Friday Five – Fictional Gadgets

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Welcome to the Friday Five! Each week we help you get to know our writers with the help of a top five list! This weeks category: Fictional Gadgets!
 
Gadgets are all over. Some make us wonder who was dumb enough to think of something that dumb. Others make our jaws drop to the floor in awe. The gadgets a hero has at their disposal are almost as important as they are. So let’s pay tribute to our favorite fictional gadgets!
 

Chris

1. Batman’s Cowl – Batman – Batman’s Cowl is pretty awesome, it’s got all kinds of high tech stuff built into it to help the Dark Knight fight crime. Look at the Arkham games, you jump into detective mode and can see all kinds of things you don’t normally notice. Who wouldn’t want something like that?
2. 3D Model Computers – Marvel Cinematic Universe – I just think it’s cool how they can interact with things. I was just watching Iron Man 2 on TV last night and I caught the scene where Tony finds the new element, doing stuff on a computer like that would be great.
3. Life Model Decoy – Marvel Comics – Everyone has something they don’t want to do sometimes. Maybe you want a day off of work without using PTO? Maybe you have to meet with someone you don’t like? It doesn’t matter you can just send in your custom LMD and let them do the dirty work.
4. Sonic Screwdriver – Doctor Who – It is the best piece of defence in the universe. Open any door, that isn’t wood, short out electronics, and never worry about hurting anyone.
5. Vortex Manipulator – Doctor Who – Quick and dirty time travel, go anywhere you want any time you want with nothing but a thing strapped to your wrist.

 

 

Vogel

There are a lot of things on my list that I’ve always liked, but as I’ll point out below, the idea that some are starting to become non-fiction makes my enjoy and respect these things more.

1. BMW 750iL – 007 Tomorrow Never Dies – I remember watching this movie as a kid and thinking how cool it would be to have full size remote control car controlled by a cell phone. Nowadays you can get helicopters and drones controlled by your smartphone, so we’re almost there (almost).
2. Ghost Trap – Ghostbusters – I had a playset of the fire station, ecto-1 and ghost traps when I was a kid. I loved Ghostbusters, obviously. The ghost trap always stuck out in my mind when thinking about fictional gadgets.
3. Food Replicator – Star Trek – I’m a bit of a tech geek. I read journal summaries and articles about new technologies and discoveries. I’ve always thought the food replicators were cool, and not just because Earl Grey is my favorite tea. Now with the prospect of 3d printing and 3d printed foods, we’re getting there. It’s not as sophisticated as repurposing matter in the universe to make food, but it’s still awesome.
4. Iron Man Suit – Iron Man – It could even be de-weaponized and I would still enjoy just being able to fly around in the suit. If I had to pick one of the suits in particular I’d want the Bleeding Edge Armor because, come on, who doesn’t want armor that you just have to think about and it comes out of your skin and builds itself. OK, that sounds a bit creepy but awesome.
5. Interactive User Interface Computer – Minority Report –
   and
   3D Model Computers – Marvel Cinematic Universe –

   These two devices are pretty similar, one is just 3D. They do have 2D versions in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but they seems like no more than transparent touch screens (Avengers movie in the research room).

 

 

Pisko

1. Sonic Screwdriver – Doctor Who – Never a weapon, never a threat, always a way out as long as you have your Doctor attached to it. Though I am newly a fan of War Doctor’s, my favorite will always be 9/10’s blue sonic. It will work on anything but wood. The ultimate key. Truly a tool for a master of science (and Time and Space).
2. Lightsaber – Star Wars – Combine the artful war of the Samurai and combine it with the future sheath that allows it to retract into itself BECAUSE IT’S BUILT FROM LIGHT. The Lightsaber has had limitless uses over the years from battle, to deflecting laser bullets, to even melting doors open on trade ships. Also, it’s a right of passage to build your own after a certain amount of time at the academy.
3. Transporter – Star Trek – How could you not love it, unless you are a technical type in which the fine print basically says that each time you step in a transporter that you die and a new you is re-materialized on the other side and so on, and so on… If you can ignore that then this is the best invention of the next century! Allowing your spaceship to stay in orbit and beam down to the planet. Moving cargo to and from stations without having to “land” or dock. This is an invention that could get us into space so easily and fast since we could build the ships in space where size restrictions wouldn’t matter and there would be no need to pack unnecessary fuel to break from Earth’s gravity.
4. Omni-Tool – Mass Effect Series – The Omni-Tool is like if the Sonic Screwdriver were built by Earthlings. Built for peaceful means but instantly turned into a weapon. The Omni-Tool can hack droids, computer systems, control AI’s, function on the ExtraNet, and pretty much interface with any computer even if it’s over 50,000 years old. That’s one hell of a “tool”. Also it disappears when you aren’t using it. Awesome.
5. The Neuralizer – MIB – You could do SO MUCH with this tool. Break up didn’t go the way you like? Flash it and rewrite the story. Boss says you aren’t pulling your weight? Flash him and tell him he knows you’ve been working very hard. Arrested? Flash the cops and tell them you are a model citizen. While there are few “good” applications of this device (Someone die? Flash the grieving relative and tell the person they moved away). Either way, how awesome would this gadget be?!

 

 

Eric

Gadgets! This is going to be tough. . . I tend to gravitate toward more fantasy games over scifi. I still love scifi, and all their crazy gadgets. But if you look at my games catalogue you’ll see the scales tipped in favor of knights, magic, and dragons over science and technology.

1. The Animus – Assassin’s Creed – It’s no secret that I LOVE Assassin’s Creed. So I feel like it would be blasphemous for me to not mention the plot device that makes the entire series possible. I know there are tons of people out there that hate it, but I think it’s fantastic!
2. Echo Communicator – Borderlands – I don’t know how it works, but it provides it’s user with a full HUD. Active mini map, compas, ammo counts, health, exp, quest logs; The works! There’s only one Hud I would rate above this one, and that’s Samas’ HUD from the Metroid Prime series. But the whole suit of armor sort of takes away the marvel of the idea.
3. Web Shooters – Spider-Man – These little devices provide the user with the ability to be awesome! I mean, we’ve seen in the comics that it takes more than precision to properly use the web shooters, but they’re still super cool. I tend to make the web shooter motion to people at random all the time, so having actual shooters would make life a lot cooler.
4. Lightsaber – Star Wars – This has and always will be my favorite weapon of all times. Ever since I first saw Star Wars I knew I wanted one of these more than anything. The practical uses are limitless. However, like the web shooters, without a little assistance for a certain outside “force” usefulness may be limited.
5. Magitek Armor – Final Fantasy – While Final Fantasy VI isn’t in my top 5, it still has one of the best contributions to the series: Magitek. Gives any user the ability to cast magic while within the armor. Having the ability to cast a fire spell at any time would make me a dangerous person, but I would be so happy! Now we just need to work on the size of that armor.

 

Eric is not a boss. You can Email Eric or follow Eric on Twitter @EricSweeten or Facebook

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