Supernovae and White Dwarfs

Today I didn't really do a whole lot, so instead I will rant about the state of the science fiction world, and also reminisce. Back when I was in middle school, there were two popular customizable card games made by Decipher, one based on the Star Wars movies and the other drawing from the 700+ hours of Star Trek (actually, there was less than that at the time). Naturally, as a true geek, I collected cards from both of them, and in particular I got very into playing Star Wars (although my tournament record still sucked). Anyway, since both franchises are undergoing major changes this month, I took a moment to look back upon the "good old days" of sci-fi. You know, before Lucas made Episode I and before Berman took over Star Trek. Actually, Berman isn't that bad. But anyway, here it goes...

When I was a kid, we had several video tapes, but the ones that we watched by far the most often were the original Star Wars trilogy. Sure, there is some cheesy dialogue (and Ewoks), but overall those three movies are rather good. As I noted above, I became addicted to the Star Wars CCG...If I had saved all of the money I spent on cards over the years, I could own a brand new trumpet right now (or a lot of Star Trek DVDs). Not to mention the countless hours spent at tournaments. But it was a lot of fun, at the time. Anyway, now all of the prequels have been released, and Star Wars has gone "supernova" (my way of saying that it went out with a bang). I just hope that they stop making that television series now, before it disappoints me...

As cool as Star Wars was/is, first and foremost I have always been a Trekkie. The first episode I saw was TNG's "Brothers," and soon I became a huge fan of the show. In elementary school, whenever I had to write a story, I almost always wrote about Star Trek (or something similar). When the Next Generation had its series finale, you wouldn't believe how excited I was. Since then, I continued to follow DS9, Voyager, and Enterprise. I used to possess an encyclopedic knowledge of Star Trek trivia (which is slowly atrophying away). And I highly doubt that it is a mere coincidence that I am majoring in physics and astronomy. Anyway, the point is that Star Trek has had a huge impact on my life. Which is why I'm sad to see it go. And instead of going out strong, Enterprise died with barely a whimper...hence the "white dwarf" in the title. Well, I suppose I should just be happy with what I got (18 continuous years of new Trek) and not wish for what might have been (television networks being sensible)...But it still is not cool.

Anyway, what does this all mean? I don't know, but I guess I might have to find a new TV franchise to follow. One that isn't based off of Star Wars. Seriously, is it just me, or is that Star Wars show the worst idea ever? For it to be good, it will have to completely ignore continuity, which will make me hate it... Well, that's enough of my semi-sentimental ranting for today.