Steampunk Generation

Just Glue Some Gears On It (And Call It Steampunk)

2011-12-01T06:34:00.000-08:00

2011-10-25T15:52:00.000-07:00

Chances are that if you're a fan of Steampunk, you're also a fan of H.P. Lovecraft. Superb steampunker Meghan Bishop, from Seattle, clearly is - hence her incorporating a very Cthulu look to this stunnign steampunk top hat. You can bid on it through Etsy.

Incidentally - how come the greatest Steampunkers all seem to live in Seattle?

More Sexy Steampunk Girls

2011-10-07T13:18:00.000-07:00

Why do we all love steampunk so much?The costumes? The gadgets? The wonderful take on an alternative timeline?Well, there's no doubt that sexy steampunk costumes have a lot to do with it; as demonstrated by these sexy steampunk girls. But is it just the aesthetics that are so alluring - the alabaster skin and bodices - or is it more? An erotic reinvention on the traditionally taciturn and restrained Victorian morality?

2011-02-09T13:56:00.000-08:00

Today is the birthday of the inimtable Jules Verne - spiritual father of Steampunk and one of the most influential and thought-provoking science fiction writers ever to put pen to paper.

I discovered Verne years ago, reading the newly re-translated edition of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I was amazed not just at the thrilling story, but the science and political philosophy that motivated the characters.

Captain Nemo – a vengeful Indian who declared war against the British Empire – is a far more fully-rendered character in the book than in James Mason’s cinematic rendition; and whether or not the reader supports his bloodthirsty crusade to scuttle the Royal Navy stems makes for a great philosophical discussion.

Of course, such things were Verne’s stock-in-trade. His less well-remembered novels, like Paris in the 20th Century, had similarly thought-provoking themes; like how Verne lamented that technology and business were eclipsing literature and culture (with obvious parallels to society today.)

Likewise, Dick Sand, a Captain at Fifteen was a condemnation of the slave trade which, uniquely, criticized the African nations that sold their countrymen in addition to the traditional white ‘bad guys’ who shipped them into subservience in colonies worldwide.

But more people remember Jules Verne because of the technology he envisioned; like the incredible submarine Nautilus, which preyed on shipping from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, the cannon which would send explorers From the Earth to the Moon and his revolutionary hydrogen blimp that stayed aloft for Five Weeks in a Balloon.

Verne meticulously researched each of his inventions; and envisaged many technologies that would be adopted in real-life application decades later. Although many of this concepts would later be proven not to work (like his battery-powered hydrogen balloon) many others did – or inspired more practical applications of the same technology.

Of course, Verne’s writing doesn’t always stand up well to politically-correct scrutiny – a scene in Five Weeks in a Balloon is particularly cringe-worthy from a modern perspective. It sees our heroes attacked by ‘natives’, who they slaughter with rifle fire – only to realize after examining the bodies that the ‘African tribesman’ were actually monkeys.

But that’s historical perspective for you; and in many ways, Jules Verne was as forward thinking about life and society as he was about technology. Today, we live in a world of electronic calculators and high-speed trains – the same world he envisioned in Paris in the 20th Century.

Only it doesn’t look as cool.

That’s why we invented Steampunk.

Inside the Airship

2010-05-29T17:56:00.001-07:00

To a certain extent, airships are the lifeblood of Steampunk - the most magnificent example of mechanical achievement crammed uncomfortably into an out-of-context historical setting. To that end, I've been researching real-life airships - most notably the infamous Hindenburg Zeppelin, which was undeniably the largest and most magnificent flying machine ever built.

The Hindenburg carried 50 passengers - but compare it in size to the Boeing 707, which could carry almost 200.

In all honesty, pictures of the Hindenburg fail to do it justice. The machine was immense - dwarfing anything that has ever flown before or since.

While the designers of the Hindenburg were opposed to Hitler's Nazi regime, their 'principles' didn't extend far enough to reject the 11 million Deutschmarks Air Minister Hermann Göring donated to its production.

For all it's magnificence, however, the Hindenburg carried a surprisingly small payload of passengers - a mere fifty, housed in twenty-five cabins no larger than the sleeper compartments on a long-distance train.

These photographs display the quite modest interior of the Hindenburg.

Unlike other airships - and contrary to popular belief - the passenger deck of the Hindenburg was actually contained within the body of the airship itself - not the gondola. Windows were built into the sides of the ship, while passenger compartments had no windows.

The lounge of the Hindenburg is somewhat reminiscent of an airport lounge. Aluminum chairs and tables helped reduce the weight.

Passenger compartments were truly tiny - yet unlike the Hindenburg's predecessor, the Graf Zeppelin, there were plenty of public areas for passengers to relax in. Note that there were no toilet facilities - bathrooms were down the hall.

The dining room was equally spartan, but did feature those stunning window views - and served the finest cuisine of the period.

Hopefully this tour of the Hindenburg has been interesting. Built and operated during the 1930s, the Hindenburg itself falls firmly under the umbrella of 'dieselpunk' - yet remains in the Steampunk mythos by displaying a level of technology that's disappeared from modern appreciation.

Steampunk Sherlock Holmes is an Epic Fail

2010-03-16T09:41:00.000-07:00

Readers of Militant Ginger might remember me waxing lyrical about Guy Ritchie's epic re-imagining of the world's greatest consulting detective; Sherlock Holmes.

You might also remember me mentioning the low-budget knock-off Asylum Films were producing, the 'other' Sherlock Holmes. Well, I got my mitts on a copy; and it was epic in an entirely different way.

Sherlock Holmes stars Gareth David-Lloyd and Dominic Keating. Anybody who's not a fan of Star Trek or Doctor Who might be scratching their heads as to exactly who these so-called 'stars' are; others (like me) will be salivating at the thought of seeing their favorite c-list sci-fi celebrities back in the saddle.

Gareth David-Lloyd, the ill-fated Ianto in BBC's Torchwood, stars as the inimitable Doctor Watson, opposite Ben Syder as Sherlock Holmes.

If you haven't heard of Ben Syder before, don't be dismayed. Until this point, the biggest feather in his acting cap was doing the voiceover of a Gaz de France employee safety video; but despite being completely wrong for the part (short, undistinguished, with a slight Welsh burr) you can't really knock the fellow's acting chops and he gets stuck into the part enthusiastically enough.

Together, David-Lloyd and Syder end up with a Holmes/Watson partnership that's far more in keeping with the old Basil Rathbone/Nigel Bruce portrayal than the more equitable relationship in Guy Ritchie's movie.

This slightly uneven Holmes and Watson duo are called into action to solve the mystery of a sunken treasury ship; and soon find themselves following some rather large footprints through the middle of London (or as close to Victorian London as Lllyenbumblewood, Wales, can approximate.)

And while this film is inferior to Guy Ritchie's big-budget Sherlock Holmes movie in just about every respect, it does feature one thing the Hollywood version was lacking... dinosaurs!

Yes, our dynamic crime-fighting duo soon find themselves on the trail of a pint-sized Tyrannosaurus Rex roaming the streets of Whitechapel (one of the more outlandish 'Jack the Ripper' theories, but by no means the least believable) which in turn leads them to the striking daughter of one of Doctor Watson's patients.

While this lithe lovely (who bears a passing resemblance to my blogging friend and actress Pandora Blake) gets her flirt on with Doctor Watson, Holmes continues hot on the trail of our naughty dinosaur; which running rampant through London and getting up to all sorts of mischief in the process (like eating this hapless gentleman.)

Eventually, the trail leads to the underground lair of a steel-uniformed madman; the infamous 'Spring-Heeled Jack' of Victorian myth. He proceeds to put the beat-down on Holmes and Watson before revealing himself to be none other than...

...Sherlock Holme's long-lost brother, Thorpe; played by British actor Dominic Keating. You might know him better as Lt. Malcom Reed from Star Trek: Enterprise.

If you're even vaguely into your Sherlock Holmes, this is the point at which the DVD goes flying across the room. Mediocre actors and an inane plot involving robotic dinosaurs is one thing, but I really resent people messing about with the perfectly serviceable Sherlockian canon.

I think Paul Bales, the Hollywood hack who churns out scripts for Asylum Pictures like confetti, might not have even read a single Sherlock Holmes story before he penned Sherlock Holmes.

Why else bother with 'Thorpe'? Especially when Holmes has an actual deviously brilliant brother to spar against; the inimitable Mycroft.

And if you are going to go down the route of inventing new members of the Holmes clan, please don't add insult to injury by having le nouveau frere refer to Holmes as 'Robert' in another clever 'twist' on established canon (Sherlock's real name is 'Robert,' apparently; a secret only his newly-invented brother knows.)

Anyway. After a stiff drink and about twenty minutes of cooling off, the stout of heart might just be brave enough to give this DVD a wipe and sling it back in the machine to watch the last twenty minutes.

Good luck to you if you do; it involves an aerial dogfight between Thorpe (in a steam-powered dragon) and Sherlock (in a hot air balloon) and, admittedly, some surprisingly adept computer graphics.

Meanwhile, the lovely lady from earlier in the plot scampers off with her own nefarious scheme to fulfill (I won't spoil the surprise) and it's up to Gareth David-Lloyd to save the day.

I'll be honest. I was desperate to like this film. It was filmed in Wales on a minuscule budget (reminding me of some student films I was involved with back in my days in Wales) and featured some plucky old sci-fi stars I was really rather fond of. Throw in Sherlock Holmes and some robotic dinosaurs and it seemed like it had the potential to be wonderful fun.

But in the end, it was just plain rubbish.

Not even one of those 'so bad it's good films.' Sherlock Holmes was just a disjointed, tedious, badly-written mess that insulted the intelligence of any unfortunate schlub foolish enough to rent it.

And it didn't have to be this way.

Admittedly, with such a small budget there was no way this direct-to-DVD monstrosity was ever going to be able to compete with Guy Ritchie's magnificent big-budget Holmes adventure; but there was so much that could have been done better.

A good thirty minutes could have been trimmed from the script to make the pacing at least slightly less sophomoric. The scriptwriter could have read a couple of Sherlock Holmes stories beforehand and created a plot that at least gave a nod to the institution which inspired it.

Ben Syder and Dominic Keating could even have swapped parts; and then we'd at least have a Sherlock Holmes who was slightly believable.

(Alternatively, this film might have been spared with some gratuitous nudity; but since it was aimed at a thoroughly PG audience there wasn't even that saving grace to defend it.)

So instead, we're left with an utterly pointless, tedious movie that's really not worth the time spent watching it. I generally try and give everything I review the benefit of the doubt; but in this case, doubt was about the only definable thing about this disjointed mess.

So my final verdict? Even the most dedicated fans of awful science fiction are advised to steer well clear. Sherlock Holmes is an unmitigated disaster from beginning to end.

Sexy Steampunk Sirens

2010-01-26T11:57:00.001-08:00

One of the coolest things about the Steampunk subgenre is the fact that it's not merely the domain of spotty, teenage boys. In fact, the blend of history, adventure, romance and technology makes it appealing to the best kind of women, too - smart ones.

Similar to the women who love Renaissance Faires, the sirens of steampunk seamlessly blend style, attitude and smarts into some seriously sexy costumed clobber. Allow me to demonstrate:

Leather Money Belt

2010-01-24T11:26:00.000-08:00

I've had a couple of people ask me about the belt I'm sporting in my fine Steampunk costume, so I thought I'd jump to 'full-color' for a brief spell and tell you a little bit more about it.

The 'Leather Money Belt' I'm wearing is from the Happy Cow company of Australia. It's made from 100% recycled leather - which makes me feel slightly better about the sheer quantity of leather that makes up the rest of my costume!

The Leather Money belt is pretty cool - it's got poppers at the front which comfortably accommodate up to a 40" waist, plus three compartments for assorted gizmos, gadgets and accoutrement. You can pick up your own here or try to find one for yourself on eBay.

Welcome!

2010-01-23T17:14:00.000-08:00

New visitors to Steampunk Generation? Welcome! I hope you'll enjoy what you find here!

Steampunk Sidearms, continued...

2010-01-21T13:17:00.001-08:00

Modding a Maverick

2010-01-20T18:34:00.000-08:00

Today I successfully accomplished the first mandatory task in becoming a 'steampunker.' I successfully 'steampunked' a Nerf N-Strike Maverick.

This popular toy gun fires foam darts, and is pretty 'steampunk' to begin with, looking a little like an oversized revolver. People into steampunk modify this popular toy as the first component of an authentic looking costume.

Of course, the quality of such 'modding' varies enormously. For example:

The above gun looks reasonable, but pretty lame compared to somebody who threw their all into the project. I present a real 'Steampunk' maverick:

As a Steampunk newbie, I lack the patience, skills or time to do something magnificent like the artiste above - but with a little time, masking tape and spraypaint, I present my sidearm. I'm resolutely proud of it. Not only does this Maverick look the part - it also still fires those plastic darts!

A Few Good Steampunkers

2010-01-19T06:47:00.000-08:00

From A Steampunk Reverie

Steampunk Generation is still in its infancy, so its time to look for inspiration at some other, longstanding Steampunk resources.

The first is Calista Taylor's brilliant 'A Steampunk Reverie,' that combines romance and writing within the world of the Steampunk aesthetic we know so well. she also has a website dedicated to her 'Steampunk Romance' writing.

The incredibly talented Datamancer has a unique website brimming with Steampunk-style 'mods' of everyday accessories - which earned him a job building props on SyFy's exciting new TV show 'Warehouse 13.'

Brass Goggles is a British website dedicated to everything Steampunk and they regularly update with an awesomely eclectic collection of pictures, articles and information.

And finally, the site I consider to be the 'Bible' of Steampunk is The Steampunk Workshop, maintained by the inimitable (and barely pronounceable) Hicronymus Isambard 'Jake' Von Slatt. Much like the Datamancer, Von Slatt is a genius at turning everyday articles into Steampunk works of art. Go and check out his work - immediatement!

Steam Trek

2010-01-17T18:35:00.001-08:00

Star Trek, reimagined for the 19th Century.

Welcome to Steampunk Generation!

2010-01-16T18:58:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Steampunk Generation - an exciting new window into a world that should have been, but never was.

I am your host, Roland Hulme. I can't promise what this blog will deliver - only that it'll be one hell of a ride. Stay tuned!