Kotaku Isn't Interesting or Good (June 29, 2012)

Bandit LOAF

Bandit LOAF

Long Live the Confederation!
Thanks to everyone who wrote in to report that gaming blog Kotaku had run an article on Wing Commander III: Heart of the Tiger. Sadly the posting, "When A Porn Star Appeared In A Video Game About Giant Space Cats," doesn't have much to reccomend it. It essentially explains that yes, Wing Commander III is a game that existed and that it did star Ginger Lynn Allen. Here are two 'behind the screens' stories that would have made the piece worthwhile.

During the game's film shoot, Mark Hamill's agent (likely not coincidentially his wife) famously refused to let him perform the 'kiss' scene(s) until Ginger Lynn Allen took an HIV test. Thankfully, the standoff ended on an amusing note. Here's Allen telling that story from a 2000 Aint if Cool News interview:
JOAD: How was your experience getting the gig for WING COMMANDER w/Chris Roberts?

GINGER: Nicole and Joy - the same two casting agents who brought me in to audition for "The Independent" - brought me in to read for "Wing Commander - Heart Of the Tiger". Whether or not they knew of my adult film past or not, I don't know. I do know that when Chris Roberts initially saw me on my first call back, he did not know of my adult career, and cast me on my acting abilities.

Principal filming took place in the Los Angeles area with most of the shoot shot on green screen. My grandmother came to the set one day wearing lime green pants. It was pretty comical to see the top half of my Gram floating across the monitor when she walked out onto the sound stage.

Wing Commander was one of the first, if not the first big productions to combine true interactive with film. The script was near 300 pages long. Each scene was shot in three to five different ways so that depending on the choices you made while playing the game the outcome would take the right direction. Preparation was a nightmare, but the game turned out to be fantastic.

For the most part it was a wonderful project to work on. The only unpleasant part of the shoot took place the day that Mark Hamil and I were scheduled to have our "big kiss". The day started off with Mark's representative requesting that I provide an AIDS test before Mark and I kissed. According to SAG rules and regulations this request was a violation of SAG policies. I wanted to go ahead and provide my most recent test results (I test every six months and have for the past 17 years) and my agent wanted to bring in SAG officials and shut down the production until things were settled. The final decision was that I would gladly provide my test results if Mark were to do the same. I had my test results faxed to the set, but Mark's never came through. I didn't show him mine, and he didn't show me his. We shot, we kissed and that was the end of it.

"Heart Of The Tiger" was the third in the "Wing Commander" series, and was, I believe the most successful. I played Rachel Coriolis, the ships chief mechanic and weapons loadout technician. Rachel for some reason was not brought back for part four. From what I understand many fans of "Heart Of the Tiger" were disappointed that Rachael 's character was not brought back. The director and producer of part 5 "Prophecy" decided it would be a good idea to include her in this episode.

Rumor has it that when the next two episodes are shot I will be in them. But this is Hollywood so God only knows. I'd love to be in them, but I'm not holding my breath.
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Another little known fact is that the Rachel character was actually initially designed to be far, far sexier. Like the game's language, she was toned down when it was clear that Wing Commander III would be one of the first games subject to an ESRB rating. Here's the initial concept sketch for a pierced, smoking, chesty and ridiculously haired Chief Tech:



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Original update published on June 29, 2012
 
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While I like the concept art I doubt I would have found the original Rachel concept cooler than the one they decided to use.
I always liked the slightly more realistic approach that technicians don't run around in such clothes and with weird haircuts on military ships.
But then I was 10 years old so I'm probably wrong. :D

Anyway, nice story with the STD test. The Kotaku article is lame.
 
The concept illustration actually reminds me of Miss Allen's performance of Chief (Master Chief?) Coriolis in Prophecy. It looks like the producers went back to the edgier Rachel to go with the new direction of the franchise.
 
"Chief" can informally refer to any of the Naval enlisted ranks from E-7 through E-9--"Chief Petty Officer" (E-7), Senior Chief Petty Officer (E-8), or "Master Chief Petty Officer" (E-9). It's much like how any Army or Marine Non-Commissioned Officer might be called "Sarge", corresponding to any of the several Sergeant ranks.

For Rachel however, she introduces herself in WC3 as "Chief Tech", which means that she is the leader of Blair's ground-support team. This does not explicitly pin down her rank, though I would expect that by the time of Prophecy, she is at least E-7.
 
Thats why I like our (Brittsh) ranks so much better less confusing i.e we would only call a SGT sarge and anything above Flight Sgt (which would be called Flight) in the case of the RAF is a Sir but never ever call a NCO Sir we work for a living!
 
You're lucky to have Flight Sergeants. In the crazy US military, only commissioned officers are allowed to sit in the pilot's seat of any sort of airplane (or occasionally Warrant Officers). This is how we ended up with officer-heavy flying forces, since completion of flight training comes with an automatic commission.
 
Aginor said:
I always liked the slightly more realistic approach that technicians don't run around in such clothes and with weird haircuts on military ships.
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I always liked how people try to apply 20th and 21st century military protocol to a fictional 27th century military.

Oh, wait. No I didn't.
 
There are things that change and things that don't change. Working on machinery with open hair, piercings and stuff is a bad idea, regardless of how the machine looks like. That has nothing to do with protocol.

So before you judge what I said, read it please. ;)
 
Ijuin said:
You're lucky to have Flight Sergeants. In the crazy US military, only commissioned officers are allowed to sit in the pilot's seat of any sort of airplane (or occasionally Warrant Officers). This is how we ended up with officer-heavy flying forces, since completion of flight training comes with an automatic commission.
Click to expand...

Flight Sergeant's (Flt Sgt) are not allowed to fly aircraft the name of the rank is misleading we only allow Officers to fly aswell. A Flt Sgt is gust the RAF name for a Staff Sgt. However In the British Army SNCO's can fly in the Army Air Corps.
 
In the German air force the pilots are officers as well, but IIRC it wasn't always that way. In the 1960s Sergeants could become pilots. And I'm not sure about the Tornado WSOs, I think it was also possible for Master Sergeants and above to sit in the backseat of the Tornado. I'm not sure though.
 
Thats intresting to know that the Luftwaffe have WSO's in the back of Tornados we call them Navigators in the back (or backseat ballast) did a few tours on Tornado F3 squadrons
 
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