Otokichi

Submitted for your nihilistic/destructive tendencies, a redo of a 2005 First Person Shooter. You are a foot soldier in the Furon Empire, tasked with destroying the "ruling monkeys" and conquering Earth. (It has a "Mars Atacks" feel to it.) Set on Earth in the later 1950's, it's time to erase all evidence of Homo sapiens and extract Furon DNA. (A load of Furons came to Earth a long time ago and "intermingled.") Charge up your weapons, it's time to destroy...

I saw CBS All Access "Star Trek: Below Decks" pilot and came away as unimpressed as I'd been after seeing the official trailer. (It makes "Star Trek: The Animated Series" look like Shakespeare, by comparison.) Over on YouTube, Dust, which usually presents better-than-average short films is rolling out "Other Space," a 2015 Yahoo series that didn't make it to a second season. With all of these "attempts at humor," I submit an ancient Sierra Online game play through. (It's better than looking for an episode of "Midsomer Murders" to forget low quality video.) For the record, "Roger Wilco" is at the space academy, aiming for the Captain's chair...

Have you ever wondered how "Subnautica" plays for people who speak languages other than English? Wonder no more. For starters, here's a French-speaking player in action. Here's a German-speaking player. A Russian-speaking player. A Spanish-speaking player.

"Subnautica" is a video game noted for graphics and storyline. However, as you swim or travel through the ocean planet 4546B, the music can change suddenly, and you are searching for Danger in the dark. (Is it behind me? Is it below me? Why have all the small fish disappeared?) Some have noticed that some tracks could be dance tracks, while others have had game flashbacks listening to the music. Put on your Rebreather, keep your Survival Knife handy, and make sure you have water, food, and batteries/Power Cells. It's time to find out what's been contacting you, telepathically... The shorter, "Safe Shallows" mix without the Horror...

Submitted for your enjoyment, the many twists and turns on the long road to repair of a (somewhat not) working 1975 Pioneer cassette deck. "Techmoan" presents a tale of discovery as he looks for slipping belts and a noisy volume potentiometer. Send this off to an expert to repair? That would cost more than the thing is worth, so "Techmoan" opted to "play doctor.";)

Submitted for your perusal, a "Honey I Shrunk Us!" game where insects are nearly your size, and there are basic ingredients to gather to craft into useful tools. As "The Incredible Shrunken Player," grass is tree-sized, a drop of water is almost good enough to keep you going, and there's something to repair, should you NOT want to meet a Spider!

Does the inhaled version of Interferon have an effect on COVID-19? Also, a look back over previous MedCram reports from #1 onward. (In short, it's not over by a long shot.)

I'm sure I'm missing a great song+video, but for the moment, it's "a one Gene Show" that gets reimagined in a good way. ("Why is no one singing?)

This past Sunday's "TCM Import" was "Yi Yi" ("A One and A Two "), a just-before-the-turn-of-the-century tale about a three generation Taiwanese family. I haven't seen it yet, but I suspect it's unique viewpoints will be interesting.

Notice: Unprofessional Ad for tape cleaners with non-celebrity endorsement! Is your "All Rush" mixtape dirty? (Not the content, is the tape sticking to itself?) If so, here's a product that will clean your Cassette tape in seconds! (Sent to "Techmoan" by a fellow who found it in a junkyard.;)

In the 1990's, Hapa, a duo featuring the works of Barry Flanagan was king of the radio airwaves. This cover by Danny Carvalho follows in that tradition and moves past it... Barry Flanagan and Keli'i Kaneali'i, reunited after 17 years, on Kaua'i.

Submitted for a midnight viewing, a low budget "Earth Invaded by Hostile Aliens" movie that plays out a bit better than expected. An Alien ship shows up, neutralizes Earth's defenses, and makes an offer that can't be refused. What are the Aliens' intentions with that "move or become a geologic layer" threat? An Asylum production that is quite a bit better than the usual "syfy channel" offering in the endless "Sharknado franchise.";)

A question for Science Nerds: What would a "Wormhole" look like? Could something pass through it intact? When/where would it exit the "Wormhole"? Watch two brothers calculate, discover, and reap the result...

Submitted for your approval, an African movie, set in a post-independence former French colony. (Senegal?) The French officials are turned out and the native African "businessmen" take their places to run the country for "the people." However, briefcases are presented to each of the new officials by smarmy-looking White men. The action shifts to a prominent businessman/government official who seeks to take a third wife. He steals from "the people," but on his wedding night, "the cigar" goes limp. What will he do and how far will he go to remedy the situation?

And now for something strange on MTV in the 1990's. I ran across MTV's "Oddities" by chance, starting with "The Maxx," as much a trip through the wilderness of tormented minds as fantastic imagery dragged from "graphic novels"/comics. The "Oddities" of animated shorts and series led to "Aeon Flux," which was...odd. Enter The Outback if you dare, but watch out for the sinister Mr. Gone. (You have been warned.)

Submitted for your approval on a Wednesday evening in July. What brought this on? A YouTube movie lover who had never seen "The Silence of the Lambs." Here's the original "dance video" without "Jame Gumb," thankfully. If that song rattled you to your soul, here's the equivalent of a "Playful Kitten" song: Chance - "Toy Cows In Africa

Submitted for your approval, a great technological breakthrough: Time Travel! Our time traveler seeks to meet someone from The Past and change his present life. So he follows a Platinum blonde through a park and...

Submitted for your approval, the less grim movie commissioned by a Hiroshima teacher's union, to portray the Hiroshima Atomic bomb' and it's effects on people years later. This was the first of two movies screened by Turner Classic Movies this Sunday, 12 July, 2020 to commemorate August 6th, 1945. The teacher's union was upset that this movie failed to indict the Japanese and U.S. government for failing to meet the needs of A-Bomb survivors. A second, more graphic movie, showing people "blasted into rag dolls," and children trapped under a collapsed wooden classroom, titled "Hiroshima" (1953), got the point across like a lead pipe "upside your head." Warning: this (or the other movie) show graphic depictions of the effects of A-bomb "Little Boy" on civilians.

Hear ye, hear ye! Neebs Gaming takes a look at the world and game play in the third edition of "Watch Dogs." London has been taken over by unknown forces, and you need to recruit a diverse team to combat them!

Submitted for your approval, a hot July night in Nurnberg. It's time for a movie at the Drive Inn, and The Hooters are playing! "Karla with a K" Live!

Red Alert! Solo violinist ahead with nostalgic intent. Watch out for "Seven of Canine," a real work of art! "STar Trek: Enterprise" Theme (extended) Vocal by Russel Watson.

Submitted for your approval, a spirited cover of Ledward Kaapana's medley of Slack Key instrumental tunes. Even in the Summer heat, this tune is cool...

Submitted for your approval, a 1,000,000 subscriber special video from "Techmoan." What could the well-heeled audio enthusiast buy in the late 1970's/early 1980's that could rival a professional recording studio's output? Technics presented state-of-the-art digital audio recording systems that were far too good for dubbing tapes or LPs of the late 1970's. This unit appeared on the Japanese domestic HiFi in the Spring of 1981 as "affordable professional tech." Why didn't "top quality audio on a T-120" take off? Take a trip into the past with "Techmoan," where the music CD is just over the horizon and the "Beta vs. VHS" video format war is starting...

The Earth is toast. A 67 minute nuclear war has left few survivors, who fan out across space in search of a "Class M" planet. The Scout ship "Utah," the second-to-the-last survey ship, has found an uninhabitable planet and is returning to the fleet of ships after a 7 year quest. The "Pegasus," the final Scout ship, is running low on antimater fuel in it's assigned sector. The crew, which has become quite motley over the 7 year voyage, is less and less motivated when sensors detect a drifting ship of similar design. Where is the ship from? Is there a habitable planet in the target system? Can the crew "keep it together" long enough to complete their mission?

Submitted for your approval, an all-star Science Fiction series with a "Gene Roddenberry"-like approach. This series looks at disposable "synthetics" in a world where Human blue collar workers no longer exist. Is the "rescued from a mining company's metal smelter" synthetic going to ignore Asimov's "Three Laws for Robots"? Will the ex-hotshot helmsman rise to the occasion as the "uninhibited synthetic" threatens the primacy of Homo sapiens over "metal heads"? Sign on with "Space Command," you have nothing to lose but daily boredom...