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 novels of 2019 and the decade, The Mandalorian, The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general, His Dark Materials, Watchmen, Harley Quinn, The Dragon Prince, Frozen II, tributes to Gahan Wilson and much more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- Christina Orlando shares the twenty-five most anticipated science fiction book of 2020.
- James Davis Nicoll shares six science fiction novels which show the downsides of new technologies.
- Adri Joy ranks robot companions in recent science fiction.
- Liz Harmer shares five SFF books about unsettling isolation.
- G.W.Thomas discusses the differences and similarities of the sword and sorcery and sword and planet subgenres.
- Michael Chabon shares his appreciation for the works of Ursula K. Le Guin.
- James Davis Nicoll celebrates Frederick Pohl's 100th birthday by looking at five overlooked works by him.
- James Davis Nicoll shares his five favourite works by Poul Anderson.
- Rich Horton revisits some lesser known Poul Anderson stories.
- Stephanie Sylverne revisits Louisa May Alcott's 19th century thrillers and horror novels written under the pen name A.M. Barnard and finds them revolutionary and feminist.
- Michael Hughes talks about growing up in Northern Ireland during the so-called troubles and how it influenced his writing.
- Science fiction author Daniel Arenson reports that he received a Facebook ban for supposedly posting nudity after posting a commemorative image about the Holocaust.
- Colin Dickey makes a plea to resurrect the tradition of telling ghost stories for Christmas.
- Ann Leckie weighs in on a purity crusade currently going on in the fanfiction world.
- Jill Schlesinger reports that small bookstores are booming after nearly being wiped out.
- Jason Duane Hahn reports that a copy of Marvel Comics No. 1 from 1939 has been sold at auction for 1.26 million US-dollar.
Best of 2019 and the decades:
- Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Lavie Tidhar share the best science fiction and fantasy of 2019.
- Frannie Jackson shares her thirty best fantasy novels of the 2010s.
- Natasha Alvar shares the best science fiction/horror noves of the 2010s.
- Steve Foxe shares the best horror novels of the 2010s.
- Molly Pennington shares the twenty-five bestselling books of the 2010s.
Tributes to Gahan Wilson:
- Artist, cartoonist and writer Gahan Wilson has died aged 89.
- Locus remembers Gahan Wilson.
- Neil Genzlinger remembers Gahan Wilson.
- Michael Maslin remembers Gahan Wilson and shares several of his cartoons.
Film and TV:
- Mekeisha Madden Toby lists all the Thanksgiving TV series marathons airing in the US this weekend.
- Alex McLevy quite enjoys the Swedish science fiction film Aniara.
- Peter Bradshaw shares his thoughts on the Senegalese supernatural drama Atlantique.
- Mark Kermode calls I Lost My Body a haunting animated gem.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of Emergence.
- Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on Avengers: Endgame.
- Jack Giroux interviews Joe and Anthony Russo, directors of Avengers Infinity War and Endgame as well as Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Civil War.
- Tom Power interviews Chadwick Boseman, star of Black Panther and 21 Bridges.
- Ben Child explains why Superman is still relevant to modern filmgoers.
- Michael Chabon recalls how their shared love of Star Trek helped him bond with his father.
- Kayleigh Donaldson ranks the biggest SFF box office bombs of all time.
- A.A. Dowd calls Mad Max: Fury Road the movie of the decade.
- Joe Lipsett talks about the redemption of the 2014 science fiction movie Edge of Tomorrow.
- Nicholas Whyte revisits the third series of Blake's 7.
- Matthew Keeley revisits the 1955 Czech fantasy movie Journey to the Beginning of Time.
- Pamela Hutchison reports about Max Linder, the world's first movie star.
- Tom Nicholson reports that the upcoming 25th James Bond film No Time To Die will definitely be Daniel Craig's last.
- Hannah J. Davies reports that the long-running animated series The Simpsons may finally be coming to an end.
- Nicola Methven reports that there will be no Doctor Who Christmas Special this year, but that series 12 will start on New Year's Day.
- Actor and model Godfrey Gao, best known for his role in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, has died aged 35.
- Ann Lee remembers Godfrey Gao.
- Actor Michael J. Pollard, who appeared in Bonnie and Clyde, House of 1000 Corpses, the original Star Trek and many others, has died aged 80.
Comments on The Mandalorian, The Rise of Skywalker and Star Wars in general (warning: spoilers):
- Katie Rife shares her thoughts on "The Sin", the latest episode of The Mandalorian.
- Emily Asher-Perrin shares her thoughts on "The Sin".
- Bryan Young shares his thoughts on "The Sin".
- Dean E.S. Richards shares his thought on "The Sin".
- Peter Sciretta reports about the revolutionary Stagecraft technology that was first used in The Mandalorian.
- Brian Silliman assures fans that merchandise featuring The Mandalorian's most popular character is coming.
- Stephanie Converry reports that image hosting site Giphy briefly pulled all GIFs featuring The Mandalorian's most popular character, only to reinstate them the next day.
- James Whitbrook ranks the babies of Star Wars.
- Devan Coggan ranks the droids of the Star Wars universe.
- James Comtois reports that The Mandalorian is now the most watched streaming video series in the US.
- Ryan Britt explains why he wants to see Anakin Skywalker in The Rise of Skywalker.
- Angela Watercutter explains why the character of Rey is so beloved by many female Star Wars fans.
- Genevieve Valentine shares her appreciation for the character of Padmé Amidala and bemourns how much of her story that was planned was never told that way.
- Tom Banham interviews Oscar Isaac, who plays Poe Dameron in The Rise of Skywalker.
- James Hibberd interviews J.J. Abrams, director of The Rise of Skywalker.
- John Boone interviews Rian Johnson, director of Knives Out and The Last Jedi.
- Katie Rife interviews Rian Johnson.
- Marah Eakin interviews Rian Johnson.
Comments on His Dark Materials:
- Tyler Dean shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Lisa Weidenfeld shares her thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Myles McNutt shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
- Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the latest episode of His Dark Materials.
Comments on the latest version of Watchmen:
- Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Phoebe Wagner shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Joelle Monique shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Watchmen.
- Jamelle Bouie is pleased that Watchmen dares to imagine a righteous black vigilante.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw discusses the character of Hooded Justice in Watchmen and the significance of his costume.
- Sam Barsanti declares that the plot threads regarding Rorschach and Adrian Veidt a.k.a. Ozymandias in Watchmen are needlessly confusing.
- Randall Colburn discuses the portrayal of the 1940s superteam the Minutemen in Watchmen.
- Sonia Rao interviews Tim Blake Nelson who plays Looking Glass in Watchmen.
- Noah Berlatsky discusses the Australian science fiction series Cleverman, which he views as a sort of precursor to the current version of Watchmen.
Comments on the animated Harley Quinn:
- Shannon Miller calls the animated Harley Quinn series hilariously gnarly and a win.
- Gavia Baker-Whitelaw calls Harley Quinn a surefire hit.
Comments on season 3 of The Dragon Prince:
- Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts on season 3 of The Dragon Prince.
- Emily Asher-Perrin shares her thoughts on season 3 of The Dragon Prince.
Comments on Frozen II:
- Abigail Nussbaum shares her thoughts on Frozen II.
- Emily Asher-Perrin prefers Frozen II to the original.
- Elizabeth Blair interviews Jennifer Lee, Disney's head of animation who is responsible for Frozen II among others.
- Mark Sweney reports that Frozen II has broken a box office record.
Awards:
- The winners of the 2019 Deutscher Phantastik Preis have been announced.
- The winners of the 2019 Clio Entertainment Awards have been announced.
- The shortlist for the 2019 Bad Sex Awards has been announced and you can read some of the nominated scenes here.
- The Asociación Española de Fantasía, Ciencia Ficción y Terror has announced the creation of the Retro Ignotus Award for works first published in one of Spain's official languages in 1989.
- The BBC reports that the University of Sheffield has given honourary doctorates to the cast and crew of Doctor Who.
- Actors William Shatner and Donald Sutherland as well as forensic anthropologist and thriller author Kathy Reichs and TV producer Christina Jennings were awarded the Order of Canada.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Erica Vetch discusses if you should experiment with other genres.
- Joseph Hurtgens shares seven ways to write great characters.
- Bonnie Randall talks about creating names and titles.
- Barbara Ashfod shares some tips for making the big moments in your stories sing.
- Kristine Kathryn Rusch talks about longterm career prospects and raising the bar.
- Victoria Strauss reports about the ACX promo code scam.
Interviews:
- Christian A. Coleman interviews Rivers Solomon.
- Locus interviews L.X. Beckett.
- The Qwillery interviews Colleen Winter.
- Lynn O'Connacht interviews RoAnna Sylver.
- Dan Hanks interviews M.A. Guglielmo.
- Lisa Morton interviews Lois H. Gresh.
- G.W. Thomas interviews Rick Hautala.
- Alexandra Alter interviews Jim Kay.
- The Library of America interviews Gary K. Wolfe.
Reviews:
- James Davis Nicoll reviews Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer.
- James Davis Nicoll reviews Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather.
- Tom Whitmore reviews Escaping Exodus by Nicky Drayden.
- James Davis Nicoll reviews The River South by Marta Randall.
- Gary K. Wolfe reviews A Song for a New Day by Sarah Pinsker.
- Tim Pratt reviews Wanderers by Chuck Wendig.
- Liz Bourke reviews The House of Sundering Flames by Aliette de Bodard.
- A.M. Justice reviews Nite Fire: Flash Point by C.L. Schneider.
- James David Nicoll reviews Realm of Ash by Tasha Suri.
- Blue Book Balloon reviews Realm of Ash by Tasha Suri.
- Deana Whitney and Darci Cole reviews Starsight by Brandon Sanderson.
- Marion Deeds reviews Laughter at the Academy by Seanan McGuire.
- Kat Hooper reviews Grave Importance by Vivian Shaw.
- Rebecca Fisher reviews Night Flights by Philip Reeve.
- Rich Horton reviews Atmospheric Disturbances by Rivka Galchen.
- Bill Capossere reviews Waste Tide by Chen Qiufan, translated by Ken Liu.
- Abigail Nussbaum reviews The Rosewater Redemption by Tade Thompson.
- Jana Nyman reviews The Games House by Claire North.
- For Winter Nights reviews The Pursuit of William Abbey by Claire North.
- Ilana Masad reviews The Second Sleep by Robert Harris.
- The Real Book Spy reviews The Second Sleep by Robert Harris.
- Stephen Dziemianowicz reviews Growing Things by Paul Tremblay.
- Rob Bedford reviews The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher.
- Nina Allan reviews Starve Acre by Andrew Michael Hurley.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Hollow Heart by Ben Eads.
- Nate Aubin reviews Sin Eater by Mike Shel.
- Bill Capossere reviews Knight of the Silver Circle by Duncan M. Hamilton.
- Adrian Collins reviews The Grey Bastards by Jonathan French.
- Phil Parker reviews Blade's Edge by Virginia McClain.
- Nate Aubin reviews Smoke and Stone by Michael R. Fletcher.
- Ian Mond reviews The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa, translated by Stephen Snyder.
- Michael Patrick Hicks reviews Photographing the Dead by Dean R. Koontz.
- Logan Noble reviews Lock Every Door by Riley Sager.
- Paul Di Filippo reviews The New Voices in Science Fiction, edited by Hannu Rajaniemi and Jacob Weisman.
- Paula Guran reviews Echoes: The Saga Anthology of Ghost Stories, edited by Ellen Datlow.
- Roz Kaveney reviews Joanna Russ by Gwyneth Jones.
Classics reviews:
- Paul Fraser revisits the August 1938 issues of Astounding Science Fiction.
- James Wallace Harris revisits the 1951 science fiction story "Angel's Egg" by Edgar Pangborn.
- Joachim Boaz revisits the 1953 generation ship novella "Spacebred Generations" by Clifford D. Simak.
- M. Porcius also revisits "Spacebred Generations" by Clifford D. Simak.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1957 time travel novel Door into Summer by Robert A. Heinlein.
- Joachim Boaz revisits the 1957 generation ship novelette "The Wind Blows Free" by Chad Oliver.
- Victoria Silverwolf reviews the December 1964 issue of Fantastic Stories of Imagination.
- Mark Yon revisits the December 1964/January 1965 issue of Science Fantasy.
- Joe Kenney revisits the 1970 time travel novel Time Rogue by Leo P. Kelley.
- Adri Joy and Joe Sherry revisit the finalists for the 1974 Hugo Award for Best Short Story.
- Rebecca Fisher revisits the 1989 horror novel Remember Me by Christopher Pike.
- Joe Sherry revisits the 1991 fantasy novel Stronghold by Melanie Rawn.
- Jeff Somers revisits the 1999 time travel novel Timeline by Michael Crichton.
Con and event reports:
- China Daily reports about the 5th China International Science Fiction Conference in Chengdu, China.
- Ken MacLeod reports about the China Sci-Fi Convention in Beijing, China, and shares several photos.
- Kate Heartfield shares what she learned about convention accessibility.
- Ellen Datlow shares several photos of the latest edition of the Fantastic Fiction Readings series in New York City, featuring David Mack and max Gladstone.
- Adam Rogers reports about the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge attraction in Disneyland in Anaheim, California, and Disney World in Orlando, Florida.
- James Whitbrook reports about his visit to the Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge attraction in Disneyland in Anaheim, California.
- Justin McCurry reports that a theatre in Tokyo, Japan, will stage a kabuki version of Star Wars.
- Jenny Uglow reports about the exhibition “The Art of Innovation: From Enlightenment to Dark Matter” at the Science Museum in London, UK.
- Domenica Bongiovanni reports about a visit to the Center for Ray Bradbury Studies in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Science and technology:
- The Cosmic Companion reports that the failed Israeli Beresheet lunar lander may nonetheless have deposited its payload of tardigrades on the Moon.
- Jonathan Amos reports that a SpaceX Starship prototype ruptured during a presusrisation test.
- Kaye Dee reports about NASA's latest Explorer satellites - in 1964.
- The BBC reports about the world's first computerised office system which was instaled by the British catering firm J. Lyons & Co. in the early 1950s and was soon adopted elsewhere.
- James Gallagher reports that infecting mosquitoes with the Wolachia bacteria has caused a drop in dengue fever cases.
- The BBC reports that the Boston police is testing robot dogs.
Free online fiction:
- "Eros Pratfalled, or Adrift in the Cosmos with Lasagna and Mary Steenburgen" by Adam-Troy Castro in Lightspeed.
- "The Hidden Girl" by Ken Liu in Lightspeed.
- "The Boy on the Roof" by Francesca Forrest in Fireside Magazine.
- "Female Computer Wanted, Apply Within" by Innocent Chizaram Ilo in Fireside Magazine.
- "The Marvellous Talking Machine" by Alison Littlewood in The Dark.
- "Transformation, Afterwards" by Mari Ness in Daily Science Fiction.
- "Ten Minutes Past Teatime" by Elizabeth Chatsworth in Twist in Time.
- "The Secret Life of the Unclaimed by Suyi Davies Okungbowa in Nightmare Magazine.
- "Nutrition Facts" by D.A. Xiaolin Spires in Uncanny Magazine.
- "How to Brine a Turkey, by H.P. Lovecraft" by Robert Rooney in McSweeney's Internet Tendency.
Odds and ends:
- Watch a trailer for season 12 of Doctor Who.
- Watch a TV spot for The Rise of Skywalker.
- Watch a clip from The Rise of Skywalker.
- Watch a trailer for Crisis on Infinite Earths.
- Watch a mini-documentary about the cultural impact of Star Wars.
- Watch a commerical featuring the return of E.T. from the eponymous movie.
- Watch a skit featuring Stephen Colbert as Darrylgorn, brother of Aragorn in Lord of the Rings.
- Watch an ad for L&P soda featuring zombies having fun.
- Watch an ad for Foot Looker featuring people buying sneakers during the end of the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment