I watched an interview with Ira Behr, the writer and showrunner on Star Trek Deep Space Nine. He talked about his days in the DS9 writer's room. It was the 90's, and the early days of the Internet. Even in those days, Star Trek discussion was flourishing online ...

Ban Fan Plan?
Banes at 12:00AM, May 11, 2023Addition, Subtraction, Preservation, Evolution
Banes at 12:00AM, March 30, 2023
In the latest episode of Star Trek Picard, a character talks about his efforts to prolong his own life in a way I won't spoil. He lets go of this idea, and in the message he leaves behind, he says "Evolution is not about preservation - it's about addition ...
A Character Equation
Banes at 12:00AM, March 24, 2022
To be honest, I didn't really want to talk about The Book of Boba Fett or Star Wars again in this post.
But nothing else is coming to mind at the moment, and this show has been on my mind, so here we are again!
Many have complained about ...
Technology and Story
Banes at 12:00AM, Feb. 17, 2022
I just can't quit you, Star Wars!
George Lucas once said something about special effects without story being a pretty boring thing.
I wonder what Mr. Lucas thought about the recent episode of Book of Boba Fett, where (spoilers!) Luke Skywalker shows up in his Return of the Jedi-era ...
Fountain of Nostalgia
Banes at 12:00AM, Feb. 3, 2022
I've had this Newspost in mind again since I saw Spider Man: No Way Home. That movie pushes the nostalgia buttons with abandon, to an extent I couldn't believe. To avoid having anything spoiled I rushed out to the theater to see it as soon as I could ...
Space Based Interactions
Banes at 12:00AM, July 1, 2021
Some of my earliest memories are playing with Star Wars toys - my awareness of the first film and the toys are muddled together, but I clearly remember seeing The Empire Strikes Back, and vividly recall the couple-years-long wait after that, before Return of the Jedi would come and resolve the ...
Star Trek Economics
Banes at 12:00AM, Feb. 4, 2021
I just finished a rewatch of The Mandalorian series and one of the things I thought about was the vicious profiteering and scramble for money (or ‘credits’, or valuable metals or what have you) that indicates what kind of economy is at work in that show.
Granted, so far we ...
Everyday Joes and the Best of the Best
Banes at 12:00AM, Jan. 21, 2021
Everyday Joes and the Best of the Best
Star Wars and Star Trek are long-running siblings in science fiction pop culture. I don't know if there's really a “rivalry” between the two; SW has always been more popular I think, and the two are very different.
One big ...
The Empire Strikes Back is 40 - and More Baffling Silliness from Disney Lucasfilm?
Banes at 12:00AM, Dec. 31, 2020Spoilers for recent Star Wars, eg the Mandalorian.
It went unspoken in my year of Newsposts, but 2020 is the 40th Anniversary the release of The Empire Strikes Back.
that's not true! That's impossible!
No, man! Search your feelings! you know it's true! Forty damn years!
Though ...
Politics in Fiction
Banes at 12:00AM, July 19, 2018There was recently a Provincial Election in the part of Canada where I live, and there's a Federal Election coming up in about a year.
With the brouhaha going on in the world these days about politics and the divisions between many people that are resulting from it, I ...