Well, Maybe Next Year

Well, so much for trying something less malicious for April Fool’s than last year. After all, folks didn’t react too well to that one — do a Google search for Bill Coughlan and take a look at the first result. From the look of things this time around, a few folks were caught off guard for a moment, but not too many people came away believing the NS-5 actually existed. (Oh, and incidentally, the comments — or at least the first three of them — are fake as well.)

Yes, it’s all a promo site for the new Will Smith movie I, Robot, loosely (very loosely) based on the classic Isaac Asimov short story collection. The movie’s getting mixed buzz, but I am looking forward to seeing it. Still, it’s a little off-putting that the movie’s central character doesn’t exist in the original stories. Neither does the picture’s basic plot: The investigation of a murder apparently committed by a robot — which would be in direct contradiction of the inviolable three laws of robotics.

Still, the movie appears to be at least keeping with the underlying theme of the original stories — if we accept the three laws as a given, how could events occur which would appear to be violating them, but would actually be fully in keeping with them.

Happy April Fool’s Day, dear readers. I hope you had at least a moment of fun.