Uncharted Territories

The Oscars were last night. There was nothing new about the typically self-indulgent awards ceremony and the red carpet spectacle leading up to it, but I loved every minute of the glammed up version of a sporting event. Sitting on the couch with a bowl of popcorn while cheering on my favorite nominees is admittedly cheesy and most likely a waste of 3 hours of my life, but in the grand tradition of Hollywood self-indulgence I couldn’t help but soak it all up. With that said, one of my many pet peeves about the awards ceremony, and by default practically all film related awards shows, is the lack of recognition for science fiction and fantasy films.

Typically, the Academy grants science fiction/fantasy movies with technical honors (i.e. special effects, sound editing, ect.) and this year was no different. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, the Golden Compass, and Transformers were the only sci-fi/fantasy movies to be nominated: Transformers was nominated for sound editing and sound mixing, both of which were stolen by the Bourne Ultimatum; the Golden Compass was nominated for art direction and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End was nominated for make-up. All three films competed with each other for best visual effect and not surprisingly the Golden Compass took the honor. As usual, my favorite sci-fi film of the year, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine, wasn’t even considered for nomination.

With the writer’s strike behind us, I can finally get back to what I love to do best - watch good TV. It was a long dark period where I literally had to scramble to feed my TV habit. I did yet another re-watch of Farscape and the Peacekeeper Wars (more on this to come eventually), finally finished my summer re-watch of Buffy, re-watched Angel (Angel “Season 6″ comics!), re-watched BSG, started watching Stargate Atlantis, finally finished the last two Babylon 5 movies, caught up with Doctor Who, and watched Season 1 of Torchwood. Whew! Seems like a lot, but let me tell you, when you start recording old episodes of Sex and the City and Seinfeld, you know you have problem. Well, the sun is shining and as spring quickly approaches it’s business as usual on all the major networks. Ironically, most of the shows that I was really excited about returning weren’t supposed to air until the winter anyway, so, Heroes and the Bionic Woman will have to wait until next fall. Let’s take a look at what to expect for the post-writer’s strike/winter TV season:

Lost - Getting back into “detective” mode seems all but inevitable with the highly anticipated return of Lost. Season 4 promises to be the best season yet. When we last left our Losties, Charlie sacrificed himself to save the others, but managed to relay a disturbing message to Desmond before he drowned. Jack et al. made there way to the radio tower where Danielle (or as I prefer to think of her - Delenn) left her distress message 16 years previous. They managed to turn if off and make contact with “Penny’s” boat, with Ben being only a mild irritation, but as per usual Locke hindered the rescue by literally stabbing Naomi in the back. The thing I look forward to the most this season is new blood in the water. I’m so sick of Jack, Kate, Sawyer, Locke, ect. More Sayid and Desmond, please. They are the most compelling characters on the show and not bad to look at. Lost airs Thursdays @ 9pm on ABC.

Battlestar Galactica - My obsession with Lost can only be matched (or in this case, surpassed) by my obsession with Battlestar Galactica. As the fourth and final season approaches, I’m quivering with anticipation. It will be a year since the Season 3 finale aired and playing the waiting game is driving me crazy. I’m really looking forward to re-watching Season 3 when the DVDs are released on March 18th. Exodus Part 1 and 2 were some of the most compelling, expertly written, and beautifully directed episodes I’ve ever seen on television. Not to mention the fact that the special effects were completely on point - lest we forget how sweet it looked for Galactica to jump into New Caprica atmosphere, nearly hit the ground, then shoot back up leaving only a trail of atmospheric debris behind. Major props to Felix Alcala who did an excellent job with those episodes and Razor. Another season favorite was Lee Adama’s monologue while on the stand during Gaius Baltar’s trial. I get goose bumps every time I see it and I really gained a new found respect for Lee. I think the most poignant line, “We’re not a civilization anymore, we’re a gang.”, pretty much sums up the state of the fleet at this point. According to Ronald D. Moore in an interview on the Razor DVD, this season the colonials will finally find Earth and we’ll discover who the identity of the final Cylon. The new season premieres April 4th @ 10pm on the Scifi Channel.

Check out this link to an insanely beautiful photograph published in Entertainment Weekly last month of the principle cast recreating the Last Supper. The picture apparently gives clues for what to expect in Season 4, if you can decipher its meaning: BSG - Last Supper

Torchwood - I watched all 13 episodes of Torchwood in less than a month. I love this show! It’s an adult version of Doctor Who and deals with the acquisition of alien technology. I have the biggest crush on John Barrowman who plays the charming and completely bisexual Capt. Jack Harkness. From the first moment I saw him in the Doctor Who episode,The Empty Child, flirting and waltzing with Rose - and then the Doctor - I knew there was something alluring about this character. Barrowman brings that same charm and bravado to Torchwood and I can’t wait to start watching new episodes. This season, not only do we get a three episode arc with the lovely Freema Agyman AKA Martha Jones, but we also get a guest appearance from James Marsters which promises to be quite steamy. Oi! Torchwood airs Saturdays @ 9pm on BBC America.