Sci-Fi | Roger's Galaxy: The Evolution of a Geek

Kaiju Preservation Society Book Review

I love John Scalzi’s books! There. I am revealing my bias up front, for all the world to see. Despite my history of enjoying Scalzi’s books, I don’t usually track his new releases very closely, therefore, his excellent Kaiju Preservation Society novel snuck up and bit me. Here is my Kaiju Preservation Society Book Review.

I actually had heard of this title, but it took a friend posting about it on social media to motivate me to read it. Being rather cheap, I rarely buy books anymore, I checked out a digital copy of the book from my local library system (Did you know that the King County (WA) Library System is third in THE WORLD in digital downloads? Neither did I. Wow!)

Anyway, after downloading the digital version of the book (Mr. Scalzi, sorry I did not buy it), I began reading it and I could scarcely put it down. Ok that is an old-fashioned phrase from when I would actually, physically hold onto a book made of actual paper, but I think you get the meaning, right?

Back to the book: Without giving away too much spoiler-like stuff, our main character (yes, the protagonist) is Jamie Gray, a failed academic who, in the early days of The Pandemic (yes, a COVID-era novel—YES!) finds himself helplessly in the tender mercies of New York venture capitalism. Can you say downsized? Anyway this leads him to a new job with the Kaiju Preservation Society.

Even the most casual sci-fi fan probably knows that Kaiju is a Japanese term for, how shall we put it…Godzilla-like creatures. Without going into too much detail (don’t want to spoil it for you), these critters exist…somewhere hard to get to, and Jamie is recruited to try to preserve them.

That is pretty much it for plot summary. Yes, go read it. Why? Ok, here are the reasons I liked it:

1. Kaiju are cool. Scalzi’s creativity in creating his Kaiju-verse is clever, as his how these animals get their individual names. Yes, there is a Kaiju named Kevin!
2. He gets the angst and uncertainty of the Pandemic down right. He, and we, lived through it, so that is not a real surprise.
3. Humor. Lots of low-key humor, seen in the regular interactions Jamie has with roommates, co-workers, and, yes, the bad guys.
4. Speaking of bad guys (yes, the dreaded Antagonists), there are no real surprises other than the fact that even the main bad guy is almost relatable to regular folks. This is a theme of a lot of Scalzi’s work throughout his books.
5. The science part of Scalzi’s sci-fi sounds logical. For a non-science major, that may not mean much, but if it makes sense to me, then it should for you as well. Plus, the original social media recommendation came from a high school science teacher, so…yeah.

Scalzi’s page on Wikipedia lists this book as a “stand-alone novel,” so we may or may not see a sequel. The book ends with a real conclusion, but it leaves an opening for another book. I do hope we get a sequel.

I highly recommend this one for anyone who wants/needs a good read. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Hey, you are still here. Cool. I have other book reviews on this site as well. Enjoy!

Discovering Star Trek: Discovery

First impressions here without spoiling much, of Star Trek; Discovery, which I began watching from the POV of a long-time Trek fan.

Discovering Star Trek: Discovery

I just began watching Star Trek: Discovery. Yes, I know, for a guy touting himself as a Geek, to just now start watching what is turning out to be a very interesting, very geek-worthy Star Trek show is scandalous.

Before you start slinging bat’leths at me, let me hasten to explain…

You see, I am rather stodgy and old-fashioned when it comes to certain things. When I first heard that CBS All Access was a paid subscription for the new STAR TREK series, my proletarian sensibilities were upset. In the old days (and, as you all know, “in the old days” is grumpy old man talk), we could watch Star Trek with only an antenna…and then with a cable hookup…and then through Netflix, and so on. You see, it took me a while to decide that it was ok, that the Alpha Quadrant would not collapse into a tizzy if I actually subscribed (with money) to the new CBS access to see my new Star Trek show.

Plus, from talking with fellow Trekker fans at the recent Emerald City Comic-Con, and getting-first hand reviews from real people who also shelled out good money to meet George Takei, well, that helped convince me. I had heard bits and pieces over time from fellow geeks at work, and, frankly, the news that Sir Patrick Stewart himself is getting a new show titled “Picard,” well, that sealed the deal for this geek!

So now, I have duly subscribed to the Old Gods of CBS All Access, and am now five episodes into the first season. My thoughts on what I have taken in so far? Well, WOW!

Star Trek Discovery-GIF — Star Trek Discovery

I had heard that CBS was putting a lot of money into the production values for the show, based on the idea that a lot of Trek fans would pony up money to see it, and you can really see the quality in the props and special effects. Top notch! Each episode looks like a mini-movie, and the acting is also quite good.

I’m going to give my first impressions here without spoiling much, I hope. The first two episodes had me scratching my head a bit, since I knew the show is named after a Federation vessel (Discovery-named, as I later learned, from the ship in 2001: Space Odyssey), yet the main ship in the opening episodes is the USS Shenzhou, captained by Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Crazy Rich Asians) as Captain Philippa Georgiou. First Officer is a woman named Micheal Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green (Walking Dead). While this show, now that I am into it by five episodes, plays homage to all of the previous Star Trek shows, is unique in several ways. Our main character, Burnham, is not a starship captain. The show opens with a ship that is not the ship of the show’s name, and the show leaves a few questions in my mind.

Among those questions (again, trying to not spoil things here): What is up with how the Klingons look? This is at least the third iteration of the physical appearance of Klingons across the various shows and movies. Will ST: Discovery eventually explain this? Also, we see a lot of advanced tech on board Discovery that was not seen on Kirk’s Enterprise. Now, obviously, the special effects of the mid-late 1960s were inferior to what we have today, but if this new show is supposed to hold onto the continuity and the canon of the overall Trek Universe, we will need to have some explanations. From some brief readings online (https://www.ign.com/articles/2017/10/23/star-trek-discoverys-holodeck-has-fans-freaking-out and https://www.polygon.com/2017/5/18/15658904/star-trek-discovery-klingon) some of my questions and concerns have been alleviated, but I am a continuity and canon geek for my fictional universes, and I want clarity!

Before I go away to watch the next episode, I will say, that the references to historical figures (like Jonathan Archer) and “current” people like Christopher Pike and certain Vulcans and their family members do send the true Trek fan in to fits of geeky ecstasy. If you are a Trek fan, then this is a series worth checking out. More reports on the show as I progress through the episodes.

Live Long and Prosper!

So What Is Roger’s Galaxy, Anyway?

Welcome to Rogers Galaxy! Enjoy your stay here, and please, feel free to check out the posts, articles, and other frippery found herein.

So, who exactly is Roger, and what is his Galaxy all about? Well, Roger would be me! Hi. And what, pray tell, is my Galaxy? Just my own little website where I can, and will, post my thoughts on comics, sci-fi, movies, life, and pretty much any geeky thing I come across. See, I am what is called a “Geek.” I like speculative fiction and things that go bump in the night, as it were. When I was just a wee lad, back in the day, there was no such thing as an “internet,” and growing up as a comic book fan got kind of lonely, as I really did not know anyone else into my particular hobby. Then, the mid-1990s happened and all of a sudden, the internet allowed me to discover a whole community of fellow comic book and sci-fi geeks. So there you have it.

I am also geeky when it comes to politics, history, current events, and pretty much anything I find of interest (including certain sports), and this is a place for me to post my musings on both the fictional world and the real world.

Have fun, and feel free to leave comments if you find my stuff interesting and shiny.

Here are some quotes to live by:

“Live Long and Prosper!”

“May the Force Be With You!”

“With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility!”

“Excelsior!”