The View from My Chair: Klingon Ridges and continuity

My Buddy Berin Kinsman recently had a question about Klingon head ridges.  For the uninitiated, in the original series Klingons had no head ridges.  Star Trek: The Motion Picture showed minor head ridges on the Klingons.  The Klingon make-up evolved throughout the movies and TNG until we have the bumpy heads we’re familiar with today.

The real world reason for this apparent discrepancy is the fact that budgets for make-up during the original series run was miniscule.  Make-up budgets for the movies was a lot higher.  Make-up techniques and budgets had improved enough by the 1980′s that a weekly TV show could afford what a cash-strapped TV show in 60′s could not.  When a TV show as long-lived and as successful as Star Trek is internally inconsistent it can drive fans of the show just a tick crazy.

Trekkers have often wondered about the visual discrepancy between Klingons as depicted in the 60s, the 70s, and the 80s as these differences were never addressed on-screen.  Theories abounded that there were two main races of Klingons, bumpy and non-bumpy headed.  Other theories stated that Klingons had themselves surgically altered themselves so they could better infiltrate the dominate facial structure found in the Alpha Quadrant.  Gene Roddenberry himself stated that Klingons “always” had head bumps, it was just the there wasn’t enough resolution in the cameras of the 1960s to capture the details.

Roddenberry’s theory seemed to be borne out in the Deep Space Nine episode “Blood Oath”.  In this episode the three main Klingons from the original series; Kang, Kor, and Koloth (Kor is shown above in bumps and no bumps) show up on DS9 in full modern Klingon makeup.  The theory of there being two different races of Klingons was shot down with this episode giving the edge to Roddenberry’s explanation.

The producers of DS9 thought about keeping the actors in the makeup they used in TOS but decided not to so as not to “confuse the audience”.  Micheal Ansara (Kang) asked why his (and the others) makeup was different then it had been in the 60s.  He was told that Klingons were very long-lived and the head ridges were a natural part of the Klingon aging process.  Nice theory, except that Worf’s son, Alexander was shown with ridges.

Up until this point there was nothing that required a convoluted explanation.  Roddenberry’s theory is still the best.

Now, in the name of showing something cool, Star Trek producers start digging a hole for themselves regarding the Klingon ridges.  In honor of Trek’s 30th Anniversary, Deep Space Nine decides to visit the classic episode, ‘The Trouble with Tribbles’.  ‘Trials and Tribble-ations’ sends the crew of DS9 back in time to the actual events of the classic episodes.  Was this cool?  Yes.  Did I enjoy the episode? Yes.  Did it complicate matters for the Klingon ridges?  Yes.

O’Brien, Bashir, Worf, and Odo are sitting in the bar looking at all the Klingons.  The waitress mentions the Klingons.  Odo, Bashir and O’Brien ask, “What Klingons?” and then look at Worf.  Worf explains that Klingons do not talk about the changes in appearance from the 23rd to the 24th century.  Roddenberry’s theory of camera resolution is dealt a fatal blow as the characters themselves bring up the difference in appearance.

OK what we are now left with (if we are assuming that the Trek universe is internally consistent) is a single genetic appearance for Klingons.  This single appearance changed at some point between 2268 (Trouble with Tribbles) and 2273 (ST:TMP).  Worf states that the Klingons hunted down and eradicated the tribbles as a species.  Tribbles do not like Klingons.   Worf emphasizes that Klingons considered tribbles an ecological menace.  Could the Klingon ridges be the result of a genetic mutation caused by Scotty’s disposal of the tribbles to the Klingon ship at the end of the episode?  Speculation across the internet at the time favored this theory.  The theory fit the facts as known at the time.  Fans were happy.

Once again, continuity raised its ugly head.

Star Trek Enterprise bursts into millions of homes.  The setting is the 22nd century.  The first image we see is a bumpy headed Klingon running through a cornfield in Broken Bow, Oklahoma.  “What th****?” millions of Trek fans ask.  Why does the Klingon have bumps?  Braga, the man who hates continuity and Trek fans, and doesn’t give rats patoot about maintaining an internal consistency mandates that Klingons on Enterprise will HAVE bumps.  Why? because he assumes the audience will be confused by smooth headed Klingons.

The theory that Klingons got the bumps from Tribbles has now been discredited.  What the producers (ie Devil-man Braga) have forced on the fanbase is a race of aliens with a single defining characteristic.  This characteristic is lost at some point before 2268 and it starts to re-emerge in the early 2270s.  Braga wasn’t going to debase himself to those he despised and explain it.  He left it to someone else to clean up his convoluted mess.  When Manny Coto took Enterprise’s reins during season four we finally got an explanation.  It took an episode arc that tied the whole business into the eugenics wars.

Something that could have been explained away easily got convoluted because the producers A: thought the audience was not smart enough to handle the differences and B: some producers didn’t care about the continuity.

What does this mean?  If you’re going to produce a continuity heavy TV show, never assume your audience is stupid.  Also if you’re going to be the executive producer of said series, don’t hire a day-to-day producer that despises your fanbase.

As my fellow Klingons would probably say, “Continuity, pfah.  Let us do battle.”

Demotivational Posters: Irony

If you love something set it free.  If it comes back and kills you it was never yours to begin with.

What Ployhedral Dice are you?

This meme has been getting a LOT of recent press on the blogs.

Apparently I’m a D8. Apparently the D8 is MORE heroic than the other dice. I don’t get it. Does this mean that the D4 is inherently less heroic? Is the D20 more chaotic neutral? Towards that end I have added my own two cents to the mix.

D4 – You are set in your ways.  When presented with options your choice is oddly predictable.

D6 – You are one of the crowd.  You conform with the general population.

D8 – Although not to far removed from the mundane.  You manage to find just enough dissimilarities to set yourself apart from the crowd.

D10 - People look to you whenever a major decision needs to be made.  Your opinion  means a lot to folks.

D12 - Your skills aren’t apparent to most folks.  However once folks find out what you are good at they find you indispensible.

D20 – You are the go to guy.  Everyone wants to be you.  Everyone wants to have you on their side.

D30 – You are Unique.  There is no classifying you.  No one is quite sure what to do with you but you’re cool with that.

I’m  a D30 and Proud of it.

Cancer Crisis: Maybe Encouraging News, Maybe Not

Today we got the results of the most recent urinalysis and a liver function test.

The urinalysis is showing traces of blood in the urine.  The liver function test shows two functions up and one function down (whatever the heck that means).  The alkaline level in Gin’s test is on the rise.  According to my sister the nursed that is good news.

Again all we got today was the most recent urinalysis and liver function tests.  According to Gin, the nurse who read the results to her did not seem overly pleased with the information.  They wanted to schedule an appointment to see the doctor this week.  It was determined that we could wait until Tuesday’s Iowa City appointment.

According to my sister the nurse, the results are a positive indication that the health food diet is working.

Virginia’s stamina is slowly declining.  Her mental outlook seems to depend a lot on her energy level.

More news as it developes.

Demotivational Poster: Complying

You now have 15 seconds to comply

Ask me Anything: Dreams, Favorites, & Cancer

Questions Asked, Questions answered.  Ask me anything, seriously.

Q. Have you ever dreamed of flying? Having your teeth crumble or fall out? Taking a test at school…and realizing you haven’t studied or even attended class? That you can’t fit in your car comfortably, or suddenly can’t see through the windshield?
A. You just described last night’s dream.

Q. Can you describe three ways to measure the height of a building with a barometer? If so, what are they?
A.It’s been 25 years since High School… How about this; climb to the top of the building. Tie a very long string to the barometer. Throw the barometer off the side of the building. When the string stops moving measure the string.

Q. John de Lancie or Desmond Llewelyn?
A. Q vs Q? Two completely different alphabets so to speak. I’d rather have Desmond’s Q on my side. But I wouldn’t want to do anything to pop on John Q’s radar.

Q. Rain, rain, go away, come again some other day or Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks! rage! blow! You cataracts and hurricanes, spout?
A. Is there a level beyond “Blow winds…?”  I have ALWAYS loved storms.  The more thunder and lightning the better.

Q. Embarrassed I even know my sign or I’ll get back to you after I check my horoscope?
A. I was born under the sign ‘Hospital’

Q. Complete the following phrase: “It’s all in the…” 1.) way you make me feel; 2.) wrist; 3.) Game; 4.) reflexes.
A. reflexes – Jack Burton

Q. Ambiguous questions?
A. purple onions

Q. What would be a good name for a band?
A. Anxiety in the Hallway

Q. Do you have a stupid joke that never gets old?
A. Why did the man put the car in the oven? No it’s not because he wanted a hot rod it’s because the cake was in the garage. That’s for all the Floppy fans out there.

Q. When’s the last time you visited a museum, and which one? What’s your favorite museum?
A. Don’t know the last time I actually visited a museum, but my favorite is a toss-up between the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago and Living History Farm in Des Moines

Q. Sushi y/depends/no way!?
A. If it’s part of a buffet then maybe… but I don’t go somewhere just to eat sushi

Q. What is your wife sick with? Sorry if this brings up pain.
A. Last year my wife was diagnosed with breast cancer. After a complete mastectomy and months of chemotherapy she was declared cancer free and taken off the chemo. Now 8 months later we have been informed that the cancer has returned and overwhelmed the liver. Doc says it is both incurable and inoperable. No worries about the pain, I’m still in shock.   The complete chronicle of blog posts is here.

Q. Ok, so it’s Pizza. What toppings?
A. I used to work in a Pizzeria. I came up with a pizza I named the Cannonball “Pepperoni, Italian sausage, Black Olives, Mushrooms, and Onions.

Q. You have the opportunity to build (or re-build) your house. What type (and size) structure do you opt for?
A. Something roomy enough for the family and occasional gaming group but small enough to easily keep clean

Q. Funniest show you ever saw?
A. M*A*S*H

Q. A stranger walks up an offers you a briefcase containing $10 million, no strings attached. Would you accept? What would it depend on?
A. Right now? no strings attached? Yes! I’ve got medical bills to pay.

Q. Favorite cheesy movie?
A. It depends on your definition of cheesy, but “Big Trouble in Little China” would probably be at the top.

Q. Three Stooges: classic comedy, they have their moments, or people who find this funny have something wrong with them?
A. Classic comedy nyuck nyuck nyuck

Q. Do you enjoy any weird combinations of food (not just exotic for your locale)?
A. Green olives in cottage cheese

Q. What kind of music do you listen to most frequently? What’s your favorite kind of music (if different)?
A. I listen to Christian Pop most frequently. My favorite style is classic 1950s Rock-n-Roll.

Q. Godzilla or Gamera
A. Godzilla all the way.

Q. What was the answer to all math questions at in school?
A. 42

Q. Happiest memory?
A. January 21, 1989 Virginia said, “I do!”

Q. Marx Bros.: the funniest thing ever, the pinnacle of human civilization, or I wouldn’t know I don’t have a sense of humor?
A. I’m actually not to familiar with the Marx Brothers. What little I’ve seen is pretty funny.

Q. How many languages do you speak?
A. English and ASL

Q. Gadget you can’t do without?
A. My Laptop.

Q. Book that makes you happy whenever you read it?
A. The Starrigger trilogy.

Q. Favorite Star Trek series and episode?
A. TOS: The City on the Edge of Forever TNG: The Inner Light DS9: Far Beyond the Stars VOY: The Killing Game 1&2 ENT: In a Mirror Darkly 1

Q. What kind of computer(s) do you use?
A. At work I use a Mac G4 at home I run a Dell laptop with Windows Vista.

Q. What is the next cartoon to live action movie you’d like to see?
A. M.A.S.K (Mobile Armored Strike Kommand)

Q. You’ve been given the opportunity to design fifth edition Dungeons & Dragons what do you do?
A. I make character generation as easy as Savage Worlds. I add the Role Playing aspect back into the game. Then I make it easier to play… Oh wait Shaintar already did all that.

Q. Drink of choice, if any?
A. Soft drink – Cherry Coke 0. Alcohol – Mike’s Hard Lemonade

Q. All things in moderation, or nothing succeeds like excess?
A. Too much of ANYTHING is bad for you.

Q. Do you commit art?
A. Commit Art? like graffiti? no. But I have taken up sketching again.

Q. Smart phone, dumb phone, land-line only, or how barbaric, I write letters…longhand.
A. If I could get net access at home without the land-line, I’d get rid of that. But I don’t want a phone that thinks it knows more than I do.

Q. Food that you could eat every day and not tire of? (Not necessarily exclusively)
A. Pizza. I actually do tend to eat that more four times a week. Such is the nature of living with teenage boys.

Q. Is there a character you’d like to be, assuming the world would cooperate?
A. I’ve been attempting to answer this all morning. I’ve tried cute, trite, whimsical… Anyway, I enjoy MY existence to much to trade it in on something else.

Q. Is there a fictional character that you emulate, intentionally or not?
A. Peter Parker, no matter what goes right in my life something bad usually negates it.

Q. Are you more like Batman (I have a plan for every contingency, and three back-up plans), MacGuyver (I’ll improvise) or Gladstone Gander (Nothing bad ever happens to me)?
A. McGyver, Life happens to fast to plan for contingencies.

Q. Do you have pets?
A. Me personally? Not currently. I used to have a hamster named Tribble. However living in my house is one dog named Blacktop, one cat named O’Malley, and a parakeet.

Q. Who’s your favorite character actor?
A. It’s a toss-up between Vincent Schiavelli or William H. Macy

Q. Now that we’re 10 years into the 21st Century, what innovation would you like to see come to fruition in the next decade?
A. I want flying cars. According to Back to the Future they should be here soon.

Q. Do you cook?
A. No.

Q. What’s your favorite restaurant?
A. Great Tastes Buffet in Waterloo, Iowa

Q. Weekend: Woohoo!, Awww, Meh, or What, already?
A. WooHoo! already?

Q. How do you take your coffee or tea? Or, if you don’t, what do you drink in the morning?
A. I usually need my caffeine cold and carbonated. Cherry Coke 0 when I need something in the morning.

Q. Do you buy yourself birthday presents?
A. Usually and Christmas as well. However, because of my short-term memory problems, I usually forget about them and my children give them to me. I am usually surprised by what I get.

Q. Who was the all-time villain you loved to hate in an RPG? In other words, who was Moriarity to your Holmes?
A. Azmodius. He breaks out into cold sweats at the mere mention of my character.

Q. Are there any holidays or celebrations that you really can’t stand?
A. I no longer see the need to stay up until midnight to ring in the New Year. It’ll still be there in the morning.

Q. What do you have for breakfast?
A. 2 Sausage/egg croissants and a bottle of orange juice.

Q. Right here, right now, is there any other place you’d rather be?
A. Let’s see I’m taking care of this before I clock in at work… Only in as much as someone would rather be at home instead of at work.

Q. Do you do karaoke?
A. No, fortunately for the rest of civilized society.

Q. How many years have you been playing RPGs?
A. 1983-1987 (long hiatus) 2005-2010 8 years

Cancer Crisis: So Doctor, what exactly is causing this?

I’m sorry I didn’t get this posted yesterday, but we had friends stop by to help us with some house cleaning.  It’s kind of difficult to sit on one’s butt whilst others are cleaning your house.

We got the results of the X-Ray and the urinalysis.  Both came back clear.  This means that there is no infection causing her temperature spikes.  According to what I’ve been able to piece together by what Dr. S. is NOT saying this is not a good thing.  It means to sole cause of Virginia’s temp spikes is the cancer-infested liver.

As long as the spikes do not go above 100.4 we’re stuck until the next appointment for some answers.

Next Doctor appointments: April 30 – Naturopath, May 4 – Dr. R in Iowa City

Oops! Nit-picking Maximum Overdrive

What is Nit-picking? pulling at the dangling plot-threads, poking our fingers in the plot holes, and generally pulling the movie to shreds.  This post was inspired by the fact that the P.I.T.s and I each noticed two gaping plot holes in Maximum Overdrive.  We watched the movie again, not for entertainment but to pull this movie apart.

Gaping Plot Hole #1 – Not all the machines come to life.  For example the newlyweds are able to drive all the way to the Dixie Boy without their car coming to life.

Gaping Plot Hole #2 – What kind of gas mileage do these intelligent trucks get?  They circle the truck stop for the better part of two days before they need gas?  Wow when I drove truck I never got that kind of mileage.

Gaping Plot Hole #3 – There’s an armory below the truck stop?  Why not blow the trucks up immediately?

These are in no logical order just as we’ve happened to catch them….

Small Annoying mistake #1 - When Curtis shoots the ice cream truck, the driver can be seen.

Small Annoying mistake #2 – When Duncan is run over by the Truck there is only a small amount of blood splashed on the front of the truck. Seconds later you see the Truck and there is a whole lot of blood.  Later on there is no blood on the Truck.  Did it take time out for a bath?

Small Annoying mistake #3 – When the steamroller bursts onto the field at the baseball game steering wheel falls off.  Later, as the machine is running over one of the players, the steering wheel is back on.

Small Annoying mistake #4 – When the coach starts to fall over from the groin shot, a third soda can hits him in the face but there’s no wound or blood. When Deke crawls over to him, we see a perfect hole and blood everywhere.

Small Annoying mistake #5 – The bulldozer at the Dixie Boy is taken out with explosives.  At the end of the movie, it’s back up and running, destroying everything gleefully.

Small Annoying mistake #6 – When the Truck backs up and knocks the Bible Salesman into a ditch there is no blood on the trailer.  However when  the Truck is pulling away suddenly there is blood all over the back of the trailer.

Small Annoying mistake #7 -  When the killer pop machine starts attacking the kids and they start running away, a can hits #7 (right side of the screen). He has a delayed reaction before he grabs his head and dies.  Not to mention but throughout the scene, if you look closely you can see the tube in the pop machine used to fire the cans.

Small Annoying mistake #8 – After the electric knife attacks Wanda, she leans her elbow on the grill that Bill has been cooking on, but yet miraculously, she doesn’t burn herself.

Small Annoying mistake #9 – The amount of blood all over Duncan’s face changes from the long shots to the close-ups.

Small Annoying mistake #10 - When the steamroller is running over the boy at the baseball diamond he covers his face before it runs over him, however as it’s running over him his arms are suddenly by his side.

Demotivational Posters: The Cleric

The Force is strong in this one.

Demotivational Posters: Curiosity

Curiosity killed the cat, the cleric, the ranger, the warrior, the wizard….