Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for January 3, 2020

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with the best SFF of 2019 and the decade, the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA, tributes to Alasdair Gray, The Mandalorian, The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general, series 12 of Doctor Who, season 2 of Lost in Space, The Witcher, Game of Thrones, the latest version of Dracula, Hallmark Christmas movies and much more. 

Speculative fiction in general:

• Tor.com shares the twenty-five most anticipated science fiction and fantasy books of 2020.
• Evelyn Maguire shares her 51 favourite science fiction books of all time. 
• Amal El-Mohtar shares some recent SFF books. 
• Cat Rambo looks back on how science fiction and fantasy have changed since 2010. 
• Andrew Liptak also takes a look at how science fiction and fantasy have changed since 2010. 
• Aja Romano, Emily VanDerWerff and Constance Grady discuss the changes in fandom during the 2010s. 
• James Davis Nicoll lists five living SFF authors he wishes would publish more often.
• A.K. Larkwood shares five books about fantasy multiverses.
• J.R.H. Lawless talks about the philosophy in Terry Pratchett's works. 
• Phoebe Wagner talks about colonialism in The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin.
• Megan N. Fontenot declares that the one ring is almost a character of its own in Lord of the Rings.  
• James Davis Nicoll wonders why science fiction characters never read the manual.
• James Davis Nicoll shares five eye-catching 1970s science fiction covers that accurately represent the story. 
• Scottish writer and occasional speculative fiction author Alasdair Gray has died aged 85.
• Sarah Ditum implores everybody to read Alasdair Gray.
• Science fiction artist Syd Mead has died aged 86.
  

Best of 2019 and the decade:

• The Tor.com reviewers share their favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019.
• Aidan Moher shares his favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019. 
• Joe Sherry shares his top nine science fiction and fantasy books of 2019.
• Dear Geek Place shares their favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019. 
• Fantasy Literature share their favourite science fiction and fantasy books of 2019. 
• The SFFWorld reviewers share their favourite science fiction books of 2019. 
• The SFFWorld reviewers share their favourite fantasy and horror books of 2019.
• Ginger Nuts of Horror share their favourite horror books of 2019.
• Tor.com shares some of their favourite movies of 2019
• Tor.com shares their favourite TV episodes of 2019. 
• The SFFWorld reviewers share their favourite SFF movies and TV shows of 2019. 
• Rakib Ahmad Khan shares the best anime of 2019.
• io9 shares the fictional people and things we lost in 2019.
• Jason Kehe shares the twenty best science fiction and fantasy books of the 2010s.
• The Boston Public Library shares its favourite science fiction, fantasy and horror books of the 2010s.
• SyFy Fangrrls share their favourite science fiction and fantasy romances of the 2010s.
• SyFy Fangrrls share their favourite comics of the 2010s.
• Sam Thielman shares his favourite comics of the 2010s.
  
• Sideshow shares the top ten comic book movies of the 2010s.
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw and Michelle Jaworski share the ten most influential fandoms of the 2010s.
  

Comments on the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA:

• Concepción de Leon talks about the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA. 
• Lois Beckett talks about the suspension of Courtney Milan from RWA.
• Mike Glyer reports that the RWA is imploding following the suspension of Courtney Milan. 
• Claire Ryan also talks about the implosion of the RWA.
• Lynn Spencer asks if RWA has lost its way.
• Mike Glyer shares the latest developments in the RWA debacle. 
• Camestros Felapton also weighs in on the latest developments in the RWA debacle and wonders whether the events are just sheer incompetent or an attempted coup to drive certain members out.
• Nora Roberts a.k.a. J.D. Robb shares her own issues with the RWA and explains why she is no longer a member.
• Dr. Debbie Reese takes a look at one of the books that caused the uproar, Sing to Me of Dreams by Kathryn Lynn Davis, and finds it wanting.
• The estimable Dr. Chuck Tingle wades into the Courtney Milan controversy and proves once more that love is real.
  

Film and TV:

• Lucy Mangan calls the BBC's new Worzel Gummidge superior in every way to the 1979 version. 
• Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts on Years and Years. 
• Vanessa Thorpe calls Little Joe a Day of the Triffids for today's Britain. 
• Paul Levinson calls Ad Astra the 2001 of the twenty-first century so far.
• Nic Rigby reports about a new podcast adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's 1930 story The Whisperer in Darkness and the site of the real 1980 UFO sighting, where the adaptation will be set. 
• Natalie Zutter talks about Avengers: Endgame and the rewards of superheroes.
• Emily Asher-Perrin notes that Tim Burton hides the stories of powerful women in plain sight in his movies. 
• Dan Persons shares ten very strange episodes of SFF television. 
• Dan Persons offers an overview of the last ten decades represented by ten classic science fiction cartoons.
• Richard Keller lists ten Saturday morning cartoon superheroes he wishes would be resurrected.
• Stuart Heritage bemoans that with the rise of subscription channels and streaming services there is way too much TV, much of it good, to watch.
• Tom Butler reports that the 1997 movie Men in Black still hasn't officially made a profit due to Hollywood accounting practices. 
• Catherine Shoard reports that according to Kevin Feige, a transgender superhero will be appearing soon in a Marvel movie. 
• Bruce Haring reports that actress Mollie Fitzgerald, who appeared in Captain America: The First Avenger, has been arrested on suspicion of murdering her mother.
• Film critic and director Peter Wollen has died aged 81.
  

Comments on The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general (warning: spoilers):

• Abigail Nussbaum feels that The Rise of Skywalker was a huge squandered opportunity.
• Cora Buhlert shares her thoughts on The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general. 
• Camestros Felapton takes a deeper look at The Rise of Skywalker.
• Eliana Dockterman explains why it's problematic that The Rise of Skywalker retcons the plot of The Last Jedi.
• Zack Sharf reports about the sidelining of Rose Tico in The Rise of Skywalker.
• Violet Kim point out that Rose Tico gets only one minute and sixteen seconds of screentime in The Rise of Skywalker.
• Zack Sharf also reports about the return of a certain character in The Rise of Skywalker and how it apparently was a last minute decision.
• Dan Kois is bothered by how a certain development in The Rise of Skywalker comes out of nowhere and shares the Lost Diaries of General Hux.
• Sylas K. Barrett declares that The Rise of Skywalker brought the story of C-3PO and R2-D2 to an excellent close. 
• Marissa Martinelli declares that love is dead in the Star Wars universe and that no romances ever work out.
• Skyler Shuler reports that Jon M. Chu, director of Crazy Rich Asians, would like to make a Rose Tico series for Disney+.
• Chris Fox airs his disappointment with the Star Wars series and explains what authors can learn from that.
• Aaron Sagers explains how Star Wars changed the toy industry.
  

Comments on The Mandalorian (warning: spoilers):

• Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on "Redemption", the season 1 finale of The Mandalorian.
• Emily Asher-Perrin shares her thoughts on "Redemption" 
• Katie Rife shares her thoughts on "Redemption". 
• Dean E.S. Richards shares his thoughts on "Redemption".
• Marissa Martinelli shares her thoughts on "Redemption" and declares that The Mandalorian and not The Rise of Skywalker is the future of the Star Wars universe.
• Germain Lussier and James Whitbrook share some background on a certain weapon that plays a big role in The Mandalorian season finale.
• Robyn Bahr declares that The Mandalorian and The Dark Crytsal: Age of Resistance prove that there still room for puppetry in an age of CGI.
• Andrew Liptak reports that season 2 of The Mandalorian is coming in the fall of 2020. 
• Matthew Dessem shares some not entirely serious Baby Yoda recipes.
• Watch a video featuring the best Baby Yoda scenes from The Mandalorian.
• Watch "The Child, Is This", a Baby Yoda carol by The Mary Sues.
  

Comments on series 12 of Doctor Who (spoilers):

• Stuart Jeffries shares his thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall", the series 12 premiere of Doctor Who.
• Emily Asher-Perrin shares her thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall".
• Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall".
• Dan Martin shares his thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall".
• Caroline Siede shares her thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall".
• James Whitbrook shares his thoughts on part 1 of "Spyfall".
• Meanwhile, Jessica Holmes revisits the 1964 Doctor Who serial "The Dalek Invasion of Earth" 

Comments on the latest version of Dracula: 

• Lucy Mangan calls the BBC's new Dracula a blood-sucking delight.
• Ryan Gilbey interviews Claes Bang who plays the titular character in Dracula.
• Jake Kanter reports that both Dracula and Doctor Who got only middling ratings.
• Listen to Obsessed With... Dracula, a companion podcast to the show.
  

Comments on season 2 of Lost in Space:

• Emily Asher-Perrin declares that Lost in Space continues to evolve in season 2. 
• Bryan Riesman praises the female characters of Lost in Space.
• Ryan Britt shares some burning questions that season 3 of Lost in Space must answer.
  

 Comments on The Witcher:

• Mike Hale calls The Witcher a generic Game of Thrones wannabe. 
• Judy Berman calls The Witcher the latest disastrous attempt to find the next Game of Thrones.
• Darren Franish and Kristen Baldwin call The Witcher nakedly terrible.
• Eneasz Brodski airs his grievances about The Witcher. 
• Kristen Lopez explains what The Witcher gets right and wrong about disability narratives.
• Edward Helmore reports that in spite of negative reviews, The Witcher is actually popular with viewers.
• Matt Patches interviews Henry Cavill, star of The Witcher. 

Comments on Game of Thrones:

• Tyler Dean discusses the importance of storytelling in Game of Thrones. 
• Sarah Hughes explains how Game of Thrones dominated the 2010s, only to finally lose its way.
• Martha Hayes interviews Alfie Allen, who played Theon Greyjoy in Game of Thrones. 

Comments on Hallmark Christmas movies:

• Nancy Coleman is bothered by the portrayal of Hanukkah and Judaism in general in the Hallmark Christmas movies.  
• Britni de la Cretaz finds certain antisemitic tropes in Hallmark Christmas movies with Jewish characters. 
• Amanda Marcotte declares that Hallmark Christmas movies are fascist propaganda.
  

Awards:

• The winner of the 2019 Darth Vader Parenthood Award for Outstandingly Horrible Fictional Parents has been announced. 
• The winners of the 2019 Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest have been announced.
• The shortlist for the 2019 Cybils has been announced.
• Voting is open for the 2019 Stabby Awards.
• Nominations are open for the 2020 This Is Horror Awards.
• Alexis Lothian reports that Jeanne Gomoll has retired from the Motherboard of the Tiptree/Otherwise Award after twenty-five years.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Leah Schnelbach shares writing advice from Chuck Tingle. 
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch talks about book birthdays.
• Jason Sanford takes a look at the state of SFF magazines in 2020. 
• Jasmine Arch introduces the INKubator online writers group.
• Camestros Felapton discusses the Goodreads troll problem.
• Cory Doctorow reports that the private equity firm KKR bought the library e-book distributor Overdrive.
  

Interviews:

• Jonathan Lethem interviews M. John Harrison (scroll down for an English version). 
• Richard Lea interviews Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck a.k.a. James S.A. Corey. 
• Locus interviews Rivers Solomon.
• Locus interviews Matthew Hughes.
• India Bourke interviews Kim Stanley Robinson.
• Scott Edelman interviews Bob Proehl.
  

Reviews: 

• Runalong the Shelves reviews Fleet of Knives by Garath L. Powell. 
• Liz Bourke reviews Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather.
• Katharine Coldiron reviews How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse by K. Eason.
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Do You Dream of Terra-Two? by Temi Oh. 
• Bill Capossere reviews The Quantum Garden by Derek Künsken. 
• Caroline Cushman reviews Sapphire Flames by Ilona Andrews and The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall.
• Katharine Coldiron reviews Storm of Locusts by Rebecca Roanhorse.
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews King of the Dogs, Queen of the Cats by James Patrick Kelly. 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Alice Payne Arrives by Kate Heartfield.
• Adam Roberts reviews Body Tourists by Jane Rogers.
• Stephen Theaker reviews The Girl from the Sea by Jessica Rydill.
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Girls and Ghosts and Girls and Monsters by Anne Michaud.
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Mistletoe by Alison Littlewood. 
• Tadiana Jones reviews Dragonfly by Julia Golding. 
• Rob Bedford reviews Dragonslayer by Duncan Hamilton. 
• Bill Capossere reviews Lent by Jo Walton.
• Ian Mond reviews Salt Slow by Julia Armfield.
• Paul Weimer reviews Priest of Lies by Peter McLean.
• Amy Goldschlager reviews Fall; or, Dodge in Hell by Neal Stephenson.
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews And Go Like This by John Crowley.
• Bill Capossere reviews Radicalized by Cory Doctorow. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Tentacle by Rita Indiana, translated by Achy Obejas. 
• Shellie Horst reviews Daemos Rising by David J. Howe. 
• Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Gateways to Abomination by Matthew M. Bartlett.
• Arley Sorg reviews Best New Horror #29, edited by Stephen Jones.
  

Classics reviews: 

• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1930 generation ship story "Tani of Ekkis" by Aladra Septama a.k.a. Judson W. Reeves. 
• Joe Kenney revisits Dragon Lord of the Underworld, a 1935 Spider pulp novel by Grant Stockbridge a.k.a. Norvell Page.
  
• Paul Fraser revisits the February 1944 issue of Astounding Science Fiction. 
• Rich Horton revisits the 1950 dark fantasy novel You're All Alone a.k.a. The Sinful Ones by Fritz Leiber.
• Alan Brown revisits the 1950 space opera First Lensman by E.E. Smith.
• Joachim Boaz revisits the 1955 generation ship novel The Space-Born by E.C. Tubb.
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1962 alternate history novel Worlds of the Imperium by Keith Laumer.
• Mark Yon revisits the January 1965 issue of New Worlds. 
• Gideon Marcus reviews the January 1965 issue of Analog. 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1974 science fiction anthology 2020 Vision, edited by Jerry Pournelle.
• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1990 science fiction collection Robot Visions by Isaac Asimov.
• Joe Sherry revisits Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling, winner of the 2001 Hugo Award for Best Novel.
  

Crowdfunding:

• The Arisia convention in Boston, Massachusetts, is running a fundraising campaign to cover the costs of a legal settlement with two of its hotels.
  

Con and event reports: 

• Arley Sorg and Lisa Groen-Trombi report about the World Fantasy Convention in Los Angeles, California, and share several photos.
• John Hertz shares yet more of his experiences at Loscon XLVI in Los Angeles, California.
• Arley Sorg reports about Can*Con in Ottawa, Canada, and shares some photos.
• Petra Mayer report that the magic on display in the Broadway play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is based on practical stage effects.
  

Science and technology: 

• Paul Rincon shares the best space images of 2019. 
• Wired shares the best space images of the 2010s.
• Rebecca Morelle reports how SpaceX's Starlink project of satellite highspeed internet is making it more difficult for astronomers to observe the night sky. 
• The BBC reports that some of SpaceX's satellites have been spotted over Derbyshire, confusing locals.
• Robert Garrova offers a glimpse of the Mars 2020 Rover. 
• The BBC reports about Oscar Castellino who has been tasked with composing a national anthem for Mars.
• The BBC reports about Russia Avangard hypersonic missile system.
• The BBC reports about hydrogen powered drones.
• Hao Jingnan asks people to lend their voice to an experiment to make voice recognition work better.
• Gideon Marcus talks about computer languages from a 1965 POV.
• Maria Popova recounts how mathematician Johannes Kepler defended his mother in a witchcraft trial in 1619.
  

Free online fiction:

• "Monster" by Naomi Kritzer in Clarkesworld.
• "Claudette Dulac and the Devil of the North" by Genevieve Sinha in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
• "The Wondrous Sweets" by Tony Pi in Beneath Ceaseless Skies.
• "Mother Love" by Clara Madrigano in The Dark. 
• "The Men Who Change the World" by Christopher East in Lightspeed.
• "Story Kit" by Kij Johnson in Lightspeed.
• "Partially True (But Mostly Not)" by Sherin Nicole in Fireside Magazine.
• "Familiar Face" by Meg Elison in Nightmare Magazine.
• "The Story of Kao Yu" by Peter S. Beagle at Tor.com.
• "Last of the Guerilla Gardeners" by Daniel L. Clements in Nature. 
• "Disaster Relief" by Kristine Kathryn Rusch.
 

Odds and ends: 

• Watch a trailer for A Quiet Place, Part II.
• Watch a trailer for Gretel and Hansel.