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 4
... concepts for consideration – alien life forms, time travel, warp drives. Visual sf needs to manifest images of those concepts convincingly, and at some level sf television narratives must compete with the immense pyrotechnics of cinema ...
... concepts for consideration – alien life forms, time travel, warp drives. Visual sf needs to manifest images of those concepts convincingly, and at some level sf television narratives must compete with the immense pyrotechnics of cinema ...
Page 7
... concept of the frontier, the role of the Sublime and the forging of a national ideological identity in literature, art and moving images. Switching to the medium of television, it explores television's common narrative structures and ...
... concept of the frontier, the role of the Sublime and the forging of a national ideological identity in literature, art and moving images. Switching to the medium of television, it explores television's common narrative structures and ...
Page 22
... concept of the 'real'. With reflectionism under assault, realism in general, and cinematic (or visual) realism in particular, could be considered as 'an effect produced by certain kinds of texts'.34 Just as sf cannot belong to an ...
... concept of the 'real'. With reflectionism under assault, realism in general, and cinematic (or visual) realism in particular, could be considered as 'an effect produced by certain kinds of texts'.34 Just as sf cannot belong to an ...
Page 24
... concept, yet we accept them within the sf context. Delany calls this shift between foreground and background 'the deposition of weight between landscape and psychology',39 which is why only in sf can a phrase such as 'her world exploded ...
... concept, yet we accept them within the sf context. Delany calls this shift between foreground and background 'the deposition of weight between landscape and psychology',39 which is why only in sf can a phrase such as 'her world exploded ...
Page 29
... concept of 'cognitive mapping'65 has been in some ways anticipated. In sf, as in postmodernism, it is the loci provided by such mapping that is often destroyed in the drive to subvert and challenge our sense of reality.66 29 SCIENCE ...
... concept of 'cognitive mapping'65 has been in some ways anticipated. In sf, as in postmodernism, it is the loci provided by such mapping that is often destroyed in the drive to subvert and challenge our sense of reality.66 29 SCIENCE ...
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Common terms and phrases
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