Historically speaking, October 18 was a big day for science: Thomas Edison made electricity available for household use on this day in 1878; Watson and Crick received a Nobel Prize for work on DNA on the same day in 1962; and the Galileo space orbiter was launched again on the same day in 1989. Is there a better way to mark these milestones (especially the household electricity one) than SciFi Saturday? We don't think so. The lineup runs the gamut from re-awakened dragons (Reign of Fire) to oversexed aliens (Species). Edison had no idea what he'd be bringing into your living room.

For a complete look at the SciFi Saturday schedule, click here.

It's only fitting there are so many contradictory fictional takes on the dragon. Even the dragon's mythological and etymological origin is a mystery. Homer's first and only mention of the dragon was as an insignia upon Agamemnon's shield, whereas, in Asia, they are shape-shifting serpent gods. Cryptozoologists bicker about whether or not all dragon myths come from the komodo of Indonesia, while psychologists wonder if the beast is the supreme anthropomorphization of all of mankind's primal fears: the venom of the snake, the teeth of the crocodile, the claws of the lion, the wings of the vulture and the mindless fury of the wildfire.

Continue reading "The Eternal Dragon Lives Again in Science Fiction Movies" »

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