When things go bad

The adrenaline associated with filmed entertainment (even books for that matter) owes much to things going wrong. In Star Wars, you aren't a hero until your ship malfunctions at the most crucial point in the battle. Think of all the heores who were forced to lunge forward with a rod (or something) when their handguns went kluck kluck at the opportune moment. Think of all the rickety spaceships that the heroic get stuck with when it came to going up against a galactic fleet of hyperspace cruisers. Think of all the ropes that snap when they shouldn't.

I think, though, that Cartoon Network's Swat Cats was an exception. The episodes worked the other way around. While the heroes commanded the gleaming fancy ships and weapon systems, the baddies had to make do with ancient spells and magical weapons. That was one forward looking show.