I wonder if it is possible to "explain" various science fiction franchises by placing them in the same fiction universe as other franchises?
So in this fashion let's start with Battlestar Galactica and why Humans seem to have evolved on another planet besides Earth. This can be explained if the (Donald D. Moore) series is actually set in the Stargate SG-1 universe. Doing this we can also introduce the Firefly universe and Culture series of novels and short stories into the same universe.
The SG universe posits that Humans evolved twice on Earth. The first "version" are called the "Ancients" and they apparently emerged about fifty million years ago. The eventual fate of the Ancients is mixed. Some "Ascended" to a higher plane of existence, some turned into a vampiric race known as "Wraiths" and some lived on Earth among the Humans that later evolved.
It would be relatively easy to imagine that the planet "Kobol" in Battlestar Galactica is either some kind of lost Ancient colony or outpost or that Humans managed to evolve on many planets on many different occasions. In the last case Kobol is just one planet on which a Humanity evolved on, in a similar fashion to the various Human species in the Culture series. We can perhaps explain the "Firefly" universe as being a future Human society that wished to escape from the eternal cycle of man-machine violence.
The spin-off series "Stargate: Atlantis" posits a potential conflict between intelligent machines and Humans. It is revealed that while the Ancients and other sentient beings are able to Ascend, intelligent machines are not. This in turn could be one cause of the eternal conflicts between Humans and their creations. It also suggests that the Angelic Messengers in Battlestar Galactica are a group of Ancients who are allowed to interfere with Humanity, or at least colonial society. This actually introduces a further connection with the Stargate franchise because it eventually transpires that the Ancients were divided, just like the colonials and cylons, on religious grounds. A rouge order of Ancients founded a religious society in another galaxy in which they were worshipped as gods. This society was set up in direct opposition to the main Ancient society resident in the Milky Way galaxy which was focused on science, self-determination and non-intervention.
The finale of Battlestar Galactica is therefore a prelude to the Stargate franchise. Presumably the Ancients wished for Humans to replace them as the dominant civilisation in the Milky Way galaxy and they manipulated the Colonials and Cylons in order for this to happen. In other words "humans" did evolve on Earth but they went extinct or experienced their own apotheosis. Our primitive ancestors who arrived later would never have developed language or civilisation so this had to be introduced by the alliance between the Galactica fleet and the rebel Cylons. The new culture would have to be tempered by that existing so therefore both colonial and cylon society would have to undergo the holocaust.
Edit: ought to point out the difference between "Ascension" and "Subliming". The first is on an individual level, the second is usually a whole society going to another plane of existence. The exception to this is an advanced AI Subliming on its own. I think we can assume that the Dra'azon and other Elder civilisations ascended a la Stargate over going "full Sublimation".
There is also the possibility that the founder species of the Culture evolved from the various animal types indigenous to Kobol, "Earth" and the Twelve Colonies. An example could be bird/avian life developing sapience and reverse-engineering Colonial/Kobolian technology.
Monday 10 April 2017
Thursday 6 April 2017
Star Wars: A Brief Alternative Scenario.
I don't think any drastic alterations to the existing plot are needed, but on a great deal of consideration Anakin's fall to the Dark Side would be more satisfying dramatically if he'd never known his mother and, also, if Dooku was Obi-Wan's Master instead of Qui-Gonn. I have the idea that Dooku's murder of Syfo-Dyas, in order to create the clone army in secret, triggered Dyas' discovery (or rediscovery?) of a life after death in the Force. My idea is that he contacts Kenobi and Padme after the two confront (or are confronted by) Anakin in order to act as a mentor to both of them.
The main story starts probably half way through Episode One
-after possibly an attack on the main Jedi Temple (on a world other than Coruscant) which forces the order to relocate to the capital and reduces its ability to recruit and train new Jedi;
-or the Trade Federations' invasion of Naboo, which possibly is not resolved for five to ten years-
when Kenobi is ordered to take a break in his solo training of Anakin to locate his missing Master (Dooku). This takes him to Kamino and then to Geonosis, where he discovers Dooku conspiring with corporate leaders. Who it transpires were responsible for funding both the clone army and the invasion of Naboo and/or the attack on the main Jedi Temple simply to test the two types of army in case of a galactic conflict or a Jedi rebellion.
And-I've been fascinated by Anakin's statement in Phantom Menace that he dreamt he was a Jedi and "came back and freed all the slaves". What if this was the crisis/ catalyst that started the Clone Wars and began Anakin's downfall. We first see Anakin as a three-year old (perhaps) then at age ten or twelve then he leaves the Jedi Temple as a part of the Trials. When we next hear about Anakin, the senate is in uproar over a slave rebellion and commissions an Army to either quell the Rebellion or retake several hundred systems which seceded in protest at the senate's inactions. It transpires that Anakin is (one of) the leader(s) of the Rebellion. This then causes Kenobi to be expelled from the Jedi Order (more dramatically he could even turn to the Dark Side).
The last scenario (perhaps) allows the Senate to issue a bounty on Kenobi which is taken up by Jango Fett. Kenobi escapes after killing Fett and orphaning Boba, which leads to him discovering the army of Fett clones purchased and commissioned on the Republic's behalf. Meanwhile, Palpatine contacts Anakin and convinces him that his rebellion is futile. Through a convoluted series of events, Anakin discovers Palpatine is also Darth Sidious which leads him to renounce the rebellion and convince is followers to re-join the Republic. Meanwhile, Kenobi locates and confronts Anakin, which results in Anakin's permanent injuries and his acceptance of the Darth Vader persona. The reason for this is simply because Kenobi and the Jedi have no knowledge of Anakin's surrender and Palpatine's alter ego.
Padme contacts Anakin-I'm not sure if she is still Queen at this point but she has some authority-and the two friends-at this point, of course they hate each other at first, partly because Anakin is a servant belonging to the royal household who is forced by later circumstances to marry Padme (basically to enter customs on Coruscant as the transport of slaves is illegal)-travel to Geonosis with a half dozenish Naboo and Senate security guards/commandos (and probably R2-D2), while say Shaak-Tii, Mace Windu and Yoda inspect the clones on Kamino. Anakin is still able to locate Kenobi using his tracer signal. Of course, it's a TRAP!!!
The Geonosians swarm the newcomers but Padme is able to find and rescue Kenobi. Then we the viewer witnesses Jango Fett literally disintegrating the delegates with a flamethrower, presumably on Dooku's orders. It transpires that this was done in order to blame the Jedi via the clones and provoke planets sympathetic to the Trade Federation and Techno Union (with the Banking Clan funding both sides) to secede from the Republic thus starting the Clone War (since Naboo various systems have openly or secretly expressed a desire to secede). Only Dooku's DNA would be discovered, Jango's being indistinguishable from the Clones. They arrive later following the appearance of Mace and Yoda (any need for the droid army to make an appearance? would be very cool if Yoda or Mace took out a whole battalion of droids in one move but was stopped by the introduction of Grievous..and cue clones and Grievous' escape), one of whom slays Jango.
Unfortunately this has consequences later. the war drags on and Dooku is killed at the end of episode two but the senate appears to turn against the Jedi as its members compete to appear to be more patriotic than each other. This reaches a crisis when a decision is made-overseen but not endorsed by Chancellor Palpatine-to prosecute Yoda/Mace/Kenobi for killing the clone template and thus depleting the quality and/or number of future clones. The Jedi Council reluctantly agree to exile Yoda, being the head of the order. There is a discussion, which Anakin overhears, regarding the Jedi either refusing to follow the senate's orders by refusing to participate in the war or actually overthrowing the Chancellor in order to reach a peace deal with the Corporate Alliance (as the Separatists call themselves: officially they blame corruption in the Senate for stifling free trade while also demanding the Jedi arrest corrupt senators and officials) and recognising the rights of systems to secede.
Anakin keeps this knowledge to himself for six months but with the war continuing with systems refusing to re-join the Republic and Grievous launching devastating attacks on the Jedi personally and on loyal systems such as Alderaan at the cost of thousands of organic troops and millions of lives he takes it upon himself to visit the Chancellor. He is surprised to find Palpatine already in a meeting with two senior Jedi but he is welcomed and is free to express his concerns about the Jedi.
Palpatine simply says not to worry about the Jedi and that Grievous will soon be located and destroyed. This makes Anakin suspicious that there is a mole in the senate or even the Jedi order which surprising to all present leads Palpatine to admit that there is a Sith Lord in the senate. Before Anakin can say "It's you!" Palpatine strikes down the two Jedi. Anakin tries to stand his ground but is assaulted by Force lightning and escapes to the Temple. The Jedi simply don't believe what he is saying and explain that Dooku must have been a Sith Lord all along. Anakin accuses the Jedi of being in league with the Sith and starting the war, using Dooku's own apprenticeship of Kenobi as proof along with the never ending conflict. The Jedi are about to arrest Anakin
(or maybe they do after all and he is rescued by either Padme or even Ahsoka)
when they receive a message from Palpatine informing them that the Republic Navy
(pretty much the limited Judicial Forces and a science and exploratory division)
has found solid evidence of Grievous' current location.
With this distraction Anakin escapes to wage a personal war of vengeance against the Jedi, slaying hundreds of Knights and Padawans to prolong the war before a final showdown leaves Kenobi taking an unconscious (and about four months pregnant) Padme to Alderaan, believing Anakin to have died from his injuries.
Grievous is killed by clones just before this-or perhaps Palpatine suddenly agrees to a peace treaty with him, which actually result in Grievous single-handedly assaulting the poorly guarded Jedi Temple. Palpatine has Anakin retrieved and revives him using Sith sorcery but is unable to completely heal him. He issues order 66.
As an addendum, Sidious deliberately sets up the Alliance to Restore the Republic hoping
(or predicting) that a potential apprentice will kill and replace Vader
I don't think any drastic alterations to the existing plot are needed, but on a great deal of consideration Anakin's fall to the Dark Side would be more satisfying dramatically if he'd never known his mother and, also, if Dooku was Obi-Wan's Master instead of Qui-Gonn. I have the idea that Dooku's murder of Syfo-Dyas, in order to create the clone army in secret, triggered Dyas' discovery (or rediscovery?) of a life after death in the Force. My idea is that he contacts Kenobi and Padme after the two confront (or are confronted by) Anakin in order to act as a mentor to both of them.
The main story starts probably half way through Episode One
-after possibly an attack on the main Jedi Temple (on a world other than Coruscant) which forces the order to relocate to the capital and reduces its ability to recruit and train new Jedi;
-or the Trade Federations' invasion of Naboo, which possibly is not resolved for five to ten years-
when Kenobi is ordered to take a break in his solo training of Anakin to locate his missing Master (Dooku). This takes him to Kamino and then to Geonosis, where he discovers Dooku conspiring with corporate leaders. Who it transpires were responsible for funding both the clone army and the invasion of Naboo and/or the attack on the main Jedi Temple simply to test the two types of army in case of a galactic conflict or a Jedi rebellion.
And-I've been fascinated by Anakin's statement in Phantom Menace that he dreamt he was a Jedi and "came back and freed all the slaves". What if this was the crisis/ catalyst that started the Clone Wars and began Anakin's downfall. We first see Anakin as a three-year old (perhaps) then at age ten or twelve then he leaves the Jedi Temple as a part of the Trials. When we next hear about Anakin, the senate is in uproar over a slave rebellion and commissions an Army to either quell the Rebellion or retake several hundred systems which seceded in protest at the senate's inactions. It transpires that Anakin is (one of) the leader(s) of the Rebellion. This then causes Kenobi to be expelled from the Jedi Order (more dramatically he could even turn to the Dark Side).
The last scenario (perhaps) allows the Senate to issue a bounty on Kenobi which is taken up by Jango Fett. Kenobi escapes after killing Fett and orphaning Boba, which leads to him discovering the army of Fett clones purchased and commissioned on the Republic's behalf. Meanwhile, Palpatine contacts Anakin and convinces him that his rebellion is futile. Through a convoluted series of events, Anakin discovers Palpatine is also Darth Sidious which leads him to renounce the rebellion and convince is followers to re-join the Republic. Meanwhile, Kenobi locates and confronts Anakin, which results in Anakin's permanent injuries and his acceptance of the Darth Vader persona. The reason for this is simply because Kenobi and the Jedi have no knowledge of Anakin's surrender and Palpatine's alter ego.
Padme contacts Anakin-I'm not sure if she is still Queen at this point but she has some authority-and the two friends-at this point, of course they hate each other at first, partly because Anakin is a servant belonging to the royal household who is forced by later circumstances to marry Padme (basically to enter customs on Coruscant as the transport of slaves is illegal)-travel to Geonosis with a half dozenish Naboo and Senate security guards/commandos (and probably R2-D2), while say Shaak-Tii, Mace Windu and Yoda inspect the clones on Kamino. Anakin is still able to locate Kenobi using his tracer signal. Of course, it's a TRAP!!!
The Geonosians swarm the newcomers but Padme is able to find and rescue Kenobi. Then we the viewer witnesses Jango Fett literally disintegrating the delegates with a flamethrower, presumably on Dooku's orders. It transpires that this was done in order to blame the Jedi via the clones and provoke planets sympathetic to the Trade Federation and Techno Union (with the Banking Clan funding both sides) to secede from the Republic thus starting the Clone War (since Naboo various systems have openly or secretly expressed a desire to secede). Only Dooku's DNA would be discovered, Jango's being indistinguishable from the Clones. They arrive later following the appearance of Mace and Yoda (any need for the droid army to make an appearance? would be very cool if Yoda or Mace took out a whole battalion of droids in one move but was stopped by the introduction of Grievous..and cue clones and Grievous' escape), one of whom slays Jango.
Unfortunately this has consequences later. the war drags on and Dooku is killed at the end of episode two but the senate appears to turn against the Jedi as its members compete to appear to be more patriotic than each other. This reaches a crisis when a decision is made-overseen but not endorsed by Chancellor Palpatine-to prosecute Yoda/Mace/Kenobi for killing the clone template and thus depleting the quality and/or number of future clones. The Jedi Council reluctantly agree to exile Yoda, being the head of the order. There is a discussion, which Anakin overhears, regarding the Jedi either refusing to follow the senate's orders by refusing to participate in the war or actually overthrowing the Chancellor in order to reach a peace deal with the Corporate Alliance (as the Separatists call themselves: officially they blame corruption in the Senate for stifling free trade while also demanding the Jedi arrest corrupt senators and officials) and recognising the rights of systems to secede.
Anakin keeps this knowledge to himself for six months but with the war continuing with systems refusing to re-join the Republic and Grievous launching devastating attacks on the Jedi personally and on loyal systems such as Alderaan at the cost of thousands of organic troops and millions of lives he takes it upon himself to visit the Chancellor. He is surprised to find Palpatine already in a meeting with two senior Jedi but he is welcomed and is free to express his concerns about the Jedi.
Palpatine simply says not to worry about the Jedi and that Grievous will soon be located and destroyed. This makes Anakin suspicious that there is a mole in the senate or even the Jedi order which surprising to all present leads Palpatine to admit that there is a Sith Lord in the senate. Before Anakin can say "It's you!" Palpatine strikes down the two Jedi. Anakin tries to stand his ground but is assaulted by Force lightning and escapes to the Temple. The Jedi simply don't believe what he is saying and explain that Dooku must have been a Sith Lord all along. Anakin accuses the Jedi of being in league with the Sith and starting the war, using Dooku's own apprenticeship of Kenobi as proof along with the never ending conflict. The Jedi are about to arrest Anakin
(or maybe they do after all and he is rescued by either Padme or even Ahsoka)
when they receive a message from Palpatine informing them that the Republic Navy
(pretty much the limited Judicial Forces and a science and exploratory division)
has found solid evidence of Grievous' current location.
With this distraction Anakin escapes to wage a personal war of vengeance against the Jedi, slaying hundreds of Knights and Padawans to prolong the war before a final showdown leaves Kenobi taking an unconscious (and about four months pregnant) Padme to Alderaan, believing Anakin to have died from his injuries.
Grievous is killed by clones just before this-or perhaps Palpatine suddenly agrees to a peace treaty with him, which actually result in Grievous single-handedly assaulting the poorly guarded Jedi Temple. Palpatine has Anakin retrieved and revives him using Sith sorcery but is unable to completely heal him. He issues order 66.
As an addendum, Sidious deliberately sets up the Alliance to Restore the Republic hoping
(or predicting) that a potential apprentice will kill and replace Vader
Wednesday 5 April 2017
Alt Trek/Fanfic
I'd re-do ST: Voyager by having the crew exile Janeway after the episodes "Scorpion" and "Tuvix" instead of allowing her to execute the composite 'Tuvix' character . This puts the remaining crew in conflict with the Borg* and a renegade starship captain, but not after the ship itself "mutinies".
A secret AI programme takes over the vessel, leaving Tom and Harry left in charge as the only original Starfleet officers remaining. They "speed" ** to reaquire Janeway but Borg advancements to Voyager make them a target for an unexpected enemy: captain Ransom of the Equinox, who was also stranded in the Delta Quadrant with his crew but is prepared to disregard Federation morals and his own training in order to return home.
Believing Voyager to be some variant on the Borg Sphere-design Ransom has his crew intercept Voyager. Still being Starfleet, Ransom is recognised as so by the mutinous AI and grants him access to the ship's systems. Harry Kim and Chakotay secretly leave in the Delta Flyer to retrieve Janeway for the final confrontation with Ransom.
*I can't remember what the Borg in particular had to do with this particular scenario, other than hypothesising that Torres and Seven really ought to have come up with a working cloaking device to hide Voyager from the Borg. Perhaps the only reason this didn't actually happen is because Janeway wouldn't violate the treaty which bars Starfleet from producing a cloaking device of their own.
**I can't think of a way to re-word this sentence, hence the quotations.
Update 22.5.2017
A combination with Deep Space Nine could result after the Voyager crew return to the Federation. Captain Tuvok, Janeway being demoted by the crew to Lieutenant Commander, being the only suitable replacement for Janeway makes contact with the Romulans via the Ancient Communication Network (used by the Hirogen). The ACN is used to beam the Voyager crew to a deep-range Romulan explorer ship. Voyager itself is left under the command of the covert AI system, possibly with Janeway and Ransom remaining as semi-prisoners, and ordered to warp to the next ACN nexus.
The crew discover that (obviously events on DS9 are altered) the Federation, the Cardassian Union and the Tholians made a peace deal with the Dominion. Sisko and the Bajorans rejected this and made an alliance with the Klingon Empire in defiance of orders. Vulcan left the Federation and revived peace talks with the Romulans. They also started providing covert aid to the Maquis. Tuvok, Sisko and others agree on a plan to destroy the Dominion without starting a war in the Alpha Quadrant: they will take the Defiant into Borg space and provoke the Borg into following them into Dominion space. The Dominion would be too distracted trying to fight the Borg to be concerned with conquering the Federation and the Borg would waste resources trying to conquer the Dominion.
Second update 2.6.2017
I ought to point out that Tuvok and Sisko can travel between the Delta and Gamma Quadrants via the Barzan Wormhole, to Voyager via the ACN nexus and to the Gamma Quadrant via the Bajoran Wormhole.
A secret AI programme takes over the vessel, leaving Tom and Harry left in charge as the only original Starfleet officers remaining. They "speed" ** to reaquire Janeway but Borg advancements to Voyager make them a target for an unexpected enemy: captain Ransom of the Equinox, who was also stranded in the Delta Quadrant with his crew but is prepared to disregard Federation morals and his own training in order to return home.
Believing Voyager to be some variant on the Borg Sphere-design Ransom has his crew intercept Voyager. Still being Starfleet, Ransom is recognised as so by the mutinous AI and grants him access to the ship's systems. Harry Kim and Chakotay secretly leave in the Delta Flyer to retrieve Janeway for the final confrontation with Ransom.
*I can't remember what the Borg in particular had to do with this particular scenario, other than hypothesising that Torres and Seven really ought to have come up with a working cloaking device to hide Voyager from the Borg. Perhaps the only reason this didn't actually happen is because Janeway wouldn't violate the treaty which bars Starfleet from producing a cloaking device of their own.
**I can't think of a way to re-word this sentence, hence the quotations.
Update 22.5.2017
A combination with Deep Space Nine could result after the Voyager crew return to the Federation. Captain Tuvok, Janeway being demoted by the crew to Lieutenant Commander, being the only suitable replacement for Janeway makes contact with the Romulans via the Ancient Communication Network (used by the Hirogen). The ACN is used to beam the Voyager crew to a deep-range Romulan explorer ship. Voyager itself is left under the command of the covert AI system, possibly with Janeway and Ransom remaining as semi-prisoners, and ordered to warp to the next ACN nexus.
The crew discover that (obviously events on DS9 are altered) the Federation, the Cardassian Union and the Tholians made a peace deal with the Dominion. Sisko and the Bajorans rejected this and made an alliance with the Klingon Empire in defiance of orders. Vulcan left the Federation and revived peace talks with the Romulans. They also started providing covert aid to the Maquis. Tuvok, Sisko and others agree on a plan to destroy the Dominion without starting a war in the Alpha Quadrant: they will take the Defiant into Borg space and provoke the Borg into following them into Dominion space. The Dominion would be too distracted trying to fight the Borg to be concerned with conquering the Federation and the Borg would waste resources trying to conquer the Dominion.
Second update 2.6.2017
I ought to point out that Tuvok and Sisko can travel between the Delta and Gamma Quadrants via the Barzan Wormhole, to Voyager via the ACN nexus and to the Gamma Quadrant via the Bajoran Wormhole.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)