We sit On the In-Universe Dates of DS9's "Past Tense" and one year out from the 30th anniversary of DS9's "Past Tense" (oof), and this would've been a great year to get @roberthewittwolfe.bsky.social Avery Brooks, Siddig el Faddil, & Terry Farrell on a Dragon Con stage to reflect on these episodes. - ThreadSky

wolvendamien.bsky.social • 185 days ago

We sit On the In-Universe Dates of DS9's "Past Tense" and one year out from the 30th anniversary of DS9's "Past Tense" (oof), and this would've been a great year to get @roberthewittwolfe.bsky.social Avery Brooks, Siddig el Faddil, & Terry Farrell on a Dragon Con stage to reflect on these episodes.

Reposted from Dr. Damien P. Williams: Like TSCC s03 John Connor, But Better

So. Who's got the pictures of all the people in DS9 era starfleet uniforms in San Francisco, today?

Also: Two Days Remain.
writergeekrhw.tumblr.com/post/7602613...

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wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

I've noted before that the retro-future elements of Past Tense's 2024 are just WILD. There's the stuff they get mostly right like the ubiquity of networked computing, the "just get 'em out of sight" vision of "helping" the unhoused, the failure of even good people to consider the oppressed as human…

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

…But then there's stuff like what those computers looked like & how the networks worked— kind of like the internet & cable TV had an all-text-and-buttons baby?— & the complete lack of cellular telephony.

And it's not a generational thing, because Robert Hewitt Wolfe— "Past Tense" teleplay writer—…

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

…is ~10 years younger than both DS9 showrunner Ira Behr and 'Clueless' creator Amy Heckerling, and Clueless nailed the coming cultural impact of cell phones, AND what computers would eventually be used for (Cher's virtual outfit picker is just Pinterest & an AR overlay before those things existed).…

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

…(Although I will note that both "Past Tense" and Clueless had roughly the same vision of computer *interface design*, which is honestly kind of great. But even then, Clueless' version had more pictures.)

Then there's the weird mix of optimism about the development of a "pan-Caribbean government,"…

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

…cynicism about the future state of Europe, accuracy about the proliferation of protests in France, and a complete inability to imagine the renaming of the geological and other natural features of Aotearoa New Zealand, all of which together is also pretty funny/sad.
…

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

…Also, while I love— & I mean *Love*— what "Past Tense" does and represents both in the textual history of Trek, and in the metatextual recognition of Trek's influence on Western culture— the entire story is looking directly at the audience in 1995 and saying "LOOK OUTSIDE RIGHT NOW AND STOP THIS"—…

raantuva.fyi•185 days ago

Not Pinterest, there's specific closet apps actually. I have 4 on my iPad. I'm weird tho.

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

Fair, but I was mostly just making the broadly hyperbolic point ^_^

raantuva.fyi•185 days ago

Yeah I think Lookbook would have been a more apropos grok tho since that's literally all that is. Outfits. Outfits freakin everywhere. Mostly bougie.

bottleimp.bsky.social•185 days ago

@trufelman.bsky.social has an episode of Articles of Interest about the Clueless closet app. If you’ve got apps 4 on your iPad, you’d probably find it interesting. (All episodes of AoI are interesting though.)

raantuva.fyi•185 days ago

Oh thank you I'll check that out! :D

mrmaresca.com•184 days ago

It's always fascinating to me when something like this gets the fundamental concept right, but the aesthetics and functionality all wrong. Computers don't have proper keyboards. Brynner uses the language of cable television to describe how his network platform works, etc.

unaha-closp.bsky.social•185 days ago

So is Brooks quietly retired and teaching at Rutgers or has he been iced out of the industry, I've heard both

wolvendamien.bsky.social•185 days ago

Let me put it this way: If I knew Avery Brooks to ask him that, I would not endanger that acquaintance by spreading his business on the tubes

unaha-closp.bsky.social•185 days ago

well if you do know him enough to say, tell him we miss him!

dylannorthrup.bsky.social•172 days ago

Sadly, Garrett Wong is not yet on bluesky. But @dragoncon.bsky.social is and it's possible the Social Media Manager monitoring that account would be able to forward on this suggestion for next year.

dragoncon.org•172 days ago

Guests apply to the con themselves, but the best way to pass on a suggestion to a specific track is https://www.dragoncon.org/about/contact/ . Trek Track is pretty responsive to emails, but give them some time while we all rest post-con!

dylannorthrup.bsky.social•169 days ago

So (looking at the history of DragonCon guests)... all of the following guests volunteered themselves? No outreach was done at all?
- John Cleese
- James Gunn
- Sean Gunn
- Harlan Ellison
- Jefferson Starship
- Leonard Nimoy
- William Shatner
- Leonard Nimoy

#WouldHaveDMdButCouldNot

dylannorthrup.bsky.social•169 days ago

I get there's a policy, but being a native of the South I know rules can be bent depending on who they're being applied to (in both good and bad ways). I don't think for a second Marty Balin filled out a band application for Jefferson Starship without any outreach from a Con rep.

dylannorthrup.bsky.social•169 days ago

And, to be clear, it would be organizationally thoughtless if this did *not* happen. If there were a snowball's chance in GA a con rep could reach out to Jodie Foster, or Jon Hamm, or Donald Glover, or Robert Downey Jr. or Maya Rudolph and have them attend, not doing so is irresponsible.

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