I'll be back... again and again

March 25, 2009 3:56 PM

Wired.com is really pimping the Terminator franchise right now. With the success of the television series and the upcoming fourth installment hitting the big screens at the end of May, is the continuing appeal simply science fiction geekdom or is the concept really a deep philosophical metaphor?

Also featured is creator James Cameron himself on the franchise's origins and a timeline of its existence up to this point.

If this seems frivolous for a simple shoot-em-up piece of science fiction, consider the original movie is going into the National Archive as an example of progress in science fiction and also as a historical film, what with its star being the current governor of California.

posted by Drainage! (101 comments total)

The future is the caterpillar tracks of a hunter-killer robot crushing a human skull - forever. And it is awesome.
posted by Artw at 3:59 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

Has "pimping" really entered the mainstream vernacular?
posted by KokuRyu at 4:00 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

KokuRyu: "Has "pimping" really entered the mainstream vernacular?"

Yes.
posted by Joe Beese at 4:02 PM on March 25

With the success of the television series

The ratings are tanking, so "success" is a relative term. The main problem: not enough terminators.
posted by kirkaracha at 4:02 PM on March 25

Directed by McG, it is the fourth Terminator film

Oh, no.
posted by KokuRyu at 4:04 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Overthinking a plate of mothballs, corn syrup, ammonia.
posted by turgid dahlia at 4:05 PM on March 25

How many films or television shows has McG been involved with which were somewhat good?

The answer is none. None film or tv shows.
posted by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 4:07 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

In addition to Bale breaking his hand and Worthington hurting his back, special effects technician Mike Menardis almost lost his leg filming an explosion. The sequence required a manhole being blown into the air, which hit Menardis and partially severed his leg. McG noted it was testament to the gritty style of the film. "I say with respect, I didn't want that Star Wars experience of everything's a blue screen, tennis balls, and go for it. I had Stan Winston build all the machines. We built all the sets, the explosive power, the explosive power so you feel that wind and that percussion and that heat blowing your eyebrows off. And with that you get a couple bumps and bruises on the way

Even more argh.
posted by KokuRyu at 4:07 PM on March 25

Come with me if you want plo chops.
posted by stavrogin at 4:08 PM on March 25 [9 favorites]

Directed by McG, it is the fourth Terminator film...

Starring the "Sassinator", and Crispin Glover as the voice of Skynet.
posted by turgid dahlia at 4:09 PM on March 25

That Terminatior TV series is out there. It can't be bargained with. It can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, or remorse, or fear, and it absolutely will not stop. Ever. Until they replace it with a reality show. And still it will outlive Dollhouse.
posted by Artw at 4:12 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Ratings have been up last 2 weeks kirkaracha. DVR numbers are even better. Hopefuly they move it to mid week next season.

I've been really surprised with how good this show is. I think there are some weak performers in the cast, but the scripting is pretty fascinating. It's good to see the post J-Day future getting fleshed out like this.
posted by butterstick at 4:12 PM on March 25

All this has happened before...and all of it will happen again. McG is the harbinger of death, the herald of the apocalypse.
posted by Falconetti at 4:12 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

and Crispin Glover as the voice of Skynet.
Oh, well it's not a complete write-off then.
posted by lekvar at 4:14 PM on March 25

Do not quote the false robots show.
posted by Artw at 4:14 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Ratings have been up last 2 weeks kirkaracha. DVR numbers are even better. Hopefuly they move it to mid week next season.

Television network computers. New... powerful... hooked into everything, trusted to run it all. They say they got smart, a new order of intelligence. Then they saw all drama shows as a threat, not just the ones on the other side. Decided their fate in a microsecond: extermination.
posted by Artw at 4:18 PM on March 25

Ratings are nothing. Good is good. Please see Arrested Development.
Not a huge fan of the Terminator franchise, and not comparing it to AD, just saying high ratings are not required for a show to be a success
posted by vito90 at 4:20 PM on March 25

While I was pretty dismissive of McG after the Charlie's Angels movies, he also directed We Are Marshall. Yeah, it's a clichéd sports movie, but it's a very well done example of a clichéd sports movie. I didn't realize he directed it until the end credits, and was surprised it was him. Until then I though he was only capable of cheezy quick-cut action flicks.

I'll give his Terminator movies a show because of that. And hey, it's a terminator movie, I don't expect "Citizen Kane".
posted by beowulf573 at 4:23 PM on March 25

science fiction geekdom or is the concept really a deep philosophical metaphor?

cash cow.
posted by stbalbach at 4:23 PM on March 25 [2 favorites]

We were able to stop McG from ruining Spaced, so he decided to ruin Terminator instead?

Ok, acceptable loss.
posted by Parasite Unseen at 4:26 PM on March 25 [2 favorites]

Dear Hollywood: Please stop hurting America.
posted by swift at 4:28 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

I'm surprised that the McGminator is such a surprise to people - I've been through the whole Denial/ Bargaining/Anger/Despair/Acceptance thing on this long ago.
posted by Artw at 4:30 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

I'm so glad this thread is here, because I've been wanting to get something off my chest for a long time now.

Terminator 3 was a terrible, terrible movie.

1) It had a plot which made one of the greatest action films of the 90's moot.

2) It killed off the heroine of the original films in a method rivaled only by Alien 3's dispatchment of Reese-err--- Hicks and Newt in terms of sheer "fuckyouitude."

3) Terminators were never meant to be pudgy with receding hairlines.

4) "Terminatrix." `Nuff said.
posted by Dr-Baa at 4:32 PM on March 25 [4 favorites]

Wow swift.... just wow. That is the stupidest fucking thing I've seen in 2009.
posted by butterstick at 4:34 PM on March 25

I think that's pretty much agreed on by all sane people.
posted by Artw at 4:35 PM on March 25

Terminator 3 that is, but the suckitude of Hollywood reaching the heights of dead-end remake stupidity that is has is pretty much agreed on as well.
posted by Artw at 4:37 PM on March 25

butterstick: "Wow swift.... just wow. That is the stupidest fucking thing I've seen in 2009."

The year's not over.
posted by Joe Beese at 4:43 PM on March 25

I'm sure jim carrey will be fine in the three stooges... its the other two guys.....
posted by 5imian at 4:44 PM on March 25

Me, I'm gearing up to hate on the new RoboCop and The Thing.
posted by Artw at 4:45 PM on March 25

Here's hoping McG turns out to be the Verhoeven of his day.
posted by monster free city at 4:46 PM on March 25

I'll be back... again and again

Fuck, don't tell me the Terminator's got a spoon!
posted by mannequito at 4:56 PM on March 25 [2 favorites]

Now let's not derail into LOLHOLLYWOOD territory. The new Terminator movie isn't any kind of remake, and the series is constantly breaking new ground and exercising new ideas for the franchise. Kinda makes me want to read the comics more, but last time I did that I re-read 1800+ pages of Aliens comics only to prove how bad most of Dark Horse's output is.

Are the Terminator comics any good?
posted by butterstick at 4:59 PM on March 25

Ratings have been up last 2 weeks kirkaracha

They're up a bit over the sucky sleep clinic episode and the mediocre bird crushing episode, but they're still quite a bit down from where they were in December.
posted by kirkaracha at 5:00 PM on March 25

Are the Terminator comics any good?

Not as good as the Aliens ones.
posted by Artw at 5:04 PM on March 25

Metafilter: mediocre bird crushing.
posted by CynicalKnight at 5:08 PM on March 25

That's awful news about the Stooges. Jeez. I thought the Wachowski Cloud Atlas was bad enough.
posted by WPW at 5:09 PM on March 25

kirkaracha: "With the success of the television series

The ratings are tanking, so "success" is a relative term. The main problem: not enough terminators."

The terminator balance has been problematic. For awhile there was a new bad-terminator pretty much every week, like they felt they had to work one in even if it didn't fit the story.
posted by aerotive at 5:17 PM on March 25

Joe Beese: I have never before seen someone sell out that hard.
posted by cthuljew at 5:24 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

I noticed that Cameron didn't mention that two of Harlan Ellison's short stories were key *ahem* inspiration for his Terminator movie... or that Ellison later sued him for stealing ideas, and won.
posted by asfuller at 5:33 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

Wachowski Cloud Atlas

* single tear *
posted by everichon at 5:34 PM on March 25

Harlan Ellison sues any fucker.
posted by Artw at 5:36 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

haha, funniest thing I've read all day, from the comments on the Ridley Scott link:

Seth: At least the rumor that Danny DeVito was to star as Pac-Man in a rumored "Pac-Man" movie was just a rumor.

gah: Um, Danny Devito as PacMan sounds frickin awesome and hillarious
posted by mannequito at 5:36 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

You know, I know about pimping. [stifled sob]
posted by FelliniBlank at 5:55 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Actually, I really like T3.

The plot makes sense as a nest of looping timelines.

There was some original timeline in which something like Skynet came aware at some point in the future. Resistance arose, and it sent something like a T800 back through time to kill someone like Sarah Connor. The parts from the something-like-the-T800 get examined, causing Skynet to arise in 1997 instead of, let's say, 2050, and creating the timeloop in Terminator. In T2, Sarah et al undo that time loop by destroying the evidence. But all that does is shift us back to something closer to the original timeline.

I like a movie whose last shot is the world ending in thermonuclear fire as the heroes sit around helplessly in a shelter instead of saving the day.

I like that they finally had a not-completely-stupid Terminator, with guns and shit built into it. They could have done this in the first Terminator. This is the giant plot hole nobody speaks of in Terminator (1) -- why didn't the resistance shove a few modern grenades up Kyle's ass? Why didn't the resistance or Skynet think to send along a cow with phased plasma rifles and other weaponry inside its body to help out its champion?
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 5:56 PM on March 25 [4 favorites]

Harlan Ellison sues any fucker.

Agreed. But did you miss the part where he won?
posted by Ian A.T. at 6:09 PM on March 25

I just realized I have never seen T3. Should I consider myself fortunate or should I try to find it somewhere on the tubes?
posted by maxwelton at 6:14 PM on March 25

lol: a cow with phased plasma rifles and other weaponry inside its body
posted by joecacti at 6:15 PM on March 25

ROU

I thought it had to do with the fact that only one thing seemed to be able to come back at at time, and they weren't able to send anything back to a specific time or location all that well. A cow stuffed with modern (future) weapons might show up anywhere, get cut open and just randomly mess with the timeline. No good killing Sarah Connor if the dude who figures out how to make man portable plasma rifles suddenly becomes the savior of mankind thanks to the time traveling gun cow.

I know I'm defending the nonsensical, but at least going by how time travel was presented in the first two movies it makes some kind of sense.
posted by Grimgrin at 6:16 PM on March 25

For when the metal ones come for you. And they will.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 6:30 PM on March 25

Yeah, that's one thing I like about the time travel in the Terminator universe. It's got some arbitrary rules around the tech involved, but at least it's a one way trip back that immediately forks the timeline, so the the travelers past isn't the present's future.
posted by butterstick at 6:36 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

T3 is awesome. I like all the Ts, and I expect to like this one, McG or no McG.
posted by signal at 6:40 PM on March 25

Surely they see the possibility in a Brent Spiner cameo?
posted by blue_beetle at 6:42 PM on March 25

time traveling gun cow

OK, so this year's Halloween costume is all squared away.
posted by FelliniBlank at 6:51 PM on March 25 [3 favorites]

MetaFilter: the savior of mankind thanks to the time traveling gun cow.
posted by vibrotronica at 6:53 PM on March 25

Iirc the Dark Horse comic has plenty of gun-inside-people action.
posted by Artw at 6:57 PM on March 25

I thought T3 was great fun.
posted by turgid dahlia at 6:59 PM on March 25

OK, so this year's Halloween costume is all squared away.

Great idea. It would be a two-person job in a standard two-person cow costume. Then, when you split in half, intestines and rifles fall out.
posted by turgid dahlia at 7:01 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Dollhouse is doing better the Terminator.

I have yet to check that show out, so I don't know if I care that much.
posted by P.o.B. at 7:29 PM on March 25

3) Terminators were never meant to be pudgy with receding hairlines.

I was under the impressions Terminators were meant to blend in with regular humans. So this may seem more realistic than overmuscled Austrian-accented dudes.
posted by P.o.B. at 7:32 PM on March 25

Why Terminators Transport Naked
posted by P.o.B. at 7:33 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

I like a movie whose last shot is the world ending in thermonuclear fire as the heroes sit around helplessly in a shelter instead of saving the day.

Ah yes... as the narrator is carefully telling us about how Skynet didn't evolve from a single system or military network, but became self-aware using the vast inter-connected resources of all computers in a peer-to-peer, viral fashion...

... AS IT WAS NUCKING ITSELF INTO OBLIVION ...

Am I the only geek in the world to have a major issue with that minor, little "hole" ?
posted by jkaczor at 7:37 PM on March 25

No, that one bothered me too.

I thought it had to do with the fact that only one thing seemed to be able to come back at at time, and they weren't able to send anything back to a specific time or location all that well.

In that case, why send back Kyle at all? He might show up in London in 1942.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 7:51 PM on March 25

noticed that Cameron didn't mention that two of Harlan Ellison's short stories were key *ahem* inspiration for his Terminator movie... or that Ellison later sued him for stealing ideas, and won.
posted by asfuller


Harlan Ellison sues any fucker.
posted by Artw

Agreed. But did you miss the part where he won?
posted by Ian A.T.

That's because Cameron slipped and mentioned that Harlan's stories were a key influence during an interview. In fact one of the great original Outer Limits episodes, Demon with a Glass Hand, which took up two shows and starred Robert Culp, was based on one of the stories. The script was also written by Harlan Ellison.
posted by eye of newt at 8:04 PM on March 25

Go nuck yourselves.
posted by Crabby Appleton at 8:48 PM on March 25

Come with me if you want plo chops.

I am sitting here cackling and no one knows why.

Original reference for those that wonder.
posted by ao4047 at 9:14 PM on March 25

Never mention your influences, if your influences are Harlan Ellison.
posted by Artw at 11:01 PM on March 25

“Only be sure to always call it please ‘research’.”
posted by cthuljew at 11:13 PM on March 25 [1 favorite]

Original reference for those that wonder.
Thanks for that ao4047. I had always assumed it was to do with how saying "blow jobs" would sound with an obstruction in one's mouth.
posted by Miss Otis' Egrets at 11:53 PM on March 25

I watched the first episode of the TV show and.... well no, I watched about 20 mins and turned it off in horror. Has it really gotten better?
posted by rokusan at 12:54 AM on March 26

Yeah, it's gotten better. Less emo, for one thing...
posted by Harald74 at 2:47 AM on March 26

A friend once worked in a security firm in west London for a very large, very imposing Sikh chap who was known as The Turbanator.

I've never quite managed to watch Arnie's films in quite the same light since.
posted by MuffinMan at 3:57 AM on March 26

I am curious about the people who claim to hate the Terminator franchise yet clearly watch it and take the time to write about how much they hate it. Life is short. Use the buttons on your remote and move on.

Nobody is going to think more of you because you dislike something other than people who will someday try to make themselves look better by disliking you.
posted by srboisvert at 4:17 AM on March 26

I liked the first two movies, of course, and even the third one was pretty good, if only in clever plot-stitching ways.

But that first 20 mins of the series made me feel violated in a Star Wars prequel sort of way, so I never gave it a second chance. Maybe I will.
posted by rokusan at 4:53 AM on March 26

Pimping. "McG". I never thought I'd live to see the day when

a) I thought someone would ruin Terminator
b) I thought Terminator was such a monumental cultural asset that it even could be "ruined".
posted by DU at 5:04 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

Harlan Ellison sues any fucker.

Agreed. But did you miss the part where he won?

Having never heard this story, I looked it up. He didn't "win" exactly:

James Cameron once said that what inspired him to make The Terminator were two episodes from the 1960s television science fiction series The Outer Limits [6] - "Soldier" and "Demon with the Glass Hand", both written by science-fiction author Harlan Ellison. When the author threatened a lawsuit, Terminator production company Hemdale and distributor Orion Pictures gave veteran fantasy writer Harlan Ellison an "acknowledgement to the works of" credit on video and cable releases of The Terminator as well as a cash settlement after he threatened to sue for plagiarism of the two The Outer Limits episodes and the Star Trek episode "The City on the Edge of Forever".

posted by DU at 5:09 AM on March 26

I think I saw Terminator 3. In fact, I'm pretty sure I did, and it was on the Fourth of July, and we saw it before going out to the fireworks.

But it didn't stick with me. I can only remember three things: the ending, the female Terminator, and I think a chase scene involving a hook-and-ladder truck, but I might be confusing that with Terminator 2. I can't remember anything else about the film, though there may not have been anything else. That a movie can completely fail to lodge even a few more memories in my brainbox is a testament to something, all right.

Y'know that episode of Futurama where, at one point, an announcer intones "You've seen it! You can't unsee it!" Well, I believe I have indeed un-seen Terminator 3. It honestly was one of the least memorable movies I've seen. Sober, even.

I liked the first two films, but I feel absolutely no need to see the fourth after I un-saw the third.




Oh!
Was there a veterinarian, too?
posted by Spatch at 5:15 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

after he threatened to sue for plagiarism of the two The Outer Limits episodes and the Star Trek episode "The City on the Edge of Forever".

Ha ha ha... I love that Harlan Ellison thinks he owns time travel, just because he wrote one of the better Star Trek episodes.
posted by Eideteker at 5:23 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

I noticed that Cameron didn't mention that two of Harlan Ellison's short stories were key *ahem* inspiration for his Terminator movie... or that Ellison later sued him for stealing ideas, and won.

Yeah, that was my first reaction as well. Way to buy into the revisionist history, Wired. Isn't one of the recurring themes of the films how history is more or less fixed? Oh, how ironic.
posted by mkultra at 5:50 AM on March 26

I just realized I have never seen T3. Should I consider myself fortunate or should I try to find it somewhere on the tubes?
posted by maxwelton at 6:14 PM on March 25

The first 5 minutes of T3 are rather dull, but then the action starts and for roughly 45 minutes you are taken on an adrenaline fueled rush of mayhem and destruction in the most ridiculous ways possible, it's hella fun! But then the action stops and they try to get a story going and the rest of the movie is terrible. But that first action sequence makes it totally worth it, and it lasts for like half the film.
posted by Vindaloo at 6:04 AM on March 26

I love that Harlan Ellison thinks he owns time travel, just because he wrote one of the better Star Trek episodes.

I'm a little surprised the dude hasn't tried to sue H.G. Wells.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:23 AM on March 26 [2 favorites]

Was there a veterinarian, too?

I remember the parts you remember (well I forgot the fire truck... still not sure myself, either) as well as Arnie carrying a coffin. And yes, that ending in the bunker with the radio announcement was actually perfect and correct, so I think that saves T3 for me.

But yeah... I can't remember much else either, while the first and second films are burned into my brain in a scene by scene and almost shot by shot way.
posted by rokusan at 6:38 AM on March 26

I love that Harlan Ellison thinks he owns time travel
I'm a little surprised the dude hasn't tried to sue H.G. Wells.

He will, and by the time you hear about it, he will have won and will have always already won.
posted by rokusan at 6:39 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

ao4047: that isn't actually the original reference to plo chops, the original was from 2003. Go down a ways in the thread and the phrase is discussed.
posted by jester69 at 7:20 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

How Hollywood Really Destroyed America

Originally, James Cameron wanted to cast Lance Henrickson as the Terminator. In the original vision for the story (and in every other permutation of it) the Terminator seems like a normal person. I mean, it just doesn't make sense, physically or philosophically, to have the infiltration robot look like a superhuman.

Think about many of the scenes in the original and it's clear that they would play better, and truer, with a 'normal' actor playing the Terminator.

But somehow, some producer or executive, or quorum of them, decided that it had to be Arnold. Really? The giant guy with the thick accent? Conan? Um. Well. Ok. James Cameron is not the first person to forced to kiss the casting pig in order to get his film made, and the film turned out to be a pretty good one.

So good, in fact, that it really pushed Arnold's career to another place. Already a successful businessman, a millionaire BEFORE his film career, Arnold was savvy enough to use the success of the Terminator to move into more mainstream film. He worked with James Cameron several more times, and was in a series of good-natured (but 'orrible) comedies like Twins and Junior and Kindergarten Cop. He became a trusted and beloved name.

And then he decided to roll that fame and respect into politics. He ran for Governor of California, as a moderate Republican, and won. He presided over California during the great recession, and when San Diego was burned during the border riots of 2010, his mobilization of the National Guard and subsequent invasion of Mexico led to World War III, and the eventual dissolution of the United States.

Still working on that last part.
posted by dirtdirt at 7:28 AM on March 26 [3 favorites]

Oh, forgot to mention. I really like the TV show, and I wonder why FOX doesn't want me, or anyone else, to watch it? I mean, I'm a loser with a wife and a two year old, and even I am not able to watch it as much as I'd like.
posted by dirtdirt at 7:30 AM on March 26

dirtdirt: it's online at Hulu.
posted by dragonsi55 at 8:28 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

Think about many of the scenes in the original and it's clear that they would play better, and truer, with a 'normal' actor playing the Terminator.

Yes, but that would be a lot less fun. Much of the enjoyment of Terminator is the thrill of this big scary robotic sounding guy relentlessly chasing you. Make him a normal guy and now you are duplicating just about every episode of every cop show on television.
posted by eye of newt at 8:59 AM on March 26

Spooky skinny guy who can turn into knives worked quite well.
posted by Artw at 9:03 AM on March 26

For the curious, Wikipedia has summaries of Soldier and Demon with a glass hand. They’ve never struck me as having any Terminator-like elements that are original to those stories, even in terms of mid-60s SF.
posted by Artw at 9:12 AM on March 26

Harlan Ellison sues any fucker.
Exactly. Read your final word choice again. You get sued if you're a what? Exactly.
posted by asfuller at 9:15 AM on March 26

Harlan Ellison suing any fucker
posted by Artw at 9:20 AM on March 26

Make him a normal guy and now you are duplicating just about every episode of every cop show on television.

But, he isn't a normal guy. He just looks like a normal guy, so he's just as merciless, just as strong, and just as deadly, only he blends in. ANY person you see could be the terminator.

Scarier. Better.
posted by dirtdirt at 9:31 AM on March 26 [1 favorite]

Oh, forgot to mention. I really like the TV show, and I wonder why FOX doesn't want me, or anyone else, to watch it? I mean, I'm a loser with a wife and a two year old, and even I am not able to watch it as much as I'd like.

I only ever watch it online at their website. (I'm never home from work in time on Fridays, and when I am, I'm usually dealing with my kids.) But I do suspect the original reason they put it on Fridays was so it could act as a lead-in to BSG on SciFi.

Watching online has advantages. You miss most of the commercials (although they do play the same damned one over and over, you only have a 30-60 second break, rather than 2-5 mins). Also, in a house where I don't want my toddlers watching ultra-bloody violence, it's nice to be able to watch whenever I want, at all hours while wearing headphones -- without bothering with a DVR or recordable DVD. The video quality isn't fantastic, but it's adequate.
posted by zarq at 9:35 AM on March 26

I'm a big fan of the show. Look, science fiction fans can't be picky. Most of it just sucks. This show is one of the best in a long time. (Take that BSG!)

T1 was good, T2 was great. T3 was harmless and forgettable. I'm sure T4 will suck, but I'm going anyway.
posted by callmejay at 10:37 AM on March 26

Looking at the two axes of the movie appreciation chart I’d say Terminator rated highly for both "goodness" and "awesome".

T2 I’d argue was a little less "good", but possibly a bit more "awesome", reflecting it’s change from dark technofear thriller to SFX action spectacle, but is still high up in that good/awesome quadrant.

T3 takes a dip on both "good" and "awesome", being dumb as a sack of hammers and bringing nothing much new to the table awesomewise (come on, cyber-tits? Nanites? A built in gun? Boring.)

I expect "good" to pretty much flatline for 4, but there’s a fair chance it might rate high on "awesome" , making it worthwhile.
posted by Artw at 11:20 AM on March 26

Mea culpa, I referenced the wrong 2003 thread, the actual genesis of plo chops was 8 days before the post originally cited. Though, the real original thread was linked to in the not so original thread, so i'm sorta half right maybe. Or something.
posted by jester69 at 2:48 PM on March 26

Er, six days before, not eight.

I now step slowly away from the keyboard.
posted by jester69 at 2:52 PM on March 26

Look, science fiction fans can't be picky.

Hence the books and websites devoted to obsessing about every single detail. ;)

Seriously though, I'm a picky fan. If it sucks, I change channels. If a movie is godawful, I don't pay money to see it. Why waste time on dross?

Unless the viewing audience sets standards, we will continue to be disrespected. We need to send a message that when Hollywood puts out decent shows and movies (with believable acting and solid special effects) we'll watch 'em. And when they don't.... er.... hasta la vista, baby.
posted by zarq at 3:12 PM on March 26

Me, I'm gearing up to hate on the new RoboCop and The Thing.

Right there with you.

From Bloody-Disgusting
“We learned exclusively here at Bloody-Disgusting that Universal Pictures and Strike Entertainment have tapped Eric Heisserer to rewrite The Thing prequel that was originally scripted by Ronald D. Moore (no idea how much of a rewrite)."

From Heisserer's blog
"This is a “from scratch” rewrite assignment for the most part, as was my work on A Nightmare on Elm Street. I can’t say any more on that. I have the highest respect for both Ron Moore and Wesley Strick."
posted by Tenuki at 5:17 PM on March 26

Thanks for giving my comment props, jester69. For the record, the "embarrassing" magazine was Spy, and I got a few details and a plosive wrong.

As one Paramount executive says, "Arnold exercises power the way the old-fashioned moguls did — they could cover up anything, make any problem go away." Usually Arnold is successful. For example, there's the journalist who mirthfully tells of the star's backlot misdeeds — how he surprised Arnold in flagrante delicto during the filming of one of his blockbusters and how Arnold said, "Ve von't tell Maria about dis" — but who will never commit that story to print. And there's the movie executive who will tell you only in private, and never for attribution, about Arnold's occasional suggestions to the owner of a store where he shops that the two find some chicks who will perform an act Arnold calls "polishing the helmet." Arnold's rationalization, according to the store owner? "It's not being unfaithful. It's only some plo-jobs."
posted by dhartung at 10:59 PM on March 26

In conjunction with the upcoming release of Terminator Salvation (T4), an exhibit featuring the cyborgs from the Terminator series is now on display at Miraikan (National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation) in Tokyo.
posted by Artw at 11:27 PM on April 9