Manned Space Flight Fascinates Me
June 22, 2008 | 0 Comments
Ever since I was a little kid I have been fascinated with manned space flight. Maybe it’s because I’ve grown up in Central Florida, the home of NASA and where the history of the space program is ingrained upon every elementary school student, I don’t know. But there is just something amazing about being able to visit space.
One thing that I love about the history of the space program, and something that both From the Earth to the Moon and Discovery’s When We Left Earth focus upon, is that when the whole thing started no one really had a clue what they were doing. In ‘61 President Kennedy declared that we’d send a man to the moon and return him safely again. At that point the only thing NASA knew how to do was send a man into space for a few minutes and bring him back. But in eight years engineers, scientists, mathematicians and test pilots figured out what it took and made it all possible.
Since the amazing journey that put twelve people on the Moon, NASA has launched dozens of satellites, learned how to take up permanent residence in space, and overcome tragedy twice. The Space Shuttle era is coming to a close in just two short years and soon the next chapter of the Space Agency will open. A return to the Moon is in the cards and eventually a manned flight to Mars. Whatever the next chapter holds, it will guarantee to amaze and to continue pushing advancement in science and engineering beyond our current imaginations.
LOST - There’s No Place Like Home (Part 2 & 3)
May 29, 2008 | 0 Comments
Tonight is the season finale of LOST which means something crazy is going to happen. Let this be your one and only spoiler warning. Everything that follows is a combination of instant reactions and comments during commercials, with a bit of speculation thrown in for good measure. Here we go!
- Very bad stuff happens on the “rescue day.” This episode will be epic.
- The coffin was not for Ben or anyone else… a new character will soon be revealed.
- Jin learned a new word, boom. I really hope that’s not foreshadowing.
- THE REAL OTHERS ARE FREAKING AWESOME!
- Why is Ben so important? So important that Widmore wants him alive, so important that the real others would initiate on a full-on attack against the commando unit, so important that for helping Kate and Sayid are allowed to leave the island, “just like that.” Something tells me that while Locke seems to be the new “chosen” one, Ben still has a significant amount of pull and perhaps the Locke and Ben partnership is ready to begin… either that or Ben, who always has a plan, has an out for Locke.
- WALT!!!!!
- Who is this Jeremy Bentham guy? He obviously knows the truth.
- The people who stay on the island are still in danger. But who or what is causing the danger? Widmore? Ben? Someone else?
- The lies… the fake story… it was Locke’s suggestion? There wasn’t someone behind the curtains pulling the strings, creating the story? Something is missing.
- Haha, the “magic box!”
- So the teases and hints about time travel are real? Are Ben and Locke going to “move” the island through time? How does that help them in their situation? How exactly would that hide the island? Again, something is missing.
- Wait. Sawyer is on the helicopter. There is no “choice” to stay. Again, something is seriously missing…
- It seems like there is a constant swing back and fourth between Ben being fairly good, at least in his intentions, and pure evil. It started when Ben was first introduced. He seemed to be the clear cut villain, the evil genius who ran the island. Over time it seemed that just because Ben made some pretty dirty decisions, he always had the best of intentions at heart, especially when it came to matters of the island. I just saw Ben in pure evil form, complete vengeance and lack of any “plan” that he might have had. We already know there is a funky time issue going on, but that it doesn’t really work with radios… so is the boat about to go boom?
- Was Charlotte born on the island?
- Well… now we know that Sawyer did in fact make a choice. The question is will he make it back to the island before it disappears? You had to figure though that Sawyer would pull off some sort of heroic movie. His character has changed a lot over the course of the show as well. He started off as the lone ranger who didn’t care about anyone else but himself and now he’s dodging bullets to save Claire and jumping out of helicopters so that others can make it off the island.
- It seems that characters evolving is a big thing on the show, which makes me question Jack a bit. Based on the flash-forwards it seems that he does, in fact, change. His discussion with Locke about believing in miracles falls right in with the Man of Science/Man of Faith storyline that are Jack and Locke, but it just seems unfortunate that Jack can’t seem to change without “proof.” But what that does mean is that whatever causes him to finally change is obviously very, very substantial.
- Jeremy Bentham isn’t really his name… it’s a code of some sort? Who was in the coffin?!?! Maybe it was Ben.
- Hurley is being haunted/visited/tortured by those killed on the island… not good.
- How creepy was that when Christian Shepherd showed up and told Michael he was done?
- Jin died… in the explosion of the boat… Two people are responsible for Jin’s death (as per the last episode). One is Sun’s father and I presume the other is Widmore… or perhaps even Ben which would put an interesting spin on things when things come into play in the future.
- Unfortunately it looks like the two that died “in the water” are going to be Lupedis, who will easily be explained since he was the pilot listed on the manifest, and Desmond. Desmond won’t be able to be explained on the manifest and would really, really suck. This is LOST so there could be another explanation that has yet to present itself, but right now it’s not looking good.
- I’m pretty sure Sun is holding Ben responsible for Jin’s death… and has chosen team Widmore. This is going to be pretty interesting after all.
- Awesome. Sawyer makes it to shore! Too bad he now has to live feeling like he should have died with his friends, even though unknown to him, they actually survived. Is that irony? I think that’s irony.
- Wow. So the transfer of power is a reality. Whoever moves the island can NEVER come back. Ben protects the island by banishing himself from it. And now Locke is officially in charge of Alpert and the crew. Hopefully this means answers are just around the corner… unfortunately the corner is next season and nine months away.
- So the island really… did… move. Something tells me we’re probably not going to know where, let alone see it again, for a very long time.
- It seemed moving the island was the most painful thing Ben ever had to do. Though it also seems that he really did “warp” from the strange ice cave right to the desert two years later. I’m hoping we see Ben again before next season but I have my doubts about that as well.
- And I know irony when I see the second phase of LOST beginning with yet another plane crash. (I know, technically a helicopter isn’t a plane, but it’s close enough.)
- Well, it looks like there really is going to be a hunt for the island and evidently Claire doesn’t want Aaron to go. I’m trying to remember what the crazy psychic said to Claire before the baby was born. I know that he told her she had to raise him, and then all of a sudden he want’s her on the flight to LA.
- I like how something as big as moving the island wasn’t enough proof for Jack to believe… something really, really big has to happen to change his mind.
- Jack actually took Locke’s advice.
- I think Desmond is safe! Holy crap! I didn’t see that one coming. Who would have thought that Penny would be on the boat that found the life raft! The reunion is complete! I’ve said before that the most emotional moment I’ve seen on TV was when Jack Bauer was saying goodbye to his daughter right before flying the nuclear bomb into the middle of the desert (which of corse he survived). However, I would say that the initial Penny/Desmond phone call from a few weeks back, combined with the reunion here on the boat, is one of the most emotional and surprising sequences to make TV, it surely gives Bauer’s goodbye a run for the money.
- Oh COME ON! Octagon Global Recruiting…. are they for real going to do another alternative reality game…
- So Penny Widmore is responsible for the fake story? She clearly isn’t working with her dad. Clearly considering Jack said “don’t let him find you.” But I think Jack and Desmond will meet again since “I’ll see you in another life” was used again… very cool!
- So no one dies in the water… it’s just a story? A complete lie? Why did they insist on telling us that two people didn’t make it? DAH! LOST writers and their red hearings!
- So… Jeremy Bentham is really… drum roll… JOHN LOCKE!!!!!!!!!! So Locke left the island, was able to get in contact with everyone, and then somehow died. In order to get back, everyone has to go together which is obviously a problem because Sun is now on Team Widmore, Kate hates Jack, and well, Desmond is with Penny (which will make Ben finding her even more interesting), and who knows where Lupedis is. The second phase of LOST seems like it’s going to be very, very good. The fact that Jack doesn’t even hesitate when he sees creepy Ben (see my evil discussion above) and without pause listens to Ben’s ides and basically agrees to go along with them says a hell of a lot. Jack was inches away from killing Ben a few Island Days ago and now, something like three or four years in the future, Jack is ready to follow Ben completely! Something really, really big, bigger than the island moving, happens. Something so big that the death of John Locke, of all people, throws Jack into a complete tailspin! What a great turn of events!
We now start the very long wait for the next season of LOST, which isn’t scheduled to air until next January or February. There were a lot of answers, but in true LOST form some serious questions were presented. It’ll be a long summer full of speculation and over-anilizaiton. And then of course there is Octagon Worldwide Recruiting. Haha. What did you think about the episode?
LOST - There’s No Place Like Home (Part 1)
May 15, 2008 | 1 Comment
All the normal spoiler warnings apply. Proceed with caution.
So part one of the LOST season finale aired tonight. Instead of going over everything at the end of the episode I’m going to write thoughts down during the commercial breaks. A “live blog” of sorts. Here they are:
- The tension on the rescue flight was so thick it was painful… something bad happens pre-”rescue.”
- It was kind of sad seeing Kate and Sayid return home without anyone to greet them.
- The Orchard is not a good thing.
- The reporters at the press conference seemed to see right through the set “story.” Especially when the reporter asked Kate if she was 6 months pregnant when the US Marshal detained her in Australia. The only tidbit thrown was that Jin was not one of the mysterious two that “survived” the crash but didn’t get rescued. It doesn’t make sense but it’s starting to look like Desmond is one of those two. Could the other be Locke, or maybe Sawyer?
- Sun has balls. Also she said two people are responsible for the death of Jin, one is her father for treating them so poorly that they wanted to escape to America, but the other is as yet undetermined. Assuming that Jin and a handful of other unnamed extras make the boat it looks like whatever happens on the island doesn’t determine everyones fate. Something is going to happen on the boat as well.
- Even though Ben has pretty much been passed over by Locke he still knows all the Island secrets and therefore has power over Locke — and he sure isn’t sharing.
- The Sayid/Nadia reunion was pretty great.
- Nice bit where Hurley hears the whispers on the way to his party — which was wonderfully ironic and sweet all at the same time, especially the “hunting boar” reference. That is until Hurley saw the numbers in the car… freaky.
- There are too many commercials in this episode.
- So far there have been two blatant rabbit’s foot keychains in the episode. One in the hand of the pilot of the rescue plane and the other on Hurley’s keychain. Something tells me our “survivors” are about to go through the rabbit hole. I know that’s an Alice in Wonderland reference when the title is a Wizard of Oz reference, both of which are the most referenced pieces of fiction in the show. Having Kate ware ruby slippers probably wouldn’t make sense in the context of the show.
- Maybe I’m looking too into this but at the eulugy Jack says about his father “I loveed you and I missed you.” Does Jack and Christian meet up with before the “rescue?” And holy crap, Jack now knows about Claire! How about sticking to the “story” and not freaking out when he found out! And how creepy was it when Claire’s mom told Kate she had a lovely baby?
- Doesn’t it feel like Michael was sticking to a set “story” when he was telling Sun and Jin how he and Walt got back to New York?
- Holy. Freaking. Explosives! Now we know what that weird heart-beat sensor on the commando is. If he dies, the boat goes with him.
- FINALLY!!! The real Others came out to play! These are the ones that dress in drab, walk barefoot and steal kids. Can’t wait to see what’s going on with them.
- Pretty impressive that Ben goes to give himself up for the Island…
- And now I’m pretty sure I know what happens to Jin and Desmond and the rest of the people on the boat… I don’t think I’m happy with that.
There you have it. Two weeks from now the final two hours for There’s No Place Like Home and hopefully some explanations from the true Island Others.
LOST - Cabin Fever
May 8, 2008 | 0 Comments
Clearly another set up episode, but a pretty solid one for sure. Here are some thoughts running through my head:
- Clearly the Darhma Initiative is still alive and kicking, as shown by the logo on the “secondary protocol” pamphlet in the ship
- Locke was chosen pretty much at birth to be the one to come to the Island and save it. For some reason Alpert didn’t like Locke’s choice of the knife and refused to bring him as a child. Later, in high school, Locke was presented the opportunity to go to “science camp” run by Mitelos, the company Juliet signed on to work with when she met Alpert. Then, in the rehab center, Locke met another Island dweller (see below) who basically told him the course of his life. “Take a walkabout.” So did the Island bring the entire plane down just to get Locke?
- It seems that the true “others,” the ones who stay behind the scenes and want the “special children,” like Walt, have nothing to do with Darham or Widmore. It’s a group run by Alpert (maybe Jacob) who apparently don’t age. They seem to be able to come and go from the Island at will and are able to find anyone, anywhere, but they can’t make things happen. They can influence, ala suggesting the walkabout, but they can’t force people to the Island. They also might be another race/species. Did you notice that both of their eyes were completely black… creepy.
- “Funky Time” is alive and true. The doctor who washed up dead last week finally got killed and dropped overboard this week.
- What’s the weird device on the army dudes arm? I don’t think it’s a bomb, or detonator, it looks more like an XM radio. Whatever it is it’s going to play out some point this season. It’s the old writing adage. If you mention a shotgun on the wall, it has to play into the story at some point. They call it foreshadowing.
- In order to save the Island, Locke has to move it. So is the Island not an actual God created landmass but something made by humans… or Alpert and co? If so, how did Darhma find it in the first place? I really would like to see an Island-centric episode where we get Island specific flashbacks. It is an actual character after all.
- What’s up with Claire? In less than a day she went from normal, useless Claire to sitting in the creepy cabin with Christian Shepherd (her dad) who is representing Jacob who evidently runs the place. Like I said last week, Christian’s family (Jack and Claire) play a big role in this and I can’t seem to figure out what it is. Claire seems to be “chosen” whereas Jack isn’t… or perhaps Jack refuses to be chosen which is why he ends up off the Island. That would make sense considering he wants to figure out how to get back. Perhaps he finally accepts that he was chosen and missed his chance. That’d explain why he went nuts.
- The Oceanic Six aren’t dead like I speculated last week. I think it was a nice bit of writing to set up the whole “we see dead people” story line and tease it with the “I’ve been dead for twelve years” line in the preview. It gave us something to talk about and then this week we realized the comment came in Locke’s dream sequence. Clever. They’re not dead.
- Michael can’t die. It wasn’t a jammed or broken gun, but no matter what happens Michael can’t die. Maybe his purpose hasn’t been served yet?
- A showdown is coming, most likely at the Temple. It looks like the big two-hour season finale we’ve been promised is going to set up one hell of a showdown. Locke is going to come face-to-face with these various characters he’s interacted with his whole life (why do I keep thinking of Jack meeting Desmond and Desmond saying “I’ll see you in another life brother”?), Jack and the rest of the beach people are going to follow the army team to the temple and everyone is going to have a nice chat over scones and tea… no, there’s going to be blood. Something big is going to happen.
That’s all until next week, when it looks like we’ll see just how the Oceanic Six got to the mainland. My guess is this comes in the form of a flash forward. Considering we’ve recently seen flash forward’s for Jack, Sun, Kate, Hurley and Sayid my hope is that the real sixth member is revealed. It seems to easy to make Aaron the sixth. I’m ready to be shocked. We’ll see next week.
LOST - Something Nice Back Home
May 1, 2008 | 0 Comments
Ok, so first off, we’re playing the “where is Claire” game again? But this time, instead of being drugged and taken into the creepy Baby Hatch she goes off willingly with Christian Shepherd AND LEAVES HER BABY? Something doesn’t seem right at all about this. After all, Christian Shepherd is supposed to be dead and why would Claire leave her baby? I don’t have a clue.
But the question now is impossible to avoid: are they all dead? Did none of them actually survive the plane crash? I want to say no, and that it’s all just a nice bit of writing to throw everyone off the real path, but after tonight’s episode I’m not so sure. They’ve had dead people show up on the island before, but it was always attributed to a manifestation of the Island, perhaps even the Smoke Monster, but now they might actually be dead people. In the preview for next week the guy in the Darmha jumpsuit (was it Ben’s dad?) tell’s Locke he’s been dead for 12 years. The, “they’re all dead” idea would explain why Michael can’t kill himself and why Tom said the Island won’t let you die, because you’re already dead, but I don’t really buy it.
It isn’t something that can be explained through science/psudoscience, which is what the producers have said all along. It also seems like a cheap copout to give into the whole, “it’s all been a dream” or “they’re all dead” storylines. Almost cliché. I’m not going to believe it because the quality of the writing so far this season has been incredible, and to fall into such a cliché seems out of character. Why would they take the time to show a dead and burred CFL and Carl (which was pretty nasty) if we’re to believe that they are all already dead? My guess is we’re being set up for something big to happen for the season finale. And unless it’s a flash-forward where Jack takes off his shirt and doesn’t have an appendix scar… well I don’t even know what would prove they all died.
EDIT: Ok, so after I just read Brian’s great Instant Reactions I realized that the entire opening of the show featured a shirtless Jack in the future without a scar. Does this prove they are all dead? I still don’t think so. It gives the idea more credence, especially the idea that the six “survivors” are actually dead (see below), but I still don’t think it sells it. Maybe we’re looking at parallel universes and the crew from Sliders is going to show up at some point looking for a way home. Yeah, I’m that big a nerd.
EDIT 2: Alright, well Brian came through again and proved his instant reactions wrong by showing that Jack did have an appendix scar, although a very small/faint/nearly impossible to see. Way to go LOST crew. You had us going for a few days which was your plan all along. You’re pretty slick!
The real question from this episode is what’s the deal with Christian Shepherd? We know that he is both Jack and Claire’s father and that he had a drink with Sawyer right before he died… we also know that he may or may not have been the creepy guy sitting in the rocking chair with “Jacob” and that he seems to roam the island at will and, now the future too. His return tonight is important, and will be important for the rest of the story, but I can’t seem to figure out why. Perhaps he was a former partner of the Hanso Foundation and has inadvertently (or maybe not) brought his family to the Island and stuck them right in the middle of the Ben vs. Charles Widmore war. I don’t know. His puzzle piece just doesn’t seem to fit.
Piecing together the timeline this episode takes place somewhere after the Kate trial and before the season finale from last season. We learned that it was Hurley who sent Jack into his depressive tailspin that lead to him wanting to kill himself. We learned that Kate chose Jack, more or less, because Sawyer chose (interesting word usage) to stay on the island. We learned that Hurley’s visit from Charlie earlier this season was actually just the first of many, which lead him to deduce they never survived. Interestingly enough Hurley specifically said the Oceanic Six all died and not the people on Oceanic flight 815. So perhaps the people survived the plane crash, but somehow the six (actually eight though two died “in the water”) that left the Island actually died? Maybe that’s why Jack wanted to get back so badly. That would actually work better than the Island people are dead.
One thing I felt odd, or out of place, tonight (other than Bernard proclaiming that the medical crew was back from their mission at the precise moment the commercial ended) was that Jin and the ginger scientist had a heart to heart in Korean and that Jin want’s Sun to leave the Island without him. After all that has gone into bringing the two back together, it seems very strange that Jin doesn’t seem to want to leave the Island with Sun. Like the reappearance of Christian Shepherd, I don’t really see how this fits.
I don’t know. Overall tonight’s episode started out pretty slow, had a few building moments of suspense, but in the end didn’t really go anywhere. Perhaps next week, when Locke (seemingly) finally makes it to the Temple, we’ll get some answers. Though, I’m pretty willing to commit 100% to the season finale is the Oceanic Six leaving the Island for good… and not to the freighter, to the real world. Which means we’ll see just with whom (most likely Widmore) and why they make whatever deal they made to keep everything quiet. Mark it. I’m going all in on that one.