An Open Letter Series To Explain My Love Of Science Fiction
Dear Reader,
Just about anyone who knows me realizes quite quickly I have a few passions in my life which transcend all the rest, and certainly my love of science fiction is one of the biggest. I have been asked quite often, why? What is it about so many of these shows/movies/stories which draw you in? Is it the aliens? Is it the action? The special effects? No, above all else, it's the stories. I love how the medium can allow a storyteller a very large canvas on which to paint his vision. But even beyond that, it is how really great SciFi will have stories within the story, and they are often the real core of the tale.
See, I am one of those odd birds who doesn't like mindless entertainment for entertainment sake. I loathe (so-called) Reality TV. I grow sick of television giving us drama in one of three professions only: cops, doctors or lawyers. A show with all 3 is practically insufferable. And drama is where real storytelling occurs. While I could talk about movies as well, I am going to save those for another time. This will focus on television.
So, I look to SciFi to turn the silly rules of standard television on it's ear. Star Trek may have had the comedic melodrama of William Shatner acting, cheesy special effects, and only three seasons. But it fostered a genre of storytelling where lofty societal topics such as racism, prejudice, war, poverty, and diplomacy could be discussed in a less threatening medium than direct debate. All the iterations of Trek remain some of my favorites (and Deep Space Nine proved my favorite since it proved to be the "darkest" of them all).
But, beyond even Trek, there is another class of SciFi which truly provides the crown jewel of the genre to me at least: the tales involving great characters, the story within a story, AND spirituality/religion thrown in. Given how few of the writers, artists and fans show any public belief in God, or a Supreme Being, how amazing is it that so many of them actually do write spiritual stories? Google any final thoughts on some of the shows I will talk about, and you will see those who loved it, and those who hated it.
I find it interesting how many some fans will go along for the ride, enjoy every subtle nuance of a show, and then when religion might be an answer, they go nuts and jump off the bandwagon. So, of course, I love that. Even those who dislike, don't believe in, or have absolutely no thoughts on religion at all, have to acknowledge the role of religion in the end (of the show). Which is, in and of itself, kind of an analogy for life. At the end, we must face the role of religion throughout, and either accept what is, or reject it.
Three of my favorite shows (Quantum Leap, Battlestar Galactica, and Lost) have, beneath all the layers, "faith" at the heart of the story. Go figure. Science and Faith are supposed to be polar opposites, and yet, to people such as myself, they are inseparable twins. No, I am not abandoning my religious beliefs. I am saying to me God created this universe, and so it stands to reason He created the rules too. Rules like physics, gravity, chemistry, biology. So maybe they aren't so far apart as you might initially think.
If you like great characters with stories to tell, subtle meanings and subtexts to the stories, and faith at the center, you really need to get Netflix and start ordering up some of these shows. You are missing out on some of the best entertainment and social dialogue in the world today. Now, I am going to discuss them more in-depth, so SPOILER ALERT!!! Stop with this part in the series if you wish to remain blissfully unaware of the shows and just watch them for yourself. In the interests of keeping these shorter and more easily read, I think I will simply discuss each show it's own blog.
However, for those simply wanting a list of some of the best SciFi shows, movies and books from my experience which have those great questions and layers, I will list them here. Maybe when you are bored one night, you might just take a chance.
Movies: The Matrix (the original), Star Wars, Signs, The Book of Eli
TV Shows: Quantum Leap, Battlestar Galactica, Lost, Star Trek (TNG and DS9 are the best of the newer series)
Books: Flash Forward, Rollback and Calculating God by Robert Sawyer
Just about anyone who knows me realizes quite quickly I have a few passions in my life which transcend all the rest, and certainly my love of science fiction is one of the biggest. I have been asked quite often, why? What is it about so many of these shows/movies/stories which draw you in? Is it the aliens? Is it the action? The special effects? No, above all else, it's the stories. I love how the medium can allow a storyteller a very large canvas on which to paint his vision. But even beyond that, it is how really great SciFi will have stories within the story, and they are often the real core of the tale.
See, I am one of those odd birds who doesn't like mindless entertainment for entertainment sake. I loathe (so-called) Reality TV. I grow sick of television giving us drama in one of three professions only: cops, doctors or lawyers. A show with all 3 is practically insufferable. And drama is where real storytelling occurs. While I could talk about movies as well, I am going to save those for another time. This will focus on television.
So, I look to SciFi to turn the silly rules of standard television on it's ear. Star Trek may have had the comedic melodrama of William Shatner acting, cheesy special effects, and only three seasons. But it fostered a genre of storytelling where lofty societal topics such as racism, prejudice, war, poverty, and diplomacy could be discussed in a less threatening medium than direct debate. All the iterations of Trek remain some of my favorites (and Deep Space Nine proved my favorite since it proved to be the "darkest" of them all).
But, beyond even Trek, there is another class of SciFi which truly provides the crown jewel of the genre to me at least: the tales involving great characters, the story within a story, AND spirituality/religion thrown in. Given how few of the writers, artists and fans show any public belief in God, or a Supreme Being, how amazing is it that so many of them actually do write spiritual stories? Google any final thoughts on some of the shows I will talk about, and you will see those who loved it, and those who hated it.
I find it interesting how many some fans will go along for the ride, enjoy every subtle nuance of a show, and then when religion might be an answer, they go nuts and jump off the bandwagon. So, of course, I love that. Even those who dislike, don't believe in, or have absolutely no thoughts on religion at all, have to acknowledge the role of religion in the end (of the show). Which is, in and of itself, kind of an analogy for life. At the end, we must face the role of religion throughout, and either accept what is, or reject it.
Three of my favorite shows (Quantum Leap, Battlestar Galactica, and Lost) have, beneath all the layers, "faith" at the heart of the story. Go figure. Science and Faith are supposed to be polar opposites, and yet, to people such as myself, they are inseparable twins. No, I am not abandoning my religious beliefs. I am saying to me God created this universe, and so it stands to reason He created the rules too. Rules like physics, gravity, chemistry, biology. So maybe they aren't so far apart as you might initially think.
If you like great characters with stories to tell, subtle meanings and subtexts to the stories, and faith at the center, you really need to get Netflix and start ordering up some of these shows. You are missing out on some of the best entertainment and social dialogue in the world today. Now, I am going to discuss them more in-depth, so SPOILER ALERT!!! Stop with this part in the series if you wish to remain blissfully unaware of the shows and just watch them for yourself. In the interests of keeping these shorter and more easily read, I think I will simply discuss each show it's own blog.
However, for those simply wanting a list of some of the best SciFi shows, movies and books from my experience which have those great questions and layers, I will list them here. Maybe when you are bored one night, you might just take a chance.
Movies: The Matrix (the original), Star Wars, Signs, The Book of Eli
TV Shows: Quantum Leap, Battlestar Galactica, Lost, Star Trek (TNG and DS9 are the best of the newer series)
Books: Flash Forward, Rollback and Calculating God by Robert Sawyer
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