark into anarrogant jerk, making moves on Lana andtaking a joy ride in Lex’s car. In“Nocturne”, a kid who drowned severalyears ago returns, and it’s supposedly notdue to Kryptonite but is tied intoLuthorCorp. In “Redux”, Martha Kent’sestranged father, William Clark, comes totown and Clark tries to get to know hisgrandfather. Also, the freak of the week isable to rapidly age his victims, like asuccubus. In “Lineage”, a lab techniciantakes a DNA sample from Clark, and heand Pete work together to get it out of thelab before it is analyzed. Things getcomplicated when a former lover of LionelLuthor comes to town thinking that Clarkmay be her son by Lionel that she gave upto adoption. To make things worse, Lanabegins to doubt who her real father iswhen a lawyer comes to town suggestingthat he is her real father. In “Ryan”, we geta return visit from Ryan from the firstseason episode “Stray”, who is havingproblems adjusting to his new life in EdgeCity. Thanks to www.kryptonsite.com forthe Smallville info.

The WB’s new comic series, Birds ofPrey, debuts October 9th with a special 70minute airing of the pilot episode. Thepilot will show have the three maincharacters come together and the originsof Oracle following her being paralyzed byThe Joker. The character of Dr. HarleenQuinzel has been recast with Mia Sara(TimeCop), replacing Sheryln Fenn, whowasn’t available to be a major recurringcharacter in the series. A good portion ofthe original pilot has been re-shot, not justthe Dr. Quinzel scenes. According to oneinterview with Dina Meyer, theyredesigned Oracle’s Clock tower lair,making things less dark and more lighterand changed the relationship betweenHelena Kyle and Oracle to be lessadversarial, and Barbara Gordon’srelationship with Wade has changed fromone that was ending to one that isbeginning. The other main character isDet. Jesse Reese (Shemar Moore), whowill develop into a love interest for HelenaKyle. We’ll also occasionally see Alfred(Ian Abercrombie), giving advice and helpto Barbara Gordon. In the pilot, Dinah(Rachel Skarsten) shows up and wants tojoin up with Kyle and Oracle, having seenthem in her dreams. She is not BlackCanary, although she might be herdaughter, but she does have psionicpowers of some sort. The villain in thepilot is a Scarecrow like baddie, whocauses businessmen to commit suicideafter showing them their worst fears. In


SF Tube Talk (cont’d from page 1 )

father, andthespaceshiphaving beentaken out ofthe Kent’sstorm cellarby thetornado.After Clarkdiscovers hisnewest superpower, heatvision, we’llhave PeteRoss learn ofClark’sabilities in“Duplicity”when Peteand somefriendsdiscoversClark’sspaceship ina field and is


“Slick”, the villain is able to turn himselfinto liquid and plunges down his victimsthroats, choking them. In “Prey for aHunter”, Helena visits a metahumanspeakeasy where she meets with contacts.This episode looks to deal with othermetahumans and how they fit (or don’t)into society. For “Three Birds and aBaby”, all the info that is known is thetitle, which is probably a good indicationof what the episode is about. “Sins of theMother” features Dinah’s mother, BlackCanary, coming to town, and deals with anenemy of her that is seeking revenge.Other episodes coming up in Novemberinclude “Primal Scream” and “Split”.Thanks to www.gothamclocktower.com formost of the upcoming Birds of Preyepisode info.

Over on ABC, Alias kicks into highgear for the new season with Sydney’smother, Laura Brostow (Lena Olin)playing a major role as “The Man”. At theSan Diego Comic Convention, AliasCreator J.J. Abrams said that “What’s funabout the show is that ... mom’s in town.And with the mother being around, it has aprofound impact on Sydney; obviously onSydney’s father, who was abandoned by

this woman; and also on Sydney’s CIAhandler, Vaughan, whose father was killedby her mother. So you’ve got this womanshowing up, suddenly affecting everyonein a huge way. There are a lot of greatsecrets, great mysteries revealed. Andwe’re approaching this year from the pointof view of, if you’ve never seen the show,this is the time to watch, because we’remaking the stories accessible, whetheryou’ve ever seen the show before or not.”Wil will have to deal with his newknowledge about Syndey and her dad andwill have difficulty dealing with it. Expectto see more stuff with SD-6 tech wizardMarshall, including him getting out of thelab for a mission or two. A possible gueststar for this season is David Bowie. On thesubject of cliffhangers, Abrams said “Ourcliffhangers are going to be a little bit less.We’ll still do some the way we did, butthere will be a little bit less of theimmediate life-and-death-moments kind ofcliffhanger, and the episodes will besatisfying in and of themselves. But therewill always be something, a little nugget,to intrigue you to watch next week.” Therewill also be more revelations about thework of Milo Rambaldi as well, keepingthat mystery going.

Joining Angel on The WB Sundaynights is Charmed. There’s not muchadvanced episode specific info to passalong, but expect the show to look a bitdifferent. Besides Rose McGowan’s

change of hair color, the show has alsobrought on a new cinematographer,Jonathon West, from CSI. Alyssa Milanoand Hollie Marie Combs have nowobtained producer status and hope tomake the show better all around, includingcalling in friends for guest star roles. Piperwill be going through all sorts ofpregnancy and motherhood tribulationsand Paige will be more in charge of the trio.

As for the other new network shows,there’s not much more to add about them.Advance episode info hasn’t surfaced topass along. The highest profile show isThe Twilight Zone on UPN Wednesdaynights after Enterprise. Look for a lot ofname or genre actors guest starring inepisodes. The other new UPN show, TheHaunted, and FOX’s John Doe look to beinteresting but haven’t let out much infobeyond the initial press releases.

Now that the summer cable season isover (SciFi’s promotions of Stargate SG-1’s and Farscape’s “season finales” wasactually the mid-season finale for eachshow), news has not been good for acouple of shows. Shortly after the seasonfinale of Witchblade, TNT announced thatthey would not pick up the series for athird season. According to Steve Koonin,

(Cont’d on page 11 )

SF Tube Talk (cont’d from page 9 ) Also on ABC on Thursday nights willbe Dinotopia. There’s not much detailedinfo about the series other than itcontinues on from the miniseries from lastspring. How long it will survive up againstFriends and Survivor remains to be seen,though. Expect the show to either get itsplug pulled fast or be moved to a differenttime slot.


TNT’s executive vice president andgeneral manager, they felt that to stretchthe show to a third season would stressthe show creatively and in it’s ratings.According to the Variety article on thecancellation, show insiders think thatYancy Butler’s alcohol rehab stint in themiddle of the season was a major factor inthe decision.

Overshadowing the Witchbladecancellation is the news that SciFi Channelhas opted out of their previouscommitment to a fifth season of theirflagship show Farscape. Citing lowerratings and higher production costs, SciFiexercised their option to not pick up theseries for the previously announced fifthseason. This news broke from producerDavid Kemper as the show was filming theseason finale of the fourth season, whichif it is the last episode, will likely end theseries with a nasty cliffhanger. Farscapefans immediately taken up arms toconvince the SciFi Channel to change theirdecision or help efforts for the show tofind a new home. This effort led to anotherround of talks between SciFi and HensonProductions that did not lead to SciFichanging their mind. At press time, effortshave moved to try to get UPN, TNT orShowtime to pick up the series. There arestill eleven episodes left of the currentseason for both Farscape and StargateSG-1 to air on SciFi starting in January.There are rumors that SciFi is trying tokeep Stargate SG-1 going for a seventhseason, but no official announcementshave been made.

At the other end of the spectrum, USANetwork’s The Dead Zone has continuedto do well this summer and has beenpicked up for a second season. Followingon from the first season finale, Johnny willbecome more of a celebrity and withReverend Purdey attempting to make useof Johnny for his own purposes tied intoGreg Stillson’s run for Congress andJohnny’s dark vision of the two of them.USA will keep the show going in repeatson Sunday nights for those that missedthem the first time around and keeping theaudience ready for the second series thatmay start as early as January.

Getting back to the SciFi Channel,SciFi’s major movie for October is CliveBarker’s Saint Sinner which will air onSaturday, October 26th. It is about aBrother Tomas, a Monk at a secludedCalifornia monastery in 1815 that is secretrepository for all evil and unnaturalobjects collected by the Church, whichplaces the accursed items there forsafekeeping. When two demons areaccidently released from a relic, they use aWheel of Time to travel into the 21stcentury. Tomas follows them to presentday Seattle and must try to stop them,enlisting the help of detective RachelDressler. Greg Serano stars as BrotherTomas, Gina Revera as Detective Dressler,

Mary Mara as Munkar and RebeccaHarrell as Nakir.

The William Shatner Fright Nightcontinues on Saturday nights into Octoberand a Halloween marathon of the first 11movies is scheduled on October 31st.

SciFi’s biggest event ever starts onSunday, December 1st with StevenSpielberg’s Taken. It is ten two-hourmovies, airing over ten nights on SciFi inDecember. Each movie has a differentdirector and it will either air on ten straightnights or five nights each week for twoweeks. It tells the story of three familiesover four generations and how their livesare touched by alien abduction andgovernment conspiracy. Allie is a younggirl at the heart of Taken. The miniseriesopens over the skies of France duringWWII and follows the characters for 60years to the present day, using historicalevents as backdrop for the events in thefilm. We follow the family of RussellKeyes, a fighter pilot saved by aliens whohas his family become regular abductees,the family of military man Owen Crawfordwho is involved with the Roswell crashcoverup and subsequent governmentinvestigations of the E.T. presence and thefamily of Sally Clarke, who has a son,Jacob, by one of the alien visitors. Thecast includes Julie Benz, Matt Frewer,Eric Close, Michael Moriarity, HeatherDonahue and Dakota Fanning. Accordingto Executive producer Steven Spielberg,“Because it is a miniseries, it’s going to be100% character driven. I believe what willkeep people tuned in is that the charactersare very compelling. You watch thesecharacters evolve and age before youreyes and give birth to special children whothemselves have a purpose in our story. Itis a character story first and foremost.”Look for plenty of on-air promotion for theseries on SciFi and in other areas. Theyhave a lot riding on it and if people aren’tdrawn in by the first couple of movies,SciFi may have a big post-ThanksgivingTurkey. More than likely the series will dowell with little competition from othernetworks in early December. Look forseveral Taken related specials on SciFileading up to the debut of the miniseries.

In the syndication arena, add The LostWorld as a late entry to the casualty list. Ithad been planned to continue with afourth season this fall, and US distributorNew Line had announced it as happening.However, a dispute between two of theother production companies has led to adelay in the start of production for seasonfour while they attempt to come to termson the production costs for a new season.Currently, they hope to begin productionon a fourth season in January, 2003.

Andromeda will be returning to TVscreens for it’s third season under thewing of new head writer and producer BobEngels. From a Tribune Entertainmentpress release, “with every new seasoncomes changes and this season we’ll see

androids will be joined by a crew ofhumans, Rev Bem will reappear (played byBrent Stait), and we’ll get to learn moreabout Trance (in case you haven’t figuredher out yet!) Oh, and what about Harper?Well, Tribune Entertainment VP SethHoward says, “you don’t mess withperfection!”

Opening the season is “If The Wheel isFixed” where we find out the fate of Bekaand Tyr. Other episodes include Mad to BeSaved where the Andromeda crew embarkon a quest to find a scientist responsiblefor a mass killing of some sort, Cui Bono?where Beka’s Uncle Sid (John deLancie)returns, and The Lone and Level Sandswhich features Tony Todd as the captainof the Bellerophon, a ship launched beforeEarth’s admission into the commonwealthintended for a 4,000 year journey aroundthe Orion arm. The remaining fall episodesinclude “The Dark Backward”, “Point ofthe Spear”, “The Shards of Rimni” and“The Unconquerable Man”. It seems thatwith the departure of Robert Wolfe lastseason, there isn’t much info leaking outabout the series even at a couple of weeksbefore the start of the new season.

On Mutant X, as seems to happenwith most Tribune series, the head writer,Howard Chaykin, has departed the seriesand it has gotten a revamp for the newseason. At the San Diego ComicCon, JohnShea (Adam) was excited about thechanges they’ve made to the show. All of

the characters have had a boost in theirpowers following the first season finale.They will also be having more locationfilming this season to get the series out ofstudio sets more often. From the officialMutant X website, we have this preview ofthe new season: “At the end of lastseason, Gabriel Ashlocke succeeded inconquering Genomex and Mason Eckhart,forming The Strand, a society for NewMutants that he hopes will replace MutantX. Season Two finds the members ofMutant X learning to harness theirdeveloping powers and use them moreeffectively. Gabriel Ashlocke (MichaelEaston) returns with The Strand,continuing their quest to destroy MutantX. We learn in the first episode thatAshlocke is dying and as he continues hisquest, we see him dealing with his ownmortality. Season Two will delve deeperinto Adam’s past, at one point taking usback to 1978! He is a very powerful manwho’s connections in the government,financial, and scientific worlds go deeperthan anyone could have imagined.”

Debuting already in syndication is theCanadian series “Starhunter”. It followsthe adventures of Bounty Hunter DanteMontana (Michael Pare) along with hisniece Percy (Tanya Allen), his mysteriousmunitions expert Lucretia (ClaudetteRoche) and their holographic first mate,Caravaggio (Murray Melvin) take theiraging cruise ship, now converted huntership, The Tulip, in pursuit of dangerousinterplanetary criminals. Dante has a questto find his son, who was kidnapped tenyears ago when his wife was murdered bythe mercenary Raiders. There is also acontinuing story thread about “TheDivinity Cluster”, an alien gene hiddenwithin human DNA which gives someonesuperhuman powers if it is activated. Alsofiguring into the series is “The Orchard”, asuper-secret organization trying to trackdown those doing research on the DivinityCluster. The U.S. is about the last place toget the series, it having already aired inCanada on a pay channel and cable. Fromthe episodes I’ve seen, it is definitely low-budget and varies in overall quality fromepisode to episode. The syndicated run isnot airing episodes in the original airingorder in Canada, so it could get confusingwith some of the continuing plot linesairing out of order. Look for it in very latenight time slots in your area.

She Spies has moved into syndicationafter a short summer preview on NBC (cutdown to three episodes from the plannedfour). It is a very tongue-in-cheek take onCharlie’s Angels featuring NatashaHenstridge, Natashia Williams, andKristen Miller as a trio of sexy prisonersrecruited by Carlos Jacott to work as spiesfor the government.

Debuting the first week of October isTribune Entertainment’s Adventure, Inc.From the show’s press release

SF Tube Talk (Cont’d from page 10)


© UPN

Rommie and Trance from Andromeda.

some new hairstyles, new uniforms, andlots and lots of cool new spaceships!Then there’s the whole issue with theUniverse. It’s huge and the Andromedaand her crew have barely seen any of it!Look for new species (we saw a peek atsome of these in the Season Two finale)and more adventures as Dylan and crewexplore more galaxies and worlds!Speaking of Andromeda’s crew, the


“Adventure, Inc. follows legendaryexplorer Judson Cross (Michael Biehn)and his crew, Mackenzie Previn (KarenCliche) and Gabriel Patterson (JesseNilsson). The Vast Explorer, Judson’sexpedition yacht, serves as the operation’sofficial headquarters as they travel theworld in search of treasure, mystery andthe unexplained. Judson’s reputation as“the man who can find anything” hasspread from bureaucrats to billionaires,resulting in opportunities, danger andexcitement. Puzzles from history itch to besolved, present-day mysteries ache to beunraveled and sometimes villains need tobe brought to justice. Judson Cross’incredible string of stunning discoveriessuch as The Lost Dutchman Mine inArizona, Amelia Erhart’s plane, a Nazi arttrove in a Bavarian cave and many others,have made him into an internationallyrenowned figure. His priceless finds havelined the pockets of investors and adornedmuseums worldwide, securing for him acontinued procession of job opportunities.But for Judson - it’s about the thrill of thechase, not the trophy on the wall.” Theseries is produced by Gale Anne Hurd andlooks to have lots of action and lots ofsexy babes. I’m not sure how much genrecontent there will be, but the fact that he’sfound the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine putsit into the fantasy realm.

Stargate SG-1 has started running it’sfifth season in syndication, so if youdidn’t see these episodes on Showtime,this is your first chance to see them. In“Red Sky”, SG-1 realizes that the wormholethey used to travel to a peaceful planethas introduced material into it’s sun thatwill destroy it. In “Rite of Passage”, theydiscover that Cassandra, brought to Earthseveral years ago and adopted by Dr.Fraiser, has a retrovirus that is altering herDNA and they must return to herabandoned planet to find a way to saveher. In “Beast of Burden”, SG-1 discoversa civilization that uses Unas as slave labor,and attempt to liberate Daniel’s friend,Chaka, first seen in the episode “The FirstOnes”. In “The Tomb”, SG-1 teams with aRussian unit when one of their Stargateteams goes missing in a mysterious alienziggurat. In “Between Two Fires”, TheTollan offer Earth advanced weaponstechnology, prompting a secretinvestigation on Tollana -- one that leadsto a startling discovery. In “2001”, SG-1encounters a potential new, technolog-ically advanced ally in the war against theGoa’uld -- though they do not know theAschen’s dark secret. This episodefollows on from the “2010” episode fromseason four. “Desperate Measures” seesMajor Carter kidnapped by a terminally illman who intends to use a Goa’uld sym-biote to save his life and O’Neill is forcedto team up with an old foe to find her.

SF Tube Talk (cont’d from page11 ) VideophileJimmy Neutron Boy Genius

Paramount, 82 min, GVHS $22.99 , DVD $29.99

James ‘Jimmy’ IsaacNeutron (Debi Derryberry.) is a typical boy, whospends the morningbefore school blastinginto space on a rocketwith his best friend andhis mechanical dog tolaunch a communicationsatellite made out of atoaster. When aliensanswer his message andkidnap all the adultsJimmy and his friendsturn amusement parkrides into rockets andgive chase to rescue theirparents from King Gobot(Patrick Stewart).

This delightful rompis that most rare ofmovies, one aimed at thesmall fry that is so wellmade that the adultsenjoy it just as much.Extras on the DVDinclude the Theatricaltrailer(s), TV spot(s), TheMaking of “JimmyNeutron”, 2 music videos(Aaron Carter and NoSecrets), 12 promotionalspots and for those witha computer 7 DVD-ROMgames that the kids willwant to play again andagain. The DVD includesboth the Full-screen andwidescreen anamorphicformats. Definitely a plusto all collections whetheryou have kids or not. -Stephanie L Bannon

DinotopiaArtisan, 285 min, NR

VHS $14.98, DVD$19.98

Two half-brothers,Karl (Tyron Leitso) andDavid Scott (WentworthMiller) are on a trip withtheir father when theirplane crashes into theocean. They wash ashorein a strange land wheredinosaurs talk and theylive in harmony withhumans. David tries to fitin from the beginningwhile Karl searches for away to escape.Befriended by the

Dinotopian librarian Zippo (voiced by LeeEvans) and Marion (Katie Carr) thedaughter of Mayor Waldo (Jim Carter)they learn about Dinotopia andthemselves. David conquers his fear andtries to become a sky rider while Karlacquires a Saurian life mate and becomes

attached to it in spite of himself. When itlooks like Dinotopia is doomed to disaster,Marion, David and Karl mount anexpedition to the World Beneath to findmore sunstones and save Dinotopia.



( cont’d on back page 14 )

ReAmination (cont’d from page 1 )

Wayne’s personal assistant. He’s also thecity’s new protector, the new Batman.

A gang calling themselves the Jokerzhas been stealing high tech stuff. Batmanthwarts them one night, but can’t figureout why the want it or what they will use itfor. Days later, at a gala celebrating thereturn of Bruce Wayne to WayneEnterprises, an unexpected (and uninvited)guest makes an appearance. That’s right,his old arch-nemesis the Joker hasreturned and brought several gangmembers with him. They distract Wayneand others while the other gang memberssteal the high tech device they came for.Eventually, it’s revealed to Terry whatreally happened the last time Batman andthe Joker fought and why it is such ashock to see him again. At one point in theevening, when Wayne is almost killed,Terry decides to bring the Joker downhimself.

The story takes some interesting turns,including discussion of Robin. (Nope, notDick Grayson. He left to becomeNightwing.) The new Batman is aheadstrong teenager. While on his ownpersonal quest, Terry broke into WayneManor and stole the new bat-suit. He andWayne eventually reach an understandingand he’s been Batman ever since. The newsuit has some very cool features, includinga two-way communications link and flight,that the old one could only dream about.We get to see Terry’s mother and youngerbrother, as well as his girlfriend. Hedoesn’t see much of any of them and onewonders how/when he finds the time to goto school.

The film is well written (better thanmany live-action-aimed-at-adults features)and features great voice talents, includingLuke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill. Takea guess as to his character- and it’s notBruce Wayne. The animation is also good.The characters look very “superhero-ish,”with all the good guys having a bit of asquare-jawed look, even Commissioner(Barbara) Gordon to a small degree. Thereare several special features as well,including some storyboard sequences, amusic video, and informative characterprofiles. The documentary was veryinteresting. There are interviews withmembers of the voice cast and viewers aregiven a look inside the animation processincluding voice recording. Thedocumentary talks a lot about the film andits characters, providing a good deal ofbackground information. It also toucheson the music involved, including footageof guitarist Kenny Wayne Shepardrecording the theme. Since it’s fun to seewhat didn’t make the film, deleted scenesare included and shown in the format ofanimation tests.

The movie is rated PG-13 for someviolence, so it’s not quite suited for

The 2 disc DVD set includes thefeature Behind the Scenes: Storyboards,The Making of “Dinotopia,” an Interviewwith Composer Trevor Jones, theDinotopia Encyclopedia: Dinosaur Data,Saurian Alphabet, Travel ThroughDinotopia, some Deleted Scenes, Trailers,and Hidden Footage. For the kids thereare Dinosaur Facts and Sounds for Kids,Tips and Tricks for Game Boy and DVD-ROM: Skybax Pilot Game, Trivia Game andmore. - Stephanie L Bannon

The Lord of the Rings:The Fellowship of the RingsNew Line, 178 min, PG-13VHS $22.94 , DVD $29.95

The first part of Tolkien’s classictrilogy is brought to life in this richlyphotographed film. For those unfamiliarwith the trilogy the story follows FrodoBaggins (Elijah Wood) and hiscompanions as they attempt to saveMiddle Earth from being overrun by Evil.The Fellowship of the Ring covers the firstpart of Frodo’s journey as he leavesHobbiton with the Ring and three friendsto meet Gandalf and give the Ring to theElves. Pursued by agents of the Dark Lord,Frodo and his companions must continuetheir journey to return the “One Ring” tothe place it was created so that it can bedestroyed.

With a cast that includes Ian McKellen(Gandalf the Grey), Cate Blanchett(Galadriel, Lady of the Galadhrim), HugoWeaving ( Elrond Peredhil, Lord ofRivendell), Christopher Lee (Saruman theWhite) and John Rhys-Davies (Gimli, Sonof Gloin) the characters are brought to lifeagainst the backdrop of a beautifullycreated Middle Earth.

The two disc DVD set includes theTheatrical (PG-13) version of the film aswell as the Theatrical trailer(s), anExclusive 10-minute behind-the-scenespreview of The Two Towers, Three in-depth documentaries (“Welcome toMiddle-earth”, “The Quest for the Ring”,and “A Passage to Middle-earth”), 15featurettes originally created forlordoftherings.net, which explore thelocales and cultures of Middle-earth andinclude interviews with cast membersElijah Wood, Ian McKellen, ViggoMortensen, Liv Tyler, and others, theEnya “May It Be” music video, a Previewof Electronic Arts’ video game, The TwoTowers and some DVD-ROM features thatI haven’t checked out yet. There is alsoAn inside look at the Special ExtendedDVD Edition of The Lord of the Rings: TheFellowship of the Ring which will be afour disc set released in November. TheExtended Version is sort of a “director’scut”and will include extra footage not inthe theatrical version of the film as wellentirely new special features not includedin this set.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowshipof the Ring is a must for your collectionand the true collector will need both thisversion and the one coming out inNovember. - Stephanie L Bannon

StrandedHallmark, 140 min, NR

VHS $44.99, DVD $19.98

This story of survival is based on theclassic book The Swiss Family Robinsonbut don’t confuse this with the Disneyversion. Originally a two-part HallmarkChannel movie this version is grittier, andmore realistic than the Disney version.

David Robinson (Liam Cunningham) isconvicted in an English court of being aspy for Napoleon and is sentenced to betransported to New South Wales for 9years. His wife, Lara (Brana Bajic) and theirchildren accompany him into exile. Theprison ship’s cruel first mate, AnthonyBlunt (Roger Allam) is infatuated with LaraRobinson and jealous of David. When theship runs into a storm and the crew andmost of the prisoners abandon ship.Young Jacob Robinson is placed in alifeboat with Blunt but as the otherRobinsons try to rescue a trapped Sarahthe lifeboats leave them behind and thefamily is separated.

We now have two separate tales ofone family. The lifeboat with young Jacoband Blunt is found by a ship full of traders.Eventually Blunt kills the captain of thisship and he and his men, including Jacob,become pirates.

The part of the story we are morefamiliar with is the story of the rest of thefamily. When the prisons ship runsaground the Robinson, David, Lara, Sarah,Fritz and Ernst, are able to swim ashore.They find themselves on a deserted islandand must learn to survive. When youngSarah is found talking to a native man,Namatiti (Rided Lardpanna) there is actualfriction between the parents as well asbetween father and eldest son when theydisagree over the right course to take.When Fritz goes with the native, David isforced to realize he doesn’t knoweverything when Lara is bitten by a snakeand saved from death by the returningNamatiti.

After seven years on the island theRobinsons have made a good home forthemselves but they still watch for arescue ship. While gathering vegetableson a nearby small island Fritz and Ernstsee a ship but quickly realize it is a pirateship. When the find Emily Montrose(Jenna Harrison), who has escaped fromthe pirates they bring her home with them.When the pirates return to find Emily theRobinsons learn that Blunt survived theshipwreck and that their son Jacob hasbeen raised by Blunt to be part of hispirate crew.

As noted, this is a much more “true tolife” version than the light Disney film.The family feels guilt and worry over the

loss of Jacob. The parents havedisagreements, the father is overly proudto begin with and Sarah initially resentshaving to share her room with Emily.While this is not rated, it is not a film forvery young children, at a guess anappropriate rating would be PG. Don’t letthe 2 hour and 20 minute length scare youoff, the film moves along quickly andholds the interest throughout. I highlyrecommend this as an addition to your filmlibrary. - Stephanie L Bannon

Clifford The Big Red Dog – Go T-boneArtisan, NRVHS $12.99

The four episodes on this video featuresT-Bone—Clifford’s sweet and sensitivebulldog friend. In “Doing the RightThing,” T-Bone’s conscience is troubledwhen he uses “finders keepers, losersweepers” to justify keeping a lost toy. In“Tough Enough” T-Bone finds that it’sokay for a bulldog to be cute and lovable.Clifford and Cleo help T-Bone overcomehis fear of loud noises in “The Ears HaveIt.”And in “Saturday Morning” a changeof plans leads to the discovery thatanything can be fun when you’re doing itwith someone you love. Our reviewer Lucsays:

I just liked all of the movies. (FYI Therewere five little stories on the tape.) Cliffordand T-Bone are my favorite characters. Iwould think my friends would like this.

The best part was , Where T-Bonewants to get tough. I liked it all. - LucHenderson – 5 years

Clifford’s Big HalloweenArtisan, NRVHS $12.99

Clifford celebrates autumn withHalloween traditions, harvest hayrides,and leaf-jumping frolics while his best pal,Emily Elizabeth, cheers him on. Oneepisode finds Clifford inadvertentlygiving his neighbors a scare when he getssnared in a big white sheet, a second storyfinds Clifford helping his friend, Mac,better understand friendship andforgiveness. In “Leaf of Absence”Clifford’s breaks a promise and finally in“Clifford’s Carnival” our hero saves theday. Our reviewer Luc says:

I liked this movie.My favorite part was when Clifford is a

ghost from the sheet. My second favoritepart was when everyone but Emilythought Clifford was a ghost.

It wasn’t scary. It is scary only forbabies. My Friends would like this show. -Luc Henderson – 5 years old

Videophile (cont’d from page 12)


ReAnimation (cont’d from page 13)

everyone. (Even the regular cartoon on theWB seems aimed at a Junior High & upcrowd.) All in all, “Return of the Joker” is agreat, fun way to spend 77 minutes. -Tanya Gouchenour

Batman & Mr Freeze - SubzeroWarner Home Video, 70 mins, NR

VHS $14.93; DVD $19.98

The gang’s all here in this animatedvisit to Gotham City. That’s right, Batman,Robin, and Batgirl, are all present andaccounted for, with a couple ofappearances by Alfred. The plot of thestory involves the appearance of VictorFries, aka Mr. Freeze, a nemesis of theDark Knight. When a submarineunexpectedly surfaces in his arctichideout, much destruction is wrecked andhis wife’s cryo-stasis unit is irreparablydamaged. In a rage, he freezes the entirecrew of the sub and goes in search of help.He finds Dr. Gregory Belson, a cryogenicsexpert in Gotham, and a deal is struckbetween them. Nora Fries (who is still instasis) needs an unspecified organtransplant and without it has only days tolive. The situation is complicated by herrare blood type, of which there are only 18registered blood donors at the cityhospital. Coincidentally, one of those onthe list is Barbara Gordon (aka Batgirl). Mr.Freeze & his polar bears invade a localnightspot and kidnap Barbara, and DickGrayson (aka Robin) engages in anultimately unsuccessful pursuit. (The twowere on a date at the time. Those supervillains have the worst timing!) Thus, thehunt is on since they must get to Barbarabefore Freeze & Belson start the operation.

The animation is ok. It has aninteresting feel to it, since thebackgrounds, cars, and clothing all seem1950ish, but the technology is certainlymore advanced. With the possibleexception of Batgirl, the main charactersseem more “real” when in their superherocostumes than in regular clothes. Thisseemed rather odd, since one would thinkthat the same care would be taken whether

they were in costume or not.Unfortunately, the extras suffer the samefate as the plain-clothed superheroes ifthey’re just moving around in thebackground. If they’re featured in closeups though, they look more realistic.

The special features seem definitelyskewed towards the younger viewer.There’s a “Hunt for Mr. Freeze” gamewhich uses the DVD remote to follow andtry to catch him. Also featured is amontage of many concept drawings andunfinished sketches for different parts ofthe film set to an almost industrial-typesoundtrack. Also included is a listing ofcast and crew, movie trailers, and a “Getthe picture: How to Draw Batman” featurewhere we see one of the artists drawingBatman’s head in fast motion.

As far as the story, it was reasonablygood. There are a few fun scenes near thebeginning at a children’s hospitalfundraiser when Bruce Wayne & DickGrayson arrive (having changed in the carafter being picked up near a crime sceneby Alfred) and are greeted byCommissioner Gordon. The commissionerstarts talking about his lovely daughter &praising her feminine attributes. Occurringthe same time as his monologue, Batgirl issaving a young girl from muggers and weget to see her fighting and kicking somemajor butt while hearing about how sweetand wonderful she is. There’s also areference at the party to Bruce Wayne’sreputation as a ladies’ man when a friendof his snags him and insists onintroducing him to her three very eligible,beautiful friends. Within seconds, thewomen are clustered around him. The plothad some excellent potential, but fell shortin one major way. It seemed just a little tooconvenient that they just “happened” toselect Barbara’s name from the donor list.The selection was made to seem random,but honestly, doesn’t everyone in GothamCity know who the police commissioner’sdaughter is? A story where we could haveseen all three members of the crimefighting team in action against the enemy,rapidly turned into a damsel-in-distressvehicle. On the bright side of this, she’snot a cooperative prisoner by any means,

launching several escape attempts andbeating up on her captors.

It wouldn’t be a kid-friendly movie ifBatgirl bit the dust, so she does of courseget rescued. Batman and Robin save theday and all ends well for the heroes of thistale. One question remains, however. Havewe really seen the last of Mr. Freeze? -Tanya Gouchenour

Sherlock Hound Case File IISherlock Hound Case File IIISherlock Hound Case File IV

Pioneer, 125 min each, GDVD $29.98

Sherlock Hound was created byJapanese director Hayao Miyazaki(Totoro, Princess Mononoke), first forItalian televison and then additionalepisodes for the TV Asahi network. Theworld of Sherlock Holmes is re-populatedwith anthropomorphic dogs.

Case File II brings us five more casesfor Sherlock Hound and the faithful DrWatson.Episodes 6-10: The GreenBalloon, A Sacred Image Disappears, TheSpeckled Band, Treasure Under The Seaand The White Cliffs of Dover in whichProfessor Moriarty steals a golden statue,tries to defraud a young heiress and isgenerally thwarted by Holmes at everyturn.

Case File III contains episodes 11-14:“The Sovereign Gold Coin,” “The StormyGetaway,” “The Runaway Freight Car,”and “The Coral Lobs ter.” in whichHolmes outwits Professor Moriarty torecover the treasures of a rich industrialist,protects a stubborn banker and, in TheCoral Lobster, foils Moriarty’s attempt tosteal some diamond-studded carved corallobsters from a private aquarium.

Case File IV contains Episodes 15-18,The Golden Statue of the Great Burglar,The Secret of the Sacred Cross Sword,The Adventure of the Thames Monster andThe Adventure of the Three Students inwhich Holmes thwarts Moriarty’sattempts to steals gold bullion, and asacred sword with a secret map, a “seamonster” sinks ships in the Thames andsearches for three missing students.

These are two sided DVDs with theJapanese soundtrack/version on one sideand the English soundtrack/version sincethe English versions have about 1 minuteof extra footage in each episode. TheJapanese side of Case File III and IV havesome program promo clips.

Case File I was delightful and Case FileII shows that the quality was consistenteven though there ws a three year gapbetween production of the first fourepisodesand the last 20.

These are a welcome addition toanyone’s collection and is sure to pleaseboth the child and adult Anime fan as wellas fans of Sherlock Holmes. Case File Vwill be released in October and I lookforward to it.- Stephanie L Bannon

Digimon The Birth of GuilmonWalt Disney, NR

VHS $14.99

In Digimon The Birth of Guilmon,Tokato gets a mysterious blue card andfinds that digimon are real. he meets Henryand Rika who are tamers too. Takato mustkeep control of Guilmo, his createddigimon. I liked this anime for Guilmon’schildish acts. - Sean Patrick Martin

El Hazard: The Wanderers TV SeriesVol. 1: Adventure Begins (Episodes 1-7)

Pioneer, 175 mins,DVD $29.98 13+

El Hazard: The Wanderers TV SeriesVol. 2: The Ultimate Weapon

(Episode 8-13)Pioneer, 150 mins,DVD $29.98, 13+

El Hazard: The Wanderers TV SeriesVol. 3: The Winds Of War

(Episodes 14-20)Pioneer, 175 mins, $29.98 DVD, 13+

Two high school students, MakotoMizuhara, and his enemy Jinnai, one oftheir teachers, Fujisawa, and Jannai’ssister Nanami are mysteriously transportedto the alternate world of El Hazard whenJinnai tampers with Makoto’s invention.

The four adventurers land in El Hazardin separate locations. MakotoMizhara finds his teacherFujisawa and together theyrescue Princess Rune ofRoshtaria from the evilBugrom. Found by theBugrom, Jinnai allies himselfwith their evil Queen Divawhile plotting to take over.Meanwhile Nanami findsherself alone on El Hazard.She engages in a variety of“get rich quick” schemesuntil she is reunited withMakoto and Fujosawa.

Makoto learns that hispower is the ability to operatethe ancient machines of El



In Our Book


Coyote: A Novel of InterstellarExploration

By Allen SteeleAce Books (November 2002 Release)

$23.95 (Tentative Price)

This review is being done fromuncorrected proofs and the precisecontent could be modified beforepublication.

First the sub-title is a misnomer. Theprimary goal of the expedition was notexploration but colonization. Secondarilythe work is more truly an anthology ofstories about the expedition and can becalled a novel only by the loosest ofdefinitions. That said it is a gripping workand I would recommend it to all in spite ofthe loose ends and obviousincompleteness.

The United States has split and theportion of it called The United Republic ofAmerica has bankrupted itself to build astarship. So called Dissident Intellectuals,persecuted by the extreme right winggovernment plot to hijack the ship. Theydo so successfully and the story begins.

The characters are all well drawn. Eventhe characters we see only briefly on Earthlive in the mind’s eye. Of particular noteare:

Leslie Gillis, Chief CommunicationsOfficer who dies en route because he wasawakened prematurely. The chronicle ofhis years alone and how he copes is a realmasterpiece.

Kuniko Okada, Chief Physician, whosework as doctor surrogate mother andhuman of good sense permeates several ofthe narratives.

Wendy Gunther and Carlos Montero,teenagers whose coming of age threadsthrough several of the narratives.

Col. Gilbert Reese, the fanatical loyalistof the Rightist government of the UnitedRepublic of America.

The various narratives cover thestealing of the Alabama, the ordeal ofGillis, the landing, the founding of thecolonial government, three coming of agenarratives, and the intrusion from outside.They lead you through to a conclusionwhich is rife with loose ends and leavesone with a sense of dissatisfaction andincompleteness. There is a possible alienstarship seen by Gillis, Carlos’sunreported encounter with intelligentnatives, and the fact that our colonists areleft in a really bad unresolved situation atthe book’s end.

In spite of these defects, the book isinteresting and gripping. I recommend ithighly. – Gary Swaty

The Magical Worlds of Harry Potter:A Treasury of Myth, Legends, and

Fascinating Factsby David Colbert

Berkley, 209 pages, $13.00

Both adults and youngsters will enjoythis guide to the many historical,mythological and literary elements that aresprinkled throughout the Harry Potterbooks. In a series of short chapters itcovers such things alchemists, basilisks,why mirrors are magical, who were the firstBritish wizards, why trolls stink and howto catch a unicorn. Each chapter iscomplete enough to provide a greaterunderstanding of the elements mentionedin Harry Potter while a bibliography at theend provides a list of sources for furtherresearch. This is a good way to introducethe younger Harry Potter fan to classicmythology and history.

Though unauthorized by J.K. Rowlingthis is a wonderful addition to anyone’sHarry Potter collection. - Stephanie LBannon

Familiarsedited by Denise Little

DAW, 319 pages, $6.99

This book contains 15 original tales ofcompanions - animal and otherwise - thatare more than they seem. While I amgenerally not fond of short stories thesubject matter of this collection intriguedme. Of the 15 stories I found only one thatdidn’t appeal to me and several that arestand outs such as Searching For TheFamiliar by Kristine Kathryn Rusch inwhich a wizard must rescue his cat familiarbefore it is too late, Dog SpelledBackwards by P.N. Elrod in which dogssave their mistress from an unseen (byher) creeping darkness, This Dog Watchedby Von Jocks where a man regresses to apast life to find out he wasn’t even human,and Business As Usual by Diane A.S.Stuckart where a businesswoman receiveshelp from a totally unexpected source.

This book has changed my mind aboutshort stories and I will be looking for othercollections edited by Denise Little. I highlyrecommend this collection. - Stephanie LBannon

Never Afterby Rebecca Lickiss

ACE, 261 pages, $6.50

Once upon a time Prince Althelstangoes in search of a princess to wed.....thus starts a fairy tale that doesn’t goquite as planned. It turns out that thesleeping princess Althelstan hopes toawaken is actually three identical princes(drat those typos in transcribing legends),the sleeping girl he wishes to wed won’tawake until the three princes do and theonly Princess he can find to kiss theprinces is his tomboy cousin PrincessVevila, who is busy running away from

home dressed as a boy. It only gets morecomplicated from there since the princes’fairy god mother won’t believe Vevila isreally a princess and expects her to spinstraw into gold to prove she is. Thewizards Althelstan enlists to aid him aremagic snobs who argue with the princes’fairy godmother causing one to be cursed(though they are more than willing to haveVevila continue to produce gold eachnight for them), a second princess showsup to kiss the princes not to mention aWicked Stepmother, a dwarf namedRumplestiltskin, an enchanted toad andPrincess Vevila’s father.This is a wonderful book. The way MsLickiss takes several classic fairy tales andintertwines them with her own particulartwist is delightful. If you have ever beenvaguely dissatisfied with the blandness ofSleeping Beauty or other fairy tales this isthe book for you. I recommend this bookhighly and I look forward to reading moreof Ms Lickiss’ work. - Stephanie L Bannon

The Summer Countryby James A. Hetley

Ace Trade Paperback., 361 pp, $14.00

The Summer Country is a stand aloneurban fantasy. It is a debut novel.

Maureen is young woman, diagnosedas a paranoid schizophrenic who talks totrees, and is desperately afraid of men.{abused childhood} She works part time ina dead end job, and hates her life. She isalso one of those rare folk with the bloodof the old ones. She is descended fromMerlin, Mordred, Nimue, and MorganLeFay, the folks that rule the SummerCountry, the fantasy land of Celtic Myth.

She is kidnaped into the SummerCountry, by Dougal Mackenzie who plansto tame her, and breed her for her powerfulgenes. He also wants to use her in powerwars with his enemies. Brian Albion wantsto save her, but is captured, and enslavedby one of MacKenzie’s enemies, theredoubtable Fiona. Maureen has to breakfree of the role of victim, and come into herpower in order to save not only Brian, buther sister and her sister’s boyfriend whocame to the Summer country to save them.

This is a great fantasy abounding inrich characters with flaws and detail thatresonates. It is full of dark visions andquiet joys. Tightly written, it is by turnbrutal and beautiful. I could not put itdown. At last, someone to share a shelfwith Charles De Lint. This is a book you’llwant to re-read and keep. - Pam Allan

Words of the Witchesedited by Yvonne Jocks

Berkley, 306 pages, $13.00

Having stated earlier that I’m not fondof short story collections I find myself inthe position of having found twocollections this month that piqued, andheld, my interest. This collection consists

With El Hazard: The Wanderers wehave El Hazard: The Magnificent Worldchopped into shorter, much more detailedepisodes for TV. We learn morebackground of El Hazard, the story isdeveloped more as are the characters..

There is one more DVD to end this setand I look forward to getting it. This is awelcome addition to my collection and Ienjoy it as much as the El Hazard: TheMagnificent World Boxed Set, in fact evenif you have the boxed set I encourage youto pick these up as well. Apparently thereis also an additional El Hazard series TheAlternative World which is a sequel to TheMagnificent World as opposed to TheWanderers and I look forward to gettingthat one as well. - Stephanie L Bannon

Card Captor Sakura The MoviePioneer, 86 min, G

VHS $14.98, DVD $19.98

In Card Captor SakuraThe Movie,Sakura has a strange dream about amysterious woman. Oddly enough shewins the grand prize of 4 tickets to Hong-Kong. Sakura soon finds that her dream isreality and the woman Tsui Yung, an evilfortune teller and yet she turns out to bemore. I liked this Anime for Sakura’sefforts to hide Kiro and how historyunfolds. - Sean Patrick Martin

Tenchi Muyo 5 - Ryoko’s ArrivalPioneer, 85 min, G

VHS $14.98

In Tenchi MuyoRyoko’s Arrival,Tenchi walks his routine stroll to school ashe sees what looks to be a meteor. crashinto the earth. he goes to check it out andonly finds Ryoko, and after that momentall these strange people mysteriouslyshow up for one reason or another. I likedthis anime for Ryoko’s evil tricks and thedifferent stories from Ryoko and Ayekaabout their childhood and when they firstmet. - Sean Patrick Martin

Reanimation (cont’d from page 14 )

Hazard, Fujisawa gains super strengthonly so long as he remains sober andNanami gains the ability to see throughthe illusions of the Phantom tribe. WhenJinnai awakens the demon Ifurita El Hazardwill never be the same.


of 12 stories set in contemporary timesabout the everyday women and men whopractice Wicca. The stories areinterspersed with spells, poetry and bits ofWiccan wisdom.

Favorites include Anytown, USA byMaggie Shayne, a story of tolerance andfaith which could easily be the storybehind many of today’s headlines, andThe Spelling Error by Jen Sokolski inwhich a young girl’s inaccurate spell maybe responsible for her father’s new love.Psyche’s Tears by Charlotte Brisbonshows us that we need to look beyond thesurface before we judge others.

I highly recommend this book both forthose who practice non-traditional faithsas well as those who are interested inWicca. - Stephanie L Bannon

The Disappearedby Kristine Kathryn Rusch

ROC, 374 pp, $6.50

In the future man has found he is notalone in this galaxy. In order to trade withhis neighbors he has had to sign treatiesagreeing to honor the laws of other races.Well, by definition their laws are inhumanbut what happens when their laws are alsoinhumane? The hero of our story is MilesFlint, he’s nobody special, just a coptrying to do his job. But what happenswhen his job requires him to do what islegal rather than what is right? Can hereally give an 8 month old baby to a groupof alien to punish the babies father? Whatabout the races that believe in ritualvengeance killing? Or the ones thatpractice slave labor as punishment? Facedwith the conflict between what is requiredby law and what is the right thing to dowhat will he decide. Especially when nothelping the aliens could make him anaccessory to the original crimes under thealiens legal code. Is he really willing to riskhis life or his children just to help someconvicted criminals?

The Disappeared is an interesting andthought provoking police suspense novel.Its well developed characters are easy toidentify with and the plot line keeps youguessing to the very end. I would happilyrecommend this novel to everyone as agood thought provoking read. -William B.Whitmore

The Forge Of Marsby Bruce Balfour

Ace Books, 416 pp, $6.99

The Forge Of Mars is an adventureintrigue set in a bureaucratic nightmare. Itstands alone.

Tau Wolfsinger is an outsider inNASA research, a brilliant mind mired in aworld where brilliance must be crushed. Heis congenitally unable to play the gamesthat lead to political favor and acceptance.

He has developed a functioning artificialintelligence, but no one will let him play.

A NASA Team has discovered alienruins buried in the canyons of Mars. Thefirst contact resulted in the death of a teammember. There is a scramble to discoverwhat it means. But, these are not the firstof their kind The Davos Group, a shadowyinternational entity has been trying tounlock the secrets of another set ofartifacts in their possession. The Russianswish to use their set to restore Russia as aworld power. Everybody is usingeveryone else. Can Tau, who has swornhis talents will not be put to military use,withstand the pressures, unveil thesecrets, and still survive? Only he and hisfaithful AI know and. Ari, the AI is moreclosely related to the artifacts, than theintrigue laden humans.

Cross between Stargate and a politicalaction thriller, The Forge Of Mars makesan intriguing [pun intended] diversion thatcan banish the summer reruns for apleasurable time. Pam Allan

Earthriseby William C Dietz

Ace Hardcover, 418 pp, $23.95

Earthrise is military science fiction, anda sequel to Deathday.

The Alien Invaders and their otherspecies of slaves control earth. Thehumans that remain are put to workbuilding citadels of size and defensivecapability in several areas, and factoriesmaking a viscous product to be pumped into the citadels. But why? The rebels want

psycho-social glimpse of humanity at itsbest and worst that makes the invasion,rebellion and aftermath almostfrighteningly real. What is also frighteningis that there are still a thousand of the badguys still left, and a possible rebirth of theracialists left. Is there a third volumecoming? I hope so. This is military SF at itsbest. Buy this one, and buckle yourseatbelts. ..Pam Allan

Star Risk Ltd.by Chris Bunch

ROC, 352 pp, $6.99

Star Risk Ltd. is a group of misfits. Theare also a mercenary outfit hired to protectthe mines and miners working the Mfirasteroid belt. The only problem is theydon’t know who is attacking the miners.They don’t know why the miners are beingattacked. And they don’t know where theattackers are based. All in all a simple job,for superman maybe.

Chris Bunch has succeeded in writingan imaginative and exciting actionadventure. The characters are endearinglyquirky. And the plot is as twisted as aroller coaster. I found the surprise endingtotally unexpected. I have not had thismuch fun with a band of honorable butamoral misfits sense reading the dirtydozen. I will gladly recommend this bookto all fans of military sci-fi. - William B.Whitmore

Fallen Hostby Lyda Morehouse

ROC, 339 pages, $6.99

Fallen Host is the second novel byMorehouse, the author of ArchangelProtocol and though the novels relate,they stand alone nicely.

The Creator of the Link Angels nowlanguishes in prison, but his AI/offspringpage runs on, growing, dreaming ofMecca. His identity and purpose is unclearand the Pope is sending an inquisitor tofind out if he and his Japanesecounterpart, The Dragon Of The East,have souls. Morningstar [read Lucifer,Satan, Iblis, ] has heard of the impendingsecond coming has to find out who is theAnti-Christ and recruit them to his cause.Could it be the AI’s? The Mouse whocreated Page? Or maybe Mai Kito, thecurrent nude cellist front man with thePolka band? The Four Horseman Of theApocalypse [really] who is a wire-headlinking with The Dragon Of the east andthe Yakuza?

If you think this combination ofseekers will crash and change the world,you are right. And God [the maker] may bethe only one who knows what mighthappen.

I loved Archangel Protocol. ButMorehouse has topped herself with FallenHost. It is a Gotta Have. Can’t wait for thenext one. - Pam Allan

Ages of Chaosby Marion Zimmer Bradley

Daw, 763 pages, $7.99

Ages Of Chaos is an omnibusconsisting of Stormqueen! andHawkmistress!. These two novels arefrom Darkover’s Age of Chaos whenchildren were ruthlessly bred for Larangifts, and civil war raged.

In Stormqueen!, Dorilys Aldaran, heirto her father’s domain, has an uncontrolledgift to call forth lighting and savagestorms to the land. She is sent to a towerfor training, but can even a tower bring hergift and her life under control?

In Hawkmistress!, Romily MacAran,an independent tomboy, has the gifts ofcommunicating with Hawks and horseslacked by her brother and heir. When herfather arranges her marriage to a man shefinds repulsive she finds herself droppedinto the middle of a civil war and her giftsbecome a weapon. Can she keep herideals, and find happiness in the Age ofChaos?

As a longtime fan of MZB, having thesaga reissued in omnibus form is a boon,replacements for lost, battered andbookwormed volumes that had gone outof print. Nobody tells a story or builds aworld like Marion Zimmer Bradley. Mayher books be ever available forgenerations of new fans. Daw is to becommended for the reissuing in omnibusform. [all the better to restock my shelves]I know that most of us will run out to getthem. Those who have yet to travel underDarkover’s bloody sun have a treat instore. - Pam Allan

Once Upon A Winter’s Nightby Dennis L. McKiernan

Roc, 413 pages, $6.99

Once Upon A Winter’s Night is aFantasy based on a Fairy Tale. It standsalone but expect a sequel.

Camille, a daughter of a poor crofterfamily, sings like an angel. Her singingattracts the attention of the Prince of theSummerwood. He, in turn, trades a lifetimeof riches to take her to the Summerwood tobe his wife.

Alas, he has a curse that prevents herfrom seeing his face, [ He is a Bear by day,whatever he chooses by night] but theyfall in Love. Unknowingly, Camille triggersthe second part of the curse by looking athis naked face. Everything is snatchedaway and the adventure begins. Camillemust pursue her quest to rescue to rescueher lover [ from who and where shedoesn’t know] a sparrow with a brokenwing as her only companion. She has onlya year and a day plus a whole moon to doit in.

Sounds like your basic Fairy Tale,right? Forgettabout it. This is a full fleshedepic worthy of the greatest bard, rich in

In Our Book (cont’d from page 15)


to know and ground down by alien controlas they might be, can this be a key toregaining their freedom.’

The diverse cast of characters, welldrawn, plot, scheme and sacrifice to freetheir world, and joining forces with theenslaved alien species pull together into abreakneck speed action thriller that hasyou holding on to your pages and yourseat. While doing it, Dietz throws in


detail and wonder, characters you canempathize with and care about, and actionto carry it along. Admittedly, I love bardictales, poetry, and folklore, but I couldn’tput it down. { well, I put it down to sleep,then couldn’t sleep till I got back up andfinished it} This is a must for Fantasylovers and I am anxiously awaiting apossible sequel. The fates have decreedthey must meet an even greater “ Peril”before the saga ends. Is there a spell tospeed the author and publisher? - PamAllan

Revelation Spaceby Alastair ReynoldsAce, 592 pages, $7.99

Revelation Space is the first novel bythe author of Chasm City now inpaperback.

Nine hundred thousand years ago,something completely wiped out theAmarantin Civilization as it poised on theedge of space flight. Scientist DanSylvestre is driven to the riddle before itcan happen again. His wife Mutinies and arebellion breaks out threatening to aborthis efforts. He forms an alliance with thecyborg crew of the Nostalgia For Infinity,but as he nears a goal, an assassin is

stalking him. The secret he chases canalter reality and time as we know it.

This is intelligent hard Science Fictionat its best combining fields of scientificendeavor into a headlong rush into acybernetic future that both scares andtitillates the reader. Add this to yourbenchmark list. It raises the bar for hardSF. - Pam Allan

The Second GenerationA DragonLance Novel

by Margaret WeissWizards of the Coast, 448 pages, $7.99

This is a book for fans of theDragonLance saga. Though enoughbackground is included for newcomers, Ithink having read at lest the originaltrilogy adds depth. This book is acollection of several short stories aboutthe children of the Heroes of the Lance (iethe protagonists of the first series). Thestories are titled: “Kitiara’s Son”, “TheLegacy”, “Wanna Bet?”, “Raistlin’sDaughter” and “The Sacrifice”.

Some folks would label this book (andthe entire series) as Extruded FantasyProduct. I found the characterscompelling and the plots, overall,interesting or at least interesting enoughto keep reading. The strongest story wasthe first, “Kitiara’s Son” which dealt with

the complexities of loyalty and honor.Each story deals in some part with theinteractions of the children with theirparents and their parents’ reputations asHeroes. Many old favorites from the firstseries are brought back. Much humor andsadness and silliness and heart.

Overall, I found it well worth reading. -Cheryl Martin

Special OPS SquadDeep Strike

By Rick ShelleyAce, 249 Pages, $6.99

“I woke up sweating and shivering atthe same time. I’m not sure, but I think Imight have screamed just before I woke.That could be what jerked me from sleep.Oh, well, the room was too well insulatedfor anyone to have heard me if I did, and itwouldn’t have been the first time.”

In case you haven’t guessed yet thisis not the fast paced action adventurenovel fans of Rick Shelley probablyexpected when they bought this book.While the novel does contain somecombat scenes the most interesting part ofthe story is Mr. Shelley’s exploration ofthe mind of a combat leader. His doubts,his insecurities and his memories. Sgt. Bart“Dragon” Drak is the leader and he hashad a rough war so far. He has suffered

several serious wounds, and he has lostsome good men in combat. With his unitpulled back to rest and reform Sgt. Drakwonders if he still has what it takes toorder me into actions that place their livesat risk. Does he have the courage to oncemore place his life on the line risking deathor worse serious injury? And can hecontinue to carry the weight of all of hisdead or will the nightmares drive himcrazy?

While it was not what I had expected, Istill found myself fully engrossed in thisstory. It is a well constructed novel andSgt. Drak is a very believable character.Anyone who has ever been insecure andfrightened can immediately identify withhim.

This book is book 2 of the Special OPSSquad series but other than the continuingcharacters it has little connection to book1 and makes a fine stand alone story. I amvery happy to add this book to mycollection and would recommend it to anymilitary fiction fans who want more thatjust blood and gore. - William B.Whitmore

In Our Book (cont’d from page 16)



ClubListings(EDITOR’S NOTE: Please check your clublisting for errors. Please send corrections andupdates to the editor in writing or via email)

ADRIAN EMPIRE A medieval andrenaissance recreationist club. Sword-fighting, arts, banquets, masquerades,dances. meets every Wednesday nightfrom 7-10pm at Encanto Park. All arewelcome. Free. For details, call (602)582-6990.

ARIZONA LANBASHERS LEAGUE Acollaboration of computer gamingenthusiasts, the Arizona LANbashersLeague throws quarterly LANpartyevents. Between parties, support is givento local groups who wish to advertise theirown gatherings. We have no set genre ofgames and play anything from strategygames to first-person shooters to driving/flying simulations. No annual membershipis required and admission to an eventranges from $5-$15. See our webpage forcurrent events. Email:[email protected] Web: http:/www.lanparty.com/all/ VoiceMail: 602-306-9339

THE AWAY TEAM: The Away Team, is ageneral sci-fi appreciation group thatmeets once a month for discussion ofvarious sci-fi news regarding severalmediums to include: television, movies,video, books, comics, magazines,collecting, and so forth. The meetings arecomprised of news, review and comment,BBS/computer news and help, meetingnew members, video presentations, games,and socializing fun! Food and drinks areprovided, via a $3 munchie fee (permeeting) to compensate the host. (Noother fees are involved.) The electronichome of the Away Team, is the LightspeedSpace Station BBS at (520) 325-6674....Member ages for the group range from 13-40-something with both male and femalemembers. Other activities include null-modem link gamefests, group theatermovie viewings, convention trips andmore. Have sci-fi fun in a relaxed, low-structure environment. NO RUBBER EARSALLOWED!! For questions, you can callthe BBS, or write to: LSS c/o R. Martin;2522 N. Sparkman Blvd.; Tucson, AZ85716

BASFA Baja Arizona Science FictionAssociation, a non-profit organization.Puts on TusCon Convention annually.Webpage: http://home.earthlink.net/~basfa Email: [email protected]

CENTRAL ARIZONA SPECULATIVEFICTION SOCIETY, INC. (CASFS) Thenon-profit corporation that puts onCopperCon conventions, SmurfCons,HexaCons, occasional regional cons, andpublishes Con-Notations. Best describedas SF/F generalists with a strong bent ( cont’d on page 19 )

towards literary SF/F. Guests welcome -meets at 8pm on the last Friday of eachmonth in January thru September and thesecond Friday in October, November andDecember at JB’s Restaurant, 2560 W.Indian School in Phoenix, AZ. Write POBox 62613, Phoenix, AZ 85082-2613 or callStephanie L. Bannon (602)973-2341 forinformation. Web www.casfs.org

C.R.O.F.T. Celtic Reenactment ofFellowship and Trades is Phoenix basedReenactment group specializing in thewestern European renaissance. As an org-anization, it is our goal to promote felow-ship while researching lifestyles andtrades concurrent with the Celtic Peoplesfrom 400 BC until 1746 AD. Although mostmembers claim Scots, Irish or Welsh an-cestry and do Celtic re-enactment, it is ourintent to open participation to anyone withan interest in period crafting and enter-tainment, no matter what his/her ethnicity.The sense of being a real village surround-ing Croft is vital to promote a feeling offamily and fellowship which was a realityin earlier times. Croft is a family-orientedand kid-friendly organization.C.R.O.F.T.members can be found demon-strating inevents such as the Highland Games,Scarborough Fair, and the ArizonaRenaissance Festival. Web page http://www.crofters.org

THE DARK ONES (Dark-wunz) n. 1) Anorganization formed for the expression andexploration of various cultural themesincluding, but not limited to, the DarkAges and the Renaissance through formsof art including, but not limited to,painting, drawing, writing, photography,spoken word, and acts of characterization.2) a member of this organization. 3) Infor-mation available at www.darkones.org

DAYSTAR HOLT Arizona’s first andlongest-running Elfquest fan club. Daystarmeets to talk about EQ and related stuff,develop characters, publish stories in our‘zine Playelf and create an annualcalendar. Other common interests includemusic, belly dance, camping and of course,SF. Membership is free (18 or over) and isattained by group vote after you attendtwo meetings or holt-related get-togethers.Meetings are usually the first Saturday ofeach month; for more info, call Tom orJanice at (602) 581-2258. They have awebsite up at http://members.home.net/jeanderson/daystarholt.html

THE EMPIRE OF CHIVALRY ANDSTEEL, INC. The Empire of Chivalry andSteel specializes in the general recreationof the culture of the Middle Ages inc-luding all of the Art Forms, Events (Feasts,Tournaments, Ceremonies and Wars) andCombat Arts covering the years of 800ADup to 1650AD and any location withinEurope or its explored territories. For moreinformation contact Bart Smith (Phoenix)(602)937-6995 or Leonard Bird (Tucson)(520)742-2432 Web: www.galandor.org

Sorcery Rising: Book One of Fool’s Goldby Jude Fisher

DAW Books, 469 pages, $23.95

This was an interesting fantasy set in amythical world that is divided between twoextremes: a cold Viking-flavored northwhere the Eyran people live on islands,sail great prowed boats and fish: and thehot and deserty south, which is morehorse oriented and decadent, where theIstrians live.

The North is all islands and littlehomesteads where the women are asstrong and free as the men and their god isSur of the sea. The South has a femalegoddess Falla who apparently likessacrifice and fire and the women arewrapped in robes so only their eyes areseen.

But every year there is an Allfair, sortof a large Estrella War set-up whereeveryone gets together for a littleschmoozing, selling and sports. There is ahuge merchants row and lots of displaysof strength: horse racing, wrestling etc. Athird people, sort of gypsy-like called theFootloose also show up at the Allfair andare also known for their independentwomen and charms and potions andgodlessness. They are more attuned the toearth and the natural world and spendmost of their time traveling. They tend toremain more aloof from the affairs of theEyrans and Istrians.

So you have all these elements and ofcourse conflict arises. To add spice to themix, a sorcerer’s apprentice escapes fromhis master’s island called Sanctuary takingwith him a mysterious woman named theRosa Eldi (Rose of the World) and showsup at the Allfair. Several powerful Istrianmen desire her, but to theirdisappointment, she is chosen by thenorthern king as his new wife. To add tothe mess, Katla Aransen, a red-headedEyran sword smith who has a real affinityfor her craft and rock climbing, commits areligious crime by climbing a rock sacredto Falla. Marriages and alliances, secretmaps to fabled lands, all these are thrownin, making this an Allfair that will long beremembered. Murder, betrayal, kidnapingand magic fling the major players on theirpaths (undoubtedly followed in the nextbooks) though Katla seems to be thecentral character. She is almost burned atthe stake for her religious indiscretion andis rescued at the last minute by a littlemagic and some brave lads.

Most of the threads of this tail are leftdangling to concluded further down theline, but it certainly should be aninteresting journey. Fisher is a smoothfacile writer and her characters anddescriptions are vivid and alive. Worth theprice of admission. - Sue Martin

In Our Book (cont’d from page 15) Summers At Castle Auburnby Sharon Shinn

Ace, 342 pages, $7.50

Corie is the illegitimate daughter of aroyal Lord and a daughter of a witch/healer. Most of the year, she lives with hergrandmother and studies healing.Summers are spent at Castle Auburn withher half-sister [ betrothed to the prince]where she must learn about becoming alady.

Through these summers she grows up,learns about slavery, duty, and love. It is acoming of age story, set in a fantasyworld. What sets it apart is the writersability to create a clear and vivid world,characters that have a life of their own,and believable relationships. It makes agood read.-- Pam Allan

Tainted Trailby Wen Spencer

ROC, 320 pages, $6.99

Tainted Trail is sci-fi mystery andsequel to Alien Taste. It stands alone.

Ukiah Oregon is a rather uniqueindividual. An alien breeder, he was born200 years ago, but only retains memoriesdating back to his last murder...as victim.He was raised with wolves, domesticatedby a couple of women, and with hisaccelerated senses, trained as a tracker ofmissing persons and private investigator.He also looks like a teenager [he only ageswhen fatally injured. That’s just the normalpart of his life.

He and his firm have been hired to finda missing hiker, who is also a friend. Hemust go back to Oregon, find the hiker,save her from the Ontongard, sort ofparasites from another world who ride hostbodies and take over worlds.

Ukiah finds his own history tied intoboth sides of the war. Can he survive longenough to save the world, find hisrelations, and keep from being discoveredas an alien anomaly.

The action is fast, the charactersinteresting and well drawn for the Genre. Ienjoyed it and can recommend it as akeeper as well as good read. - Pam Allan



Club Listings ( Cont’d from page 18 )

THE JEDI KNIGHTS Meetings are the 3rdSunday of each month. For moreinformation call Carol Alves, Publicity,(760)244-9593 or write Jedi Knights, c/o JimLowerre, 12291 Meade Street, GardenGrove, CA 92841-3629

LEPRECON, INC. One of the two Phoenixarea corporations that put on yearly con-ventions. Best described as SF/F gene-ralists with a main thrust into SF/F art.Guests are welcome. The meetings arequarterly on the second Saturday of Febr-uary, May, August & November unlessotherwise notified. August is the annualmeeting where board positions are deter-mined. For more information, write PO Box26665, Tempe, AZ 85285 ; call Mike Will-moth at (480) 945-6890 www.lepercon.orgEmail: [email protected]

MIB The Men in Black is the officialorganization of field operatives for SteveJackson Games. They attend local con-ventions to demonstrate and promoteproducts of Steve Jackson Games. Thealso schedule demos in local gamingstores. If you have a gaming store orconvention that you would like to haveofficial Steve Jackson Games represen-tation at, please contact the MIB ArizonaCell Leader at [email protected].

ORANGE COUNTY SCIENCE FICTIONCLUB meets last Wednesday of everymonth (except Dec.) We frequently haveauthor guest speakers. You’re all welcometo come if you’re in the area. We meet inFullerton, about 5 miles north of Disney-land. For more details ph. Greg at [949]552-4925 or send a message to ourlistserve [email protected]

PAReX is a non-profit, just for funorganization dedicated to the proliferationof robotics as a hobby. Monthly meetingswill be held and will be announced underthe Meeting Information page, http://www.parex.org/meetinfo.htm. All interest-ed persons are invited to participate. Weare currently in the process of gettingorganized and becoming an officialorganization with tax status. Web page:http://www.parex.org/ E-mail Contact: JohnKittelsrud, [email protected]

THE PHOENIX FANTASY FILMSOCIETY A Phoenix based club interest-ed in the entire realm of SF, Fantasy andHorror film. PFFS has been in existence for25 years, meeting every 6 weeks in mem-ber’s homes. Dues are $10 per year. Mem-bership includes newsletters, an annualfilm awards and various outings. Forinformation, contact PFFS, P.O. Box 34023,Phoenix, AZ 85067 or call David Storck at(602) 274_7404, e_mail: [email protected].

PHOENIX JAPANIMATION SOCIETYLocal chapter of Japanimation/generalanimation oriented fans - meets monthly.Membership is free, though optionalmonthly newsletter is $5/year or $.50 per

month. Call Tom Perry at (602) 996-2196 orwrite 3241 E. Altadena, Phoenix, AZ 85028.

RAGE ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST ALive Action Theatre Troupe based out ofthe ASU campus in Tempe, AZ. It isdedicated to the game Werewolf: TheApocalypse by White Wolf publishing.Contact Mike McLaughlin at (602)461-5842or write 1730 W Emelita Place #2025, MesaAZ 85202-3144 or [email protected]

RAW GAMES (Role-players &Wargamers, Inc.) Role-players &Wargamers, Inc. is the Valley’s oldest role-playing and wargaming club. Currentlymeeting at 8159 W. Weldon in Phoenixevery Sunday from 3pm-9pm (exceptduring conventions and other specialevents). Open to new members - call (602)849-9515. WWW.rawgames.org

SCIENCE FICTION CONTINUUM TheScience Fiction Continuum: An Independ-ent Star Trek and Sci-Fi club in Phoenix,AZ. The SFCOM is an active club thatparticipates in Local Phoenix, and South-western Star Trek and Sci-Fi conventionsand movies. The SFCOM has threedifferent divisions. The SFCOM itself, afree group where fun is the name of thegame. The Deep Space SolarFlare (DSSF)an active member club in the InternationalFederation of Treker’s (IFT). This group isbased on DS9 (a space station). And theIKV Sto-Vo-Kor (Independent KlingonVessel). A Klingon Bird of Prey, roamingthe desert looking for battle. Are the Fed’stoo soft, looking for combat, feel the call toglory. This is the ship for you. Member-ship in the SFCOM is free! To join DSSFor the Sto-Vo-Kor a nominal fee for thenational clubs involved and uniforms. Forfurther information contact President JohnNelson at (602) 409-7169 or on the internetat; [email protected] or check out ourweb site. http://www.thesfcom.com

both teaching basic use and utilizing as asource of speculative fiction. For more infocontact Dr Ray Bromley at [email protected]. The SFACE Web site isfound at http://www.pc. maricopa.edu/departments/studentact/organizations/sface/

SHADOWKEEP BBS Intelligent conver-sation, awesome graphics, stupendous doorgames, unworldly filebank, RPG forums,QWK message system and online RPG BBS-mode-rated games! Our BBS is mainly RPGoriented and we offer many services to GMsand players. No fees neces-sary for userswho post intelligent messages! $5 in creditsto new users. Over 20 conferences and 10doors to choose from! Shadowkeep BBS -PCBoard 15.2/M - US Robotics 28.8 Modem.Phoenix, AZ (602)245-0919; Connect at 2400-28800

THE SOCIETY FOR CREATIVEANACHRONISM The kingdom of Atenveldtdoth lie in the state of Arizona. Within thefair kingdom can be found six Baronies:Atenveldt, Mons Tonitrus, Twin Moons,SunDragon, Tir Ysgithr and Ered Sul. Formore information on any of these or forgeneral information on thy past tomorrowsthou mayest contact Mistress Myrddina oDolwyddelan (Terry Schwartz) PO Box 584,Sonoita AZ 85637 (520)455-5835 Email:[email protected] www.atenveldt.org

THE SOUTHWEST COSTUMER’S GUILDThe Southwest Costumers Guild is a looseorganization of persons interested in allfacets of historical, cultural, science fiction,fantasy, and humor costume. Members areoften seen on stage and behind the scenes atlocal and regional Science Fiction Conven-tion masquerades. They meet on the lastSunday of each month at various members’homes in the greater Phoenix area. For details.Southwest Costumers Guild, PO Box 39504,Phoenix, AZ 85609 or call Randall Whitlock at(602)995-7514, email: [email protected]

or Web:www.southwestcostumersguild.org

SPACE ACCESS SOCIETY SpaceAccess Society’s sole purpose is topromote radically cheaper access tospace, ASAP. We think it’s possiblewithin ten years, with a little luck and alot of hard work. Join us and help usmake it happen! SAS membership is$30 for one year, which gets youemailed Space Access Updates theinstant they pass final edit, plusdiscounts on our annual confer-ence onthe technology, politics, and busi-nessof radically cheaper space trans-portation, featuring leading players inthe field. Email us at:[email protected] page: www.space-access.org/

STARBASE TUCSON Tucson Arizonabased Star Trek club. For info call GeofWood at (520) 746-1822 or write Star-base Tucson; 3314 E. Benson Hwy;Tucson AZ 85706. Email:[email protected]

TARDIS is a Phoenix-based General SF/Fantasy Fan Club, specializing inInternational media SF/Fantasy since1983. TARDIS meets every two weeksat different locations around the valley.Activities include watching videos,discussions, parties, fund-raisers,auctions, games, camping trips andoutings. We also maintain an activepresence at local conventions. TARDISpublishes a monthly inform-ative news-letter, The Index File, with a nationalcirculation which is included with mem-bership. Annual membership is just$12.50. You can contact us at P.O. Box63191, Phoenix, AZ 85082-3191, VoiceMail at (602) 864-0901, E-mail [email protected] or visit http://

SFACE(SpeculativeFiction AndCom-puterEnthusiasts)PhoenixCollege’s oneand onlyconnection tothe worlds ofspeculativefiction,includingsciencefiction,fantasy, andhorror as wellas table top,live actionand internetgaming,SFACE alsoserves as aguidethrough theInternet -

( cont’d on back page )


Generic Convention Regestration Form

Name:________________________________________________Badge Name:___________________________________________Address:_______________________________________________City/State/ZIP:__________________________________________Phone:______________________ Email:_____________________Enclosed is $______ for _______ memberships for________________________________ convention.(See calendar for mailing address)More info on __ Masquerade __Art Show __Volunteer __ Other

ConventionListings

Club Listings ( Cont’d from page 18 )

Conjecture (San Diego, CA) Oct 18-20‘02 DoubleTree Mission Valley Hotel, SanDiego CA. GoH: Steven Brust. Memb: $30through 8/15/2002; $35 through 9/15/2002,$40 at the door. Info: ConJecture, Box927388, San Diego CA 92192 email:[email protected]; website:www.conjecture.org

TusCon 29 (Tucson AZ) Nov 15-17, 2002Inn Suites, Tucson, Arizona Author GoH:Tomothy Zahn, Artist GoH: Vicki ViscontiTilley; TM: Ed Bryant Events include:Meet the Authors and Artists, Panels,Readings, Video Room, Dealers Room, ArtShow, Game Room, LAN ComputerGaming, Masquerade, Adult Masquerade,and ConSuite. Memberships: $40 until 9/9/02, and $45 after that and at the door.Hotel info: Inn Suites, 475 N GranadaAvenue, Tucson, AZ 85701 (near I-10 andSt Mary’s Road) (520) 622-3000. RegSuites $69, 2-Rm Suites $79 (mention“TusCon” to get these rates). Room ratesinclude a real breakfast! Info: TusCon 29,PO Box 26822, Tucson, AZ 85726.Webpage: http://home.earthlink.net/~basfa Email: [email protected]

www.primenet.com/~jgeorge/tardis.html

TEKWAR FAN CLUB Sanctioned by theseries’ production companies and theUSA Network! It is THE informationconduit between the fans and the series!Fan club membership will bring you thefollowing 1) subscription to the info filledTek Informer newsletter; 2) official TekWarFan Club membership card and kit.Membership is by regular mail only andthe newsletter and mater-ials will not bereproduced electron-ically. To join theaction and initiate your annualmembership, make check or money orderout for $12.50 to: Official TekWar Fan Club(Membership section), 2522 N SparkmanBlvd., Tucson AZ 85716-2417

T.H.E.M. is ASU’s science fiction andfantasy club. Weekly meetings are held onthe Arizona State University campus, withdates and places to be announced afterthe semester starts. For more information,contact Erik Wennstrom, email:[email protected] Phone: 480-968-5257.Tosubscribe to our listserve, send a messageto [email protected].

TUCSON FAN ALLIANCE E-MailAddress is [email protected] [email protected].

USS STORMBRINGER The Storm-bringer is a correspondence Star Trek fanclub chapter of Starfleet, Intl. based out ofTucson AZ. The chapter was commis-sioned as the USS Stormbringer NCC-74213, attached to Division 31, StarfleetCovert Operations, on 10/31/98. As of 11/29/98 there were 32 members. There are nodues other than the $15 for joining Star-fleet Intl.. Members are scattered worldwide but the primary clusters are inTucson, AZ and Plano, TX. They don’tmeet on a regular basis since they are acorrespondence chapter. Their web site is:http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Vault/9505/ and their contact/CO is Capt. DavePitts, [email protected].

Z-PHILES are the ariZona x-PHILES. Wemaintain a mailing list for news and get-togethers of fans of the X-Files living inArizona. We get together in both thePhoenix and Tucson areas. To subscribe,send an empty message to [email protected]

UNITED FEDERATION OF PHOENIX APhoenix area Star Trek and general SciFifan club. We are a social club that meetsevery two weeks at various locationsaround the Phoenix area. The UFP hasbeen meeting for over 25 years ofcontinuous activity. Dues are $15/per yearprorated when you join; no restrictions.Membership includes membership rosterand monthly newsletter. Come to any twomeetings at no obligation. For information,write the UFP at PO Box 37224, Phoenix,AZ 85069, or call Jim Strait at (602) 242-

LosCon 29 (Burbank, CA) November 30-Dec 1, 2002 Burbank Airport Hilton,Burbank, CA Guests: Author GoH: DavidWeber, Artist GoH: Nene Thomas, FanGuest: Patty Wells. Memb: $35 until 7/31/02, $40 until 10/31/02, $45 at the door. Info:LosCon c/o LASFS, 11513 Burbank Blvd,North Hollywood, CA 91609 Email:[email protected] http://www.loscon.org/loscon/29/

SMOFDIEGO (San Diego, CA) Dec 6-82002 Hacienda Hotel, Old Town, SanDiego CA. SF conrunners con. Memb: $50/ £37 to 10/1/02, then $60 / £40. Info: SmofDiego, 3118 Via Valesco, Escondido CA92029; email: [email protected];website: www.fopaws.com/smofcon

Gallifrey One Episode XIV: The FactionParadox - (Los Angeles, CA) Feb 14-17,2003 The Airtel Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles,CA Guests: Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy+ many more Memb: $30 thru 5/31/02, $35thru 8/31/02, $40 thru 11/30/02, $45 thru 1/31/03 and $50 at the door. Info: GallifreyConventions, Post Office Box 3021, NorthHollywood, CA 91609 Email:[email protected]

ConDor X - February 28-March 1, 2003DoubleTree Hotel Del Mar, San Diego, CAGuests: TBA DoubleTree Hotel Del Mar,11915 El Camino Real, San Diego, CA92130; 1-800-222-TREE, 858-481-5900; rms:$99 sngl/dbl. Memb: $25 until 8/31/02; $30until 11/30/02; $35 until 1/31/03. Info: Con-Dor, PO Box 15771, San Diego, CA 92175;[email protected].

LepreCon 29 (Phoenix, AZ) May 16-18,2003 Embassy Suites Phoenix North,Phoenix, AZ Artist GoH: Larry Elmore;Local Artist/Author GoH: Madame M;Media Technical Guest: Richard Coyle;Author Guest: TBA; Music Guest: TBAMemb: $25 until 8/31/02, $30 until 12/31/02Hotel: info: Embassy Suites Phoenix North,2577 W. Greenway Road, Phoenix, AZ85023-4222, (602)375-1777 Room Rates: $89S/D, $99 T/Q (plus tax) Info: LepreCon 29,P.O. Box 26665, Tempe, AZ 85285 Phone:(480)945-6890 Email: [email protected]: www.leprecon.org

CopperCon 23 (Phoenix, AZ) Sept 5-7,2003 Embassy Suites North, Phoenix,Arizona Guests: TBA Embassy Suites

Phoenix North, 2577 E. Greenway Rd,Phoenix, AZ (602) 375-1777. Rooms: $79 +tax S/D, $89 + tax T, $99 + tax Q Info:CopperCon 23, PO Box 62613, Phoenix, AZ85082, Phone (480) 423-0649, Email:[email protected]; www.coppercon.org

ConKopelli, Westercon 57 ( LitchfieldPark, AZ) July 2-5, 2004 Wigwam Resort,Litchfield Park, AZ Guests: Author GoH:C.J. Cherryh; Artist GoH: David Cherry;Music GoH: Heather Alexander ; Fan GoH:John Hertz Info: Arizona in 2004 PO Box67457 Phoenix, AZ 85082 Email:[email protected] Web: http://www.conkopelli.org

9203. Web page: http://www.U-F-P.org orEmail to [email protected]

UNITED WHOVIANS OF TUCSON Awell-informed and very active Dr. Whoclub. $15 yearly membership includes fourissues of their fanzine - TARDIS Time Lore- written by semi-pros and other dedicatedfans. For more information, contact TheUnited Whovians of Tucson at P. O. Box13541, Tucson, AZ 85732-3541. Also, youcan contact the president [email protected] or the UWOTwebmaster at [email protected] page at: http://www.azstarnet.com/~hgadlng/uwotclub.htm

WESTERN SCIENCE FICTIONASSOCIATION (WesternSFA) A non-profit corporation that sponsors theConRunners seminars and is sponsoring abid for the 2004 Westercon. Dedicatedprimarily to educational activities relatingto literature, music, and visual andperforming arts, especially in the genres ofscience fiction, fantasy, costuming,gaming and science. Applicants formembership in WesternSFA must besponsored by a current activeWesternSFA member. Dues are $10 yearlyplus a $5 non-refundable application fee.General Meetings are held on the firstFriday of February, May, August andNovember, usually at the home of amember. Guests are welcome. For moreinfo contact Craig Dyer at WesternSFA,PO Box 87457, Phoenix AZ 85082, (602)973-2341, Email: [email protected]: www.westernsfa.org

Documents

ConNotationsVolume 12 Issue 5 ConNotations Page 1 ConNotations In This Issue News & Reviews SF Tube Talk 1 ReAnimation 1 FYI 2 CASFS Business Report 2