I just finished reading "Solaris" by Lem and wanted to put somewhere my thoughts about it. I'm from Poland so I always thought I should know Lem better but before Solaris I've only read "The Invincible". I've seen the Hollywood movie years ago which didn't proved to be much of a spoiler. So, my thoughts, without spoilers I think...

Lem had a great imagination. The concept of Solaris, it's exploration and the idea of trying to communicate with it brilliant and original. The way Lem describes it not so much. Half of the book is just a very dry recounting of its history and behavior. It's well written but it's just a background for the actual story. The actual story itself is bizarrely the complete opposite: it's interesting but terribly written. It contains the worst dialogs I've ever read (and I read the original version, not translation). If not for the well written descriptions of the planet I would assume I'm reading something translated by Google Translate. I think I understand now why so many Philip K. Dick's books were successfully turned into movies but Lem's were not. He was great at coming up with interesting concepts but not that good at telling stories. I would like to know what others think about it.

P.S. Another thing I straggled with (and I know it's just something I don't like personally, that's why it's just a side note ) is the way Lem describes or invents the tech of the future. Basically he doesn't. His worlds are still analog with printed books, microfilm and lamp based computers (The invincible was the same with computers programmed using perforated paper). I've checked and Solaris was written in 1969 while the first hard drive was commercialized in 1966. I think Lem was more interested in physics and modern tech simply wasn't his thing. He would take was he saw around him (probably usually tech many years old already) and put it in the future without thinking to much about it. Is it just me or do others also find it jarring?

Excerpt:

It’s a wonderful day to stroll through Campo Grande. The trees are beginning to change their colors, turning the park into a fantastic palette of greens, ochres, yellows, and deep reds. The scent of resin and earth mingles with that of roasted chestnuts from the street vendors. People enjoy the good weather, oblivious to what’s happening on the city’s outskirts. Mencía, however, cannot afford that luxury. That’s why she’s the only one walking in a hurry.

....

-Read more in its original language on fictograma.com, an open source Spanish community of writers- Pls, join us ᕕ( ᐛ )ᕗ

What would you do if you could Save your life like in a videogame, and then Load if something goes wrong? And what if that ability was the only way to save your universe from ending?

Step through the stage's curtain; rip off the mask of the wizard who pulls the strings. Close the loop. Hack into God.

"Fuck! You've nulled my null field."

I know I am late, but what were everyone's thoughts on this season? How about that Mule? What's left of Empire? How about that stinger?!

Hi there, my name is Leo Otoiu and I am a Publishing Studies student writing my dissertation on SF Publishing. I am conducting this survey on SF readers preferences on cover design.

It would mean a lot to me if you took my survey: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSftYnLZJdb_-M53O-tDZ2MNVtgwgoa5YpFfK4tRd8MZOu2fsQ/viewform?usp=header

Pantheon season 1 is being added to Netflix tomorrow, but season 2 is not (and might never be). Both seasons are on Prime Video but it is region-locked, though I'm not sure which regions it is available in.

Pantheon is a fantastic sci-fi show with really smart themes that has been completely screwed over by streaming services. The writing is incredible and contains some very intelligent satire and critiques of big tech corporations, and even dips its toes into geopolitics (not even kidding, the Israel-Palestine conflict becomes a plot point in season 2, and this was written prior to Oct. 7).

If you want to watch the series in its entirety then piracy is a must for the vast majority. Needless to say, I highly recommend watching.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/13583666

The plot summary is as follows:

Secret Service agent Rebecca Carter's world is upended when her husband goes missing in 2002. Two years later, Rebecca and her team are protecting the President during a high-stakes trade deal in China. But their mission is cut short when an assassin appears out of nowhere, kills everyone, and disappears, leaving Rebecca as the lone survivor. In the year 31,462, Xel-Na, a shifter (an individual who can move through time and space at will), receives no word from Thes-Omatz, the deep space research vessel carrying his wife and daughter. Upon launching probes to investigate, he finds everyone either dead or missing. Suspecting a fellow shifter, Xel-Na embarks on a mission to confront the perpetrator. In his quest he soon comes across Rebecca. Together, they face insurmountable odds, all while grappling with the weight of their personal losses. But as they delve deeper into the heart of the conspiracy, they discover that the murderous shifter isn't just after Rebecca, he's after power. And no matter what Xel-Na and Rebecca do, this cunning adversary is always one step ahead of them.

I finished the first draft of the novel, but being out of work I'm not able to fund it myself. I was kinda like, well, nobody's giving me a call, might as well write it.

Would love to hear your thoughts. Do you like it? I have a thick skin, so even if it's crap, go ahead and let a rip.

And before you ask, no, it was not written by AI 😆 (though I did use AI to assist in editing).

If you'd like to fund publication, I would greatly appreciate it. Or if you like and and don't like to give strangers money online, I'd be forever grateful if you share the post on social media.

cross-posted from: https://hexbear.net/post/1989988

This will be me when I'm making a movie:

Has anyone seen this metaphysical sci-fi flick?

As I understand it, it did terrible at the box office. The trailer is amazing to look at, so I’m wondering if there is anything of substance to be found. I’ll be watching it tonight or early this week.

https://youtu.be/VCTen3-B8GU

I’m sure I’ll enjoy the heck out of it, but after Minus 1… Everything else just looks like fluff.

(But, hey… I like fluff!)

https://youtu.be/lV1OOlGwExM

Happy 60th anniversary to Doctor Who!

https://youtu.be/2V_xYubUJFo

What does everyone think about this attempt at a new franchise from Disney? I remember seeing it in the theater and I really enjoyed it! I had hoped we would see more in the 'John Carter' universe, but that was not to be. Poor marketing is often blamed, as is critics suggesting it was "derivative".

It follows a crew of a damaged deep space freighter who are stranded on a beautiful but dangerous planet.

Beautiful animation and wildly imaginative. The story probably won't blow your mind but the alien world might! I certainly enjoyed it and consider it one of the more interesing SciFi shows released lately.

Pantheon focuses on Maddie, a bullied teen who receives mysterious help from someone online. The stranger is soon revealed to be her recently deceased father, David, whose consciousness has been uploaded to the Cloud following an experimental destructive brain scan. David is the first of a new kind of being: an "Uploaded Intelligence" or "UI", but he will not be the last, as a global conspiracy unfolds that threatens to trigger a new kind of world war.

Probably one of the best sci-fi shows created in the last few decades. It's smart, deep and engaging.

If you haven't tried it, you are missing out.