Ponderings of science, philosophy, history, society, and many other topics
What is the difference between magic and science? It's been a while since I shared an Existential Comic. This one gets at a question we've discussed before, although it's been several years. What exactly is the distinction between the physical and non-physical, in this case between science and magic? Credit: https://existentialcomics.com/comic/537 Corey Mohler, the author, has a … Continue reading Existential Comics: the philosophy of magic
Comments on some shows I've watched, or tried to watch recently, including Pluto, Loki, For All Mankind, Doctor Who, and Blue Eye Samurai. Pluto is a "reinterpretation" of the classic Astro Boy characters and setting. This is a world that now includes robots, with laws passed to ensure their equal rights. But someone is killing … Continue reading Blue Eye Samurai, Doctor Who, and other TV notes
I finally finished watching season 3 of The Witcher, a continuation of a gritty version of a Tolkien-like world, with elves, dwarves, other creatures, and magic. On balance I enjoyed it, but not as much as the previous seasons. I'm not sure why. Part of it might be that the romantic drama between Geralt and … Continue reading Foundation, One Piece, and other TV notes
If you're a nerd of a certain type and age, you might remember the 1970s Marvel comic series Planet of the Apes, the black and white one under the Curtis Magazines imprint. The Curtis comics were interesting in that they were sold as magazines on the magazine rack, not the comic book one. Which meant … Continue reading Planet of the Apes Archive
Ever since first reading Jack Vance's Dying Earth stories many years ago, I've been interested in the Dying Earth genre. It includes stories of an earth millions or billions of years in the future, one where the planet is running down, often with the sun also near the end of its life. The setting is … Continue reading The Dying Earth genre
It's an interesting time for fantasy fans, with two major series airing at the same time. There have been a lot of comparisons between them, and speculation on which would "win". Of course, there's no particular reason to see these shows as competitors since a lot of people, like me, will watch both. They're similar … Continue reading Why I’m enjoying The Rings of Power more than House of the Dragon
The latest volume of Love, Death & Robots dropped Friday on Netflix. I had hoped to meter my watching of them this time, but it didn't happen. I avoided binging the whole thing Friday night, but by last night I was done. As usual, these are all relatively short, in the 10-20 minute range. All … Continue reading Love, Death & Robots, Volume 3
Ok, so I'm pretty late to the party on this one. Avatar: The Last Airbender is a world famous animated series. It's American animation, but done in the style of Japanese shonen anime. It's also kid friendly, something that is very evident in the early episodes. For a long time, despite many assurance from friends … Continue reading Avatar: The Last Airbender
Yesterday The Eternals became available on Disney+. Given the reviews and discussion from its theatrical release, I didn't have particularly high expectations. I figured it would just be the typical Marvel thrill ride. And mostly it was that, but it also had a few zingers that made it interesting. I don't remember much from the … Continue reading The Eternals
The season finale for The Wheel of Time was last week. As I've mentioned before, I read two or three of the early books decades ago, but remember very little: Rand, Moraine, portals to alternate realms, and a few other things. So the show mostly feels like fresh material. In the early episodes, it was … Continue reading The Silent Sea, Boba Fett, and other TV notes
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