Category Archives: Science Fiction
Bioshock: Infinite: Fringe Fiction’s Theories and Predictions [SPOILERS]
Rosalind and Robert Lutece in Bioshock: Infinite
With completion of the game and quite thorough exploration of Columbia and its multiple versions of it, Fringe Fiction would like to give its two-cents on what did happen and what really happened during the tour of Columbia with Booker DeWitt, Father Comstock and Elizabeth — and the Lutece twins.
Columbia
Columbia is more or less an alternate version of Rapture. Instead of Big Daddies, Handymen took over their role, and they now have assistance from the Motorized Patriots.
Booker DeWitt/Father Zachary Hale Comstock
Booker DeWitt is Father Zachary Hale Comstock, but it depends on which reality of Columbia. He is both — depending on which side of the coin. They are different and equivalent much like Robert and Rosalind Lutece. Booker DeWitt’s memories and perceptions change as the world of Columbia changes. It can be argued that he was already “dead” when he initially entered Columbia as he has the Possession vigor much like Lady Comstock had her version of Possession later on. In terms of the overall story of Bioshock: Infinite, Booker DeWitt was officially dead in the third version of Rapture when the Vox Populi took over the Founders. It can also be debated that he is a Big Daddy essentially — whether he pre-dates Subject Delta or becomes Subject Delta in Rapture.
Elizabeth
Elizabeth is a Little Sister (or its equivalent) in Columbia. When Booker DeWitt dies, you’ll find that she injects you with a needle much like the Little Sisters did to the Big Daddies. More importantly though, as she was addressed as the Lamb, she may become the future Eleanor Lamb in Rapture. She can exist in that world as Eleanor Lamb, one of the future Little Sisters. To support this theory, Elizabeth remembers the artificial beach. In the good ending of Bioshock 2, Eleanor Lamb arrives on a beach as well. In that respect, they are both mirrors of one another. Lastly, Booker DeWitt’s daughter, Anna, becomes Elizabeth in Columbia.
Songbird
Songbird is Big Daddy 2.0 in Columbia and Rapture. The Songbird is consistent in all realities of Columbia, Rapture or otherwise.
Daisy Fitzroy and the Vox Populi
She remains the consistent piece in all versions of Columbia as the potent anarchist. Depending on the reality, it changes her station in life, but her goals remain the same for Vox Populi.
The Ending
The ending is a bit of mind-twister. In a vein similar to 12 Monkeys, the future Elizabeth took the present’s Booker DeWitt’s marker to show him the effect of his actions upon the world as both Booker and Comstock. The perplexing problem comes from the fact his future alternate self as Father Comstock is his own worst enemy as Booker DeWitt. I remain skeptical as to whether Booker DeWitt did indeed die in the ending as he had died many times before and survived.
The Future
Overall, Bioshock: Infinite excels past both Bioshocks as Columbia is a living city. On the downside, the city changes, but it is forced change. The three DLCs coming up should be a treat. And the elimination of competitive multi-player is an appreciative change. Fringe Fiction is hoping for more involvement of the Lutece twins in the future DLCs — and perhaps a more thorough explanation of their backstories.
Related articles
- BioShock Infinite’s Ending, Explained – What It All Means (atthebuzzershow.com)
- BioShock Infinite (pcmag.com)
- BioShock Infinite and games as edutainment (reviews.cnet.com)
- BioShock Infinite’s ending explained – Answering all of Columbia’s questions (gamesradar.com)
Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome (2012) Movie Review
With both the Battlestar Galactica and Caprica television series in their graves, a 10-episode online series called Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome was created — and essentially became a movie. Does it compare with some of the other Battlestar Galactica movies such as Razor or The Plan?
Cast
Young ensign William Adama is played by Luke Pasqualino. Coker Fasjovik, the unlucky Raptor co-pilot, is played by Ben Cotton. Dr. Becca Kelly is played by Lili Bordan. Tech Sargeant Xander Toth is played by John Pyper-Ferguson, otherwise known as Stanton Parish in Alphas television series and Wyatt Scott in the Deception television series.
Review
This movie was filmed much the same as the Battlestar Galactica television series. The chemistry between William Adama and Dr. Becca Kelly was a bit overplayed, but it was acceptable in this film in terms of the plot. Coker Fasjovik and John Pyper-Ferguson both played their parts exceptionally well. The development of the first Cylon-human hybrid was particularly interesting. This film did bridge the gap between the Caprica television series and the Battlestar Galactica television series. However, this film felt stiff in a lot of instances.
Verdict (Out of 10)
Battlestar Galactica: Blood and Chrome deserves an 8.2 out of 10. It is a solid film although quite predictable. In light of the other Battlestar Galactica films, this is certainly the best of all three. This film is not self-ingratiating like the others and has significantly more action. However, SyFy won’t develop a new television series off this film much to the disappointment of science fans, including myself. But we can dream a science fiction dream…
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- Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome’s soundtrack had a human-vs.-synthetic war of its own (io9.com)
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Borderlands 2 Assassin Strategies (Fringe Edition)
Zer0 the Assassin in Borderlands 2
Zer0 the Assassin is relatively straightforward class in Borderlands 2. He can be a tricky to manage at times, and he requires some degree of patience to use. Compared to Salvador the Gunzerker, Zer0 the Assassin uses nearly the opposite tactics. He’s not built to go outright on the offense like the Gunzerker. He’s more of a hit-and-run type of character.
With that being said, here are some tips from Fringe Fiction:
- However you wish to develop the Assassin as a sniper or melee expert, the shotgun, the more powerful and rapid-firing the better, will quite possibly be your weapon of choice to get Zer0 out of a tight situation, particularly when surrounded by suicide bandits, rabid skags, Badasses (as in more than one), etc. etc.
- I suggest to increase the ammo SOU for your snipers, shotguns, pistols and SMGs in that order — or close to it. It will give the Assassin some degree of flexibility in choosing the relics and mods early on.
- Zer0′s Hologram have many purposes. Like Axton the Commando and his turrets, Zer0 can use the Hologram to flank enemies. The Hologram can also use to gain separation between you and your enemies, whether to recover health, shields or distance for using your sniper rifles.
- Be aware that the cooldown time for Zer0′s Hologram is one of the shortest of all the classes — aside from Maya the Siren’s Phaselock. Take full advantage of that fact and use it when necessary as an offensive or defensive tool.
- Be aware that you can still take damage while cloaked. This is not Lilith’s Phasewalk from the original Borderlands.
- Concerning sniper rifles, focus on accuracy and critical hit damage for them, particularly since Zer0 can stack critical hit damage. Elemental snipers also help.
- The Strength relics are highly beneficial if you are focusing on the Bloodshed skill tree.
- When playing the game solo, the Bloodshed skill tree is one that you should concentrate on first. It allows health regeneration early on. However, when playing with others, I suggest combining either the Bloodshed/Sniping tree with the Cunning tree.
- Nova, Absorb and Spike shields all are beneficial to Zer0, depending on how you play him.
- Remember to be patient, know your battlefield and use cover frequently. Zer0 the Assassin is not designed to be as reckless as Salvador the Gunzerker or Axton the Commando. Although Zer0 may be the heir successor to Mordecai, his Holograms lack the coverage that Bloodwing has.
I hope this helps in your exploration of Pandora and the search for the Vaults. May you show them your skillz.
Related articles
- Borderlands 2 Gunzerker Strategies (Fringe Edition) (fringefiction.net)
- Borderlands 2 Solo Arena Strategies (Fringe Edition) (fringefiction.net)
- Borderlands 2 (XBox 360) King-Mongus Video Game Review (fringefiction.net)
- Borderlands 2: Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate’s Booty DLC Review (fringefiction.net)
- Level Cap Increase Coming To ‘Borderlands 2′ Soon (multiplayerblog.mtv.com)
The Following: Season 1: Episode 1: Pilot Review
After the failure of The Mob Doctor, Fox Network had to come up with something — and The Following from creator and excutive producer Kevin Williamson has finally arrived. To state this show as a thriller may be understating it. This show has elements of The Mentalist with its version of Red John in Joe Carroll and the forgotten Alcatraz with its criminal elements running about.
Kevin Bacon hits prime time after his last showing in X-Men: First Class, as former FBI agent and now-FBI consultant Ryan Hardy, and he joins fellow former X-Men, Shawn Ashmore, as Mike Weston. Kevin Bacon plays his role nearly-perfectly as a washed-up FBI agent. However, Shawn Ashmore is a bit extraneous, and his character, his role is very weak in this episode. He simply lacks charisma and punch. James Purefoy as Joe Carroll, the lead serial killer, is nearly perfect. He has elements of Hannibal from Silence of the Lambs and the Joker from The Dark Knight. With the age of the internet, not only does Carroll have access to his followers, he had access to resources beyond his reach. Natalie Zea stars as Claire Matthews, Ryan Hardy’s ex-wife, and her son, Joey Matthews, is played by Kyle Catlett. Joe Carroll’s followers include Adan Canto as Billy Thomas and Nico Tortorella as Will Wilson.
The show begins with Joe Carroll breaking out of prison, killing several guards in the process. Carroll is ruthlessly efficient as he pursues his two prizes, Ryan Hardy and Claire Matthews — and more importantly, their son Joey Matthews. After baiting Ryan Hardy and his fellow FBI agents, Joe Carroll eventually gives himself up to Ryan Hardy after yet another death — but not without letting what he’s going to do out of the bag. He tells Ryan of the following he has and what they could potentially do. With Joey Matthews in Carroll’s followers’ hands, Ryan Hardy has to not only rescue his son but stop Carroll’s madness from rampaging forward.
Overall, this show has demonstrated great potential, and I hope it develops into a second season at least.
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- New Cast Photo for The Following; Go Behind the Scenes of the Photo Shoot (dreadcentral.com)
- The Following: Meet Joe Carroll and Claire Matthews (dreadcentral.com)
- ‘My Serial Killer Based On Real People,’ Reveals The Following’s James Purefoy (huffingtonpost.co.uk)
Borderlands 2: Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate’s Booty DLC Review
With this being the first DLC released for Borderlands 2, one would expect the Vault Hunter or Hunters to be catapulted into an epic world after defeating Handsome Jack presumably by now. The story begins in the town of Oasis where the Vault Hunter meets Shade, the lonely resident of said town. Shade has quite the annoyance factor. He’s like the kid brother who has stayed the kid into adulthood. Eventually, the Vault Hunter meets Captain Scarlett and her pirate crew whereby they seek to find a mystical compass. At this point, it sounds like a Pirates of the Caribbean remake, and this DLC pretty much covers the Pirates trilogy. After going through the paces, the Vault Hunter finally confronts the Leviathan and opens a pirate’s trove of weapons.
With all that said and done, Captain Scarlett was entertaining enough. Her booty, or rather the Leviathan’s, was a bit lacking. However, some of the mission weapon rewards were slightly better. The enemies were basically skins of the bandits of Borderlands, now with a pirate theme. With the exceptions of the Anchormen and Depthchargers, there was nothing particularly new. Compared to the Borderlands 2 DLCs so far, the original Borderlands DLCs have been far more creative and enjoyable (although shorter…and hilarious.)
Overall, it deserves a 7.0 out of 10. Scarlett saved the day, and everything else was a step above mediocrity.
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Borderlands 2: Sir Hammerlock’s Big Game Hunt DLC Review
Now onto Borderlands 2 third DLC, Sir Hammerlock’s Big Game Hunt, the hunt for the extraordinary or is it just ordinary? This is the third of the fourth DLCs and of this writing, the level cap has yet to be raised.
The Vault Hunter is catapulted to the continent of Aegrus whereby he or she meets Sir Hammerlock and they are out for a “weekend of hunting.” Unfortunately, not everything goes as planned as Dr. Nakayama, the lead scientist at Hyperion Corporation, decides to be the successor-nemesis of Handsome Jack. Dr. Nakayama, like every good successor, intends on cloning Handsome Jack and bringing him back into Pandora. With the fate of Pandora once again in peril — and with the assistance of both Sir Hammerlock and Claptrap, the Vault Hunter must stop Dr. Nakayama and his ultimate creation, Jackenstein, at all costs.
There are some new enemies about in this DLC, but some are reskinned bandits of Pandora. The witch doctor will be the Vault Hunter’s greatest threat as they can take a lot of damage and raise the levels of all savages around him, including Badasses. However, the witch doctor will not attack unless provoked.
The final boss Jackenstein at the end is not every difficult or at least it is as difficult as Leviathan of Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate’s Booty final boss. And the loot at the end isn’t stellar. It’s only slightly better than the other two DLCs.
Overall, it’s a solid but unimpressive DLC — a 7.0 out of 10.
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Dredd (2012) Movie Review
Cast
Karl Urban stars as Judge Dredd, and he may be familiar as to some as Bones in Star Trek. Cassandra Anderson, a psychic and recruit, is played by Olivia Thirlby. Lena Headey stars as Madeline Madrigal or “Ma-Ma,” the drug lord of Peach Trees. She may be most recently recognized as Cersei Lannister of the Game of Thrones television series. Caleb, one of her henchmen, is played by Warrick Grier. Kay, another one of Ma-Ma’s henchmen, is played by Wood Harris.
Some of the other minor roles include: Judge Lex played by Langley Kirkwood; Judge Alvarez played by Edwin Perry; Judge Chan is played by Karl Thaning; and Judge Kaplan is played by Michele Levin. Lastly, Rakie Ayola stars as the Chief Judge who makes an appearance at the end of the film.
Plot
In the future on an irridiated Earth — and United States, there exists few safe zones. With the destruction of the former cities, there came mega-cities, slum towers, drugs, high-crime, overpopulation and Judges. These Judges serve as judge, jury and executioner without forgiveness. Judge Dredd is one of many judges in Mega-City One and he and his new recruit, Cassandra Anderson, must overtake Peach Trees, a drug-filled, crime-filled slum tower, as they attempt to escort Kay, one of Ma-Ma’s henchmen. Ma-Ma is the druglord of Peach Trees who leads the manufacture and distribution of Slo-Mo, an illicit drug, throughout Mega-City One. However, with the arrival of the Judges in her tower, she takes control of the security room and seals the building thus preventing Judge Dredd and Anderson from leaving with Kay. Ma-Ma escalates the violence and bloodshed as one failure follows after another — eventually pulling a couple of aces out of her pocket to no avail.
Overall (Out of 10)
Overall, this is an enjoyable action movie, but it was filled with cliches. The Slo-Mo effect was a bit distracting although the use of it was understandable. Comparably though, The Matrix trilogy still did the effect much better than Judge Dredd. The acting in of itself was decent as Karl Urban could only do so much in his helmet. Olivia Thirlby was too soft in her role and not entirely believable as a Judge or recruit potential for one. Wood Harris as Kay and Lena Headey as Ma-Ma played their roles to perfection — almost. As an action movie, it was solid, but action cliches filled the entire movie whereas others have done better. I will give credit to this movie was quite faithful to the source, the comic books. In my honest opinion, The Raid: Redemption and the original Die Hard both were better action tower-climbing movies and added far more testosterone. This movie deserves a 7.5 out of 10 — worth a watch but not much more.
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Borderlands 2: MR. TORGUE’S CAMPAIGN OF CARNAGE DLC REVIEW!!!
THIS IS THE SECOND DLC IN BORDERLANDS 2 CALLED MR. TORGUE’S CAMPAIGN OF CARNAGE!!! YOU CAN’T HEAR ME OVER ALL THE EXPLOSION-Y EXPLOSIONS BECAUSE YOU”RE NOT A BADASS!!! YOU ONLY THINK YOU’RE A BADASS!!! OMG, I’M GOING TO STOP YELLING NOW SO I CAN REVIEW THIS DLC!!!
Overall, this is one enjoyable DLC for Borderlands 2 even though there is a lot of YELLING by Mr. Torgue. In a distorted way, this is a take on Mad Moxxi’s Underdome DLC from the first Borderlands, but this time with an actual storyline. There are various challenges implemented by Mr. Torgue throughout the game with three tiers of difficulty that earn Torgue Tokens. These Torgue Tokens can only be used in Torgue vending machines and a couple of slot machines owned by Moxxi. As a side note, it is expected that these challenges to be held among more than one Vault Hunter. To great dismay and oversight, these Torgue tokens do not show up in the inventory as an item like the Eridium bricks.
The storyline in of itself is quite humorous as the Vault Hunter meets up with Tiny Tina and Moxxi. Eventually, the Vault Hunter ranks up the Mr. Torgue’s Badass leaderboard starting from number 5. Then, it becomes Kill Bill as the Vault Hunter kills off the competitors until he or she meets Piston whose ranked number 1. These boss fights get harder and harder as the Vault Hunter goes up the leaderboard and as expected, the Vault Hunter will die. The boss fights are enjoyable; the dying…not so much.
One other major flaw of this DLC like the previous one, Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate’s Booty, is that there is a lack of really good weapons whether obtained from bosses, enemies, boxes or elsewhere. The Secret Armory of General Knoxx has been sorely missed as the Vault Hunter could not obtain better weapons (instead of cheating as others have done in this Borderlands).
All in all, if you have the Season Pass, download this DLC immediately as it is a generally enjoyable and humorous experience — a solid 8.8 out of 10 (MAYBE 11). And if you don’t have it…#$%^&#$%^&111!!!
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- Mr. Torgue’s Campaign of Carnage kicks off in Borderlands 2 next week (joystiq.com)
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Looper (2012) Movie Review
Time travel is invented in the future in 2074. But only the mob has it. They use it to transport those who they want killed, and loopers instantly kill them in the past, thus removing any traces of the person in the future. However, these loopers are not without their issues with the system — as sometimes they are targeted. Sometimes, loopers are forced to “close the loop,” their own; and when they don’t, other loopers pursue them until the days end…
Cast
The main character, Joe, is played by two roles, one older and one younger. The older Joe from 30 years in the future is played by Bruce Willis of Die Hard fame. The younger Joe is played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, perhaps better known as John Blake in Christoper Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises. Paul Dano stars as Seth, younger Joe’s friend and fellow looper. Older Seth is played by Frank Brennan. Abe is the capo of the mob sent back into the past, and he is played by Jeff Daniels. However, Kid Blue eventually becomes the main villain, and he is played by Noah Segan. Emily Blunt stars as Sara, the owner of the farm and foster mother of Cid, her telekenetic son. Cid is played by Pierce Gagnon.
Suzie, younger Joe’s girlfriend, a showgirl, is played by Piper Perabo. Qing Xu stars as older Joe’s wife, Summer Qing. These two are minor roles in the movie overall, but they each play a significant part in Joe’s life.
Plot
The plot is fairly simple in terms of science fiction. Loopers are essentially assassins in the past (relatively) whose sole purpose is to kill the people that the mafia from the future send back. The problem arises for Joe is when his older self is sent back but escapes being shot. The older Joe is after a villain from the future, the Rainmaker, who kills the mafia and their older loopers and comrades indiscriminately in the future. Older Joe soon discovers that the Rainmaker is a strong telekenetic — who also happens to be a child. In the older Joe’s mind, by eliminating the threat now, the Rainmaker will no longer pose a threat in the future. With that, the younger Joe has differences and culminates in a showdown.
Review (Out of 10)
This movie overall was a fairly solid movie, and it was well-acted for the most part. Kid Blue, Abe and both Joes played their roles convincingly. However, it was not them that stole the show. Cid, played by Pierce Gagnon, acted well-beyond his age. For a 10 or some year-old, he acted more mature than some adults would. However, the melding of three or four different sub-plots did not serve the film well in my honest opinion. However, the last plot, the one concerning the mother’s love for her son perhaps struck best and hardest when it needed to.
This movie had elements of 12 Monkeys, Minority Report and Push, and for the most part, mixed fairly well. In my opinion, this movie was perhaps doing too much. Unlike 12 Monkeys, the basic plot was simple, but the entire movie was focused on that simple element, retrieval of the cure. However, Looper, to me, lacked focus, particularly in the beginning, which impacted the rest of the movie. Overall, Looper is a solid movie worth watching — an 8.0 out of 10.
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Doctor Who 2012 Christmas Special: The Snowmen Review [SPOILERS]
Doctor Who 2012 Christmas Special “The Snowmen”
Of the three most recent Christmas Specials with Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, this special was perhaps the most enjoyable of them all. This episode did not attempt to be holiday-ish like the other two, overflowing with saccharin and cheer, but it remained Doctor Who-ish instead. The villain, the enemy, also was not ambiguous as the other two specials, A Christmas Carol and The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe.
After the dire “fixed” deaths of Amy Pond and Rory Williams in The Angels Take Manhattan episode, the Doctor becomes a recluse in his TARDIS, now suspended above the clouds in 1892. Meanwhile, the squad of Doctor Who consisting of Vastra, her partner (in more ways than one) Jenny Flint and Strax are on the streets of London, solving mysteries that the Doctor would otherwise solve.
In a fashion, for the villain, we have the return of Torchwood’s 456 alien from Children of Earth in a giant snow globe now calling itself “The Great Intelligence.” Yeah, I said it, GIANT snow globe. Much like 456, the Great Intelligence feeds off of children, but instead of their bodies, it feeds off of their hearts, their emotions, their imagination. The army of the Great Intelligence is composed of snowmen, and the Great Intelligence’s cohort is one Dr. Simeon.
Clara Oswin Oswald, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, is a governess and eventually uncovers one of these snowmen in the pond in the front yard of the estate — whereupon the Doctor and his squad arrives to save the day. Clara and the Doctor confront Dr. Simeon and the Great Intelligence. The Doctor kills Dr. Simeon intentionally, and Clara kills the Great Intelligence unintentionally.
Much like Donna Noble before her, Clara Oswin Oswald is bound to the Doctor and will most likely be the Eleventh Doctor’s next companion. This was implied as the present Clara was briefly shown in the graveyard beside her gravestone. Clara obviously resurrects in every period of time, and her deaths are not fixed. I would be very impressed with Clara as a companion as she has the intellect of Martha with the beauty of Rose with less baggage than either of them.
This special is family-friendly — to an extent. With its slightly darker themes and dashes of sexual innuendos, it may be favored toward tweenagers than the youngsters. Overall, a very enjoyable Doctor Who Christmas special.
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