Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for September 1, 2023

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with an uproar involving The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, season 2 of Foundation, Star Trek in general, Ahsoka and Star Wars in general, Blue Beetle and the DC Cinematic Universe in general, Barbie, the live action One Piece, Rebel Moon, part 2 of Dune, season 2 of The Wheel of Time, season 5 of What We Do In the Shadows, season 7 of Riverdale, season 14 of Archer, Jurassic Park at thirty, the cancellation of the already complete Spiderwick Chronicles and Nautilus TV shows, the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, the debate about AI writing and art, tributes to Arleen Sorkin and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• James Lovegrove shares a round-up of the best recent science fiction novels.
  
• Tobias Carroll shares SFF books by indie and small presses coming out in September and October 2023. 
• Ng Yi-Sheng talks about global inequities in SFF publishing.
  
• Andrada Fiscutean talks about science fiction from North Korea. 
• James Davis Nicoll shares ten great works of non-fiction about science fiction and fantasy
  
• Lincoln Michel discusses different modes of fantasy,
• Lincoln Michel talks about surrealism and art that resists interpretation.
  
• Cole Rush lists five masked SFF warriors. 
• Travis Miller notes that the alleged glut of sword and sorcery is a good thing for a growing genre.
  
• Judith Tarr talks about the lore and legend of mermaids. 
• Keith Roysdon discusses Bigfoot in folklore and fiction. 
  
• Holly Kybett Smith shares five beguiling gateways into gothic horror. 
• Jon Hook profiles H.P. Lovecraft.
  
• James Maliszewski talks about H.P. Lovecraft and the evolution of genre. 
• A.J. Rocca finds early traces of science fiction in Paradise Lost by John Milton. 
• Charlie Jane Anders shares her appreciation for the Hainish Cycle by Ursula K. Le Guin.
  
• Paul Daley shares his praise for short books. 
• Molly Templeton also shares her praise for short books.
  
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports about a backlash against Emily Wilson's new translations of The Odyssey and The Iliad.
  
• Ella Creamer reports that a recent study shows that most parents want more time reading to their young children. 
• Alice Kemp-Habib reports that British poet Gboyega Odubanjo has gone missing before persorming at the Shambala festival in Kelmarsh, Northamptonshire, UK.
• Matthew Weaver reports that a body has been found in the search for the missing poet Gboyega Odubanjo
  
• Filker and medieval reenactor Edward G. Hutnik has died aged 67.
  

The debate about The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction: 

• Camestros Felapton reports that The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction is embroiled in another scandal surrounding a story by former National Front member David A. Riley. 
• Jason Sanford shares a round-up of commentary about the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction case. 
• Camestros Felapton shares a round-up of commentary about the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction case. 
• Mike Glyer reports that The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction will not publish David A. Riley's story. 
• Camestros Felapton dissects Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction publisher Gordon Van Gelder's apology for accidentally accepting David A. Riley's story. 
  

 

Comics and Art:

• Linda Codega interviews Iman Vellani, co-writer of the Ms. Marvel comic who also portrays the character on screen. 
  
• Robert Mammone reviews Tenement #2 by Jeff Lemire, Andrea Sorrentino and Dave Stewart
• Alex Wallace reviews Mooncop by Tom Gauld.
  
• Tom Gauld shares a cartoon about writers' advances.
• Aman Goyal reports that writer and director Kevin Smith is auctioning off his extensive collection of original comic art.
  

 

Film and TV:

• Peter Bradshaw calls El Conde a macabre alternate history about the ongoing agony of Chile and the Chilean people’s struggle to confront their past with graphic-novel energy and directness and Pinochet as a vampire.
  
• Paul Weimer shares his thoughts on the animated film Babylon 5: The Road Home 
• Germain Lussier calls Silo really freaking good. 
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Invasion.
  
• Stuart Heritage calls the horror film Slotherhouse smarter and funnier than one might expect.
  
• Phil Hoad calls Mercy Falls a would-be Predator movie from Scotland.
  
• Phuong Le calls The Knocking a slow-burn cabin-in-the-woods horror film.
• Ryan Gilbey calls Cobweb an uninspired horror film.
  
• Leslie Felperin calls Apocalypse Clown a gag-filled comedy set in post-apocalyptic Ireland
  
• Devan Coggan explains how Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk came to be in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. 
• Rebecca Nicholson calls A Very British Space Launch a documentary as flimsy as Richard Branson’s rockets 
• Randee Dawn shares seven offbeat comic book movies.
  
• TV Line lists thirty TV characters whose full names have never been revealed. 
• Kate Racculia talks about teenage witches in film and TV. 
• Leigh Nordstrom interviews Joe Keery who plays Steve Harrington in Stranger Things. 
• Cheryl Eddy interviews Claudia Katz, producer of Futurama. 
• Sophie Butcher interviews Francis Lawrence, director of the Hunger Games movies.
  
• Drew Gillis revisits the 1962 James Bond movie Dr. No. 
• Victoria Silverwolf revisits the 1963 science fiction horror film Madmen of Mandoras a.k.a. They Saved Hitler's Brain and the 1968 science fiction film Mars Needs Women. 
• Ben Sledge defends the Terry Pratchett estate's decision not to authorise subpar adaptations of Pratchett's work. 
• Zack Sharf reports that actress Bonnie Wright, who played Ginnie Weasley in the Harry Potter movies, was frustrated at her character's lack of screentime.
  
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports that Disney's live action Snow White has not been cancelled and that star Rachel Zegler has not been fired, in spite of what certain clickbait hate channels on YouTube and TikTok report. 
  
• Actress Matyelok Gibbs who appeared in the Harry Potter movies, Erik the Viking and many others, has died aged 91.
  

 

Comments on season 2 of Foundation:

• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on "A Necessary Death", the latest episode of Foundation.
• Julia Roth shares her thoughts on "A Necessary Death". 
• The Stars End Podcast share their thoughts on "A Necessary Death". 
• Cora Buhlert shares her thoughts on "A Necessary Death". 
  

 

Comments on Ahsoka and Star Wars in general: 

• Emmet Asher-Perrin shares their thoughts on "Time to Fly", the latest episode of Ahsoka. 
• Sam Barsanti shares his thoughts on "Time to Fly". 
• Germain Lussier shares his thoughts on "Time to Fly".
  
• Haley Zapal shares her thoughts on "Master and Apprentice" and "Toil and Trouble", the two-part premiere of Ahsoka.  
• Dan Jolin shares his thoughts on "Master and Apprentice" and "Toil and Trouble", the two-part premiere of Ahsoka.  
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw notes that Ahsoka is mostly filler and has plenty of pacing issues.
  
• Nicola Austin recounts how Ahsoka Tano went from divisive character to one of Star Wars' greatest heroes. 
  
• Germain Lussier wonders whether Ahsoka hurt itself by not catering more to viewers unfamiliar with the character's backstory. 
• James Whitbrook notes that the portrayal of the New Republic in Ahsoka as frustrating and blind to threats matches how the Old and New Republic have been portrayed elsewhere in Star Wars.
  
• Sam Barsanti calls Grand Admiral Thrawn the rare example of a Star Wars villain who isn't boring. 
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw discusses some fan theories regarding the identity of the masked villain Marrok in Ahsoka.
  
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw talks about Chopper, the remarkably murderous droid appearing in Ahsoka and Star Wars: Rebels. 
• James Whitbrook praises how Ahsoka handles the live action adaptation of its various droid characters.
  
• James Whitbrook discusses how Ahsoka hints at a threat from outside the Star Wars galaxy.

 

Comments on Star Trek in general:

• James Whitbrook calls season 4 of Star Trek: Lower Decks a spectacular return to form.
  
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the Star Trek Enterprise episode "The Augments".
  

 

Comments on the live action One Piece: 

• Alison Herman calls the live action One Piece an adaptation that's loyal to a fault. 
• Jesse Hassenger calls the live action One Piece and ambitious adaptation with mixed results.
  
• Justin Carter shares a round-up of early reactions to One Piece. 
  
• Teen Vogue interviews Iñaki Godoy, who plays Monkey D. Luffy in the live-action One Piece. 
• Jen Lennon shares ten animated One Piece episodes to watch before the live action series. 
• Watch a trailer for the live action One Piece.
  

 

Comments on Blue Beetle and the DC Cinematic Universe in general:

• Alex Wallace calls Blue Beetle better than most other DC Cinematic Universe movies and praises the family dynamics in particular.
  
• Collider interviews Angel Manuel Soto, director of Blue Beetle.
• Germain Lussier wonders whether The Flash would have been better received if Warner Bros had stuck with the original ending shown in preview screenings. 
  

 

Comments on Barbie:

• Kristen Patterson talks about Barbie and the Pygmalion paradigm.
  
• Tom Ambrose reports that Barbie (and Oppenheimer) have given a boost to struggling British cinemas.
  
• Rebecca Rubin reports that Barbie has overtaken The Super Mario Bros. Movie as the highest grossing film of 2023 in North America. 
• Brent Lang reports that Barbie has become the highest grossing film in Warner Bros history, beating Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. 
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports that fans are celebrating Barbie's victory over Harry Potter, created by the notorious transphobe J.K. Rowling.
  

 

Comments on season 5 of What We Do In the Shadows:

• Noetta Harjo shares her thoughts on "The Roast", the latest episode of What We Do In the Shadows.
• William Hughes shares his thoughts on "The Roast".
  

 

Comments on season 14 of Archer:

• William Hughes declares that season 14 of Archer is the best the show has been in years
• William Hughes shares his ten favourite episodes from the later seasons of Archer.  

 

Comments on part 2 of Dune:

• Ben Travis interviews Denis Villeneuve, director of Dune.
• Jordan Moreau and Matt Donnelly report that part 2 of Dune has been delayed until 2024 due to the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. 
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports that the delay of Dune 2 shows that Warner Bros and the Hollywood studios in general have no idea how to handle the SAG-AFTRA and WGA strikes and are shooting themselves in the foot.
  

 

Comments on Rebel Moon:

• Maddie Saaf interviews Zack Smyder, director of Rebel Moon.
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports that Zack Snyder's highly devoted fanbase believes that Rebel Moon will be better than Star Wars based on a two minute trailer.

 

Comments on season 2 of The Wheel of Time:

• Kayleigh Dray calls season 2 of The Wheel of Time richer, more engrossing and just plain better. 
• Cheryl Eddy declares that season 2 of The Wheel of Time does an admirable job of adapting Robert Jordan's massive fantasy epic.
  
• Vanessa Armstrong interviews Rosamund Pike who plays Moiraine in The Wheel of Time and also narrates the Wheel of Time audiobooks.
• Vanessa Armstrong interviews Ceara Coveney, Dónal Finn and Marcus Rutherford, three of the stars of The Wheel of Time.

 

Comments on season 7 of Riverdale:

• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw notes that Riverdale resolved its central love triangle in a highly unusual way. 
• Emily Longeretta interviews Sarah Schechter, producer of Riverdale.
  
• Mary Kate Carr notes that the end of Riverdale may spell the end for offbeat teen soap operas in general. 

 

Comments on the cancellation of The Spiderwick Chronicles, Nautilus and other completed shows before they have even aired:  

• William Hughes reports that Disney Plus will not air its already completed Spiderwick Chronicles TV show. 
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares reaction to Disney Plus dropping the already completed Spiderwick Chronicles TV show.  
• Nellie Andreeva reports that Disney Plus has also dropped the Jules Verne adaptation Nautilus, which was also nearly completed, without ever airing it.
  
• Stuart Heritage discusses how even high budget TV shows are increasingly vanishing from streaming services without a trace, sometimes before anybody has even had the chance to watch them.
  

 

Jurassic Park at thirty:

• Peter Bradshaw finds the 1993 dinosaur movie Jurassic Park as glorious as ever.
• Germain Lussier reports that the theatrical rerelease of the 1993 dinosaur movie Jurassic Park was surprisingly successful for the thirty-year-old movie.

 

Tributes to Arleen Sorkin:

• Actress Arleen Sorkin, best known for voicing Harley Quinn in Batman: The Animated Series and also the model for the character, has died aged 67.
• Michael Dawson looks back on Arleen Sorkin's career.
  
• Carly Thomas and Aaron Couch share tributes to Arleen Sorkin from friends and colleagues.

 

Comments on the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strike:

• Peter White and Lynette Rice report that AMC Networks has struck a deal with SAG-AFTRA, allowing Interview With the Vampire and two Walking Dead spin-offs to resume production.
  
• Ellise Shafer reports that actor Adam Driver, star of Star Wars, 65 and BlacKKKLansman, has slammed Netflix and Amazon for not agreeing to SAG-AFTRA demands, even though some independent production companies did. 
• Nadia Khomani also reports about Adam Driver's remarks during the Venice film festival in Venice, Italy.
  
• Michelle Jaworski reports that Selena Gomez, one of the stars of Only Murders in the Building, has deleted an Instagram reel about season 3 of the show because it violates SAG-AFTRA strike rules.  
• Nick Vivarelli reports how the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike affects the Venice film festival in Venice, Italy. 
  
• Jazz Tangcay reports that the visual effects workers at Walt Disney Pictures are moving to unionise.
  

 

Awards:

• The winner of the 2023 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award has been announced.
• The finalists for the 2022 Sidewise Awards have been announced.
  
• The winners of the 2022 Silver Falchion Awards havee been announced. 
• The finalists for the 2023 Pegasus Awards have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2023 Dream Foundry Art and Writing Contest have been announced. 
• The finalists for the 2023 Kirkus Prizes have been announced.
  
• The winners of the 2023 Gamescom Awards have been announced.
  

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Margaret Killjoy shares advice for new writers. 
• Nina Simon shares three things she wishes she’d known when she started writing a murder mystery.
  
• Ethan Sabatella talks about focussing more on the protagonist than on maps in fantasy fiction.
  
• Rachael K. Jones offers an overview over work for hire in short fiction.
• Luke Jennings, Marie Lu and S.J. Watson talk about how the internet has changed the relationship between writers and readers. 
  
• S.M. Carriére reminds writers that reviews are for readers, not authors.
• Claire Kirch and Nathalie op de Beeck report about changes to author events in bookstores after the covid pandemic.
  

 

Comments on the AI controversy: 

• Neil Clarke explains how to block the bots which scrape the web for AI training data.
• Ella Creamer reports that a group of British MPs has criticised the UK government granting copyright exemptions for using copyrighted works to train AI systems.
  

 

Interviews:

• Oliver Brackenbury interviews Howard Andrew Jones.
  
• Fiona Moore interviews Oghenechovwe Donald Ekpeki
• Scott Edelman interviews Lisa Morton. 
• io9 interviews Chuck Tingle. 
• Fantasy Magazine interviews Hana Lee.
  
• The New York Times interviews R.J. Palacio.
• Michael Gonzales interviews Adam Rowe.
  

 

Reviews:

• Robin Marx reviews Lord of a Shattered Land by Howard Andrew Jones
  
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Servant Mage by Kate Elliott
  
• Kat Hooper reviews Searching for the Fleet by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
• Lis Carey reviews Rose/House by Arkady Martine
• Jared Shurin reviews Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer. 
• Marlene Harris reviews Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz by Garth Nix 
• Joe Sherry reviews Councilor by L.E. Modesitt Jr. and Starter Villain by John Scalzi.
  
• Marlene Harris reviews Contrarian by L.E. Modesitt Jr.
• Melissa Harrison reviews Prophet Song by Paul Lynch
• Alex Brown reviews He Who Drowned the World by Shelley Parker-Chan 
  
• James Tivendale reviews The Pattern of the World by J.T. Greathouse
• Clara Cohen reviews A Market of Dreams and Destiny by Trip Galey 
• Blue Book Balloon reviews House of Odysseus by Claire North 
  
• Carrie Chi Lough reviews No Place for Heroes by Justin Harnick
• Roseanna Pendlebury reviews Mammoths at the Gates by Nghi Vo
  
• Fiona Sturges reviews Isaac and the Egg by Bobby Palmer
• Blue Book Balloon reviews Boys in the Valley by Philip Fracassi
  
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Mapping The Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
• Alex Brown reviews The Dark Place by Britney S. Lewis
  
• Gabino Iglesias reviews Black Tide by K.C. Jones 
• Colleen Mondor reviews Cicadas Sing of Summer Graves by Quinn Connor
  
• Adrian Collins reviews Red River Seven by Anthony Ryan
• Gabino Iglesias reviews The Salt Grows Heavy by Cassandra Khaw 
• Sally Berrow reviews Delicate Condition by Danielle Valentine 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews The Beast You Are: Stories by Paul Tremblay
• Justine Jordan reviews Normal Rules Don’t Apply by Kate Atkinson
  
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Talk Like a Man Plus Women of the Doll Plus an Awfully Big Adventure and Much More by Nisi Shawl
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews The Book of Witches, edited by Jonathan Strahan
  
  

Classics reviews:

• Sam Reader revisits the 1950 horror story "The Summer People" by Shirley Jackson.
  
• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1964 science fiction story “How Erg the Self-Inducting Slew a Paleface” by Stanislaw Lem  
• Gideon Marcus revisits the September 1968 issue of Analog.
  
• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1969 science fiction story “Party Line” by Gérard Klein.
• James Wallace Harris revisits the 1972 science fiction story “Nobody’s Home” by Joanna Russ
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1973 science fiction novel Age of Miracles by John Brunner
  
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1979 science fiction novel Juniper Time by Kate Wilhelm. 
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1991 space opera  Polar City Blues by Katharine Kerr
  

 

Crowdfunding:

• The small press Zombies Need Brains is looking for funding for several themed SFF anthologies.
• Crab Tales Magazine, a speculative flash fiction magazine about crabs, is looking for funding. 
• Death in the Mouth: Original Horror from the Margins, an anthology edited by Sloane Leong and Cassie Hart, is looking for funding.
  
• SFF publisher Warren Lapine needs some help with medical expenses.
  

 

Con and event reports:

• The 2023 LosCon in Los Angeles, California, has announced its guests of honour.
• John Scalzi remembers his first convention experience at Torcon, the 2003 Worldcon, in Toronto, Canada.  
• Mega Jay Retro shares a video of Fan Expo Canada in Toronto, Canada.
  
• Planet Eternia shares a video of the Toyplosion toy con in Castrop-Rauxel, Germany. 
• Toy Tenner also shares a video of the Toyplosion toy con. 
• Julia Segantini and Volker Engel report about Toyplosion. 
• Cass Morris shares her experiences at the Halcyon Starcruiser Star Wars themed immersive hotel in Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
• Jeff Lunden explains how Back to the Future: The Musical, which is currently playing on Broadway in New York City, managed to create a DeLorean that flies over the heads of the audience. 
• Associated Press reports about the 2023 T-Rex World Championships at Emerald Down in Auburn, Washington.
  

 

Science and technology:

• Ashok Sharma and Krutika Pathi report that the Indian spacecraft Chandrayaan-3 has successfully landed near the South Pole of the Moon.
• Passant Rabie reports that SpaceX has been accused of discriminating against refugees and asylum seekers during hiring.
  
• Ella Creamer and Loren Grush discuss NASA's first women astronauts. 
• Gideon Marcus shares a round-up of the latest space news from 1968.
  

 

Gaming: 

• Stew Shearer talks about the trouble with Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. 
• Aidan Moher calls Sea of Stars the game Chrono Trigger fans have been waiting for
  
• Aidan Moher also reports about the upcoming video game Sea of Stars and the problematic fascination of its developers for the controversial psychologist and writer Jordan Peterson. 
• Marc Normandin notes that thirty years after it was released, Doom remains more supported than pretty much any other video game from that era.
  
• Linda Codega interviews Grant Howitt, designer of Eat the Rich.
  
• Linda Codega reports about shops overcharging people for packs of the Lorcana collectible card game.
  

 

Toys and collectibles:

• James Whitbrook takes a look at Hasbro's Star Wars Vintage Collection Ahsoka figures.
• Cheryl Eddy takes a look at some new Avengers Marvel Legends figures by Hasbro. 
• Jay Glatfelter reviews the X-Men '97 toyline by Hasbro. 
• Pixel Dan reviews the Masters of the Universe Origins Snake Invasion Four-Pack.
  

 

Free online fiction: 

• "The Ferryman" by Fernanda Coutinho Teixeira in The Deadlands.
• "Under Fire, Under Steel" by Kai Delmas in Wyldblood. 
• "Of Flesh, Of Bone" by Tania Chen in Strange Horizons. 
• "Bari and the Resurrection Flower" by Hana Lee in Fantasy Magazine.
  
• "Stolen Memories" by Mwanabibi Sikamo in Omenana. 
• "Last Letter First" by Kristina Ten in Luna Station Quarterly.
  
• "Resistant" by Koji A. Dae in Clarkesworld.
• "Algorithm America" by Lincoln Michel in Counter Craft. 
• "Decoded" by D.J. Cockburn in Interzone.
• "The Job at the End of the World" by Ray Nayler in Tor.com
  
• "Dragon Tears, Part 1" by Caleb Williams in Heroic Fantasy Quarterly. 
  

 

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a trailer for season 2 of Our Flag Means Death.
  
• Watch a trailer for Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls
• Watch a trailer for Heroic Times. 
• Watch a trailer for season 3 of Chucky.
  
• Watch a trailer for Five Nights at Freddy's.
  
• Watch a trailer for The Book of Clarence. 
• Watch a trailer for Perpetrator.