Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for April 15, 2022

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with Star Trek Picard and the many iterations of Star Trek, Moon Knight and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, Doctor Who past and present, The Northman, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Dual, Severance, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, season 11 of The Walking Dead, responses to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Lisa Tuttle shares a round-up of the best recent science fiction and fantasy books. 
• Tor.com shares all the new horror and genre-bending books arriving in April. 
• Richard Milner traces the history of science fiction back to antiquity. 
  
• James Davis Nicoll shares five captivating SFF mystery novels. 
• Adam Oyebanji shares five great science fiction novels that mystery and crime fiction readers will enjoy. 
• Marion Deeds shares five unconventional SFF heist novels.
  
• James Davis Nicoll shares five science fiction novels featuring different kinds of wormholes. 
• Fran Wilde hosts a roundtable to discuss artificial intelligence in fiction and fact.
  
• Taiwo Balogun shares thirteen new gothic horror novels to enjoy. 
• Richard Thomas talks about pacing in horror and how people seem to have lost the patience for slow burn horror.  
• Molly Templeton talks about the joy of reading hidden gems.
  
• Alex Callister explains why fiction needs more female action heroes.  
• Logan D. Whitney talks about the connection between pulpy adventure fiction and the weird.
  
• Scott Oden talks about the collision of history and fantasy in the sword and sorcery genre. 
  
• Matthew Ilseman discusses the surprising moral complexity of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Cimmerian. 
  
• Deuce Richardson explains what makes a good pastiche. 
• Howard Andrew Jones shares a guide to the works of Harald Lamb.
  
• Ngo Vinh-Hoi shares his appreciation for the works of Stanley G. Weinbaum. 
• Alexandra Penth profiles Cora Buhlert.
  
• Cole Rush explains how starting a home lending library has made him a better friend.
  
• Bob Madle needs some help to recover rare fanzines stolen from his collection.
  
• David W. Smith explains why collectors of books, comics, toys, etc... need to make a will.
  
• Science fiction writer Bill Johnson died aged 65.
• Ukrainian SFF fan and con runner Leonid Kourits was killed by a Russian attack on his hometown.
  

Comics and Art:

• Matt Davis reviews the comic adaptation of Elric: The Dreaming City by Michael Moorcock, Julien Blandel, Jean-Luc Cano and Julian Telo.
• James Whitbrook reports that the X-Men comics are about to get even weirder. 
• The Geeky Nerfherder spotlights the comics and fantasy artwork of Mark Schultz.
• Bill Ward shares the striking cover art of the pulp magazine Adventure.
• Joachim Boaz revisits the striking pop art SFF covers designed by Atelier Heinrichs & Bachmann in the 1960s and early 1970s.
  

 

Film and TV:

• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw discusses the way Our Flag Means Death handles its gay characters and homophobia. 
• Saloni Gajjar calls season 2 of Russian Doll a trippy odyssey through time and generations.
  
• Luke Y. Thompson calls The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent a meta-movie celebration of Nicholas Cage.
• Saptarshi Ray calls the Indian historical adventure epic RRR a biryani western on bhang. 
• Liza Wemakor shares her thoughts about the Afrofuturist movie Starkeisha. 
• Leslie Felperin calls The Cellar a cliched haunted house movie with a few genuine scares.
  
• Cheryl Eddy shares her thoughts on the horror documentary series Cursed Films II. 
• Dan Persons shares ten heartbreakingly brilliant animated films.
  
• Lawrence Ellsworth takes a look at the mini-boom of sword and sorcery B-movies in the early 1980s.
  
• Cheryl Eddy shares a guide to 24 cinematic Draculas. 
• Eve Taft ranks horror movies about Escape Rooms. 
• Ken W. Hanley shares 21 laughably bad science fiction movies. 
• Anthony Orlando shares his fifteen favourite movie posters of all time.
  
• Noah Berlatsky revisits the 1973 science fiction thriller Westworld. 
• Leah Schnelbach revisits the 1979 religious satire The Life of Brian.
  
• Germain Lussier revisits the 2012 horror film Cabin in the Woods.
  
• Camestros Felapton wonders why Firefly is still so beloved twenty years after the fact. 
• Justin Carter interviews Greg Weisman and Brandon Vietti, showrunners of the animated Young Justice superhero show.
• Jeremy Fuster reports that Netflix has picked up the animated film Nimona after Disney cancelled it, supposedly because of a same sex kiss. 
• Nellie Andreeva reports that the future of The Orville after season 3 is unclear. 
• Nellie Andreeva reports that Frank Langella has been fired from a new adaptation of The Fall of the House of Usher, following allegations of sexual misconduct.
  
• Adrian Horton reports that Will Smith has been banned from the Oscars for ten years after skapping Chris Rock on stage after insulting Jada Pinkett-Smith. No word on whether Chris Rock and other offensive hosts and presenters have been banned as well. 
• Canadian comedian and voice actor Gilbert Gottfried has died aged 67.
  

 

Comments on Star Trek Picard and the many iterations of Star Trek: 

• Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on "Two For One", the latest episode of Star Trek Picard. 
• James Whitbrook shares his thoughts on "Two For One".
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on "Two For One". 
• Cora Buhlert shares her thoughts on "Two For One".
  
• Camestros Felapton shares his thoughts on episodes 5 and 6 of Star Trek Picard.
  
• Ben Child declares that the Star Trek movies must avoid the Marvel money trap.
• Galactic Journey revisits the 1967 Star Trek episode "The City on the Edge of Forever".
  
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the Star Trek Enterprise episode "Detained".
• James Whitbrook reports that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will finally reveal Mr. Spock's full name.
  

 

Comments on Moon Knight and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Daniel D'Addario calls Moon Knight a refreshing change of course for Marvel.
• Leah Schnelbach shares her thoughts on "The Friendly Type", the latest episode of Moon Knight.
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw shares her thoughts on "The Friendly Type". 
• Andy Welch shares his thoughts on "The Friendly Type". 
• Manuel Betancourt shares his thoughts on "The Friendly Type". 
• Sabina Graves shares her thoughts on "The Friendly Type".
  
• Aaron Couch interviews Joe Casey, co-creator of superheroine America Chavez who will appear in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness and whose creators have been paid a pittance for the rights to use the character in the movies.
• Gavia Baker-Whitelaw reports about an uproar about Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness receiving a PG-13 rating.
  

 

Comments on Doctor Who past, present and future:  

• Lauren Morris interviews current Doctor Who showrunner Chris Chibnall.
  
• Huw Fullerton interviews former Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat. 
• Fatemeh Mirjalili takes a look back at the early ideas for the show that would eventually become Doctor Who and notes that it might have been very different and much darker than the show that we got.
  
• Rob Bricken reports that Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor will get one more outing in the BBC podcast Doctor Who: Redacted. 
• Watch a trailer for the remastered version of Doctor Who and the Daleks and Daleks' Invasion of Earth 2150 AD.
  

 

Comments on The Northman: 

• Germain Lussier calls The Northman a visceral and powerful historical thriller. 
• David Rooney calls The Northman a big, bloody, medieval Viking sage about fate, family and revenge.
• Peter Bradshaw calls The Northman a brutal vision of vengeance and violence. 
• Tomris Laffley calls The Northman Shakespearean drama wrapped in Old Norse vengeance. 
• Hannah Strong calls The Northman an epic tale of a wronged Viking prince's quest for vengeance.
  
• Guy Lodge interviews Robert Eggers, director of The Northman. 
• Charles Bramesco interviews Robert Eggers.
  
• John Sundholm reports that the subway posters for The Northman left out the title of the movie, inspiring Twitter users to fill in the blanks. 
  

 

Comments on Everything Everywhere All At Once:

• Lisa Wong Macabasco calls Everything Everywhere All At Once a hugely inventive fantasy film and the first true masterpiece of 2022. 
• Sean Dowie calls Everything Everywhere All at Once a brilliantly maximalist film that’s grounded in a middle-aged Chinese-American woman managing a laundromat. 
• Linda Codega interviews Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, writers/directors of Everything Everywhere All At Once.
• Jack Smart interviews Dan Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, writers/directors of Everything Everywhere All At Once.
• Jack Smart interviews Michelle Yeoh, star of Everything Everywhere All At Once. 
  
• Clark Collis interviews Ke Huy Quan, one of the stars of Everything Everywhere All At Once (and coincidentally also Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Data in The Goonies).   

 

Comments on Dual:

• Todd Gilchrist interviews Karen Gillan, star of Dual, Doctor Who and Guardians of the Galaxy.
• Germain Lussier interviews Karen Gillan.
  

 

Comments on Severance:

• Arturo Serrano calls Severance an instantly addictive business satire.
  
• Paul Levinson shares his thoughts on the season 1 finale of Severance.
  

 

Comments on season 11 of The Walking Dead: 

• Alex McLevy shares his thoughts on the latest episode of The Walking Dead.
• Rob Bricken shares his thoughts on the latest episode of The Walking Dead.
• Rob Bricken also wonders why The Walking Dead waited until its final season to get good again.
  

 

Comments on Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore:

• Ryan Gilbey reports how the Fantastic Beasts series became mired in controversy and lost its magic.
• Benjamin Lee reports that gay references have been removed from Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore for the Chinese release.
  

 

Awards:

• The winners of the 2022 ESFS Awards have been announced.
• The winner of the 2022 Compton Crook Award has been announced. 
• The finalists for the 2022 Prometheus Awards have been announced.
  
• The finalists for the 2022 Aurora Awards have been announced.
  
• The finalists for the 2022 Deutscher Science Fiction Preis have been announced. 
• The winners of the 2021 Australian Shadows Awards have been announced.
  
• The winners of the 2022 Tolkien Society Awards have been announced.
• The winners of the 2022 Golden Brush and Golden Pen Awards have been announced. 
  
• The shortlist for the 2022 International Booker Prize has been announced with some love for genre fiction.
  
• The winners of the 2022 Bafta Game Awards have been announced. 
• The nominees for the 2022 Peabody Awards have been announced.
• The European Science Fiction Society has voted to disallow Russian and Belarussian awards nominations.  
• Chris M. Barkley talks about the rollercoaster of emotions of being a first time Hugo finalist. 
• Cora Buhlert shares her thoughts on the 2022 Hugo finalists.
  

 

Writing, publishing and promotion:

• Carter Wilson explains what he learned from hosting a writing podcast.
  
• Ocean Vuong talks about taking the time you need to write.
• Max Florschutz points out that conflict does not have to be physical.
  
• Sarah Maria Griffin talks about learning storytelling from videogames. 
• Stacey Murphy talks about her love for research.
• Grape reports about the Manuscript Writing Café in Tokyo, Japan, which is intended solely for writers on a deadline.
  
• Jacqui Lipton explains what happens when a publisher cancels a book.
  
• Former Tor editorial assistant Molly McGhee opens up regarding the punishing work environment of junior publishing employees. 
• Ginia Bellafante reports that staffers at Condé Nast are unionising.
  
• Elle Hunt reports about people who use books as furnishings rather than actuall read them.
• John Loeppky reports that dozens of LGBTQ books were removed from Target's online store, supposedly due to a glitch.
• Andrew Albanese reports that PEN America has noted a massive spike in book banning attempts.
• Claire Kirch reports that a US Congress hearing is investigating the spike in book bannings in schools in the US.
  
• Chytomo reports about publishers of Russian propaganda disguised as SFF.
  

 

Interviews:

• Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury, interviews Stephen King. 
• Locus interviews Tim Pratt.
  
• Emma Brockes interviews Emily St. John Mandel. 
• Samantha Edwards interviews Emily St. John Mandel.
  
• Bryn Hammond interviews Sarah Tolmie. 
• Locus interviews Premee Mohamed.
  
• Simon Heller interviews Renan Bernardo.
  
• Runalong the Shelves interviews Stewart Hotston. 
• The Wordcraft Podcast interviews Schuyler Hernstrom.
  
• Jen Gheller interviews Emmie Christie. 
• Phoebe Barton interviews Hannah Yang. 

Reviews:

• James Davis Nicoll reviews Ion Curtain by Anya Ow. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Ocean of Stars by John Dodd. 
• Traveling in Books reviews Fevered Star by Rebecca Roanhorse.
  
• SFF Book Reviews reviews The Galaxy, and the Ground Within by Becky Chambers. 
• Marion Deeds reviews The Circus Infinite by Khan Wong. 
  
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews All the Horses of Iceland by Sarah Tolmie. 
• Aigner Loren Wilson reviews Siren Queen by Nghi Vo.
  
• Paul Weimer reviews The Extractionist by Kimberly Unger.
• Tobias Carroll reviews Destiny of the Dead by Kel Kade. 
• Elizabeth Tabler reviews Destiny of the Dead by Kel Kade.
  
• Richard Fisher reviews Gemini of the Sleeping Gods by Hyperphant. 
• In Search of the Classic Mystery Novel reviews The Mask of the Vampire by Paul Halter. 
• Colleen Mondor reviews Shattered Midnight by Dhonielle Clayton. 
• Carrie Chi Lough reviews Solace Lost by Michael Sliter. 
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Just Like Home by Sarah Gailey.
  
• Fantasy Faction reviews Norylska Groans by Michael R. Fletcher and Clayton W. Snyder.
• James Davis Nicoll reviews Vita Nostra by Marina and Sergey Dyachenko, translated by Julia Meitov Hersey. 
• Hank Wagner reviews Beat the Devils by Josh Weiss. 
• Rachael McKenzie reviews The Candy House by Jennifer Egan.
  
• Gary K. Wolfe reviews The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd. 
• Paul Di Filippo reviews How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu
• Roseanna Pendlebury reviews The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews The Tangleroot Palace and Other Stories by Marjorie Liu.
  
• Ian Mond reviews The Best of Lucius Shepard Volume 2 by Lucius Shepard. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Under the Moon by E.M. Faulds. 
  
• Alex Brown reviews Reclaim the Stars, edited by Zoraida Córdova.
• Ian Holloway reviews Queens of the Abyss: Lost Stories from the Women of the Weird, edited by Mike Ashley. 
• Alex Brown reviews Trouble the Waters, edited by Sheree Renée Thomas, Pan Morigan and Troy L. Wiggins. 
• Runalong the Shelves reviews Story Matrices - Cultural Encoding and Cultural Baggage in Science Fiction and Fantasy by Gillian Polack
• Brian Atteberry reviews Reverse Colonization: Science Fiction, Imperial Fantasy, and Alt-Victimhood by David M. Higgins.

 

Classics reviews:

• The Cromcast revisits the 1818 gothic science fiction novel Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley.
  
• Mark Yon revisits the 1912 sword and planet novel A Princess of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
  
• James Maliszewski revisits the 1920 dark fantasy story "The Doom That Came To Sarnath" by H.P. Lovecraft. 
• Sandy Ferber revisits the 1925 lost world novel Vampires of the Andes by Henry Carew.
  
• Matthew Pungitore revisits the 1931 cosmic horror novella "The Whisperer in Darkness" by H.P. Lovecraft and its 2011 film adaptation. 
• Alan Brown revisits the 1937 science fiction novel Adrift in the Stratosphere by Professor A.M. Low. 
  
• Bill Ward revisits the 1941 historical novel I Am a Barbarian by Edgar Rice Burroughs. 
• G.W. Thomas revisits the 1950 horror story "The Ormolu Clock" by August Derleth.
  
• Victoria Silverwolf revisits the May 1967 issue of Worlds of Tomorrow. 
• Victoria Silverwolf revisits the 1967 science fiction novels The Space Swimmers by Gordon Dickson and Those Who Watch by Robert Silverberg and Gideon Marcus revisits the 1967 science fiction novel Miners in the Sky by Murray Leinster.
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1977 space opera Hunter of Worlds by C.J. Cherryh.
• Ken Lizzi revisits the 1979 historical fantasy novel The Dragon Lord by David Drake.
• James Maliszewski revisits the September 1982 issue of White Dwarf.
• Greg Mele revisits the 1982 sword and sorcery novel Cyrion by Tanith Lee.
• James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1984 post-apocalyptic novel The Wild Shore by Kim Stanley Robinson. 
• Paperback Warrior revisits the 2008 horror novel Nowhere to Hide by R. Patrick Gates.
  
• Joe Sherry revisits the 2011 October Daye urban fantasy novel One Salt Sea by Seanan McGuire.
  

 

Crowdfunding:

• Issue 3 of Starward Shadows is looking for funding.
• The Old Gods of Appalachia roleplaying game is looking for funding.
• Kristine Kathryn Rusch weighs in on Brandon Sanderson's record-breaking Kickstarter on more time.
  

 

Con and event reports:

• Norbert Fiks shares some photos of LuxCon, the 2022 EuroCon in Dudelange, Luxembourg.
  
• Tor.com announces the 2022 virtual TorCon.
  
• James Whitbrook looks ahead at the 2022 Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim, California. 
• Publisher's Weekly reports about the virtual US Book Show.
  
• Lyndsey Winship calls the play Akram Khan's Jungle Book Reimagined, which is performed in Leicester, UK, a bleak postapocalyptic reimagining of a classic.
  
• Sabina Graves interviews Alex Lee, entertainment producer for Disney's Galactic Starcruiser Resort in Orlando, Florida.

 

Science and technology:

• Christian Davenport reports that SpaceX is launching the first all-private mission to the International Space Station. 
• Eric Mack reports that NASA is testing SpinLaunch, an accelerator that is supposed to slingshot payloads into space. 
• George Dvorsky shares a look inside SpacePerspective, a luxury balloon ride that will take wealthy passengers to the edge of space.
  
• Cade Metz reports about DALL-E, an AI that draws anything on command.
• Isaac Schulz reports that the W boson elementary particle is much bigger than expected or predicted.
• Ed Cara reports that scientists are using the gene editing software CRISPR to create hypoallergenic cats.
• Jonathan Amos reports that the fossilised leg of a dinosaur that was killed in the asteroid strike that wiped out the dinosaurs has been found in North Dakota.
  
• Linda Geddes reports that fungi communicate with each other via electrical impulses.
  
• Amy Zipkin reports that vertical farms are becoming increasingly popular.  
• Stuart Heritage tells the story of Phoenix Jones, a real-life superhero who operated in Seattle, Washington.
  
• Keith Roysdon reports about the so-called "Satanic Panic" that swept across the US in the 1980s. 
• Linda Codega shares a gallery of ancient icosahedrons a.k.a. D20 dice. 

Free online fiction:

• "The Dominion of Leviathan" by Manish Melwani in Tor.com.
  
• "To Live and Die in Dixieland" by Russell Nichols in Apex Magazine. 
• "The Day It All Ended" by Charlie Jane Anders in Lightspeed. 
• "A History of Snakes, Part II" by Ashok K. Banker in Lightspeed.
  
• "Nara's Story" by Ross Hightower in Swords and Sorcery Magazine
• "The Time Speaker" by Emmie Christie in Luna Station Quarterly. 
  
• "Gateway" by Michael Burke in Wyngraf Magazine. 
• "Hanuman the Monkey King" by Pan Haitian, translated by Emily Jin in Clarkesworld. 
• "Dream Factory" by Greg Egan in Clarkesworld. 
• "How to Make a Man Love You" by Hannah Yang in Fantasy Magazine. 
• "Homeless Ghosts" by Victor T. Cypert in Nightmare Magazine.
  
• "Black Wings" by Steve Rasnic Tem in The Dark.
  
• "Eye of the Storm" by Steve Rasnic Tem in Daily Science Fiction. 
• "100 Ways to Pass as Human" by Nicole Sbitahi in Daily Science Fiction.
• "Gold and Memory" by Peter Sartucci in Daily Science Fiction.
• "Sole Survivor" by Kristine Kathryn Rush.
  

 

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a trailer for season 4 of Stranger Things. 
• Watch a trailer for The Man Who Fell to Earth. 
• Watch a trailer for Crimes of the Future.
  
• Watch a trailer for Suzume Locking Up the Doors.
• Watch a trailer for season 13 of Mystery Science Theatre 3000.
  
• Watch a 1986 fake news broadcast about a nuclear terrorist attack on Indianapolis, Indiana, that was made as part of the US government training simulation.