American Science Fiction TV: Star Trek, Stargate and BeyondFrom "The Next Generation" and "The X-Files", to "Farscape" and "Enterprise", sci-fi television series in the US have multiplied since the 1980s. Jan Johnson-Smith shows how, in line with national political upheavals, this vibrant and perplexing genre set about expanding the myth of the Western frontier into deep space. She looks at the "sense of wonder" or sublime that infuses much Frontier art and science fiction, and traces a possible historical precedent to the genre in the fabulous and heroic journeys of the Classical epic. She discusses narrative styles and their influences, from the overarching narrative of "Babylon 5" to the episodic formula of "The Outer Limits", considers how experimental series such as "Twin Peaks" challenge conventional structures, and how and why sci-fi television has adopted new technologies. She also explores the juxtaposition of arcane language and technological jargon in modern American sci-fi television, revealing the extraordinarily alien, yet curiously familiar arena it creates. |
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Page 2
... become a tangible reality. Today, we are familiar with pictures of the earth from space, yet it was only during the 1968 Apollo 8 mission that William Anders took the first pictures of the earth from the moon. Orbiting telescopes like ...
... become a tangible reality. Today, we are familiar with pictures of the earth from space, yet it was only during the 1968 Apollo 8 mission that William Anders took the first pictures of the earth from the moon. Orbiting telescopes like ...
Page 6
... become too enveloped to question it easily or willingly. Television offers an alternative, but not the glance encouraged by an acknowledged segmentation of programming: in the digital age, our viewing habits have changed.13 Rather ...
... become too enveloped to question it easily or willingly. Television offers an alternative, but not the glance encouraged by an acknowledged segmentation of programming: in the digital age, our viewing habits have changed.13 Rather ...
Page 22
... becomes a producer, not a consumer. Roman Jakobson continues with this line of enquiry, suggesting that 'in poetry any verbal element is converted into a figure of poetic speech.'33 Christian Metz took it to a comparable level in visual ...
... becomes a producer, not a consumer. Roman Jakobson continues with this line of enquiry, suggesting that 'in poetry any verbal element is converted into a figure of poetic speech.'33 Christian Metz took it to a comparable level in visual ...
Page 24
... become simulacra, empty and meaningless they are therefore of little use to us as means of locating ourselves either culturally and socially. Equally, in the more alien worlds of sf, it is hard to insist upon symbols and icons because ...
... become simulacra, empty and meaningless they are therefore of little use to us as means of locating ourselves either culturally and socially. Equally, in the more alien worlds of sf, it is hard to insist upon symbols and icons because ...
Page 30
... become the poetic fancies of a weakly diamorphic species trying to imitate every other species in a vain search for what is 'natural'.69 Russ's condemnation of these binary 'poetic fancies' not only points 30 AMERICAN TV SCIENCE FICTION.
... become the poetic fancies of a weakly diamorphic species trying to imitate every other species in a vain search for what is 'natural'.69 Russ's condemnation of these binary 'poetic fancies' not only points 30 AMERICAN TV SCIENCE FICTION.
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action actually alien allows American ancient appears articulated associated audience Babylon become called Centauri challenge characters comes command concept concerns consider context continuity create crew cultural Dark Deep Space Delenn demonstrates diegesis Earth effect Enterprise epic episode equally established example existence experience exploration film final forces frontier future genre human idea identified ideology images individual issues John language later light lives London Maquis McQueen means military Minbari narrative nature Nine occurs offers original parallel past perhaps planet political potential present Press problem programmes question races reality reference remarkable says science fiction season sense Shadows Sheridan ship shows Sinclair Star Trek Stargate station story Sublime suggests television tells texts turn universe Vietnam visual Voyager Western whilst wormhole