09 April, 2007

Sky pilots, or The Problems of Landing

I’ve spent a tonne of time watching From the Earth to the Moon, an HBO mini series ( 2005). I’m liking it enough to have spent ten hours of the last few days watching the first 10 of 12 hours of the series. I was always fascinated by the space flite and moon landings growing up- I'm old enough to remember the latter flites and skylab and all that. I knew all the different sorts of capsules and rockets and theories of space flite and such; this subject matter is to my interest interest totally. I totally understand that the space program is a great way for the ultra corporations to cash in in ways other than armaments-- but I also think rockets are kool. It follows the Apollo space program, which were the moon landing flights.

Now wait- no way I’m gonna recommend this tripe. Its very sloshsy mess- wait, the word is hokey - hokey beyond belief, hokey to the point where most would be put off. However, I got this dvd thinking it was all real footage. The first episode had the scene that led me to watch this schlock for ten hours so far= It was the special effects on the first US space flight of Alan Shepard. He was strapped in a tiny capsule atop of rattling bucking firing flaming rocket up up into the sky--this was great-- then the rocket runs out cut and separates from the capsule -- the capsule continues up by its momentum less and less and less, until it reaches as hi as its gonna go, and then it does what a big piece of metal will do in gravity--screams rattling bucking belching flaming down down and down through the sky-- I loved it, and was hooked enough. Don’t see it. Even though I will be watching the last two hours to-morrow.

After typing all last nite, as I sit here just prepost, I will say its not all that bad. When they talk about the patriotism and glory and all that its corny, but other stuff is ok. maybe y'll have the stomach for a bit of it.

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