When We Went to See the End of the World
Some decades back Robert Silverberg wrote a story, "When We Went to See the End of the World," about a travel agency taking people into the future to see the various milestones in Earth's old age. The new episodes of Jericho start in less than half an hour, and it's nice to think that even after the world ends, there will still be people and stories to tell about them.
Most end-of-the-world stories are about preventing it (e.g. the current season on Heroes). But sometimes the disaster does come, the day isn't saved at the last minute... but life finds a way to go on. This for me is one of the highlights of the new Galactica series: Their civilization is destroyed, they're fleeing in a makeshift Fleet short of everything into unknown space- but they survive. No matter the odds, people will find a way to survive, and even triumph.
That's why the why of Jericho isn't the focus of the show: Certainly in an intellectual way they want to know who bombed them, but in a practical sense it's part of their background, their history. It happened, and finding out how and why must take a back seat to dealing with the aftermath and finding ways to survive anyway.
That's what life is: That which survives... because what didn't survive, what didn't make it isn't here to make the comparison.
Most end-of-the-world stories are about preventing it (e.g. the current season on Heroes). But sometimes the disaster does come, the day isn't saved at the last minute... but life finds a way to go on. This for me is one of the highlights of the new Galactica series: Their civilization is destroyed, they're fleeing in a makeshift Fleet short of everything into unknown space- but they survive. No matter the odds, people will find a way to survive, and even triumph.
That's why the why of Jericho isn't the focus of the show: Certainly in an intellectual way they want to know who bombed them, but in a practical sense it's part of their background, their history. It happened, and finding out how and why must take a back seat to dealing with the aftermath and finding ways to survive anyway.
That's what life is: That which survives... because what didn't survive, what didn't make it isn't here to make the comparison.
Film & TV on DVD
Ever see Timescape starring Jeff Daniels? Its a Sci Fi film where the past has actualy become so idyllic and boring that people time travel back in time to witness massive disasters of the past. (EG: Titanic Sinking)
Its a reverse end of the world doomsday scenario, turns out peace wasnt all it was cracked up to be...
As for Aarmagedon's and Apocalypses, check out the NZ film The Quiet Earth for an interesting post destruction look at survival...also Nicholas Myer's The Day After and Stanley Kramer's On The Beach....
Sidney Lumet's Fail Safe is a rivetting account at trying to avert nuclear destruction...Another fave is The Day The Earth Caught Fire, made in the 60's with the threat of the sun as the culprit for possible demise.
Can you tell I dig a the genre, too many favourites to list....fun post
Passionate Apathy
I remember that; of course in five billion years "human" will mean a lot more things than it does now. The Doctor probably brought Rose there for the spectacle, not quite realizing how it would affect her (which he should have, given his history in the Time War).
JohnDoe:
Yeah, something about the end of the world- like every car wreck ever, happening all at once. How can we not look? I know people who collect images and simulations of planetary catastrophe and destruction; it's their porn.