Let’s talk about WALL-e for a few minutes here. It’s been awhile since I’ve seen a movie that I would want to spend more than a few seconds here and there talking about.* But WALL-e. Oh, WALL-e.

I missed seeing it in the theatre, because it was released during Clarion West, and I just couldn’t find 2 hours anywhere. But bless Netflix.
As you can tell, I loved it—for a few good reasons. One, using Hello, Dolly as a parallel story was a bit of genius (although I would have killed to have them re-enact the dance scene as an end bit).  Two, those animated robots were some of the most convincing and emotional resonant actors I’ve seen on the screen (and I believe they only said 2 actual words—“Wally,” “Eva,” and “directive”). Three, the worlds! Oh, the worlds! For a girl who has a real problem completely neglecting setting in her own stories, I am a sucker for an environment as character. And this is proof positive that Miyazaki has bled over from the geeks into the mainstream. Fourthly,** anyone or anything that can convince me, after a modest childhood in New York, that cockroaches are adorable deserves a prize.

And fifthly,*** the science was so.almost.correct. I was flabbergasted and impressed at the attempt. Now sure, they forgot that space is FREEZING and a VACCUUM, and would kill that wee plant even if it was exposed for a millisecond, that WALL-e himself would suffer some, uh, effects at being out in space, and that, you know, at the end, he wouldn’t just “remember” everything that wasn’t stored on his hard drive…but the huge people with bone loss made me giggle out loud with pleasure.****

There’s been a lot out lately about so-called optimistic SF—there’s a Twitter zine and an anthology call—and I haven’t entirely been 100% on what optimistic SF would look like.

Now I think I know. Although it’s still probably not my thing. I think I get it.

* Like, The Dark Knight. My big response? The scene where the Joker, in nurse drag, shambles away from the exploding hospital was fucking awesome. Or Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: WTF up, alienz? Etc.

** Fourthly?

*** Oh, hell. 

**** As did the very idea of a cupcake…in a cup.