It's time for the weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with toxic fandom, Solo: A Star Wars Story, The Handmaid's Tale, Cloak and Dagger, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Hotel Artemis, Incredibles 2, the Sense8 series finale, BayCon as well as the usual mix of awards news, writing advice, interviews, reviews, con reports, crowdfunding campaigns, science articles, free online fiction and much more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- Abigail Nussbaum discusses Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente and the rarity of depictions of popular culture and culture in general in science fiction.
- Leah Schnelbach explains how Ann Leckie's Ancillary Justice avoids the dreaded infodump.
- Jaime Green discusses how pop culture imagines aliens.
- Maria Haskins shares thirteen LGBT speculative short fiction collections and anthologies to read right now.
- Meaghan Ball shares twelve fantasy heist novels.
- Yoon Ha Lee shares five books about intricate games.
- Evie Gaughan wonders why Irish folk tales are so rarely refected in modern Irish literature.
- Amanda of Smart Bitches, Trashy Books explains why she no longer wants to see men with guns on the covers of romance novels.
- Rachel Swirsky offers a defence of slice of life stories.
- April Baer remembers Ursula K. Le Guin.
- Doris V. Sutherland revisits H.G. Wells' 1963 proto-Lovecraft tale "The Plattner Story".
- Victoria Lucas revisits Kurt Vonnegut's 1963 novel Cat's Cradle.
- Cora Buhlert offers an overview of West German science fiction in the 1950s and 1960s.
- Gideon and Lorelei Marcus and Natalie Devitt rewatch the 1963 British science fiction horror movie The Mind Benders.
- Nicole Hill shares seven Neil Gaiman stories she'd like to see on the big screen.
- Nicholas Anthony shares his experiences attending a Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit movie marathon.
- A.M. Justice remembers great fantasy films from yesteryear.
- Hannah Woodhead discusses the troubling tendency of movies to use facial scars as a shorthand for evil.
- Nick Schager reports that on its 50th anniversary, Rosemary's Baby is more relevant than ever in the #MeToo era.
- Jude Rogers reports that some scens of the classic British 1984 nuclear war drama Threads are being reshot, filmed in Sheffield, just like the original.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Humans.
- Thomas Bacon reports that there is still the possibility of recovering the 97 still missing Doctor Who episodes.
- Alasdair Stewart shares the best episodes of the revived Doctor Who so far.
- Anthony D'Alessandro interviews Kevin Feige, director of Marvel Studios.
- Steven Padnick explains how daddy issues lie at the heart of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- Nicole Sobon explains why the pilot for the proposed Marvel TV show Most Wanted has never aired.
- Nellie Andreeva reports how Amazon saved The Expanse and that Lucifer might yet be saved, too.
- William Hughes reports that fourteen year old Stranger Things actress has also been driven off Twitter due to online harassment.
- Ian Cardona reports that Marvel is trying to retcon the infamous 1981 domestic abuse storyline featuring Ant-Man and the Wasp in a new comic.
- Corrina Lawson lists ten romance authors who would write great superhero comics without domestic abuse.
- Cammila Collar tries to reframe the debate about female superhero costumes.
- Science fantasy author Christopher Stasheff has died aged 74.
- The News Gazette has an obituary for Christopher Stasheff.
- Horror writer Eddy C. Bertin died age 74.
- TV chef and occasional comic writer Anthony Bourdain died of suicide aged 61.
Comments on Solo and Star Wars in general:
- Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts about Solo: A Star Wars Story.
- Luke Holland wonders why some Star Wars fans are so toxic.
- Izzie Ramirez looks at the origins of the toxicity in Star Wars fandom.
- Catherine Shoard offers some backround on the group claiming to be responsible for the harassment of Star Wars actresses Kelly Marie Tran and Daisy Ridley.
- Actor John Boyega speaks out on the harassment of Star Wars actors.
- Ethan Siegel wonders how the Kessel Run, as portrayed in Solo: A Star Wars Story, precisely works.
- Dan Gvozden and Andrew James Myers share 74 Star Wars Easter eggs from Solo: A Star Wars Story.
- Oren Ashkenazi shares unanswered questions from the original Star Wars trilogy.
- James Whitbrook shares George Lucas' idea for a Star Wars sequel trilogy.
- Kevin Lincoln wonders what cinema would look like today, if Star Wars had never been made.
- Julie Muncy reports that Mark Hamill has never met Natalie Portman, even though she played his mother in the Star Wars prequels.
- Scott Mendelson wonders what the underperformance of Solo: A Star Wars story means for the future of the franchise or for producer/Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy.
- Watch a special Star Wars trailer that will piss off toxic fans, courtesy of Stephen Colbert and the Late Show.
- Adam Pockross reports that an enthusiastic fan has turned an Amazon Alexa into a copy of the L3-37 droid from Solo: A Star Wars Story.
Comments on Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom:
- Jesse Hassenger declares that Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom isn't any smarter than its predecessors, but well crafted fun.
- Peter Bradshaw declares that Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is contrived, cliched and headed for extinction.
- Simran Hans declares that Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom offers up tropes as dated as the dinos.
- Amy Spencer interviews Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, stars of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
- Charles Grant reports that in spite of lackluster reviews Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is doing well at the box office.
Comments on Cloak and Dagger:
- Albert Ching reports that even though the comic is more than thirty years old, Cloak and Dagger mirrors many contemporary concerns.
- Nicole Sobon reports that Cloak and Dagger has been the best series premiere in years on the Freeform channel.
Comments on The Handmaid's Tale:
- Natalie Zutter shares her thoughts on the latest episode of The Handmaid's Tale.
- Alison Shoemaker shares her thoughts on the latest episode of The Handmaid's Tale.
- Inspired by The Handmaid's Tale, James Davis Nicoll wonders why there are comparatively few science fiction novels that deal with population decline.
Comments on Hotel Artemis:
- David Sims declares that Hotel Artemis wastes its cult classic potential.
- Benjamin Lee calls Hotel Artemis a fun dystopian thriller.
- Ignatiy Vishnevetsky calls Hotel Artemis a reheated knock-off of various films including The Purge and John Wick.
- Renaldo Matadeen explains the ending of Hotel Artemis (spoilers obviously).
Comments on the Sense8 series finale:
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the series finale of Sense8.
- Julie Muncy calls the Sense8 series finale as moving and messy as the series deserves.
- Sam Wollaston calls the Sense8 series finale a science fictional love-in strictly for fans of the series.
Comments on Incredibles 2:
- Todd McCarthy declares that Incredibles 2 has plenty of crackling entertainment value, though it's not quite as good as the first movie.
- Tim Grierson declares that Incredibles 2 continues to charm and entertain.
- Scott Mendelson declares that Incredibles 2 is incredible, too.
- Owen Gleiberman calls Incredibles 2 fun, but far from incredible.
- Glen Weldon calls Incredibles 2 more retro than futuristic.
- Darren Franich calls Incredibles 2 the weirdest Pixar film ever.
- Jordan Commandeur offers a guide to the cast and characters of Incredibles 2.
Awards:
- The nominees for the 2018 Aurora Awards have been announced.
- The longlist for the 2018 Sunburst Awards has been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 Kurd Lußwitz Preis have been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 Australian Shadows Awards have been announced.
- The winner of the 2018 Australian Fairy Tale Society Award has been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 Norma K. Hemmings Awards have been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 Robert E. Howard Foundation Awards have been announced.
- The winner of the 2018 Self-Published Fantasy Blog-Off has been announced.
- The shortlist for the 2018 Diana Jones Awards has been announced.
- The shortlist for the 2018 Manitoba Book Award has been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 UK Games Expo Awards have been announced.
- The 2017 Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame inductees have been announced.
- The winners of the 2018 Tony Awards have been announced with lots of love for the Broadway version of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
- N.K. Jemisin has been awarded the 2018 Best of Brooklyn Award.
- Nominate your favourite horror novels in the NPR reader poll.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Rachel Swirsky discusses how long it takes to write a poem.
- Dawn Fields talks about finding the real engine in your book.
- Sarah Gailey explains how a sensitivity read changed her life.
Interviews:
- The 1000 Year Plan interviews Yoon Ha Lee.
- Natalie Zutter interviews Jacqueline Carey.
- The Qwillery interviews Amber Royer.
- The Qwillery interviews Bethany C. Morrow.
- The Qwillery interviews K.D. Edwards.
Reviews:
- The 1000 Year Plan reviews Revenant Gun by Yoon Ha Lee.
- Carolyn Cushman reviews Night Fall by Simon R. Green.
- Ross Johnson reviews Free Chocolate by Amber Royer.
- Colleen Mondor reviews Midnight at the Electric by Jodi Lynn Anderson.
- Kelly Anderson reviews Starless by Jacqueling Carey.
- Smart Bitches, Trashy Books reviews Ocean Light by Nalini Singh.
- Alex Brown reviews Sweet Black Waves by Kristina Pérez.
- Kat Hooper reviews The Serpent Sea by Martha Wells.
- Daniel Hausser reviews Blood Orbit by K.R. Richardson.
- Carolyn Cushman also reviews The Reign of the Departed by Greg Keyes.
- Paul Weimer reviews The Realms of God by Michael Livingston.
- Tadiana Jones reviews In Other Lands by Sarah Rees Brennan.
- Russell Letson reviews If Tomorrow Comes by Nancy Kress.
- Elizabeth Fitzgerald reviews Ida by Alison Evans.
- Jana Nyman reviews Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman.
- Gary K. Wolfe reviews The Smoke by Simon Ings.
- John Langan reviews The Cabin at the End of the World by Paul Tremblay.
- Liz Bourke reviews Latchkey by Nicole Kornher-Stace.
- J.C. Kang reviews The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French.
- Jonathan Thornton reviews Candy by Lavie Tidhar.
- Ian Mond reviews Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews The Beast of Brenton Woods by Jackson R. Thomas.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Jurassic Florida by Hunter Shea.
Crowdfunding:
- Deep Signal, an illustrated speculative fiction anthology edited by Eric Olive, is looking for funding.
- FCTRY is looking for funding to make an action figure of US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Con and event reports:
- The uproar surrounding ConCarolinas in Charlotte, North Carolina, continues with three duelling petitions regarding the future of the convention.
- Richard Fife, deputy head of the fantasy literature track at DragonCon in Atlanta, Georgia, has resigned following the firing of Charlotte Moore, head of the fantasy literature track, after she took a stand against authors who harass and belittle other attendants.
- Margaret McGaffey Fisk shares her experiences at BayCon in San Mateo, California.
- Sheryl R. Hayes shares her experiences at BayCon in San Mateo, California.
- Deborah J. Ross shares her experiences at BayCon.
- Stephen Beale reports about BayCon and shares some Steampunk cosplay photos.
- Dan Berry reports about Comic Con Revolution 2018 in Ontario, California.
- Carl Kozlowski reports about Aliencon in Passadena, California.
- Martin Morse Wooster reports about a performance of Alan Jay Lerner's and Frederick Loewe's musical Camelot in Washington DC.
- Watch a video of a Tribute to Ursula K. Le Guin in Portland, Oregon.
Science and technology:
- Eva Botkin-Kowacki reports that organic matter has been found on Mars.
- Camila Domonoske reports that an enormous dust storm on Mars threatens the Opportunity rover.
- Ethan Siegel explains why dark energy doesn't tell us anything about the presence or absence of aliens.
- Jaime Green talks about the strangely human messages we send to aliens.
- Reuters reports that Pope Francis was presented with a personalised spacesuit by several ISS astronauts.
- Keith Bradsher reports that China is testing roads paved with solar panels.
- Ethan Siegel explains what is happening at the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii.
- Mike McRae reports that the Kilauea has started raining tiny olivine gemstones onto Hawaii's Big Island.
Free online fiction:
- "The Thing In The Walls Wants Your Small Change" by Virginia M. Mohlere in Lunar Station Quarterly.
- "The Quiltbag" by Ashok K. Banker in Lightspeed.
- "Tie Goes the Runner" by Russell Nichols in Lightspeed.
- "Destiny" by Melissa Mead in Daily Science Fiction.
- "The Weaver and the Snake" by Blaine Vitallo in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
- "A Tale of Woe" by P. Djèlí Clark in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
Odds and ends:
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