Classic Villains: Planet of the Apes’ General Urko

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

General Urko in the episode ‘Escape From Tomorrow’

For years, I thought that General Urko was part of the movie trilogy. It wasn’t until I was older that I realised that I was wrong. But that just shows me the power of the character and just how embedded into my young mind the performance of Mark Lenard was.

Lenard was, of course, famous for playing Sarek in Star trek. He would appear in the original in Journey to Babel and as a Romulan in Balance of Terror, Sarek in the animated series, three of the Trek movies as Sarek and one as a Klingon. Finally he would return as Sarek in Star Trek The Next Generation episodes Sarek and Unification.

Lenard was a powerfully commanding actor holding a great screen presence. So it is no wonder that he made such an impression on me as a kid from under that gorilla mask.

Urko was the head villain in the television series, a high ranking figure his troops looked up and intent on capturing the two human fugitives from Earth’s past, (Alan Virdon, Ron Harper) and Peter Burke (James Naughton brother of An American Werewolf’s David). Like Taylor (Charlton Heston) and Brent (James Franciscus) before them, they were astronauts caught in the time warp sending them crashing to Earth centuries after the nuclear war that allowed the apes to take over.

Urko was introduced in the pilot episode “Escape from Tomorrow” and went on to appear in all fourteen episodes of the short lived series. There was always something distinctive about Urko to me and part of that was his appearance with that big helmet with those unique markings. The opening titles also terrified me with the gorilla on horseback against a burning sun rifle raised into the air against that theme music.

I remember vividly my mother buying me the Mego action figure and the Planet of the Apes franchise has stayed with me ever since. Aside from Cornelius, Urko was the ape for me and meshed in my head with the movie series for ages.

General Urko appeared in the not so great animated series dressed in a much more colorful costume and this was the last time we would see the character. The ape hatred of humans and their fear of bringing down the ape civilisation in the television series was not unfounded. This gave Urko a more multilayered character as Burke and Harper discovered that there were vaults from their time and they had a circuit key to those very computers. If what man knew and had destroyed their world, then the likes of Urko did not want that same knowledge destroying ape civilisation. It elevated General Urko to a rounded character.

In the pilot Dr Zaius dispatches Urko to capture the two humans but doesn’t trust him to obey his orders to take them alive for questioning. Indeed Urko does arrange for the humans to escape but has a shooter in place so he can claim they were killed while trying to escape.

In episode three, The Trap, Urko gets up close and personal with a human in the shape of Burke. Urko doesn’t let even earthquakes put him off his pursuit which leads him to being stuck with Burke. Burke is terrified of being killed at his hands and manages to build a form of mutual survival by pleading to Urko’s sense of self survival. Urko says he does not work with humans but Burke tells him he will need him because he was born in the time of the subway and knows how it works. As part of his denial that humans once were the dominant species, he does not believe that a subway train would be used to travel underground. He believes that apes were part of what was here before and it was theirs not the humans. He hates the fact Burke thinks he knows more than Urko does.

Despite himself, Urko learns what solar energy is, words like holocaust, disposable clothes, organ transplant and that his very future depends on making an alliance with the human he has been sent to kill. It is up to Burke to show him what humans and apes can do when they team up, However on one of the walls partially covered with rubble, is a ticking time bomb; a poster of a circus with a gorilla in a cage.

Urko attacks Burke until he admits that the apes owned everything and that humans were pets. Urko is heavy handed with all humans. To quote him, “I always assume a human is lying; makes it easier”. But they must work together before the air runs out. This tendency to disbelief humans carries to his loyal men who have to work with Galen (Roddy McDowall) and Virdon.

In the ruined San Francisco, they are both trapped together in an old subway station when an earthquake hits. Urko is a great hunter as he is able to lasso Burke from the back of his galloping horse before they plunge through a sinkhole into the subway. It is interesting to note here that the relics of man’s past are very much visible as we travel through San Francisco where man’s once tall buildings are shattered but there. That’s in stark contrast to the originals where none of man’s past was visible reduced to a few relics in the possession of Doctor Zaius. Indeed the movie’s Forbidden Zone holds the secrets the likes of which, Urko would never want made public.

He is a master tactician and strategist and like every bloodhound never gives up. Urko chooses his moments carefully as he sees the poster but says nothing until they are about to escape. Burke uses Urko’s own temper against him to knock him unconscious but still gets him out. An injured Urko still wants the humans shot there and then but doesn’t divulge what he saw or his reasons why.

In episode nine we learn Urko is an accomplished horseman and has never lost a race in his life. Now Virdon must race Urko to secure an innocent man’s life. Episode fourteen sees Urko’s distrust of human technology which he believes was the ape’s originally put to the test when they capture a human who can show them glider technology. example

In episode twelve Urko is quite happy to openly mutiny against the council and burn down a malaria inflicted village under the false banner that he is doing it for his troops. It is a battle of wills against him and Zaius to let Burke and Virdon’s medicine to cure the disease.

Urko will never be happy until he is in total control of humans and apes alike whom he will then exterminate. Alas we will never know but the fact Urko sticks more in our heads than any gorilla baddy from the movies speaks volumes to the power of the character. Even the new age apes in the movies will pale next to General Urko.

Magic TV: Buffy Sacrifices Herself For The World: The Gift

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

Photos copyright Mutant Enemy

Buffy’s life changed dramatically in season five. She discovered feelings for Spike, her mother Joyce died from a brain aneurysm, she discovered her sister was in fact a mystical key made human so Buffy would protect her. She was broke and had to take a job in a burger joint. On top of that, the Slayer was facing a god in the form of the mad over the top Glory. Played by Clare Kramer. She left dozens of mindless zombies in her wake whose minds she stole as well as morphing into her doctor brother, Ben. Her victims included Willow’s girlfriend Tara. Glory wanted the key to unlock reality and bring forth all sorts of nightmares from another dimension.

But the last thing Buffy expected was to give her life up to save Dawn and the world.

Now in all genres lead characters die and can be brought back at any time if the writer is clever enough or desperate enough as in the case of Bobby Ewing in the eighties soap Dallas. Soaps are infamous for it with Eastenders bringing back Dirty Den, Kathy Beale and Cindy Beale from the dead. I wonder if Ian Beale ever sought to claim back the money he paid for burying his mother. It wouldn’t be like him.

But in the world of sci-fi and horror, people can come back with just the click of a finger. It’s usually some dark magic, a clone, a parallel universe, a transporter or a some ripple in time. Someone once said it took away from the death as you knew they would come back but for me, it is how it is done that matters. Bobby was brought back because the ratings dropped immensely. In Supernatural it was either a duplicate world or heaven or hell bringing the dead back including the Winchester boys themselves at times. Even The Vampire Diaries had more deaths and resurrections than you could count until it was the final season and the dead stayed dead until they reunited in the afterlife.

Buffy followed the same route with other worlds where vampire Willow crossed over into our world thanks to a temporal spell that snatched her away just before she was impaled. Spike died in the Buffy season finale and reappeared in the final Angel season thanks to an amulet. But Joyce never came back nor did Tara. When you think of it, Buffy’s had the biggest body count where few came back. The dead stayed dead.

So with that track record Buffy also left this earth in a blaze of glory. Now we knew there would be at least another two seasons of the show so the question was how Buffy would return from the dead. Rumours and theories flew everywhere but it was handled in a realistic and deeply affecting way.

But her actual death was just as impactful and stands today as one of the most powerful and saddest events on television. Given how devastating this season had already been on the cast, season five will be the most tragic year of Buffy’s and the gang’s life. Were there genuine tears? Well, you don’t spend 5 years watching a series grow and seeing characters grow without becoming attached. Fans, including me, cried a literal river and not in a ‘Westlife have split’ way but in a ‘we have lost a family member’ way.

Dawn has been discovered by Glory and her army and is now high above Sunnydale on a platform where she will be thrown off into a portal which will shatter to unleash more horrors on the world.

Buffy and the rest of the gang fight Glory and her hordes to get to Dawn before she plunges to her death and the world falls. They all have lifelong memories about Dawn regardless of the fact that they are false since Dawn has only been alive for about a year. Nevertheless she is part of their family, they love her and will die to keep her safe. They need to get just one person up there to save Dawn. The fight is bloody and brutal as Glory, within minutes of winning, is determined to smash Buffy to pieces. They fight on the ground and on the struts of the platform itself, but through a combination of witchcraft, wrecking ball, Buffybot, punching and a magical hammer, they fight long and hard. Buffy beats a weakened Glory with the Troll God’s hammer until she morphs into her brother again. Before she can remerge, in a brilliant piece of ‘what the f*ck?’ television, Giles suffocates him to death.

But Dawn’s blood has been spilled. Doc, whom Dawn and Spike had gone previously to for a spell to resurrect her dead mother, appears and reveals himself to be a worshipper of Glory also known Glorificus. He wants the world to fall and cuts Dawn across the stomach letting just enough blood out to bring the portal forth and to keep her alive. By the time Buffy reaches her sister, some monsters have already gotten into our world and the fabric of reality is breaking down. On a side note; the way Buffy nonchalantly throws Doc off the crane is another great moment in this episode.

And this is it; the tipping point and the moment the entire season has led up to. I had a Buffy party in my house for the screening of this and it was a powerful time. I saw first-hand the impact the final shot had. What made the ending worse is that the final headstone shot was in the trailer and, of course, everyone thought it was a red herring. How wrong we were?

Family has been a strong theme all through this season and it is solidified and best demonstrated in the Summer sisters’ final scene; Dawn is ready to throw herself to close the portal but is stopped by Buffy. When Dawn tells her until her blood stops flowing the chaos will not stop. Buffy then realises what she must do; she is reminded that earlier in the season Spike said, it was always about blood, that Dawn was made from Buffy’s genetic material and the first Slayer told her that death was her gift. Dawn is a Summers because they share the same blood but no-one said it had to be Dawn’s blood.

As the sun begins to rise time has run out. Dawn realises what Buffy is doing and tries to stop her but Buffy tells her to listen. The camera then pulls away so you cannot hear what Buffy is saying to her sister. With one last kiss, Buffy swan dives into the portal where she is wracked with lightning. The soundtrack is really emotional. The viewer is roaring at the screen as they realise, just as Dawn did, what is about to happen. Death is Buffy’s gift to the world and especially her friends and family. If you are not crying or welling up at this point you have no heart.

But as you watch Buffy die you then hear what she said to Dawn. This monologue is probably one of the most powerful and emotionally draining in the entire series. When it mixed with the image of her friends finding her shattered body you have to cry; you can’t help it. The look of Giles’ face as he realises he has failed Buffy. A restored Tara helping a wounded and sobbing Willow along as Xander stands helplessly with an injured Anya in his arms, it is the sight of Spike breaking down and weeping into his hands that sells it to us. As a collective we are mourning with them with a dual mentality. We know she is dead especially as the final shot of her headstone reads “She saved the world.”

There isn’t a dry eye in the house. The world can live without the Buffy Slayer but the Slayer cannot live without her friends and family. It is easier to give herself up for them than lose Dawn. You are so familiar with them all that you feel you know them simply because they are in your living room every week for half the year. You are connected to them because you become so entwined with their stories. You laugh when they are funny, grimace when they do something dumb and cry at their tragedy. Why? Because life isn’t fair and what we are watching is our own lives in an exaggerated fashion, yes, but the raw emotions are universal.

To paraphrase someone recently, we had fun, you know. Then a day came along and at the end of that day I lost them. Death rarely gives us a warning and that is why it hurts so much when it comes as clockwork as the sun. Think about that and the power of words that affect us all so deeply. That is why the death of Buffy Summers is such an event and one you should all watch. As Buffy herself said,

 “Dawn, listen to me. Listen: I love you. I will always love you. This is the work that I have to do. Tell Giles I… tell Giles I figured it out, and I’m ok. Give my love to my friends. You have to take care of them now. You have to take care of each other. You have to be strong. Dawn, the hardest thing in this world is to live in it. Be brave. Live… for me.”

Behind The Story The Time Warriors: Only The Dead Get Off At Kymlinge

By and copyright of Owen Quinn

Inspiration comes from all sorts of places. But when a good friend sends you a message that contains the the words, “Only the dead get off at Kymlinge,” my storyteller instincts were immediately perked. This book was originally called The Return & Other Stories but when I was sent that message, it changed everything including the next set of stories. Hence, Only The Dead Get Off At Kymlinge was born., improving it no end.

What was Kymlinge? What have the dead got to do with it? I had to know. I discovered that it was an abandoned train station outside Stockholm. When I read the history, I was excited. Its haunted reputation was just too good to resist but why would something like this bring the Time Warriors into it?

It had to be something personal so Jacke has come looking for a missing friend. It leads them to Kymlinge where they find something far more strange than simply a ghost train.

Trapped aboard a train that is made from many different eras, they find a deadly conductor and comatose people from the past to the present. But the greatest danger is still to come. Not only does this reveal the consequences of past actions but opens a terrifying new threat through Michael’s carelessness.

This is also the first book where I introduced variant covers. I liked them all and couldn’t decide on which one to go with so released all three. It works for comics so why not the Time Warriors book series?

A story set on a train is featured in all sorts of shows but I always wanted to do things slightly differently than the norm. it was originally going to be a happy ending with the rain mystery solved and the passengers back where they belong including Jacke’s friend. However, I was sitting in a carpark one day, waiting on my wife doing the shopping, it occurred to me. Why don’t I go with a disaster ending where nothing is wrapped up in a nice little bow and a brand new threat is revealed.

This threat comes in the form of one Geyron. The Y is silent but Geyron will be a major force especially in Sasquatch Darklands. What Geyron is and what he is planning will have a major impact on the Time Warriors universe.

To find out how it all ends get your copy in paperback and kindle on Amazon today.

Behind the Story: The Time Warriors Lighthouse At The End Of The World

By and copyright of Owen Quinn author

If ever there was a story written in the history of this planet which started as a disjointed series of images before becoming an unwitting commentary on assisted suicide then the Lighthouse At The End of the World is it.

Like Wolves of Chernobyl, it began as something that caught my eye on Google. I read that there was a lighthouse off the coast of France which had been abandoned years ago and was powered by solar panels. The seas around it have been a hazard to ships for years and the only way in was to be lowered in by helicopter.

Immediately my juices were flowing. Why would they abandon with the lighthouse leaving it to the mercy of solar power? Wouldn’t that be somewhere that someone that didn’t want any contact with the world use to hide? Why would they want to live in such isolation? Had they committed some crime so horrible, they were ashamed and could not live with it? And what if Varran has kept his secret and hasn’t even told the others about it?

I toyed about with an immortal that had committed some terrible crime in which billions died but I really wanted to create non-human characters. So who better to live in an abandoned lighthouse than a lizardman?

But again, why? Who is he? How does Varran know him?

That’s when it fell into place. Isolated and alone from his own people, Barick, would never see home again and that’s where the story came into its own right there.

If your friend asked you to help them die, could you do it? This story coincided with the passing of a law in the UK allowing assisted suicide.

It was never my intention to do a story on it but it was something I always wondered what I would do in that situation. Thankfully, I haven’t been in it and hopefully never will be but it’s something that scares me. I lost my dad to brain cancer while my mother and brother passed away in their sleep. death doesn’t frighten me but I’m in rush to meet it either.

But this was the chance to face a dilemma for someone whose disease is never going home again. They might as well the last of their kind just in the same way Varran is so can Varran sympathise and do what his friend wishes?

The ultimate solution has caused discussion among readers but as I say, what would you do in their shows? The answer is; you don’t know until that happens.

I also like to add different locations into the stories so the Mars like terrain of the Haleakala National Park. Its Martian like surface was a double bluff as a hook into the story and it also gave me the chance to explain the lizardman attack in Louisiana on a young man in 1988 Scape Ore Swamp.

For me, small details like this enhance and built the world the viewer lives in. To me, it was much better than a secret government genetic escaped experiment.

Given Varran’s actions here, how long before it comes back to haunt him or did he exactly what any of us would have done in his place?

To find out how it all turns out, get your copy of Wolves of Chernobyl & Other Wtories now in paperback and kindle on Amazon.

Magic TV: The Mandalorian: Luke Skywalker Returns

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors andd Zombie Blues

Photos copyright Disney

It is fair to say that no matter what Star Wars spin off happens, fans will always want to see the return of the classic characters. While there is no argument that the movies totally screwed that up and robbed fans of, not only what they wanted but global audiences wanted to see, it is always and forever lying with the Disney spin-offs to grant that wish too.

All audiences wanted to see the big four reunited; Luke, Han, Leia and Lando all together again with new Star Wars generation Rey and Finn. Disney decided to do one each movie and rob us of that final Han, Luke and Leia united on screen moment. We get Chewie and Han who saw Leia once again. We also got R2 and 3P0 once again. The gang was all there but not in the same place or together. But no sooner had Han come back he was murdered by his son, Ben aka Kylo Ren. Leia would see her brother once more in astral projection form before he inexplicably went to the afterlife while sitting on a rock. Don’t even start me on the logic of that; maybe in a separate article. And sadly Carrie Fisher died in real life leaving Leia to die in Rise of Skywalker via a body double. This left Lando on his ownsome to rally the troops and fly in at the last minute to save the day and help destroy Palpatine’s plan.

While it was lovely to see them all again, it was dumb that Disney did not have that onscreen reunion we badly needed. Not to mention the crabby Luke we got that cared more about his own feelings than his sister or brother in law or even the impending victory of the New Order. Han totally captured the magic of the original trilogy with his buddy Wookie much more than the others did which includes the droids. However there would be one show that delivered in spades what fans had wanted after all these years and that show was The Mandalorian.

In a much improved Season 2, Grogu’s Force strength is rising and Ahsoka sends him to a sacred place where if he is powerful enough a Jedi will sense him and come for him. Now given when the show is set, we know that all the original characters are alive and kicking so speculation was always rife as to who could appear. Boba Fett came back as did R5 D4.

Grogu is captured by Moff Gideon who wants his blood for experimentation and a desperate battle between our heroes and Gideon’s cruiser begins. We see legions of deadly new totally robotic dark troopers, stormtroopers and imperial officers in a series of exciting firefights. There is a space battle between Boba Fett and TIE fighters. The Mando team and allies storm the bridge and secure it and with both the dark sabre and Gideon himself in their custody, a solo ship appears. They are trapped by more dark troopers with no way out.

As they watch an X-wing lands in the shuttle bay. Suddenly on the monitors they see a figure approach. It is dressed in a long black hooded cloak. Immediately the audience’s ears prick up. There had been rumours as to a potential appearance of an old character so were they about to be revealed as true? If it was true, would it be the same horrible method they used for young Leia in Rogue One? That is of course if the showrunners would trick us into false hope? So were our nuts about to be well and truly kicked and leave us with a sour taste in our mouths?

On a monitor, the point of view is from the back and there is a distinct “that cloak bounces like Vader’s did in the movies” vibe. Is it a Sith here to rescue Gideon? Suddenly excitement rose as a green lightsabre lights up and begins taking out the troopers with the ease of a….dare I say it….a master? We get a glimpse of a belt as the figure comes out fighting from a lift. We know that belt! It was on Jabba’s sand barge! And in the palace when…No, no, don’t get your hopes up kids, just in case. Quick, get the figure out of the display cabinet! Piss off, I’m not moving! Neither am I!

But as the sabre swings and baddies fall, we are all thinking the same thing. I have that action figure from Return of the Jedi. Naw, it couldn’t be could it? Oh Jesus I think it is? Please, say it is!

The Mandalorian says open the doors because he has guessed what the ne arrival is. The figure steps inside, smoke billowing behind him. He pauses then pulls his hood back to reveal…Luke Skywalker but not only that but Luke Skywalker as he looked during the Return of the Jedi.

You cannot underestimate just how mad this moment was as audiences of all sexes went wild at the reveal. Like fans at a Tom Jones concert, they were swooning in their millions finally getting to see a glimpse of life for Luke after the original trilogy. There were people hyperventilating and weeping uncontrollably. And I was not in that number. I’d done my weeping at the of The Force Awakens on that clifftop back in the cinema. As Rey approached the hooded figure on the clifftop and he turned to face her throwing back his hood, that was me. I was anybody’s.

Now here he was confirming to the Mando that he was a Jedi. Luke sensed Grogu and has come for him. To be safe he must master his abilities. Now even more tears flow as Mando and Grogu part ways as the little green guy must go with his own kind. Mando removes his helmet so Grogu can touch his face. They are parent and child at this point and the father must give his child up for his own safety,

Then we get sideswiped as R2D2 appears from behind Luke and looks down at the little creature. We all know Grogu is a baby, albeit a fifty year old one, but when he holds his arms up to be lifted just like a toddler does, our collective hearts broke with cuteness. Luke scoops him up, looks at Grogu momentarily and says, “May the Force be with you,” before leaving with droid and baby Yoda staring at Mando over Luke’s shoulder.

if you watch it on Youtube the sheer impact and power of return of the Jedi Luke and R2 appearing is mind blowing. When it is done in such a great story as it is here, the emotions simply overcome us. At the time of filming, Katee Sackhoff who plays Bo-Katan in the series was there that day and had no idea Luke Skywalker would be the reveal. She was told it was Plo Kloon and never knew until the television reveal.

You can be sure action figure sales went up those few days after as Mando figures and the original Jedi Luke figure were sought after.

Now we know Luke and Grogu will appear during the Book of Boba Fett as Grogu undergoes his training at Luke’s Jedi academy but it is this moment, in a cliffhanger that literally leaves the audience wanting more, is where Disney got it right. Actually Jon Favreau got it totally right and Disney should have learned from his mastery. If Disney had used this as a blueprint then we would never have endured Book of boba Fett, the Acolyte and the slow moving Ahsoka. Look back at this, yes , those of you at the top and see what the real magic of Star Wars is. If the reappearance of Luke Skywalker can make us cry as middle aged people then Disney, take note!

And yes, I am cradling my Jedi Luke figure and eyeing the Rancor.

We’re Going to Need a Bigger Podcast:We talk Jaws 50 years on

We take to the beach in the town of Amity where a great white shark is about to change the world’s perception of horror. But does it stand up after 50 years? So who’s got the biggest jaws? Owen, Bruce the shark or Stephen? Tune in to see. Join the craic. You won’t look back.

Magic TV: Walking Dead: Daryl Kills Merle

BY Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

Photos copyright AMC

Who would have thought back in the first season of The Walking Dead, that a character that had never been featured in the comic books and had only been invented for the television show would become a bigger phenomenon than the show itself.

Daryl Dixon played by Norman Reedus has become such a character that he survived the entire run and has his own spin off show that is entering its second season. There was always something that made the audience want to stand by Daryl in the apocalypse.

He came from an abusive home and he along with his brother Merle, tagged along with the group of survivors led by Shane. At first he and Rick clashed over handcuffing and abandoning Merle on a rooftop. Merle was a bad egg and he saw this new normal as something to be plundered. Merle looked after himself and while Daryl fell in with him, it wasn’t long before Daryl’s loyalty to Rick and the others grew stronger. Having Daryl under his control is important to Merle.

In one instance, Merle throws being left on the roof and not being rescued by Daryl in Daryl’s face. Daryl tells him he did go back and he was gone. Daryl tells him what happened was his fault. We learn that the only reason they joined the group was to rob it. Daryl never expected to find family there. Daryl angrily leaves him telling him what nationality Glenn really was. It is clear they only had each other during their violent childhood.

When Merle reappears he has replaced his hand with a deadly spike for impaling. He also works for the psychotic Governor played by David Morrissey. Brothers clash again as Merle is now part of this new threat to Daryl’s new family.

All Daryl ever wanted was to be loved, have family and have a normal life. Even in this zombie ocean, Daryl finds a home and a family. Deep down the brothers love each other but what they want in life pulls them apart. When Merle rips the shirt off Daryl’s back he is stopped by the scars he sees there. We get a glimpse into their childhoods as Merle says he never knew. Daryl replies he did to him what he did to Merle except Merle left first. Merle says he had to or he would have killed their father but Daryl is hurt and resentful his big brother left him behind to suffer at the hands of a madman. They are both abused children that grew up poor yet it is not enough to keep them together. Merle wants to kill Michonne and slags off Glenn as Chinese and Daryl corrects him that Glenn is Korean.

When the Governor puts both brothers to fight to the death, Merle realises that he has been on the wrong side. But when the Governor traps him, Merle us defiant.

What follows is so beautifully done that it breaks you heart. Daryle finds a zombie eating a corpse and realises that it is Merle. The Governor killed him leaving him to walk the world as a zombie as punishment for betraying him.

Daryl is such a hardass tough guy that every time he cries, the entire audience automatically move to embrace him. Knowing his background and how he has become a better person with these people than he ever would with Meryl. However when he sees his brother feeding, Daryl breaks down. What is it abut a tough guy crying that make us go weak at the knees? Is it because we know that all they want is to love or be loved? As a weekly series these characters are in our home every week so we get to know them. We connect with them because we have been with them all the way through every trauma they had suffered.

It is this damaged little kid side that comes through as Daryl cries. They look at each other. There is a beautiful close up shot of Merle’s dead eyes before he lurches to his feet. He stumbles, pushing Merle away. Daryl s body language is that of a child shying away from his brother but this time it is in grief. Merle has suddenly become the dad figure bearing down on him. This great big terrifying force is coming to hurt him again. Daryl shies away and you can see how he was beaten in the past.

But this is different this time as Daryl violently stabs his brother time and time again in frustration. Thematically it is the release of his childhood trauma as he loses thee last of his violent past. In symbiosis this is him grieving for Merle’s death. Which is an interesting aspect of living n a world like this. You can’t have a three day wake or display the body in a funeral home like normal so how do you grieve? In this moment, it also continues another theme that life takes no prisoners even in a zombie filled world. Trauma stays with us forever even when faced but up until now it has consumed Daryl. This is is where hi surly and gruff attitude to people. It is, at this point, only the likes of Carol see the real Daryl. Everyone else around him likes and respects him; their full love for him will come later.

For now, Daryl and Merle’s love for each other and abusive childhood explode against the undead background. It is so beautifully done and choreographed to end this particular storyline in a heartbreaking and thoughtful way.

Truly, truly, truly stunning and heartbreaking.

Behind The Story The Time Warriors The Last Tiger

By and copyright of Owen Quinn

The Last tiger is very close to my heart. The story of the thylacine otherwise known as the Tasmanian Tiger was hunted to extinction with government support in the early twentieth century. The last one reportedly died in a zoo in 1936 in Hobart zoo. His name was Ben. It is something that the human race should hang its name in shame,

And now, they are going to bring it back Jurassic Park style via cloning. However, there have been photos and videos of the Tiger alive and well in the Australian wilderness. I believe it didn’t die and is still roaming out there.

So this one wrote itself. I can’t imagine what it would be like being the last of your kind and dying alone in a crumbling zoo. So after a little research, I set this one some forty years after the Xereban refugees had arrived on Earth. In the time they arrived, Varran and travelled the Earth searching and learning about the peoples and cultures of this world. Technically, he is the last of the original Xerebans bar one. He has chosen not to integrate into society or live by their laws, at this point imposing an exile on himself for the destruction of his home world. So when he comes across Hobart Zoo and meets the tiger, he empathises with it. And together with the remaining zoo keepers, Varran faces something out of Aboriginal myth and legend.

The Yaru is hunting. And Ben is on the menu.

I felt that it was a nice parallel to explore this part of Varran’s life. It was really interesting to explore Aboriginal myth and what those last few days would have been like. A strong supporting cast is vital in a story so this quickly became a base under siege adventure.

Really, this story was a no brainer for me. The only thing I had to do was make it interesting and keep the danger levels high. The Yaru went through a change only to make it more terrifying. It was also a chance to see Varran act alone and use his wits against something that shouldn’t be there. This is the wide eyed Varran soaking in Earth cultures. There is no Michael, Jacke or Tyran, just him, alone exploring his own history.

I was able to throw in things like the death of this animal generated an annual event that runs to this day to remind us just what happened to the tiger.

I admit that I, like Varran, smile every time i see this because, out there, somewhere the Tasmanian Tiger pulled off the greatest trick of all.

They survived.

To find out the whole story, get your copy of the Wolves of Chernobyl & Other Stories in paperback and kindle now on Amazon.

Forgotten Heroes: Will Wheaton’s Joey Trotta

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

Photos copyright Tri Star Pictures

I was recently made aware of just how many movies and television shows the younger generation have never heard of, never mind seen. So to that end, we look back at some characters you really need to see before you kick the bucket.

Everyone knows Wil Wheaton universally and galactically as Wesley Crusher, former child genius, current time traveller, Sheldon’s nemesis and smiley host of Ready Room where he gets to meet all Trek series stars. But the man has had a long career which he detailed recently on the Michael Rosenbaum podcast Inside of You. He spoke of his career but in probably his most candid interview ever told of his deep familial issues which he has now spoken openly about in his new book Still Just A Geek.

Ironically it is deep family issues that form the core of one of his characters, Mafia boss’ son Joey Trotta as seen in the 1991 movie Toy Soldiers. Joey is a pupil at the Regis boarding school for troubled boys and one of a close knit gang of five. Everyone at the school has a father in a powerful position either an industrialist, politics or the military. Unbeknownst to them a terrorist group led by Luis Cali (Wishmaster Andrew Divoff) are on their way to kidnap one of the pupils to force the government to release his father from prison. The boy is removed so when he takes the school hostage, Luis uses the remaining boys to get his father’s freedom. He wires the school with explosives and establishes rooftop weapons capable of taking down any approaching helicopter. He wears a wrist strap with the detonator so there will be no delay in detonation in case the US soldiers somehow get in.

However he doesn’t count on the five boys who are trouble makers for Dean Parker (Louis Gossett Junior) . Joey is a rebel along with Billy (Sean Astin), Snuffy (Keith Coogan), Ricardo (George Perez) and Hank (T.E. Russell). They are not bad kids but don’t take to authority very well. It is a constant game of cat and mouse between them and the Dean. Only Parker and the Headmaster (Denholm Elliott) see the good in them and become father figures of a sort even if the boys don’t see it.

What we learn of Joey’s background is through scenes with his father, Mafia boss, Albert Trotta (Dirty Dancing’s Jerry Orbach, he tried to put baby in the corner don’t you know?) When Luis picks Joey’s file and realises who he is, he is shown respect. Joey says nothing, simply staring at the terrorist with a deep hatred. We learn that Joey hates his father deeply through the scenes featuring Albert himself. Upon hearing that his son is being held, he gives the order to tell the Cali family to release him immediately. His position as the head of the Mafia has somehow cost him the love of his son. His mother is never mentioned so we can only assume that she has passed. Albert confides in his closest friend that Joey hates him but with a hatred unlike the usual father and son butting heads. Joey loathes his father and everything about him. Maybe his father was being targeted and his wife died in the crossfire. Maybe Joey blames him for this and then being sent to the boarding school finished him completely. He could have seen that as a sign that his father didn’t want him around when all Joey needed was his father’s love. Whatever the reason behind it, Joey has all the family, love and security he needs in his four friends.

It is clear he is closest to Billy. They are inseparable and he will back each other up without question. Billy is the planner and schemer while Joey is the hot head that reacts there and then. Everyone has a brother from another mother and this pair have a bond that is literally falling off the screen at you. You want to be part of their gang because each boy compliments each other perfectly.

Toy Soldiers is a great action movie with a real heart to it. These boys will go the whole hog for each other. Billy convinces Joey to help collect information about the terrorists as Joey’s idea to jump a couple and steal weapons will only get people killed. Joey uses his talent for art to help compile vital information that Billy manages to get to the authorities and Dean Parker via a secret escape route the boys use to sneak into town.

But this balance act takes a tragic turn when Luis summons Joey and tells him he is being released. Confused, Joey learns it is because of his father who he realises has done business with these people who have murdered one of their teachers and almost executed five others when Billy almost didn’t get back in time for the hourly body count.

“Fuck you and fuck my father!” spits Joey defiantly demanding his friends go with him. Luis forces him to go. You just know that if Billy had been there then he would have made Joey use this as a chance to get out and help free them but tragedy strikes. Joey manages to knock out his guard and steal his weapon. Without thinking he runs outside and starts shooting. But it is in these final moments that we see Joey is just a kid. He cannot handle the weapon and as he is shot multiple times the helpless look on his face makes you want to reach out. Billy has to restrained as his friends watch Joey die before them on the steps of the school.

Joey’s death even today is heartbreaking. When Dean Parker has to collect the body and comes face to face with Luis who is shitting himself big time, the silent fury on Parker’s face for loss of one of his boy’s is riveting. Billy is totally devastated and the others try to bring him back to finish the plan. Billy chokes that if they say he has to do it for Joey, then he will puke. Hank stands firm and tells him he already knows what he has to complete the plan for. Joey is gone but he would fight to the end. They have battled the Dean for all this time so they have to take back their home, their family from these invaders. They thought they were invincible until Joey was taken so now they have to make sure he didn’t die needlessly. I think the fact this isn’t mentioned at all in the movie but what you feel as the audience is such good writing. The bonds of friendship impact all of us and we cannot help to think what if we lost our best friends. The term best friend never sat well with me because you tell your best friend things you wouldn’t tell anyone and often spend more time with them than your wife. The bond is more than that elevating them to brother without any doubt.

Family is more than just blood and Toy Soldiers reminds us of this through Billy and Joey who refused to leave his friends behind. Brothers from another mother always compliment each other, become the other half and show a fierce loyalty that defines what it is to truly be family. Joey Trotta will always be the epitome of this thanks to Toy Soldiers.

Book Excerpt: The Time Warriors: The Wolves of Chernobyl

Cp[yright of and by Owen Quinn

The Wolves of Chernobyl & Other stories is out now on Amazon, Here’s a taste of what Varran, Jacke and Michael find in the ghost city of Chernobyl. Get your copy today!

Trapped in the creature’s flesh nipping grip, the Xereban winced and turned his head in disgust as some of the wolfman’s drool dangled close to his lips. He could feel the hair on his flesh, short and bristly like a clothes brush.

“I can feel you tremble though your face remains passive. You have the eyes of an innocent lamb seeing the jaws of the predator for the inevitable first and final time.” The beast narrowed its eyes. Varran noted how beautiful the mixed colours in his pupils were reminding him of the Mertillian nebula a thousand light years from his home.

“What’s a Xereban?” Varran asked innocently his voice steady.

The white haired wolf glared for a second then growled menacingly putting its inhuman face closer to Varran’s. Are those human tear ducts he thought at such close range. Humans are the only species on the Earth that sheds tears he knew. Varran wondered if the wolfman ever stared at himself in the mirror and was moved to tears by the intangible shadow of the human he once was.