Kzinti in new graphic novel ("Ringworld" adapted!)

[Christopher]

Why even call the game species Kzinti if they were so different?

And, err, the Ringworld is not where most Kzinti live, although there are some Kzinti there on the Map of Kzin in the great ocean. Most of the Ringworld's inhabitants are humanoids descended from the Pak, the ancestral species of humanity in the Known Space universe. There are Kzinti in important roles in Ringworld, but it is not primarily about the Kzinti (although it and its sequel are the most prominent Kzinti stories Niven wrote himself; the only other works he personally featured them in were "The Warriors" and "The Soft Weapon," although a bunch of other writers contributed to the long-running but not quite canonical Man-Kzin Wars shared-universe series).

 

[Nerroth]

Many of the differences among the "TV" factions seen in the SFU are due to the somewhat arcane nature of the licences involved.

For example, the SFU Klingons all look like the ones from the original series, and their culture is quite different to what has become the norm for the Paramount/CBS Klingons post-1979.

I don't know the full details, but I gather that the licensing issues that accommodate the SFU Kzintis are somewhat particular in that regard. (Which is probably the main reason why Taldren side-stepped the issue in SFC2 when adding the Mirak.)


But what I meant on the Ringworld front is that there is no such artefact in the SFU's Alpha Octant for the Kzintis there to be involved with. (There is a ring world in the Triangulum Galaxy, but it belongs to a SFU-native species called the Helgardians. It has no connection to the Known Space Ringworld.)

 

[Therin of Andor]

Why even call the game species Kzinti if they were so different?

I am fairly sure in the very first of the paper-based gaming materials (and the 1978 Heritage kzin metal miniatures, which I have), the kzin in the Star Fleet Battles "war game" (pre- role-playing game) were essentially identical to the kzin as presented in TAS. But Star Fleet Battles was only ever semi-licensed - IIRC, they paid Franz Joseph a big royalty for use of his Tech Manual and Enterprise blueprints material, but not as much to Roddenberry nor Paramount - because that's the way Joseph's original contract read. Probably no one had thought too hard about Niven still owning and using the kzin.

http://groknard.blogspot.com/2009/03/heritage-star-trek-1622-kzin.html

But compromises had to be made, lest Larry Niven ever wanted to sell a "Ringworld" RPG, which he did.

 

[Christopher]

Many of the differences among the "TV" factions seen in the SFU are due to the somewhat arcane nature of the licences involved.

Yeah, that much is clear, but I'm not asking why things are different. I'm asking why anything was kept the same. If they had no specifically Kzin-like qualities beyond being felinoid aliens (which are a dime a dozen in SF), why call them Kzinti at all?

 

[Allyn Gibson]

No, it's cool, but yours and several other posts mentioned the "wouldn't actually consider this Trek-related" aspect...

I'm sorry you took my post as a criticism, Ian, because it wasn't meant as such. I didn't think to post about it here when it came out a month ago because, as I said, the Ringworld manga isn't Trek-related any more than a Man-Kzin Wars anthology is Trek-related. (Of course, I started reading Man-Kzin Wars back in high school because of the Star Trek connection to the Kzin.)

Though I'm not a fan of the book's art, I'm glad the Ringworld manga exists, because I hope that it introduces a new generation to Larry Niven and Known Space.

 

[Commishsleer]

Now is the time for a movie of Ringworld.
And a new version of Dune while we're at it.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Now is the time for a movie of Ringworld.

SyFy's had a Ringworld miniseries in development hell for the past few years. I'll believe it happens when I see it.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Now is the time for a movie of Ringworld.

SyFy's had a Ringworld miniseries in development hell for the past few years. I'll believe it happens when I see it.

Why work on something awesome like this when Sharknado 3 beckons?

At this rate, any of us currently alive today are probably going to need actual boosterspice in order to see something like this come to fruition!

 

[Christopher]

SyFy's had a Ringworld miniseries in development hell for the past few years. I'll believe it happens when I see it.

Why work on something awesome like this when Sharknado 3 beckons?

Actually those are from two separate groups of content providers that Syfy uses. They have one provider that develops their high-end scripted programming and another that churns out the Z-movie cheese. So the presence of one doesn't take away from the other.

Besides, it's the popularity and cheapness of the Z-movies and wrestling and "reality" shows that helps them earn enough profit to make the classier stuff. Sharknado 3 could help pay for Ringworld.

 

[JD]

I thought when they announced their last batch of new shows that were airing this year and next year, a Ringworld mini was one of them?

 

[Avro Arrow]

Actually those are from two separate groups of content providers that Syfy uses. They have one provider that develops their high-end scripted programming and another that churns out the Z-movie cheese. So the presence of one doesn't take away from the other.

Ah, OK, I didn't know. Thanks for the information.

Besides, it's the popularity and cheapness of the Z-movies and wrestling and "reality" shows that helps them earn enough profit to make the classier stuff. Sharknado 3 could help pay for Ringworld.

Hmm... well, if that's the case, then: Yay, Sharknado!

 

[Therin of Andor]

I thought when they announced their last batch of new shows that were airing this year and next year, a Ringworld mini was one of them?

http://www.imdb.com/news/ni50996311/

 

[JD]

^Thats it. Thanks Therin.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Part 2 is due in November!

http://www.amazon.com/Ringworld-Gra...91591&sr=8-2&keywords=ringworld+niven+graphic

 

[Sto-Vo-Kory]

Thanks for the reminder, Therin!