Vicki LVCM 
Las Vegas Crew Member
Posts: 1188
(9/22/01 6:59 pm)
Reply
|
Alien Invasion
Posted: Wed., Sep. 19, 2001, 3:52pm PT
Alien invasion
Europe Intelligence Wire
Source: The Express, September 18, 2001
TVEXPRESS EDITED BY CHARLOTTE CIVIL JAN JURCZAK
JAN JURCZAK discovers just what it is that makes telly's science fiction shows so popular
IN THE words of Homer Simpson: Are you sure this is a sci-fi convention? It's full of nerds! And thereby hangs popular myth about both the appeal of sci-fi programmes and the people who watch them. In the spirit of research I went to a sci-fi convention in Blackpool, expecting to spot die-hard fans sporting Star Trek uniforms complete with a 'tri-corder' gizmo. Actually, it wasn't nearly as nerdy as all that. OK, there was the odd Cyberman and I've never danced with a Borg before, but sometimes you have to let reality go a little. And surprisingly, there were plenty of women of all ages in attendance so the genre is obviously widening its appeal.
So, what is it that makes this otherworldliness so interesting?
As far back as the original Star Trek series in the Sixties, we've been hooked. Why should that be? Sci-fi as a genre had been around for years, from HG Wells, via Buster Krabbe's bug-eyed Martians to Dr Who. Yet the key to Captain James T Kirk's appeal was his very humanity. After all, sci-fi shows at their best aren't about aliens. They're about humans, or more specifically about how humans can interact with an unknown entity (call it 'a monster', call it 'a fear') and reach within themselves and raise the courage, ingenuity and adaptability to prevail.
In that light, one of the more recent sci-fi shows to have taken the genre into new areas is Roswell High - known only as Roswell in the US - which is based on the premise that the famous Roswell alien crash-landing and cover up of 1947 actually took place. The idea is that Max Evans (Jason Behr), his sister, Isabel (Katherine Heigl), and his best friend, Michael Guerin (Brendan Fehr) were left behind in 'pods' when their spaceship crashed in New Mexico, to emerge as six year olds who were found wandering in the desert. Taken in by foster families, they have been living a normal existence in the town of Roswell, but trying to fit in to society, with their mixed-up biology of human and alien DNA, makes things a bit complicated.
Concentrating more on their human characteristics than weird make-up and special effects, the storyline centres around their problems of fitting in and finding out where they've come from and why they've been sent here.
The pilot series (first shown on Sky then BBC2) saw budding romances, the difficulties of maintaining relationships, child-abuse and baddies getting their just rewards.
Roswell didn't have an easy time of it in the US, largely because it didn't fit neatly into the sci-fi genre, but also because it was a little too steamy to fit into the cosy teen drama category as well. But Roswell has a growing fan base, many of whom are in their thirties and forties, as the TV executives found out when they were thinking of dropping the show.
The fans swamped the studios with bottles of Tabasco sauce, the aliens favourite condiment (they use it on everything).
I asked one of the stars of the show, Jason Behr, what he thought made Roswell High so popular. He explained that it was difficult to pinpoint its appeal to just one type of person, but he hoped it was universal. "Everyone can understand adolescence. It's something we can all relate to.
It's a time when the world in general, and the opposite sex in particular, seem very alien indeed."
Roswell High, tonight, BBC2, 6.40pm
Copyright © 2001 Financial Times Limited - All Rights Reserved
Vicki
Las Vegas Crew Member
Visit
ALIEN ENCOUNTERS
and
ROSWEL ENCOUNTERS for exclusive photos from on location! |
Email This To a Friend
Topic Commands
Click to receive email notification of replies 
Click to stop receiving email notification of replies