SyFy's Childhood's End

[Kerr Avon]

This thing is going to make Sharknado look like Citizen Kane.

You clearly have no idea what you are talking about. Years ago, I would agree the SCIFI channel (I refuse to call it that other name) was a cesspool of ghost hunting shows, wrestling, and other garbage that really had nothing to do with science fiction or fantasy. All thanks to a woman who stated publicly that she didn't want to have shows on the channel about 'space, robots and aliens' Quite frankly, she was a ****.

In the last year or two, SCIFI has SIGNIFICANTLY refocused and is putting out some serious quality stuff. It's put out numerous new series, has more coming, and is showing whoever is leading the channel has a ****ing clue what they are doing.

If you haven't watched "Childhood's End," you are missing out. It is VERY well done so far, and like I have said many times should be done instead of open ended series, is a mini series with a defined beginning, middle and end. Three episodes. No padding, right to the story, no wandering around as if they try to figure out a plot. No, this is exactly what SCIFI should be doing. Adapting the greats of science fiction in mini series, or making new series, but doing it with quality and love.

And they are NAILING it.

 

[Mike J.]

I remember almost nothing from the book, I could have sworn there was a team working on getting a look at the aliens, not that they revealed themselves.

IIRC, the UN guy had a high-powered flashlight concealed in his briefcase and put it up to the not-a-TV-screen to try to get a look.

I read this many years ago, not one of my favorite Clarke stories, but I couldn't even name anything besides Space Odyssey that's ever been made into anything, which is a downer. Decades ago, there was talk of doing Rendezvous with Rama as a movie.

God willing, if The Martian is anything to go by, and this is well received and does well financially, we may be in for a second renaissance of good sci-fi. Original and classical.

Speaking of Clarke, I think my favorite stories, besides The Sentinel, are Against the Fall of Night and History Lesson. There certainly must be more, but it's been a long time since I first read every one of his books, or Asimov's, I could lay my hands on.

I've heard good things about Sci-fi's Expanse series as well.

Tell me, are there any cool props in Childhood's End? Any distinctive symbols for the visitors?


-MJ

 

[rebelyell]

There are a couple of silver vials that are interesting and a camera/droid thing but those are the only things that stand out in my mind. Everything else is pretty mundane. As for symbols, yes, there were a whole lot of those on tonight's episode.

 

[Mike J.]

And we're talking about logos, right? Not symbol-ism, like, I dunno, devil horns?

 

[0neiros]

Symbols = Overlord Alphabet, and lots of them. Yup really enjoying this.

 

[Mike J.]

Happy Birthday, Art!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_C._Clarke

 

[Jedi2016]

I was really sad when Arthur C. Clarke passed. His was the first celebrity death that really affected me, because I'd grown up reading his books.

I'm actually reading Childhood's End right now, that's why I'm so interested in how faithful they are.

 

[Kerr Avon]

Pretty decent ending to the mini series!!

 

[rebelyell]

I haven't read the book (yet) but I really enjoyed this mini series. It was one of the best sci fi series I've seen in quite a while. I loved that there were no big action sequences and I thought that the ending was beautifully done.

 

[SmilingOtter]

I got to see the first episode, most of the second, and will catch up on all of it soon. I'm enjoying it, especially Charles Dance.

 

[R.P. McMurphy]

Just finished. Very pleased with the adaptation. Well done.

 

[Wes R]

I was really sad when Arthur C. Clarke passed. His was the first celebrity death that really affected me, because I'd grown up reading his books.

I'm actually reading Childhood's End right now, that's why I'm so interested in how faithful they are.

He, Bradbury, and Asimov should be mandatory reading in schools. I'm glad to hear that scifi actually put effort into this adaptation.

 

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

WTH was the point of this? It came off like a half written show. I still don't know why the aliens came and turned a little girl into a planet buster. It's like they forgot to tell us half the story.

 

[NormanF]

WTH was the point of this? It came off like a half written show. I still don't know why the aliens came and turned a little girl into a planet buster. It's like they forgot to tell us half the story.

They may have left some stuff out in the adaptation. They did not turn her into a planet buster, that was going to happen either way. The aliens were here to clean up the planet so we did not kill ourselves before the kids evolved/transcended. I do not remember much of the book so I do not remember if the oija board was in it or not.

Sent from my Motorola StarTAC

 

[Kerr Avon]

What I want to know is why did the alien race have to prevent humans from leaving Earth after they cleaned everything up and why not let them have children after the psychic kids were born? It seems like they could have let the race leave Earth and continue as a species instead of preventing them from leaving when they knew it would cause their extinction.

 

[firesprite]

My husband and I watched this over the last couple of days and I have to say, we enjoyed it quite a bit. I've never read the book and it inspired both of us to read it, so I picked it up for my kindle, and in the audio edition as well.

 

[Wes R]

Actually if I remember the book right it was all pretty vague. I think the entire point of the aliens being there was to get humanity to transcend and then go extinct, had we left the planet to colonize there may not have been the transcending that they knew would happen. Been 20 years at least since I read it though.

 

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

So they wanted the children to evolve, then the planet is destroyed and there are no more humans. There still doesn't seem to be any point to it.

 

[Wes R]

Like i said it was over 20 years ago so I'm probably forgetting a lot of stuff. To me a motivation is fear that humanity might try and get rid of the evolved humanity before it had time to grow out of fear. Personally it's not one of my favorite books by him.

 

[dbuck]

I have yet to watch the miniseries, but I remember the ending of the book being that the overlords couldn't evolve and join the Overmind themselves, but send others who have evolved into a non-materialistic existence.