I’m enjoying Alien: Earth so far. I chuckled when the “genius” Mark Zuckerberg character put his face over the zenomorph egg. Alien 3, by the way, is a very good film. Especially the director’s cut.
I’m enjoying Alien: Earth so far. I chuckled when the “genius” Mark Zuckerberg character put his face over the zenomorph egg. Alien 3, by the way, is a very good film. Especially the director’s cut.
I don’t think you need to bring Alyssa back. She sounds like a freshman lit major reading WAY too much into the story. The show spent years in production. Sometimes things are what they are. For example, sometimes a story about what happens after kids are put into adult synth adult bodies (along with some sick alien action) really is about what happens after kids are put into adult synth bodies (along with some sick alien action) and not a commentary on healthcare access for trans kids. Just saying.
Immortality is not going to happen. My favorite movie is 2001: A Space Odyssey and second is Blade Runner. A major reason is because they are more real. So, my complaint with stories like this is that they are too fantastical, we will never transfer mind from a mortal body to any tech because our brain is us. At best, and this is accepting the fantastical, what would be the result would be a copy of the person in the tech, the original person would still exist and die, they would not be immortal.
It's not that I don't enjoy good productions, but more a lament that the impossible is continually presented as possible. However, the political message, about corporations taking over, is highly relevant to the reality of human societies, therefore that allows me to ignore the impossible or accept it for the story's sake.
May I add to the illusion of immortality we need to see more of in the genre, another great film that sparkles with all the futurism we love, Gattaca? Honestly, a close second to Blade Runner, IMHO. Because what is the point of fantastical dreams if they contain no humanness? As in Ray Bradbury and P.K. Dick.
Hi Jeff - Amen to "2001"; it's the film that got me into film. And IMHO, "Blade Runner" still stands as Ridley Scott's best film and further IMHO his Director's Cut is the only "Director's cut" worthy of the moniker. "Science fiction" is better as a genre of human speculation than as an entertainment descriptor. And while his excellent, original "Alien" belongs in the former, all of the subsequent sequels, prequels, and spin-offs belong in the latter - which is to say they will be forgotten sooner than later. And further amen to "our brain is us" because human speculation is more than just a genre - it has far more lasting and reaching qualities in all of our human endeavors. Human speculation can lead to the impossible becoming the possible, but it takes a lot more "science" than "fiction" to do so.
Well said. On a societal level, I think that the fiction has deluded too many people and has thus helped create this dysfunctional state that we're in.
For example, AI is essentially a great pattern detector and is only as good as its training, but its deluded its creators, those tech dorks, into believing that it will become our masters. So they have gained political power through their VC generated wealth and helped usher in Trump. Sci-fi may show robots taking control of planets, but in reality AI is simply better at detecting a pattern that relates to previous training data.
Then there's the tech dork concern with immortality and "saving" humanity by fictional measures discussed in this episode and going to Mars rather than ending fossil fuel use to end our greenhouse gas emissions and allowing our ecosystems to heal. This delusion allows people to forget that this is the ONLY planet that can support life as we know it. Art's delusional capabilities have overwhelmed us.
I don't see it. AI is not intelligent, it is statistical, but it could be that the tech dorks would put AI "in charge" of things that they have no capability of actually doing. For example, while AI can review an X-Ray film faster than a radiologist and thus provide higher probability of cancer for review it has no capability of actually determining cancer. Therefore, putting AI in charge of diagnoses would be more HAL than is valid.
AI is pointing out what looks probable, the radiologist evaluates the findings and submits a report to the oncologist who makes the final determination. AI is a tool to help the radiologist find the higher probability targets. That is what AI can do, the risk is when people think it can actually think. It can't.
The show feels like one of those Alien adaptations of the Dark Horse comics for me. It’s not bad by any means but missing the heft of the first two films.
That's a good comparison. Both lack the tension that the first movie produced in the audience. The comics are due to the medium's limitations and the show is for other reasons.
I think the first movie is the best of all the derivative work, although I really liked Prometheus. Seems to be an unpopular take though. Aliens is great as well, but to me it’s a different genre than the first.
Full admission: I have yet to listen to the episode, however, guessing what our hosts might say, I will present a counterproposal that, my 7 year old daughter was squealing with delight as we attended a "sing along" of K Pop Demon Hunters last Saturday afternoon.
A theater full of cheering, singing kids having a blast at the movies. There's no way you can convince me it's anything but a good thing.
As I thought about it, my daughter attends Tae Kwon Do classes, loves that film, and snarfs down Bon Chon chicken whenever I buy it.......Korean cultural influence has fully integrated itself into America....that's great!
The blue state governors must convene a Conference of Governors in Illinois immediately and set up the firewall to pour sand in the gears of a rogue, fascist and racist federal government that looms over our Democracy.
I’m enjoying Alien: Earth so far. I chuckled when the “genius” Mark Zuckerberg character put his face over the zenomorph egg. Alien 3, by the way, is a very good film. Especially the director’s cut.
I’m enjoying Alien: Earth so far. I chuckled when the “genius” Mark Zuckerberg character put his face over the zenomorph egg. Alien 3, by the way, is a very good film. Especially the director’s cut.
I don’t think you need to bring Alyssa back. She sounds like a freshman lit major reading WAY too much into the story. The show spent years in production. Sometimes things are what they are. For example, sometimes a story about what happens after kids are put into adult synth adult bodies (along with some sick alien action) really is about what happens after kids are put into adult synth bodies (along with some sick alien action) and not a commentary on healthcare access for trans kids. Just saying.
Immortality is not going to happen. My favorite movie is 2001: A Space Odyssey and second is Blade Runner. A major reason is because they are more real. So, my complaint with stories like this is that they are too fantastical, we will never transfer mind from a mortal body to any tech because our brain is us. At best, and this is accepting the fantastical, what would be the result would be a copy of the person in the tech, the original person would still exist and die, they would not be immortal.
It's not that I don't enjoy good productions, but more a lament that the impossible is continually presented as possible. However, the political message, about corporations taking over, is highly relevant to the reality of human societies, therefore that allows me to ignore the impossible or accept it for the story's sake.
May I add to the illusion of immortality we need to see more of in the genre, another great film that sparkles with all the futurism we love, Gattaca? Honestly, a close second to Blade Runner, IMHO. Because what is the point of fantastical dreams if they contain no humanness? As in Ray Bradbury and P.K. Dick.
Hi Jeff - Amen to "2001"; it's the film that got me into film. And IMHO, "Blade Runner" still stands as Ridley Scott's best film and further IMHO his Director's Cut is the only "Director's cut" worthy of the moniker. "Science fiction" is better as a genre of human speculation than as an entertainment descriptor. And while his excellent, original "Alien" belongs in the former, all of the subsequent sequels, prequels, and spin-offs belong in the latter - which is to say they will be forgotten sooner than later. And further amen to "our brain is us" because human speculation is more than just a genre - it has far more lasting and reaching qualities in all of our human endeavors. Human speculation can lead to the impossible becoming the possible, but it takes a lot more "science" than "fiction" to do so.
Well said. On a societal level, I think that the fiction has deluded too many people and has thus helped create this dysfunctional state that we're in.
For example, AI is essentially a great pattern detector and is only as good as its training, but its deluded its creators, those tech dorks, into believing that it will become our masters. So they have gained political power through their VC generated wealth and helped usher in Trump. Sci-fi may show robots taking control of planets, but in reality AI is simply better at detecting a pattern that relates to previous training data.
Then there's the tech dork concern with immortality and "saving" humanity by fictional measures discussed in this episode and going to Mars rather than ending fossil fuel use to end our greenhouse gas emissions and allowing our ecosystems to heal. This delusion allows people to forget that this is the ONLY planet that can support life as we know it. Art's delusional capabilities have overwhelmed us.
If we're not careful, over the next few years, AI will become HAL.
I don't see it. AI is not intelligent, it is statistical, but it could be that the tech dorks would put AI "in charge" of things that they have no capability of actually doing. For example, while AI can review an X-Ray film faster than a radiologist and thus provide higher probability of cancer for review it has no capability of actually determining cancer. Therefore, putting AI in charge of diagnoses would be more HAL than is valid.
AI is already making inferred cancer diagnoses. From there, the sky will be the limit.
AI is pointing out what looks probable, the radiologist evaluates the findings and submits a report to the oncologist who makes the final determination. AI is a tool to help the radiologist find the higher probability targets. That is what AI can do, the risk is when people think it can actually think. It can't.
Re: the conclusion "Art's delusional capabilities have overwhelmed us." - as the police said to Deckard in BLADE RUNNER: "Have a better one."
The show feels like one of those Alien adaptations of the Dark Horse comics for me. It’s not bad by any means but missing the heft of the first two films.
That's a good comparison. Both lack the tension that the first movie produced in the audience. The comics are due to the medium's limitations and the show is for other reasons.
I think the first movie is the best of all the derivative work, although I really liked Prometheus. Seems to be an unpopular take though. Aliens is great as well, but to me it’s a different genre than the first.
For a sequel, Aliens is great. Alien didn’t need a sequel, wasn’t written with a sequel in mind, and yet Aliens is a great sequel. Better than most.
Alien is bungee jumping. Aliens is a rollercoaster at Six Flags.
I am completely surprised by how much I like Alien Earth. Did not expect this at all. It's one of the best sci-fi shows in a while.
Full admission: I have yet to listen to the episode, however, guessing what our hosts might say, I will present a counterproposal that, my 7 year old daughter was squealing with delight as we attended a "sing along" of K Pop Demon Hunters last Saturday afternoon.
A theater full of cheering, singing kids having a blast at the movies. There's no way you can convince me it's anything but a good thing.
As I thought about it, my daughter attends Tae Kwon Do classes, loves that film, and snarfs down Bon Chon chicken whenever I buy it.......Korean cultural influence has fully integrated itself into America....that's great!
The blue state governors must convene a Conference of Governors in Illinois immediately and set up the firewall to pour sand in the gears of a rogue, fascist and racist federal government that looms over our Democracy.
This must happen soon….