The Ice Pirates (1984)

"I hope no one minds, but I have no intention of facing this sober"

Star Wars has a lot to answer for, with the glut of less-than-spectacular sci-fi films that followed it in the late 70's through to the mid 80's. With George Lucas' surprise hit, suddenly the space adventure was the biggest cash vehicle again, and studios quickly grasped at whatever scripts they could get their hands on. It was bad news for fans of serious science fiction, but the best news possible for those of us young enough to get maximum enjoyment from the wave of knock offs and wannabes. Derivative plots and themes? Who cares, just make with the laser fights and warp tunnels already!

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Cloak and Dagger (1984)

"Jack Flack always escapes"

When we were kids, the world really was our playground. Even walking to the shops with your mam could have been an adventure. Rotted old sticks became swords in our hands, cars became monsters to be slayed, roads became treacherous rivers to be crossed. Sadly, most of us grow out of the ability to totally immerse ourselves in our own creations. Well, maybe not all of us. Take the likes of 'Dungeons and Dragons'. You create your own fantasy character; a role of the dice is the difference between left and right or alive and dead, and is all played out on a fairly plain board with only your 'Dungeon Master' to keep everything in check. It seems to be hugely popular, and is played by children and adults alike. I've never played it, but I always felt it would take a lot more mental capacity than I was willing to hand over to fully benefit from the game. It was also confusing looking. I was more of a 'Mouse Trap' kinda guy...

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