SLIDECAGE
Slidecage Parallel Earth News Service
Jul 26, 2011 10:52 EST

What if Sliders debuted in 2011 on a parallel world? Well my recent visit to a healthy superfit U.S. brought me just that. A healthy United States is another story, but I couldn’t resist writing about this earth’s Sliders series. The NBCUniversal giant had picked up “Sliders” with its first pilot airing in late February this year. I’ve noticed there’s no SyFy or Fox networks on this world, and apparently NBC is the most watched channel in the United States. Sliders is airing in full HD 1080p in a local electronics store and the online community is buzzing about its recent first season finale.

Timer replicas, t-shirts, board games, video games and action figures are just a few of the announced plans for merchandise. A movie is also in the works and it’s rumored to be directed by J.J. Abrams, and written by Tracy Tormé and Robert K. Weiss. It’s set to premiere in the fall of 2012 on this parallel world. The first season has already been released to Blu-ray, and video download purchases for the series are making history, reaching record highs.

I only had 29 minutes on this world (yes thankfully not 29 years) so I’ve only got sketchy details about its first season. The cast is dramatically different from our Sliders. Here’s what I’ve got. River Phoenix (Stand by Me) stars as Quinn Mallory and Michael Caine (Batman Begins) as Professor Arturo. Will Smith (Men in Black) stars as a rapping Rembrandt Brown, while Wade is played by Anna Torv (Fringe). That’s quite a change as we know it.

Apparently it took Quinn much longer to discover sliding. He only done so with the help of a college friend named Bennish. Quinn and Wade met at church, and he appears to be quite religious but it’s unclear as to what his belief is. Rembrandt is caught up in a moving vortex while he is rapping live on stage. The timer looks like an altered version of the iPhone, and they even have to “charge up” its battery. It’s left the Sliders with a lot of close calls especially on earths where technology is non existent. The season finale ends with Quinn being forced to open the vortex and slide with a criminal, leaving the other Sliders behind.

The setting of Sliders takes place not in San Francisco, but rather the capital of the nation, Washington D.C. And it seems the show has used a lot of historical “what-ifs” to keep the viewer interested and even up to date on historical facts and how they change from one world to the next. Quite clever, if I say so myself. I would’ve filled you in on some key episodes but like any slide my time has run out. Maybe our own earth will one day pick up the series and be just as successful as this one is.

SLIDECAGE
Slidecage Parallel Earth News Service
Jul 1, 2009 07:30 EST

This new world I’ve ventured upon seems quite normal and in sync with our own. Obama is president of the U.S., global warming controversies continue, and rumors of war spread concerning the countries of Iran and North Korea. The sky here is the bluest I’ve ever seen and the sunsets are even more beautiful.

I almost feel like this world is akin to what the Sliders saw in the episode “Post Traumatic Slide Syndrome”. It feels like home, yet there’s something that I can’t quite put my finger on. I decided to travel to a local library to discover if there was anything unlike our world. There was a huge lightning storm approaching and I just made it to the entrance before getting drenched.

Oddly enough the library is also part of a dinosaur museum that has a dirt floor. I was just making my way into the museum when somehow-someway everyone including myself ended up outside. I was pretty disoriented as to what was had occurred. An older gentleman informed me that the daily power outage was in effect. At the time I assumed this world was suffering from lack of power supply, and sure enough they are.

Yet I still couldn’t understand why I was outside. There was a vast amount of landscape around me; mostly dirt with a few areas of grass sprouting. I decided to walk up to the nearest hill to get a clearer view of the entire area. Sure enough, as far as I could see I saw undeveloped land with people everywhere. There were no buildings, tents, streets or even trees. I was beginning to think I was losing my mind or having hallucinations.

I walked back, with timer in hand, to the place where I thought the library had stood. Not long after, everything returned to normal. The lights were on and I was back in the library and museum. What was peculiar was the appearance of a glitch everywhere, almost like a malfunction you would see with a TV or computer. Precisely I soon discovered that the majority of the entire globe was part of a hologram.

The very book I was holding in my hand was purely in data form. I soon learned that a global nuclear war had destroyed most of the earth’s landforms, inhabitants, and landmarks. Apparently a standoff from the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 ended in disaster. A few hundred thousand people had survived this devastating nuclear war, yet many of the people I see are also holograms themselves, not even physical whatsoever.

It turns out that the achieved physicist Stephen Hawking, along with computer whizzes Bill Gates and Steve Jobs created this global hologram in 1990. The current civilization is slowly but surely rebuilding and regrowing. Plant life is slowly uprooting, and buildings are gradually returning to the horizon.

Famous landmarks such as the U.S. White House, the Empire State building, and the Tower of London are purely in hologram form. Only about 25% of the earth’s landscape and landmarks have been replenished. Apparently most of the current events that have taken place since 1963 have occurred in a computer, yet visually projected to the people through a hologram.

The current leader of North Korea is threatening to use nuclear force against the physical world as well as the current hologram computer system to make his country the most powerful nation on earth. It’s nearly time for my slide and I’ll really be glad to get back home. This is one world that’s dangerous and awe inspiring all at the same time.

Time and clocks are non existent. Workers are told when to start and stop their day by their boss. The people of this parallel world are virtually slaves to their work.

A world government called Die Vereinigt Welt Allianz or (The United World Alliance) banned all use of time in the year 1947; saying time restraints are stressful to human health. Apparently the effects of World War II led to world government and the prohibition of time. The U.S. lost in their war efforts and Hitler took control, gaining worldwide control. No health records, newspapers, or photos are allowed. They are considered to be a form of time. Of course all parallel worlds are the same year; however no year is even kept here.

To my suspicion, all forms of religion are outlawed except one. Devotion to the UWA church system is virtually mandatory. Small groups of individuals have formed their own churches in isolated areas to practice their religion. There is no monetary system in this world government, and you are not paid one cent. You’re merely given goods for you labor to fit your necessities. Behind the scenes the leaders do keep time, otherwise records of what goods have been distributed wouldn’t be known. Bartering occurs under the table among the citizens, but it’s also prohibited.

If you are caught with a time device, or any form of written record, the penalty is death. That sounds stressful enough. The people of this world are extremely illiterate and fearfully afraid of their government. Poverty and violence can be seen almost on any street corner as well. Although the sun can be used for time, it is also heavily prohibited to use as a technology. Only government officials are literate, and are allowed to use time. If you are a fortunate citizen, you could be chosen to attend their educational system. If you choose to do so, you will be a UWA government official for lifetime, no exceptions. Musicians, actors, and all entertainment skills are sought by the UWA only. They choose what music you listen to and what movies you see. It all appears to be a form of brainwashing and the public has no control over the situation.

There is one religion, one language, one government, and no freedom. The people are oppressed to a point of no return. If you step out of line in this government you are given the death sentence. I suspect that immediate execution upon the spot was abolished since a possible uprising of citizens could occur from their anger. It merely appears that the “stress of time” was a façade, while the UWA took control.

I had to be extremely careful on my journey in this world because of my timer. Since there are no forms of records there I was only able to obtain this information from a gentleman named Hans. Of course he was suspicious that I had no knowledge of this world, but he was willing to help my curiosity. This earth is ruled with a complete radical dictatorship. It’s one world that I don’t care to leave behind.

SLIDECAGE
Slidecage Parallel Earth News Service
Aug 10, 2008 05:09 EST

New York, Aug 10 (Slidecage) – The day is September 11, 2001 and no terrorist attack occurs in the heart of New York City nor Washington D.C. This parallel world escaped the shock of global terrorism.

The thousands of individuals who died during the attacks on our world are alive on this one. Some have died in different ways, others are living their lives normally, and some have gone on to change the face of their world. Everyone has less hassle at the airport here. There’s no major searching, less anxiety, and no fear towards those of Arab decent. There is no war in Afghanistan or Iraq. Americans on this parallel earth don’t realize the hatred other nations have against them. No “war on terror” has been initiated, and the crossing at international borders is easier than anyone realizes. National Defense spending is low here, and the additional money is used for other means such as education and the environment.

Some of the interesting things here is that “Hollywood” is located in Texas instead of California. Yes, some of the first westerns filmed took place in the most rugged areas of the state. The “Texas Gold Rush” that took place in 1848 brought many to the region in search of a better life, opening the door for the motion picture industry. On another note, in 1968 President Lyndon B. Johnson abolished the second amendment– the right to bear arms. This world also witnessed the assassinations of President Kennedy, Martin Luther King and Senator Robert Kennedy. However, Johnson chose a bold move that removed the right of the U.S. citizen. On our world, Johnson signed the Gun Control Act of 1968 that enacted stiffer laws and guidelines concerning the use of firearms.

In 2004, John Kerry was elected as the 44th president of the United States after a hard fought battle against incumbent George W. Bush. Near the end of the Kerry administration, vice president Edwards was caught up in a sex scandal in the summer of 2008. Under the administration, many illegal immigrants in the U.S. have become legalized citizens and work with equal pay distribution. A promising health care plan was proposed but failed due to the lack of funding. The economy has skyrocketed, while fuel and food prices are lower than ever. The crime rate is low and analysists point to the anti-gun control law, however world reports suggest terrorist regimes are on the rise.

The citizens of this parallel earth didn’t have a wake up call to terrorism, but then again on our world we hit the snooze button. Maybe an alarm bell will ring before hundreds of thousands of individuals on this earth lose their lives due to 9/11-like attacks and the actions that follow.