Future War Stories

FWS Topics: Future weapons and Future gun control

2012-01-27T10:48:00.000-06:00

I was on another forum last weekend, and there was a thread about the 2nd Amendment, and there were people (me included) arguing about how people of the 18th century viewed firearms is completely different than here in 21st century. I also argued that when or if science deliveries laser blasters or plasma pistols, it is likely that governments will ban their sale to the common people. That got me to thinking about the future of civilian-owned personal weaponry, and a subject that sci-fi does not talk about much: future gun control.

Will the future generations be able to walk into a sporting goods store and buy a Phased Plasma Rifle in the 40watt range? Will there be a difference between the military-grade DEW or HV KEW weaponry that the future soldiers use and the firearms that citizens could buy? Will guns be banned on Terra, but legal in the off-world colonies, like Replicants? Will Guns & Ammo change its name to Blasters & Batteries?
What about ship-based weaponry, would civilian haulers be unarmed like in Firefly or Cowboy BeBop, or would they be limited power output? One can imagine the horror a single vessel would reap with kinetic projectile.

Most sci-fi works are mixed on the subject, in the golden age of sci-fi, every explorer had a trusty raygun, and later, with the influence of Star Wars, every badass carried a blaster. In the Star Wars universe, blasters seem legal enough, Han walks around with a blaster like Clint Eastwood, and Mal and his gang from Firefly stroll around the planets with their weapons mostly out. But in the Star Trek universe, the only time I saw a DEW in the hands of non-Starfleet that wasn't a evildoer was in the pilot episode of Enterprise when some farmer from Broken Bow, Oklahoma shoots a Klingon with a plasma rifle, and later in the series, we see civilian cargo haulers equipped with the Starfleet issued EM-33 Plasma Pistol. However, most, if not all civilians in the Star Trek universe seemed unable or unwilling to buy a handheld phaser. And if they did, would it equipped with a "kill" setting? After all, in the ST:TNG epsiode the most toys the Federation banned the ownership of the Varon T-disruptor. In the book the Forever War, when Mandella gets back home the first time, he tries to buy a C02 laser, but the gun shop tells him that they are "legal" store, instead, he buys a .410 Revolver.

I would like your opinion on the subject! Please comment below!

FWS Forgotten Classic: The ROBOTECH Saga

2012-01-21T14:33:00.000-06:00

In 1985, my world changed. I was 9, living in Oklahoma, outside of Tulsa, and one day, after school, I witnessed my first episode of the Robotech Saga. It was Blue Wind from the Macross-era, and I could not believe what I was seeing. From that moment on, ROBOTECH was one of the foundations of my life. I was more used to Anime the average kid, I had seen Starblazers, Gundum, and Battle of the Planets. But nothing prepared me for the 85 episodes of ROBOTECH.

The history of ROBOTECH

In 1982, head of Harmony Gold studios, Frank Agrama, was looking to get into the up-and-coming market of Japanese Anime. During a trip to an art studio having expo on Japanese art cells, Agrama met the art studio manager, Carl Macek. Agrama brought Macek over to Harmony Gold studios to look at which series to import for the syndication market. The primary issue preventing the importation of most Anime series was that most did not last for the required 65 epsiodes for the syndication market. So, the staff at Harmony Gold took three non-related giant mecha/space war Anime series all done by Tatsunoko Production, and redubbed the entire dialog, connecting these three "Super Dimension" series into a multi-generational space opera/war spanning 85 episodes.

There were problems along the way, while the original Japanese Macross ended properly, the Southern Cross and Mospeada were cancelled early, resulting in writing issues, plus Harmony Gold had to edit out an extra moon for the Southern Cross series, and develop a "connector" episode between Macross and the Robotech Masters.

By 1984, Harmony Gold was shopping ROBOTECH around conventions and trade shows, and in 1985, ROBOTECH would hit American airways. It would become an pioneer for Anime in America, creating legions of loyal fans and being one of the most beloved Anime series of all time. However, by 1988, ROBOTECH was running its course, and TV stations were looking elsewhere, forcing Harmony Gold to look at creating a sequel. With the success of ROBOTECH, Matchbox Toys made a massive toy line based on the series (yes, I bought them), and was the first American toy company to make toys for an Anime. These toys, which were just okay, resulted in fan alienation, especially for older fans when the girl doll line came out, resulting in poor sales. ROBOTECH would re-air in 1993-1995 on the Sci-Fi channels morning program, but they were re-edited for time conmsiders from the originals. Toonami aired only part of the series, a few random stations air the series from time-to-time on odd TV station, like a California public TV station.

The basic plot of ROBOTECH

In the year 1999, humanity is locked in a Global Civil War that could mean the end of life as we know it, then an UFO of massive size crash lands on a small island in the South Pacific, called Macross. This unites the human race under the newly reformed UN, and the advanced science of the alien craft consumes the world as the UN rebuilds the alien mile-long ship. Secretly, the UN has formed the Robotech Defense Force to use the new science of Robotechnology for a means to defend the Earth, if and when the owners of the SDF-1 show up. In 2009, the SDF-1 is finished and during the party to celebrate the launch, the alien Zentraedi taskforce launches an assault on Macross Island to recapture the SDF-1. To attempt to put as much distance between the SDF-1 and Earth, they use the untested Space Fold system, and wind up near Pluto, along with Macross Island and the 70,000 civilians. For over a year, the SDF-1 and the newly reconstruction Macross City inside of its steel belly make the journey back to Earth, while the stories of Rick Hunter, Lisa Hayes, and Lynnn Minmay unfold. In 2011, the situation comes to head, rebel Zentraedi and the SDF-1 make a final stand against millions of loyal Zentraedi warships. The battle is won, Earth is scarred and billions are dead. The SDF-1 lands, and the survivors attempt to rebuilt. 2014 is a critical year for the Earth and the RDF, the newly built SDF-2 and stranded SDF-1 are destroyed by a last loyal Zentraedi strike. Rick and Lisa vow to built another SDF. In 2022, the newly constructed SDF-3 heads the Robotech Expeditionary Force that will attempt to go to the homeworld of the Robotech Masters, Tirol, and sue for peace. Earth is left in the hands of the military government of the Southern Cross.

While the REF is on the other side of the Milky Way, the Masters' show up around Earth in 2029, to claim the last of the Protoculture Matrixs, resulting in the Second Robotech War, while the REF is involved in a war with the Invid and forming the Sentinels Alliance. After one year, the 2nd Robotech War is over, and a battered Earth readies itself for another alien invasion, this time, in the form of the Invid, coming to claim the last Flowers of Life in the galaxy. Earth's resistance only lasts a few months. The REF attempts several taskforces to wedge the Invid out, but all met with defeat. When the 21st Mars Division of the REF, is defeat, one of the survivors, Lt. Scott Bernard, spends nearly two years travelling around the Americas gathering freedom fighters for the strike on the homebase of the Invid on Terra, Reflex Point. In 2044, The entire fleet of the REF enters the Sol System to end the war once and for all, however, the command ship, the SDF-3 with Rick and Lisa Hunter never appears.

The battle over Earth finally ends when the Queen-Mother of the Invid is signed that the Flower-of-Life is regrowing on Optera, and they consent to leave. This battle to liberate Terra costs most of the REF ships, and millions of lives. At the end of the original saga, Lt. Bernard climbs into his Alpha Fighter, and vows to find the SDF-3. Just after the final battle, the remains of the REF limp back to various space bases for repairs, while the search for the SDF-3 is planned out. It is during the this moment in the storm, that the Haydonites, former members of the REF's Sentient Alliance move to strike at the users of Protoculture and purge them from the galaxy creating, another Robotech war.

Timeline

1999-SDF-1 Crashes
2009- The Zentraedi Invasion of Macross, the beginning of the 1st Robotech War
2011-The entire Zentraedi Fleet arrives, millions of ships, attempts to end the war, they lose, but Earth is nearly destroyed resulting in billions dead and Earth scarred.
2014-The last "loyal" Zentraedi stage one final battle, the SDF-1 and SDF-2 are destroyed, Rick and Lisa vow to rebuilt.
2022-The Robotech Expeditionary Force leaves Terra for the Masters' homeworld, Tirol
2029-The Robotech Masters invade Earth.
2030-The Southern Cross barely wins, but the resulting final battle, spores of the Flower of Life are let loose across Earth, signing the Invid to come to Terra
2031-The still recovering Southern Cross is unable to withstand the Invid invasion, within months, the war is over, several ships abandon Terra and RV with the REF.
2031-2042-The REF mounts several attempts to liberate Terra, all with bitter defeats. When the 21st Mars Division is destroyed in Earth orbit, one of the suvivors, Lt. Scott Bernard, forms a guerrilla force to destroy Reflex Point, home of the Invid on Terra.
2042-2044, Scott Bernard's rebel group makes their way across the Americans, as the REF sends its entire fleet to end the occupation of Terra. The SDF-3 never arrives as the final battle is waged. During the battle, the Regress learns that Optera is re-flowering, and they consent to leave, but not before massive losses of life on both sides, along with most of the REF armada.
2044-The "current" time in the ROBOTECH Universe, the events of the Shadow Chronicles.

Protocultre? Invid Flower-of-Life? Robotechnology?

The Flower of Life is the key element in the ROBOTECH Saga, and the genesis of the Robotech wars. The plant was only native to the Invid homeworld of Optera, and used as their primary foodstuffs along with a key element in their religious life, it would later became a key element for a thousand years of galactic crisis and war.
When Zor, a explorer from the planet Tirol, discovered Optera, and the Invid society, he also discovered the amazing abilities of the Flower of Life. In its seed state, the Flower of Life can be used as an vast clean energy source when the process of cellular division is held in mid-stage. Zor seduced the Queen-Mother of the Invid, the Regress, and left Optera with samples of the Flower of Life. After returning to Tirol, this new energy source, called Protoculture, was able to fuel a vast interstellar empire and a new bio-mechanic science that led to the mecha seen in the ROBOTECH series. The society of Tirol transformed into the Robotech Masters, and using their giant mining slaves, the Zentraedi, to razed Optera clean of the Flower of Life. This twisted the entire Invid race onto a path of vengeance for the destruction of their way of life.The entire population of the Invid species, for hundreds of years, was devoted entirely to the war against the Robotech Masters.

In response, the Masters turned to cloning their own people and the Zentraedi to pilot their the new Protoculture-fueled war machines towards finally defending the Invid.

This war was over and run by the Protoculture, and Zor began to deeply regard his decision of bringing the Flower of Life to his people. Zor, using his own heavily armed science warship, the SDF-1, began seeding planets away from the conflict with the Flower of Life, it was during on of these operations, that the Invid got the jump on Zor and his Zentraedi bodyguards, led by Doza. During the battle, Zor sent the SDF-1 away to a small blue planet, known as Earth, then was killed by an Invid Shock Trooper (see ROBOTECH: Genesis, by Comico Comics, 1986). The body of Zor was taking back to Tirol, and the brain was probed, allowing the Master to locate the mental imagine of Earth, but not where it was located. Doza sent Breetai on a recovery operation that would forced the fleet to play hunt-and-find through a portion of the galaxy.

Why was the SDF-1 so important to the Masters? Zor had taken the last of the Protoculture Martixs with him, leaving the entire Robotech Masters' society and empire with the supplies they had, robbing them of the ability to create more.

Robotechnology was the human word for the creation of transforming mecha, and it wasn't until the REF that humans began using Protoculture to fuel their mecha, the war machines of the first two Robotech Wars were power by more traditional means.

The Invid Flower of Life and the use of the byproduct Protoculture fuel within the ROBOTECH saga draws similarities to the Spice-drug Melange from the DUNE Universe and its uses to fuel empires, near-immortality, space-travel, and wars that bring near destruction of civilization.

The historical context of ROBOTECH

ROBOTECH came at the intial wave of Anime/Manga interest in America, and its saga would fill a gap left open by independent TV stations who stopped running Battle of the Planets, Gundum, and Starblazers. At this time, there still were independent TV station outside of the Big Three networks, and they depended on interesting and unique material to bring eyeballs to the screens. Often, these were the stations were Anime was aired, and that was the case for me living in Oklahoma. ROBOTECH offered Television stations a long-term additive program,creating a market for comic books companies, robot models, and later, Matchbox Toys.

ROBOTECH did have a beachhead in the Japanese robot market, and it was not only the previously Anime series that aired on TV, it was also the 1980's Robotech Defenders model line from Revell. The original Japanese Super Dimensional series that ROBOTECH was based on had been in Japan since 1982, and the models were extremely popular. Seeing the new market for big Japanese robots, Revell bought the rights to sell and market the Macross and the Fang of the Sun model line in America, and they used the Robotech name. This could have bad news from Harmony Gold, but they reached a co-licensing deal. How I first heard of ROBOTECH was in 1984, via the models, and I even owned the DC Comics two-parter that forged a story for the mecha models independent of the Harmony Gold created universe and/or the original Macross. While the Macross and ROBOTECH endure to this day, the Revell line has disappeared into the realm of memory.

What happened to ROBOTECH II: The Sentinels?

When ROBOTECH was at its height in 1986, Harmony Gold decied it was time to forge a true sequel to the saga, and it seemed logical to tell the story of the Robotech Expeditionary Force (REF), and what happened to Rick, Lisa, Max, and other beloved characters from the Macross series, and the originals of characters in The New Generation. The REF mission was to find the homworld of the Masters, Tirol, and reach a peace deal with them before they launched their own invasion of Terra. But they were too late, the Invid had invaded and captured Tirol, forcing the Masters to seek out the Protoculture Martix inside the SDF-1. However, what the SDF-3 (rigged up to look like a Zentraedi warship) did find was six former slave races to the Masters fighting the Invid. The REF united with them to fight the Invid, and rise an fleet to liberate Earth later.

The SDF-3

Harmony Gold's plan was to create a 65 episode story arch for syndication market, Matchbox Toys to create another line of toys and other items, and for the Tatsunoko Productions to animate and script the new series, visually linking the Sentinels to the original saga.

Then everything went wrong, Matchbox's ROBOTECH toy line was not doing the numbers that Matchbox had projected, and they could not see that ROBOTECH II: the Sentinels wasn't going to be any different, causing Matchbox to pull out, who were the main backers of the project. However, Carl Macek has said repeatedly that the "crash of the Dollar-to-Yen exchange rate" caused Matchbox to pull out of the project. Another roadblock was the major differences between the Japanese series that composed the American ROBOTECH saga, which the Japanese animation studio had difficult with, causing delays, continuous meetings in Japan, and scripts to be done in America then shipped over.

With the pullout of Matchbox Toys, and rising production costs, Harmony Gold was forced to cancel the project all together with only three episodes completed. ROBOTECH II: the Sentinels did live on in the five-part book series by Jack McKinney, an attempted full (lackluster )comic adaption, but died after 80% completion by two comic companies, the Palladium Book RPG manuals (which are excellent!), an 1988 Starblaze Graphics Art book, and finally, the 1990 VHS release of the first three episode that shows the launch of the SDF-3, the Invid attack on Tirol, and the Hunters' wedding. One of the discs in the Protoculture edition DVD boxset by ADV Films is devoted to the Sentients. We fans of ROBOTECH have a theory on what really killed the Sentients, the poor quality of the series, both in script and animation. This theory came about after the 1990 VHS release of first three epsiodes of the Sentients, and we fans got to witness the 1980's horror that was the sequel to our beloved ROBOTECH, and how it simply did not live up to the original. Not was looking forward to seeing the Sentients than me in 1988, and no one has been more disappointed by its lack of development since.

What the Frak is ROBOTECH : The Movie?

*Sigh* No matter how great something is, there is dogshit somewhere in the mix of a fictional works' lifespan, Star Trek had Star Trek: V, Star Wars has the Holiday Special and the Prequels, and ROBOTECH has "the movie" from 1986. This redub of Megazone 23 aired in Dallas (where FWS is headquartered) for about a month in summer of '86, and then later at an LA animation con, and is not currently available on DVD, but there fan-copies. Despite being a massive ROBOTECH fan, I've never seen this, the trailer and music video by Three Dog Night was enough for me. ROBOTECH: The Movie was an attempt to tell the story between the launching of the REF in 2022 and the 2nd Robotech War in 2029. Much like the ROBOTECH series, Harmony Gold used the same tactic of taking an Anime series or OVA and redubbing it to fit within the ROBOTECH universe, this time it was Megazone 23. It has been said that Carl Macek was eyeing Megazone 23 to become another Harmony Gold syndication marketed series and that most of the Japanese staff that worked on the Super Dimensional series worked on Megazone 23, visually bridging the gap.
However, ROBOTECH: The Movie had a strangle plot that didn't fit organically into the main story-arch of the holy saga, where the Robotech Masters control a veteran RDF officer to steal some computer material that was taking from the wreckage of the SDF-1, among other subplots. To make the connection between the saga and this movie, Harmony Gold spliced in footage from the Masters to round this production.

The main issue with ROBOTECH: The Movie is that the original Megazone 23 story is close in spirit to the Matrix films and not a space opera, in the end, this movie had too many issues and plot gaps that could not filled via dubbing or spliced footage. One website did talk about massive production and staff conflicts that plagued ROBOTECH: The Movie and may have doomed the production. Over the years, some rewrites of the movie's plot were attempted, one in Jack Mckinney book The Masters' Gambit and the other in the 1986 Academy Comic limited series. ROBOTECH: The Movie was released in English on VHS in 1988 and on laser-disc in 1991. To this day, ROBOTECH: The Movie is not considered canon, and regards as some akin the Holiday Special of the ROBOTECH Universe....of course we never had Lisa Hayes singing "life-day"!
Here is a link to the best site about the movie:

http://www.robotech.patlabor.info/index.htm

From ROBOTECH: 3000 to the Shadow Chronicles

After the loss of the Sentinels in 1988, Harmony Gold was at a loss on how to continue the series, and build on the legions of ROBOTECH fans. There were attempts to bring Megazone 23 to the states, along with Super Dimension Century Orguss, but at the end, fans wanted more ROBOTECH. To quell the hungry, various novelization of the ROBOTECH wars were released by author Jack McKinney, including the Sentinels, scores of comic books, some good, some complete dog-shit, and the RPG. What I remember that got us through the drought was playing the ROBOTECH RPG, Battletech, and the assembling the endless stream of models from Japan.

Then in 2000 came ROBOTECH:3000 (As known as RT3K), and quickly, our hopes were dashed for a new series. The proposals all CGI series (similar to the Roughnecks) was to take place in the year 2999 (shocked!), when humanity (and maybe other races) have formed the Federation (where have I heard that one?), and been at peace for six hundred years, during this time, they have used Robotechnology to explore the galaxy. Onboard the Federation starship Corsair is sent out to check a distress signal from a mining colony, and the landing party is attacked by some sort of mutated friendly mecha. It seems that all Robotechnology is being turned against their masters.

The three-minute trailer was widely panned by fans, and it didn't help that the CGI SFX team that was behind Babylon 5 made ROBOTECH:3000 causing the "possessed" mecha to sound and look like the Shadows. What the fans wanted was Anime styled Mecha and characters that looked and sounded like the ones from the original saga that they remembered. One of the risks that Harmony Gold was running at this time was ROBOTECH was entering the realm of nostalgia territory, they would need to create a product that would bridge the gap between the original saga ans, and the up-and-coming generation of Anime fans.

The good news that came out ROBOTECH in the 2000s was the release of two, well-made, video games, ROBOTECH: Battlecry (2002) and ROBOTECH: Invasion (2004) that gave fans something to do while waiting for Harmony Gold to come up with the vehicle for the future for the saga. Then there were a variety of comics that covered the stories unseen in the ROBOTECH universe, like Colonel Wolfe's taskforce to Earth, the Global Civil War of the 1990s, the beginnings of the RDF (From the Stars), and the prelude to the Shadow Chronicles.

That vehicle was the ROBOTECH: The Shadow Chronicles. The studio as now under FUNimation and a new creative director that brought in script writers that were fans that grew up with the original saga. One of the first things that did right was casting as many of the original voice actors as possible, along with marrying the new style of Anime with the old via a Korean animation studio, DR Movie. They did bring new characters into the mix, ones from the old saga, and others from the aborted Sentinels storyline.

Shadow Chronicles picks up where at the end of the Invid War, and allows fans to see what happened to Scott Bernard, Ariel/Marlene, and Admiral Hunter. As a fan of the original saga, that holds ROBOTECH in a near realm, I liked the Shadow Chronicles, and integrated several of the concepts and rounded them out. The only negative element was the enemy of the Shadow Chronicles, who are the Haydonites, one of the original members of the REF/Sentient military alliance to destroy the Invid, but the Haydonites are a cybernetic race ruled by the central "Awareness" computer matrix, and they hate Protoculture! This causes a new war for the weary Earth, but will led to a new series?

The Future of ROBOTECH: Now What?!

There was a great deal of hope for us fans that a new era for ROBOTECH was on the horizon in 2006/2007 with the release of the Shadow Chronicles, then nothing...Even today, nothing seems to be happening with the ROBOTECH legacy. Yes, the website is active and keeps bring new badass toys into the fans, but there seems to be no movement on bring fresh ROBOTECH onto the current crop of American Anime lovers, and its original fans (like me) are starting to push 40 (not like me). The dream of a new ROBOTECH series was soon dashed by nothing coming out of Harmony Gold or FUNimation, and it seems that 2012, nothing will continue to happen. *Sigh*

Yes, there are rumors of a live-action ROBOTECH movie in the style of the Michael Bay's Transformers, but I didn't know if I want that...the live-action Space Cruiser Yamato was uneven and I'm worried that a live-action movie will destroy the dream that is ROBOTECH in my heart.

I wish the future of ROBOTECH was in my hands, and if I ever win the lottery and have a spare ten to twenty million, I'd make ROBOTECH II: the Sentient, and then end the series for all time. I think ROBOTECH is one of those stories that has an end, and since no one is able to write a good conclusion to the mystery of the lost SDF-3, then we leave it to the mystery, and allow our minds to chew on it.

FWS Topics: Hard or Soft?

2012-01-14T00:01:00.001-06:00

How do you like your science-fiction? One filled with near fantasy, but lean on the science, or one that keeps a hard line with being textbook correct. That question that the vast majority of science-fiction creators asked themselves this about the type of science fiction they are developing, and the fork in the road is: Hard or Soft. This seems to be a question raised about how you like your eggs, or martial arts, or even a dirty joke, but what the author or creator chooses will define his fictional work. To illustrate the difference between the two paths, just examine the 1979 Battlestar Galactica and the 2003 Ronald Moore relaunch, while one took their look and soft-serve science from Star Wars, the new BSG was under the commandment "Thou shall be real", in the series bible, Ron Moore called it "naturalized science fiction". To be clear, I'm not saying that one type of sci-fi is better than another, some of the most successful sci-fi works are as soft as frozen yogurt, like Star Wars and Stargate SG-1. Some softer science fiction works can just or even more compelling than 100% hard sci-fi, like DUNE, and one can see in the 1968 2001 how boring hard sci-fi can be, or how great in 2009 Virtuality pilot or the 1972 Soviet Solaris.

We discuss the subject of realism, while I am working on a blogpost about realism and MSF, it would seem that realism would be firmly in the realm of hard science fiction, real science=realism, right? Well, not really. One of the more hard sci-fi movies 2001: A Space Odyssey, is frankly, a bore, the humans characters are woody, and the best character of them all is the HAL-9000! Then we take the example of ALIENS, the futuristic military and space travel is all realistic, the atmosphere processor seems like real science, but overall, its quasi-soft sci-fi, and one of the best science fiction movies ever made. It's not just with machines or technology that a creator gives realism to a fictional work, its with the characters, the situation, and how they conduct themselves. Here is my rubic for the requirements and their examples of the science seen in science-fiction.

HARD Sci-Fi

Real, one hundred percent hard science fiction were the creator puts Sir Issac Newton in the driver seat, is rare. Partly this has to do with the extreme popularity of Star War and Star Trek, coloring the pool of future writers, along with the extreme amount of research needed to generate a hard science fictional space tale that can pass the acid test (just look at the atomic rocket website!). To maintain the "hard" label, these fictional story must conform to the current understanding of science, which means in short: no aliens, no FTL, and starships that use heat radiator.
Most works that are considered hard sci-fi often revert to fast-than-travel devices or space aliens, and this rules them more to the quasi-hard sci-fi section, because Dr. Freeman nor Dr. Kaku have discovered hyperspace or xenomorphs living on LV-426. Some might consider the films 2001 and 2010 hard science works, however, the Hubble telescope as yet to discovery any floating menacing black monoliths near Jupiter...or maybe NASA is covering them up?

Examples:

Hard science fiction exists more in the realm of the printed word than movies or TV shows, however, the few that do are well worth the time. One of my favorites is the failed 2009 pilot for FOX by Ronald Moore called Virtuality, where Earth's first nuclear pulse propulsion vessel (one of the rare examples), the Phaeton is about to break away from the Sol system towards Epsilon Eridani to search for a habitual planet since Earth is dying. The crew is realistic in jobs, and daily life is shown along with spinning sections to provide gravity. to relax the dozen members of the Phaeton jack into a VR program. This show could have been one of the best ever made for the idiot box, but was never picked up, the two-hour pilot is on DVD, and is worth picking up.
One of the best known, and not really thought of has hard science is the much loved Firefly, where space as no sound, there is no aliens or FTL, and colonized worlds of the 'verse are products of Terraforming. We also see the good crew of the firefly class vessel, the Serenity, concerned over fuel, finding work to pay for their next meal, and not crashlanding. Truly, Firefly was one of the most enjoyable hard sci-fi series ever.

Another rare example comes from Anime, which is not known for scientifically accurate sci-fi program, but Makoto Yukimura's 26 episode epic called Planets is concerned 100% hard science, even having the Japanese space agency involved with the series, which even has the medical impact of long-term zero-gee exposure. The story itself is about in orbit space junk clean-up crews, the exportation of Jupiter and space terrorism. In 2004, another small-screen work by the BBC, called Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets followed a group of astronauts on a tour of the solar system in a nuclear thermal rocket called the Pegasus. Here is the opening to the BBC Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets (2004):

QUASI-HARD Sci-Fi

To most consumers of sci-fi, the works that fall into quasi-hard science fiction seem like scientific accurate works, however they normally involve the story containing aliens, and/or faster-than-light propulsion, or some other small element that makes no sense to laws of physics. Most of these works are 70%-90% scientifically accurate, but are forced to hand wave certain elements, like ET life and/or FTL to make the story happen as the author sees it. Two of the real-science technologies left out regards starship design: artificial gravity via spinning sections, and heat radiators.This is the same reason that Avatar, while presenting one of the most scientifically accurate starship ever seen onscreen and realistic future ground forces didn't make the hard sci-fi cut: big smurf feline smurfs.

One of fine example is the reimagined Battlestar Galactica, where 80% of the science is correct, but there is still unscientific elements, like the use of space fighters (most hard sci-fi sites, like Atomic Rockets says that fighters are a no-no in hard sci-fi), FTL, no heat radiators, and unknown methods of generating Earth-normal gravity, however, to credit, BSG, they present the FTL with more much realism than most works, especially ones on TV. In Ronald Moore's Battlestar, the Galactica must use maps, telescopes, and scouting expedition to pick jump-sights, to avoid jumping into a solid mass. The fighters of both Cylon and the Colonies use chemically propelled 30mm cannons, and mostly of the ACM tactics seem geared to the reality of outer space than retrofitted Earth-bound dogfights.

One thing I noticed to day, while watching BSG, is that the Galactica and other members of the ragtag fleet always have their Tylium-fueled engine motors on full. Why? It seemed that Mr. Moore forgot about the law of motion as it applies in space.
It's these little elements that keep shows like BSG and ABC's 2009 more-or-less hard science Defying Gravity from being 100% hard science. Where it was space fighters and FTL that kept BSG from hard science fiction rating, it was a mysterious life form that picked up on Mars that was hitchhiking on the hard science designed Antares space ship on its cruiser around the solar system. An interesting note, the hard sci-fi BBC Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets that inspirited the creation of American Defying Gravity.

Examples:

One of my favorite quasi-hard sci-fi novels, is The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell, where the alien music is picked up and the Jesuit order decides to fund an expedition to the Alpha Centurai system, to get there, a hallowed asteroid is used as the basis for a starship. Along with this, the alien species is realistic designed and novel is one of the finest sci-fi novels written. In the realm of military science fiction, the first book by Robert Buettner, former CIA employee, The Orphanage is more or less hard science, save for the "slug" aliens that attempt to wage a distinct war with the Earth via kinetic projectiles that wiped out cities.

The Earth was at peace until the Slugs showed up, and military technology along with space exploration has all regressed. The novel details an emergency military expedition with modified Vietnam-era kit to Ganymede, the home to the Slug's bomb base. Then there is one of the finest sci-fi writers and his best-known novel, Stanislaw Lem's 1961 masterpiece Solarius,which is one of Nigel's favorites as well, details are more realistic encounter with alien life and shows realistic space travel.

QUASI-SOFT Sci-Fi

This type of science-fiction normally has its fans or even the show itself insisting on its hard scientific credentials by the creators' using some scientific theories, consulting with NASA, and of these, none meet the title as justly as Star Trek, especially, The Next Generation. This quasi-soft science fiction, like most, uses some elements of real science,Matter/anti-Matter energy generation, or deflector arrays to protect the Enterprise-D from micro-meteors, and even the ingenious inertial dampers, to avoid, as the technical manual put, "turning the crew into chucky salsa". However, at its heart, these quasi-soft sci-fi works do not obey some basic laws of physics, like Star Trek using weapons at supra-light speeds, and lack of time dilation, for the sake of the story. This makes quasi-soft science fiction and its relationship with hard science a marriage of convenience.

Examples:

Along with the entire Star Trek saga being relegated to this rating, there is another science fiction series offer boasts about being hard science, Babylon 5. While its true that B5 did use real science and scientific theory in designing the Babylon Five O'Neil station, the warships of the Earth Force that seem use the USSR Leonov from 2010 as a template, especially the Omega class. Then there are the Earth Force Starfury fighters, which could be the most hard science design for a space fighter seen on screen. But, that is where B5 ends its brief love affair with hard science, because if we look at the more advanced races of the Babylon 5 universe, the Minbari and Vorlon and their advanced technology, it seems to say that you can overcome the laws of physics via higher knowledge. When the series and the wars came to end, we see the Earth Force use new technology in their Warlock warship to "overcome" those pesky laws.

Another example is from wayback in 1988, called Earth Star Voyager, this Disney/ABC production was a sci-fi series plot, turned into a movie for young people (like me! Well, in 1988) to show how cool science was so we would major in it, and then kick collective USSR ass later in the future. The basic plot was similar in some aspect to 2009's Virtuality where a dying Earth sends out a long-range explorer vessel to a relatively nearby star system to hunt for a Goldilocks planet. The kicker was that most of the crew was beyond 18 years old, due to the length of the journey there and back again. During the several hours of bad 80's writing, and model SFX, the pimple-faced crew of the Earth Star Voyager construct a homebrew magnetic gun and "solar laser".

SOFT Sci-Fi

Some of the most familiar science fiction works, especially those on the big and small screen, are scientifically hard as frozen yogurt, and chief among them is Star Wars. Within soft sci-fi, there are works that break the most basic laws of physics and nature, I've seen people survive the vacuum of space (see Robotech), and destroy entire worlds with ancient Imperial Japanese battleship.

As I've stated above, just because a sci-fi work is mushy on the science, doesn't translate to the story being bad, or unworthy of praise. Some of the greatest sci-fi stories are soft science, like the Star Wars saga, HALO, Doctor Who, the Fifth Element and the greatest science fiction novel of all time: DUNE. For a story to bridge the gap between the textbook and the realm of fantasy that the audience can believe, than that is up to the story teller to weave a great tale, and it seems to help if they have kick ass toys as well.

Examples:

There can be no better example of soft-serve sci-fi than mystic Samurai-like warriors that wear flammable robes using an energy sword to intersect and counter incoming laser blaster bolts. There is simply no spiritual training or secret martial art that can enable the human body react fast enough to block a laser beam, even if it's not going lightspeed, but of course, Lucas as trouble remembering what a parsec is! Then there is another popular sci-fi saga, Stargate, which also throws out the science textbook to have some portal-jumping fun! I've never really liked any of the Stargate series that much, never felt like they lived up to the promise of the concept.

Of course, it does help that when they use real-science weaponry, like railguns mounted to the Daedalus Earth battlecruiser, and fail to do the research. When I applied the rubric of types of sci-fi, I was forced to put a few of my favorites on this soft-serve list: Robotech, Space Cruiser Yamato,and HALO.

FWS Review: HALO Combat Evolved Anniversary

2012-01-07T12:36:00.000-06:00

In 2001, the new high-powered video game console, the Xbox seemed like a stillborn property, that was until we gamers discovered one of the finest games ever made: HALO: Combat Evolved. Now, a decade later, the spin-off of Bungie, 343 Industries, has visual reconstructed the journey as a love letter to the fans and future fans. This was the only game I ask for Christmas, and I have been spellbound replaying the campaign and the new Firefight level, giving ,e a back from Call of Duty: MW3. So, here is the FWS review of HALO: Combat Evolved Anniversary (HCEA).

What they changed and what they didn't change

Let me clear something up, HCEA does use a modded version of the HALO: Reach engine, but Anniversary looks nothing like that game, it appears more like the 2001 original, like a visual retrofitting. In a majority of the ways, HCEA has been tweaked in small ways, adding up to a more more detail, rich, smoother gameplay experience. This doesn't take away from the original experience of the game. In comparsion between the 2011 HALO: Combat Evolved and the original classic 2001 edition, is the way that the Aston Martin DBS is slightly better than the Aston Martin DB9, or the Porsche 911 Carerra S is slightly better overall than the standard 911 Carerra, however, the original standard version of these cars are epic in their own way.
The gamer developers did not add HALO: Reach weapons, nor the alien enemies, or the melee Assassination system, everything is as you remember it, only much frakking better.
Rest assured, the vast majority of weapons from the original are still the same, UNSC MA5B still is like it was in 2001, along the M6 .50 pistol, but the alien weaponry as been visually improved, more so than the UNSC weaponry, like the plasma bolts being smaller. What has been changed, in terms of weapons, is their sounds, and this is for the better.

The tweak that I was the most disappointed with was the Warthog, in HCEA it sounds like a diesel, when it actually runs off of hydrogen, and is much slower to get moving, and slower overall.

Two welcome addition to the HCEA disc was the Installation 04 Firefight map, and the Terminals. This new Firefight map does have NPC ODST soldiers to help you, and fully uses the HALO: Reach weapons, enemies, and mechanics, but be warned, this is crack-like addictive. The other new addition elements, is the Terminals, which you hunt and find around the levels of the campaign. This are pieces of the story from the POV of monitor Guilty Spark 343, its life onboard Installation 04 after the Forerunners all die off, the appearance of the humans and aliens to the ring, and hints of something else. Some sources have said that these Terminal stories are hints at the storyline and main enemy for the new HALO trilogy coming in Holiday of 2012 (most likely November).

Here is video of a comparison of the 2001/2011 weapons:

The GOOD

It had been a about a year since I played the original HALO campaign, due to playing realistic military shooters like Modern Warfare and Medal of Honor, then after playing Reach, it seemed that the old game was going to be pushed further back in the game cabinet. What HCEA did was rocket one of the best video games of all time back in the hands and minds of gamers, and re-lit the love for the game that started it all. The one of the best parts of HCEA is that 343 Industries didn't frak with it, they visually updated it, making it more of retrofitted game by keeping the positives and negatives. I had been worried when I read that the Reach engine had been used for the game, which would have altered HCEA into another game, resigning the 2001 original edition to the archaeological status. But what they did instead was polish an already legendary game.

The BAD

The issues and problems that existed with the original HALO: Combat Evolved crop back up in this update, like the repetitive enemies types, walking through the Installation 04 over and over, the helplessness of your marine allies, and so on. But, the 2011 update itself, there is nothing bad here, in fact, I loved HALO more after playing it.

The UGLY

The only ugly portion of the entire HCEA is the cutscene face animation, which I never had a problem with in any of the HALO games, but somehow, 343 Industries made everyone look like they have buck teeth...or maybe the UNSC's dental plan is lacking or dental technology of the 26th century has taking step backwards. I am honestly shocked that 343 Industries would allow this flaw to make it to the final product.

Should you buy this Game?

That depends on how you reacted to the original HALO: Combat Evolved, if you hated the original game, than you should save your money for therapy, because this game is still the same game, just visually updated. The same issues and problems that people had with the campaign still exist in HCEA. If you loved HALO, like I do, than you must likely own this game and are playing it now.

FWS Topics: What are We doing in Space?

2012-01-07T10:57:00.001-06:00

Last night, I was at Barnes & Noble with the family, picking through the latest MSF novels, Porsche and gun magazines, when I came across the current issue of Astronomy Magazine, it had a cover story about what we are doing in space. I was even more floored when it was writing by none other than Brian May of the rock band Queen! Brian May, for those who do not know, is not only a brilliant and gifted guitarist, but also has an PhD in Astrophysics from Imperial College in 2007.

He gave a speech at STARMUS in June of 2011 that was not only thought provoking, but rings true historical speaking, and lends credence to sci-fi works like Avatar. Here is the transcript of the speech, which is a work of Brian May, PhD, and should be credited to such.
Before you begin reading this speech, it is a harsh review of mankind and its activities on this planet, and for the record, I'm not some extreme hippy gun-hating environmentatist, but I am worried about the future of our planet and the human race in general, I know that we, has a species, are not prepared for what is coming. I am also a realist and an historian, that is fully aware of the darker side of human expansion and its price. I grew up in Oklahoma, I went to school with members of the Poncan Tribe and was even engaged to a member of the Potawatomi Tribe, there I witnessed the legacy of western colonization, and possible the face of the future if and when we encounter any alien species. This blog is devoted to military science fiction, and I know that as there are wars here on Earth there will be worlds on new planets, either between ourselves or others that may exist out there. But when I read Brian May's speech it made me think about the present and the future.
I hope it does you too.

WHAT ARE WE DOING IN SPACE?

Starmus 22 June 2011

I could be perhaps perceived as an ideal contributor to this STARMUS conference, since I carry credentials from both music and Astronomy. But in this company I feel very humbled. My qualification as an astronomer is an Astrophysics PhD from Imperial College, on the Motions of Interplanetary Dust, and my credentials as a musician are 40 years recording and touring the world as a member of the rock group Queen, and as a solo artist. As an astronomer, I could very easily speak to you in depth and with confidence on the motions of Interplanetary Dust. As a musician, I could speak to you with some authority on what it’s like to play an A chord at 10,000 watts in Wembley Stadium. But the subject I’ve chosen to speak on today, and the subject that Garik asked me to speak on – because it’s something we have spoken about many times over the years I’ve known him, is a subject I cannot approach with confidence. I approach it with some trepidation, because I cannot be an expert in this area. But also because I feel the weight of worry that what I’m contributing may sound negative, and almost ungrateful, in the company of our brilliant guests, men who have trod the moon and space. Some of what I have to say is speculative, and I hope that our astronauts will be able to put me straight later on and tell me in which parts of my thesis I’m talking out of my hat.

I stand before you today, to address you neither as a musician nor as a scientist, but as a Human Being.

It will be entirely non-technical. I suppose I have an unusual viewpoint, albeit not quite as unusual as our esteemed guest astronauts here, but because I have glimpsed the world from the extremes of the environments of pure art and pure science, and I’ve seen quite a lot of this world.

I’ve been absolutely enchanted by the talks at this conference. Enchanted, stimulated, astounded – because the speakers have all been able to answer so many questions about what we know about the Universe we live in. But I won’t be answering questions in this talk.

It has been amazing for me to meet the astronauts and learn from them how much they share this concern … how much they care for the planet … for the animals … for mankind, a mankind not split into fragments.

My mission here today is purely to frame a question. It’s a question I do not intend to answer, but I hope to stimulate some discussion among the assembled company – most of you here are not only at the pinnacle of current thought, but influential in the world at large.

My Question is simple:

WHAT ARE WE DOING IN SPACE?

There is more than one shade of meaning in this apparently simple enquiry. On the surface is the purely factual question of what is currently happening in the Human Race’s exploration of the space around our planet, - which has largely been answered already in this great conference – and very exciting it is too.

But my enquiry extends deeper to the question of what our motives truly are, in our further exploration, and ultimately to whether the motives on which we are acting stand up beside our picture of the Human Race in the context of the Universe as a whole. In other words, to cut to the chase: now that the door to the conquest of Space has been opened by brilliant scientists and engineers, and brave explorers, is the rest of the Mankind ready, or indeed worthy, to walk through that door?

And … if we walk through, in bulk … what will we take into Space?

How did this begin? Amazingly it is half a century since Man first ventured outside the thin layer of life-giving atmosphere which surrounds our blue planet. In the 1950s and 60s we saw two powerful nations, the USA, and what was then called the USSR, who were in a state of so-called ‘Cold War’ with each other, both pumping money and human ingenuity into building space rockets to take Man into space. The first steps were very much like Jules Verne’s projectile – a capsule shot into near Space, and then allowed to follow its natural parabolic trajectory, in free fall, back to Earth. It was ascertained that a man could survive in the near vacuum of Space using microcosmic support systems inside metal containers, the first manned space vehicles, and even outside the capsules in the first space suits - our venerable guest ALEXEI LEONOV proved this by his personal courage.

So now it was clear that Humans could journey into Space.

What ensued was a Space Race … a rush to be the first nation to put a human foot on the Moon. Why? Was it in the spirit of exploration, of discovery, or pure human curiosity? Yes, all of these. We know that the two men behind American and Russian initiatives, Von BRAUN and KOROLOEV had dreamed of a moon landing all their lives. But if human curiosity was the only motive, why did the two nations not collaborate? What wonderful way to mend bridges it might have been … to work on such a noble project hand in hand. But of course they didn’t. Why? Because the whole subtext of this endeavour was, just as it had been 40 years earlier for Von Braun in Germany, making V2 rockets to Bomb London – Military. (In Russia KOROLOEV was doing the same job.) The dreams were there, shared by the astronauts, the engineers, the astronomers, who worked on this project. But why did it get the billions of dollars it needed in funding, to make it happen?

Well, I don’t think we can avoid the thought that it was because of quite different reasons. Not only did the conquest of the Moon look like it could give superior spying power, and fire power for the nation who got there first, but the prestige, the bravado, the impression of military might, would surely frighten all nations into submission. The power behind the two National efforts was – in fact – military. I must stress that, by ‘military’, I do not mean that this was the idea of the armed forces. No – what I’m referring to is the military aspirations of politicians, which have to be carried out by armed forces who are often all too aware of the flaws in the reasoning of the politicians.

From then on, one wonders what happened to the motivation – the power. Yes, there were more moon landings – 12 people have walked upon our Moon. But we are now 50 years on, and does it not seem incredible that the huge momentum of that time did NOT translate into a colonization of the Moon by now, half a century later?

Those 50 years have seen thousand-fold leaps in expertise, computer technology, the birth of the Internet – how come this outreach into space stalle? Buzz told us in his address to us that after the clear objective of the first moon landing had been achieved, it became harder to be clear about the objective, and harder to keep the support for the continuing exploration going. Yes – that must be so. But it’s tempting to also theorise that the political ‘powers-that-be’ did not see any immediate advantage in pursuing this path any further. They turned their eyes in other directions. And they were actually quite open about it. Kennedy spoke of Man’s ambition to explore the cosmos in the pursuit of pure knowledge – but the word Star Wars was coined to describe the ambitions of the development of unmanned weaponry in Space instigated by President Ronald Reagan in the 1980 – the Strategic Defence Initiative. And meanwhile, the mighty Saturn rockets no longer roared, and the Moon was left alone.

I can only guess, but I look at a recent failure of an application to study Zodiacal Dust to secure funds of about 10,000 pounds to make further studies of its motions, and contrast it with the roughly 330 million dollars that were allocated for NASA to hit Comet Tempel 1 with a projectile, and please don’t tell me that military considerations have nothing to do with the decision making process. I don’t doubt the sincerity of the scientists who pulled off this feat, but how jolly for the politicians to be able to demonstrate to the world that the USA can hit a target at 100 million miles!

The prime motivation for much of the money allocated to space exploration is evidently still tied up with the military, and with political power. …

If it’s true, are we happy with that? Does that make it the right kind of motivation?

IS THIS WHAT WE WILL TAKE INTO SPACE - through that door - into the future?

Do we take Military ambition? Do we take we take Economic ambition? Politics, economics, and the military seem always to conspire. Do we take the greed and selfishness of big business into Space? Will we rejoice, when we get off the lunar shuttle, in seeing a McDonalds sign? Kentucky Fried Chicken ? Gucci, L’Oreal, Hedge Funds, Insurance brokers?

But what else do we take into Space? Well, probably a continuation of our present behaviour – right?

We need new lands, do we? The Earth is no longer big enough for us? Right? So, briefly … shall we look at the damage we have done already to our own beautiful planet … a planet uniquely perfectly suited to our needs, and the needs of all the creatures who, as Richard Dawkins has reminded us, each at the pinnacle of their evolutionary path, worthily share the Earth with us. Looking at our planet from afar … it looks so peaceful, clean, gentle, unsullied. It evolved over millions of years, with its flora and fauna, its delicate balance of emergent LIFE. But this paradise, this Eden, is not showing us the hurt it has endured, in the mere couple of hundred years since Man became all-powerful. It’s hard to imagine, now, what the Earth was like, just 300 years ago, before we covered it with roads, concrete and fast food chains.

It was literally teeming with life. It’s said that when Captain Cooke first dropped anchor in the Seychelles, there were so many turtles in the sea, you could walk on them all the way to the shore.

It’s said that when the last rail was laid on the first railroad across the USA, you could travel from coast to coast and there was never a time when you couldn’t see buffalo.

Where do we even start to assess the impact we have had on our planet? Garik Israelian pointed out to me that, ironically, we have produced so much light pollution, that most of us can no longer see the stars from where we live … so maybe we have to go into space to see them!

There are already thousands of pieces of debris whizzing around in orbit around the Earth … the remains of spent rockets, and deceased vehicles, from large lumps of machinery, down to stray nuts and bolts – all travelling at thousands of miles a second, not great if they hit you at 20,000 miles per hour as you venture into space.

But let’s look seriously at the mess we make right here - the pollution from humans … its effect on the Earth.

Buzz Aldrin, two days ago in this room, said that getting to Mars will be good for us … we will learn to conserve and recycle on Mars … it will teach us to be better people. I can’t help asking if it might be better if we learned to conserve and recycle and be better people before we colonise Mars? It’s hardly necessary to point out every detail of the way we have treated our planet … how, in only 200 years, we have driven so many land animals into extinction, and are well on the way to doing the same to the creatures who live in the sea. Those of us who are old enough to have been scuba diving for 30 years observe with dismay how much the seas have been impoverished in our lifetime. How we have stripped the planet of most of its vegetation, the very lungs of our world on which we depend for air. How we have pumped so much pollution into our atmosphere that we can’t tell if we are causing global climate change or not.

Is THIS the kind of behaviour WE’RE GOING TO TAKE INTO SPACE?

Every species of animal currently living on Earth, each a triumph of evolution, logically would seem to have the same rights to a decent life and a decent death, as us humans. But somehow – in the rush to propagate our species, the notion came into our heads that really, somehow, Man was the only species that mattered. So we now calmly justify the expandability of every animal on the planet, in the name of advancing our own progeny. Suppose we find that intelligent life we’re so excited about looking for tomorrow? How will we treat it?

At this moment, billions of animals – sentient creatures - are confined in degrading and ghastly conditions, many bred for nothing but to make the most profit out of food production … Cows, Pigs, Chickens, Turkeys, many of them so hideously genetically manipulated that they cannot support their own weight … animals that live a life of constant pain, only to be subjected to a violent, premature death, their torture bodies heading out in shrink-wrap on to supermarket shelves. Read “Eating Animals" by Jonathan Safran Foer, if you want the details.

IS THIS the kind of behaviour WE WILL TAKE INTO SPACE?

At this moment billions of mammals, sentient cognizant creatures, are confined in pitiful conditions, deprived of any sensory experience, tortured in the name of scientific research, medical research, the making of cosmetics, and other lame excuses. I have been working with the Hadwen Trust in the UK, which has already demonstrated that progress in medicine may actually be accelerated by the replacement of ALL animals used in medical research, by eliminating pointless and irrelevant experiments, inconclusive because animals react differently from humans to most drugs anyway ... the most tragic demonstration being Thalidomide – a drug passed by animal experimentation as safe for humans, leading to its prescription as a cure for nausea in pregnancy. The result was multiple birth defects, carving a hole in a whole generation of babies.

Is THIS what we’ll take into Space?

At this moment, birds are being bred in tiny boxes, to be released on British moors in a condition in which they basically can’t fly properly, so they can be mown down by armies of men with guns, in the name of sport. At this moment, gangs of men on horseback are lying about what they are doing out in the countryside … claiming that their packs of hungered dogs ‘accidentally’ stumbled upon a fox and tore it limb from limb. Yes, they call fox-hunting - even though it’s now illegal in Britain - a ‘sport’. They claim that torturing a wild animal to death in the name of sport is a ‘human right’ (even though this concept was roundly dismissed in the European Court in 2009).

Is THIS what we’ll take into Space?

At this moment, backed by the governments they have helped to install, farmers whose intensive farming methods have led to the proliferation of disease in livestock, and subsequently to the infection of the wild animals around them, are clamouring for the slaughter of the wild animals whose lives have been blighted by these diseases. The British government has recently announced its determination to cull our native Badgers, in spite of the fact that scientific experiment has proved that culling of Badgers will not even contribute to what they are trying to achieve … the control of bovine TB in cattle.

Is this disregard for the welfare of animals what we will take into Space?

Just supposing we are lucky enough to find animal life out there … is this the way we will reat it?

This is how we treat the other species on the planet. But how do we treat our own kind?

Armstrong and Aldrin planted a worthy plaque on the moon, a photo of which we saw this week … saying … “We come in peace, in the name of all mankind” … and I don’t doubt for a second that this thought was in their hearts and minds. But what did we do, walking through that other door many years ago – the door that the gentle peace-loving pilgrim fathers opened to the other New World? We all but exterminated the indigenous population, the North American Indians, along with the buffalo with which they were interdependent. We enslaved the people of Africa because we thought they were less deserving than us of freedom and dignity. A shameful history.

Slavery was abolished by the efforts of William Wilberforce only a hundred and fifty or so years ago. Yet we all know that human trafficking is still rife. Young labour is imported to all Western countries, kept in conditions of no contact with the outside world. Children are abducted to be used for the pleasure of perverts, in an industry which is spread out across the so-called civilized world. Children are made to work on toxic dumps, seeking out chemicals which will ultimately kill them, and then, worse, the people who keep them enslaved make them endure sexual abuse in return for pickings of the best toxic waste. We fight wars for territory, for political power, we call ourselves peace-keepers yet we use our might to make war in impoverished countries, often protecting regimes of questionable morals. We play God, attempting to change the leadership of countries to suit our own economic needs.

Our record of abuse to animals matched by our record of abuse to our own kind.

\So what will we take into Space? All of this?

If we allow large numbers of men to go into space, who is to stop a country building a military base on the Moon? Or on a conveniently hard-to-monitor asteroid? And using it to bring about the next Hiroshima The next act of destruction committed in the name of keeping peace – or spreading what we call democracy Perhaps the next Hiroshima will be New York, or Moscow, or London. Suddenly the conquest of Space takes on a huge heavy overtone.

We all know the story of COPENHAGEN - the story of the agonies of indecision of Oppenheimer and his colleagues, on whether or not to give the secrets of making an Atom Bomb to their governments. We know what the result was. It is too late to take back the nuclear bomb from the politicians of the world. But it may not be too late to look at that door that leads into Space - no – surely not to close it – but at least put some regulation on it … to stop the proliferation of Man’s foul temper, man’s aggressive behaviour out in the hitherto untouched Cosmos.

Is it possible for Scientists, Artists, men of understanding and empathy, to take a moral stand - take hold of the reins of future exploration of Space, to make laws governing the further exploitation of lands outside Earth? To contain the evils we have wrought on our own world - and behave decently out there?

Maybe the door needs to be held just ajar for a time, while we turn our attentions to the millions of people on this planet who are starving, or dying of diseases which are curable, yet they cannot afford the cure. There many who would question whether even one more rocket ought to be fired while there is still one child dying unnecessarily, while there are still people suffering torture because of their beliefs, animals suffering torture for our pleasure.

Is it a lost cause? Must we conclude that Man, in bulk, is indeed unworthy to step off the tiny blue world, which he has all but destroyed in his folly?

I’m sorry if any of this has seemed negative.

I have actually agonized over whether I ought to give this talk at all … nobody loves the pursuit of knowledge more than I do … I love the simple beauty of science … which enriches our lives … just as I love the simple beauty of music which feeds our souls. I was also a boy who dreamed of being a space man … Dan Dare was my hero … a fictional man of honour, courage and moral rectitude, just like the great men we have shared this festival with these magical days ... the real-life astronauts of our time. We have heard each one of these men express their determination that the future of Space must be shared by all nations - sitting in my room last night, I didn’t want to be the one to doubt that the Human Race could pull it off.

But there is a huge positive side to all this. To asking this question, at this time. This is an opportunity. This could be a new start for Mankind … and many of the people who can make a difference to the future are in this room. If you - if WE don’t ask this question, and take some action, to ensure that we get the right answer … who will?!

OK – for the last time, I ask the question … if we do open the door wide … can we, as concerned scientists, artists, and human beings, find a way to propagate just the decent, noble parts of our civilization?

Not cruelty, but empathy and compassion.

Not greed – but generosity,

Not Conflict - but Cooperation,

Not War - but Peace, in which all men, all women, all creatures, share the glorious gifts of Nature.

The glorious gift OF LIFE.

For now, in a sense, we are all participants at a new Copenhagen.

Thank you.

FWS Topics: Space Marines

2012-01-03T19:01:00.000-06:00

During the times of the Greeks and Romans, there have been seaborne soldiers separated from their counterparts on the land. This tradition of sea-based soldiers continues today with the marines that serve in the vast majority of militaries as elite flexible rapid-response naval warriors.
This fact is not lost on the writers and/or creators of military sci-fi, who first began using the term "marine" to represent their futuristic fleet-based soldier in 1932, with Captain Brink of the Space Marines published by Amazing Stories. It was not until 1986's ALIENS that the theory of a space-based marine corps received wide spread exposure. After this, the trend of naming futuristic off-world soldiers 'marines' exploded to the point of cliche in seemingly every book, RPG, and video game.
The trend as only picked up with the invention of e-books, even a simple Amazon search revels that majority of these self-published novels are using the term "marine" to cover their own deep-space light infantry.

The Role of Contemporary Marine Forces

The Marines of today primary mission is a nation's force-in-readiness, that is able to response to a crisis situation much faster than it's big army brothen. This rapid deployment angle is increased when these marines are stationed within a naval expeditionary taskforce. Marine forces, number much smaller than the big army, for example the USMC is about 203,000 with 40,000 in reserve, while the US Army numbers about a million. The same is true of the British Royal Marine Commandos, who number under 7,000, however, unlike the USMC, the British marines also specialize in Arctic warfare.
What sets the marines from the big army are their ability to stage waterborne invasions, their unique culture, especially in the USMC, which prides itself on having every marine being able to engage in combat if needed.
Another element that sets the marine corps from the big army is a fw unique vehicles, like the V-22 Osprey, the LAV-25 light armor vehicle, the AAVP-7 amphibious armored vehicle, Harrier jump-jet, and the Air-cushioned landing craft (technically, part of the US Navy). despite their status and hardcore training, the USMC has suffered from limited budgets, older equipment, and being overshadowed by the Army in ongoing combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan

The near future of the current USMC, is being explored by the US Military via the USMC, USAF, and DARPA, have explored the possibility of deploying a small team of marines under the SUSTAIN and/or Hot-Eagle Project. These special marine teams would be like first responders, using military Scramjet spaceplanes to get from the USA to any global point within 120 minutes. The idea as been around since the 1950's, and the current Hot-Eagle Project as been around since 2002, with little or no further development.

The Role of Space Marines

What would a realistic space marine look like if and when we colonize other star systems, and project military power out there? In keeping with their maritime heritage, space marine units would serve in space fleet expeditionary forces, being ready for operations on colonies, mining operations, and shipping routes. This would also play into their rapid-response aspect, the space marines would be able to project power onto regions of space, faster than a space army (forgive the term). However, given the realistic nature of FTL/Time Dilation, its possible space marines would be kept during cryo conditions until needed (like that pound of hamburger meat in the back of the freezer), causing space marines to be far removed from their own time period, and possibly distance the marines from the ones they protect and isolated from normal society after their service (see The Forever War).

Given their role as rapid deployment forces, it is possible that these ship-based space marines would unitize power armor suits instead of traditional armored vehicles, much like what was seen in the Starship Troopers book and Starcaft's Terran Marine Corps, a limited elite force of enforcers of the government's planetary holdings, borders, and laws. During major engagements, these space marines would be limited by their government's starlift capacity and FTL. Literery, how much war material they could move to the planetary battlefield, and how fast they could get there. These factors would transform the job of space marine, in planetside battles, to a holding force, that waited on the speed of the navy to delivery the goods and reinforcements. Not a good position to be in. As with all matters involving exoplanet colonization, it all comes down to FTL, I very much doubt that many people would sign up with a space marine corps that would be under for decades or even hundreds of relative years, fight a few times for people that weren't even born when you signed up, then go home to a place that you can't recognize.

Why does Sci-fi use the term "Marine"?

The primary reason for the wide usage of the term "marine" when describing a spaceborne ground troops, is that is a loaded term in the minds of most people. It is easier for an author or filmmarker to use the term marine, and have all that accompany the term marine, allowing for the creator to not spend fifteen pages formulating his/her futuristic troopers. If we look at James Cameron's masterpiece ALIENS, we can see that his Colonial Marine Corps played directly into the common cultural prospective on the US Marines Corps, and allowed for Cameron to use it then move on with the film.

Then there is the other side of the coin, laziness on the part of an author/creator. People like Cameron worked to develop a certain public imagine for the space marine concept, like the the real USMC PR department, and a lazy author/creator that doesn't want to spend the mental energy developing a unique planetside infantry fighting force, will dial up the term 'marine' and move on, this can been seen the recent Turok game, DOOM, and Quake.

Of course, imitation is the highest form of flattery, and some creators, like Bungie tap into James Cameron's Colonial Marines to construct their UNSC Marine Corps, while other wish to mimic the imagine and history of the real-life USMC, bridging the two together as a continuation of the corps, like the USMC in Space: Above and Beyond and the book Sempes Mars. Another theory on why the term 'marine' is used is due to the common brotherhood that the USMC as within its ranks, and authors/creators maybe tapping into this for the "us vs. them" ascept, especially when our foe is an alien species.

Would there still be a 'Big Army'?

If and when mankind pushes out and colonizes other worlds, there will be wars, especially over habitable planets, and given the cold vast gulfs of space between star systems, its seems that marine approach a rapid response, flexible, force-in-readiness would make complete sense. But would there still be an big army? Would there be a need for a large, heavy force that would require more star-lift capability, and supply chain than a space marine force?

If you examine the evidence from most sci-fi works that contain a space marine force, the answer is no, but this is a loaded answer. Since the vast majority of sci-fi creators play little attention to the naming of the futuristic spaceborne force, the difference between army and marines matters little or why there is one and not the other. Some creators that have thought about, must conclude that once humanity pushes out, that the "big army" concept would be outdated due to its slow deployment, supply chain requirements, and the vastness of space. According to these creators, the space marines, especially ones with armored power suits or mecha could deploy to hot-zones rapidly and solve the problem before the big army logistics can catch up to the crisis.

Then some works, like ALIENS, HALO, Space: Above and Beyond, Star Wars, and the Starfist books, incorporate both the marine corps and a big army to a force that projects across deep space. From these works, we see the big army being on the major colonial sites or even hub worlds, like Reach from HALO or regions of friction, like a Neutral Zone, where it would make logistic and tactical sense to have a big expensive heavy army presences. While the space marine forces of these works are unitized in a tradition manner to their maritime roots, being based onboard starships, expeditionary deep space flotilla, or distant outposts. This would allow marine units, like the Colonial Marines rapid colonial response unit seen in ALIENS, to arrive at a problem despite being many lightyears from Terra. The big army would be used during wars, major police actions, and long-term engagements, while the lighter marine force is designed for bush wars, uprising, and gunboat diplomacy. My personal view is that if the marines and the big army have existed this long, and continue to receive funding, than it is likely that marines and the army will exist off-world, but much more separated, one based on colonial worlds, the other on starships.

Depictions of Space Marines in Sci-fi

Science fiction creators seem to relay heavily on the term 'space marine', and attempt to link the aggressive nature of the United States Marine Corps to their fictional creation, seasoning their characters with rough language, head-on tactics, and fighting unit comprised of infantry units that drop in from space to fight on-planet. When I examine the bulk of depictions within sci-fi, it seems that most creators are mixing World War II Airborne tactics and historical units with cultural elements of the modern US Marine Corps. Another huge completely unrealistic portrayal of futuristic marines is space attack jet pilots doubting as groundpounders. The only idea I have behind its genesis, using the example from SAAB, was the expense of special effects for space dogfights. The show saved money by having deployed dirtside, plus allowed for the main characters to be put into different situations, expanding the storlines. Honestly, I cannot see a Navy fighter jock stepping out of his F-18/A, boarding a V-22, and rescuing an embassy. The flip side are the expectations to the rule, like the Colonial Marine Corps from ALIENS and the UNSC Marines from the HALO universe, that attempt to show the other side of the space marine concept: aggressive, rapid-deployment, light combined arms force launching assaults from starships.

Depictions of Space Marines my own Sci-fi

For the record, I tended not to use the term "space marine" in the majority of my own writings, due to its over use in fictional works. However, due to the deep impact of ALIENS on my own sci-fi psyche after my first viewing in 1988 and with STARCOM: The US Space Force along with the buying of the Dark Horse Comics ALIENS series, my sci-fi writings at the time had some sort of space marine units. They were mostly seen as infantry units that were divided into three groups: planetary, spaceborne, and planetary marine reserves. The planetary marines were mostly served in mechanized armored platoons of anti-gravity tanks, which was inspirited from novels like Team Yankee. The spaceborne marines were similar to the marines seen Battlestar Galactica, while the planetary marine reserve units (PMR) were colonists that went through training to be a sort of colonial guard force and had access to military-grade equipment and weapons. The PMRs concept was placed into my book Endangered Species, along with a Union of the Americans Marine Corps, which was patterned off of the current USMC.

Examples of Space Marines

Space: Above and Beyond

The 1995-1996 FOX TV show Space: Above and Beyond, followed one USMC space aviator squadron, the 58th, the "Wildcards", through their service during the first war between Earth and an alien species known as "the Chigs". This marines of 2063 are directly linked by slang, tradition, tactics, mission, culture to the USMC of today. These future marines were involved in similar roles to the 20th centuries ancestors, serving on naval vessels, being the rapid deployment force, and often, fighting in the worst places. In addition, much like today, the US Army and USMC, shared weapons, tactical gear, and vehicles. During the one season series, the 58th used a 7.62 NATO multi-environment battle rifle, the M590, that seemed to mount several sensor/aiming systems, and their sidearm was a modified Glock 17L 9mm, nothing in the way of machine guns, grenade launchers where seen on-screen.

Added to these was an RPG system (SRM), and a rather kewl Smart-Grenade. These soup-can sized devices, pop-out fins that worked with a micro-propulsion, and AI software to hunt down targets. When it came to vehicles, the USMC of 2063 used He3 fueled SA-43 "Hammerhead" dual-atmospheric attack jet fighters, and Inter Solar System Armored Personnel Carriers (ISSAPC or ISSCV) for ship-to-shore work, both were brilliantly designed. However, SAAB made one huge mistakes when it came to projecting what the USMC would be like in 2063: pilots be used as ground troops. That is a trick of sci-fi products and not real-world militaries, no one is going to risk a full-trained attack jet pilot on a ground operation that these pilot have not been trained for. However, one role that is barely mentioned a few times during the series, was Colonial Sentry. It seems that since the nations of Earth are not at work, but the rebellious A.I. are out there, the USMC deploys garrisons onto USA colonial sites, but the concept was never fully explored.

On a personal note, I count myself fortunate that I was able to see this groundbreaking excellent MSF TV series during its run, because it changed my outlook on sci-fi and introducted me military sci-fi. If it had not come at that the right moment, I might still be going to Star Trek cons (the horror!)!

Warhammer 40,000

When you type the term 'space marine' into Google the majority of entries that pop up are related to British Game Workshop dark vision of the future: Warhammer 40,000. In 41st millennium, the Imperium of Man exists in a violent besieged future were aliens and dark gods plot against mankind. Their guardians against the night are these giant violent ubermensch genetic-altered warriors that are loyal to a fault to their God-Emperor, these are the Space Marines. Honestly, Warhammer 40K is one of the more unique sci-fi creations, but GWS should renamed their elite supersoldiers to another more grander name, somehow 'space marine' just doesn't cut it, and the how the game project these Titans of war is nothing like the typical space marine concept. It is not even like these Warhammer 40K Space Marines are being deployed only in their armor, making rapid assaults and be based on fleet combat vessels. No, these Space Marines not only used very encased infantry, but mechs, massive battle tanks, aerial units, and regular non-supersoldier infantry.Truly odd.

Avatar

Once again, James Cameron turns to the US Marine Corps to forge a relationship two central characters in his military sci-fi epic Avatar, Jake Sully and Colonel Miles Quaritch. Unlike ALIENS, where Cameron used active service marines to bond the characters to each other, despite some hating each other, in Avatar, he uses Sully and Quaritch's mutual past of being in the USMC 1st RECON and combat veterans to bond them together, and allow the audience to gauge the two men without saying it.

DOOM

Despite the DOOM series being around since the mid-90's (I remember when it came out...many lost days), ID softare never really advanced the concept of the main character or the organization that he fought for, it was just kill,kill, kill. Then came the DOOM 3 in 2004, and the story was more fleshed out. The United Aerospace Corporation, with help from either the United States or other nations had constructed a underground Martian complex to carry out cutting edge scientific research, and pulling security on the UAC labs, was regular space marines, being used by the corporation for their own security purposes. This may have been a nod to the CMC of ALIENS and the War in Iraq, but the game is clear, UAC had the power to dictate terms to the Earth-side governments. From DOOM 3, we can make some assumptions about the space marines, they are trained for the hostile conditions of Mars, they workout...alot, don't really believe in helmets, but wear heavy body armor, and watch too many movies starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and Dolph Lundgren.
Oh, and just one last thing, That's one doomed space marine. Sorry. Couldn't resist.

Mass Effect

One of the most groundbreaking games of recent times as been the Mass Effect saga, and within the game, your character, Commander Shepard (I use the female character), is a member of the Systems Alliance Marines, who moved through the ranks, and passed the special training for N7 Earth Special Forces. from the limited information in the game, the Systems Alliance Marines seem to have a cozy relationship with the Systems Alliance Fleet. Given the high-level of nano-technology used in the game, it can be assumed that these Alliance Marines use armor and weapons technology as a force multiplier, and deconstruct the nature of combined arms. It's just a thought, but FWS will devoted more blogspace over nanotechnology in a few months.

The Starfist series

In the 25th century, mankind has colonized two hundred words under the Human Worlds Confederation, and protecting these worlds is the Confederated Navy. When the fight goes dirtside, the first armed responders are the Confederated Marines Fleet Initial Strike Team (FIST). According to internet searches, the marines of the Starfist universe are used in a similar manner to the tradition seaborne marines, being a quick-reaction force and creating beachheads for the big army, which exists in the Starfist universe. The standard confederation marine weapons are described as "miniaturized oxy-hydrogen plasma shooters (AKA blasters in the books)." Once again, I've not read the series, only flipped through a few pages at Barnes & Noble and Google Books, but I plan on given the series a try.

Semper Mars

In the world of 2040, the UN is trying to become a one-world government, with only a few nations stand against them, while on Mars, several nations have setup science outposts to study the alien ruins on Mars (Hoagland was right!). As the UN grows more powerful on Earth, the independent nations sent expeditionary units to Mars to safeguard their outpost, The United States sent a small team of 20 marines to the red planet. In Semper Mars, author William H. Keith Jr, explores Martian ruins, Earth politics, and a Marine Corps on the edge of being discontinued. For what little I can research the book approaches the gear of the marines in a realistic manner, they use a "Mars Cat" rover, and the M-29 ATAR (advanced-technology assault rifle) that, from the text of the book, uses a caseless "4.5mm ablative sabot round" and makes it related to the H&K G11. I have not, and mostly likely will not read the novel in its entirety, quite simple I don't buy the basic plot of the novel, nor do I care for its paranoid UN viewpoint, along with cliches about the French, my roots are French...ça me fait chier!

Babylon 5

The EarthForce Marine Corps was known primary as GROPOS and were seen several times in the TV series, one storming an alien planetside fortress and the other was an failed boarding of the massive Babylon 5 station when they withdrew from the Earth Alliance. During these few episodes, it seems GROPOS were loosely based on the USMC and fulfill the role as a light, highly-Mobile, fleet-based strike force. The GROPOS that were seen on-screen seemed to be patterned after the marines from Space: Above and Beyond, and used PPG rifles, thruster VTOL gunships,. breaching pods.This made the GROPOS similar to a light strike force and seemed in line with more traditional marine duties. Later on, the EarthForce Marines were more fleshed out via the GROPOS tabletop RPG system.

Starblazers (Space Cruiser Yamato)

One of my earliest memories of a space marine corps came from the second series of Starblazers, The Comet Empire. These space marines were stationed on the 11th planet, Brumus station, and the Argo aided them during a comet empire sneak attack. The twenty marine force tags along during their rouge mission to answer an distress call from planet Telezart. Throughout The Comet Empire storyline, Sgt. Knox and his intrepid band of hard-drinking, hard-fighting marines battled the Argo crew, mechanized comet imperial forces on Telezart, and storm the comet empire flagship-city, resulting their deaths. What is interesting about the Earth Defense Force's Space Marines is they are a nearly pure infantry force that uses a gunship/APC/attack shuttle like craft, portable artillery, and laser weaponry. The heavier planetary combat force of the EDF, according to the EDF technical manual, is an army. I believe that Starblazers maybe one of the earliest visual depictions of the space marine concept.

Star Wars

In the pages of the West End Games Star Wars RPG, the Imperial armed forces unitizes a marine force onboard their warships, outposts, and space stations (like the Death Star), along with the Stormtroopers. This non-clone human naval soldiers lack much of anything in the way of vehicles, heavier weapons, and pride. It seemed that according to the RPG Imperial manual and several websites, the imperial troopers were concerned weak and the bottom run of the Imperial armed forces, even laughed at by stormtroopers that had to come to their aide frequently.

Turok

In the 2008 attempted relaunch of the old Turok games, the story follows Joe Turok, a Kiowa Native America that had a troubled military service, but his unique skills land him an offer to join the secretive "Wolf Pack", a black-ops unit within the marines. During flashbacks, the player witness a assassination mission where newbie Wolf Pack member Turok uses an bow-and-arrow to take out guards, then use it to kill three in cloe-quarters combat! However, the Wolf Pack was engaged in illegal activity, and Turok reported them, forcing the gov't to break up the Wolf Pack, making Turok unpopular. When the leader of Wolf Pack disappeared, a detachment of marines, called "whiskey company" along with advisor Turok were sent to bring him back. All and All, these space marines of Turok were seemingly dropped out of the Quake/ALIENS Colonial Marine model , and come off as cliche and tired. Which is a real pity, I played the hell out of the original N64 game, and was looking forward to its relaunch.

STARCOM: The US Space Force

The 1987 American cartoon and toy line, United States' Space Force, STARCOM had a planetary combat infantry force, called the Astro Marines, and it projected a light assault force that worked with divisions of STARCOM to protect Mars and Luna from hostiles. The Astro Marines were designed as an planetary based force, that was forced to work with Star command, Star artillery, and Star Wing to achieve a combined arms strategy, in addition, the Star Wing vehicles can transport the light armored vehicles of Astro Marines.

Star Trek

One of the interesting questions that Trekkies ask themselves, as I did when I was one: does Starfleet possess a planetary fighting force? This noncanon so-called Starfleet Marine Corps was never seen on-screen in any canon Star Trek series or movie, however, this did not stop Trekkies from forming Starfleet Marine Corps clubs and designing their own uniforms and rank structure. Most of the ideas surrounding the Starfleet Marine Corps descents from the old FASA RPG system, where Marines were a part of the overall Starfleet thought the original series up until The Next Generation era. To be clear, Starfleet soldier of some kind were seen in Star Trek V, and during a few Dominion War episodes. Even taking in account the FASA Marines and the generalized troopers from the canonized events, Starfleet as little in the way of support, heavy weapons, or even armored vehicles.

Starcraft

Starcraft used the attitude and culture of the modern USMC to form the 25th century Terran Marines of the Terran Empire, and these spaceborne troops are encased in powered armor and weild Gauss rifles. The interest element of the Terran Marine corps is that imperium "resocializes" criminals and nutjobs to service against the horrors of the Zerg Swarm. This makes these space marines something interesting and more colorfully than the standard space marines of sci-fi.

The HALO series

When Bungie designed the United Nations Space Command Marine Corps, they liberally borrowed from the space mariens of SAAB and ALIENS, to forge a spacefaring fighting force that was one of the better examples of the space marine concept. From the depiction in books and video games, Bungie, it seems, was connecting today's USMC to the 26th century UNSCMC. Like the current USMC, the 25th century UNSCMC is tied to the UNSC Navy, creating a close working relationship, and the UNSC Navy warship serve as the base-of-operation for much of the Marines seen in the HALO games, along with the books. These marines use easily deplorable armored vehicles via the Pelican dropships, and from what was seen in HALO Wars, they use speed and violence to wedge out a larger/heavier force.

Battlestar Galactica (2003)

Information on the Colonial Marine Corps featured in the new Galactica series is very limited, despite being an important assesst to the ragtag fleet. These marines wore all black kit onboard ship, and the current MARPAT Woodland digital pattern on-planet, and numbered about a hundred after the arrival of the Pegasus. During the run of the series, the marines used a variety of real-steel weapons, changing their primary weapon from the P90 to the Beretta CX4 Storm 9mm carbine, along with the sidearm being a FN Five-Seven, while the Pegasus marines seemed to favor the H&K MP7 PDW. During other missions we saw the use of heavier firepower, like light machine guns, and missile launchers. It is hard to make any profile of the CMC of the 12 Colonies due to the extreme conditions that the Galactica found themselves under, and what these Colonial Marines may or may not have used or even if the Colonial military had an army.

Happy Holidays from FWS!

2011-12-24T15:56:00.001-06:00

Nigel and I want to thank everyone that reads, follows, and comments on our little military science fiction blog, and have helped us grow yet another new year. We hope that one day, FWS will become the internet home for all things MSF related, giving Baen Books a run for its money.

What will 2012 bring to FWS? At the moment, Nigel and I are attempting to finish our MSF novels and get them submitted, but as for the blog, there will be the content you have come to expect from FWS, along with following the developments in the world of MSF. But, in short, FWS is likely to stay the same as it has been. If you can suggest something you would like to see on FWS, please comment below.

So, Happy Safe Holidays for all of us to all of you, drink some Eggnog, and see you in 2012!

FWS News: The first trailer for Prometheus!

2011-12-23T21:53:00.000-06:00

Man, it has been a good month for news on sci-fi movies! Here comes the first official trailer for Ridley Scott (AKA God)'s dark sci-fi epic. The word is that Prometheus is a prequel to 1979's ALIEN. Honestly, this trailer left me speechless and amazed. Maybe this film, with help from God, can finally get the ALIENS universe back on track after years of pure shit. The other rumor is, after Prometheus, Mr. Scott is moving to the Forever War! Here is the trailer.

But be warned, you are not ready for this.

FWS Flash Fiction: Empty Place-Part Eight: "Crossing the Rubicon"

2011-12-23T18:42:00.000-06:00

"This is for Soap..."

The CIC room, imbedded deep in the structure of FOB Shin was flooded with sounds, people darting back and forth, while in the center was a massive man, puffing on a fat cigar, his green eyes were locked on the holo floating just in front of him. His scoured expressed said it all. He touched his collar, just to check to see if the new star was indeed there, then new title seemed odd to Hochschuler, but every eyeball in the CIC was on him. “This intel is right, Perkins?” He asked the tech next to him.

“Three Fleet probes confirmed it, and their mathematic projections and my mathematic projections match up on the time table.”

He tapped the ash, “shit.”

“Yes sit, my thoughts exactly.”

“Get Cpt. Hawksworth in here, Perkins.”

“Roger that, sir.” With that, Hochshuler disappeared into his office with the hard copies of the Fleet intelligence. The General was old enough to remember when the discovery of the Sigma Draconis system that held the greatest concentration of wormholes in any settled system, it became a major trading point, causing Terminus to be the most important colonial world only second the capitol of Janus. As he eased down into his broken in chair, he smoked and thought of how things used to be…before the Wryd invasion. For the entire war, the colonies were on the defensive, not willing to risk troops and ships for a hunt-n-find through wormholes, so each colonial world became a fortress. Hochschuler bitterly remembered when the aliens found Sigma Draconis, and the both sides threw everything into the fight, that’s when he was sent to the frontlines, and when Terminus became known as Abaddon.

By the end of these initial battles, both sides had lost thousands, and most of their automated warships, so there war shrink down to one planet, with armies fighting in the darkness of the rope tree jungles, and relaying on quick drop supplies. But what Hochshuler had in his hand changed the battle for Abaddon. The Sync had assembled a flotilla of warships and troops to push off the colonials from Abaddon, and set up shop. The most grim news was that the colonial fleet could only sent half of what the Syncs were rolling in with, and there at the bottom of the intelligence report, in clear typed print, made the general’s heart stop. The spooks estimated that if Abaddon fell to the Sync, along with the network of wormholes, Janus would under the knife alien in less than two months. The only thing that broke him from his funk was when pilot Erin Hawksworth opened the office door.

The moment she entered his office, Erin was reminded of why she disliked their new commander, Hochschuler was a complete and utter slob. Pilots, for the most part, keep things neat, orderly, and bolted down in and out of the cockpit. But not the newly minted general, his office was a model for disorder, along with his ill-fitted uniform. However, Hawksworth did agree with most of his command decisions, especially when he opened the Sake, and poured two cups full.

“I need to know something, Captain.” She took one cup; they clicked and consumer the rice wine.

She sat down the cup for a refill, “anything, sir.” Hochschuler holo’ed up her recorder, and Hawksworth was suddenly uncomfortable with viewer her profile picture, it was a bad haircut.

“Are you really this qualified? You really went to these special aviator trainings?” She downed another cup attempted to silent a smartass comment that boiled up.

“If it’s on there, it’s no bullshit. Sir. ”

“Good, because you’re going to need the skills.” He opened a holo-map on his desk, representing this continental region of Abaddon. Shaded in red was all of the territory that the Sync had taken, all the way up to FOB: Shin’s front door, and behind them was several towns, the last civilians on this world.

“With the fall of White Forest and Jansen, they’ve got survivors to convert and it about a week; they’ll have to replenish their losses.” Erin made a disgusted face. That was one the worst parts about fighting an enemy like the Sync; they turned your wounded and missing into their soldiers, while we had to wait on a rare troop transport. “About that time, the Sync will have a flotilla of warships and transports, and with their advances, they could put spaceborne troopers down on our fucking heads.” Erin watched the simulations, cursed, and asked for another cup full, the General obeyed.

“When is the colonial fleet is going to send on their asses?”

“They are rushing a few warships, but most of the fleet is assigned to protection duty around Janus.”

“The real fight is here.” She reminded the general.

“No arguments here, captain, but command is dead-set on Janus being last stand, not Abaddon” That was foolish, thought Erin. She, like everyone else knew the importance of Abaddon, the brass was just taking to protect their own asses. If Abaddon falls, so does Janus.

“So, it’s up to us?”

“I want your skill-set and balls to pull off a backfire operation to the coastal stronghold of the Sync.” She made a grim face, and reached for the Sake bottle.

“Their AAA and garrison there is too heavy, we’d be seen and then wiped out.” She dismissed with easy.

“You’re going to take what’s left of the experienced jump-platoons and strike Hoppers to the temple, and wait for us to bring down the packages from the sky.” He smiled while relighting his cigar.

She cocked her head, “sir, I was under the impression that all the particle and kinetic orbital artillery satellites were taking out.”

“Oh, they were,” Hochschuler wore a Cheshire cat smile while puffing away. “The few sats left are most weather or some bullshit like that, but they’ve got radioisotope thermoelectric generators.” The general’s face produced another grin, “toxic rain.”

“We could lose most if not all of the groundpounders, sir.” Hawksworth stated, but was met with a laissez-faire glare.

“Look Erin, pick out units with mostly Earthers, they’re might to die.”

She cocked her eyebrow, “Ave Caesar,morituri te salutamus, eh, sir?”

“You have your orders, Captain!” That was her queue to go, and Erin took one last swig, mocked a salute.

“Task Meatgrinder, sir. They got the most Earthers.” Then she disappeared as General Hochschuler relit his cigar. He linked into the local network, and informed Colonel Burbaker he wished to see him and his two Earther operative. As Erin walked down the corridor, her mind still processing what the general was asking her to do, her deep brown eyes locked with the cold stares of two men. They were not even remotely similar to the recruiter rejects for that atomic wasteland, they were professionals, and they proudly worn that in their forbidden eyes. Erin observed until they disappeared into the general’s office. Hawksworth knew in her bones that something was going to die by the look of them, and not well, either.

They came and took seats like they were stars of the show, Hochschuler cocked an side smile. “Welcome, gentlemen, can I offer you something?”

The one with the heavy Victorian mustache took a smell of the Sake and made a repulsed face “Proper glass of Scotch, and whatever you’re puffing on.” The General obeyed, handing the bottle, while they lit up. The Englishman and Scotchman were completely relaxed, like they and the general went way back. If it had not been for their unique skill-set, Hochschuler would have them pushed out of a Hopper.

“You’re files are thick, gentlemen.” They said nothing, just continued to puff on the cigars. The General shrugged, and Burbaker continued. “So, this was you’re only way out, before the King’s son had you hunted down.”

“Scotland’s had a lot of kings, and we all know that Ex-Fils can be messy; this one comes with benefits, though.” Spoke the older one.

“Oh?” That peaked the general’s interest.

“Never been off-world before.” The colonel rolled his eyes, and pulled out his PDA, he was tired of this game.

“We have a job.” Their eyes turned to Colonel Burbaker.

“Isn’t that a surprise?” The room darkened and a holo spun up above the general’s desk. “Didn’t think we’re here for entertainment purposes.” Once again, Burbaker ignored the old one’s banter,

“You’re objective is the town of Flodden, the hub of the bastards on this world.”

“The wolf’s den, eh? Sounds like a real shit-storm.” They looked at one another and nodded. “We’re in”

“You didn’t have a choice, Earther.”

The older man took a final glorious puff from his cigar, “sometimes that the best way.”

“If you complete this, you’ll be transferred to the Selous School on Janus, to teach the next ones for when we take it to them.”

“If?” His attention swung to the Colonel opening several hard cases revealing long rifles. They both lifted themselves from their chairs then lifted the weight of the suppressed .338 magnum rifle, “what, no lasers on this one?”
“DEW line is too easy to track.” Burbaker took the weapon from the younger with the Mohawk.

“Your target is codenamed Asmodeus-”

“That’s lovely!” Exclaimed the younger Scottish one. “A fallen angel doin’ the bidding of hell, eh. Must be one hell of a target.” In the middle of his desk, the general punched up their target. It was unlike anything the two men had ever seen. It was an odd looking creature, more spider-like, crossed with a child’s nightmare. “Asmodeus is a high level genetics controller for the Wyrd, its death would be a serious loss to their ability to convert more of our soldiers.”

“What’s the intel like on this Asmodeus? Is it solid?” Burbaker knew what the older one was probing at, most soldiers had been burned by faulty intelligence.

“Micro UAVs picked up heavily armed aero convey coming from an Sync base, this was just after a single drop-pod was launched from a fast-mover that burned in then burned out. This target is important and for the aliens to bring him in, means their planning something big and they need a high-level controller to forge new bio-war machine.” The room grew quiet, only the puffing and smoke filled the office. The two soldiers knew the mission now, which drained the piss and vinegar out of them. “We cannot use air assets to place you near the base, however, there is a river that runs through, and you’ll go via an aquatic insertion, then ex-fil the same path.” The three dimensional map switched to a rotating graphic of the target. “To achieve 100% certainty on takedown of Asmodeus, you’ll need to hit here and here.” Two red dots appeared on the neck and head.

“A bullet through the brain to solve the world’s problems…sounds bloody familiar.”

The Colonel turned off the holo-projector and the light flashed back to normal, flooding the office. The two soldiers took the bottle of 21 year-old single malt Glenlivet Scotch, and poured four glasses. The younger one presented the glasses to the general and colonel. “Here’s to death of Asmodeus.”

FWS News: All You Need is Kill Movie Deal!

2011-12-20T20:01:00.000-06:00

This is a little dated by now, but it has been announced that Japanese light military sci-fi novel All You Need I s Kill (in between a regular novel and a graphic novel) by Hiroshi Sakurazaka is slated to became a big-budget Warner Brothers Hollywood film being directed by Doug Liman (from the Bourne Identity) and starring Tom Cruise.

All You Need Is Kill is about an one day in the life of an armored power suit soldier from the 301st armored infantry division that is in the middle of a bloody war against an alien species that has laid siege to the Earth. The newbie soldier knows that his fate is to die on the battlefield, but then is caught in a temporal loop, repeating the same day over-and-over (Groundhog Day anyone?).

This is great news really, Tom Cruise as proven to a good track record with science fiction films, and Doug Liman is a skilled director with a good eye towards action and environment This is also good news for MSF as a whole, All You Need Is Kill as armored power suits, big sci-fi battles, and time loops, along with being widely acclaimed. I've read the a couple of pages of the light novel and found to be an excellent MSF read, and if done properly, it could be a real jewel of military sci-fi pictures. With a few other MSF movies on the horizon, the next few years could be good ones...well, that is if we all don't die in December of 2012.

FWS News Feed: The end of Terra Nova? And the Goliath Trailer

2011-12-16T10:05:00.000-06:00

Terra Nova cancelled by FOX?!

It seems that Terra Nova is finally going to be put out of its misery. Monday's episode had a promo for next Monday's (12/19) two-hour season finale, and some sites are saying, along with star Jason Omara (via Twitter) that the final decision to send Terra Nova to the Gallows Pole will be made around the first part of the new year. That seems unlikely, the overall arch of the central plot, Taylor's son, the 11th pilgrimage, the Phoenix Group are all coming to a head at an accelerated pace, and it seems that the climax will be showed on 12/19's two-hour finale. These signs all point to a show that has entering the end of its life and the creators are trying to wrap the storyline up for the fans and DVD boxset.

The 11th Pilgrimage and the Phoenix Group?

So, where is the nuclear fusion power station to run this?

The powers that created the time portal and the colony of Terra Nova do not share the goal of using the Terra Nova settlement as a second chance for mankind with Commander/Governor Nat Taylor in charge of the operation. Since the pilot, there as been a shadow storyline (much like Lost) of some other group seeking to control Terra Nova in the past and in 2149. During the last few episodes, it as come out that Taylor's long-lost son, Lucas, has been working with the Phoenix Group to establish a stable time-bridge and use Earth-of-the-Past for resources to save the dying Earth of 2149. Prior to this, the Phoenix Group attempted to use the Sixth Pilgrimage as a force to oust Taylor from power, but lost, exiled, and became the central pain-in-the-ass to the colony since. Lucas finally got a working micro-time portal device and attempted to rise a coup with the arrival of Taylor's commanding officer, General Philbrick. The plan didn't work out, and Taylor had his son exiled, taking him years for him to gather the resources to rebuild the device along with working out the math. Lucas and the exiled Sixers allied together with the 2149 Phoenix Group to achieve their similar goals, apexing in the 11th pilgrimage. With military forces coming to the Terra Nova settlement, we can all bet that the settlers will use dinosaurs to win the day, then send a message to 2149 for the colony to be left alone, and the colony disappear into the past...

What happened to Terra Nova?

There were high hopes for Terra Nova, especially with the big names and bucks behind it, and I have to give FOX credit for attempting to keep this show around longer than they would have if Steven Spielberg wasn't a name on the credits. What killed this $1.5 million-per-episode time-traveling epic was that the characters, storyline, and the general mood never gelled, creating a show that always felt half-baked, and unable to move the ball down the field. There is simply a lack of creativity on the series, they wasted the concept of Taylor's lost son, the Sixers, and a fresh start for mankind. The Shannon family was to be core of the show originally, but these characters failed to say or do anything that mattered, often the Shannon family boiled down Jim Shannon and Commander/Governor Taylor going off on bro-love missions into the jungle together. This lack of having characters that were not developed enough and could not carry the show forward or for us to care if they were eaten created the downfall of everything else...wait, that might have made a better show.
Then there is the heavy-handedness of the storylines, and lack of being able to build the mysteries that were raised during the pilot. In the end, Terra Nova's fate is similar to another Steven Spiedlberg TV series, SeaQuest DSV, where big names, big money, and a big network would not make it work. It just goes to show that it all comes down to writers. Maybe in a few years, Terra Nova will get a relaunch or remake.

The GOLIATH Trailer

This very low-budget Military Sci-Fi/Alien Invasion trailer for a proposed movie is directed by Alex Popov, and it is quite simply amazing. More amazing is how technology allows filmmakers without a company or backers, like bloggers, to make impressive adverts for their craft. My brother and I made movies with our Super 8 camera, and later, a VHS camcorder, and it impresses me the level of beauty that be achieved via modern software. My hats off to the filmmakers of this daring trailer, and for making an original idea that I wished I come up with! It is my hope that someone in Hollywood sees this, and allows this military sci-fi dream to be a bloody reality.

FWS Flash Fiction: Empty Places Part Seven: "Black and Tan"

2011-12-10T14:42:00.001-06:00

The world of big wars contrasted deeply with the dirty hit-and-run raids I had experienced. Besides the amount of gunfire, gore, and weapons, there was the after-action ritual of cleaning up. Cleaning our weapons was never a top priority when I was running with Zinc, mostly we packed up the vehicles with our loot, and ran out before anyone else showed up, everything, and I swore that my AK ran dirty. After the Hoppers got us back to base, we lined up at small wall niches, and machines remove the armor piece-by-piece, but my Steyr-Phoenix Pulsar™ rifle was all my responsibility.

Luck me, the implanted training included a how-to guide for my DEW, but I didn’t feel human again until the machines in the rack pulled off the armor, followed up by a shower.

“Hey, FNG!” I turned to a large scarred man, handing me an AL-9 laser pistol. “Never be unarmed, newbie, you never known those fuckers will strike.” I took it wearily, as he moved off with some of his mates, snapping every other and laughing. No safety anywhere I guess. Within a few chaotic minutes, the room emptied out, matching my mood. No one seemed as effected by the recent violence as me. They just shrugged off the jarring encounter in the jungle, and moved on the pub to pound some pints, while my hands still shook.

I turned to engrossed my fractured mind to the task of cleaning the laser rifle, this was a byproduct of my old life with Zinc, while he and his mates indulged their evil streak on some poor victim, while I took a keen interest in the Range Rover’s engine. Another difference was impact of the constant stream of drugs, while the Courage shaved off the edge from the horrific battle, left me muted, dull, and feeling out-of-sorts.

That’s when Sgt. Ayoro came in. “What the hell, Sandoval?!” Her voice boomed across the empty equipment bay. I must have looked at with a dazed expression. “The drink?” I said nothing and returned to my weapon. “Oh no, you don’t! FNGs don’t get to be alone after their cherry as been popped” She took my arm with considerable grip. “Drinks. That’s an order.”The trooper I saved, Maya, hauled me to the bar module, scanned her pay-card, and took a chair. “What’s your drink Sandoval?” I searched in my head for a proper drink, “hmm, I don’t know we drank mostly homebrew and moonshine at the market.”

Maya made a face. “You’re from Earth...right?”

I was frankly surprised, “And you’re not? I thought all GIs were from Earth?”

She rolled her big dark eyes, “the colonies got fight too, you know.” She opened a bar holo-menu and ordered two drinks, and never asked me what I wanted. “Sorry, it just that, we colonials don’t want to own anything to Earth if we don’t have too.”

“You know, Maya, we feel the same way.”

She took a double take, “seriously? You’re going to say that after we tried to help you guys?!”

“Help us?!” I fired back, “help us?! When?! I’d reckon to know!” I pointed to my chest, “I grew up in that bloody shithole, watching for raiders, gangs, and alike, and no help came to us in my lifetime!” She watched me speak, as a tablet computer was dug out.

“You’re from Australia, right, judging by the accent?”

“Outside of Tanami Desert.” She tossed her personal computer in front me, playing a video of a riot. I could see people wearing colonial uniforms, others in rags, gunfire, and boxes being tossed.

“The Australian relief effort around Botany Bay.” There was nothing to say, it was clear from the footage that the colonies did try help, she paused the video. “You don’t want to see the end, the colonial soldiers were forced to fire on the mob, and some of the soldiers were dragged away. It was like this at every relief site, after a few aborted attempts, the colonies gave up.” I sat back in my well-used chair.

“But now, you magically show up, to help us again, right?”

“What the fuck do you care?” She spit back, “You’re here, Sandoval, to get off that dump? You not innocent either…more like mercenary, if you ask me.”

“I was-”

“Cease-fire!” Hawksworth commanded from above us just before it got really heated. “Look ground-ppunders, I pulled both your asses from the fire,” she held three fingers; “you own me and my co-pilot, and gunner.” Maya nodded and ordered a round of shots for the November-Witch gunship crew.

All of the drinks arrived up at the table’s slot, once the drinks were in-hand; the captain spoke, “to White-Forest, you shall be remembered!” The bar all saluted with the downing of shots and beers, I took a healthy sip of my two-toned beer, and was surprised at the strong favor of the nearly black beer on top. Feeling the drink warm gut, I stared at Maya Ayoro. She was the cleanest women I had ever seen, her skin was flawless, and smelled of soap, not marked up with scars or branding. She caught me looking; I tried to return to my two-toned beer. After only a few pints and a few games of darts, I was spinning, I needed to get out. I needed air.

“Hey, Sandoval, are you okay?” I bolted for the door, amid laugher and pointing, but accomplished my objective of not throwing up in the bar, but over the railing outside. I took a moment to clean myself up.

There, in the night’s sky, were dark curtain of alien stars and I marveled at my situation, and how empty those unfamiliar stars made me feel now, where they used to fill me with hope. I had been staring at stars since I could remember, wishing for the opportunity that I was now living.

Be careful what you wish for…

When I stared out at them back on Earth, I was dreaming, now I looked back to Earth, and remembered back when. My fuzzy thoughts floated back to my mother, then to Zinc. I hoped to Christ he was dead or suffering at the very least. Hell was too good for a scavenger like him. I walked up to the flight level, and flopped down inside the cargo area of a Hopper down for service. My mind spun, not just as a consequence of drinking black & tans, but the post-battle high was gone and the full weight of what happened slammed down. Despite, my feelings for that bullocks Zinc, and my fading memories of my mother, I had been surrounded by people that knew me. Here on Abaddon, I was truly alone. The only person I had got to know was smeared across my armor, and these Colonials didn’t even pick up her fucking body!

I could hold on to one glimmer of hope, one escape route: Elysium. I decided there and then, that Elysium, and its promise of a real world with green and dirt, was my new dream. I had lived out this one, being among the stars, and removed my shitty Earth-side situation. But, what I had done was traded one hell for another. The only real different was now the people I killed deserved it. I shivered, as the ghosts of my victims whirled around my heart as long buried memories of those the victims of people that had something that Zinc’s wanted.I always turned to miss those running vehicles, but when Zinc caught on, he beat the utter hell out of me. Those were truly the empty places of my soul, and I didn’t know if there was a god that could fill those cold dark places, but I wanted to believe that something else more than Courage would help in the forests packed with murderous aliens.

I laughed to no one at the how the sentence sounded, it was more like a poorly written sci-fi novel that the fantasy of my current surroundings! It didn’t really matter, though. I was here, those things were out there, and all I could do was survive through victory. With that profound musing, I promptly passed out in the Hopper.

FWS Armory: What Gun Killed Osama Bin Laden?

2011-12-05T09:24:00.000-06:00

On May 2nd, 2011, the most harrowing Special Forces mission ever undertaken by the US since Operation: EAGLE TALON, was launched to the kill the most wanted man in the world, Osama Bin Laden. Before bullets hit the skull of UBL, there was years of work to find his location, and it was the his own courier that unknowingly led the US front door of the three-story house in Pakistan. That courier was followed by CIA teams in summer of 2010, and in August, the CIA discovered the unusual compound built in 2004.
Here UBL was attempting to hid in plain sight, by burning his trash, no hardlines for phones or internet, and with very high walls (about 12 to 18 feet tall). The CIA put all manner of surveillance onto the compound, satellites, drones, this included rented a house near the compound, and for months the CIA gathers on-site eyes-on intelligence on the complex. By February of 2011, the CIA all but confirms that the compound is home to UBL, and it seemed that the only real opinion to terminate the target with certain, was to go in with Tier-One operators. With the intelligence that the CIA as gathered, a mock-up of the compound was constructed in A-Stan for ST-6 to train. This is similar to workup to the 1989 rescue of Kurt Muse by DELTA during the invasion of Panama.

On May 1st, two "stealth" Blackhawks flew 160 miles into Pakistan, however, due to the walled compound, one of the helicopters could not achieve lift, crushing into the courtyeard, scrubbing a portion of the assault, where one team was taking the building from the bottom, and the other from the top. Instead, they adapt, blowing through the walls, link-up, securing the parimeter while two strike teams (about 24 assaulters) took the buildings. They ran into only light security, few armed guards, but lots of women and children, only complicating the SEALs mission further, and in addition, UBL had the interior designed to delay the assaulters. During the assault teams' rush up to third floor,one of UBL's son gets capped, and UBL himself lends over the railing to see assaulters, who fired, barely missing him.

He ran back into his bedroom, while two fleeing screaming girls flying into the arms of a SEAL, who removed them out of the line of fire. Then it came time to take out the trash. Two DEVGRU operators kicked in the door, it is unknown if a flash-bang device was used, but they were greeted by UBL's wife running at them, she was taken down with a GSW to the leg, and the next SEAL pops two rounds, one into the chest, the other through the eye. UBL dies unarmed, at the hands of an unnamed DEVGRU operator, and by an unknown gun. While the mission went extremely well, if the Pakistans had shown up and ex-fil was impossible, than the Plan B was for the SEAL teams to use the walls of the compound, hold up, and wait for Washington to get them out.

The Weapons/Gear of NEPTUNE SPEAR

There were 79 members DEVGRU's Red Squadron that took down UBL, and would have been kitted out in the best weapons the most important of their careers as Tier-One operators. Since the mission was to be at night, low-profile, and time being a critical element, the operators would have been going in light, with the latest of PEQ technology, NGVs, possibility some sort of "night camo", and above all; sound suppressors. I doubt that the SEALs would have been rolling in with sniper rifles, grenade launchers, and heavy machine guns, despite the backup plan of using the compound if they were discovered and unable to ex-fil out of the hotzone. The four SEALs that setup the parameter, could have other weapons, like a M110 sniper rifle and a Mk.46 LMG, but given the mission, most would have been armed with an assault carbine.

The Possible Candidates

The H&K 416

If one googles the topic of this blogpost, the general opinion of the internet is that UBL was killed by the Hecker & Koch (5.56mm) 416.
Is this the gun? And why was a Tier-One Specops unit using it?
The easy answer is that this German-made assault rifle was Hecker & Koch's attempt to redevelop the 40+ year old American M16 system for the demands of these new 21st century wars, and hopefully get the contract to rearm the US military.

H&K turned to former DELTA operator Larry Vickers for help. The advantage of the 416 for members of DEVGRU was that they received a short-stroke piston free-floating weapon that is greatly improved in reliability and accuracy, but still retains enough of the Colt M4 design to allow the Tier-One Operators to unitize their lengthy muscle memory, making the 416 an out-of-the-box winner for SOCOM. The weapon performed at such level that other allied governments adopted the 416/417 as their standard assault rifle, but not the US armed forces as whole, only DELTA and DEVGRU, and this speaks volumes about the 416.
The gun has been photographic with portered Team Six and DELTA operators during combat operations, and FOX news showed imagines of H&K 416s' being recovered from the crash site of the Chinook shot down in A-Stan in August of 2011 (FWS will not post the pics out of respect). When it came to the job of killing Bin Laden, the 416 was more than up to the task, and that is why, most likely, that this assault carbine that double-tapped that son-of-a-bitch into flaming afterlife he so richly deserved.

H&K 416 links:

A small article about the H&K 416 and the Army

http://www.murdoconline.net/archives/4577.html

All about the sorted history of the M4

http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/the-usas-m4-carbine-controversy-03289/

A nice short video of the 416

http://www.yourdiscovery.com/video/elite-forces-hk416/

The Colt M4 CQBR (MK 18 Mod 0)

If the operation to kill Bin Laden had been launched a few years ago, than this variant of the Colt M4 carbine would have gotten the call. The close quarters battle receiver was developed by Naval Surface Warfare Center: Crane Division in 2000 as a replacement for the normal M4 carbine receiver, converting it to a close quarters "commando" length, from 33 inches to 29.3, mostly through a 10.3 inch barrel. The CQBR hearkens back to the supershort Colt M16 Commandos that were in-service from Vietnam, to the Gulf War, to the operation in Somalia. It was well-received by NAVSPECWAR, DELTA, EOD, and the Coast Guard, however, the CQBR's fatal flaw was it being based on the M4/M16, giving it lackluster performance in sandy conditions of Iraq and A-Stan. This results in poor soldier reports, daily cleanings, and failure in combat, caused Tier-One Operators searching elsewhere for another 5.56 NATO carbine, the H&K 416 was result of that search (which as a 10inch barrel variant). It is doubtful after all of the bad field reports and failures of the M4, especially at the Battle of Wanat, that a Red Squadron to trust the mission on a faulty rifle system. These factors negate the M4 CQBR from being on Operation: NEPTUNE SPEAR.

The Colt CM901

The rumor running about the internet is that not only was this new Colt assault rifle modular rifle at NEPTUNE SPEAR, but, it was the gun that killed UBL with a 7.62x51mm double-tap.
Is that true? Aside from the H&K 416, this looks like the other best guess of the gun that killed the most wanted man in the world. I am embarrassed to admit this, but I only learned of the existence of the Colt Modular Rifle after it was announced for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and since then, I've been attempting to unlock it on Survival (on rank 38!).
In keeping with the current trend in next-gen military assault rifles, Colt engineered the CM901to have variable barrel lengths, and cambering various calibers, including the 5.56mm and 7.62mm NATO, along with the AK-47 7.62x39mm, and the up-and-coming 6.8 Remington SPC. There are rumors of the CM901 be able to camber more calibers in the near future, like the AK-74 5.43x39mm, 6.5mm Grendel, .50 Beowulf, and the .338 Lapua Magnum.
Due to the rarity, specialized purpose, and relative newness of the CM901, there is a lack of pictorial evidence of it being used by the SPECOPS community. This could be chalked up to the similar cosmetic appearance to the H&K 416 and other specially built AR15 clones. As with the H&K 416 and the SCAR, Colt must likely was in the hands of Tier-One operators years before its 2010 perimeter, being tested and refined. This relationship between firearms and Tier-One was explained by Mark Bowden in this book Blackhawk Down: "They all had custom-built weapons with hand rifled barrels and such. Gun manufacturers outfitted them the way Nike supplies pro athletes (pg 70)".
Much like the H&K 416, there is a strong case for the Colt CM901 being on NEPTUNE SPEAR, and possibly in the room when UBL caught the express elevator to Hell. The element blocking Colt's modular rifle from that possibility, is unlike the H&K 416, which as been tested in actually battle conditions for a few years, the relatively new CM901 does not have in-field time that a weapon of DEVGRU would require.

The FN SCAR

The FN SCAR, like the cancelled H&K XM8, was to be a family-style weapon systems, accepting of two different calibers, and for awhile it seemed that the SCAR was going to be the next widely next-gen rifle for the US military. The SEAL teams started using a few themselves, and everything looked on track until summer 2010. SOCOM cancelled their contract with FN for the 5.56 "light" verison, and folded remaining money into the the 7.62x51 "heavy" verison and the Mk. 20 sniper verison, which SOCOM would still be using. It seemed that the 5.56mm Mk. 16 variant did not separate itself from the pack in order to get more funding. This mostly likely equals that the FN SCAR was NOT on the gun that delivered the fatal shots to end UBL's shitty existence. There could be a chance (a slim one) that the Mk.20 sniper variant was there in case of plan 'B'.

H&K MP5

For a period of about thirty years, the H&K 9mm MP5 was the submachine gun of choice for counter-terrorism forces, SWAT teams, and hostage rescue, and if Operation: NEPTUNE SPEAR had taking place in the 1980's or 1990's, then UBL would have been capped with an MP5. However, given the mission's AO of being inside Pakistan, the backup plan if the SEAL team was discovered was to have the SEAL use the walled Abottabad compound to keep Pakistan security forces out while the diplomats in Washington D.C. talked the SEALs out (http://www.navytimes.com/news/2011/05/ap-raiders-knew-mission-a-one-shot-deal-051711/). This backup backup would exclude the use of SMGs as a offensive tool if the shit went bad. In addition, it is likely that intelligence on the site could not confirm if UBL's bodyguards had bodyarmor, and given his resources, it would be a good bet that he did have access. That reason alone for an experience Tier One operator NOT to use an 9mm sub. The only justification for the use of the 9mm MP5 was its integrated sound suppressor, that, according to research, is one of the quietest suppressed weapons.

SIG SAUER P226

The SIG SAUER P226 9mm has served as the Navy SEALs sidearm since 1985, replacing the Colt 1911 .45ACP, while is it fact that SEALs carry this sidearm into battle, what is unsure that DEVGRU carries as their sidearm. It is possible that like DELTA, DEVGRU can and does carry the sidearm that they want, not what the Department of the Navy thinks they should. Would this mean that DEVGRU Operators carry the Swiss-made 9mm? I've read that Petty Officer 1st Class Neil C. Roberts, a member of DEVGRU, fell out of Chinook helicopter on Takur Ghar, and was forced to engaged AQ and Taliban fighters with his LMG, then when that ran out, he switched to his P226.
One thing that operators relays in the thick, is training, and in the course of a being a SEAL then transforming into a DEVGRU Tier-One operator, this soldier is bombarded with firearms training. For hundreds of hours, that SEAL has fired a P226 on the range and in kill-houses, making this pistol as familiar as his wife's backside. That is a great deal of muscle memory to fight against, especially when you deal with such a fine piece of Swiss firearm engineering (yeah, I love SIG, does it show?). It is more than possible that some of the operators that stormed UBL's house in Pakistan had SIGs in their holsters. But was it the firearm that double-tapped him to the afterlife? No, the facts simply do not support the use of a sidearm in the situation. Pistols, as a rule, are secondary, and only drawn when the primary is down or too bulky for CQC. That was not the case with the DEVGRU operators on NEPTUNE SPEAR, they were fully prepared for the conditions of the target building and had time to select a primary weapon for the task. It is unlikely when the operators followed UBL into his room after taking a few shots at that they switching out, especially if they didn't know what was behind the door. When in doubt, go in with your best gun.

H&K 45C

For the same reasons listed above, I doubt that UBL was sent packing, via a sidearm, and if he was, I'm more certain it was P226 and not the newly acquired H&K 45C.
In September of 2010, NAVSPECWAR adopted the .45 ACP handgun, and according to some research, it replaced the H&K Mark 23 SOCOM Offensive pistol that was adopted in 1996.

H&K Mark 23 SOCOM

In 1991, SOCOM put out a contract for a "offensive handgun in the .45 ACP.", and after a gurgling contest of tortuous tests, the H&K Mk.23 SOCOM was awarded the contract for about 2,000 handguns. By 1996, these large-frame .45 sidearms were delivered to SOCOM and soon mated with a sound suppressor and LAM device. The general public became aware of the Mk. 23 in 1998 with it being in Metal Gear Solid as the "SOCOM", along with being featured in the excellent movie Tears of the Sun, and the Navy SEALs SOCOM games, however, the gun in the real-world seemed to have possessed a lackluster career. It is fact that NAVSPECWAR had this .45 in their inventory, being was seen at Fleet Week and SEAL public demonstrations, but there no evidence supported that the Mk. 23 was ever used in battle, and is being discontinued by SOCOM. Research that I did talked of operators not liking the heaviness of the weapon along with the added weight to their already overloaded gear loadout, and casts a major doubt over the H&K Mk. 23 even being on the mission, let alone, the gun that double-tapped him to the seventh layer of hell.

Colt M1911 .45ACP

When the US Naval Special Development Group was formed in 1980, they, like DELTA and the rest of US armed forces used the 1911 Colt .45 ACP, then in 1985, when the 9mm round was officially adopted over the .45 ACP, the 1911 days were ended, save for in the realm of Special Operations, where .45 ACP continued to be used by DELTA until today. But was it used by DEVGRU and was it the gun that killed UBL? There is some internet speculation that some of the DEVGRU operators carry the MEU SOC .1911 45 ACP used by the Marines, and that maybe true, but given the conditions of last moments of UBL's shitty life, a pistol wasn't a sound tactical choice.

The H&K MP7 PDW

With the vast majority of Special Operation Teams turning away from traditional Submachine guns evokes the prospect of an SMG being used during Operation: NEPTUNE SPEAR. However, the H&K MP7 PDW that fires the specially developed 4.6mm round as been photographed in the hands of NAVSPECWAR Operators in A-Stan, and was seen in the 2010 video game Medal of Honor, which was developed with the help of former Tier-One operators, which all speaks highly of this little gun's abilities. Does this mean that the MP7 was on the mission to Abottabad? Not as the main tool of the assault teams, given its limited offensive abilities, especially during Plan B, but I do think that it is a possibly for a sound suppressed MP7 PDW was in the hands of the dog handler.

Phased Plasma Rifle in the 40 Watt range

hmmm...no.

FWS News Flash! Starship Troopers to get a remake!

2011-12-03T18:25:00.000-06:00

io9.com posted yesterday that Sony Pictures has greenlighted the remake of Starship Troopers, and has hired two screenwriters, Ashely Edward Miller and Zack Stentz (X-Men: First Class, Thor) along with the producer of Fast Five and I am Legend, Neal Moritz. There has been a remake rumored since 2000, when the SyFy Channel was eyeballing it for a big mini-series, like they did with Dune and Battlestar Galactica. But nothing came of it, while sequels based on Paul Verhoeven's 1997 film continued to be spawned. There was a 2000 CGI cartoon series called the Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Chronicles that attempted to bridge the gap between the book and film, but ran for only one season. This is the best news we've heard about a serious complete remake in over a decade, and Sony Pictures seems to be serious about breathing new life into the Starship Troopers name.

But which version will get the remake? Will this reboot be based on the 1958 founding classic novel of military science fiction, or will it be based on the campy 1997 film?

Another question, will the B movies that are descended from the 1997 film continue? Like rumors of another Battlestar Galactica based on the classic 1970's series?

None of the articles I've read point to an answer.

My hopes are high that the book will finally get its cinematic due, but with added layers that allow it be more of a well-rounded product, unlike the book, which is a little dull and gets on a soapbox about politics one too mny times, while the movie is...well...bad.

FWS will be talking more about the previous Starship Troopers films in a few months with a Broken Promises blogpost.

FWS Flash Fiction Serial: The Empty Places-Part Six "CASEVAC"

2011-11-30T19:05:00.000-06:00

Erin adjusted her pilot optical setup on her lightweight helmet; the brilliant sunlight gleamed off of the Hopper waiting on the pad. There mere slight of her aerial insect beast stirred feeling deep inside of Hawksworth’s soul, supreme confidence washed over her, she was fulfilling her ultimate destiny by being here as a combat pilot. While most people dick around with what they’re going to do, Erin knew the first moment she saw an anti-gravity aerocraft loom over the landscape that she wanted to be a pilot. As she had done since the age of fourteen, she entered the bubble-cockpit of an A/G vehicle, and took the controls like it was a natural process. While most girls obsessed over the last fashion, the length of their skits, she already wore wings, and was a private pilot for major Colonial VIPs. It was the invasion that made her a combat pilot

She was greeted in the tight space by Ray, her co-pilot and general pain-on-the-ass, already hard at work on the checklist. “Got the Kinemassic field generators spun-up, Chief! VTOL thrusters lit! Rocket and gun pods are locked-n-loaded! We’re ready to rock!”

“Get those damn ground-pounders up now, Ray, we gotta go!”

Ray clicked over, “this November-Witch 1-1 Control, get Meatgrinder up here, we’re spun-up.”

“Solid copy, they’re all yours.” Ray flashed a wide smile and gave her the thumbs-up.

“This CASEVAC OP sucks!” Hawksworth adjusted her HUD readouts, and triple-checked, then she placed her PDW in the canopy slot. “The Syncs overran Jensen and White Forest; everyone is fallen back to this point.” She showed Ray on a holo-map hanging between them.

“Triple-thick trees, works both ways.”

“Maybe for the boots on the ground, but not up here.” She cycled back to some fresh incoming data. “It looks like the remains of FOB White Forest is under the command of a Sergeant Aroyo, call sign Wildcat 2-5.”

Co-pilot Ray nodded, “A Sergeant? The shit must be bad.”He cycled through the dozen A/G combat aircraft in their November-Witch Hopper unit, and saw two heavy-lift Babar hoppers. He tapped on the Captain’s shoulder, pointed, and confirmed with a nod. With a mere controlled and selected thought, Erin accessed the local COM-VR-NET, and was in cerebral contact with the pilot.

“Hey, Kettlebell 1-5?” She said casually

“What’s up, November-Bitch?” The thick accent of the male pilot came over, loud and clear, even with the COM-VR-NET.

“That’s November-Witch, truck-driver!”

“Oh, sorry, my mistake…”He faked.

“Sure, Kettlebell 1-5, done loading the Mansons and Onikumas yet?”

“Confirmed, Kettlebell 1-5 and 1-6 are loaded to bear, November-Witch 1-1.” She notified Ray with an update to his personal HUD. With that, and the green-light loaded status on Meatgrinder, the CASEVAC mission was on hot-standby.

Then her brain caught up to the fact that there was a missing Babar, “confirmed that, 1-5 just you and 1-6? SITREP on 1-7.”

“FUBAR’ed and MIA, 1-1.”

“Goddamn it, 1-5!” Hawksworth had played Backgammon with the co-pilot of Kettlebell 1-7 just last week!

“Allah Maakum, 1-1.”

“Xin lio.” She answered back and cut the connection, and flipped over to the Air-Boss. “This is November-Witch 1-1, Hoppers spun-up and ready for the hunt, Air-Boss.”

“Green lights, confirmed go on VTOL.” With clearance, Hawksworth expertly nudged the controls, and the heavily anti-gravity vehicle lifted off from the pad, flanked by a dozen other Hoppers. The alien skies seemed fitted with the insect-like armored aircraft. Newly minted recruit from Earth’s wastelands, Sandoval, gripped his new MILSPEC laser, and checked his ALC-9 laser pistol, along with the grenades. It took his mind off the fact that he had never been a plane before, and a low-dose of Courage helped relax him. Surrounding him in the open-door gunship was his new family, Meatgrinder, and his official comm.-traffic call-sign was Meat 3-7, or Meatgrinder jump platoon, third fire-team, number seven.

As the vehicles crossed the vast colored jungles, he noticed there was no visual break of the rope-trees, it was like a living ocean, he turned away, and gazed upon words carved into the plassteel doors: God be between you and harm, in all the empty places where you must walk. In oddly warm sense came over him, and immediately recognized that he would never forgotten those words. This phase gave Sandoval an belief sense of hope, when he had none, being his first combat mission, that if this Earther had survived the Outback, than he could damn well live to see Elysium. Seated next him was the other Aussie, and behind the visor, he boldly stared at the pretty girl. Samantha took noticed and smiled back. But they said nothing, just marveling in the vista of the other A/G gunships flying formation.

It was the freighting sounds of war that shattered her mind, and before Maya’s shielded eyes, the jungle floor was a concert of horror for the greedy gods of war. Dr. Phoenix’s laser weapons danced deadly nearly invisible beams of high energy into the charging alien life-forms. Bursts of brilliant flashes from impacts lit up the darkened conditions, accompanied by pops and cracks, like logs in a roaring fire. Human screams were washed as these alien feral berserkers torn in the Colonial ranks. Maya flashed her PLC-3 laser carbine from target-to-target, stressing the armor’s aiming software and motors to the maximum, while her body was tightly regulated by the steady course of Courage. The monstrous alien werewolf-forms, slashed and torn armored human flesh with claws and teeth, leaping from victim-to-victim, causing Colonial soldiers to hit their own, and laying the heavy AHL-1 laser cannons dormant as both sides mixed in a melee. On the raised position behind Maya, sniper Gauss shots wilted down the berserker reinforcements that emerged from jungle, but they could not help those locked in desperate close contact.

She fired her Steyr-Phoenix on the special anti-armor setting of 40kj, wiping out the battery and taxing the cooling system, but each beam that connected; flash-steamed exploded the organic armor of the Sync. Sergeant Aroyo was too fixated on the killing floor of the battlefield to see the berserker striking an aerial attack.

Her armor sensors alerted her into the attack a heartbeat before it sank its front and rear claws into her armor, Maya parried the blow with the body of her PLC-3 carbine, blocking its momentum, recoiling it back, but her carbine was shattered. Recovering much quickly than the human sergeant, it swiped in a wide arch with four inch claws, catching a chuck of her armor. She screamed, and more Courage answered the call. There was no time to deploy her sidearm, she spun, unhooking her tomahawk from her belt, just as the alien readied another strike. She dodged, planted the blade into its flank of organic armor. The pain and shock unbalanced the creature, allowed Maya a window of opportunity. With rage and drugs fueling her hand, she landed repeated blows into its side, tearing a bleeding gash, then kicked it off the mount of composted jungle material. Without a moment of rest or mercy, she hacking her attacker’s head into a red pulsating mush. As satisfaction washed over her, the hum of Kinemassic field generators emanated from above the canopy.

“This November-Witch 1-1, to Wild-Cat 2-5, we’re on station.”

“November-Witch, we’re in deep serious, berserkers mixed-in, heavy gun unit in the bush behind us.” That eliminated the option of CAS, and Hawksworth cursed, as she signed to Ray to extend the A/G field to ground level, and deployed a gunship via COM-VR-NET to pound the mobile Sync artillery units.

“Solid copy, 2-5, we’re roping in groundpounders.”

“November-Witch, we’ve got reinforcements flowing in from the North-North-West of our position.” Erin pulled up her holo-map, and assigned two of the gunships for CAS tasking on the alien positions.

“Confirmed 2-5, I’ve got some fire headed their way.” She finger-signed to Ray, and he adjusted the light in the rear to green. It was time for November-Witch’s passengers to get off. Sandoval was alerted to the change in the light via everyone jumping out of the open doors of the Hopper. His educated brain told him that it was okay, that the gunship had extended its anti-gravity field to the jungle floor, and they could descend without aid of a rope. But it was still against every natural instinct, until the door gunner yelled at them to get the fuck out. So, he grabbed Samantha’s hand, and as they jumped out, with the blood draining out of their feet, and Courage being pumped, he noticed it was surreal. They floated down; no rush of wind, no screaming, and no piss down their legs.

That tranquilly was shattered the moment their armored boots hit the deck. Samantha Porter died right in front of him; torn to shreds, bloody rain on his tactical gear. Sandoval, shocked at the violence unleashed on them, wiping it away, kept firing at her attacker, and took a massive hit from the Courage. The fresh dose of drugs coursed through his veins, fuelling his raging impulse of death and destruction, spurning him to assault their position. He killed them with a glad heart; blood mixed with his friend’s, and his laser gun pulsated in an orgy of grisly delight.

He was so fucked up; he couldn’t feel a damn thing. But, that was their plan, the brass back on Janus, medicated the hell out of them; giving the grunts hope to live though the fields of slaughter, and get that promised piece of Elysium. Sandoval didn’t want to feel anything anymore, nothing. Only the rush of combat, the pulsing heart of his weapon tearing my enemy into bloody art of shredded flesh.

As Meatgrinder waved into the melee of jungle floor, two anti-gravity gunships blasted the incoming Sync forces; this gave the ground forces below some breathing room to deal with the alien forces mixed within their ranks. Erin and Ray thought in that moment, that this OP was going to be easier than planned. That was until their helmets filled with alarms.

“Ray! What the Hell?!”

“Shin’s got incoming hot-box drop pods!” Erin wasted no time, she shipped down the data to troopers, and the response was nearly instant from the CO of Meatgrinder: Deploy the Mansons and Onikumas! The computers calculated the drop-zone of the Sync pods, and Erin clicked over to Kettlebell 1-5.

“The orders been given, Kettlebell! Send down the psychos!” From the belly of the great hovering beast, the Babar launched two massive shells at the alien drop-zone. In the horizon, rope-trees and jungle floor were scorched clean to make a clean DZ for the Mansons and Onikumas units.

“Psychos on the ground,” Kettlebell 1-5 linked over to Hawksworth. “Prey for the Syncs.”

“I only prey for my enemies to go to hell, 1-5.”

When the Sync endo-atmospheric drop pods burst open with fresh alien ranks, they fully expected to see empty rope-tree jungle, instead it was smoking ashy ground, and surrounding the pods was a phalanx of AI driven heavily armed mecha, called Onikumas, and Courage-pumped up murderous crazies, called Manson Units. These were the worst of the worst of Colonial society, and unknown to the general public, these warehoused humans were removed from their cells, and deployed to the battlefield as the Colonial version of the Sync’s Berserkers. They were the dirty secrets of the Colonial military, but in this case, they served death to the alien enemy, ending the Syncs attempted flanking maneuver in a few seconds of weapons’ fire.

What started off as a defeat, looked like it would be a successful ex-fil back to base. Sensing the fortunes of the battle shifting, the aliens pressed their final attack, and one, specifically targeted the leader, Sergeant Aroyo. The alien warrior fired several hot spike-like projectiles into her lower armor plating, buckling it, Maya collapsed into the soft ground, struggling against the damage and trapped by a failed suit motor, the animal portion of her brain screamed at her to get-the-hell-up, fully invoking flight-or-fight, as heavy doses of Courage were injected, she didn’t fear, it was more survival. That came into clear focus when the Sync warrior leveled its weapon at her head, as her hands groped for a weapon.

It was over, but Maya didn’t give against this alien shit lording over her, she wrangled free her black market last-ditch shotgun pistol-revolver, desperately swinging it to bear. There was a whirl of movement, Sergeant Aroyo, braced herself for a thrashing by the thing above. her Instead her eyes welled up to the moment of her salvation, a colonial trooper chopping the Sync with a tomahawk, thick dark fluid trail whipping through the moist forest air, signing to the experienced soldier that her failed executor was being dealt within a brutal manner. Maya liked this soldier’s style. When he was done, the soldier wiped the blade on a tree, and extended a hand to her.

“Sandoval, Meatgrinder, we’re the QRF.”

“Sgt. Aroyo, what’s left of Wildcat.” She took his hand and was helped up, despite the liberal doses of Courage, pain receptors were lit up in her lower quadrant. “What’s the status, trooper?” She checked her wounds, as Sandoval applied a nano-patch to the cracked armor.

“QRF roped in on the flanks of the enemy, the Hoppers lit a backfire, while the crazies and bots secured the front, and we lopped around, and crushed them.”

“MIA?” She asked, Sandoval now knew, from the briefing, what she was asking: How many of my friends were dragged off to be more of these fuckers?

“17.” He said mournfully.

Maya screamed, “goddamnit!” She moved up on a ridge composed of fallen trees, observing the hasty battlefield. Lit Rope-Trees smoldered covering the jungle floor in hazy, but her improved hearing easily picked up the wails of the wounded, and the cries of living; it was the dead that are silent on the battlefield. Maya mused as her rescuer joined her.

“RTB?” She asked, trying to make some conversion to distract her from the horror below.

“Yeah, back to FOB Shin. They’re sending more Babar heavily Hoppers for CASEVAC.”

“The treehouse, eh?”

“I guess you could call it that,” he thought of his new home above the tree-line. “And when we get back to Shin, you’re buying the pints.” Sergeant Aroyo ignored the banter about beers, and rallied the scattered remains of her unit to a small clearing, freshly made by a few daisy-cutter artillery rounds. She and her new savior from Meatgrinder, were the last boots out of the hellish jungle, as Maya was roped up (A/G field only worked for decent not ascent), she wept for everyone they had lost and that had been taken away.

FWS Topics: Temporal Warfare

2011-11-25T18:37:00.002-06:00

Recently, io9.com posted a list of sci-fi works where the time is the primary battlefield (http://io9.com/5858758/when-time-is-a-battlefield-the-most-bewildering-time-wars) and not some far-away planet. These time-wars are not waged over where but when. While these time-wars are not the standard vision of traditional military science fiction, it is subelement of futuristic warfare, and presents a different idea of how and why future wars could be waged.

When it comes to presenting the concept of temporal warfare, those of us that grew up watching Doctor Who and Star Trek, the concept was often seen, but few works have been able to bring this home. This could be do with temporal warfare lacking in a realistic approach with its delivery, overall lack of thought and hard science behind it, because at its core, MSF is natural more realistic and hard science than traditional sci-fi.

Could there be a Time-War?

If time was the batteground of the future, what would it look like? Would there be massive armies of futuristic warriors blasting each other with rayguns? Or would it be spy vs. spy type of warfare? Could there even be a war over the course of different time periods, without destroy the totality of the universe? Certainly any soldiers of the future that were deployed to another time period would have to be careful when engaging in any type of gunfight...one stray round could change the future in a vast unseen ways, butterfly effect, indeed. The main reason behind the use time travel as a weapon would to even the odds in a losing conflict or even changing the conditions to bring about their adversaries. When really thought of temporal warfare, it brought a quote of President Kenned from 1962: "this is another type of warfare- new in its intensity, ancient its origin-war by guerrillas, subversives, insurgents, assassins; war by ambush instead of combat, by infiltration instead of aggression, by eroding and exhausting the enemy instead of engaging him. It preys on unrest."

Temporal warfare never really entered by own writings until 2007. After reading Maus by Art Spiegelman, I explored the possibility of a temporal war in my still-unfinished-short-story, The Murder of One. In this far-future story, Dr. Misha Fischer develops time travel in the 36th century, and it leads to a war over the technology by governments and corporations, however, once the technology falls into he hands of various religious groups, they trying to prove the existence of their god and assassinate each others prophets to prevent each other religion's from existing.
To end the conflict and preserve the human race, Dr. Fischer escapes with the technology off-world, goes back several years before her development of time travel, and attempts to use the technology to explore the past with trained historical anthropologist-travelers that wear "encounter suits."
This story picks up when a traveler goes to a Nazi Death Camp, and ends with the death of Hitler during World War One, and once Dr. Fischer is aware of the altered timeline and she comes to the realizationthat the only to prevent time-travel, is to kill herself.
This story taught me that if and when humanity achieve ability to travel through time, someone will exploit the technology for their own gain. This will distort how history originally unfolded, and the change our reality ways we cannot imagine or control. Making time travel one of the most dangerous technologies the world will ever see. This could be why the that laws of physics prevent it from happening.

"Reality is, what we think now, a string that someone else can pull, and history is how far they pull it..." -Dr. Misha Fischer, 3581 AD

Here is a list of some examples, most not covered in the io9 article, of temporal warfare:

Time Beavers

In this 1985 First Comics graphic novel by Timothy Truman, as the great time steam of the universe and its dam, being guarded by gun-carrying Beavers (I shit you not). Their enemy? Rats that seek to control the dam and become a time lords devoted to chaos. During a successful raid, the Rats get control of three important artifacts from Earth, and seek to use these objects to destroy the flow of time, while the Beavers hunt for the rat teams throughout certain time periods. Time Beavers was a wonderful graphic novel and is better than my summary of it. Truely, one of the lost gems of 1980's comics.

Dr. Who

The show itself was never that focused on warfare or gunfights, especially when concerning the Doctor himself. However, within the background of the longest running sci-fi show, there was the shadow war between the Daleks and the Time Lords of Gallifrey, over the destiny of the universal timeline. This came to an apex with 'The Last Great Time War' that cost Gallifrey its very existence. While the storylines that played through the original (or classic) Doctor Who series where Time Lords attempting to prevent the Daleks from achieving time travel technology were interesting, the new series having Gallifrey destoryed seems like bad written and destory a certain something that the classic series had.

Star Trek: Enterprise: The Temporal Cold War

"And that's where I had sex with your Great-Great Grandma..."

Throughout the Star Trek saga, the subject of time travel and travelers as been covered...alot; and at times, these time travelers have attempted to change the time line in their favor.
These lame attempts pale in comparison to the 'Temporal Cold War' of the best the Star Trek series, Enterprise. During the pilot episode until season four, different factions from the 31st century that possessed time travel were attempting to alter the 22nd century, during which, the Federation was formed, by the use of proxy forces. Despite my recent falling out with Star Trek, I believe the Temporal Cold War of Enterprise is one of the best example of temporal warfare in mainstream sci-fi.

HEX (1985)

In the mid-80's, the Mad Max post-apocalyptic nuclear holocaust was big business and DC Comics wanted a piece of the mushroom cloud pie. So, they took their Western gunfighter anti-hero Jonah Hex, and transplanted him to a 21st century post-nuclear war apocalypse to do battle with biker gangs and giant worms (not kidding). During his eighteen issue run, Hex, Jonah Hex ran into other time travelers, that were sent to stop him.

Timecop

Here is one of the concepts of time being a battleground that featured the men and women that protect the timeline for being altered. Sadly, the Timecop movie and the short-lived TV series were not done well enough to unlize the concept and suffered from a lack of realism and general chesseiness. The good news is that there is a relaunch coming soon, and there is a fair possibility that this movie could be remade with a more solid concept and without a certain Martial Artist...

Millennium: "Owls" and "Roosters"

One of the offshoots of the success of the X-Files was the show about the end of the world, a secret society, a gifted profiler, and serial killers, and it was called Millennium. The show itself didn't have any time travel storylines, but the secret society that former-FBI profiler Frank Black worked for, the Millennium Group, had been waiting a thousand years for the turn of the next century, when the end of the world would occur. However, two sides within the Millennium Group battled for control, the Owls and the Roosters, one believed a scientific event would happen in 2000 AD, another believed that it would be the fulfillment of the end times. It was a group moving through time and battling about time, which was interesting concept and done extremely well...I miss the 90's at times.

The X-Files "Synchrony" (4x19)

I was massive fan of the X-Files up until its Fifth season that is, and one episode that as stuck with me is the low-rated "Synchrony" from the middle of season four. Murders are being committed against a select group of MIT researchers using a freezing compound. It is later learned that the elder man committing these murders is an time traveler and is the older self to one of the researchers. This time traveler explains to his younger self about the horrors of a society that can travel through time: "What she created. What you - we - helped to create. A world without history, without hope. Where anyone can know everything that will ever happen. I've seen that world"

This quote has directly impacted my thinking on time travel and what might happen in December of 2012.

Star Trek: Voyager "Year of Hell"

The majority of ST: Voyager's episodes were complete dogshit and helped end my long love affair with Star Trek, until Enterprise, however, Voyager did have a two-parter called "Year of Hell", where an alien species is using surgical insurrections into the timestream to restore their long-dead empire./ The captain of the alien time warship's was also a personal quest to restore his dead wife as well, and the other all story was similar to Moby Dick. This was one of the more brutal and violent episode of Voyager, where all seemed lost, until Janeway gives the time warship a taste of the divine wind.

The Forever War by Joe Haldmen

In a odd way, the Forever War is a book about soldiers fighting their way across time. The method of FTL for the aliens and humans fighting this war involves collapsers (wormholes), but the laws of time dilation still apply, causing the war to be waged over 1,143 years. This causes battles to be seperated by hundreds of years, and the soldiers to lose all concept of home and time.

Seven Days (TV series)

This UPN series ran from 1998 to 2001, and featured an NSA program called Operation: Backstep that created a time machine from a reverse engineered crashed alien craft from 1947. The time machine was in two parts, one opened the crack in time back seven days, and the other was the Chronosphere, where the time traveler was encased, which had flight controls and readouts, but wasn't a time machine in of itself.
The limit of seven days was due to their ultra-rare fuel source (Element 113) that was recovery from the crashed UFO. The time technology was also used into the future and there was attempted time machine being built by the Soviets. This little series was completely under funded and under rated during its run. Interestingly, this idea of a limited time machine being used by the US government as been seen in two recent movies.

Terra Nova

This lackluster mega-expensive TV series as been hinting at a conflict between factions in 2149 are using the Terra Nova settlement and the breakaway Sixers in Prehistoric Earth to gain control. Maybe if the series focused on that and developed it, than Terra Nova may not be so lackluster, which is what we got on November 21st episode of Terra Nova, "Vs," that deepended the overall mystery of the power struggle for the Terra Nova settlement.

The Terminator series

Out of all the time war stories, the best explored in several types of media is The Terminator. Unlike the other stories and plots mentioned on this list, there is something so pure and natural about the basic plot of Terminator that works, and is oddly believable, especially with the realism of the nuclear Holocaust and the dark future war with the machines.. The only issue, for me, is that the entire Terminator saga as been so frakked with, that the original concept as been destroyed by layers and layers of shit. However, if you just consider the first two films, The Terminator stands above the other time-war ideas.

The Big Time by Fritz Leiber

Fritz Leiber's 1957 story was ligthyears ahead of its time, and the concept of time-travelers abducting persons from other time periods to serve as proxies in their time-war was capitalized on by other writers, like Poul Anderson's1 965 Corridors of Time and Star Trek: TOS "The Savage Curtain"
The Big Time plot had two far-future factions named the Snakes and the Spiders fighting their across time using characters from different Terran time periods as proxies to change the time flow in favor of one or the other.

The Lord of the Sands of Time

Issui Ogawa is truly one of the master's time travel war books, along with All you need is Kill, he created The Lord of the Sands of Time, where mankind lost their war with the aliens, and the remnants of mankind are orbiting Jupiter. To prevent and/or reverseof Earth's fortunes, mankind and the aliens are jumping around different time periods to swing the balance one way our another.

The Corridor of Time by Poul Anderson (1965)

In this novel about time warfare, the Ranger and Wardens battle over "temporal freewill" of how the destiny of mankind unfolds, I actually read a few pages of this book in a used book store in Grandbury, Texas, and hit me at the time was the characters used different weapons in different time periods, and the characters could identify their time traveling enemies based on the weapons. Along with Corridor of Time, he also wrote the The Time Patrol.

Time-Splitters Video Game series

I've never played the Timesplitters video game series, but from Internet searches, it seems that human soldiers are using time crystals to perverse the timeline from alien "timesplitters" created by human to be the genetic superior to mankind, and they are attempting to frak with the timeline to install themselves as the dominant species.

Odyssey 5 (TV series)

During a routine Space Shuttle flight, the Earth explodes before the crew's eyes, and all seems lost, until a race called the Seekers rescues them, informing the crew of the Odyssey that fifty other worlds have been destroyed in a similar manner. The crew of five surviving members of the Space Shuttle Odyssey back five years before the destruction of the Earth prevent the destruction. The series was cancelled after fourteen episodes, so we never got to find out if the Earth was saved...bummer.

Darkest of Days

Nothing sucks worse that taking a great concept for a shooter ith a grand idea, then turning it into completely and utter dogshit.S uch was true of Darkest of Days. The story focused on time-travelers trying to save certain important individuals from dying in some of Earth history's biggest battles, while others attempt to stop them to alter the timeline in their favor. The game itself was widely panned, despite the use of ancient weapons and epic-scale battlefields, real pity.

The Guns of the South

What if, the best assault rifle in the world, the AK-47 was given to the Confederate Army by South African time travelers? Then you'd would have this novel, which is one of the classics of alternative history books by Harry Trutledove written in 1992. This book will surprise you, much of the novel was devoted not to the Civil War or even the time travelers but to the realistic aftermath of the South winning the war. Out of the rest Turtledove's novels about the alternative Earth timeline, this is his finests.

TEN YEARS AGO...

2011-11-15T12:20:00.000-06:00

Ten years ago today, one of the greatest video games and greatest works of military science fiction arose to calim its foothold on our minds and hearts.
Ten years ago today, HALO came to the original XBOX like a storm, giving us heroes, villians, war, and terror to fill the stars. My life is richer for having experienced the battlefields of the HALO universe...
Thank you, Bungie

FWS Armory: Combat Pistols

2011-11-12T22:49:00.004-06:00

With many apologies, FWS is finally updated! The staff have been too busy with Survival Mode on COD:MW3. FWS fears no Juggernaut!

Pistols, the most popular firearm type in the United States, often used as a personal defense weapon by civilians, police, and soldier through the ages. During times of war, the pistol does go into the battlefield, but unlike the assault rifle or machine guns, it is seldom used, expect in dire life-or-death situations.
However, in recent times, video games, movies, and TV have skewed the real-life role and usage of the pistol in armed conflict into the realm of fantasy in the minds of most people.

In this blogpost, FWS will be exploring the usage of combat pistols in modern militarises, what will be changing, and what science-fiction as to say about the upcoming role of the combat pistol.

Modern Military usage of Pistols

Contrary the their depiction in mass media, combat pistols serve most of their operation life in waiting. Most are only fired on a range, and left in their holsters during combat operations. This is due to the combat role of pistols, to be a backup or secondary when the primary weapon is out of ammo or disabled. Currently, some of traditional roles of the combat pistols, like being the personal defense weapon of armored vehicle crews and medics for example, have been replaced by weapons like the Colt M4 carbine, the FN P90, and the H&K MP7. This happened before, during the Second World War, when the US developed the M1A1 carbine (my Grandfather carried one) to be a more offensive and capability personal defense weapon than the Colt 1911 .45 ACP. Given the limited role and rarity of use, governments often do not replace the pistol as frequency as other pieces of combat equipment, causing the same pistol to be used for decades, like the Colt 1911 and the Browning Hi-Power.

Common Combat Pistols

In the 1980's, the allied nations of NATO transitioned to standardized weapon calibers, 5.56mm for rifles and 9mm for sidearms and SMGs. This ended the rein of the Colt 1911 .45 ACP as the standard US sidearm, switching to the M9 Beretta 9mm in 1985, while the NAVSPECWAR (SEALs) carries the superior and more highly rated SIG SAUER P226 9mm (called the Mk 24 Mod 0). In other militaries around the world, the Beretta 92F series, SIG SAUER 226/229/228, the H&K USP, and Glock 17/19 enjoy global acceptances, and all chamber the 9x19mm round
However, in the shadow realm of USSOCOM, operators carry everything from custom-made 1911s, Glock 17/19s, the H&K SOCOM Mark 23 .45 pistol, and the the MEC 1911s.

Combat Pistol Calibers: Does Size Really Matter?

Since 1985, when the US military converted over from the classic .45ACP that had been in service since 1911, to the European 9x19mm round, there has been a debate over the size of the pistol’s caliber. Unlike in the civilian world, where shooters chose their pistol caliber based on their own personal preference, the military pistol users often have no choice on what sidearm they use or the size of the bullet. There is also a vast difference between the types of attackers and environments between the civilian and military usage of a sidearm. Most attackers in the civilian lethal force situations are not accustom to being shot, and one good hit from most any common round, ends the attack. While in the military, especially in Afghanistan and Somalia, where the attackers are fucked up on drugs and more used to be shot, deadly force or stopping power was paramount.

So, is the size of the bullet important to a combat handgun?
Supporters of the 9mm Parabellum round would often cite the low recoil, the faster speed of the projectile, the ability to carry more ammunition for less weight than the old .45 ACP. Even in the hallowed ranks of Tier One Special Operations, some of these operators carried 9mm sidearms, like Pete Blaber, who was a DELTA commander during Operation Anaconda, who carried a Glock 9mm.
Since most service branches of the military had no choice, they drilled shot placement to overcome the lack of stopping power that the 9mm round possessed, which was stated so well by a SEAL firearms instructor: “when I put two rounds through your heart and one in your head, you won't know the difference..” But even training could not make for the inability of the 9mm bullet to pierce body armors, which led to the downfall of the old standard of the submachine gun world, the H&K MP5.

Not every branch of the US military was drinking the 9mm Kool-Aide, DELTA Force, the Marine Expeditionary RECON units, and The FBI HRT modernized the M1911 pistol well into the 21st century. They and other .45 ACP supporters cited stopping power and the ability to penetrate ballistic armor as key points for the US military to return to the good ole .45. This lack of spotting power was seen in operations in Somalia in 1993 and more recently in Operation Anaconda during 2002, when experienced enemy targets were able to resist multiple hits by the M9 sidearm. After this, it seems now, that supporters of the .45 ACP had gotten their wish, in 2006, the DOD approved for the development of a Joint Combat Pistol which tested various .45 ACP , and Hecker & Koch entered with former DELTA Operator Larry Vickers, the H&K45. However, by 2007, the JCP and its successor were halted, extending the life of M9 Beretta. In 2010, USSOCOM and NAVSPECWAR official approved the H&K45C for service, ending a portion of the 9mm in service with the US military.

It seems that size does matter.

Future of Military Pistols

I'm Sexy, and I know it!

The long-held argument of which caliber is more effective in combat could be coming to an end. 9x19mm, the most widely used pistol/SMG caliber, as its days numbered, due to an odd twist of historical irony. Similar battlefield pressures that led to the adoption of Colt 1911 .45 during the Moro guerrillas uprising in Philippine, is forcing the US military to re-evaluated their usage of the 9mm Beretta.This as led to the adoption of the H&K .45 by USSOCOM and NAVSPECWAR, and most likely, the entire US military. Another pressure on current crop of military/police pistols is hostiles using body armor that can defeat the commonly used 9x19mm bullet. In response, there as been development of new high-velocity rounds, like the 5.7x28mm and the 4.6x30mm, that easily slice through Kevlar. It is my guess that it will not be too much longer before these HV calibers are as widely accepted as the venerable 9mm and .45.

Why doesn't every soldier carry a pistol?

When I take to the paintball field, I carry my Tippmann Alpha Black carbine on my chest, and on my leg is a Tiberius TAC-8 magazine-fed pistol, and when I run out of CO2, or the marker fails, I switch to the pistol without leaving the fight. I've had to run entire games with only my sidearm, and this got me to thinking, why doesn't every soldier carry a sidearm?

If I was deployed into a warzone, I'd want a primary and a secondary, along with my trusty tomahawk, and would not every soldier want that sense of security of having a backup, even if they never use it?

Part of argument against this could be money and weight. The US military spends over $400 for each of the M9 Beretta, which would have to be added to the cost of outfitting every soldier, couple that with increasing the production and supply of 9mm ammo and magazines.

All that begins to add up, along with the extra weight to a soldier's base combat loadout. Also, I think that commanders don't want a soldier to go all Bruce Willis and switch from their assault rifle to a much less able weapon just to live out some boyhood fantasy. I've been guilty of this sin a few times in video games and paintball.

The advantage of every soldier carrying a sidearm to me, would be a sense of security and if anything goes wrong with your M4 carbine, you're not bring a knife to a gun fight.

According to my research, these are the members of the military allowed to carry a pistol:

Machine Gunners
Medics
Radio Operator
Heavy weapons operators
Snipers
Officers
NCOs
Personal protection details
Special Operations soldiers.
Pilots
Armored vehicle crews
Artillery crews
Military police officers
Guard duty detail
Dog handlers

Popular Perception of Pistols

The public imagination with pistols as been fueled by too many Old West movies, Hong Kong cinema, video games, and gang culture, leading to misinformation on the abilities of a standard pistol, despite these weapons being the most common firearms in the US. The vast majority of visual media projects the wrong abilities onto a pistol, showing them to be a good replacement for an assault rifle or even an SMG. This is true in shows like 24 where Federal Agent Jack Bauer uses an USP compact to take down bad guys using all manner of fully automatic firearms, however at least, 24 demonstrates Jack reloading and using a proper grip. That is another issue, improper handling, lack of simple aiming, and hand placement, then followed up with actors unloading the full magazine. Due to the use of blank guns in TV and movies, actors can ignore the basic laws of proper handling in sidearms, like not bothering to aim or stop from unloading the clip, which would throw off an ability to aim at a target. Don't even get me started on the morons that hold their pistol sideways!

Then there is the worst popular misconception, the Magnum Research Desert Eagle. It seems that every major video game, Anime, or shoot'em film as some asshat wielding this handcannon, unloading .50 AE rounds one handed. I've rented and fired a Desert Eagle .50 Action Express, and I was unimpressed to say the least. The slide of this beast seems to be like a freight train about slam into your face, followed by the brutal recoil, and the slide locking back into place, it was jarring, and my shot placement was not good. After three slow-fired rounds, my wrist hurt, and I turned the weapon to my buddy to finish off the magazine. The reality of the powerful large-framed Desert Eagle pistol as been replaced with a fantasy and bad rumors of the pistol being the standard pistol of the IDF (The Desert Eagle is actually American). While the Desert Eagle is a well made weapon, it was not designed to be a standard issue military sidearm, due to it being designed to fire larger caliber bullets, like the 357, .41, .44, and .50AE, which none are military standard calibers and not in the supply chain. Also, the pistol is heavy, along with its expensive ammunition, weighting down the wearer just that much more, when a .45ACP would do the job just as well. The Desert Eagle is a sidearm at home on the range, not the battlefield.

And then that brings us to the subject of dual-wielding pistols...

Can you Dual Wield?

Question: Are you have you been previous or currently a member of the SPARTAN-II program? Are you a supersoldiers? Or are you using paintball pistols, Airsoft, or twin.22s? Are you interested in wasting ammo while hitting nothing?

The plain fact is that firing pistols from both hands original occurred when pistols were blackpowder and single shot. This tactic was especially used by ship boarding activities and horseback infantry. The traditional continued into the American Old West, where the romantic imagine of Cowboys and Outlaws firing from both hands. This tactic of using two guns were used due to the painfully slow reloads required for black powder revolvers, and it is likely that they used one then switched out when it ran dry, this called the "New York Reload." The old Soviet NKVD intelligence force used to train their troops to fire two-at-once tactics to force the enemy to dive for cover.

Today it is very common to see two pistols, often 9mm or .45 ACP being fired akimbo, and havoc being wrecked on the bad guys as shell casting fall and techno music thumps.

Now, I agree its cool and makes for pretty combat scenes, but I call bullshit on that. Some people that are not Neo or Noble Six could fire two 9mm pistols at once, but the question begs itself why?

Human begins are not Owls, their eyes cannot target two objects at once and use either pistol to attack them independently At best, dual-wielding is a self-covering-fire tactic, which is how I use it in the realm of paintball, at worst, you waste ammo and spray the surrounding countryside with pistol ammunition. Once you've bleed off your ammo, you have another issue: reloading.

Since you're not Vishun, you have drop one and slowly reload both, great time to get yourself killed. Then the real question comes up of what would hitting a single target with two pistol blazing away? If you strike your target with a 9mm or .45 in the desired locations, would two be really needed? You are not shooting at a bear or a Terminator, but a human being, one or two rounds is more than enough, trust me. I've worked in an ICU for nine years, and I've seen many GSWs, one bullet in the right area, and you're toast. It's all about control and aiming in the real world, not styling and mimicking Chow Yun-Fat.

Science Fiction's Perception of Pistols

Where would we be without the iconic large-framed blaster in most sci-fi works, or even the ray-gun of the action-adventurer of the atomic rocket ship pulp-era? The field of sci-fi is littered with all manner of combat pistols, most are the popular "blasters" that seem to fulfill both offensive and defensive roles. The popularity of these DEW large framed weapons as altered the public and sci-fi fans on the role of the pistol and its capabilities. Han Solo holding off a team of Stormtroopers with his DL-44 comes to mind. Often, the pistols in science fiction are used as primaries, and little regard is cast towards the reality of combat pistols. Some shooter MSF video games have attempted to demonstrate the reality of using a pistol in a combat zone, via the benefits and weaknesses. However, most gamers drop the "weaker" pistols for another kind of assault rifle or shotgun, making pistols low on the list for video game creators.

My favorite examples of Sci-fi pistols

The Pflager Katsumata series-D M2019 "Detective Special" .44 From Blade Runner

The hero prop itself is like Blade Runner itself, was a mixture of odd bits to forge a dark vision of the future, two separate guns were mixed to make the M2019 .44 Detective Special, The Steyr .222 Model SL receiver, Carter Arms .44 Special Bulldog revolver. I've written about my love affair with this pistol before, but it goes without saying, the Blade Runner handgun is, in my opinion, the greatest sci-fi pistol of all time.

Spike's Jericho 941 from Cowboy Bebop

In my favorite Anime series, Cowboy Bebop, one of the primary characters Spike, carries the "baby eagle", the Jericho 941. While the series uses realistic weapons and picks for all manner of weapons, this is odd choice, given that the 941 is not a popular weapon, along with not even standard issue pistol for the IDF. However, this pistol just works well when the framework of the series, and after watching this, I added the Jericho 941 in the .40 S&W round on my firearms want list.

The M6C SOCOM from HALO:3 ODST

I have to give credit where credit is due, Bungie out did themselves with the Special Operations sound suppressed variant of the M6 12.7mm handgun, a great deal of thought went into making the arms and mission of the ODST different than the normal UNSC forces, especially the SPARTAN-II. Most creators of sci-fi do not invest this heavily into presenting a pistol tailor made for elite operations, along with making it have a balance, rather than just a weak, forgettable weapon. Plus, its really satifiing to pop grunts in the head with this.

This is based off of the real-steel H&K MK 23 SOCOM Offensive handgun.

The Colonial Sidearm from Battlestar Galactica (2003)

After the second season of the new Battlestar Galactica, the old Colonial sidearm that was patterned after the Blade Runner M2019, was dropped for the real-steel FN Five-Seven pistol. The pistol appeared throughout the series with only one modification from the original, a micro-grenade launcher. I was impressed with the decision by the producers to use a real-steel pistol over their original prop, not to mention the wise choice of the Five-Seven, which after firing one myself, is currently one of my favorite pistols, only second to the Sig Sauer P229.

The Visitors' Laser pistol from the original V sega

Growing up in the 1980's, allowed me to experience the "blaster" tread in sci-fi first-hand. During this period of everyone trying to be Clint or Han, was the NBC TV series V. The hostile lizard aliens that came to Earth to eat us and steal our water used a unique design for their DEW blaster, appearing to be two weapons fastened together, however, the size and function of it seemed to be more than a simple combat laser-blaster, more like the primary armament for their military, and the rifles were only wiped out when the situation warranted it, much like Starfleet.

The M5 Seburo from Ghost in the Shell

I'm just going to say it, Shirow is a fucking genius. In 1989, he designed a compact combat pistol that very similar to the FN Five-Seven pistol: the Seburo M5 5mm. Much like the real-world FN Five-Seven pistol and its PDW big brother, the P90, the M5 chambers the same anti-body armor HV round as the PDW used by Section Nine. Even the round that the M5 fires, the 5.45x18mm round, was developed by Shirow to counter the effect of body armor over the 9mm, which is now current trend. The M5 appears mainly in the Ghost in the Shell manga, and was not animated until the Ghost in the Shell TV series, the 1995 OVA, the role of the M5 was taken over by the real-steel CZ 100.

The H-90 Mars Gallant from Robotech: The New Generation and The Sentients

Much like the M6C SOCOM from HALO 3: ODST, the H-90 Mars Gallant was a pistol built up to be an offensive mission-flexible weapon. The foundation of the H-90 was the oval-shaped particle pistol fed via "flat-cells" of protoculture. The base pistol's range could be extended with a barrel extension, and the power output with a "stock" that used a large power-pack. this one of those great designs that does not receive the credit for being one of the coolest unknown sci-fi guns.

The Cosmo Dragoon from Captain Harlock and Galactic Express 999

According to the legends that surrounds this pistol, it is the only weapon that could kill machine-people, and in the universe of Matsumoto, there are only five that are spread out across the several of Matsumoto's series. This gun as a beauty to it that Sir Francis Bacon would have enjoyed.

The Moses Brothers Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B from Serenity and Firefly

Space Westerns have been a oddity of sci-fi, and none have been done as well as Firefly, and what Space Western could it be without a cool kick-ass futuristic pistol? Enter the pistol of Mal Reyolds, the Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B.
For such a small gun there seems to a great deal of theories on it, I've personal read four different operational inner workings of Mal's futuristic revolver, here is one:
"Barlow's Guide to Small Arms (2462 ed.)';

Following the growing trend of multi-use sidearms, this pistol fires several different types of ordinance. The weapon features two distinct firing systems - a Newtech Gauss / coilgun carriage and a conventional hammer-based firing system. The default for the gun is Gauss mode, but the switchover to certain conventional shells is immediate. The coilgun carriage is powered by a hefty battery carried in the pistol's grip. This leads to one of the pistol's main drawbacks - weight.The primary ammunition is Newtech Gauss Caseless Quadloads. Favored for both their punch and small size, the unique aspects of Gauss firing allow multiple shots to be carried in a single shot."

This would make the Self-Defense Engine Frontier Model B handgun needlessly complex, over thought, and it is completely unneeded for any handgun to have two KEW systems, especially when their targets are not wearing body armor. Whoever wrote that knows very little about firearms. This also files in the face of the independent spirit of the outer worlds, attempting to escape the grip of the inner worlds' government.
When I researching the laser pistol from "Heart of Gold", there were references to the outer worlds returning to less complex and more 'traditional firearms' to avoid reliance on the central government for supplies and spare parts for their fancy DEW blasters. The older chemically propelled firearms allowed for the outer worlds to still have a way of defending themselves without fear of the inner worlds cutting of the wagon train

FWS Flash Fiction Serial: Empty Places-Part Five: "The Woods"

2011-11-02T17:20:00.000-05:00

“FUCKING MOVE!!” Sgt. Maya Aroyo screamed back to the remains of Forward Operating Base: White Forest, the thick phalanx of alien trees and limited light increased the odds of their survival after the bloodbath they just lived through. Their attack had been sudden, violent, and completely devastating. For three years, Aroyo had lived at White Forest and now friends slaughtered and taken to be repurposed by the enemy. It was a nightmare, now only a thin hope of escape & evasion lived in her dark soldier’s heart.

“Serge,” Gary Morgan, a member of her unit had a grave tone, “I think we’re far enough.”

“Right,” she breathed out hard, fogging up her helmet visor for a half a second. “I’ll call in the birds.” She clicked into the secure COM-VR-NET via the hovering mirco-C³ UAV above the trees, it was a feeble attempt to prevent the tracking of his comm.-traffic with home-base. “Wildcat 2-5, to FOB Shin.”

“Shin, what’s the word Wildcat 2-5?”

. “Got my feed from the helmet, Shin?”

“Confirmed, 2-5.”

“The word is deep serious. Shin. We need EVAC, QRF, and gunships, immediate!”

“Spinning up the hoppers, keep your head down, Wildcat 2-5.” Sgt. Maya Aroyo closed the connection, and screamed at the remains of FOB: White Forest, to move their collective asses to a better defensive position.

But they waited, and waited, while their alien enemy hunted for them. She kept checking the clock floating between her eyes and her tac-map. Nothing! The pickup was late, she thought while looking into the battered faces of her soldiers. While Maya was one of the most experienced noncom squad leaders at White Forest, she was overwhelmed with being the only surviving combat officer, and it fell to her to led the exodus out of the hot-zone. Aroyo was all too aware if the A/G gunships didn’t come soon, they would be cat food for those things hunted them through the rope-tree jungle of this godforsaken world.

“Where the hell is November-Witch, Serge?! She’s late as hell.”Maya shook her armored head and rolled her eyes, not that they could see, though.

“What am I, Morgan, air fucking traffic control?!” Days of being stalker made her jumpy, not matter how much Courage was pumped in. Then, the exhaustion was placed with guilt. “Sorry, Gary, it’s just that-”

“No worries Maya,” he waved his hands, “we’re all working on Courage only out here.” He smiled behind the dirt, moved back to manning his AHL-1 Heavy Support Laser checking the coils. Then Maya’s COM-VR-NET cracked to life, and her stomach leapt to the imagines pouring in. Her rear guard, soldiers she knew were being torn to pieces, they screamed for help into the comm.-network, but there wasn’t a damn thing Maya could do. In response to the vile emotions the video produced, the armor pumped Courage, waves of claim flowed. Maya mass text messaged the survivors to prepare for contact, and then she dialed up to their only hope. “FOB Shin, this is Wildcat 2-5.”

“Go ahead, 2-5.”

“ETA on EVAC?”

“We’re putting together a QRF now, then less than eight mikes to wheels-up, Wildcat 2-5.” She cursed wildly in the privacy of her helmet, weighted her options, and un-muted the COM-VR-NET.

“Fire mission,” she was immediately clicked over to the base’s gunnery crew network.

“Fire mission here, go ahead 2-5 with coordinates.” The moment the gunnery commander of the artillery back on Shin linked in with the sergeant, the COM-VR-NET established 360 degree visuals, data stream, and secure network with her armor. For that moment, the gunnery commander saw what she saw.

“Need suppressive fire from moving tangos on Grid reference, “she paused and double-checked the grid of her wiped out rear guard. “One, two, six, by three-six, fire for effect, with low-ground steel and needle rain front, blue storm back, confirm by grid numbers, fire mission.”

“Confirmed, Wildcat 2-5, four cannons, four rounds of each on 1-3-6 by 3-6.”

“Pound it Shin.” Aroyo clicked over to WIDE-COM, “Fire-in-the-hole!” From her raised POV, the jungle floor was littered with armored bodies in prone positions. “Not you, mortar teams, keep setting up.” She directed the teams behind her setting up. Miles away, above the dense rope-trees, four 175mm cannons swung on their motorized platforms, while a gunnery crew-chief linked to the cannons via a local virtual reality network, manipulated the X/Y coordinates, and monitored the loading of the shells.

“Green light, sir.” He spoke, but seemly in his mind, the gunnery chief was miles away at the battle-site, via the telepresence provided by Sgt. Aroyo’s armor.

“Fire!” With one flick of his thumb, the gunnery-chief, unleashed four simultaneous 175mm HV shells, rattling the entire base. These lethal objects sailed over their plotted out route, and dove under the thick canopy. With only a few meters between the shells and the wet ground, explosions rained down with the steel balls and razor-sharp needles directly on top of the Sync warriors still savoring their victory . From her raised position, Aroyo could take in the distant bursting trees, and bio-armor pieces flying in a cloud of dirt.“Die, bastards, die.” She whispered, and then snapped her fingers to the dug-in mortar crew “finish now! I wanna pounded the moment plasma shell explode!” The artillery guns finished with their steel rain shells, and flawlessly switched over to plasma shells. Before the shell-shocked Sync soldiers could recover, there was whistled above them. Sealed in the 175mm rounds was slush hydrogen, when the gunnery AI program back at FOB: Shin sent the command, an incendiary package ignited the slush hydrogen in a supra-heated ground cloud of about half a million degrees.

Under the blazing blue haze of the fourth state of matter, the entire assault line of Sync infantry broiled to cinders. But the colonial artillery strike failed to take out the larger alien heavy armored units; the specially design walking mortars. These goliaths simply took a knee, locked in the WIDE-COM unsecure signs, and fired their own 102mm mortar salvos. Aroyo and every colonial armored soldier’s HUD warned them of incoming. Because of the distance, it was on top of them before they could react. Brilliant blind flashed rocked the jungle floor, scrambling the HUD, and all communications. In that moment of white noise, the next salvo of shell burst overhead, loaded with high explosive that detonated like a supernova at surface level. Screaming filled the rope-trees.

Maya rolled from a collapsed tree, up to her feet, laser rifle at the ready, scanning the jungle floor for signs of a Sync rush. She saw only their dead and wounded on the floor. “Mortar team plant some mines! Base of fire team, move up with me! Snipers stand fast, we’re moving up, cover us!” Charred armored bodies were everywhere, some dead, most wounded, and their reverse-engineered personal armored suit had saved them from the hellish fate of the unarmored REMF base personal, all of them, as far as her suit sensor package could discern, they were all KIA. Working as fast as possible tending to the wounded and moves others that could fight under cover, being a combat vet, she knew all too well; that the Sync wouldn’t wait…they had reinforcements on the way, and any wounded would be taken away by those things. She had desperate hope that the QRF was closer, then the trees rang with the alien battle cries, in that one second, her heart dropped any notion of hope. Courage dumped into her shaking body, preventing Maya from acting on the overwhelming instinct to run from the specially designed alien berserkers that were descent towards her. Maya raised her PLC-3, and flipped it to the 40kj setting.

FWS: Forgotten Classics- The Comico Starblazers Series (1987)

2011-10-29T07:21:00.000-05:00

After FWS resurrected Dynamo Joe, I decide to dig up another great series from the past from the same creator of Dynamo Joe, Doug Rice, the Comico Comics the 1987 Starblazers limited four-part series. At the time, Starblazers was not avalibe on VHS, only a few imported models, and Japanese-text animation books feed the fans hungry for more Argo action. Then suddenly, the long drought ended in 1987, with the apperance of a limited series by the American comic company Comico who had secured the rights to Starblazers and published a completely brand new story by American writers.

This blogpost will not only cover more than just the Comico series, this will some of my thoughts on Starblazers as a whole since I cannot do a proper review due to my lacking of the complete series on DVD.

Starblazers...do you remember love?

Starblazers started it all for me, really, all of it. Nothing in the early years of my life is bigger than this. Nothing. This started me loving science-fiction, and Japanese Anime, before Robotech there was Starblazers.

Even in Sunday School, I drew pictures of Jesus wearing a Star-Force uniform...I shit you not. I hummed the theme song for most of my life, and the mere imagine of the Argo/Yamato caused me to break out in goosebumps, that's the kind of impact I'm talking about.

The Plot of the 1987 Comico Starblazers series

Only a few weeks after the costly victory against the Comet Empire, the Earth Defense Force (EDF) only warship, the USS Argo, is in Earth orbit under going repairs and training new crew members after the bloody battle with the Comet imperial city and its guardian dreadnought.
During this, the Earth Defense Force HQ recieves an emergency message from its science outpost on the Joviah moon of Callisto. Derek Wildstar, duty captain of the Argo uses the Callisto rescue mission as a training excuse, and transferring Sandor and Mark Venture back to Star Force Academy on Earth.
Back at Callisto, General Radnar, the commander of the reserve Comet Imperial Fleet, and the last element of the once mighty power as invaded the Sol system on a quest of revenge for the destruction of Prince Zordar's fleet. Radnar himself is quite the religious zealot commit to making his blood path to make Earth a divine sacifice for the Goddess Arishna. He captures the base and waits on the Argo to arrive then as the springs the trap during the rescue operation. The Argo and it's crew of trainees falls quickly, and Wildstar is forced to surrender the only Earth warship to an alien zealot nutjob, but not before sending an SOS. The EDF is desperate, and gives Sandor and Venture command of the Earth's last heavy cruiser in a hope to find out where the Argo is.
Wildstar is dumped at the outpost, as the Argo leaves on a course for Earth, its human engine crew is forced to choice between helping the aliens repair the Wave Motion engine or being executed.

Derek is pickuped by the Gamilons, also chasing Radnar for taking Leader Desslok prisoner, and they forge a temporary alliance to hunt down the madman. The limited offensive resources of the EDF are pitted against the Argo, which is mainly fighters and battle satellites, despite valiant efforts, the Argo tests its Wave Motion Cannon against Mars then moves closer to Terra. At the despite hour, during a massive space battle, Wildstar leads a boarding party to the engine room, and fails to stop the Argo from firing its powerful cannon at the Earth. The blast is stopped by the Goddess Arishna (it's much better in the comic book, believe me), and entombs the remains of the Comet Imperial Fleet inside the moon.

Historical Context

The mid-1980's were an exciting time in the USA for Anime/Manga, especially when the Comico series came on the shelves, because Robotech was on the air, more imported products were rolling in and American businesses were starting to see the light on Japaneses animation. One also as to remember that Starblazers itself had not been on TV for years when the series broke, giving fans just what they needed, and sales where in 300,000 range, massive for a small-press comic company.

On a personal note, the moment that I spied this on the new release wall of Starbase 21 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I grabbed it so fast, I nearly ripped it! The drought that Starblazers fans had to live through broke the moment this series hit, and it had been years...long years. I can say now, that I cried reading these. It was overwhelming, Starblazers had such an impact on me, that I had mythaized it to the degree of religious importance. In addition, items of the Starblazers universe were rare and very hard to find, especially in Tulsa...but the few things I had, I loved. Then this series came out, and I finally had a great comic book with superior art, and a dense storyline to digest over months. Gods, it was wonderful...I still own those comics, and they are like they were fresh off the printer, because I took care of them. It wasn't until I was a junior in high school, 1994, that I would see Starblazers again via VHS. On a side note, it was interesting to see the basic story of Starblazers series one and two heavily mined for the 2003-2004 Xindi storylines of Star Trek: Enterprise. iincluding the battle between the Enterprise and the Xindi Superweapon Sphere in Earth orbit, which reminds me of the final battle between the Argo and the Comet empire city-ship.

Modern Review of the Comico 1987 limited series

Writers Doug Rice (of Dynamo Joe) and Philp Foglio created an original story that uses the iconic visual and emotional elements of the TV series, and is perfectly sandwiched between the Comet Empire invasion and the Bolar Wars. It should be stated in plain language that is 1987 American comic is the best product of the entire Starblazers/Yamato catalog. This limited comic series shows what talented writers and artists can do with a 1970's Anime series that itself had lackluster dialog, poor animation and character development. This series fleshed out several characters, especially the underused Nova, and give the Argo a nice edge mixed with humor. In addition, most of the core characters, human and alien are more grown up than in the original Anime. All of this really works within a storyline that was better than anything done in the Space Cruiser Yamato/Starblazers after the original two seasons.

One of the biggest and most knowagable fans of Starblazers, Robert Fanelon wrote these brilliant introduction essays about the history of the Yamato universe, technical details of the ship, and some of the differences between American and Japanese animation. The odd thing is that later Robert Fanelon comments on this miniseries on the Starblazers official website are less than positive, often dismissing the basic plot of the comics, and that the creative minds behind it. In my opinion, if you want to know about Starblazers and the beauty behind it, than read these.

The Second Comico Starblazers Series (1989)

Seeing success and glowing reviews, Comico Comics launched a second limited series in 1989 which another original story that did not mine a previous Starblazers or Yamato release. The plot weaved several alien and human stories and backstories together, and deepened fans understanding of the complex Starblazer universe, however, the series took a few issues to gel, leaving fans confused. The 1989 series was spiritually more in-line with the strangle and fantastically elements that Leiji Matsumoto liked to incorporate into the Yamato animated series, like planetary goddess.

The hope was that the second series would pave the way for a permanent monthly Starblazers comic. The failure of the second series's art and odd story failed to attract the positive attention, despite similar sales to the first limited series in 1987. During the second series release, Comico Comics teetering on the edge of bankruptcy due to the end of most of its profitable limited series, like Robotech, Grendal, and Mage all in 1989, leading to filing in 1990.

What Happened to Starblazers?

Historically speaking, Starblazers was one of THE pioneering Anime series that opened the American market, and created a generation of fans hungry for Anime and Manga. Then by 1983, Starblazers was off the air, and there was long drought for us fans. What happened to Starblazers?

One of the biggest causes for the failure of the continuation of Starblazers was its Japanese source, Space Crusier Yamato. Unlike Robotech, where three different series were combined to make an Americanized series, Starblazers was completely reliant on the Japanese Yamato franchise to fuel more American Starblazers series, and when the Japanese studios turned out dogshit like the Bolar Wars, the New Voyages, Be Forever Yamato, and the single worst: Final Yamato, the American studio had no where to go.
The last Starblazers TV series was the Bolar Wars and was barely seen due to limited American broadcast, most fans wouldn't even see it until around 1989 or 1990, when the VHS tapes were released by Voyager Entertainment would run up against another factor limitedStarblazers, the age of its fans.
I was three when I watched Starblazers, and then for about ten, there was little or nothing that came out. In the mid-1990's, VHS tapes of all three series, plus some of the original Yamato movies, by this time, fans like me where teenagers and couldn't afford the $450 for the complete VHS Starblazers Saga. Then there were issues of the quality of the VHS footage, the first releases were terrible, adding to "dating" the series in the minds of fans that were moving on to other Anime/Manga or girls and cars. This caused Starblazers to be remembered by only a certain age group that was aging out of buying such things.

The other nail in the coffin was Robotech, because when Starblazers went off the air around 1980-83, fans turned to the other grand Anime military sci-fi series on American airwaves at the time, Mobile Suit Gundam, which features futuristic warfare and mecha. Both of these series paved the way for Robotech in 1985. This 85 episode epic featured cool characters with cool hair, great space battles, love stories, tons of kick ass mecha, and was created by Americans for the American audience and filled the gap left by Starblazers. Robotech would also do something that Starblazers could not, gain widespread acceptance by American businesses. Robotech had a major comic company, Comico, publishing its stories, Matchbox making its western toys, and importers rushing model kits to every comic book store possible. Robotech would also continually put new products out into the mainstream market, like toys, models, comics, and even still be on TV into the mid-90's!

The major reason, to me, that Starblazers as not enjoyed the success of Robotech or even Gundam, transforming into a more stale property is due to it's creator, Leiji Matsumoto and his odd ideas.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Galaxy Express 999 and Captain Harlock, but his concepts of planetary goddess, uber-soft science, unrealistic, almost cartoony battle scenes, and two-dimensional thinking on the plot causes Starblazers to seem flat and more-kid like when compared to Robotech or even the comics of Starblazers. That's the really sad thing to me, I have owned the complete Robotech saga on DVD since 2008, and watched it each summer since, and enjoyed it each time, I cannot say that about when I've watched Starblazers recently. That's a shame to me as a 32 year fan of the series, that this landmark Anime series has not aged well at all.

The Future of Starblazers/Yamato

There have been several aborted attempts at relaunching the Yamato brand over the years. In the mid-1990's there was the Yamato:2520, where the 17th ship to bear the Yamato name was launched during a bitter peace between the Earth Federation and the Seiren after a 100 year war. The studio only developed three episodes before money problems. Since that effort, the rights to Yamato transfer back to Yoshinobu Nishizaki, causing new projects to move forward. Unfortunately, the Japanese studio is again recycling tired old stories with their Space Battleship Yamato: Resurrection, that takes place 17 years after Final Yamato, however, it does have CGI effects and some of the best art in a Yamato series. Released this year was the Japanese live-action Space Battleship Yamato that re-imagined the original storyline along with elements from the new Battlestar Galactica.

While in this country, Starblazers as had the benefit of a dedicated company, Voyager Entertaintment that believes in Starblazers and maintains an impressive, often updated website, complete with webcomics that are quite good In addition to selling DVDs of the Starblazer and Yamato movies and shows, they designed a tabletop ship combat game, called Starblazers: Fleet Battle System complete with miniatures. The technical manual to this game is a must-have for any Starblazers fan. My hope is that, Starblazers is one day able to complete remake the original two series into something more modern and mature.

LINKS

The Starblazers official site covers the 1987 Comico series:

http://www.starblazers.com/html.php?page_id=189

The 1989 second Comico limited Starblazers series:
http://www.starblazers.com/html.php?page_id=190