Showdown

[coalescent]

So, last night Naomi and I went to Oxford to see Margaret Atwood being interviewed by Peter Kemp (fiction editor for The Sunday Times). All in all, I was pleasantly surprised. She was an entertaining interviewee, much given to wit and digression (one of the questions later, from someone clearly looking for the answer for his A-level coursework, was

Comments

[snowking]

Yeah, but is her book any good, Niall? You've never said. :P

[coalescent]

Did too.

[snowking]

Choose Your Own Response Adventure

1) Oh bum. Go to page 88

2) Anything over a week ago didn't actually happen. Go to page 88

3) I've adopted a Harrison strategy to Livejournal and I'm not actually reading anything. Go to page 88

PAGE 88

You go to hell and you die. Please start again.

[coalescent]

I do have a copy knocking about, so it's just a question of getting around to it. Of course, I haven't read Brave New World, either...

[immortalradical]

We is good. If you've read 1984, there will be much you recognise, the difference being that 1984 depicts a world in transition, hanging between the old and the new, while We is a fully realized future society (a bit like BNW, indeed). But there is much they share, including the central 'love' thing.

Yes, so read that.

[pikelet]

I feel like you've fallen under the spell of some malevolent power, come to enslave us all.

You don't really love her! It's a spell!

[snowking]

I heard she eats people

[coalescent]

Like you never have.

Why won't LJ let me edit my post to remove typos?

[snowking]

Because you're insane.

[mattia]

explained that the society has been around for donkey's years and was founded by Brian Aldiss, assured her that no, we don't think Star Trek is any good,

Oi! DS9 is good Trek. Well, the middle few seasons. The rest is mostly just fun Trek. The rest....meh.

and in turn received a recommendation: We, by Yevgeny Zamyatin.

Inform me of it's goodness level, and I shall ponder acquiring it.

re: Trek

[applez]

That reminds me, I saw last night's season finale of 'Enterprise' ... whether you lot watch it often or not, I'll just say this much about it:

- They're back on the temporal Cold War, now with new geopolitical players (TM) ... (yawn)

- They try their hand at 'September 11th' fictional rendering ... to add character depth

- It's gone even shallower and crapper, I dunno if I'll bother anymore, simply a problem of no suitable replacements. Futurama is on way too late.

Re: re: Trek

[mattia]

I watched the first season of Enterprise, was amused enough, never actually moved, rarely if ever even really intruiged, and S2 made me realize I just didn't actually give a damn. Stopped at episode 8 or 9, don't regret it for a moment.

- They're back on the temporal Cold War, now with new geopolitical players (TM) ... (yawn)

Oh dear..

- They try their hand at 'September 11th' fictional rendering ... to add character depth

Erm, right. Oookaay. They flew a pair of spaceships into twin orbiting civilian starfleet stations and tried to destroy Starfleet Command headquarters by doing the same?

- It's gone even shallower and crapper, I dunno if I'll bother anymore, simply a problem of no suitable replacements. Futurama is on way too late.

Tape it. It's better than Enterprise.

Oh, and you could always look out for NBC's new shiny patriotic program in the fall: 'Homeland Security'. I merely wish I was kidding..OK, maybe it won't be as bad as I fear, but with (rumours of?) Aaron Sorkin leaving TWW, and potential righter-wing

[coalescent]

DS9 is good Trek

Oh, it really is. But on the whole, Trek isn't good; I can't remember who said it, but I really like the description of DS9 that argues that it's good because it comes the closest to showing what real humans would do if they woke up and found them selves in a Trek-like situation.

And we were in a long signing queue, and there wasn't really time to say 'Trek is rubbish, apart from these few bits'.

Inform me of it's goodness level

What, recommendations from Dan and Geneva aren't good enough for you?