Faux Sci Fi

When I first saw the cover of JANISSARIES by Pournelle, the soldier reminded me of the Airfix 1/76 Paratrooper box art. I wasn't far wrong.

CIA backed US Mercs are fighting in a faux Angola and rescued from destruction at the hands of a larger Cuban force by a extra-terrestrials.

The Mercs are transported to another planet where, led by a Christopher Walken wannabe, mayhem ensues.

I know why I pushed this book to the back of my mind, but playing around with some AK47 figs this morning,  Janissaries aptly demonstrates that ANYTHING can be turned into a Sci Fi background. Something to bear in mind in these increasingly tight economic times. 

Cheers
Mark

Musings and Explorations into Steampunk

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We love all things Roman here at Chez Dropship. This week we've luxuriated in watching the classic HBO/BBC drama series ROME and the UK/Latvian movie CENTURION.

Add an old episode of Time Team into the mix and the threads converge in my head to produce a Roman Steampunk alternative technology world. Sort of Simon Scarrow meets Jules Verne.

Probably more a flight of fantasy as far as 15mm gaming goes but could be merit in 28mm as something different.

Whilst on steampunk,  Mars. Victorian Mars. I'm firmly wedded to the idea of an early Victorian Steampunk colonisation of Mars in the 1850's. Flashman and the Overlords of Mars - that sort of thing. Inspired in part by the famous painting of the last stand of the 44th at Gandamak.

Easy to imagine the guy in the Afghan coat (2nd right, standing) as (Gene Hunt) Flashman holding off the Martian hordes. And East Riding Miniatures do appropriate Colonial Brits in their ERM15 range who only need a small amount of conversion to give them a more off world feel, wearing Martian tribal coats etc. Dixon's Indian Mutiny range would also be suitable with some of Essex's Victorian British officers (with headswops) for characters. It's also easy to transpose the Indian Mutiny to the canals of Mars.

Crimean War figures could be pressed into service, once gain being very Flashman. The best are undoubtably Eureka's 18mm range. The officers are nicely heroic, there's some grizzled Highlanders and some very,very classy British Guards. You can also double these up for Martian invasions of good ol' Blighty in the early Victorian age without a second thought, unlike more traditional Victorian colonial types in pith helmets.

Mmmm, I'm just picturing in my mind's eye adding some of Khurasan's Felid heads to the Eureka Crimean British bodies? A Felid Flashman perhaps?

Sláinte Mhaith! & 

Happy St Patricks Day

Mark

Centurion....Dog Soldiers meets Gladiator. Put tongue firmly in cheek, a couple of glasses of wine whilst watching and it's a good movie, especially as it starts in Inchtuil, just down the road.... Salve!

This is Ripley........

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"Final report of the commercial starship Nostromo, third officer reporting. The other members of the crew, Kane, Lambert, Parker, Brett, Ash and Captain Dallas, are dead. Cargo and ship destroyed. I should reach the frontier in about six weeks. With a little luck, the network will pick me up. This is Ripley, last survivor of the Nostromo, signing off".

 So, you have a chance to remake ALIEN (1979). Who is your Ripley?

For me? It's working mom Bridget Moynahan who makes Sum Of All Fears and I Robot so very watchable. There's a certain Ripley vive going on there. Of course you may want to 'reimagine' Ripley, the movie or both. But let's keep it classic if we can.....

Cheers

Mark

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You shove in all your sausage and meatballs.....

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"Heh, come over here, kid, learn something. You never know, you might have to cook for 20 guys someday. You see, you start out with a little bit of oil. Then you fry some garlic. Then you throw in some tomatoes, tomato paste, you fry it; ya make sure it doesn't stick. You get it to a boil; you shove in all your sausage and your meatballs; heh…? And a little bit o' wine. An' a little bit o' sugar, and that's my trick."

No of course it isn't Johner who cooks this meatball sauce, but Clemenza the trusted Corleoni caporegime in The Godfather. Johner is a man comfortable in his own skin, what's left of it. Sure he likes having Annalee or any one of a thousand other broads cook for him, but push come to shove, he can rustle up a mean spaghetti sauce. Just don't call him "meatball".

I learned to love Italian food courtesy of Mario Puzo and Francis Ford Coppola. Coppola legend has it, put this scene in the movie so that if the film bombed, the audience would at least come away with a good spaghetti sauce. LOL!

You can imagine that for Johner, Friday night is "Spaghetti night". If he did nothing else all week, and you can imagine him doing nothing else all week, he felt he earned it with this sauce. An ex-oppo of mine had wednesday night as "Curry night". Every wednesday, without fail he became Gordon Ramsey and entered this world where the chicken and the curry were all that existed. And we are talking about the days before ready sauces here. God help you if you didn't appreciate the meal out loud when it was finally slapped before you.

Alien Resurrection was on the box this week.  Flawed, but with some great characters, especially the crew of The Betty, who I felt deserved more. Elgyn, Christie, Johner, Sabra, Annalee Call & Vreiss really knock the crew of the Serenity into touch.

Now, don't get me wrong, I still love the Firefly series, Inara, Kaylee, River...was there anyone else? LOL However, in a gritty, blue-collar universe, with lot's of acid-for-blood nasties out there, I'd sign-up with The Betty. If nothing else, the meatball sauce is bound to be a killer......

Cheers

Mark
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