Something Big! (But not pony) · 5:56am Dec 4th, 2014
Okay...first let me preempt any questions by getting a few things out of the way. First off, this particular blog is not gonna be about anything pony-related, including my stories. Work on Story...(pauses to count fingers)...Story 8 of Savage Skies is progressing quite well...if somewhat slowly at times, owing in combined part to occasional cases of "Where do I go from here?" writer's block, being worn out from work (Christmas season for the retail industry/Oh God! I am so freaking sick of Christmas music already!) and my generally poor work-ethic and the fact that I am easily distracted by things...well...things like this actually (the topic, not blogging itself). That said, it is progressing. And if that's what you wanted to know and all you cared about, feel free to skip the rest of this blog. I'll dig up a sample for you guys later.
So on to today's actual topic. I am feeling very giddy about next summer's movie season, what with Marvel releasing Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man...Oh...and there's a Batman/Superman movie too, I think (I've never been much of a DC fan. Take that Thomas Edison!) But then, last week, this came out...
Now you see what I meant by Something Big (Get it? Because Dinosaurs are big...I know, don't quit my day job).
Anyway, I'm pretty excited about this, seeing as I get pretty excited about dinosaurs or anything dinosaur related in general, hence my excitement over all the Godzilla previews earlier this year. Hopefully all this buildup won't end in the same manner that the hype for Godzilla did...namely a result of "Meh," for most of the movie and a feeling of "You know, another twenty or thirty minutes of this jimmied in there would have really helped things," for the actual Godzilla bits...Yeah, I'm still kinda hung up on that.
This blog is mostly for the purposes of analysis of and speculation on the trailer. Again, if this isn't your cup of tea, feel free to drop out here.
The trailer looks really good. Some of the effects don't look quite finished. Some of the dinosaur scenes have that glossy "this isn't fully textured" CGI look to them, which is where quite a few lesser studios apparently feel perfectly happy leaving off for their final cut of the film, but overall quite promising. I'm hoping that the mosasaur has a decent role. It seems like a pretty good way of enforcing a closed-circle scenario on the island. Assuming whatever impending disaster in the story line, presumably related to the new attraction's unplanned breakout (more on her later), leads to containment failure for the different animals, he could prove a serious obstacle to any attempts at evacuation, given that the park's attendees are primarily brought in via ferry and that mosasaur looks big enough to pose a threat to said ferry.
Then, of course, the trailer ends with the shot of Owen, played by Chris Pratt, apparently riding into battle with a posse of trained raptors (and subsequently qualifying that for Most Badass Shot of the Year). This has led me to the conclusion that Owen is secretly Peter Quill, AKA Star Lord, who has developed the power to command raptors. Marvel...Disney...this needs to be in the next Guardians of the Galaxy movie. It doesn't have to make a lick of sense, but it needs to be there.
Finally, there's the new girl (and yes, the trailer refers to her as a "she"). The premise of the story thus far, if you haven't been riding all the press releases about the movie, is that the park has finally been opened to the public and has been running safely and successfully for a few years now. However, attendance has started to flag and enthusiasm wanes as the park and the dinosaurs become "old news." In order to combat this trend, the park scientists are ordered to create a brand-new, never before seen dinosaur, a hybrid that is bigger, louder, and more exciting than the T. Rex. Presumably, said hybrid breaks loose and all Hell with it.
The concept of the new hybrid interests me a great deal, if only because it appeals to my mad-scientist sensibilities of someday creating my very own super-dino with which to conquer the world. Granted, a lot of fans have apparently flipped out at the idea, but I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm not overly concerned about scientific accuracy since the Jurassic Park franchise, the movies especially, has always dwelt at the softer end of hard science-fiction, science that has only been getting softer as more and more discoveries in the fields of paleontology and genetics essentially debunk many of the assumptions the previous films relied on; things like DNA surviving up to several million years without denaturing or raptors not having feathers. So the idea of inventing a new dinosaur from multiple species, including both dinosaurs and contemporary species, is an interesting idea, especially considering what species are being used.
Right now (as of the most current info on the movie), the species being used for the new Diabolus Rex, or D. Rex, includes DNA from a T. Rex, a velociraptor, a snake (which kind is currently unknown and may be important), and a cuttlefish. That last one is especially important, as it seems like a really out-there choice for combination with a dinosaur. Snakes, at least, dwell in roughly the same evolutionary neighborhood as dinosaurs (though no longer anywhere near as close as scientists used to think), so they're a little bit more feasible. So what would a squid bring to the new dino?
Given that the director has gone on record by saying that the D. Rex won't be sporting anything absurd, like spikes or horns, it's highly unlikely that she's gonna have tentacles either. That said, there is one other especially interesting trait that cuttlefish brings to the party...
Now that is something that might be very interesting in a new dinosaur. Looking at it from the perspective of people who are trying to create a new attraction for their dinosaur-themed amusement park, you can see the appeal. You have a dinosaur that can change the colors, patterns, and possibly even the texture, of its skin at will. If you could train it to change colors on command - and seeing as Owen is supposed to be an expert in raptor behavior and the D. Rex has raptor genes as well, that may be exactly what they have in mind - you have something pretty showy and impressive. But it also means that the D. Rex would essentially have super-camouflage, which might make it rather hard to keep track of and would make it the perfect predator in a park that's already full of badass dinosaurs like T. Rex.
Furthermore, it's been determined that cuttlefish also use their color changing abilities as a means of subtle and complex visual communication, which indicates pretty substantial intelligence. This means that the addition of cuttlefish traits might have the side-effect of upping the D. Rex's brainpower and making her just that little-bit-more-than-they-planned-for intelligent than the scientists thought. Now adding cuttlefish makes sense from both a story and in-universe perspective. All in all, the D. Rex is shaping up to being a pretty scary and pretty awesome antagonist for the film. I'm really looking forward to it.
So those are my thoughts about the upcoming Jurassic World movie. If anyone else has thoughts about the film, feel free to leave them in the comments...or just berate me for wasting your time on something that isn't pony. In either case, I'm curious what you all think about this.
Unfortunately, the Batman/Superman movie is a film of 2016, not 2015. Sucks, don't it.
I take it from your enthusiasm you have read the books?
~Crystalline Electrostatic~
all shall know the torment of tartarus the reason no one can escape is because the closer you get to the exit the louder the christmas music gets and you run back to the safety of cerberus's jaws
my self I am planning on watching Godzilla when it is out. ant man that may be a problem for me bat man superman I am literary chopping at the bit for that one and the avengers also.
after all that I will say I am super enjoying your Savage Skies saga it just plan rocks I would rather what 6 mounts for #8 and have it right rather then hurried.
as to xmis just plan yuck it lost all meaning to me over 30 years ago it has turned it to a contest to see who can out spend who in my family and I have earned the name scrooge and just don't give a buck any more.
ok time to calm down I know time to read my favorite chapter of Savage Skies foal in the forest not sure way I just love that chapter / story.
harts fire
So, let me get this straight, after what happened in ALL 3 prior movies, they STILL REBUILT THE THEME PARK AND OPENED IT TO THE PUBLIC?! AND THEN MADE THINGS WORSE BY PLAYING OF ALL THINGS GOD AGAIN?!!!
YOU'D THINK THESE DINO-FREAKS WOULD LEARN ALREADY!!!