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2007 <span class="SFPTagline"> From SCIFIPEDIA </span>
Back to 2006 2007 in Sci FiThe year 2007 was as big a year for science fiction as any. Science fiction and fantasy films were the most successful features at the box office and real world science continued to make sci fi dreams come true with the release of Apple's iPhone, the discovery of potentially habitable planets somewhere in the not too distant reaches of outer space and more advances in energy technologies that could one day preserve the planet long enough for humankind to fulfill dreams of space colonization. Several genre films in 2007 had their basis in great genre literature, and their releases, naturally, boosted the sales of the original sources. Among the most successful was I Am Legend based on the Richard Matheson novel. Harry Potter made his annual box office appearance and author J. K. Rowling put aside the character with tears as the final novel in the Harry Potter series was released.
2007 in LiteratureThe best selling science fiction novels of 2007 weren't necessarily 2007 new releases. Thanks to films based on novels, books like Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, Matheson's I Am Legend, and Stephen King's The Mist all got sales boosts and reprints. Other classics still making the hitlist in '07 included Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. There were some breakout new hits however, such as Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife, that, like many great genre novels has been optioned for a 2008 film. There was no doubt that the final Harry Potter novel would be the runaway hit of the year and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows did not disappoint, building up great suspense over which character would ultimately lose their life. There was no need to worry about how Rowling would spend her post Harr y Potter time however, she produced a fairy tale novel that was auctioned off for millions. Orson Scott Card added to his Ender Wiggins series with A War of Gifts, William Gibson released Spook Country and Cormac McCarthy's The Road got a boost from Oprah's Book Club. Other Notable Releases of 2007 included:
For more information, please see the 2007 in Literature article. 2007 in FilmWhile horror films continued to make their way to the screen, it was science fiction and fantasy that topped the 2007 box office. The top five most successful films of the year were the summer releases, spider-Man 3 (5/4), Shrek the Third (5/18), Transformers (7/3) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (5/25). Of the five, only Transformers, based on the popular toy series, was not a sequel. One of the most talked about films, of which much was expected, was the long awaited The Simpson's Movie. After 19 seasons, the TV hit finally made its big screen debut and proved fans still loved the dysfunctional family. The film grossed over $180 million dollars. Fantasy films were the clear winner of the year. Though Ghost Rider (2/16) did not quite live up to its hype, Bridge to Terabithia (6/'28), Evan Almighty (6/22),' 'Enchanted (11/21), and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (6/15) did well in theatres. Though not nearly as successful a year for horror films as some previous years, 2007 nevertheless produced no less than two Stephen King horrors that won over critics. John Cusack starred in 1408 (6/22) and Frank Darabont successfully adapted The Mist (11/21) which featured Thomas Jane and Marcia Gay Harden. Another horror feature making its way to the screen was zombie horror Resident Evil: Extinction (9/21). Quite likely the last in the video game based Resident Evil film series which of course featured franchise star, Milla Jovovich and also added Ali Larter to its cast. Zombies weren't the only classic horror villains on screen. No year is complete without a vampire film and 30 Days of Night (102/19) filled that spot. Proving vampires aren't without imagination, they chose the wilds of Alaska for a thirty-day long feast. Less successful horror features included The Messengers (3/18), The Reaping (4/5) and 28 Weeks Later (5/11)
2007 in Television
The biggest story in television in 2007 was unquestionably the Writers Guild of America strike which halted production of scripted series and ended the possibility of some struggling series finding their footing before production ended. Like scifi banner year 2005, in which networks tried, unsuccessfully, to recapture the success of Lost's 2004 breakout hit with new series like Surface and Invasion, 2007 attempted to recapture the success of 2006 hit, Heroes which debuted its second season on NBC. Heroes offered up new characters but lost some of its first year appeal. NBC launched the much hyped Bionic Woman starring Michelle Ryan in the title role but suffered production problems which eventually came to an end when the writer's strike derailed production on all scripted series. In addition to Bionic Woman, there was also Chuck which initially seemed like a Jake 2.0 remake only to prove itself as a great comedic spy fi series. NBC's time travel series, Journeyman suffered in ratings and will likely not return in 2008 should the strike come to an end. On the The SCI FI Channel the longest running American sci fi series , Stargate SG-1 came to an end with two films planned to wrap up the series. Its spinoff series Stargate Atlantis was renewed and launched its fourth season in Fall, 2007. Also returning was Eureka while Battlestar Galactica's final season was pushed to 2008. To fill the gap Sci Fi aired the special, Battlestar Galactica: Razor. SCIFI also tried out new programming with The Dresden Files based on the Jim Butcher novels, Flash Gordon and Painkiller Jane based on the comic series. All three series struggled in ratings and The Dresden Files and Painkiller Jane were ultimately canceled. On the USA Network, The 4400 and The Dead Zone wrapped their fourth and sixth seasons respectively in September only to learn later in the year that it would be their last seasons as both series were canceled. On the CW, Reaper made its debut proving the Devil can still get it done. Supernatural and Smallville also returned for new seasons with Smallville proving it still has room for growth beyond Clark Kent's high school days. CBS brought Ghost Whisperer back for another season, and introducing vampire detective series Moonlight starring Alex O'Loughlin and Sophia Myles. FOX debuted no new genre series in 2007. New Amsterdam originally slated for a 2007 debut was pushed to 2008. The series may help, temporarily, fill any gaps left by other scripted series forced to end production by the strike. On ABC, the Lost season finale stunned audiences with its flash forward plot and left audiences hanging as the series decided against a fall 2007 debut, pushing the series to 2008 in hope of avoiding some of the issues faced in 2006-2007. The network debuted the imaginative fantasy series Pushing Daisies whose unusual premise won over critics and fans. The network saved its other genre series Eli Stone for 2008 as a mid-season replacement, a strategy that may ultimately prove wise with little scripted competition. ABC's sister network ABC Family aired a second season of its scifi hit Kyle XY. The second half of the season airs in 2008. The British Invasion continued on BBC America. The Brit network's US arm had hits with Torchwood, the darker Doctor Who spin-off, Jekyll (which garnered a Golden Globe nomination), and Life on Mars, the time travel cop show which is scheduled for stateside adaptation. Unaffected by the US writers' strike, sci fi fans may increase the audiences even more when new episodes are broadcast in 2008. Other notable 2007 series include:
2007 in ParanormalCryptozoology continued to make the news, with reports of attacks by El Chupacabra in Mexico and Bigfoot tracks in British Columbia. A possible picture of a juvenile Bigfoot got a lot of press, although authorities said it was a bear with a skin condition. When medium John Edward (Crossing Over) declined to do a reading for Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel, it became a gossip story. Following the success of Ghost Hunters on the Sci Fi Channel, there was a considerable increase in Paranormal TV Series. With some of them following a reality show format of actually going out in the field, they didn't just look at existing reports, but presented new evidence. The programs included Monsterquest, Paranormal State, Rescue Mediums, and the competition show, America's Psychic Challenge. For more information, please see the 2007 in Paranormal article. 2007 in ETs and UFOsThe big news coverage wasn't about what was seen, but who said what. Dennis Kucinich became the latest US Presidential figure to make a public statement on UFOs. While Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter had been involved with UFOs (along with others), it was unprecedented to have a mainstream newscaster ask a major party candidate to confirm whether or not he had seen a UFO during a televised debate. Kucinich not only confirmed that he had, but got a laugh by saying, "More people in this country have seen UFOs than I think approve of George Bush's presidency." The exchange was discussed widely in the popular media. Similarly, Japanese government officials spent some time discussing UFOs in response to a written question. Of course, it wasn't all talk. On November 7, police in Argentina reported seeing several small humanoids while investigating UFO reports in what has become known as the Irene Incident. For other cases and details, please see the 2007 in ETs and UFOs article. 2007 in Art2007 in Audio2007 in ComicsOn March 7, mainstream news sources carried the story of the death of Captain America, sometimes presenting it as though he had been a real person. Dark Horse continued the adventures of Buffy the Vampire Slayer in a new comic book series. 2007 in ToysOne of the surprise hits of the year cost under $5. Flingshot animals (in particular, a monkey in a superhero cape) were being flung across offices, making screaming noises. There was considerable controvery when Sideshow Collectibles released a figure of Spider-Man's girlfriend Mary Jane Watson that some fans considered too sexy and inappropriate to her character. For more information, please see the 2007 in Toys article. 2007 in GamesThe biggest story in Games (and on of the biggest stories in entertainment) was the release of Halo 3. People waited in line, and millions of dollars were spent in the first day. Nintendo's Wii continued to be in great demand. For more information, please see the 2007 in Games article. 2007 in the InternetThe internet may already seem worldwide but technology pioneers, naturally see room for growth particularly in wireless internet technology and affordable computing for developing nations. The $100 laptop has already begun changing the lives of poor children and Meraki Networks hopes to share the internet with the world with shared wi-fi networks for communities. For more information, please see the 2007 in the Internet article. 2007 in ScienceNew technological innovations come every year as humanity pushes forward fulfilling sci fi prophecies, inspiring new ones and in many cases illustrating that what humans can invent often even exceed our own imaginations. But human creation is rarely as magnificent as our observations of the universe which sets goals for us that seem nearly impossible to achieve but given our history it's best to plan for the impossible. In 2007, The Moon became big news again in astronomy. With China planning to land on the moon by 2024, a new space race was on. The US stated its own plans to return to the moon by 2018 and retire the space shuttle by 2010. In May, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory recorded the most brilliant supernova explosion ever. In August, the Galaxy Evolution Explorer discovered a star, Mira, with a comet's tail. But it was the discovery in late December, that a sizable asteroid is expected to cross the orbital path of Mars early next year that reminded Earthlings of the dangers that threaten life on our own planet. Man continues to look for life beyond our planet and the French National Space Agency took a step in that direction with the launch of Corot (Convection Rotation and Planetary Transits), the first space telescope solely dedicated to finding small rocky planets like our own. The United states made its own steps to ensure that when such a planet is discovered we'll already be making the baby steps necessary to get there with Esaveads Astrium Automated Trasfer Vehicle, which will replace the shuttle in getting astronauts to the International Space Station. The technology innovation of the year may arguably be Nanosolar's printable solar cells. The flexible technology may ultimately prove cheaper than existing solar technology and prove competitive with other energy technologies. Imagine entire buildings covered in solar cells...the future may look very different from what we've always imagined. While highly visible technology innovations like solar cells, architectural wonders and green energy technologies are easily identifiable as life changing, it is most likely that the most life altering revolutions are those that extend life. They are the far less visible and oft taken for granted medical technologies. Though the artificial heart, in the past, was revolutionary, in 2007 it was a prototype artificial lung, from University of Michigan surgeon Robert Bartlett that created hope for the future. While innovation due to war is not the choice means of advancement it nevertheless spurs medical advances. The Vasutek temporary limb salvage shunt may save limbs before they are lost which will save some soldiers from having to depend on equally innovative limb replacement technologies like Touch Bionics I-Limb hand, the first bionic arm with a five fingered grip. At this rate, we may soon be seeing The Bionic Woman in real life. With little mainstream fanfare (despite a Newsweek cover story), Amazon.com introduced the Kindle, a wireless e-book device. Some predicted that it would eventually do for reading what the iPod did for listening. For more information, please see the 2007 in Science article. 2007 in FandomSan Diego's Comic-Con got widespread mainstream media coverage. Rather than being treated as simply a fringe curiosity, its significance to the entertainment business was emphasized. Even the Beauty and the Geek reality TV series featured the con. Fans of the post-apocalyptic TV series Jericho also made news. When the show was canceled in May, fans sent literally tons of peanuts to CBS to convince the network to revive the series. Their efforts were successful, resulting in new episodes being scheduled for 2008. For futher information, please see the 2007 in Fandom article. 2007 DeathsFor futher information, please see the 2007 Deaths article. Chronological OverviewClick the month names for detailed listings of events. January
January saw Boston traffic snarled over a guerilla ad campaign for the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie. Epic Movie, with satires of The Chronicles of Narnia, Superman Returns, and more, was a hit at the box office. The The Dresden Files debuted on The Sci Fi Channel. Two icons of 60s TV passed away: Yvonne "Lily Munster" De Carlo, and Sydney Sheldon, the man behind I Dream of Jeannie. El Chupacabra was suspected in attacks on farm animals in Mexico, and Gord Johnson photographed possible Bigfoot tracks in British Columbia. February
In February, Heroes continued its ground-breaking first season on NBC. The Ghost Rider (movie) cast Nicolas Cage as Marvel Comics' motorcycle-riding hellion, Johnny Blaze. Ships of the Line brought together the acclaimed illustrations of Star Trek vehicles from the calendars into one hardback volume. March
March had two big UFO news stories, with the French space agency posting UFO files on line, and former Arizona Governor Symington saying he believed the Phoenix Lights case was genuine. In the former case, demand was so high that the website became unavailable. It was a busy month at the theatres, with the release of The Hills Have Eyes II, The Last Mimzy, The Host (in the US) and TMNT, among others. The TV season was still going strong, with new episodes of Lost, Supernatural, Smallville, the debut of Blood Ties, and the season finale of Battlestar Galactica. Mainstream news sources carried the story of the death of Captain America. Fans attended Wondercon in San Francisco, and the World Horror Convention in Toronto. April
Middle-Earth returned to the bookstores in April with the publication of The Children of Hurin, by Lord of the Rings author, J. R. R. Tolkien. Two new Pokemon video games (Pokemon:Pearl and Pokemon:Diamond) were released in the US. The literary world lost one of its most lauded authors with the death of Kurt Vonnegut. Stargate SG-1 began its tenth and final season. In theatres, Grind House recreated the exploitation double feature. May
In New York City, Seeker by Jack McDevitt won the best novel Nebula at May's annual Science Fiction Writers Association weekend. In the battle of the three threequels, Shrek: The Third, Spider-Man 3, and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End all opened to big receipts. News sources carried reports of a ten-hectare lake in Chile that mysteriously goes dry. June
June saw the final episode of Stargate SG-1. Gene Roddenberry, Ridley Scott and others are inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame in Seattle. World War Hulk #1 from Marvel Comics hit the stands. The 15th book in the Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter (book series) by Laurell K. Hamilton is published. The flying saucer era turned 60 with the anniversary of the Kenneth Arnold UFO case. July
Harry Potter and the Legions of Readers: the biggest story of July is the publication of the final novel in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, inspires release parties and unprecedented sales. The Robert A. Heinlein centennial event is held in Kansas City, Missouri. The geeks speak as thousands of fans attend Comic-Con in San Diego. Cable rules Sci Fi Summer broadcasting, with new episodes of (among many others) Eureka, John from Cincinnati, The 4400, and the second season of Who Wants to Be a Superhero? In honor of the 60th anniversary of The Roswell Incident, Jesse Marcel Jr. is interviewed on FoxNews. August
In August, "monsters" stalked the Earth, with a "black panther" being seen in Canada, lake monsters being videotaped in China, and a living moa being photographed in New Zealand. The Elves of Cintra, a new book in Terry Brooks' Shannara series, was published. Heroes, season one, was released on DVD. The Sci Fi Channel put a new spin on the classic space opera with their version of Flash Gordon. In another reworking, Rob Zombie's version of Halloween opened in US theatres. September
September saw an asteroid named in honor of Star Trek star George Takei. The new network television season brings debuts of Reaper, Journeyman, and more. The biggest video game release of the year, Halo 3, was released to considerable media coverage. Torchwood, the darker Doctor Who spin-off, began its BBC America run. A camera trap set for deer in the Allegheny National Forest captured what some suggest is a Bigfoot, while Clevelanders saw UFOs. October
Halloween wasn't the only weird night in October 2007. Carnivorous trees were reported in India, as well as a major UFO sighting there. Presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich confirmed his own UFO sighting during a televised debate. America's Psychic Challenge and Monsterquest added to the Paranormal TV series being broadcast. The Cavemen (TV series) brought the Geico spokes-humanoids to a sitcom. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer opened in theatres. Pushing Daisies was a debut of a different color.
November
In November 2007, Ira Levin, author of Rosemary's Baby, The Stepford Wives, and The Boys from Brazil, passed on. In technology news, Amazon.com introduced its e-book device, the Kindle. Battlestar Galactica: Razor debuted on the Sci Fi Channel. The Young Frankenstein (musical) brought Mel Brooks another huge success on Broadway. Police in Argentina report seeing small humanoids while investigating UFO sightings during what became known as the Irene Incident UFO case. David Bowie did a guest voice in the SpongeBob SquarePants special, Atlantis SquarePantis. December
As the year drew to a close in December 2007, the Writers' strike began to disrupt television series. Chuck, Heroes, and Reaper (among others) still broadcast new episodes, but with an uncertain future. As usual, December was a big month for big movies: I Am Legend, The Golden Compass, and The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep were some of the biggest. Tin Man, a reimagining of The Wizard of Oz, was a successful miniseries for The Sci Fi Channel. Day-by-Day Articles for Each MonthTo see a day-by-day listing for each month for 2007, please click the month name:
Jump ahead to 2008!
2008, SCI FI. All rights reserved.
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