Imagine,
if you will, a time far in the future when our civilization is long gone.
Now imagine someone finding a collection of DVDs (they’re supposed to last
a long time, you know!) that contain three entire seasons of a failed and canceled
SF television show. If they knew nothing else about our history, nothing else
about our culture or our technology, might they think that what they were seeing
was an historical record of our society?
This—along with some good ol’ tongue-in-cheek jabbing—is the
premise of the wacky SF spoof Galaxy Quest. In its most basic form a
successful satire of Star Trek, Galaxy Quest is also a great
spoof of SF fandom itself. Filled with a cast that reads like the roster of
a “Must See” sitcom, David Howard and Ron Gordon’s voyage to
the stars is sure to tickle the funny bone of anyone who either actively or
passively enjoys SF TV.
Leading the way is Home Improvement star Tim Allen, who does his best
William Shatner imitation in the role of Commander Peter Q. Taggart. Also along
for the ride are Just Shoot Me’s Enrico Colantoni as alien leader
Mathesar, Wings’s Tony Shalhoub, and Daryl Mitchell of Veronica’s
Closet. They are joined by blond-clad Signourney Weaver, Sam Rockwell (as
Crewman No. 6 from Episode 81—killed before the first commercial break),
and Alan Rickman as a thespian whose career was sidetracked by an American television
phenomenon (a la Patrick Stewart).
Galaxy Quest opens with the actors from the original TV series making
an appearance at a convention some 17 years after their program was axed. As
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