The role of Mach 1+ attack helicopters in apocalyptic literature

The LadyMetafilter linked to a bunch of Star Wars versions of the opening titles of 80s TV programmes, which in turn lead me to Ernie Cline’s Airwolf monologue, which had me chortling merrily to myself. You should listen to it.

Was Airwolf airwolf? The Lady sure is pretty (pic related: it’s her). The programme itself was usually fun, if you were young enough not to notice that they only had so many stock clips of Airwolf flying through a canyon or shooting at things. Wikipedia says the first series was darker than the later two. I don’t remember that, though I do remember Hawke’s love interest being left to die in a desert by the baddie, a sort of reverse woman in a refrigerator.

Two things made it stand out for me. One was that it has the best theme tune of any TV programme, ever.

The other was that bit which, at least in my memory, occurred in almost every episode. The baddies think they’re having it their own way; then Airwolf rises over a ridge line with her guns out, howling like a demon, and the baddies realise they’re about to have a very bad day indeed.

It is the expectation of this moment that kept me watching. The firefight after that was a foregone conclusion, it was the sudden reversal which was thrilling, the knowledge that justice would now be done. Airwolf as apocalyptic: there must be a paper in that for someone.

2 Comments on "The role of Mach 1+ attack helicopters in apocalyptic literature"


  1. I’ve just noticed the <img src="http://pw201.icons.ljtoys.org.uk/mi/dot.gif" border="0" alt=""> between two paragraphs in this post, which seems to be a 1×1 transparent image and hence is presumably some sort of web bug.

    Did you put it there on purpose? (Not that I can immediately see how someone else would web-bug your LJ nonconsensually, but sneaky invisible things automatically make me wonder who else hasn’t noticed them.)

    Reply

    1. I’m using ljtoys to get readership stats. I guess I should publicise this in my profile so people can block it if they want to (the easiest way to do that would be to Adblock *.icons.ljtoys.org.uk). The way you’re supposed to do it is set up custom mood icons, but since I don’t use moods much, I just stick the image into the posting.

      If I were serving the visible images in my postings from my own site, I could track readership via those, so I don’t think using ljtoys is too evil, but I ought to disclose it.

      Reply

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