The Unwritten: Volume 08 (2014)

Orpheus in the Underworld  (2014)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: Peter Gross | Page Count: 176

"He writes the words that he was written by."

The idiom 'nature abhors a vacuum' is attributed to Aristotle (as 'horror vacui'). I can understand the feeling, to a degree, because when confronted with a blank wall in someone's house, I feel that it needs a canvas. But, unfortunately for the world of The Unwritten, nature is less choosy about what it fills its vacuum with, including the space left after Tom's encounter with Leviathan.

Aristotle also taught — in his Poetics (c. 335 BC), a philosophical work looking at dramatic theory and its applications — that acts of creation, in its many guises, including storytelling, are fundamentally acts of mimesis, with each act varying by its medium and its manner.

It may seem like I've gone off on a tangent, but I see every part of what's written above as having relevance to the multi-faceted approach that Carey took with the series. Poetics is a short work, but an understanding of the basic principles that Aristotle was postulating will enrich a reading of Orpheus in the Underworld; and, if it's not already apparent, familiarity with the Orpheus myth will help also.

The Magnificent Seven: The Complete Series (1998–2000)

The Magnificent Seven (1998–2000)

22 episodes, approx 60 mins each.

It doesn't take place before or after the films. It's its own thing in terms of both tone and continuity. And the characters are new, with the possible exception of Chris Larabee (Michael Biehn), who's clearly a small screen version of Chris Adams, the leader of the Seven as first portrayed by Yul Brynner in the films; although the TV version of Chris is rightfully his own man, too, not a carbon copy of movie Chris.

With it being an ongoing series it made sense to localise the group, to give them a single, identifiable town from which to operate, with the added benefit that it would provide a place that we as viewers can also form an attachment to. Although not always operating within the parameters of established law, the seven men nevertheless become the town's unofficial protectors. The unique traits and skills that each one has is put to good use for its betterment; e.g. one is a healer, one is an ex-preacher, etc.

Lou Ferrigno: Hercules Films (1983-85)

Hercules (1983)

Dir. Luigi Cozzi

Lou Ferrigno is Zeus' chosen one, a hero of the people who's granted incredible strength.

In his quest to save his love, Cassiopea (Ingrid Anderson), from the evil King Minos (William Berger) the champion must overcome trials, battle mechanical titans (really) and face off against evil sorcery.

After an extended creation myth opening that's strangely reminiscent of Richard Donner's Superman (1978), the film goes all out to impress with its manly beards, shiny armour and sexy females. And even though its aspirations are much greater than its achievements, as a fan of 1980s special effects I enjoyed a significant amount of it.

Judge Dredd: America (2008)

Judge Dredd: America (2008)

Author: John Wagner | Illustrator: Colin MacNeil | Page Count: 144

'Somewhere along the way childhood ended. Ami and I were drifting apart. I watched it happening, hating it. Powerless to prevent it.'

America is regarded by many Judge Dredd fans as one of the best Big Meg stories ever written, and with good reason. It's a mature telling of a small but significant event in the Megacity's history.

If you join the dots over a longer period of time it can even be seen as a precursor to an eventual re-evaluation of the Judaical system itself.

From the story's first panelled page it's clear that what we're getting is a deeply personal confession suffused with tragedy and a sharp, painful remorse that even time hasn't dulled. It puts us on the alert and reminds us that notions of hope and change are a dangerous combination when paired.

Star Trek VIII: First Contact (1996)

Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

Dir. Jonathan Frakes

The Borg, having had a rather dramatic redesign to make them look a lot more menacing than they did in the weekly TNG series, attempt to bring the entire Federation to its knees once and for all.

Naturally, the Federation take up arms and fight back. The majority of the fleet is deployed to stop the aggressors, but the Borg have a Plan B.

First Contact is Picard (Patrick Stewart) and  Data's (Brent Spiner) story, everyone else is just along for the ride. That suits me; those two stalwart characters are my all time favourites.

More than just duty, for Picard it's personal. They invaded his ship in Season 02 (episode 16), and they invaded him in Season 03 (episode 26); so he'll fight to the bitter end to protect what's his.

Following in the footsteps of Leonard Nimoy and The Shat, actor Jonathan Frakes is a Trek actor turned Trek director; it was his first feature film, although he'd directed episodes of TNG, DS9, and VOY previously, so he wasn't new to the gig.