JMS on CompuServe (May 03, 1997) *POSSIBLE SPOILERS*
bbarrett at speedlink.com
bbarrett at speedlink.com
Sat May 3 17:38:35 EDT 1997
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[ Summary of subjects in this section: ]
Sb: #666266-#Comic Books
Sb: #666282->>Racing Mars<< worries
Sb: #666372-Science Fiction
Sb: #666382-Comic Books
Sb: Secure Communications
#: 666266 S5/Babylon 5: General
02-May-97 05:47:01
Sb: #Comic Books
Fm: ERIC BAKER
JMS --
I came away from I-con wanting to ask you when and how you thought that
people would start making TV shows without the "help" of TV networks and their
executives. In the meantime, I read your scriptwriting book and was pleased to
find that you spend a whole chapter on this topic, so I don't need to ask you
that anymore. Instead I'll ask you this:
I was reading a bio of Joss (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) Whedon in which
he talked about how much he loved comic books. It struck me that you are a
comics fan, Harlan is a comics fan, George R.R. Martin, Mark Evanier, and
probably more TV writers that I don't know about. So, is there a link? Are
comics readers predisposed towards TV writing, or is it just another one of
those causal fallacies?
Thanks as always,
-- Eric
#: 666294 S5/Babylon 5: General
02-May-97 10:19:16
Sb: #666266-#Comic Books
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
I think that comics fans grow into SF fans, and from SF fans come SF
writers and (now) SF producers. Genre domino theory.
jms
#: 666282 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
02-May-97 08:37:40
Sb: #665660-#>>Racing Mars<< worries
Fm: PHILIP HORNSEY
>> I find it vaguely frightening that you know all this that well, though the
scenario you paint is a good one, and I'll try to remember all that (though
it's sorta complex...the doctrinal version of long division).
Joe.
I founded RMES. I'm into conspiracy and takeovers of *all kinds*. The fact is
the Church is a *two thousand* year old institution. There are few things in
reality that really have the kind of feel and gravity the church does.
Unfortunatly with the coming of Vatican II, the Catholic Church has really lost
a lot of its grandure.
I *was* Catholic, had 8 years of catachisim, and even though I am an athiest, I
will always be a Catholic in the same way that a number of my athiest friends
who were born Jewish will *always* be Jews.
Still, I ask you to consider your female Pope. Just remember what the Church
sill *can* do if it wishes to. Archbishop Romero in El Salvador *commanded* the
army in the name of *Almighty God* to cease their murder of the Salvadorian
people. He basically said that if they did not stop at once he would withhold
absolution from them and condemn them to Hell for all eternity. They shot him a
week later.
The Church still claims to have the right to lose and bind, and a Pope could,
if he wanted to, go so far as to interdict the sacriments world wide. This is
simply stuff they normally do not do any more. They still *can*.
Phil^^^^
FREE MARS!
#: 666295 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
02-May-97 10:19:17
Sb: #666282->>Racing Mars<< worries
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
"They shot him a week later."
Well, when in doubt....
jms
#: 666372 S5/Babylon 5: General
02-May-97 18:02:56
Sb: #Science Fiction
Fm: MICHAEL ZITAGLIO
Hi Joe,
I saw you and Harlan on SCi Fi Vortex and was intrigued about your discussion
concerning the meaning of science fiction. Although I have always enjoyed ST
and Space 1999 and Star wars, etc while growing up, I never got serious, so to
speak, about science fiction. I was confused about what you and Harlan said
about Sci fi vs. Science Fiction.
Could you please elaborate a little for me? Its funny, when I first saw Harlan
on TV I didnt think very highly of him. As I got myself educated a little
about the man and saw him more and more on TV, I respect the hell out of him.
I have to buy his new book. Since I want to read a little more science
fiction, could you reccommend something of Harlan's that you think I might
enjoy? Ive asked alot, I know.
thanks,
Mike
#: 666425 S5/Babylon 5: General
03-May-97 00:26:39
Sb: #666372-Science Fiction
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
Just about ANY of Harlan's books are worth reading, though Strange Wine
and Shatterday (available at most SF stores) are personal favorites, and his
latest Edgeworks volume just came out.
Sci-Fi vs. SF...the former is flash-n-dazzle, monsters eating people,
ID4, lots of action and not much thought. SF is Blade Runner, the first Alien
movie, The Day the Earth Stood Still, Seconds, Charley, others. Science Fiction
means it examines the impact of technology on people, or in some way
extrapolates to the future in new and interesting or innovative ways.
jms
[ Summary: Points out that he was a comic book fan and is now a SF fan.
So he jokingly asks when he should start writing SF. ]
#: 666426 S5/Babylon 5: General
03-May-97 00:26:41
Sb: #666382-Comic Books
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
"When do I start writing <G>"
As soon as the restraining order expires.
jms
#: 666385 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
02-May-97 19:11:23
Sb: Secure Communications
Fm: JOHN HARDIN
Joe:
Watching LoC last night there was one point where my suspension of
disbelief was broken, and I'd like to ask you about it.
If you're trying to get an important message through jamming, and you want
to maximize the chances of it getting through completely and clearly and
you want to minimize the chances it will be detected and understood and the
participants identified, why in the *world* would you transmit the message
as a video signal? Video is extremely bandwidth-hungry, and I don't foresee
that changing much, particularly in comparison to plain text messaging.
Franklin's entire message was probably about 1k of text. Add another 1k or
so for recognition codes and such. Compressed, encrypted and transmitted in
a loop for thirty seconds, it has a much better chance of getting through
successfully than a video signal does, which will take longer for the same
amount of useful information and is thus more susceptible to interruptions
due to noise and jamming. In the time it took Franklin to get through his
message once, with static and dropouts and whatnot, a text version of the
message could have been transmitted (say) five hundred times.
Add to that the fact that he knew there was a good chance of it being
picked up by Earthgov forces, and that there is a small but non-zero chance
of his face being recognized, you have another reason for not using a video
signal.
Granted, you can compress and encrypt a video signal, but the size argument
still holds. You'd also not see any deterioration in the image, because if
part of the message gets zapped you probably won't be able to decrypt it at
all, or you'd see a few frames dropped rather than static throughout.
<rant rant rant. shut up now, John.>
Sorry to carry on so long, but it broke my suspension of disbelief right at
the beginning and I couldn't get it out of my mind for most of the rest of
the episode.
So: Why did Franklin use a video signal when text would have been so much
more safe and reliable? Please don't say "dramatic license" - you're far
too good a writer for that to be the reason.
- John Hardin
ISN^H^H^HVotR Mars Bureau freelance correspondent
<jhardin at wolfenet.com>
#: 666427 S6/Babylon 5: Spoilers
03-May-97 00:26:43
Sb: Secure Communications
Fm: J. MICHAEL STRACZYNSKI
So they could see him and know by seeing him that he arrived safely; a
text message could be sent by *anyone* who could've intercepted them.
jms
[END]
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