Populating the Multiverse . . . Or, Science-Fictiony People

Here's what I don't get: People.  In science fiction and fantasy.  The central conceit in all (or so near to all that the rest just sort of define the rule) speculative fiction is that people exist.  Now, in a lot of science fiction this isn't very problematic, since sci-fi tends to extrapolate from this moment and consider "what if?"  Where it gets kind of interesting in in fantasy.

Let's ponder.  Is Westeros Earth?  Nope.

Is  Randland Earth?  Maybe.

Is Middle-Earth our own Earth?  Probably not.

And on and on and on.  Which led me to wonder, where are the people coming from?  Are they following an evolutionary track that dictates that on any vaguely Earth-like planet there will be (mostly Anglo-Saxon looking) bipeds wandering around, mostly speaking English?  Mostly adhering to some vaguely Anglo-Saxon tradition? 

Probably not.

The first response is that it doesn't matter.  And it probably doesn't.  But these characters are our characters.  They represent people as we understand them, with many of the same cultural assumptions built into their own culture.  Major departures (I'm looking at you Neil Stephenson) include a rich cultural milieu that is difficult to get into, and characters who are difficult to empathize with.  So most fantasy includes people pretty much the same as you, or me, or our neighbors.

It sort of makes me wonder if all fantasy is just science fiction within the multiverse.  Remember those Ewok adventures?  The ones with the family that crash-lands on Endor and have to fight off rancor and evil witches?  They're pretty campy, but I remember them fondly.  What I remember most clearly is that though we're expected to understand these movies were set in a science-fictiony universe, there were witches, castles, and monsters.  But by slapping "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away . . . " we come to accept everything as falling under the umbrella of infinite universe = infinite variety.

So maybe, this is how it happened!

First, "A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away . . . " the first human beings evolved in a rich milieu of diverse cultures, species and deeply steeped in a mystical energy field that allowed them experience the universe in a much more empathetic way.  In time, they developed space-flight, left their own galaxy, and spread throughout the universe.

In time they reached a medium aged, medium bodied spiral galaxy that looks suspiciously like spilled milk from the inside.  There, they settled a world and called it Earth.  (SPOILERS!)  But on that planet, they developed a race of cybernetic beings that eventually rebelled; nuclear war ensued and our intrepid human beings were forced to flee and colonize twelve planets where human civilization was rebuilt.  In time, they built cybernetic beings that eventually rebelled, nuked all the planets of humankind, and forced a rag-tag band of human beings out into the stars, where eventually they joined forces with their cybernetic creations to repopulate a planet they re-named Earth.  But they'd already developed faster-than-light travel, and though their main ship was pretty trashed, they were able to use smaller craft to spread throughout the universe.

Where eventually they created a system of stargates!  They spread throughout the galaxy, embedded the myths of the Twelve Colonies everywhere they went, and eventually returned to Earth, but because of whatever, decided this galaxy was pretty blase, and left for parts unknown.

But in all those other galaxies, they spread their culture (including Anglo-Saxonness, and the English language), but because of cultural degradation and environmental upheavals, some were lost and devolved to medieval technology.  And in a few really interesting cases, the transhumans even traveled to other universes, where the laws of physics are kind of wonky.  Or, since we know that any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, maybe there are remnants of transhuman technology floating around that allow certain individuals to manipulate time and space in ways that mimic magic!

Seems reasonable to me.  Let me hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Game of Thrones Season One! . . . Or, How I Just Got On the Bandwagon

It's finally happened.  I've finally begun watching Game of Thrones.  And, like the books, I'm left a little . . . underwhelmed.  Don't get me wrong.  I enjoyed the prologue a lot more in the show; and the sets are gorgeous. 

But where the book eases you into a lot of the machinations, the show just drops you into the middle of it.  My girlfriend has been struggling to figure out exactly what's happening, and I completely sympathize. 

Even I wonder who's who, what's going on, and why every third person has to remind me that winter is coming when it's currently snowing in the shot! 

It makes for difficult viewing and I wonder if maybe the producers could have spent a little more time and money on explication instead of paying actresses to take their tops off.  Some of the sex makes sense--Bran's tragedy could only have been explained with a sex scene.  The rest is just titillation for its own sake.  Just a thought.

Draco Mallfoy's creepier little brother?

That aside, the pacing feels rushed.  Actors rush through their lines with hardly any gravitas.  Maybe it has to do with the format in which I'm watching these episodes.  Having a whole season at my disposal (a season only being ten episodes), I'm inclined to rush through episodes and maybe that makes the whole thing feel rushed.  But within the episodes themselves everything just hops around.  Perhaps that's a remnant of the storytelling in the book with its quick cuts and sudden shifts in perspective.

Which leads me to my final thought.  Just a musing really.  I figure if you're going to make a book into a movie, or just re-create the story of someone else, you ought to bring something new to the table.  Game of Thrones revels in spectacle and the book succeeds in places where a television show necessarily cannot. 

Namely, the bits in people's heads; the backstory, the motivations, and abundant plots and schemes.  The show should fill those in, but really needs to depart from reproducing the book shot-for-shot on film. 

This applies to any production of a book into film, though, be it for TV or cinema or whatever.  Once a story's been told, it's done, move on.  Fanboy wish fulfillment isn't a good enough reason to remake something.  Moral of the story: Give us something new.

Moving on.  Had I never read the books, I don't think I'd last watching the show.  It's too deep, and the learning curve is ridiculous.  And having read the first book, I don't know.  It's a beautiful show without only minor flaws.  Just feels a little superfluous.

Am I going to keep watching?  Heck yeah.  Am I going to watch season two?  Definitely.  Maybe even season three when the time comes.  Is it great TV?  Meh. Battlestar: Galactica was better.