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There's probably no point in reviewing The Empire Strikes Back, but it's safe to report that we all loved it. This week, the Wing Commander movie club is going back to the 1950s to take a look at the beginning of our future. We'll be watching Forbidden Planet, a movie that spawned (among many other things) the original Star Trek! You can join us this Friday via Discord to watch along.
Wing Commander Academy's Lords of the Sky opens with Tolwyn briefing the cadets. He shows a map of the Dioscuri system which they'll be patrolling and if you look very carefully you can see the background painters have added a number of labels to surrounding stars. One of them is a nood to Star Trek (M1701) and one is a reference to Alien (LV442). And at the top left of the image you can find C57D… a reference to the hero starship in Forbidden Planet, the United Planets Cruiser C-57D!
Privateer 2 doesn't just name ships after soccer players… it also sneaks in multiple alien races from movies. And one of those is the Kiowan heavy fighter, the RPHB Krell. The Krell is named after the mysterious dead alien race from Forbidden Planet!
Where can I find a copy of the movie for the watch party?
Forbidden Planet is available for rent or purchase on the standard streaming services. If you would like a physical copy, the movie was released on BluRay in 2010 and remains in print around the world. A copy is available for download from the Internet Archive. If you are not able to locate a copy please stop by the Discord and ping a CIC staff member before Friday's showing.
For the previous Star Wars films, we made a point of watching the theatrical versions. Because The Empire Strikes Back's theatrical version is so close to the later special edition, everyone can choose which they'd prefer on their own.
How do we watch the movie together?
It's pretty low tech! Simply join the Wing Commander CIC Discord on Friday and we will be chatting (in text) along with the film in the main channel. Everyone who wants to join in should bring their own copy and we will count down to play them together at 10 PM EST. Everyone is welcome and we encourage you to join in the conversation; sharing your thoughts helps make the experience better for everyone!
