The Reluctant Famulus 118 July-August 2017 Thomas D. Sadler, Editor/Publisher, etc. 305 Gills Branch Road, Owenton, KY 40359 E-mail: [email protected] Contents Introduction, Editor 3 WOW Signal, Editor 7 Kentuckiana, Alfred D. Byrd 10 Citizen Scientists, Eric Barraclough 15 The Crotchety Critic, Michaele Jordan 18 NAE, Gayle Perry 22 Letters 27 Conclusion, Editor 35 Artwork/Photos Brad Foster Front Cover A. B. Kynock 27, 29,31,33 Anna Byrd 11, 12, 13, 14 Milt Stevens 34 left col. Upper; Back Cover Spore 28, 30,32, 34 Internet 8, 10, 34 T. D. S. Photos, 6, 9,33,35 The Reluctant Famulus is a product of Strange Dwarf Publications. Some of the comments expressed herein are solely those of the Editor/Publisher and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts of any sane, rational persons who know what they are doing and have carefully thought out beforehand what they wanted to say. Material not written or pro- duced by the Editor/Publisher is printed by permission of the various writers and artists and is copyright by them and re- mains their sole property and reverts to them after publication. TRF maybe obtained for The Usual but, in return for written material and artwork, postage costs, The Meaning of Life, and Editorial Whim. 2 The Reluctant Famulus Introduction A Doctor Who Rant. Which may make me unpopular. Regarding the beginning of the introduction somewhere. Yes, I know, it’s only fiction. But in the previous issue I was poking fun at myself even fiction needs to make sense and unroll in a for crying “Wolf!” when it was only a ShihTzu or reasonable way. some such. The kerfuffle didn’t turn out as bad as To repeat myself, I expect people to disagree I had thought. I think it ended amicably. with me. I don’t welcome it but I know it’s inevi- At first I thought this introduction was going table. How many times have you read in a novel, to be a short one. Until I sat down with pen and short story, movie or TV series have you encoun- paper to write comments while I prepared to sub- ter something in the plot that makes you roll your ject myself to the Moffat inspired final episode of eyes and say, “Aw, come on!”? Season 10 of Doctor Who. I ended up with a little I didn’t and don’t care for the Steven Moffat over three handwritten observations. episodes no matter what anyone else may say. Here are my jottings. Reader beware! Writer His outlook seems to be dark and gloomy, beware. I might be subjected to strong assertions partly concealed by the darkness of many things that I’m an idiot and full of, well, whatever you occurring at night as if he’s afraid of daylight. think I’m filled with. They’re not in any coherent We see so much violence, evil and death in order. They’re more like personal observations. movies, on TV series and novels as well. To me Pearl Mackie and her character are all right I that becomes tedious and tiring, being able to de- suppose but she sure seems to spend a lot of time termine in advance what’s going to happen before with her mouth hanging open or partly open. It’s the episodes begin. as if she were in pain or trying to figure out what Yes, there is evil in the world. I acknowledge the heck is going on. I can understand it when that. In the entertainment of these days it seems to she’s talking or screaming when something nasty be at work 24/7 and anything good and positive is happens to her and she’s scared—pardon my much less. Well maybe except for the Hallmark French, as the saying goes—shitless. Come to channel where there’s almost too much of the lat- think of it, the Doctor’s mouth is often open when ter to be believable. he’s shouting at someone or thinking of some- After being exposed to the Moffat episodes I thing diabolical. begin to wonder what his childhood was like. Then there’s the part in the previous episode Was he treated badly as a child? Or was he born where the blue man (did he break away from that as some kind of low level psychopath with a grin musical group?) burned a large hole in Bill’s mid- who enjoys violence, death, anarchy and chaos section. Shades of Fearless Fosdick! It should and putting his characters through hell? I’m being have been the end of her. Instead, she’s hospital- rather harsh aren’t I? ized and miraculously comes back to life and run- The Cyber men are back again in full force ning around pulling her IV drip and stand behind invading a peaceful little colony alone in the her. Then she’s using a bucket of water and mop country forcing them to fight back. There was a bucket and mop to clean the floor in part of the moment when the Doctor gave an apple to a little hospital. Next thing you know she has ditched it girl. A bit later she tosses it into the cyber men 3 where it explodes because it was a bomb dis- I’m in a small minority. Personally I found the guised as an apple. Heck, in one of Buster Kea- episodes from the 80’s and later more enjoyable. ton’s silent comedies back in the 1920s there was Again, that’s just my opinion. a section that involved a pool ball two bad guys Yep. I’m that crazy old coot or nut who is out had that was a bomb in disguise. It was a gim- of step with everyone else on Earth and maybe in mick almost a century old. There’s truly nothing our solar system too. Maybe even a few other so- new under the sun. lar systems within a reasonable distance. Aren’t Is there a real need for two Masters, one male you glad you’re not me? and one female? Are two really necessary? From I have been sorting through my unreliable the way she looks, Missy is too obviously evil or memory for any other noteworthy moments at the up to no good one could see from a distance at a various conventions I attended. There was one at glance. What if she were spectacularly beautiful a convention the name and location of eludes me. and evil? Why make it so damned obvious she’s It was during a panel, the subject of which also evil? eludes me. The only thing that recall with any Whatever happened to the “Sense of won- certainty was when one of the other panelists, a der”? It has been replaced by the obsession with well known lady writer (embarrassingly, I can’t violence, evil and solving every problem with remember her name either. Curse it!). This much guns of all kinds and spectacular explosions. I do recall. She made a comment that she won- They really, really love those explosions! dered why someone hadn’t created a new religion I expect someone will tell me I’m all wrong (or words to that effect). Boldly, I leaned for- and that I’m behind the times. ward, looked in her direction and said, “Bu-but I Again, I know that nothing is all sweetness thought that was Scientology.” It got laughs from and sunshine but neither is it all gloom, misery, the other panelists and audience. That was one evil and deaths by the thousands. Well maybe small shining moment for me. with the exception of a certain political party. I I remember reading—or trying to read— bet that comment will get me in hot water again Dianetics and its updated version, Scientology. I A few of the latest episodes have been some- didn’t get far in either one. To me it was a bunch what better than ones before. I couldn’t help no- of nonsense and seemed more like Elron’s fiction, ticing those better episodes (I’m in the habit of something made up out of whole cloth as the say- looking for the names of the episode’s writer/s) ing goes. And, yes I knew about Hubbard’s bet didn’t have Steven Moffat’s name attached to that he could come up with a new religion and them. Now I understand that he is not, or soon make money from it. (Hmm. Sort of like all these will not be, affiliated with Doctor Who. Whether television evangelists who became wealthy con- he was fired or resigned I can’t say for certain ning their followers to give them money to buy which. Maybe it was an agreement on both sides. big fancy airplanes so that can get closer to God Moffat might (just a thought) have decided to re- and talk to him.) Well he ended up with a nice sign before he was given a Trump treatment. In yacht and other perks. I hope I remembered that any case I’m hoping there will be at least some correctly. episodes better than the Moffat ones. This is only Now I’ve dug my own grave with the preced- my opinion of course and I wouldn’t be surprised ing. if someone disagreed with me. The elder of my I was and still am amazed that an insignificant two daughters watches the series and feels about nobody like me was allowed to participate in pan- the same way as I.