HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: boisvert@yaya.WPI.EDU (Brian Richard Boisvert)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: Anakin Skywalker & Obi Wan
Date: 3 Oct 1992 20:39:30 GMT
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
NNTP-Posting-Host: yaya.wpi.edu

In article <1992Oct2.214804.3046@wheaton.wheaton.edu> nnhill@david.wheaton.edu (Nathan N Hill) writes:

>	This little bite raises a lot of questions. 

[other questions deleted]

>	How did Vader and the Emporer discover Luke? I think Vader must have
>done some serious thinking after the Death Star battle. Someone had fought him
>who was slightly-trained Force-sensitive. (Untrained people, like Leia, are
>basically undetectable.) Since all of the Jedi had been exterminated, and
>probably their families as well, an interesting explanation arose . . .
>Thus Vader unraveled Kenobi's sheme, or at least half of it. Later, as Luke
>grew in skill, the Emporer detected "a grave disturbance in the Force",
>perhaps while observing the future.

That and the fact that Luke's last name hadn't changed!  It's pretty easy
to put 2 and 2 together when your new battle station has just been destroyed
by someone strong in the force named SKYWALKER.  I've always thought that
this was a little silly.  Why go through all of this trouble hiding Luke and
then never change his last name?

-- 
Brian R. Boisvert    Worcester Polytechnic Institute    boisvert@wpi.wpi.edu
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
From: cs125a85@dcl-nxt24.cso.uiuc.edu (cs125 student)
Subject: Yoda conversation
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 1992 16:13:59 GMT

I have a question regarding Yoda's statement in ESB.  He says something to  
the effect of: For 800 years have I trained your dad,......" Then I'm not  
sure exactly what he says.  All I know is that the last word of his next  
sentence is "trained"....then he continues to say "A jedi must hold the  
deepest commitment, the most serious mind."......

Can anyone help?

Thanks

Amir

      "Try not, Do, or do not, there is no try."
                                      -Yoda

Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars,rec.arts.tv
From: harp@netcom.com (Gregory O. Harp)
Subject: Re: Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Distribution: na
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 01:52:19 GMT

sharonc@meaddata.com (Sharon Crichton) writes:

>Is Indy's friend Remy' dead? I know that he was at least seriously
>injured in the last scene at the castle/villa, but considering how
>close he and Indy were, there wasn't much grieving shown on Indy's
>part. I wonder if they're setting this up for a reunion between the
>two (although I hope it would be a lot sooner than the reunion between
>Indy and the suffragist woman he fell in love with).

Hmmm...  He was captured just as he was trying to get to Remy to help
him, and he really didn't have much of a chance to grieve with all
those Germans pointing guns at him.  I didn't see Remy in the preview
of the next show, but he may be in the prison infirmary.  I think
Lucas is trying to make the more observant of us worry a bit. ;)

We'll see...
-- 
-----------------Greg-Harp----------------harp@netcom.com------------------
       "Wide mouths with narrow minds can't accept your difference.
     Open season on new ideas -- they call it bad influence." -- B52s
From: ss@wpi.WPI.EDU (Scott Streeter)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: Sounds at wpi.wpi.edu
Date: 3 Oct 92 22:16:17
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA 01609-2280
Distribution: usa
NNTP-Posting-Host: wpi.wpi.edu
In-reply-to: driskill%asylum.cs.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu's message of 4 Oct 92 01:03:58 GMT

>>>>> On 4 Oct 92 01:03:58 GMT, driskill%asylum.cs.utah.edu@cs.utah.edu (Hank Driskill, GSH3D) said:

> Unfair!  Someone digitizes a slew of sounds, and

> a) the directory is locked, and

Not any more. Sorry bout that.

> b) I can't read .voc files on my Mac!

> If .voc is going to be the standard, then someone point me to a
> program for reading/writing .voc files and I'll convert my Mac .snd
> files for SW that I've collected over the years!  I've got 15-20 or
> so, from various ftp sites, and was gonna put 'em out there...

Hey as far as i'm concerned, there is no "standard". Someone had them,
and downloaded them. There's no reason there can't be PC, and MAC
sounds co-existing together. I mean, I don't have a PC with
Soundblasters on it myself, but I have access to a MAC at work. So I
will take what ever you got. I'm not bias one way or the other. But I
won't have 2 copies of everything for both systems. Room is going
fast. If someone can point me to utilities that may exist on other
sites, to change from one format to the other, I will add that info to
the 00README files. I'm not going to supply the software on my site
though, if it already exist on another FTP site. Like I said, my space
is getting taken up fast. I'm going to try to get more, but no
promises.

--
 Scott Streeter                             Keeper of the Star Wars Archive
 ss@wpi.wpi.edu                             wpi.wpi.edu        130.215.24.1
From: G.Coulter@Daresbury.ac.uk (Gary)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: ILM is for amateurs
Date: 5 Oct 92 08:44:42 GMT
Reply-To: G.Coulter@Daresbury.ac.uk
Organization: Daresbury Laboratory, UK

In article 221516SXM126@psuvm.psu.edu, <SXM126@psuvm.psu.edu> () writes:
>    YOU KNOW, I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW MUCH FAITH EVERYONE IN THIS GROUP PLACES IN
>GEORGE LUCAS' ILM. WHAT A BUNCH OF LOSERS. I MEAN C'MON, WHO CAN'T DO STOP GO
>ANIMATION NOWADAYS. AND AS FAR AS A NEW STAR WARS MOVIE WITH NEW EFFECTS, HE
>BETTER CAN IT NOW. STAR WARS WILL NEVER MATCH UP TO STAR TREK'S FIRST SEASON
>OF FX.
>    AS FAR AT T2, I COULDN'T BELIEVE HOW PEOPLE COULD ACTUALLY PAY MONEY FOR
>THAT MOVIE. I MEAN I COULD DO MORPHING ON MY COMMADORE VIC 20. THERE HAS TO
>BE SOMEONE OUT THERE WHO AGREES WITH ME, THERE ARE MORE RESPECTABLE FX COM-
>PANIES OUT THERE, GIVE THEM A CHANCE.
>
>                              -MANG


If as you say there are more respectable Special Effects houses out
there why don't you give us some names of these companys. Special
Effects whether done by ILM, Fantasy II or any of the other SFX 
companys involve a lot more that I think you know.

Why not have a go at doing 8 minutes of STOP GO MOTION at 24 frames
a second, then try (Ha Ha) doing T2 Quality Morphing on a VIC20.

Don't knock it unless you can, or know how it can be done better!!!

Gary.
From: beh10@duts.ccc.amdahl.com (Barry Holsinger)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: Mark's B-Day
Date: 28 Sep 92 16:18:35 GMT
Reply-To: beh10@DUTS.ccc.amdahl.com (Barry Holsinger)
Organization: Amdahl Corporation, Sunnyvale CA

In article <1992Sep25.163001.19234@murdoch.acc.Virginia.EDU> cpl3q@fulton.seas.Virginia.EDU (Charles Philip Lu) writes:
>
>Another interesting note .. Mark attended my high school 
>(Annandale High School) and dropped out after the 10th grade to
>pursue an acting career.  My freshman English/Drama teacher had
>him as a student and told our class about it.  She said he was
>extremely shy and during play practices he would sit in the corner
>of the room and just "watch".

I thought Mark H. graduated from some Japanese high school, or was that just
some PR hooey they put out to cover up his "loser" status as a drop out?

--
Barry Holsinger       | I ain't git'n et by no gators to make my wage!
Sunnyvale, CA         | There are better ways to make a buck in dis
beh10@DUTS.amdahl.com | nutty town!!  -Ralph Snart
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
From: sjs28257@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu (Steve Stelter)
Subject: Re: Why Endor? OR The Economy of Galaxy Farfaraway
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1992 03:20:25 GMT

MLINDROOS@finabo.abo.fi (Marcus Lindroos INF) writes:

>Notice, also, that the entire Civil War seems to be a predominantly human
>conflict. Only in ROTJ do we see any aliens fighting on either side, and then
>only for the rebels. The Emperor is clearly human and his Navy is 100% human
>too. It's strange...as if the other intelligent life forms were just bystanders
>not directly affected by the war at all. Does this mean most alien worlds have
>some sort of autonomy (=do not have/want to be in trouble with Vader & co), 
>are too weak to fight against the Empire or both? Perhaps the leading rebels
>come from the Core and only fight the Empire in the backwater regions because
>the Rebellion wouldn't last long in the central regions of the Galaxy.

Again according to the Star Wars sourcebooks, the Empire is a racist
organization and generally views alien races as being slaves and/or
nuisances.  In the Star Wars galaxy, most alien worlds have been
occupied by the Empire and their inhabitants put to forced labor, which
explains why so few nonhumans participate in the conflict, and why those
that do fight for the Rebellion.



                                       --Steve Stelter
                                         sjs28257@uxa.cso.uiuc.edu
Xref: sparky rec.arts.sf.starwars:6676 rec.arts.startrek.misc:9976
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars,rec.arts.startrek.misc
Subject: Re: Borg implants mentioned in Heir to the Empire?
From: cbarilleaux@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu (Cyberpreppie)
Date: 1 Oct 92 09:06:48 -0500
Organization: The CyberSwamp

In article <1992Sep30.111819.12018@udel.edu>, lim@pecan.cns.udel.edu (Julie Lim) writes:
> In article <1992Sep30.035310.24643@Princeton.EDU> subbarao@fc.hp.com (Kartik Subbarao) writes:

[initial observation about borg deleted]
> 
> 	Silly. It's a reasonable coining that may have nothing to do with Trek--
> from cy-Borg, y'know? Besides, Zahn didn't capitalize "borg," which rather
> supports my explanation. (Then again, he may just be a NextGen fan-- what do
> I know of his personal life?)
> 
Consisder the original SW contraction: 'Droid, from android. BTW, an Android is
considered a human-shaped robot. Calling R2D2 an android would be incorrect.
But, as robots became more common in that sosciety, and people got a neat
contraction, it became mainstream. R2D2 is a 'droid.

BTW-- does anyone remember an old animated series called "droids?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Charles Barilleaux III                 occasionally know at Miami Univ
CBARILLEAUX@MIAVX1.ACS.MUOHIO.EDU         as Cyberpreppie


Beat me! Whip me! Make me write C code!
From: er@iscp.Bellcore.COM (Elie Rosenfeld)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: Yoda's Conversation
Date: 2 Oct 92 16:34:25 GMT
Reply-To: er@iscp.Bellcore.COM (Elie Rosenfeld)
Organization: Bell Communications Research (Bellcore)

In article <10726446.151.717739103@eng2.eng.monash.edu.au>, 10726446@eng2.eng.monash.edu.au (LAU WAI KUEN) writes:
|>   Does anyone know why Yoda speaks the way he does?  The only explaination
|> I've found is in MAD magazine;
|> 
|> "What expect you from man 800 years old.  English perfect."

The language must have changed a lot in the course of Yoda's 900 year lifespan.
The way he talks is probably how it was spoken when he was young.  Just think 
of how much English has changed since the time of Chaucer, Beowulf, etc.
-- 
Elie Rosenfeld      | "He tasks me!  He tasks me and I shall have him!
Bellcore            |  I'll chase him 'round the Moons of Nebir and 'round
Piscataway, N.J.    |  the Antares Maelstrom and 'round Perdition's Flames
(908) 699-8800      |  before I give him up!"  - Khan, "STII-The Wrath of Khan"
From: boisvert@yaya.WPI.EDU (Brian Richard Boisvert)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.starwars
Subject: Re: Yoda's Conversation
Date: 28 Sep 92 16:56:18 GMT
Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute
NNTP-Posting-Host: yaya.wpi.edu

In article <1a7c36INN2oo@bigboote.WPI.EDU> mmartin@wpi.WPI.EDU (Matthew Wayne Martin) writes:
>	I'm pretty sure Yoda says (in ESB) " For 800 years have I trained Jedi,
>My own council will I seek as to who is to be trained."  It's been awhile 

This is almost correct.  He says "My own council will I KEEP . . ."




-- 
Brian R. Boisvert    Worcester Polytechnic Institute    boisvert@wpi.wpi.edu
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.announce
From: curtis%quest.UUCP@cs.umn.edu
Subject: Convention Announcement
Organization: Quest Research
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 17:05:58 GMT

                        DIVERSICON
                      June 18-20, 1993
                 Mineapolis-St.Paul Minnesota

Science Fiction, Science Fantasy, Fantasy, Fandom, Writer's Workshop

An electronic flyer for Diversicon has been posted on alt.fandom.cons &
rec.arts.sf.fandom.  Please check it out and pass it on to anyone who
might be interested.  A.C. Crispin will hold a Writer's Workshop.

Curtis S. Gibson   curt%quest.UUCP@cs.umn.edu
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.announce
From: lile@netcom.com (Lile Elam)
Subject: Douglas Adams in Palo Alto  10.31.92
Summary: Short talk about his new book "Mostly Harmless".
Keywords: New Book SciFi Random
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Date: Thu, 1 Oct 1992 17:07:03 GMT

Douglas Adams will be giving a short talk on 10.31.92 8:00pm
(thats a Saturday folks) where he will be introducing his new book 
"Mostly Harmless".

Listed in the flyer I received in the mail from Printers Inc.
is the following:

	"Douglas Adams
	Mostly Harmless
	
	Douglas Adams is back with the amazing, logic-defying fifth
	novel in the Hitchhiker trilogy, the story of Random, the 
	daughter of Arthur Dent, who sets out on a transgalactic
	quest to find the planet of her ancestors"

enjoy,

-lile
-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lile Elam	    |  "Remember... No matter where you go, there you are."
lile@netcom.com     |		
Un*x Admin / Artist |			 Buckaroo Banzai
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From: ralph@cup.portal.com (Gary K Feldbaum)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Philcon Hotel Cuts Rates
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 18:38:49 PDT
Organization: The Portal System (TM)

Philcon, which will be held November 13-15-1992 at the Adams Mark Hotel
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has negotiated a reduction in some of
our hotel's rates. The new rates will be $98 for singles and doubles and
$112 for triples and quads. This is a six dollar per night reduction
for the double and quad rooms. Inquiries concerning Philcon can be
sent to this address.


no.sig
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
From: lola@lucid.com (Lola McCrary)
Subject: Re: California cons -- 1st west coast midwestern con
Organization: Lucid, Inc.
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 92 03:00:47 GMT


In January of '94 (MLK weekend, but ending Sunday) the first annual Dawson's
con will be held in the San Francisco Bay area.  It's still in the planning
stages, but the following are planned:  24 hour con suite.  An art auction worth
attending even if you don't bid.  500--700 people.  Poul Anderson as writer
guest of honor.

For information or to get involved send email to dawsonscon@toad.com.


Lola
From: cvoid@spud.kludge.com (Christian Void)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Addresses...
Date: Mon, 05 Oct 92 20:12:57 PDT
Organization: Tater Tot Liberation Front, San Francisco CA

Anyone know the addresses (USnail) for publishing companies and/or 
magazines currently looking for short SciFi? Also any suggestions and to 
publishing companies that buy SciFi material for publication, Etc.
 

Christian Void /T71        |     "I don't like it, and I'm sorry
VMResearch, Inc.           |    I ever had anything to do with it."
cvoid@spud.kludge.COM      |       -Erwin Schrodinger 1887-1961
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
From: cep@taligent.com (Christophe Pettus)
Subject: Re: Addresses...
Organization: Taligent, a little subsidiary of two really big companies.
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1992 18:00:01 GMT

In article <agD8RB3w165w@spud.kludge.com> cvoid@spud.kludge.com (Christian Void) writes:
>Anyone know the addresses (USnail) for publishing companies and/or 
>magazines currently looking for short SciFi? Also any suggestions and to 
>publishing companies that buy SciFi material for publication, Etc.

I'd just go to your local bookstore and buy copies of the 1993 edition
of Writer's Market (just out) and the latest edition of the International
Directory of Small Presses and Magazines.  Both are excellent sources
for such things, especially since Othergates is no longer with us.
--
-- Christophe

"He presented it with a length of string, and then passed on to the
Statue of Corrupted Endeavor, there to await the arrival of autumn."
From: faunt@dustbin.cisco.com (Doug Faunt N6TQS 415-688-8269)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Mexicon?
Date: 4 Oct 92 19:05:32
Organization: cisco Systems, Menlo Park, CA
Distribution: rec
NNTP-Posting-Host: dustbin.cisco.com

What are the dates for Mexicon, in '93?
From: gts@gnu.ai.mit.edu (The Evil Microwizard)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Norwescon info?
Date: 2 Oct 92 10:07:17 GMT
Reply-To: gts@gnu.ai.mit.edu

wanted: info on norwescon. i just moved to the pac. nw, and i don't
know much about the cons here, though i'm looking to hook up with the
group 'vanguard'.

any date info, especially, much appreciated!

---
Dr. Evil Microwizard - Greg Samson (gts@gnu.ai.mit.edu)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
From: lawson@mdc.com (Jim Lawson)
Subject: Re: California cons -- LosCon vs. Silicon & Gallifrey One Goes
Date: Mon, 28 Sep 92 19:43:30 GMT
Organization: MDSSC-SSD
Reply-To: Lawson%ssdvax.decnet@lbgwy.mdc.com
Distribution: usa
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL6]

Edward_Lee_Whiteside@cup.portal.com wrote:
: draws.  Of course, it is a media con. This years con, (last weekend in Feb in
: Pasadena, I think) will have Dr. Who guests Peter Davison and Janet Fielding.
: Plus lots of local media authors, and most likely, some of the cast of
: Babylon 5.  One other plus for Loscon, is that it is quite possible that
: J. Michael Straczynski will show a good deal of footage from the 
: Babylon 5 movie.

Where could I write (e-mail or snail mail) for info on the con ?

Thanks,	:-)
	
--
Jim Lawson	Lawson%ssdvax.decnet@lbgwy.mdc.com
		Alt:	Lawson@netsun.mdc.com or Lawson@mdcbbs.com

Opinions/Comments expressed here are my own and no one elses !!
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
From: mhr@hpuerca.atl.hp.com (Mike Reaser)
Subject: Re: MOC
Date: Mon, 5 Oct 1992 16:42:20 GMT
Distribution: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Organization: a stone mountain of Kudzu

In <1992Oct5.155459.1035@athena.cs.uga.edu> dug@athena.cs.uga.edu (Douglas Brown) writes:

>How many people have ever heard of a con called MOC
>(Magnum Opus Con) or something like that.  I've heard it's 
>pretty good and is in the south, Greensville/Chattanooga or
>somewhere?

>What info can you give me...

>-dug

Yup, it's Magnum Opus Con, in Greenville, SC, and it's either in
April or May (no con flyers with me at work :-().

For "good", I've never attended, but it's mostly media-oriented and
attracts mostly the younger crowd (i.e., teenagers).


=======================================================================
 Mike Reaser, Hewlett-Packard N. Amer. Resp. Ctr. - Atlanta
 Internet:  mhr@hpuerca.atl.hp.com
 NBCS: B4 f w g+ k s-               I barely speak for myself, so
 #include <standard.disclaimer>       don't make me speak for HP
=======================================================================
From: dug@athena.cs.uga.edu (Douglas Brown)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: MOC
Date: 5 Oct 92 15:54:59 GMT
Distribution: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Organization: University of Georgia, Athens

How many people have ever heard of a con called MOC
(Magnum Opus Con) or something like that.  I've heard it's 
pretty good and is in the south, Greensville/Chattanooga or
somewhere?

What info can you give me...

-dug
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom,rec.arts.sf-lovers,alt.manga
From: Edward_Lee_Whiteside@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.fandom
Subject: Re: California cons -- LosCon vs. Silicon & Gallifrey One Goes
Date: Sat, 26 Sep 92 11:08:27 PDT
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Distribution: usa
  <Buxy95.9Iw@taligent.com>

Re: 500 people cons in California.  that is what Gallifrey One generally 
draws.  Of course, it is a media con. This years con, (last weekend in Feb in
Pasadena, I think) will have Dr. Who guests Peter Davison and Janet Fielding.
Plus lots of local media authors, and most likely, some of the cast of
Babylon 5.  One other plus for Loscon, is that it is quite possible that
J. Michael Straczynski will show a good deal of footage from the 
Babylon 5 movie.
Xref: sparky rec.arts.sf.written:13129 rec.arts.books:17040
From: fuller@athena.cs.uga.edu (James P. H. Fuller)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written,rec.arts.books
Subject: Re: Science Fiction books with linguistic content
Date: 29 Sep 92 00:05:47 GMT
Organization: University of Georgia, Athens

curtis@cs.berkeley.edu (Curtis Yarvin) writes:


> It's actually a lot easier to do in movies.  If you want to write
> an English book for English readers that's set in Russia, there's
> little to do but grit your teeth and talk the peasants in RP.  If
> you're making a flick, on the other hand, they can all have really
> bad Bela Lugosi accents:
> 
> "Comerad!  Haff a loook at zees tractor, I sink eet ess bustet!"
> 
> Or you can do the subtitle thing, if you're an authenticity wonk.

     It's surprising what you can do with a *few* subtitles, if the
language in question is anything remotely like the language spoken by
the audience.  The reggae movie "The Harder They Come" is spoken
entirely in Jamaican Rastafarian ghetto jive.  Incomprehensible.  But
each scene is begun with just a moment or two of subtitles just so you
can get the drift.  Then they stop, but the dialogue remains perfectly
understandable without them.

     It makes me intensely curious to know whether this trick would
work for a film with dialogue in Middle English.  I'd bet several
inflated dollars that it would.

                                                -- jf
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written
From: hughes@dogwood.botany.uga.edu (Wayne Hughes)
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.written
Subject: Re: Any comments on ENTOVERSE by James Hogan?
Date: 3 Oct 92 00:23:35 GMT
Organization: Botany Department - U of Georgia, Athens


In article <AM0QBZJ4@cc.swarthmore.edu> you write:
>I've read most of Hogan's books and found that the later-written books tend
>to be bad.

   Yes, two things spoil them for me, the poor characterizations
   (I don't know *how* he doesn't do it!), and the gratuitous political
   sermonizing.

   I agree with you, I liked _Thrice Upon a Time_, despite the poor
   characterizations.  Perhaps it's because he limited his 
   political agenda.  But there was also some cleverness about
   the storyline(s), and he deserves credit for that.

   Not so with _The Enigma Game_ (I think that's the name of the
   cartoon-Soviet-evil-empire-plotting-to-destroy-the-west one).
   The hectoring is blatant and wearying.  I agree with you that
   it's best left alone.

   And while there is considerable politicizing in _The Proteus
   Operation_, he does a good job setting up for some entertaining
   surprises.  He also grabs you at the beginning with his 
   depiction of the present-(not)-to-be-saved.

   Wayne