This is space. It's
sometimes called the final frontier. (Except that of course you can't have
a *final* frontier, because there'd be nothing for it to be a frontier
*to*, but as frontiers go, it's pretty penultimate...)
- Terry Pratchett
"Your weapons are no
match for ours! People of Mars, surrender!"
"Um, this isn't Mars.
This is Earth."
"Earth? Earth-with-nuclear-weapons
Earth?"
"Yes."
[long pause] "Friend!"
- Unknown
I can picture in my
mind a world without war, a world without hate. And I can picture us attacking
that world, because they'd never expect it.
- Jack Handey, "Deep Thoughts"
I don't think I'm alone
when I say I'd like to see more and more planets fall under the ruthless
domination of our solar system.
- Jack Handey, "Deep Thoughts"
If we get involved
in a nuclear war, would the electromagnetic pulses from exploding bombs
damage my videotapes?
- Anon
For me science fiction
is a way of thinking, a way of logic that bypasses a lot of nonsense. It
allows people to look directly at important subjects.
- Gene Roddenberry, creator of "Star Trek"
I've always liked the
idea of a special Hugo to be awarded (by force, perhaps) to literary authors
who
write books dripping
with themes filleted from mainstream SF and then deny that it's science
fiction
'because it's not
about robots and spaceships'.
- Terry Pratchett
More than one commentator
has mentioned that science fiction as a form is where theological narrative
went after Paradise Lost, and this is undoubtedly true. Supernatural creatures
with wings, and burning bushes that speak, are unlikely to be encountered
in a novel about stockbrokers, unless the stockbrokers have been taking
a few mind-altering substances, but they are not out of place on Planet
X. The form is often used as a way of acting out the consequences of a
theological doctrine. The theological resonances in films such as Star
Wars are more than obvious. Extraterrestrials have taken the place of angels,
demons, fairies and saints, though it must be said that this last group
is now making a comeback.
We want wisdom. We
want hope. We want to be good. Therefore we sometimes tell ourselves warning
stories that deal with the darker side of some of our other wants.
Literature is an uttering,
or outering, of the human imagination. It lets the shadowy forms of thought
and feeling — heaven, hell, monsters, angels and all — out into the light,
where we can take a good look at them and perhaps come to a better understanding
of who we are and what we want, and what the limits to those wants may
be. Understanding the imagination is no longer a pastime, but a necessity;
because increasingly, if we can imagine it, we'll be able to do it.
- Margaret Atwood, "Why We Need Science Fiction", "The Guardian"
"There's no real objection
to escapism, in the right places... We all want to escape occasionally.
But science fiction is often very far from escapism, in fact you might
say that science fiction is escape into reality... It's a fiction which
does concern itself with real issues: the origin of man; our future. In
fact I can't think of any form of literature which is more concerned with
real issues, reality."
- Arthur C Clarke
"Fantasy is the impossible
made probable. Science fiction is the improbable made possible."
- Rod Serling, creator of The Twilight Zone
"The reality of science
is that it takes 40 years to get to Jupiter, and that's a dull show."
- Glen Morgan, producer of sci-fi series "Space: Above and Beyond"
A planet doesn't explode
of itself," said dryly The Martian Astronomer, gazing off into the air:
"That they were able to do it is proof that highly Intelligent beings must
have been living there."
- John Hall Wheelcock,"Earth"
"The earth? Oh the
earth will be gone in a few seconds...I'm going to blow it up. It's obstructing
my view of Venus."
- Marvin the Martian
"Your superior intellect
is no match for our puny weapons."
- Unknown...possibly The Simpsons
"I say we take off
and nuke the entire site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure."
- Ripley, "Aliens"...strangely affecting
"Peace Through Superior
Firepower"
"We endanger species"
- Mottos of the marines in "Aliens"
"If it bleeds, we can
kill it."
- Predator
"I've had people walk
out on me before, but not when I was being so charming."
- Deckard, "BladeRunner"
"The light that burns
twice as bright burns half as long...and you have burned so very, very
brightly, Roy."
- Tyrell, "BladeRunner"
"I've seen things you
wouldn't believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched
C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments
will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."
- Roy Batty in "Blade Runner"
"Only when we have
to fight to stay human do we realise how precious it is. How dear to us."
- Dr Miles Bennell, "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956)
"I take a dim view
of watching my own destruction."
- Jack, "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956)
"The mind is a strange
and wonderful thing. I'm not sure it'll ever be able to figure itself out.
Everything else maybe, from the atom to the universe, everything except
itself."
- Dr Dan Kaufmann, "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (1956)
"Where should we be
if nobody tried to find out what lies beyond? Have you never wanted to
look beyond the clouds and stars, to know what causes trees to bud and
what changes darkness into light? But if you talk like that people call
you crazy..."
- Henry Frankenstein, "Frankenstein" (1932)
"The universe is composed
of infinite planes of the random."
- from John Wyndham's "Random Quest"
"It takes eight minutes
for light to travel to the Earth from the sun... So if you wake up one
morning and it's a particularly beautiful day, you'll know we made it."
- Capa, "Sunshine"
"This is not a democracy.
We are a collection of scientists and astronauts."
- Captain Kaneda, faced with a difficult decision, "Sunshine"
"I could tell you what's
happening, but I don't know if it would really tell you what's happening."
- Snow, "Solaris"
"I'm not the person
I remember."
- Rheya, "Solaris"
"What does Solaris
want from us?"
"Why do you think
it has to want something? This is why you have to leave. If you keep thinking
there's a solution, you'll die here... Do you understand what I'm trying
to tell you? There are no answers, only choices."
- Chris and Gibrarian, "Solaris"
"I tried to find the
rhythm of the world where I used to live... But I was haunted by the idea
that I remembered her wrong."
- Chris, "Solaris"
"Death shall have no
dominion... Though lovers be lost love shall not."
- Chris, quoting Dylan Thomas, "Solaris"
Any sort of ship you
have to learn to pilot; it takes a long time, a new set of reflexes, a
different and artificial way of thinking. Even riding a bicycle demands
an acquired skill, very different from walking, whearas a spaceship - oh,
brother! I won't live that long. Spaceships are for acrobats who are also
mathematicians.
- Juan Rico in Robert A. Heinlein's "Starship Troopers"
"Revenge and destruction
are un-Christian thoughts. Also, they will not pay very well, since it
is hard to sell anything to a corpse. The problem is to find some means
within our resources to make it unprofitable for Borthu to raid us. Not
being stupid heads, they will then stop raiding and we can maybe later
do business."
- Poul Anderson, "Margin of Profit," in Un-man and Other Novellas
"Anything you think
can be held against you."
- Phillip K. Dick, "We Can Remember It for You Wholesale"
"What is it that is
exactly the same about every vacation you've ever taken?"
"I give up."
"You. You're the same.
No matter where you go, there you are. Always the same old you. Let me
suggest that you take a vacation from yourself. I know it sounds wild,
but it's the latest thing in travel. We call it an 'Ego Trip'."
- Quaid and McClane, "Total Recall"
There is evil! It's
actual, like cement... I can't believe it. I can't stand it. Evil is not
a view... it's an ingredient in us. In the world. Poured over us, filtering
into our bodies, minds, hearts, into the pavement itself.
- Tagomi, in Philip K Dick's "The Man in the High Castle"
"It believes it is
human. It wants to live. It knows fear. It will make a mistake — in the
genius lies the defect."
- Major Hathaway, "The Impostor"
"Algorithms I trust.
Boolean logic I trust. Beautiful women... they just mystify me."
- Zane Zaminski (Charlie Sheen), "The Arrival
"Right now you're just
one man with a very large conspiracy theory... take great care in what
you choose to find out."
- Phil Gordion to Zane, "The Arrival"
"Have they left?"
"No."
"How do you know?"
"Because we're not
dead yet."
- Char and Zane, "The Arrival"
"You know the way I
always wanted to save the planet?
(tosses empty coke
can into recycle bin) Here's my chance."
- David Levinson, "Independence Day"
"Either I'm concussed,
or I'm watching Patrick Moore Moore fistfighting with an extraterrestrial."
- An RAF pilot, in "Independence Day: UK" by Dirk Maggs
"I address you tonight
not as the President of the United States, not as a leader of a country,
but as a citizen of humanity. We are faced with the very gravest of challenges.
The Bible calls this day 'armageddon' - the end of all things. And yet,
for the first time in the history of the planet, a species has the technology
to prevent its own extinction. All of you praying with us tonight need
to know that everything that can be done to prevent this disaster is being
called into service.
The human thirst for
excellence, knowledge; every step up the ladder of science; every adventurous
reach into space; all of our combined technologies and imaginations; even
the wars that we've fought have provided us the tools to wage this terrible
battle.
Through all of the
chaos that is our history; through all of the wrong and the discord; through
all of the pain and he suffering; through all of our times, there is one
thing that has nourished our souls, and elevated our species above its
origins, and that is our courage. The dreams of an entire planet are focused
tonight on those fourteen brave sould travelling into the heavens. And
may we, citizens the world over, see these events through. God speed, and
good luck to you."
- A speech from the President in "Armageddon"
"One more thing. The
person who finds her gets to name her right?"
"Yes, yes that's right,
that's right."
"I wanna name her
Dottie after my wife. She's a vicious life-sucking bitch from which there
is no escape."
- Karl and Dan, "Armageddon"
"redruM! redruM!"
- Danny, "The Shining"
"I think I better start
studying medicine."
"Why's that?"
"Because I'm beginning
to feel like Dr Watson."
- Sheriff Truman and Agent Cooper, "Twin Peaks"
"I thought you didn't
like Laura?"
"I didn't. But I understood
her better than the rest."
- Agent Cooper and Audrey Horne, "Twin Peaks"
#
Mourn not for us, for
we have known the light,
Have looked on beauty,
have lived in peace and love,
Grieve but for those
who go alone, unwise,
To die in darkness,
never having see the Sun [or is it the Son?]
- Twilight Zone episode "The Star" based on story by Arthur C. Clarke
"It makes you wonder,
doesn't it? Just how normal are we? Just who are the people we nod our
hellos to as we pass on the street? A rather good question to ask — particularly
in 'The Twilight Zone'."
- Rod Serling
"Sometimes it takes
a human life to balance a cold equation in the black geometry of the Twilight
Zone."
- Narration from "The Twilight Zone" episode "Cold Equations"
"In the days to come,
when human beings navigate the great depths of space they'll eventually
come to a small planet in a distant galaxy. It's a pleasant place, but
quite unlike the Earth. There's one unusual similarity however — shamrocks
grow there in great profusion."
- Narration from "The Twilight Zone: The Little People of Kelvaney Woods"
"There's this world
where the dominant lifeforms are a race of living, sentient binary digits.
You could be a decimal. In time, work your way up to a fraction."
- from "The Twilight Zone: I of Newton"
"Another of our continuing
tips on what to do if the Devil shows up on your doorstep — a public service
announcement from the Twilight Zone."
- Narration from "The Twilight Zone: I of Newton"
"If we are pawns of
dark powers then even our highest aspirations become a grim joke."
- Narration from "The Twilight Zone: A Small Talent for War"
"Respectfully submitted
for your perusal: a Kanamit. Height: a little over nine feet. Weight: in
the neighborhood of three hundred and fifty pounds. Origin : unknown. Motives?
Therein hangs the tale, for in just a moment we're going to ask you to
shake hands, figuratively, with a Christopher Columbus from another galaxy
and another time. This is the Twilight Zone."
- Narration from "Twilight Zone" episode "To Serve Man"
"Wintry February night,
the present. Order of events: a phone call from a frightened woman notating
the arrival of an unidentified flying object, and the check-out you've
just witnessed with two state troopers verifying the event, but with nothing
more enlightening to add beyond evidence of some tracks leading across
the highway to a diner. You've heard of trying to find a needle in a haystack?
Well, stay with us now and you'll be a part of an investigating team whose
mission is not to find that proverbial needle, no, their task is even harder.
They've got to find a Martian in a diner, and in just a moment you'll search
with them, because you've just landed in the Twilight Zone."
- Narration from "Twilight Zone" episode "Will The Real Martian Please
Stand Up?"
Had she enough of life?
When she was born, few women lived past their twenties. Genevieve had so
much past. How much future could she bear? Since Sputnik, many children
wanted to be spacemen when they grew up. It was likely, if Earth survived
the next hundred years without nuclear self-immolaton, that humanity would
spread to the stars. It might be an option for her, a wonder-journey to
Jupiter and beyond. She had read an article by Arthur C Clarke in Time
magazine that suggested vampires like her, elderly enough to be stable,
would be ideal for long-haul space flights, more resilient that the norm,
long-loved enough to undertake voyages that might last human generations.
There were even ways around the problem of feeding.
- Genevieve, in "Anno Dracula 1959" by Kim Newman
"Sunlight poses a problem
to our 'ethnic group'."
- Gremlin, in "Gremlins II"
"What is wrong with
you?"
"Ovinophobia, my therapist
calls it."
"Well, what's that?"
"Just the completely
unfounded and irrational fear that one day *this* is going to happen!"
- Experience and Henry, facing some angry "Black Sheep"
Violence of the Lambs.
- Tagline from "Black Sheep"
"There's that word
again, 'heavy'. Why are things so heavy in the future? Is there a problem
with the earth's gravitational pull?"
- Dr Emmet Brown, "Back To The Future"
"The issue isn't whether
you're paranoid, It's whether you're paranoid enough."
- Strange Days
"People of Earth, don’t
be afraid, we come in peace [ vaporises more people ] ack ack ack ack."
- The Martians, "Mars Attacks"
"I guess it wasn't
the dove."
- Natalie Portman, "Mars Attacks"
"Why do we never meet
anyone nice?"
"Why is it we never
meet anyone who can shoot straight?"
- Lister & Cat, "Red Dwarf"
"Step up to red alert."
"Sir, are you absolutely
sure? It does mean changing the bulb."
- Rimmer & Kryten, "Red Dwarf"
"How can you put your
faith in a man whose idea of a romantic nightspot and an impregnable fortress
are the same thing? This is a pub!"
- David, to Liz, "Shaun of the Dead"
"Not something I ever
expected to say on air... 'removing the head or destroying the brain'."
- Jeremy Thompson, Sky News Anchor on Z-Day, "Shaun of the Dead"
"I've never watched
a zombie movie without thinking: what would I do? Straight to the sports
shop..."
- Jimmy Carr, "The Panel"
"Have we anything resembling
a plan?"
"Kill them all."
- 13th Warrior, does this film have anything resembling a plot?
"You weren't alive
during the Microsoft conflict. We were beating each other with our own
severed limbs."
- from Jason X
"Look, if you call
me ma'am one more time I'll sue you for sexual harrassment, and with today's
laws, it's possible."
- Kelly Scott to Jack Wells, "Lake Placid"
"How did he swim across
the sea?"
"They conceal information
like that in books."
- Sheriff Hank Keough and Hector Cyr, "Lake Placid"
"OK. I admit it. It's
a crocodile... but maybe now somebody's happy I brought my big gun?"
- Sheriff Hank Keough, "Lake Placid"
"Carpe diem is what
happened to me!"
- Rembrandt Brown, "Sliders"
"I've been sliding
through an interdimensional wormhole seeing how many ways people like you
can screw up civilization!"
- Quinn Mallory, "Sliders"
"I don't deserve to
live for what I've done, but I'm a coward!"
- The Judge, trying to flee his fate, "The Day the World Ended"
"If the road to hell
is paved with good intentions you'll find your way very quickly."
- Col. Andrew Brynner to Dr. Richard Long, "Chill Factor"
"I want an explanation!"
"Explanation won't
help you."
- Detectives Tom Beck and Lloyd Gallagher, "The Hidden"
"I tried a Mandarian
virus once. Chinese people could understand what I was saying, but I couldn't."
- Maria, "Code 46"
"Everybody's kids are
so special these days, makes you wonder where all the ordinary grownups
come from."
- Maria, "Code 46"
"Tell me something
about yourself."
"Anything?"
"Well, try to make
it interesting. I've got a long day ahead of me."
- William, working his way through the suspects, "Code 46"
"I've got a headache."
"Bad?"
"Yeah, pretty bad."
"Well why didn't you
say something before?"
"Cos I didn't think
you'd give a shit."
- Jim & Selena, on the run, "28 Days Later"
"Girls, I told you.
No more deaths in the house!"
"It's for extra credit."
- Pamela and Ginger Fitzgerald, "Ginger Snaps"
"A girl can only be
a slut, bitch, tease, or the virgin next door."
- Ginger, "Ginger Snaps"
"64% of prom dates
end in sex."
"You just made that
up!"
- June, trying to scare Freya straight, "Thoughtcrimes"
"Scoody-dooby-doo..."
- Brendan's internal soundtrack, "Thoughtcrimes"
"You got nothing little
girl, only answers you were supposed to find."
- A suspect taunts Freya, "Thoughtcrimes"
"Your blood shall make
me even more beautiful. What do you think of that?"
"I think if you're
going to kill somebody, kill them, don't stand around talking about it."
- Aleera and Anna, in mid-stake, "Van Helsing"
"Why do you torment
him so?"
"That's what I do."
- Count Dracula and Igor, as Igor cattleprods a werewolf, "Van Helsing"
"That's why you're
coming with me."
"The hell be damned
that I am."
"You cursed. Not very
well, mind you, but you're a monk. You shouldn't curse at all."
"...I'm not a field
man! Van Helsing, I don't want to go to Transylvania!"
- Van Helsing and Carl, "Van Helsing"
"Why are you helping
me?"
"I'm not. I'm helping
me."
- Selene & Erika, "Underworld"
"Lycans are allergic
to silver. We have to get the bullets out quickly, or they end up dying
on us during questioning."
"What happens to them
afterward?"
"We put the bullets
back in."
- Selene & Michael, "Underworld"
Being a simple, old-fashioned
fellow, I like my vampires staked through the heart and my werewolves bludgeoned
to death with silver-handled walking sticks. So, I had a tough time processing
"Underworld", in which vampires wielding automatic weapons do Matrix-style
slow-motion somersaults while firing silver-nitrate bullets into werewolves,
who ricochet off the walls while shooting back with irradiated "daylight"
projectiles. Some of the werewolves (or, as they're known here, "Lycans")
are able to squeeze the bullets out of their smoking bodies in mid-transformation,
while others simply keel over and rot... Literalist that I am, I kept wanting
to scream: "!?!WHAT ARE THE BLOODY RULES!?!"
- David Edelstein, bothered and bewildered reviewing "Underworld"
for "MSN Slate"
"Lost" is at heart
a science-fiction thriller, while "Heroes" is more of a comic book, but
both genres have a similar appeal: they provide an alternative society
for those who don’t fit comfortably into their own. (That is to say, smart,
socially awkward adults and all 12-year-old boys.) No matter how far-fetched
and complicated that imaginary world may be, it is bound by its own intricate
set of rules and customs, be it Quidditch regulations at Hogwarts; etiquette
on Superman’s native planet, Krypton; or military rank in "Battlestar Galactica."
The fans of these
kinds of serialized thrillers are unusually passionate and devoted, carrying
a clout not unlike that of anti-abortion activists — their intensity is
in some ways more powerful than their numbers. The writers of “Lost” say
they pay close attention to Web sites and blogs devoted to the show, and
sometimes adapt the script accordingly.
- Alessandra Stanley, "New York Times"
There must be a rational
explanation for all the supernatural phenomena on television. There must.
Because it is weird, and even a little freaky, that so many shows this
season prey on the paranormal. Vampires have day jobs as detectives, store
clerks reap souls for the Devil, reporters time-travel to get their stories
straight, cheerleaders walk through fire and people of all kinds talk to
dead people, sometimes quite chattily.
- Alessandra Stanley, "New York Times"
In recent years, "science
fiction" has become synonymous with titles like Star Wars, Star Trek, and
Battlestar Galactica. And, while there's nothing wrong with these movies
and TV shows (in fact, they're predominately entertaining), they should
be accurately be referred to as "space operas" or "futuristic fantasies."
Die-hard science fiction buffs have long bemoaned the absence of real "science"
in "science fiction." Then, every once in a long while, along comes something
like Sunshine that tries to take a step back toward reality. Among Sunshine's
credits is a science consultant, and the filmmakers made every effort to
follow his suggestions. The result is that, while Sunshine may not feature
space battles and ships zipping around at warp speed, it provides a window
into what it might really be like traveling around in the solar system
in another half-century... One doesn't need a black-hatted villain
to generate excitement. As in Apollo 13, the challenges of staying alive
and on course are sufficient.
- James Berardinelli, from his online review of "Sunshine"
For these past 30 years,
anyone wanting to keep up with popular cinema, and those who have professionally
to explain what they have seen, have had to master the geography, inhabitants,
characters, genealogy, jargon, technology and vocabulary of a succession
of imaginary worlds. First there was that distant galaxy long long ago
in Star Wars and its successors, then the Middle-earth of The Lord of the
Rings, which overlapped with the still evolving Harry Potter saga, before
the arrival of the Narnia cycle, of which there is more to come. Now we
have The Golden Compass, the first part of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials
trilogy, set in a parallel universe much like our own and compelling us
to come to terms with another strange glossary.
- Philip French, "The Observer"
They're a real nuisance,
these skin-walkers: supernatural monsters who kill people, then steal,
and wear, their skin. Because they look exactly like the person whose skin
they're wearing, you don't know who's a skin-walker and who isn't. I hate
that about skin-walkers.
- Sam Wollaston, reviewing supernatural detective series, "The Dresden
Files", "The Guardian"
Interspecies mating
is always a challenge, particularly when one species (werewolves) likes
to eat the other (vampires).
- Jeannette Catsoulis, reviewing supernatural romance "Blood and Chocolates",
"NY Times"
"You're only 90. You've
never been chased by a torch-carrying mob."
- Josef, 500 year old vampire, putting Mick in his place, "Moonlight"
Vampires with a conscience
are like cheerleaders in habits: what precisely is the point?...In almost
every way, "Moonlight" demands that we question the grounds for its existence.
- Ginia Bellafante, "NY Times"
"This must be the longest
Santa death scene in the history of Santa slasher movies."
- Colin Murphy, commenting on "Santa F*cks Up", "The Blizzard of Odd"
"What happens if they
board us?"
"If they take the
ship they will rape us to death, eat our flesh, and sew our skins in to
their clothing, and if we're very, very lucky, they’ll do it in that order."
- Simon and Zoe, "Firefly"
"You know what the
chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with until you
understand who's in ruttin' command here."
- Jayne, "Firefly"
"Seems odd you'd name
your ship after a battle you were on the wrong side of."
"May have been the
losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."
- Harken and Mal, "Firefly"
"I like to worry about
things from all angles."
- Lukas, "Threshold"
"I would like to thank
you all for helping us to make sense of this world, and when it didn't
make sense, for teaching us to lie back and enjoy it. For showing us what
was true, real and beautiful about this world."
- Dick's farewell speech, "Third Rock from the Sun"
Powers, Principalities,
Thrones & Dominions.
- Episode Title, "Millenium"
"Oh Benson, dear Benson,
you are so mercifully free of the ravages of intelligence."
- Evil Genius, "Time Bandits"
"I have only one human
weakness. I can't bear to see other people lousing things up."
- Professor Quentin E. Deverill, "Q.E.D. aka The Mastermind"
"Time and tide and
buttered eggs wait for no man."
- Cole Hawlings, "The Box of Delights"
"The terror and power
of the Box is though it allows you enter the past you may not take the
Box with you. You enter at your own risk and you must find your own way
out."
- Abner Brown, "The Box of Delights"
Imagine if aliens —
you know, like the ones from "Taken," which we don't think has ended yet
— plopped down on a couch somewhere in the Haight and watched "Survivor"
and found Brian acting like he was the world's most savvy and intelligent
strategist? We can imagine them drunk on Mickey's Big Mouth, depressed
that they delayed their plans for invasion for so long. "This is all they've
got? This Brian guy?"
- Tim Goodman, "San Francisco Chronicle"
"Would someone please
explain to me why the triumph of Evil is always accompanied by ugly, skimpy
and non-functional clothing, an exponential increase in power, and a total
failure of intellect?"
- Dani Zweig
"There's my nipple."
"We orginally wanted
to show both your nipples, but we want to show that we had a bit of class."
- Milla Jovovich and Paul Anderson, "Resident Evil" DVD Audio Commentary
"Amazing! Here among
the nerds, I've found an actual girl here. Not bad odds, eh honey? You've
got your veritable pick of the litter, from all these guys who have no
idea how to please you."
"Who wants a spoiler?
I've got a spoiler! You will die alone!"
"And now we see the
ceremonial banging of the plastic toys..."
"Trivia time! What
substance was Han Solo frozen in? Carbonite? No, I'm sorry. The correct
answer is: Who gives a @#$^."
- Triumph The Insult Dog takes
on Star Wars fans at the Phantom Menace premiere
"Oh boy, the Shatner's
really hit the fan now. I'm up Dawson's Creek without a paddle."
- Space Ghost, "Space Ghost Coast to Coast"
"In my land, women
are for advancing the race, not for fighting man's battles."
- Eros, "Plan 9 from Outer Space"
>> Quotes from specific series and films has been moved to a new page
>> Harry Potter quotes have been moved to a dedicated page.
>> Stargate quotes have also been moved to a dedicated page.
# FANTASY
Horror writers are reactionaries in general
simply because they are particularly, one might even say professionally,
aware of the existence of Evil.
- Michel Houellebecq, "HP Lovecraft: Against the World, Against Life"
"I have fought my way
to the castle beyond the Goblin City, to take back the child that you have
stolen. For my will is as strong and my kingdom is great... For my will
is as strong and my kindgom is great... damn! I can never remember that
line."
- Jennifer Connelly, "Labyrinth"
"My secrets guard themselves.
Will yours do the same?"
- Haggard, "The Last Unicorn"
"Spite the unicorn
and drown thyself."
"That saying was made
by a unicorn for the jest of watching folk obey it..."
- Matthew and Fence in Pamela C. Dean's "The Whim of the Dragon"
"Do not meddle in the
affairs of wizards,"
"Cut it out. We are
the affairs of wizards."
"What a very uncomfortable
thought."
- Ruth and Ted in Pamela C. Dean's "The Whim of the Dragon"
"You don't respect
those people very much, because you're young and arrogant. But I don't
respect them very much either, because I'm old and wise."
- Neal Stephenson, "Snow Crash"
"Not bad, but you've
got to learn to relax. An insult's got a certain rhythm and flow to it
that you haven't quite picked up yet."
- Beldin, in David Eddings's "The Belgariad"
"There aren't any good
Plan B's, Tim. If they were any good they'd be Plan A's!"
- Wanda in "The Magic School Bus"
"One does not judge
the gazelle by the lions that attack it."
- Tarzan, in "The Return of Tarzan" by Edgar Rice Burroughs
"This is the story
of my life, or rather, that part of it that seems to me to be important."
- Gideon Prosper, "The Tempest"
"Gail? Rinaldo's girlfriend?
My Son was dating a demon?"
"Let's not be prejudiced.
He'd done a lot worse his freshman year."
"You've got a point
there," she admitted. "I'd forgotten Carol."
- Roger Zelazny, "Knight of Shadows"
"To great minds"
"Pure hearts"
"Hard bodies."
- the Gang raise a toast on "Relic Hunter"
"You mistook the Queen
of Iceland for a Saxon?"
- an easy mistake to make in "Ring of the Nibelungs"
"Heathens to the left
of me, infidels to the right. Next thing you'll be telling me is you're
not virgins!"
- Leah, to Xena and Gabrielle, "Xena: Warrior Princess"
"I still think you'd
make a great virgin."
- Leah to Gabrielle, "Xena: Warrior Princess"
There are vocal qualities
peculiar to men, and vocal qualities peculiar to beasts; and it is terrible
to hear the one when the source should yield the other.
- HP Lovecraft, "The Call of Cthulhu"
"Did you ever notice
how in the Bible, when ever God needed to punish someone, or make an example,
or whenever God needed a killing, he sent an angel? Did you ever wonder
what a creature like that must be like? A whole existence spent praising
your God, but always with one wing dipped in blood. Would you ever really
want to see an angel?"
- Thomas to Catherine, "The Prophecy"
"Why?"
"I'm an angel. I kill
firstborns while their mommas watch. I turn cities into salt... And, from
now until kingdom come, the only thing you can count on in your existence
is never understanding why."
- Catherine and Gabriel
"Nice Catholic boy
like you Mr Daggett, you should be on my side."
- Gabriel to Thomas
"I have my soul. And
I have my faith. What do you have angel?"
- Thomas to Gabriel
"This new heaven will
be another hell... and two hells is one hell too many."
- Lucifer, with an offer to Catherine
"This war is mine!"
"This war is arrogance!
And that makes it mine."
- Gabriel and Lucifer, "The Prophecy"
This is a work of fiction.
All the characters in it, human and otherwise, are imaginary, excepting
only certain of the fairy folk, whom it might be unwise to offend by casting
doubts on their existence. Or lack thereof.
- Neil Gaiman, The Books of Magic III
"Going somewhere local?"
- Edward, "The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse"
"But you're not real!"
"We are now."
- Jeremy Dyson and Papa Lazarou, "The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse"
"We are three of the
more bizarre characters... it's time for a more subtle approach."
- Edward, tracking down his creator in "The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse"
"You are the very devil
sir!"
"Not quite... but
his methods are mine."
- Dr Erasmus Pea, "The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse"
"I have no quarrel
with you my brothers in fiction. Hand over the creators and there need
be more more bloodshed."
- Dr Erasmus Pea, "The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse"
"News just in... the
Underground system is to renamed the Underworld system and will be used
exclusively to ferry the dead to the Valley of the Last Judgment."
- from "The Nine Lives of Tomas Katz"
"Dave, it has come
to my attention that you are the most vacuous being in the universe."
- Tomas Katz, "The Nine Lives of Tomas Katz"
"The decimal system
is the numerology of the Devil. Transect your mind to binary... prepare
to face zero!"
- from "The Nine Lives of Tomas Katz"
A philosopher once
asked, "Are we human because we gaze at the stars, or do we gaze at them
because we are human?" Pointless, really... "Do the stars gaze back?" Now
*that's* a question.
- The Narrator, "Stardust"
"You know when I said
I knew little about love? That wasn't true. I know a lot about love. I've
seen it, centuries and centuries of it, and it was the only thing that
made watching your world bearable. All those wars. Pain, lies, hate...
It made me want to turn away and never look down again. But when I see
the way that mankind loves... You could search to the furthest reaches
of the universe and never find anything more beautiful. So yes, I know
that love is unconditional. But I also know that it can be unpredictable,
unexpected, uncontrollable, unbearable and strangely easy to mistake for
loathing, and... What I'm trying to say, Tristan is... I think I love you.
Is this love, Tristan? I never imagined I'd know it for myself. My heart...
It feels like my chest can barely contain it. Like it's trying to escape
because it doesn't belong to me any more. It belongs to you. And if you
wanted it, I'd wish for nothing in exchange - no gifts. No goods. No demonstrations
of devotion. Nothing but knowing you loved me too. Just your heart, in
exchange for mine."
- Yvaine, "Stardust"
"I was wondering why
you didn't go looking for Skarpi?"
Kvothe drew a deep
breath and sighed. "The simplest reason is the least satisfying one, I
suppose. The truth is this: I wasn't living in a story."
"I don't think I'm
understanding you, Reshi," said Bast.
"Think of all the
stories you've heard, Bast. You have a young boy, the hero. His parents
are killed. He sets out for vengeance. What happens next?" Bast hesitated,
his expression puzzled. Chronicler answered the question instead. "He finds
help. A clever talking squirrel. An old drunken swordsman. A mad hermit
in the woods. That sort of thing ... he finds the villains and kills them."
Kvothe leaned forward. "If this were some tavern tale, all half-truth and
senseless adventure ... but whilst that might make for an entertaining
story, it would not be the truth."
- from "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
"I saw a werewolf with
a Chinese menu in his hand, walking through the streets of Soho in the
rain.
He was looking for
a place called Lee Ho Fook's, going to get himself a big dish of beef chow
mein.
If you hear him howling
around your kitchen door better not let him in."
- Warren Zevon, singing of "The Werewolves of London"
# FROM 'STRANGER THINGS HAPPEN' by KELLY LINK
"I like the idea of
taking things that are alien and making them seem really very cozy and
familiar. That’s something that science fiction can do. It’s the way that
people can look at pictures of flying saucers and say that looks like a
saucer, from under a teacup, something small and domestic. On the other
hand, what I like about more realistic fiction, writers like Lorrie Moore,
for example, is the way it looks at familiar things and makes them seem
so strange."
- Kelly Link, interviewed by Salon
Listen, because I'm
only going to do this once. You'll have to get there by way of London.
Take the overnight train from Waverly. Sit in the last car. Speak to no
one. Don't fall asleep.
When you arrive at
Kings Cross, go down into the Underground. Get on the Northern line. Sit
in the last car. Speak to no one. Don't fall asleep.
The Northern line
stops at Angel, at London Bridge, at Elephant and Castle, Tooting Broadway.
The last marked station is Morden: stay in your seat. Other passengers
will remain with you in the car. Speak to no one.
These are some of
the unlisted stations you will pass: Howling Green. Duke's Pit. Sparrowkill.
Stay in your seat. Don't fall asleep.
If you look around
the car, you may notice that the other passengers have started to glow.
The bulbs on the car dim as the passengers give off more and more light.
If you look down you may find that you yourself are casting light into
the dark car. The final stop is Bonehouse.
- Instructions and Advice for Going to Hell, from "Flying Lessons"
She began to notice
the way that birds watched from telephone lines as she walked past them.
She counted them, trying to remember how they added up for joy, how for
sorrow.
- from "Flying Lessons"
"I'm dreaming," June
said.
"It would be a mistake
to believe that," said Rose Read. "An utter failure of the imagination."
- from "Flying Lessons"
You may very well ask
what the goddess of love is doing in St. Andrews, writing trashy romances.
Adapting.
- from "Flying Lessons"
A girl from Pittsburgh
was a good thing, like an anchor. Every homesick traveler should have one.
- An American abroad, from "Survivor's Ball"
There were tall drifts
of snow on either side of the road. Every 500 meters they passed black-and-yellow
signs reading: "Danger! Avalanche Area: Do Not Stop Vehicle!" Every sign
said exactly the same thing, but Serena read them out loud anyway, in different
voices — Elmer Fudd, Humphrey Bogart, the barman's flirty New Zealand sing-song.
"Danger, Will Robinson Crusoe!" she said, "Killer robots and tsunamis from
Mars ahead. Also German tourists. Do not stop your vehicle. Do not roll
down your window to feed the lions. Remain inside your vehicle at all times.
Do not pass go. Do not pick up hitchhikers — oops, too late."
- On the road, from "Survivor's Ball"
What happens when you
get to the end of the world? Sometimes you find a party. This party has
been going on for a long time. There is music, lights, people drinking
and dancing. Strange things happen at these parties. It is the end of the
world, after all.
- from "Survivor's Ball"
"Some of us have come
from very far away," Mr. Donner said. "We meet every year. We meet to celebrate
the triumph of the human spirit in situations of great adversity. We are
all travelers, survivors of adventures, calamitous expeditions, of tragedies.
We are widows and orphans, the survivors of marriages and shipwrecks. This
is the 143rd Survivor's Ball."
- from "Survivor's Ball"
"Have the two of you
been traveling together long?" Mr. Donner asked.
"Oh no," Serena said.
"We met three days ago in a bar in Queenstown. We're traveling around the
world in opposite directions. I fly to Hawaii next Tuesday and then I'm
supposed to go home again. This is just Jasper's second stop."
- from "Survivor's Ball"
"Jasper isn't the sort
who travels purposefully," she said to Mr. Donner. "He isn't the sort who's
purposeful, or smart, or careful about the kinds of women in bars he picks
up in bars, for that matter. You've got to be careful," she said, turning
to Jasper for a moment, "about picking up girls in bars, good grief, what
if I'd turned out to be weird, or something? But he isn't careful. He's
lucky instead."
- from "Survivor's Ball"
"Sometimes people do
unthinkable things, in order to come home safely," Mr. Donner said. "Impossible
things, wonderful things. And afterwards, do you think they go home? No.
You find it's much, much better to keep on travelling. Hard to stop, really."
- from "Survivor's Ball"
The bearded man was
practically gnashing his teeth, smiling ferociously. "I have seen snow
and I have been hungry, and I have seen nothing in my travels that is so
bad as not living. I propose a toast, Mr. Todd."
They both raised their
glasses. "To travel," one said.
"To life," said the
other.
- from "Survivor's Ball"
"The girl detective
looked at her reflection in the mirror. This was a different girl. This
was a girl who would chew gum."
- Dora Knez in "The Girl Detective"
Some people say that
she is not one girl but many — that is, she's actually a secret society
of Girl Scouts. Or possibly a sub-branch of the FBI. Whom does the girl
detective love?
Remember that boy,
Fred, or Nat? Something like that. He was in love with the girl detective,
even though she was smarter than him, even though he never got to rescue
her even once from the bad guys, or when he did, she was really just letting
him, to be kind. He was a nice boy with a good sense of humor, but he used
to have this recurring dream in which he was a golden retriever. The girl
detective knew this, of course, the way she knows all our dreams. How could
she settle down with a boy who dreamed that he was a retriever?
- from "The Girl Detective"
>> Read the ebook of Stranger Things Happen
# TV FANTASY
"Trust me."
"You know, coming
from you, those are the two scariest words in the English language."
- Blair and Jim, "The Sentinel"
"Sure Salem had dreams,
maybe they were bereft of ethics, or even a plan, but at least they were
dreams."
- Juliette, "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"
"We should hang out
more often, and not just when one of our lives is in danger."
- Sabrina, bonding with Amanda, "Sabrina the Teenage Witch"
"If you had to fall
in love with someone who is evil, I can see why it was her."
- Marshall to Vaughn on "Alias"
"I found out that she
used to be a dude."
"I heard that you
used to be too."
- Sock and Josie, explaining why they broke up, "Reaper"
"My parents sold my
soul to the Devil."
"How drunk are you?"
"Totally sober."
"How drunk am I?"
- Sam and Sock, "Reaper"
"She's not the woman
*of* my dreams, she's the woman *in* my dreams. Look she knew my name without
me telling her!"
- Jeremy to Ralph, in a strange situation, "My Best Friend is a Vampire"
"Get to the point!"
"In a nutshell, you're
alive but you're not alive. You're dead but you're not dead. Ever hear
the word undead? How about this one: vampire? I hope you're heard that
one because that's what you are, ok? I wanted to break it to you nice and
easy but no... Everything with you young people has to be fast, fast, fast."
- Modoc fills in Jeremy, "My Best Friend is a Vampire"
Evil Guest Immortal:
I have you now, MacLeod! clang clang
Duncan MacLeod: I
admit it. You're better than I am. clang clang
EGI: Then why are
you smiling? clang clang
DML: Because I know
something you don't know... ...I am the star of this show! clang, slash,
whap, thud, cool FX
- Highlander: the TV series (general plot synopsis)
Lois Lane, independent
career-woman of the 1990's, you're about to be stranded in 1866 without
the right to vote, own property, or write for a great metropolitan newspaper.
God, I love irony!
- Tempus, "New Adventures Of Superman"
Lois, did you know
that in the future, you're revered at the same level as Superman? Why,
there are books about you, statues, an interactive game. You're even a
breakfast cereal. [...] But as much as everybody loves you, there is one
question that keeps coming up? "How DUMB was she?" Here, I'll show you
what I mean. Look: (glasses on) I'm Clark Kent! (glasses off) No, wait,
I'm Superman! (glasses on) Mild mannered reporter! (glasses off) Super-hero!...
Hello! Duh! Clark Kent is Superman! Well, that was worth the whole trip,
to actually meet the most galactically stupid woman to ever live.
- Tempus, "New Adventures Of Superman"
"Superman, as long
as I have you here, just answer one thing for me: Why tights? Why a cape?
You're a grown man. Don't you feel ridiculous?"
"My mother made it
for me."
- Tempus & Superman, "New Adventures Of Superman"
"There was a bomb!
He — he ate it!"
- Lois, meeting Superman for the first time, "New Adventures of Superman"
>> Read On >> Quotes from SciFi Series & Films