Mr March Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 - An entire alien race being behaviouraly identical And dress exactly the same! Imagine shopping in an alien departement store? Hahahaha. Good one. Funny because it's so true Quote
Mr March Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 aliens that look basicly like humans with just minor differences, just cuz we are the dominant species on the planet doesnt mena that he human form is the best possible form Gotta love treks forhead wrinkles. funky hair styles and silly accents I kinda take cliche in stride. though one that utterly gets on my nerves is, space fighters in space flying around like they are restricted by atmospheric conditions. Wish more people would take B5's approach to space battle. Uh yes, the infamous bewildering array of forehead appliques Well, Babylon 5 doesn't get everything right either. It has it's fair share of cliches. The difference between Babylon 5 and the usual crap on television/film (aka Trek) is Babylon 5 is an innovation for science fiction live action rather than a re-run stereotype. Rotating ships, proper zero-g physics, space craft combat/movement in three dimensions instead of two, more non-humanoid aliens, et cetera. Given the shoe-strign budget they had to work with, Babylon 5 actually did an amazing job trying to break from the mold. Quote
Blaine23 Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Need to go back in time? Just "slingshot around the sun"... because that makes an awful... lot... of sense? I also hate "the magic food dispenser", the "holo-deck" or "battle-room", and windows that let you look at stars going by. Quote
GobotFool Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 (edited) Time travel Kirk: OMG the gravity on the ship has dissapated! Scotty: Yes sir and there is only one solution! Kirk: Your absolutly right we must time travel and prevent what ever caused this disaster! Nemoy/Spock: Oh for the love of god, we time travel every show can't we do something original for...... God like Roddenberry voice: Nemoy! Stick to the script!!! Nemoy/Spock: Right right, time travel, Vulcan logic, blah,blah blah. Edited October 16, 2003 by GobotFool Quote
KingNor Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 (edited) Rings comeing out from the explosions in space: Explosions in space are Spheres, not rings. for examples of doing this wrong: Starwars deathstar blowing up (remastered edition) Actually, I believe it was a correction? If the Deathstar is like a celestrial body, it is travelling in an orbit and revolving about itself, like the Earth. From laws of physics, a "ring" explosion would occur due to momentum build up. Imagine a top spining and if you blew it up, see how the parts would fly off. Of course, the Deathstar is so large that you wouldn't notice the sense of it spinning. It's been too long since high school physics? not true, the explosion is so much greater than the inertia of a body in orbit that it just goes out in every direction. also inperfections in the object itself would cause nothing about the explosion to be perfectly round OR perfectly spherical. but the over-all shape of the explosion would be more or less a sphere. if the mass of the planet/star the object is orbiting was large enough, it is posible the explosion particles would be drawn to it rapidly, but it still woudn't cause that stupid looking ring it would be more of a tear drop shape, with the point pointed at the heavy object the explosions they originaly did for starwars, by puting the camera directly below the object, looked actually very realistic, compair them to shots of explosions of nukes in space. aside from the fact the nukes looked blue for some reason (?) the shape and consistency of the blasts were pretty similar. if you want to try someting similar, get an m-80 and one of those display stands that can spin. spin it real fast with the M-80 in the middle. spinning that little guy as fast as you can would cause scale momentum far greater than that of a planet spinning in its orbit. i bet you don't se a ring come out of the m-80. besides neither the deathstar, nor the stargate pyrimid ship could even hope to be as uniform in their make up as a planet. so the ring just doesn't work. Edited October 16, 2003 by KingNor Quote
KingNor Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 ooh i got another one: vehicles, starbases, other outer space machinery that is so big it would literally mean the distruction of several planets mearly to collect the raw materials like metal and rubber just to create them Quote
F-ZeroOne Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Aliens want our women! ( Arthur C. Clarke once argued that various visiting alien monsters should be allowed to shamble off with their beloved on the grounds of scienitific invetsigation - what, exactly, does a five armed bug eyed Bling want with a member of a different species who doesn't even have an attractive Z*^Tzkk, anyway? ) Swords - energy or otherwise - beat guns. Always. All non-Japanese giant robot movies suck to one degree or another. There is only ever "one" or a "few" good guy ship, and an uncountable number of bad guy ships. The good guy ship always wins ( just where were the other two thousand-odd TIE fighters during that trench run, anyway? ) DNA can be used to explain anything. People don't swear in space, of if they do, only in made up words like "Drokk!" and "Smeg!". The future will be dark. And raining. The future will be bright white, and have a dome over it to keep out the rain. Ancient knowledge & technology always beats modern knowledge & technology, no matter how advanced. The scientist who knows everything about the artifact will be female, and very very hot. All bases in far flung reaches of the Universe, and military spaceships on lonely patrol duty on the galactic rim will be equipped with incredibly sexy computer voices and/or nude female hologram computer avatars. Alien fauna is always lethal. In the future, spacesuits will fit more snugly than your skin. Quote
GobotFool Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Aliens want our women! ( Arthur C. Clarke once argued that various visiting alien monsters should be allowed to shamble off with their beloved on the grounds of scienitific invetsigation - what, exactly, does a five armed bug eyed Bling want with a member of a different species who doesn't even have an attractive Z*^Tzkk, anyway? ) Swords - energy or otherwise - beat guns. Always. All non-Japanese giant robot movies suck to one degree or another. There is only ever "one" or a "few" good guy ship, and an uncountable number of bad guy ships. The good guy ship always wins ( just where were the other two thousand-odd TIE fighters during that trench run, anyway? ) DNA can be used to explain anything. People don't swear in space, of if they do, only in made up words like "Drokk!" and "Smeg!". The future will be dark. And raining. The future will be bright white, and have a dome over it to keep out the rain. Ancient knowledge & technology always beats modern knowledge & technology, no matter how advanced. The scientist who knows everything about the artifact will be female, and very very hot. All bases in far flung reaches of the Universe, and military spaceships on lonely patrol duty on the galactic rim will be equipped with incredibly sexy computer voices and/or nude female hologram computer avatars. Alien fauna is always lethal. In the future, spacesuits will fit more snugly than your skin. Oh damn those are good ones Quote
GobotFool Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 ooh i got another one:vehicles, starbases, other outer space machinery that is so big it would literally mean the distruction of several planets mearly to collect the raw materials like metal and rubber just to create them B...but bigger is better J/K Quote
EXO Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Not Sci-Fi but action... There is always a parking spot in front of the building your where your investigation leads to, unless the script calls for a paking meter maid... especially if she's hot. Quote
F-ZeroOne Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Oh damn those are good ones Thanks! The one about computer avatars was inspired by recently playing Halo. Will try and think of some more, but brain hurts right now... Quote
Agent ONE Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Air conditioning vents are ALWAYS large enough to crawl through... Funny I work in a large building now, one that would be perfect for an office of evil and I couldn't even stuff a cat in the AC vent. Quote
Mechamaniac Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Gonna take this opportunity to bring up something I found really funny a few years back. 40 Things I Learned From Watching Independence Day (ID4) Some really good cliches in there.... Quote
Jemstone Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Gonna take this opportunity to bring up something I found really funny a few years back.40 Things I Learned From Watching Independence Day (ID4) Some really good cliches in there.... I always thought ID4 was a model of "excellence" for using overused cliches and where people were a third of what was listed. Especially the hax0r and ace pilot stuff. Quote
pfunk Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Gonna take this opportunity to bring up something I found really funny a few years back.40 Things I Learned From Watching Independence Day (ID4) Some really good cliches in there.... I love this line Rather than attacking a planet when they first encounter it (ie, 1940s), aliens wait until the planet has developed just enough technology to possibly defend itself. Quote
Yohsho Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Swords - energy or otherwise - beat guns. Always.All non-Japanese giant robot movies suck to one degree or another. The scientist who knows everything about the artifact will be female, and very very hot. All bases in far flung reaches of the Universe, and military spaceships on lonely patrol duty on the galactic rim will be equipped with incredibly sexy computer voices and/or nude female hologram computer avatars. In the future, spacesuits will fit more snugly than your skin. These are problems how? I can see a problem with the last one if the person wearing a suit is a man. Here's a cliche, in a fight the good guy fights every bad guy one at a time even if theres like 50 or so of them waiting around. Quote
Vostok 7 Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Here's one... Good guy is an incredable sharpshooter even with short range weapons at long range, while bad guys can't hit the side of a barn from 5ft away. Vostok 7 Quote
wm cheng Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Ok, Ok... enough sci-fi trashing! The original true aim of sci-fi was to subversively educate the public as to current plight of the society without infringing on the government restrictions of the times. Sci-fi ws borne out of the neccessity to point out problems in the direction technology and governement were heading. Such as pre-war Germany and Metropolis or Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari. Hence the all menacing and un-named "company" as head of state - little did they know that these companies would actually become governments in their own right (as fortold by William Gibson and Blade Runner). It makes sense that you don't name the people you are criticizing. Since the "aliens" are actually just a safe way of explaining our own problems (be they luddites, or communist etc...), they would be more accepted if they didn't look too different than us. So if we are looking for the small details in sci-fi to add up, then we are overlooking this genres true purpose and missing the big picture. (IMHO) whaaaaa!!... fell off my soapbox Now, what I hate is secret explosives hidden with flashy red LEDs that tell us where they are hidden! Quote
Jemstone Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Vostok, and Yohsho, they aren't listed as problems. Just cliches. Quote
Uxi Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 (edited) Having feminine women (especially the heroine) be as strong or stronger than any of the huge brutes oppossing her in hand-to-hand combat. Yeah if it's someone like Vasquez and Veffidas then she can kick some ass and take some names. But to see some of the whimpy Star Trek women do what they do... sheesh. Hominid aliens. I know there are budgetary restrictions... but Babylon 5 and Farscape had good potential but were ultimately letdowns in this respect IMO. The former had that mantis crime-lord guy... the latter had the puppets (even though they were mostly hominid, too). Yes, some hominids is fine... but I'd like to see a starfish-shaped thing. A pachydirm. A blob (the ST shaggy carpet over the stunt-man version would work, but having CG / sfx psuedopods would be cool, too). Edited October 16, 2003 by Uxi Quote
1st Border Red Devil Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 This sums up every single cliche in Sci-Fi and how to resolve them.... Top 100 things I'd do if I ever became an Evil Overlord Quote
KingNor Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Sweet I'm a cliche now i think you need to look up cliche' you seem a bit confused. Quote
JELEINEN Posted October 16, 2003 Posted October 16, 2003 Ok, Ok... enough sci-fi trashing!The original true aim of sci-fi was to subversively educate the public as to current plight of the society without infringing on the government restrictions of the times. Sci-fi ws borne out of the neccessity to point out problems in the direction technology and governement were heading. Such as pre-war Germany and Metropolis or Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari. Hence the all menacing and un-named "company" as head of state - little did they know that these companies would actually become governments in their own right (as fortold by William Gibson and Blade Runner). It makes sense that you don't name the people you are criticizing. Since the "aliens" are actually just a safe way of explaining our own problems (be they luddites, or communist etc...), they would be more accepted if they didn't look too different than us. So if we are looking for the small details in sci-fi to add up, then we are overlooking this genres true purpose and missing the big picture. (IMHO) whaaaaa!!... fell off my soapbox Now, what I hate is secret explosives hidden with flashy red LEDs that tell us where they are hidden! Um. No. SF was developed from adventure stories as a form of entertainment. Sure, it's been used for social commentary, but that was not it's "original true aim." Quote
GobotFool Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 Hmmmmm if techno babble was removed from star trek, Picard: The ship stopped, whats wrong? Laforge: The engine broke. Picard: Well what do you have to do? Laforge: Fix it sir Picard: Very good carry on. Hmmmmmmm I guess techno babble is another needed evil, just as long as you don't over do it like trek does Quote
KingNor Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 human shaped aliens, the only obvious diffrence being a diffrent forhead configuration. their native language always has an uncanny resemblance to english. sci-fi serise, the heros ALWAYS end up at "pleasure planet" at one point, and it never turns out to be the eden it is on the surface. can't the heros just have a nice day for once?? true for all movies, serise, anything on screen: at the critical moment, when all you are depending on is your vehicle, it won't start/go into hyperdrive; but then, and the even more critical moment, it will finally work and you'll get out at the last minute. just once i'd llike to see the hero die because their car didn't start. Quote
F-ZeroOne Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 (edited) People don't swear in space, of if they do, only in made up words like "Drokk!" and "Smeg!". Ehhhmmm... Have you ever looked up "Smeg?" It's definitely not made up... and it's definitely not a good word. <_< The scientist who knows everything about the artifact will be female, and very very hot.All bases in far flung reaches of the Universe, and military spaceships on lonely patrol duty on the galactic rim will be equipped with incredibly sexy computer voices and/or nude female hologram computer avatars. In the future, spacesuits will fit more snugly than your skin. And those are problems? Vostok 7 I'm afraid I haven't enquired into the origins of "S**g*, I always assumed it was made up because I haven't heard it anywhere else. I'm a bit afraid to investigate now...! Its a problem having an incredibly sexy computer voice on a space ship because they usually always seem to have pumped up ultra-male only crews who have probably forgotten what a woman looks like. It must be like slow torture for them! ( husky PC Voice ) "Self destruct system activated. You have 60 seconds to abandon ship or the last remainng humans will be wiped out forever." ( male voice ) "So, er, are you free tonight?" ( BOOM! ) Edit: something didn't come out right first time... Edited October 17, 2003 by F-ZeroOne Quote
EXO Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 sci-fi/action cliche a la Bladerunner, Rambo, Fifth Element, etc... Hero lives in desolated place, he hears a copter from afar (he knows who it is already by the sound of the blades ) Hot girl or old man comes out and tell him the imminent danger threathening all existance and he says, "bah, I'm through with that... why don't you get so and so..." Old guy (or foxy chick): Um, he's dead" Hero :So what do I care?" Old guy (or foxy chick): Look I know your partner died on your last mission but we need you. Hero: Get of here and don't turn back. After a few hours of deliberating and drinking whiskey the hero decides to suit up (they show him strapping all kinds of weapon in a very harsh way...) and do what's needed of him. He, too, needs to do this... for himself! On the way he bangs a hot chick, maybe the one that came for him, saves the day and a lot of broken glass and blown up vehicles are left behind him. YEAY!!! Quote
Abombz!! Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 sci-fi/action cliche a la Bladerunner, Rambo, Fifth Element, etc...Hero lives in desolated place, he hears a copter from afar (he knows who it is already by the sound of the blades ) Hot girl or old man comes out and tell him the imminent danger threathening all existance and he says, "bah, I'm through with that... why don't you get so and so..." Old guy (or foxy chick): Um, he's dead" Hero :So what do I care?" Old guy (or foxy chick): Look I know your partner died on your last mission but we need you. Hero: Get of here and don't turn back. After a few hours of deliberating and drinking whiskey the hero decides to suit up (they show him strapping all kinds of weapon in a very harsh way...) and do what's needed of him. He, too, needs to do this... for himself! On the way he bangs a hot chick, maybe the one that came for him, saves the day and a lot of broken glass and blown up vehicles are left behind him. YEAY!!! This sounds more like the beginning of Hot Shots 2. Quote
bsu legato Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 This sounds more like the beginning of Hot Shots 2. Or Firefox. Quote
GobotFool Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 smeg, here you gohttp://www.smeguk.com/ I was joking about posting a definition......... No one needs to know what it is who doesn't know already damn I wish that puke emoticon was still around. Quote
Uxi Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 sci-fi/action cliche a la Bladerunner, Rambo, Fifth Element, etc... Heh, but Fifth Element did it good. Almost a parody (if not exactly that!). Especially with the big list of equipment and skills required. Quote
Vostok 7 Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 Beware. http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=smegma Beware. For your information only. Vostok 7 Quote
Jemstone Posted October 17, 2003 Posted October 17, 2003 This sounds more like the beginning of Hot Shots 2. I was thinking the same thing but then Hot Shots 2 is a parody of the very scene he described. Quote
Yang_Neumann Posted October 18, 2003 Posted October 18, 2003 You still haven't mentioned one of the biggest sci-fi cliches AND one of my biggest pet peeves; NINE TIMES OUT OF TEN THE BLACK GUY ALWAYS BITES IT!!! Quote
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