Sci-Fi/Fantasy films and television have had their fair share of lackluster ladies.  I recently came across an article that discussed the worst action heroines that have disgraced the small and silver screens.  Kennedy may be the most hated character in Buffyverse; Arwen was content to just sit around waiting for her man; and Queen Amidala let herself die of a broken heart despite her obligation as a new mother.  While these bad eggs exist, the superior women of Sci-Fi come along to remind us why we keep watching.  I’ve compiled a list of ten Sci-Fi heroines that top the chart of cool, in no particular order (because that would have been unfair, and way too exhausting):

1.  Buffy Summers  (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

She’s witty, she’s hot, and she’ll kick your vampy ass all over town.  Buffy changed the face of TV high school drama by giving girls the aspiration to carry stakes and crossbows in their purse instead of just lipstick.  Along with the Scoobie gang, many of us shared the same touchstones of growing up, just perhaps without the bloodshed.  Buffy’s graduation, the death of a parent, and tumultuous love were all some of the things we could relate to, expertly written by Joss Whedon and his team.  But perhaps most of the credit should be given to SMG, who’s depth, sarcasm, and playful wit brought the legendary Slayer of Sunnydale to life.

2.  Princess Leia Organa  (Star Wars trilogy)

An iconic figure since the debut of Star Wars, Leia was the princess that empowered young girls.  She proved that royalty could be headstrong, intelligent, and didn’t wear a bra (feminist statement or lack of underwire in space?  you be the judge).  Leia’s hair started a cultural phenomena, and her gold bikini is still pretty hot over twenty years later.  You would think the daughter of Amidala might be clingy, but Leia loved Han Solo and orchestrated a mission to rescue him.  Leia is worthy of all the praise, and the action figures.

3.  Leeloo  (The Fifth Element)

What if the key to saving Earth and all of humanity was 5’8, strikingly beautiful, and running around in strategically placed bandages?  Leeloo is not only all of these things, she’s also adorable when eating chicken and figuring out make-up.  She can also kick major alien ass and learn the entire human history in a few hours.  No one can forget “Leeloo Dallas, Mulitpass”, or that strange neon orange hair that only Milla Jovovich can pull off.  Let’s just be glad Corbin Dallas is sexy enough to convince her the Earth’s worth saving.

4.  Hermoine Granger  (Harry Potter series)

She’s the youngest lady on this list, but she certainly packs an academic wallop worthy of being recognized.  Hermoine is known at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry for being a know-it-all, Muggle-born, and the brightest witch of her age.  Though she doesn’t fight with her fists (okay, there was that one awesome time – Malfoy!), Hermoine wages battle with her mind and her trusty wand, which might be even cooler.  Smarts and intellect count for a lot in my book, and Hermoine certainly makes the grade.

5.  Sydney Bristow  (Alias)

What’s cooler than getting to dress up and kick ass while doing it?  Sydney and her endless trunk of disguises played double agent for the CIA in J.J. Abram’s entertaining spy drama.  Syd had Daddy issues, a mysterious (and sexy) spy boyfriend, and Bradley Cooper as a best friend (lucky girl).  Syd dealt with a lot of hardships, but her sweetness and determination saw her through the darkest times, including a zombie sister and an evil best friend.  But after a tough day of saving the world, Agent Bristow seemed like the kind of super spy you could just share a drink and some girl talk with.  The best spy is the relatable kind.   

6.  Ellen Ripley  (Alien saga)

Sigourney Weaver made women just as valuable as men on the final frontier.  No longer were they in the background translating dialects (no offense, Uhura) or waiting around to be saved.  Ripley, throughout the Alien movies, did what she had to do to stay alive where no one would hear her scream.  She protected her team, her child, and the world from aliens and corporate corruption by sacrificing her own safety and eventually her life.  Ripley bended gender stereotypes and gave Hollywood a new kind of action hero, not afraid to shoot a gun in her skivvies.

7.  Juliet Burke  (Lost)

On a mysterious island that no one can find, Juliet manages to maintain her cool surprisingly well.  If you’ve watched an episode of Lost, you know how hard that is.  Brought on as a fertility specialist to solve a puzzling epidemic of killer pregnancies on the Island, Juliet becomes deeply tangled in the web of the Dharma Initiative and Ben Linus’ pile of bullshit.  Her seemingly stoic nature was perfect Ben lackey criteria, doing his evil bidding until she decided to switch teams and play for the good guys.  Juliet is strong, intelligent, and cool as a cucumber under enormous stress (and ticking time bombs – literally), and that’s why she’s the Lostie I’d pick in any crisis.     

8.  Trinity  (The Matrix)

Computer hackers might have been those losers in mom’s basement before 1999.  But after Trinity, they were hot, decked in leather, and owned an unlimited supply of shades and ammo.  There’s probably no one cooler than Trinity, or no one cooler than I can think of.  Out of all the ladies on this list, she can learn how to fly a helicopter in three seconds and kick your ass a thousand different ways if you give her an hour or two.  And in slow-motion.  Dodge that.

9.  Neytiri  (Avatar)

The newest woman to the list is tall, beautiful, and blue.  Neytiri is the cat-like Na’vi princess of James Cameron’s Pandora, existing organically by living off the earth and connecting with her world.  Her peaceful symbiosis with nature is what makes her such a great new addition to feminine canon, but also her gargantuan bow and arrow for keeping you the hell off her planet.

10.  Sarah Connor  (T2: Judgment Day)

Everyone remembers The Terminator, but Sarah Connor didn’t become a presence until T2: Judgment Day.  Having been locked away for talking nonsense, Sarah made sure to tone those guns in case Arnold ever showed his face again.  Sarah Connor busting out of the hospital is one of the best payback scenes in cinema history (that orderly certainly had it coming).  She has a rough exterior, but underneath it all, she’s driven by an overpowering love for her son.  Maybe just a little rage, too.

I’ve recently started planning my wedding to a fellow sci-fi/fantasy geek, whom I’ve shared the past seven wonderful years with (Happy Anniversary, sweetie!).  We certainly intend on making certain elements of the blessed event geek-tastic, but it got me thinking: how far do some die hard fans take it?  I decided to investigate.

Geeky Wedding Ceremonies:

The possibilities are virtually endless.  Typing “geeky weddings” into Google image search brought up thousands of terrific results from the special days of geeks around the world.  From a lightsaber salute honoring the bride and groom, to “I do”s by your nearest ordained Klingon, themed wedding ceremonies seemed to be a classic sci-fi staple for geeky couples.

The most interesting example I found was a hardcore Star Wars wedding.  The groom was fully dedicated to being Admiral Ackbar, complete with mask, the couple was married by Slave Leia, and most of the wedding party were dressed in some kind of far, far away galaxy garb.  And check out that epically cool cake!

Geeky Wedding Cakes:

The sugary, delicious confection that takes center stage at most weddings can now be designed to the strictest of specifications.  Most brides still go with the traditional ivory tiered cake, but the bells and whistles are just a bit fancier.  Geeks have a whole new range to think about when it comes to designing their wedding cake.  Maybe a diorama of the original Enterprise, or the One Up mushrooms from Mario.  There are plenty of ideas to be had, as well as a variety of action figure cake toppers.

I personally like this Stargate cake topper.  I just don’t see enough of those.

Geeky Wedding Rings:

It’s now possible to display your eternal geeky love on your sacred fingers with themed wedding sets.  In my search, I came across rings featuring USB ports, binary, and my favorite, elvish.  The beautiful scrawling script on the “One Ring” is now available on many rings for purchase for that special day.  I happen to find elvish very pleasing to the eye, and since it’s actually a real language, you can inscribe whatever loving phrase your heart desires.

Anyone else getting married soon? Are you keeping the geek in your nuptials? I wonder how many Avatar themed weddings will pop up this year… lets just hope the blue body paint doesn’t get out of hand.

io9 recently came up with a Top 20 list of what films they can’t wait to see this year.

Check out the list here and then give us your opinion as to which one you can’t wait to watch.

I don’t know if I can choose JUST one, but since I am making you choose one, I will go for Kick-Ass. From the latest trailer I posted yesterday, it is shaping up to be a hilarious take on the superhero genre.

The creators of ABC‘s upcoming V announced Saturday that the show would premiere Tuesday, Nov. 3 in a news conference at the Television Critics Association summer press tour in Pasadena, CA.

Executive producer Jeffrey Bell also promised that star Morena Baccarin, who played Inara Serra in one of my favorite TV shows, Firefly, and now will play the alien leader Anna, will indeed eat a rodent of some kind as in the original 1980’s series.

"We want to find a way to do it," Bell said, but added that if the producers simply duplicated the scene from the original miniseries, "been there, done that." He added that the new show will feature homages to other iconic moments from the original miniseries.

The new series is a re-imagining of Kenneth Johnson’s classic 1980s sci-fi miniseries, about the arrival of alien "visitors" who promise to share advanced technology in exchange for friendship, but turn out to have a darker agenda.

Executive producer

Scott Peters added that the producers were exploring a way to bring some of the original actors into the show, though not necessarily playing the same characters.

I really hope they can pull this off and make it close to being as good as the original series was with great story lines and actors. We shall see.

Jim Kirkwood, Jr.

Last night I watched the movie "Push”.  I really didn’t know anything about the movie except what I had seen in the previews, but I thought it would be a good flick. 

The acting was very good, the story was very deep and detailed. The special effects were all very good.  I liked all the characters and their stories. The only problem I really had with the film is they used a hand held camera in several places and those of you who know me, know I really don’t like that. It was mainly if the fight scenes, which is usually done to make up for the fact that they could not choreograph an interesting enough fight so they make up with jerky camera movements and quick takes. Also, it was used just when the characters are walking down the street. I guess they lost their tripod or just don’t mind making bad scenes. Those were all very distracting and takes the viewer right out of the experience.  Fortunately for this film, the story and acting made up for the bad camera use.

If you like a good sci-fi story that moves along pretty well and is told very well, I think you will like this film.

Synopsis:

"Push" goes deep into the deadly world of psychic espionage where paranormal operatives have the ability to move objects with their minds, see the future and kill without ever touching their victims. Against this setting, a young man and a teenage girl take on a clandestine agency.

The Division, a shadowy government agency, is genetically transforming citizens into an army of psychic warriors. Nick Gant (Chris Evans), a second-generation telekinetic or "mover," has been in hiding for more than a decade. He has found sanctuary in densely populated Hong Kong—the last safe place on earth for fugitive psychics like him—but only if he can keep his gift a secret.

Nick is forced out of hiding when Cassie Holmes (Dakota Fanning), a 13-year-old clairvoyant or "watcher," seeks his help in finding Kira, (Camilla Belle), an escaped "pusher" who may hold the key to ending the Division’s program. Pushers possess the most dangerous of all psychic powers: the ability to influence others’ actions by implanting thoughts in their minds. But Cassie’s presence soon attracts the attention of the Division’s human bloodhounds, forcing Nick and Cassie to flee for their lives.

With the help of a team of rogue psychics, the unlikely duo traverses the seedy underbelly of the city, trying to stay one step ahead of the authorities as they search for Kira. But they find themselves square in the crosshairs of Division Agent Henry Carver (Djimon Hounsou), a pusher who will stop at nothing to keep them from achieving their goal.