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My teenaged self would never have believed this but piracy is one of the major forces in preserving our history! Case in point: these screenshots compare two copies of the Wing Commander movie. The first is the commercially available bluray and the second is taken from a recording of the movie as it aired on TV with a Farsi dub! Seeing Wing Commander in another language is pretty cool but there's also something more exciting here: compare the top and the bottom of the two pictures. While the dubbed TV copy is much lower quality it's also clearly taken from an "open matte" version of the film not often seen. As a result, you get to see the entire frame without the 'black bars'.

We'll be on the lookout for more unusual versions of the movie wherever we can find them! You can download the full video here.

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Greetings WingNuts,

What did the Wing Commander movie club take away from Highlander (1986)? Well, if there was just one lesson it pretty much has to be that there can be only one. But we actually found out something pretty interesting with this screening… more on that below! To our modern eyes, Highlander holds up pretty well; it's a very distinct 1980s experience that feels right at home next to films like the original Terminator. It was an era of movies that created their own sets of rules in order to build a universe you could immediately take part in… and here's an example of that formula working very well.

As for the Wing Commander connection, there's no bones about it: Sean Connery's Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez is a lot like how Paladin was originally presented, from his Scottish brogue to his role as a selfless-but-grumpy mentor for your character. I'd even say there's a pretty clear

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This is a reminder that we have another fun #Wingnut movie night planned on Discord this evening! The ongoing theme will be movies that inspired Wing Commander in some way. Tonight's film is Aliens (1986) which was a favorite of series creator Chris Roberts when he was working on the first game. You can find details on that as well as how to watch along with us in the announcement post here. The movie will start about 7 PM PST/10 PM EST but feel free to drop by and hang any time!

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Independent pilots have helped eradicate large numbers of pirates in the Dhan system.
Following an unusually high increase in piracy across the system's many planetary rings, local security fleets and skilled freelancers worked to eliminate pirates and show criminals that it would be better for them to relocate.
"Pirates are too foolish to give up a life on the wrong side of the law," said Dhan Empire League head of security Harald Gomes. "It's all they know, and all they're good for. But while we can't stamp out crime forever, we can at least send the message that Dhan isn't an easy target. Attack our mining craft at your peril, ya lugheads!"
Gutamaya, thought to have deployed observers to monitor use of its recently released Corsair craft during the conflict, is said to have been 'very impressed' by its craft's performance and the anti-piracy response force in general.
Participants that

Quote from Elite Dangerous Galnet News-Bot

Faulcon DeLacy has confirmed that its Cobra Mk V has entered full production, with deliveries commencing to shipyards across the core systems.
Previously offered via limited release, the Cobra Mk V is the latest evolution of the iconic Cobra line, long favoured by pilots seeking versatility in a compact frame. With improved handling, modularity, and a focus on enhanced compatibility with SCO enabled frame shift drives, the Mk V builds on the reputation of its predecessors with an eye toward modern multipurpose performance.
Faulcon DeLacy's Chief Financial Officer, Taron Raines, offered the following remarks:
"This vessel represents a perfect balance of capability and affordability. The engineering team has created something truly special that honours the legacy of one of the most popular ship designs in history."
"With a nimble profile and excellent performance relative to its size and cost,

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YouTube channel Tech Talk with Daniel Albu has conducted a pretty cool (and exhaustive!) interview with original Wing Commander composer George "The Fatman" Sanger! He goes through his entire long and storied career and spends some time talking about how he got the job working on Wing Commander and how he was involved in its innovative interactive music feature. You can find the full video embedded below or accessible directly here; the Wing Commander portion is around the 1h43m mark.

The Fatman: But my assignment for the Tchaikovsky thing for Loom was to make Loom sound good on the MT-32. Which was something that I already had proficiency on, that instrument. You know I kind of knew my way around it from having done karaoke versions of things. So that was kind of how I fell into it. So it was always in my mind it was always meant to be MT-32 and then they were somehow pushing the MT-32 as a sound