rE) THE SCIENCE FICTION. GAMING MAGAZINE Haunted Places: Fact and Fiction. Plus Into fmm hase} Game and Story. Renee ote’ POS aeROeee eee Le me ca Ta PC Re cas Pee een eat ae tae rt eee ic saes Only a depleted and much understrength Army of the Potomac stood eee Roa er eer ie Rm ea an aw Cl {an operational/strategic Gettysburg campaign game. Available at Me KILLER ‘ST-3G Name Address city State Zipcode _ ‘New York State rsidonts add applicable sales tax WEST END’S LATEST RELEASES! eee ee ea ey aed ee are aie re er en kee ie aR ee Geese NT re te ar Tears Cee ee a et NAc Se ae er meee ag Cee O RIVA ae Le cee Cor ae eee ete ren at noe meer on ee oo you-are war”, combines centuries old hatreds with up-to-the-minute technology. An operational ieve! game with all ofthe fee! of modern re ia a Sant OPERATION J cea ~ D BUS aseNUMBER 15, Fait 1989 CONTENTS eorromat SIMULATION GawE ARES log . 4 NIGHY ant Delt Mohan MATTERS OF FACT 5 David J. Richie... 25 Darkol Manor something someting unspeakable: Do You hare eer ns home of st ‘Our new sence fc on debuts wth &compendim of ed and ingen of som he un ee Ba, i, slimes, oot sets, and other subjects. Twe sour ‘cron ty a Tern of Gaming.” a sgetion by Segner David fakes you inc the ner works ‘fhe sopermataral and as Yet ficrion inning at seaping the cites VISITATION ‘ot menacing ang hore power David J. Schow. 18 PT ‘tamed deburer ofthe parancmal mes his ach in tring tower eth ps uma wil suit mono Te sn ees SS remping pce he “Hand Hove se a ste i frcriow HAUNTED PLACES INTO THE orp David J. Schow. 44 : ‘Act of ix characters mus. ‘hip Yori advanced vid dre wigs and he Toa they have Been represented ia books ln. {nd tees, Ne suring. Schow has discovered hat ends and Frcrion INTO THE VOID Carl Smith Characters lacked from the Siar Frontier oe ‘lh deny Sater agents his show sary by Se soy wwe conunion wh emi e's options ARES REVIEWS ‘im: Reviewer Christopher Job shares his thoughts shot Return of | In The rae, Sting Wid To a Come, ch pas NPC Statistics esegegsarees Lenicon: Davi Scho makes 4 thedappetrance otis sue ashe luce the ons and ainyraes of etapa. 6 ‘Games: Games rey eitor Steve Lis provi ren of Srike™. ‘Sor Fler Bates" and Moon Bore Corus" games n6 Books: Reviewer Greg Cosikyan eps new novels fom the kes of | Sack Vance, Jahn Vato, and. Sprage de Camp. a RINGSHIPPER Roger Raupp| 61 ‘The fest istaiment of a ou ofhivgaany comi ip hodase Space pirate who stumbles scrou seret ofthe nese, READERS’ COMMENTS FEEDBACK 62 ON THE COVER whaaeange meeosthyen,Gntonnt Jon Sie ‘Grape Stohr Scan Harty Son ‘Bite Donl afore, Cys Cowel Ky ‘Trompaon Roy Sits ‘Feats Sut Ket ole Sarena: oy ce te hes Sener an Se aera Shou seo aon Punta a ee Santee =e Seo sewaner eae Seipaeseouae eas Sencasencon ae Riera end Sreoerencen sss Serine Somers eee peakecerenties cece ‘elcome 8 the pulser asus ‘eesonny or ar ara ty wl oto ‘Seemcunmetcomonndy steps, ‘Sifaernsednvlop ots Reo a vacua tor orag0n Pub ning sles fon pamig maga. Some evra on mating may be Boicedieninecnaios fae. ‘ibe i000 Fone wand asda eile oftnes "Faure en te rang 1 Dragon Paianing, PO. Box ‘Gate Genera 8 ‘agen Pubishing Plo. ox 110, Lake Genova, wi 53147 ‘Telephone: ine}e-9008 — Before you read the rest ofthis editorial. take a moment and turn to page 43 tothe Statement of Poli). ares" Magazine and DRAGON® Magazine ae now fllycomple- mentary. Ares Magazine wll over the span of science ition gaming, (om f0l-playing fumes (o bourdgumes, while DRAGON Magavine wll cover all antsy games. Those of Sou who ply the DRAGONQUEST™ fantasy role-playing game wil be pleased to know ‘hut a lrge amount of DQ materi will be appearing in DRAGON Magazine inthe neat future: UNIVERSE" game plaersshoulé stay tuned t these pages for more on that fine ‘stem, We beleve that the division of scence fiction and (antsy material in this manner wil benefit everyone and we welcome your seas and supper "Thote are ono major theme explored in this sue: the teal of horror and the realm of interstellar war By nay of horror material we have "Nightmare House” fascinating {game in which you the players, hve the opportunity to explore and hopefully exorise 8 {fain lite haunted hotse sa soltaite game or witha numberof players, we hope YOu Tin i teresting Filling ut the horror arena we have “Visitation.” a short peek into the life a profes sional dsbeliever in ghost who loks at one case t00 many. and sm examination of Haunted Places” in terature wth ome horror film reviews to Found out the tion, "The realm of oterstelar war i explored within the framework ofthe STAR. FRONTIERS™ roleplaying game. Humanity and is allies are locked i battle with enophobic alien race called the Sathar ~ and only onesie wll win. "Into the Vord™ ‘Setals am episode inthis conflict asa shor story and as a game module that STAR FRONTIERS game players may use in their campaigns NAres Magarne wil be exploring other game unverses in issues vo come, such asthe STAR FRONTIERS, Knight Haviks, CAMMA WORLD®, TRAVELLER®, STRIKER™ STAR TREK™, UNIVERSE, STAR FLEET BATTLES", SPACE OPERA™, GGRE™. and SPACE MARINES™ game systems, as wells any others that Sou, the readers, sugart fous, We are very open o your suggestions and would welcome ihe chance to heat from you. On that note, we also stongly encourage everyone who fends res Magazine to fil out the Feedback card with euch ssue apd mail tint us. We {do read our mail and we do vale the feedback from you. ‘in furure issues we wil also offer you atces on game variants, mini-modules and short. scenarios in-depth looks a lens, sar empires, new world, campaign background, Fins on playing and rleresing,soltare gaming, and scenceact material hat you can {he in your own SF games. We pan to increase our coverage of tole-playing material in particular, but SF boardgaming wil sll bea part of Aes Magazine ‘We are ano looking forarttes [rom ou readers (that means you) to fill our magazine. you lie to wete and weite wel, ang if you have an idea for an article on sciencefition ‘taming in any offs aspects, we would like to hea fom you. We are bulding up our files Sid want to give you the bes SF guming magazine you can iy your hands on. “ares Magarine snot usta gating magarine. Ares Magazine i he magazine for science-ieton pang and we ait Keep it that Way The EiorsBy Frank Kendig, eran ee AT TERS OF FAC ———— Other Dimensions the base for another tqulaeral iangle. The result ‘Most of us move about ina lage rangle with smaller comfortably in our thee teangles sprouting from each ‘dimensional space, nd Dr. sige, a I2-sied Stat of David Einstein, of course, made the The'shape is also known asthe fourth dimension # household Koch Snowflake, after the Word. A few scientists (and all Swedish mathematician who SSonctision any gumpol pvodyced in 904 hs Scoraueasyinae, fecal seresand even eh that ig emarkabl about f Sieniiea wee this Died shape ha ‘Ailwel'and good, tat whe sweneoned wea 90001 Black Holes Revisited — inviual carts, hose unr do oop thane indian ee famed Beno. Mandetbrot| incensed damataly (ty Wateecat Vena Sonat holes trom which no has recent complicated the fourahirds in fac) the Puyichne sone af those ral manatee domain of rice By pong ut thst process repeated ain and ESehan'who ses ote, the oh spc, hough he shapes that dor iie any approaches any a ength— ‘Among haere iets sce Mone eure fo ep, ofthe usual dimensions. while the enclosed area the fre ant named for is With no additional infor Mandela: alt hese cures emuine abou tecane, The HG an, named eran fata (rom the Lain rectal comes pore han ne ae aoa as inning broken oF Ghedimensral Tne ta ne hae fot ha hi fragmencdy Feta, enine nomen and yer Ho 8 oon of fmonivein Laedmeniona, — Someting thn eros Smal Ines second fd UST-imenional space, et. dimensional space in which the Seis O1 ant These cuner | Unsung Heroes Wivaor contains ts cures tat ene tease AMS fOU IRE DOM Da Fe OE ss seems. Draw an equilateral finite in length, Thus (racials Whery wel ormry pave stewn'a trcan ‘Tame Tes doe ech side open upon of Tag. BoMofunareamuiomed, have shown a stone into tc equal scgments and dmensonal space, and L.68- fer ae large scke- __aphomors us tseach ine idle cpio ove as Smensonal spaces and soon. ONGC, te ras sles sophomores a cc Hivebu one funtion to” mich unca pgs and Kile ane—vand thy are chimpanec rhe ronal Inereiby good ar No fire favor But ow Seo eer Sinn contro oe of thse trina ae ming mae ‘ough older an sree more cf armark inthe ab “ie fie ams forge tc the hoor crab rd tering for food sore” the aad ‘rte endo pater, bat The honcsoe crab is sthen hey encounter favored ine lab because of Tomesing edie they beat 2 ie lod, fom which Sight pth bask fo her produced subance cl foe muti her teal Limes amebocte ate Chemical or ome ve ants (LAL. LAL ihe most {Piotow: Water testo Sestive aay reagent Enon Secung abou shat would tedscc cain daeae Happen fie ans ade producing substances atria maps oftheir territory back in endotoxins). The amaillo, thelr nests. He goes so far as that peclla ankelke Toimagine @ symposium in mammal now common in the Which fire ant representatives southern U.S. x popular in, from various colonies meet to the lab for another reason: the discuss their universe. female armadilo aways gives, “BY superimposing their birth fo dentcal quadruples D> LDNAT TERS OF FACT Tooth Sleuths While police employed psychics, and other ‘uestionable characters get the bulk of the press coverage, ‘more and more of the real work oferime detection i being done by dems. ‘According to Dr. Howard S, Glazer, «consultant in forensic ontology to New York City’s Chet Medical Examiner, forensic dentistry is becoming more important as the FL gradually destroys fingerprints. Moreover, today’s tooth sleuth ate adding some bite tothe law. Says Glazer, "bite evidence is ‘sour admisabl, so we're ing to see more and more ent entying.” Lawn Power Scientists call them ‘anthroprogenic grasslands," and they occupy somewhere between 25 an 30 milion sees ofthe United States, enough to cover the state oF Massachusats. The rest of us call them lavas, and we are for them, fre over them, and ‘occasionally decorate them with pink flamingos, conerete Mericans, and hedges pruned 10 ook lke chickens “lot Falk has spent the tas 13 year studying these Walt Whitman called" journeywork ofthe stars.” An ‘ecologist atthe Smithsonian's ‘Chesapeake Bay Center for Environmental Studies i Edgewater, Maryland, Falk spent one of those years xamining his own 1,000 sa, ‘entted the insects on his the bids, and weighed and analyzed al the grass clippings. He revorded everything (nat Sprinkle. For the rest of his esearch, however, Falk canged far afield, studying lawns. round the world, Some of fis findings: # The average town of grasses and weeds, as well Se snails, sper mites spiders, farthworms, and over 100, Sirereat species of insets. 1. Supports some 20 to 4 times ‘more birds than found in natural raslands. The reason, ‘ays Falke "Lawns ae bland Of food resources in sea of concrete. + The eneey spent maintaining tis average lawn ‘more than twice that required 10 grow a comparable ‘rop of corm or tobuec, oF to False a vegetable garden + Many insects ~ leat hoppers and fit fies ("Fi lunmowed twas * Our fondness for lawns may be deep-rooted in our Aistant pas, pariulrly that time some thee millon years go when our ancestors populated the grass savannas DF East Aftica, Falk tested this idea by showing photographs of diferent landscapes to people from various parts of the world. Asked the preference, the subjects over. ‘whelmingly picked savannas, ven though many had never cen such terrain before 2010: One Mystery Solved Stanley Kubrick's now clasic film of Arthur C. Clarke's 2001: A Space Odyssey, feleased in 1968, et ‘moviegoers witha host of ‘questions: Who or wha ‘ansformed astronaut Dave Bowman ito a Star-Child? Was HAL, eal the best nown compute in all of erature or tim, really insane? And pethaps the most ‘ulin question ofall: What Purpose lay behind the black monolith onthe moon and is much larger brother orbiting Bupiter? At the close of ‘Clarke's orignal novel, Bowman takes 2 space pod out to investigate the Jupiter ‘monolith and utters hi final, enigmatic statement — "My ‘God i’ fll of start Before long movienoes wl nave answers to several of these questions. Clarke's Sequel to 2001, 20/0" Odyssey Two, was published lat year, andthe film version, althoueh now snared in Holiytood polities, s sure to be forthcoming. (Clarke's sequel clears up the Jupiter monolith descends tovthe surface and, aller reproducing ise lions of times, turns Jupiter into the nov what they are! They're von Neuman machines! tres one of Clarke's ‘haracters ashe walches this Incredible spectacle. "Suppose bb to do. ke siping the face ofthe moon,” he explains. "You could build mallions of machines to do i Buc that might ake cen ures, I'you were clever enoush, you'd make just one machine but with te ably 10 reproduce isl fom the raw materials around “The von Neumann machine is the brainchild of mathematician John von‘Neumann (1903-195), generally regarded as the faiher of the computer. Von ‘Neumann, ithe 1930s, considered the then widely held notion that machines somehow follow a lw of complexity — that the tasks performed by the machine ft be less complex than the achive ill In other words, fany machine produced by father machine must be less ‘complex than the orginal Noting that living systems — calls cals, and humane famong them — routinely produced new sjstems at last 2s complicated as themselves, ‘on Neuman suspected tha there was in fact no law of omplenty. He then went fon to demonstrate i ‘mathematical in his General and Logical Theory published ‘Von Neuman not only showed that it was theoreti aly posible to build 2 ‘machine that could reproduce et, but also showed that i ‘was possible vo build MATTERS ‘machine that will produce any ‘other machine, no matter how fcomples. AIL needs i aw ‘materials and sufiienty ‘etiled instructions, Moreover, such 2 machine need only have sn assembler 0 put together raw materials Secording to instructions, a se of insruetions, a duplicator 10 make copies of insructions, fnd a controle to feed Instruction 0 the factory. ‘Such a machine ean not only reproduce il, but ean produce new machines of Superior complenty. Decades after von Neumann's orginal ‘work on self eprodscing ‘machines it was shown that DNA, the stuff of ie, is made ‘up of four pars and works cexacly as von Neumann ‘exeribed, Fans ofthe original film ill be peated to know the quel does nt clear up all the mysteries, There are enough ‘questions let open to warrant 2 third, perhaps even a fourth installment of the tale that begins in 201 oF FAC ——— IN GAMING TERMS By David Cook ‘The idea of a reproducing machine was a common one 10 science fiction even before von Neumann set out to study it. a referee wishes to include these machines in a STAR FRONTIERS™ game, the following information covers possible situations, story: The fest known use of @ von Neumans..ype of machine inthe Frontier came shor after the enty of, Human colonies tothe area. Once the first Human bases ‘tere euabliahed, the now overthrown government of Theseus {ent 10 Independent Material Processing Plants (MPPs) into Space. Each IMPP was sent ina fully automatic starship with te folowing fas fo compe: ‘Locate a Human-habitable world curently 2. a 4. Procest all IMPP units (but one) ino usable form. ‘5. Proceed with eyle again. ‘Tih iden was thatthe IMPPs would be forerunners of Human expansion into the Frontier. When colony ship arrived ata new planet there would be a good chance that large quantities of mineral ore would have been mined and tefined before the Humans even landed. Unfortunately, there were problems. ‘The worst ofthese was the fact thatthe machines were instructed to only avid planets they had not previously recorded, Through an immense eror, the machines were not Instructed to check for fe forms before beginning work. This ‘Oversight resulted in the environmental destruction of several Human-habitable planets, the destruction of at leat one Intliget primitive race, and a full-scale war Between the ‘machines and a Vusk colony. Given the evens that occurred, the IMPP project was abandoned and all known IMPPs were estoyed. However, not all the machines were found. {MPP (Jodependent Materials Processing Plan!) ‘There are 3 main units to an IMPP. They are: Siarship ‘This unit isan unmanned spaceship capable of. lmerstllar travel. I the heat of the IMPP, containing thelevel 6 main computer (he controler/dupicator), the memory banks, an assembler unk, 50 hunter unis, 8 orbital shuttles, ‘and focates an easly accesible deposit of raw material, and sends the atcerbler unit othe surface. This unit then begins Dull the next major unit ofthe IMPP, the plant. "The staship unite 00 meters long and 100 meters in ameter. Although unmanned, i does have acess. passageways and hatches for Human maintenance crews. The Inside ofthe ship i not pressurized, however. The Plant “his uit begin its work once it is assembled on the surface of a planet The plant unit bas thre functions — {reate« pre-determined number of copies of ill, 1 proce FRanter units, and to then become a processing center. The plant isa semi-mobile operation controled by its own level 6 Computer. Composed of modules, cach module has ase of {eacks that allow ito move cross-country very slowly. Once the orginal plant has created a aecond, the scond moves to @ ‘new location and begins to buld another plant. The number ‘Of plants grows like a spreading wave from the orginal After 461 numberof plants have been ull in an area, hunters {the third uni) are prodvced. Each plant wil produce 1000 Inanters. Thee hunters wil be under the contol ofthat plant, ‘which i in ten ander the direction ofthe main controler. ‘fer the hunters are produced, the plant bepins to process raw material, generally in the form of bars or shets. These ‘are sealed in urethane coating 1 prevent oxidation. "A plat looks like a collection of huge tank-ike veces, Interconnected by huge pipes, conveyer, wring, etc. The area [almost always desolate-looking, ov lag heaps, waste, soot, and smoke surrounding the plan The Hunter Top Speed/Cruse Speed: 60 kph/30 kph Passengers: Not “The third major nit of the IMPP isthe hunter. This is a small (6 meters by 4 meters), mobile unit that serves as the legs and hands of the ene operation. The hunter's task i to ‘ther the raw materials, carry them tothe plant, and move the processed materials {0 4 storage location. "The hunter resembles & cross between a dump truck and ‘a backhoe with three extra mechanical am attached. One ‘arm is fited with a clamp hand and is capable of lifting 1000 élograms. Any character clamped by this hand will suffer 5-0 poins of damage each tur. The second arm i an ‘titled bard rock éril ured for mining, This dil will do 10-100 poins of damage to any character thts. The third fam is@ sample probe, used to take mineral samples and perform preiminary aalyss on them. Ifa characters struck bythe probe, he will only take I-10 points of damage. However, the probe wil lnject several chemical, doing ‘20/13 unless neutralized by an injection ofan antidote, Each hunter is run by a bull-in evel 3 computer. The mission ofthe hunter is usually 0 gather raw materia (ore) find cary finshed materials tothe storage aren. A homer will mos never bother ving creatures, However, hunter will be attracted to large deposits of metal such asa spaceship of ‘vehicle If these ae in the area, the hunter will attempt 10 ‘dismantle them and carry the parts othe plant. Sathar Ravegers ome type of control over thelr numbers and activites. So far, only one type of machine has been positively ideiied. However, reliable reports of automated factories have supplied enough information to posively idem) these ‘machines as being of the von Neumann ype. Skimmer Ravager ‘Top Speed/Cruise Speed: 200 kph/180 kph ‘Passengers: None (Cargo Limit: No carried Mission: Unknown Weapons: Turre-mouated heavy laser To Hi: 60% Damage: 880 points Defense: Albedo covering ‘The Skimmer Ravages isa hovercraft vehicle approximately 2.5 meters long, 2 meters wide, and 1.5 meters igh. The entre outside of the vehicle i covered with albedo armor, sving it protection from laser fre equal to an albedo ‘uit. The turret located on the top center ofthe vehicle gives the laser a 360 degre field of ire. The laser always seems (0 fre at the same power seting (). The machine has never shown any inelnation o conserve ammurition, “The machine is equipped with Tul sonar/radar/infrared/ visible iht/radio scanning. Each machine is connected ‘main baile compute located some distance away, but is also ‘apable of independent action If this nk is jammed. However, when on independent, che machines are ‘handicapped as they cannot work together asa unit each ‘machine can only do what itis programmed to think bes at the moment. ‘Aithoug the eat nature of he rosammig i no known, experience has proven them Knsamascously hotle to mow hifefoms,incding al character races. aWE WOULDN'T CALL THEM GAMING MAGAZINES IF THEY DIDN'T INCLUDE GAMES. STRATEGY & TACTICS® and ARES* Gaming Magazines Miltary history games in each quartery issue of STRATEGY & TACTICS® Magazine let you relive the greatest bate! You will receive biannual Special Editions featur- Ingnew gaming variants and special subscription Journey through the annals of military history with STRATEGY & TACTICS= Magazine-—the number fone miltary adventure gaming magazine, Name Address City & State —_ zip Send check or money order to Dragon Publishing P.O. 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The more ohm hat shows By Christopher John tthe sren, the worse he looks Sarguand chose to shoot Jab full ‘THE RETURN faq cout ofthe tie, usally in Bight OF THE JEDI ing, When Jabba capares Lea be {orcs her inc slave gi Sosturing, Foie so Gee hues Spe uh a Gv holt, The ier rd Marquand aera anges Marquand choo neler’ Screenplay Lawrence Kasien” Show Lam ff provocaincy nor ave us & ‘George Loc {ening of hr humilaion, She mercy Photography .....-Alslume; BSC. [goks'bore ating sound her Mase John Wis Scan, wating forthe nex scene “The movie moves ike ts though LakeStgwalter...Mark anil cout, each wove woodenly locked, Tanselo Nason Ford Sil ofthe ators taking far more He 10 Prac Li sare Fiber do ther busines than Kesher would LandoCavisian...Bily Dee Williams fave allowed in Empire CPO. “Anthony Daniels fan te Pep filed with ‘Ghevbasca. 0011 -Peer Maghew sues, but cate, devices. Fat 100 ch Anakin Skywalker ‘Sebastian Shaw Gf Je gen vero ence cen Enger Jun McDiarmid yermight nant to lee charges of vole Frank Or Sri’ the srg, excep fo the Darth Vader. -David Prowse fac that Je wes writen and in Oban Kenobi = Ale Guinness production atthe same time at 7. R22 {oenny Baker Reyarlss, thou, Jel wilds «heaey s eet fad with ie seine, much of y now you have heard al ofthe ‘coming ou of place when comparing the sigumers; you have herd from those present storyline tothe harsh war realities ‘ho think the newest Star Wars lim SF Empire The vedybear ans, the ithe greatest hing since iced bread, eavlcadeof muppets (ey 100k too ad you hive heard from those who tke heap tobe cll aliens), R2-D2"S the owes hole {O-gadgetefrany-emergency, the So far, 4 1ot ofthe noise made about ‘Return ofthe Jed bas been more emotional than thought out. Many people pro and con, have vented their “anger at, or defenses of, Je without ‘eally reviewing the fas. The fats, Oday oughly along the follow ofthe ‘Jes not relly a bad pita. Its hot, however, good enough tobe the sequel 10 The Empire Sikes Back. ‘Since most everyone by now has Ineard everything they need of the plot, of who winds up with whom, and wit Happens to Luke and Vader, etcetera, it ‘would scem bet (0 look at the various points of contenion which have brought {fo many people out aginst wha should have beem the biggest succes of 1983 Fact #: The direction fs not up to ‘that found inthe other twa fms: Richard ‘Marguand isnot the world's most famous ‘oF popular directo. His major ered Detore edi were two fairly state and highly forgetable films, The Legacy and ye ofthe Needle. Many fee he was ot the man to pick for sucha delicate project, and they may have been right. Examples: Jabba the Hut appears to the completely sill ast at Jabba’s, CChembacea's Tarzan imitation complete With bull ape call, and so forth ae not the things audiences were expecting, oF for the most part ready to put up with Distracting more often than amusing, these eloying bits peppered throughout the Story do not help tt seems th ery time the sti reached a point sthere audience excitement levels were bepinning to build, one of these annying senes were thrown in on purpose to keep them from getting oo caught up in the picture, One way ofthe othe, they 30 fot help much Fact #3: Much of whet is new to Jed seems business, rather than plot inspired. Sadly, itis rue. Dozens of new space Ships are seen, but no reason is given for their appearances. Dozens of new alien Characters appear as well s a number of ‘ew Imperial uniforms. Since most of these characters serve no eal function, fone must wonder i the charges of planning for Coys atthe expense of the ‘movie, and the audience, might not be Mable ones, The new slily red, Imperial Guards of whatever they are — we se them all through the movie, but we never sce one of them move, or use thelr ‘unusual weapons. Perfect (oy candidates, fh ate the new Imperial Cruse, Jabba the Executive Producer GEORGE LUCAS alt, ‘rector RICHARO Mah QUAND itarngnt ana ne (tat ach rom) HARRY SON FORO, CARMIE PISMER, wan MaMILL Front row is) ANTHONY BanletS(c-3901 KENNY BAKER (f.02) and PETER MAYHEW (Chewbnces),Hut and al his cronies, the new rebel, ‘his, and ll the other unexplained paraphernalia that abound throughout the pitute ts ot that other moves ‘ot Signed toy deals before they were eleaved as well its only that we expect toys to come from logical bit froma, fm, not from things stuck ito 8 firm merely so a toy might be manufactured Pact i: Much of the film's new favor is phonly European. Everything ew in Jel Seems to ave been setup for the European market. Jabba the Hut's headquarters, and its ihabitants are all perfecily suited for a Fellini movie. The Mew spaceships are all rom the pages of ‘Heavy Meal, This would nat be offensive I there was a reason for these variations, ‘but none is given. The rebels all of 2 sudden just happen to have a new ‘command ship structured fo look ike a Sack of grapes; they also have a new leader, an appealing worm the audience has never met, and indeed, is never Introduced to “The lok is European, and coupling this withthe Tact thatthe European market has supported many sapstick Science ition lms, one wonders if the Silyeuteness and’ new bits hich sem 50 ‘out of pace to American audiences were In eat not erafed for the overseas arena. With thee dollars assured in this county, the plan may have been 10 oncentiate on tases outside of the U.S., Torgeting where the dollars came from %0 suppor the whale Star Warr eraze inthe fist place Fact #5: Much of Jedi does nor jel with Star Wars or Empire. Yoda was strong in Empire: why does he die weakly ‘away in Jed? The Force used to be Something anyone could uses why now is ‘something only certain families seem 10 be able to manipulate? Han knew Leia loved him before she did in Empire; why does he forget this in Jed? And on and fn and on. In their harry to wrap things Up, and to'make ihe plot more Japanese (the lst half of Jedi nothing tore than a rehash of any numberof mystic father/son samurai ims), more than a few mistakes in logic have been made. ‘AL one point, Han looks at his ship, soon tobe taken by Lando into bate, land comments that hei fra he wall fever se it again. This sa eruel red hesrng, since Han, Lando and the Falcon are allintact atthe end, Jedi does not mesh well with what we have been previously told about the Sar Wars woiverse, nor does it mesh well as Screenplay. Audiences expect certain things to happen when a fm makes Certain statements, Return ofthe Jed foes not seem concerned with eter Sequential integrity, or even internal imtegrty. Floundering asi ean, the scripts Sem (0 suffer from overwork. rather than a lek of atteation. Unfortunately, te those seeing the finished product, one fiction i as bad asthe other “The facts against Je, to vay the least, do not leave much with which to defend The last inthe series (with This Set of characters) iis arguable the reaors hed cificuly jamming in all he answers oll che questions the frst two Detures left up inthe ai Indeed, Jed Goes tie everything up — but the answers fate so pat, s0 predictable, that most ‘udiences have ended up laughing atthe fl revelations ‘Ontop ofthat, evenif the trouble of tyingall he lose ends together was much harder than i looked, til the flmmaker's responsibility 0 entertain, not the audience's responsibility 19 be tntertained on their ow Lastly, Fact ®: The special effects are ot up to por. With all ofthe other complaints lodged it seems pety to even bother with this lat one, but ts valid, And needs to be said. Mat lines, bie Hines, and wires show at every turn, The aliens look cheap, plastic, Outer Limits ish. The entre rebel atack fleet looks to have no more than fifteen ships nt. We {ot more than that in Star Wars, Maybe the Industrial Light & Mage special effets company took on more than they could handle this ime, oF ‘maybe thelr numerous outside contracts {ook too much of thee Lime from Jed. ‘Whatever the reason, the effet, tke the fest ofthe faces of the film, are sorely lacking ‘And afterall that there sie more to say. My complain is disappointment. 1 {0 no deny i Lam wiling to admit | allowed myself ro become smug, 10 "know that Return of the Jedi was going to be great, long before T saw i. Going in to @ theater wth the notion & Ii is perfect before you seit san easy way to et yourself up fora fall. In the se of ed I, along with most ofthe ouniey climbed high up the ladder for the paviledge of cumbling down on out collective beads. But that kindof pre- Jidging can not be eld accountable for the level of disappointment encountered hte Je is nota very good fils thee is no geting around i in many ways, this was a hard review to wiite. Like the monument euiter whose test frend passed away, the feeling was there that as long asthe words were not {ut imo the stone, the friend would not bbe dead. Such is nor the ease. Star Ware ‘ay not be dea, but Return of the Jed! isa fallure and isa cheap and tarnished crown for ihe series which shook the ‘world of im when i started ovt slong time ago, in that galaxy fr, far anay WAR GAMES Director John Badham Producer Harold Semeder Music “Arthur B Rainstein Screenplay Lawrence Lasker/ ‘Walter F. Parkes Photography .......Willam A. Fake, AS. Davie ‘Matthew Broderick Mekitrick ‘Dabney Coleman Falken ‘John Wood Jennifer ‘lly Sheedy ‘Apparently, John Badham decided to ‘make thie bis summer. Fie, scking ‘with ‘Blue Thunder, he wowed audiences wilh 2 Fashdance of technological images while Sliping in his “keep watching the government” message neatly i the formers. Then, while Thunder was sill playing 10 packed houses eround the ounity, his latest feature, War Gomes was tlesed, disturbingly sila in the Wray it wows audiences witha lashdance ‘of technological images while slipping 8FILM, “keep watching the government” message athe corners. The major Maw in War Games is that ‘istract our attention, the story they are £0 laisly painted on i no trong ‘Games concerns teenager David Lightman, an average guy who escapes the boredom of unchallenging. tninteresing schoolwork, his mundane parents andthe bland world around him laling the telephone and insercing & program ino hs machine, he hitchhikss round the hidden eletonic word which Surrounds uv all, taveing on the Earth's as commiieions grid talking with people lke himself ad their computers Bavid plays with other computers without thinking ofthe consequences; he changes his school grades, impresses a it by and finally decides 0 Break into a video fame manufacturer's computer to seal ts ewes! game plans for his own amusement ino NORAD instead, and acidevaly triggers serie of events which may (by the iim’: cna) teadwo'Wordd War II, Thecomputersorens t NORAD show evidence surprise nuclear attack in WAR GAMES. ‘The worlds only hope, since the FB. and the NORAD officals who cach up 40 he find a top seenist hidden by the and, while entertaining them, Thunder DDavidsetiae to believe the teuth, is for government in a matter of hours? Why makes a statement about America, her David to find the computers orginal does NORAD have busloads of tourists image, andthe men who manipulate both programmer. The goverment says the walking through the War Room? How For those who want to speak out against man i dead. The computer says st, des David out-think the war computer in chose things, the film isa wonderful David has 27 hours and $9 minues 0. —-amatter of seconds, whe Is own backdrop for thei ideas. Seape NORAD security and the F-Bst, programmers can think of nothing? Why in War Games, though, almost the finds man theres no trae of, and aver: can't the FL. find David after he ‘exact oppoite frat work. War Games was ‘nuclear holocaust ‘scapes, especially since they know where not intended to shake people up. Is big Excting,fastmoving tuff, but het headina resiage, that "no one wins a mocta clumsily contracted and badly thought. War Games wes very hard to be wat," no great revelation. The last ‘ur The movie expeis.us 0 believes entertaining, andit succeeds, Except for fifteen years have seen the words echoed Shumber of sly tng David bresks into the msi (whic i at, sly and uniting. us from television shows, slence the war computer which protests America, Ukroughout — one of he picture's major” fiction novels, comic books, and other tvtnout even realizing i Even if the Sisappoiatments) there i le wrong with films to where we ate coming dangerously Sudience docsrt slop to consider how War Games ss an amusement, a modern, clove Lo thinking of i asa cliche, rather Implausbe is i ei Teenagers can dismissale fairytale. The wouble the "than the threat which hangs over the teak in without bal ring, whats co. plete has started isi circles outside of worlds collective head every day. Sop the Russian computer experts who the theaters. Fa too many people have “The movie cloaked iel in 8 have Been tying since the beginning of accepted the movie's premise as totally standard message, but then set out to take "he computer age? they il may et balevable; wanting so srongly to preach Something we have heard many times Fouled up in some of the other crowing their awn mesage of global nuclear before and retell it in a new, interesting hei hs lm unfortunately tawis behind disarmament, they have ignored the film's fashion. War Games is highly its the government actualy stupid Maw and inconsistencies in ordet fo start” ettrtalaing, fast moving, colorful, and though to nnpest a teenage Boy of Up the doorshouting-machins with this mentally stimulating. Your bran has to be Jnemnavonal Spionage andi they ely new bit of fodder. War Games is not Blue working ae fst atthe computer's, andthe td, how then i o.easy for him 10 Thunder. I's fr 100 simplistic a work 19 computer whize's to keep up withthe story- fcape from one of the most (no! the hold pas proof that no-one can win a teling. Asa big-budget comic book, i has ‘mont hil secure areas of the country, nuclear wat. Thunder delvered hostile everything one could want. As @ prophecy, the NORAD command center? How docs message, It wanted to Shake people up however, has along Way (0 go,PSYCHO II Director Richard Franklin Producer Hilton A. Green Music Jerry Goidsmith Photography ---... Dean Cundey Screenplay ‘Tom Holland [Norman Bates... Anthony Perkins ia ‘era Mile Mary ‘Mes Tilly Dr. Rayinond (Robert Loggia Twenty-imo years ago, Alfred Hitchcock, ‘Anthony Perkins, and a numberof other extremely creative people got together 10 take a mystery. they called Paycho. Taking an exelent book by veteran horror-fantasy writer Robert Bloch, they made a picture tat frightened {he entire world Since the film was frst relented, there have been stories of people {oo terrified to take showers in thet own homes, ‘Wien word started to spread that, aher two decades, someone was going 0 make a sequel to Psycho, mos everyone Stoffed. AS anyone who has seen the iginal knew, no one could make a good Enough film to follow it. Even though Bloch had finally writen a sequel (something he refused to do for years Unt he felt he had something new to Say), word had it the Book woul not be the bass forthe movie. Indeed, thore ‘who read the Book agreed even though the way Bloch handled things made for ‘cellent reading, hs version was not food source material for a film. Whatever the producers of Psycho 17 came up with. itwas going to have to be totally orginal Luckily for those of us wh lke 1 be seared out of out wits, i fs mate than frginl — Ics great. Thee so doubt PPycho 11's just as good, if not beter than he foundation on ich i a “The film opens with the original shower sequence. After we ae reminded fof what Norman is eapable of, we are faken to's courtroom wher, after twenty two years, Norman Bates is being released. Deemed sane bythe courts, he i tven hs Freedom to return to society “Opposing this move i Lil, the sister of one of Norman's original vicims. She {sat the cour, trying to keep Norman from being reeated. She fl and [Norman steps out ito the light of day for {he fir time in two decades, From there, he goes back to his home, and the motel, to discover has been turned Into a sleaze ‘operation by the slate-appointed manager REVIEW S Norman fires the manager, holding his temper, bu forcing him to get out Next, tee sce that he also hata Job asa chef's ‘stan, postion obtained for him by his doctor. Here he befiendsa young. waite, After helping her afew times, ‘he befriends him, andthe movie bese to stain from tension as it holds back, teasing the audience with threats ad ins ‘of what wil soon happen. ‘What soon happens fs 2 string of murders, violent and unreasoning, all Commiced with the same type of Kitchen Knife Norman wielded inthe rst picture, The questions begin to mount, and from this point on, the audience is slammed Dock int seals time and again as more tions are posed with ‘The problem most people have had with Pspeho 1's that they ave forgoten ‘what Peycho wat all sbout. In Psycho, the movie started az a mystery. A woman ‘eat aTarge sum of money on impulse, And then fies (0 escape with i. There is ‘no hint of what i to come. Hichcock masterfully msec the audience from beginning to end, making them expect the ‘obvious, and yet always delivering Something no one was ready fr. This is ‘estemtally what happens again. In P5ycho, cveryone thought Norman was san, ase later discovered he was crazy. Everyone twas sure his mother was alive and was the Killer. Or course, Norman was crazy, and the Killer, and his mother was dead laying on what they knew the audience would expec, the flmmakers Started out with these assumptions and completly changed them around: when the picture stars, Norman i sane, and his killer mother alive, Te is simple Juataposition ofthe facts, But no one fatches om unlit 1s 00 fate In Psycho 1h Norman Bats isthe victim, one preyed upon by a vicious soc “Taking every character in the fim, ‘one can ently everyone as "type" I is Tairly easy to see Norman asa symbol ‘of a ruined, fearful society, and everyone laround him asthe groups we see at work inthe news every day. Lila s the voice of vengeance, her daughier the voice of {earful iberalio.The manager comes to usasa representative of those who would flour daily ves with erime and eheap Urls. Ando it goes, with Norman having to face, isa few days, al the of guilt and doubt and seltnited horror most people spend thei etre lives enduring In Bis and pieces. Unlike the crop of sash-em-ups we et every year, Pxpeho If sa daring, well: fhourhtott work which iso perfes, doesnot actually need the first fim 10 Stand: Richard Franklin has imitated Hitchcock so wel, one would think the film had been planned out before Hitchcock's death, and that Franklin had ‘worked from his notes Jerry Goldsmith has also done an excellent job, taking the late Bernard Hermans score inthe original and ‘eating a new soundtrack equally as ctective "Everything within the film, actually, is perfect: Although nothing ofthe motel texted, it was recreated exacly forthe Sequel."The nicpickers inthe audlence wll Find ie to point at as ou of place. Regardless ofall he work that went Io recteating the Sets, music, and mood ff Payeho, though, the real importance of Pycho IT resis ins originality. Refusing to Just be a bloodletting freeforall, the Picture goes to great lengihs to create an Entirely new story. The continued tale of ‘Norman Bates and his motel jus mysterious, misleading, and scaly ‘enjoyable asthe frst. For those who have hot seen it, go quickly. For those who have seen iy go agai Is even beter the second time. ndsFILM, ev IEW S THE HUNGER about two hundred years, as they Suddenly age rapidly and fall nto an Director... s++-+-Tony Scott feeble state; they live Forever, but Producer Richard A Shepherd without the strengih to move, speak, et Music Howard Blake ‘xtra. Miriam keeps on living, forever Photography Stephen Goldblatt young and vital, and al the old lovers are Screenplay Ivan Davis! packed away in rats inthe atic Michael Thomas "The story fs elher exciting nor awful Tis am average story waiting or 8 Mian Catherine Denewe strong production 0 make i an exetng om David Bowie fim, Unfortunately, the showmen decided Sarah Rober»... Susan Sarandon to make The Hunger artistic. very shot By now, you have ether heard, or know from petaonal experience, that The ‘Hunger was, notone ofthe moves ofthe Sear, The reason not that I was eetally {erribe in anyway bu, that it was trascally too wel done for Is own good. “The story is sraight-orward ‘smodern" horror; woman who has beehive for centuries (Deneuve) is about to lose another of her Lovers (Bowie). Somehow she drain these lovers of theit lite fore, while eeping them alive forever with he. She loses them after im the filmi eareully sex up to be ‘exgulite, Every bit of shadow, every Srrangement of Furniture — everything in the pitue fs purporely posed 10 convey Imeaning, mood, syle, atmosphere, and 2 dren other things ne one had time (0 atch, Every shot is Beautiful every tiny bit of The Hunger is exotica crafted fd, dato this maniacal attention (0 ‘desi almont the entre movie is devoid of fecing or sir Beaurifuly fled, but borinaly void ‘of substance, The Furiger is (was) lm tobe avoided like the plague CATHERINE DENEUvE ana Doses the bizare 12 ne Hunger SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES Director Jack Clayton Proaucer Pater Vieent Douglas Muse James Horner Photography’... Stephen H. Burum, ASG. Screenplay Ray Bradbury (Charles Haloway Jason Robards Mr. Dark Jonathan Price Dust Wich Pam Grier ‘As surrsingly bad at The Hunger was, this sea’ Fantasy release fom the Disney Suios was surprisingly good. Shnned by ‘tudinces who, after The Black Hole, ad The Watcher the Wood, were less than forgiving the cre i eel atthe box office, and may never make it 10 cable, the fetworks, or VHS. Tht would be ashame for i fone ofthe best fantasy lis 0 Ihave come slog in many a year. True 10 the book, itis. finely wrought, careful adaption of sister work bys master ‘etran in the eld "The movie opens in Green Town, Iino, the sting of 30 many of Bradbury's tries Two boys, Wil Halloway and Jin Nighshade race home afer bing held ate at school. The mood of ‘small town existing in some older time i Set and we are introduced 0 a number of the townspeople, ad ther hidden ese, inciodng Wills tater, who wants tobe "wil and his father both Find andl announcing the aval of carnival Both ae septal, since carnivals do nt come to tall owns expel in Octobe. But ome doe, mysterious in the mide of {he night, appearing out ofthe fog and the ‘eam of ite black train. Most ofthe twa turns out forthe ‘arial, and one by one, people are ven & ‘hance to have thet deepest desires made true fora price. An elderly spinster Wishes forthe Beauty of her youth, ony to {Becover the prc ther power of Sight. The town barber, lonely man wishing forthe Same of women all around him," is changed into « woman. ‘Wil and Sm discover the sere of Dark’s Pandemonium Carnival, and manage {ote Will's father. Me Hallway figs Mr. Dark (he evil carnival leader forthe boys, standing up to Dark’s magical powers, andthe temptation of Feturned youth. ‘Something’ Wicked sues for want of lie. The story i one of Bradbury's bes. Strongly moral, yet never preachy, the Audience is emined that there i always 2 {erible pice to pay for tryiag to change the truth, Will Halloway kaows tere isa a to reach his son and be his frend, despite a ‘weak heart dhat keep him from asin a Soungster's fe the way he feds a faher Should. His witinges 0 sacrifice the ‘chance 10 gain his son love and regain his ‘own lost vigor show as much courage as ay Screen hero might need ’At Halloway, Jason Robards gives one ofthe suongest performances of his carer. His agony comer scroso the audience so vividly ie har to babve he isnot realy nfebied ane dying as he collapses sping ‘er his defeat at Nr. Dak's hands Indeed, Mr Dark Qnathan Price) and tmos eveyone eb ae played in super Tashiom, with not bad performance in the bunch Bodh he photography and thequarter of» cemury: “Welcome to Outer es aa) ‘Space!”” Books from Something Wicked By David J. Schow This Way Comer to Mockingbird and Vals are dubbed space age tiles" in these same ads, current for 1983 books, ‘ot reprints. When Star Wars frst became available on videocassere last year, what Duzaline did the highly-paid PR think ‘tank invoke fo sell in thee ulra-ick, expensive two-page ad spreads? You go it SOUT OF THIS WORLD! — another fone the Bantam adi stl using. Or consider how sf consistently stumbles over ts own tail attempting to cuphemize itself, and falling so abysmally ‘ach time that concteiaes ts ow ring ghetto status. In fil, the Fora gere that espouses the imaginative, selene fetion seems to ave more ethausted superlatives and senile promotional doublespeak than any of its Sister fields. Horror films, for example, hve birthed the colorful new vocabulary ‘and-slash cinema,” “Kaifekil "spatter films” (and their television equivalent, "veg-o-mate ideo"), whl the only deseripives fattendan wo the release ofa new sf fm fF novel are mized in antedisvin ioms that self program failure (and dismal ‘Carvel proprietor Mr. Dar offers roe (passes to two curious trespassers, ‘sales) thanks to the sheer ergasiophobia of hheinously political Academy Awards are stor and promoters capable of thinking blame for sat of hs le ashing the soundtrack ae escent Green Towns lyin tems of elt a mind, Fatale being forevermore that anything Shown aa pasoral memory ofan America Seana of ce soma big forevermore tha ay fone by wih he same kindof photographic How many times, fr example have mos cid See noe Sen lary which brought Salve of 8” yy heard» forthcoming f produiton — Miannertaseentnera a Sager: The Movi. As the mus wo- book. fim. or aterwite — fouled 88 property value to plummets Ts a and-coming James Horner (Star Tek 1, anything but “mind boggling.” "way Poetsetion Yor the sales” Ones he olen, Bate Beyond he St Nau" (apelin puiting) “out SamBetin for the mao” Oscar sive once more, Unke seme of his Gt this wang?" How often have Jeu ben crening news), Sar Wars became 2 Space fantasy,” Close Encounters @ ‘ther soundrecke, which have had & John ted Yo “emt the sauce aa Wiliamsesqv tendency to sound somewhat rvium thats been hanging around since alike, thi lest oor ing in quite ‘World War I, lke a threadbare, ferry than any of his others, sting esiatedwino? And how many of these "he mood for the film as perfectly as one rind-boggling, way-out-of this word, might hope, ‘paceage epics are soon f0 be a major ‘The special effets as well are top- orion picture, which on release wil ‘notch. Although many of them ae Of 2 garner ave reviews? Pictures if 900 wil ‘more subile varity than most since fon the raving feviewer, rssed ap ina strait ‘€fanasy fms these days, they all work jacket, foaming a he mouth, spoonted very wel, helping o give Dark and his tushy meals from sectioned plate trays arial just the right touches to make them He is probably the blurist who authored they"were the out valncabie ete ane ‘5 frightening On the screen as they were ithe outmoded slugline Bantam Books hat yincenc of shar oroyheey, ¢ susnieatinn the book Gf not more 3), been using in their coupon/backstock ads Tom Jules Veroe’s day, Tt neatly ignores ‘Again, 2510 why Something Wicked (he Isi-wih-orderforms inserted into the {pe digest aed plo ener whens ‘This Way Comes ci 50 miserably here tll end of paperback) for over a ‘mainstream work is judged, and Seems to be no answer. Maye the time of its elese, having to compete with Je of er ane noi wich ane poe HOVERTANK ‘aos the county, ile it. With 30 many The Empire Strikes Back a"high-sech space allegory,” whichis Uke ealing an explosion an “energetic multidirectional Indizerete disassembly.” ‘Notice how thes films that received the best review pres of 1982, Blade Runner and Road Warrior, di so because flashy, showy ims around t may have OvERTAN ns ctl sutures combats moan mtn ‘been fost in the sufi Mere than one (“tren pots ona-a1t8 Ste emer ot mae ood pctre has died this way in Steet: mon war2000 tr ay Rr 200 ne cent years ‘loth (ean Scone en ene "Whatever the reason, don't kta bad females mess senate Reco etn Saree snus ore kop jou ema. tthe canes ff Soeurcominaacnton mene presage track record keep you away. te chan comers en eamsne Pnr aT-tch ese abi acy dew sche gun, esting | Secoamemeres ta cementnany rena Sour gm tmonney teow | Poemmosed"a te oe erennaammnscny SUihdeeTfuctsteouetonensclas || Ssureneseyace Stace {Ga fore of Se les and Fay the ‘abrents mercly tees ve corned Close 7080x2247 Dept 10 follow the dotiar-chasers to the bank Simulations Nortbtook 1.60062 ns roe sneer very summer.