It's
time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting
links
about speculative
fiction from
around the web, this week with Star Trek in general, news from the upcoming Masters of the Universe live action film and Masters of the Universe in general, Ironheart and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, Murderbot, The Old Guard 2, Superman, season 3 of Foundation, season 3 of The Sandman, 40 Acres, Revival, KPop Demon Hunters, 28 Years Later, M3GAN 2.0, Elio, season 3 of Squid Game, Jurassic World Rebirth, Back to the Future at forty, the future of James Bond, tributes to Kenneth Colley, Michael Madsen and Lalo Schifrin and much
more.
Speculative fiction in general:
- Cheryl Eddy shares 82 new science fiction, fantasy and horror books arriving in July
- Reactor shares all the new science fiction books arriving in July 2025
- Reactor shares all the new fantasy books arriving in July 2025
- Reactor shares all the new horror, romantasy books arriving in July 2025
- Reactor shares all the new young adult SFF books arriving in July 2025
- Martha Wells recommends science fiction and fantasy books to enjoy.
- Molly Odintz shares twenty-five new and upcoming horror novels to look out for this summer (and beyond).
- Danie Shokoohi also shares horror novels to enjoy this summer.
- Lorna Wallace shares five weird western novels.
- Nick Belardes talks about re-imagining the American West for modern horror audiences
- Darco Auffenorde declares that setting is the silent puppeteer of gothic fiction.
- Barnaby Martin notes that post-apocalyptic fiction is often about parents and children.
- Leah Schnelbach lists eight horrifying SFF monsters who might turn out to be lovable
- Ratika Deshpande shares six haunting stories about the things ghosts long for
- Brandon O'Brien talks about speculative poetry and sincerity
- Sitara's Garden explains the unexpected popularity of The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien with the counterculture movement of the 1960s.
- Xinhua reports that Chinese science fiction is gaining popularity with Indonesian readers.
- Bradbury 100 discusses the friendship betwee Ray Bradbury and Leigh Brackett.
- Eric Ofgang discusses the difficulties of finding any information about the circus performer Mr. Electro who inspired a young Ray Bradbury in 1932.
Comics and Art:
Film and TV:
- Tim Ford declares that the Nautilus premiere is engaging, but wonders if it can do justice to Captain Nemo.
- Isaiah Colbert calls Lazarus a briefly gorgeous anime that vibes hard but can’t outpace its own silence
- Isaiah Colbert calls Leviathan a Steampunk anime soaring with heart, even if its animation grounds it
- Cheryl Eddy declares that Hot Spring Shark Attack is goofy and it knows it
- Catherine Bray calls Monsters of California a science fiction slacker comedy
- Phoebe Wagner shares her thoughts on episode 9 of season 2 of Andor.
- Melody McCune shares her thoughts on the latest episode of Resident Alien.
- Diana Keng shares her thoughts on the latest episode of The Librarians: The Next Chapter.
- Catherine Bray calls Jungle Trouble an utterly charmless kiddie cartoon patches together corpses of animations past
- Rich Pelley interviews Maxine Peake, star of Silk, Black Mirror, See No Evil: The Moors Murders, Words of War and many others.
- Victoria Silverwolf revisits the 1959 Filipino-American horror film Terror is a Man, the 1966 Filipino-American horror film Brides of Blood, the 1969 Filipino American horror film Mad Doctor of Blood Island and the 1970 Filipino-American horror film Beast of Blood
- Cora Buhlert revisits the 1960 East German science fiction film The Silent Star.
- Stuart Heritage revisits the 1979 horror movie Zombie Flesh Eaters, which was once banned in the UK, and finds it quite harmless.
- Kali Wallace revisits the 1984 science fiction film The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension
- James Whitbrook revisits the 1995 superhero movie Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie
- Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the 1996 Babylon 5 episode “Interludes and Examinations”
- Liam Gaughan revisits the 2005 alien invasion movie War of the Worlds.
- Stuart Heritage wonders why Steven Spielberg and other directors of that generation refuse to retire.
- Emma Russell reports that voice actors who dub movies are protesting against the possibiliy of AI stealing their jobs and voices.
- Neil Otterson reports that Neil Druckmann, co-creator and showrunner of The Last of Us, is leaving the show ahead of season 3.
Tributes to Kenneth Colley:
Tributes to Michael Madsen:
- Actor Michael Madsen, best known for his roles in Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill, Species, The Getaway, Donnie Brasco, L.A. Confidential, Natural Born Killers, Thelma and Louise, War Games, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Hateful Eight and many others, has died aged 67.
- Peter Bradshaw shares his appreciation for the work of Michael Madsen.
- Actress Virginia Madsen, sister of Michael Madsen, remembers her brother.
- Michaela Zee shares a tribute to Michael Madsen.
- Emma Keates remembers Michael Madsen.
- Jim Vorel remembers Michael Madsen.
- Joanna Ruck shares photos from Michael Madsen's life and career.
Tributes to Lalo Schifrin:
Comments on Masters of the Universe in general:
- Me’Sha Bryan interviews Jon Xue Zhang who plays Ram-Man in the upcoming live action Masters of the Universe movie.
- James Eatock revisits the 1984 He-Man and the Masters of the Universe episode "Island of Fear".
- James Eatock takes a look at Willowind, a character who was supposed to be main cast member in the She-Ra cartoon, but then removed.
Comments on Murderbot:
Comments on season 3 of Foundation:
Comments on Star Trek in general:
Comments on The Old Guard 2:
- Emmet Asher-Perrin declares that The Old Guard 2 delivers the same thrills and fervour as its predecessor
- Isaiah Colbert calls The Old Guard 2 a tender sophomore stretched thin by sequel syndrome
- Caroline Siede calls The Old Guard 2 a zippier but more basic follow-up
- Liam Gaughan calls The Old Guard 2 a deeper, yet more frustrating sequel
- Benjamin Lee calls The Old Guard 2 a misshapen action fantasy follow-up arrives with a baffling cliffhanger ending
- Isaiah Colbert interviews Victoria Mahoney, director of The Old Guard 2.
- Isaiah Colbert interviews KiKi Layne, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Marwan Kenzari and Henry Golding, stars of The Old Guard.
Comments on Ironheart and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general:
- Jarrod Jones declares that Ironheart blurs the line between Marvel prestige and bland comfort TV
- Kathryn Porter declares that Ironheart lays the path for a bright future
- Justin Carter discusses the ending of Ironheart.
- Matt Webb Mitovich discusses an unexpected character reveal in Ironheart.
- John Dodge interviews Chinaka Hodge, showrunner of Ironheart.
- Sydney Bucksbaum interviews Dominique Thorne who plays Riri Williams in Ironheart.
- Ben Child wonders whether Galactus might actually win in Fantastic Four: First Steps.
- Watch a behind the scenes video about Fantastic Four: First Steps.
- Watch a trailer for Eyes of Wakanda
Comments on Superman:
Comments on 28 Years Later:
- Haley Zapal calls 28 Years Later a breathtaking glimpse at brutality, humanity and hope
- Rai Furniss-Greasley shares his thoughts on 28 Years Later.
- Louis Peitzman notes that there is an exceedingly well endowed zombie in 28 Years Later.
- Luke Hicks discusses how cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle created the unique look of 28 Day/Weeks/Years Later.
Comments on KPop Demon Hunters:
- Alasdair Stuart calls Kpop Demon Hunters is witty, sweet, funny and funky
- Kali Wallace declares that KPop Demon Hunters understands the joyous power of music
- Laura Sirikul interviews singer-songwriter EJAE who wrote the songs for KPop Demon Hunters
- Sabina Graves reports that the animated pop stars of KPop Demon Hunters are climbing the US Billboard charts.
Comments on M3GAN 2.0:
- Benjamin Lee calls M3GAN 2.0 a hit-and-miss sequel that replaces horror with action comedy
- Arturo Serrano declares that M3GAN 2.0 looks shinier and cooler, but is by no means an upgrade.
- Lorinda Donovan shares a spoilerish review of M3GAN 2.0
- Kayla Cobb shares producer Jason Blum's opinion why he thinks M3GAN 2.0 failed at the box office
Comments on Revival:
Comments on 40 Acres:
Comments on The Sandman:
Comments on season 3 of Squid Game:
- Cheryl Eddy declares that Squid Game delivers a harrowing, heartbreaking final installment
- Christina Orlando calls season 3 of Squid Game unhinged and wonders whether the show really needed two more seasons at all.
- William Hughes declares that season 3 of Squid Game hits the ground running with one of its nastiest contests yet.
- William Hughes calls episode 2 of season 3 of Squid Game a claustrophobic masterwork.
- William Hughes shares his thoughts on episode 3 of season 3 of Squid Game.
- William Hughes shares his thoughts on episode 4 of season 3 of Squid Game.
- William Hughes shares his thoughts on episode 5 of season 3 of Squid Game.
- William Hughes declares that Squid Game ends perfectly—and then keeps going for another 20 minutes
- Elijah Gonzales declares that Squid Game’s final season begins strong before ending on a misplay
- Rebecca Nicholson declares that the final season of Squid Game has an ending so WTF it entirely beggars belief
- Cheryl Eddy declares that the final scene of Squid Game is a cop-out
- Stuart Heritage discusses the real reason the Squid Game finale is so bleak.
- Germain Lussier explains how a certain cameo at the end of Squid Game came to be.
- Jackie Strause interviews Hwang Dong-hyuk, creator of Squid Game.
Comments on Jurassic World Rebirth:
- Peter Bradshaw declares that with Jurassic World Rebirth the near-extinct franchise roars back to life
- Jesse Hassenger calls Jurassic World Rebirth the best Jurassic movie in ages,
- Rory Doherty declares that the wonder is gone in Jurassic World Rebirth
- Germain Lussier calls Jurassic World Rebirth a suitably fun, undeniably thin dino adventure
- Leah Schnelbach declares that Jurassic World Rebirth is more of a retread
- Germain Lussier interviews Gareth Edwards, director of Jurassic World Rebirth.
- Jazz Tangcay interviews Gareth Edwards.
- BBC Front Row interviews Garath Edwards.
- Peyton's View revisits the 1993 dinosaur movie Jurassic Park.
Comments on Elio:
- Ryan Gajewski charts the troubled production of Elio, which includes a change of director, actress America Ferrera leaving and queer themes being erased.
- Matt Schimkowitz declares that Pixar's self-censorship of Elio's queer themes may have doomed it
- Sabina Graves notes that Elio was Pixar’s latest victim of cuts to erase a queer storyline
Back to the Future at Forty:
- David Smith revisits the 1985 time travel movie Back to the Future for its fortieth anniversary and takes a look behind the scenes.
- Charlie Jane Anders and Germain Lussier declare that Back to the Future is a damn perfect movie
- The Unofficial Hugo Book Club Blog revisits Back to the Future and the other finalists for the 1986 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation and declares it a most worthy winner.
- BBC Witness History celebrates the fortieth anniversary of Back to the Future.
Comments on the future of James Bond:
Awards:
- The shortlist for the 2025 Manly Wade Wellman Award has been announced.
- The winners of the 2025 ESFS Awards have been announced.
- The finalists for the 2025 Killer Nashville Silver Falchion Awards have been announced.
- The finalists for the 2025 Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award have been announced.
- The finalists for the 2025 Dream Foundry Contest have been announced.
- The 2025 inductees into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame have been announced.
- Brian U. Garrison talks about the proliferation of awards to celebrate speculative poetry and why this is a good thing.
- Chris M. Barkley chronicles the odyssey to get his Hugo trophy released by Dave McCarty.
Writing, publishing and promotion:
- Alan Erickson explains where he gets his ideas.
- Chris Fox talks about writers bringing people hope.
- Katherine Wood shares tips for writing a locked room mystery.
- Victoria Strauss offers an introduction to moral rights.
- Victoria Strauss explains why the bankruptcy clause in your publishing contract may not protect you
- James Hill reports about the bookbinder Atelier Devauchelle in Paris, France.
- Tom Tapp reports that The Booksmith, a bookstore in San Francisco, California, has removed the Harry Potter books in response to J.K. Rowling's increasingly virulent anti-trans views.
- ABC-7 News also reports about The Booksmith pulling the Harry Potter books.
- Locus reports that in addition to The Booksmith, the LGBTQ bookstore Fabulosa Books, also in San Francisco, has also pulled J.K. Rowling's books from the shelves.
- Robert Tait reports that the US Supreme Court has ruled that schools must let kids opt out of LGBTQ+ book readings
- Chloe Veltman reports that a group of more than seventy authors has launched an open letter and a petition to publishers about the use of AI.
- Elsie Lange chronicles how audiobook narrators and voice actors deal with the threat of AI
- Aaron Moss notes that judges are split on the various AI copyright cases.
Interviews:
- Daniel Roman interviews Martha Wells.
- Sherry Johnson interviews Naomi Kritzer.
- Arley Sorg interviews Annalee Newitz.
- Arley Sorg interviews Allison King.
- Scott Edelman interviews Samantha Mills.
- Adam's Notes interviews Ivy Grimes.
- Danielle Dutton interviews Pip Adam.
- Désirée Bertram interviews Cora Buhlert
Reviews:
- Russell Letson reviews The Fourth Consort by Edward Ashton
- Alexandra Pierce reviews Slow Gods by Claire North
- Marlene Harris reviews Harmattan Season by Tochi Onyebuchi
- Ian Mond reviews Landfall by James Bradley
- Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews The Outside by Ada Hoffmann
- James Davis Nicoll reviews Blight by Rachel A. Rosen
- Abigail Nussbaum reviews Meet Me at the Crossroads by Megan Giddings
- Marion Deeds reviews Where the Axe is Buried by Ray Nayler
- A.J. Hill reviews Kill Them with Kindness by Will Carver
- Bill Capossere reviews Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
- Anthony Perconti reviews Sometime Lofty Towers by David C. Smith.
- Colleen Mondor reviews The Legendary Scarlett & Browne by Jonathan Stroud
- Paul Weimer reviews Wearing the Lion by John Wiswell
- Alexandra Pierce reviews A Mastery of Monsters by Liselle Sambury
- Niall Harrison reviews Red Sword by Bora Chung
- Marion Deeds reviews Shield of Sparrows by Devney Perry
- Alex Brown reviews Abeni and the Kingdom of Gold by P. Djèlí Clark
- James Davis Nicoll reviews Vanya and the Wild Hunt by Sangu Mandanna
- Arturo Serrano reviews The Impossible Resurrection of Grief by Octavia Cade and After the Dragons by Cynthia Zhang.
- Alex Faccibene reviews A Far Better Thing by H.G. Parry
- Z.B. Steele reviews Conspiracy by A.C. Cobble
- Julia Kitvaria Sarene reviews Awakened by A.E. Osworth.
- Sharon Richardson reviews Whistle by Linwood Barclay
- Runalong the Shelves reviews Eat The Ones You Love by Sarah Maria Griffin
- Niall Harrison reviews Portalmania by Debbie Urbanski
- Marlene Harris reviews Lake of Souls by Ann Leckie
- Robin Marx reviews Volume 7 of Old Moon Quarterly.
Classics reviews:
- Sam Reader revisits the 1910 ghost story “Afterward” by Edith Wharton
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1937 cosmic horror novel To Walk The Night by William Sloane
- Dave Hook revisits the 1949 collection The Wheels of If, and Other Science Fiction by L. Sprague de Camp
- Lorna Wallace revisits the 1950 fix-up novel The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury.
- Gary Varner revisits the 1952 time travel story "A Sound of Thunder" by Ray Bradbury.
- Brian Collins revisits the 1961 science fiction novella “Undergrowth” by Brian W. Aldiss
- Sandy Ferber revisits the 1967 dark fantasy novel The Druid Stone by Simon Majors
- Amber Dubin revisits the 1970 science fiction novel Deeper than Darkness by Greg Benford, Joe Reid revisits the 1970 heroic fantasy novel Nine Princes in Amber by Roger Zelazny and Tonya R. Moore revisits the 1970 science fiction novel The E.S.P Worm by Piers Anthony and Robert E. Margroff
- Gideon Marcus revisits the July 1970 issue of Analog.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1980 dystopian novel Golem100 by Alfred Bester.
- James Davis Nicoll revisits the 1983 science fiction novel The Dreamstone by C J Cherryh
- Clara Cohen revisits the 2001 epic fantasy novel Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb.
- Kat Hooper revisits the 2002 YA fantasy novel Hidden Truth by Dawn Cook
Con and event reports:
- ConCurrent, the counter-project to the 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington, launched by Mia Tsai, had officially partnered with the Seattle Worldcon.
- The 2025 Worldcon in Seattle, Washington, has opened site selection voting for the 2027 Worldcon.
- Mike Glyer reports that the 2027 Worldcon bid for Montreal, Quebec, Canada, has added Bruce Farr as a co-chair.
- Darin Briskman and Bruce Farr, co-chairs of the 2027 Worldcon bid for Montreal, Quebec, Canada, explain why you should vote for them in site selection.
- Tammy Coxen wonders about the viability of the Montreal Worldcon bid.
- Locus shares a photo of the 2025 Mo*Con in Indianapolis, Indiana.
- Jesse Green shares his thoughts about a musical adaptation of the YA fantasy novel A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, which is currently playing in Washington DC.
Crowdfunding:
Science and technology:
- Eric Berger reports that astronomers may have found a new interstellar object passing through the solar system.
- Noor Al-Sibai reports that Elon Musk's latest rocket crash allegedly killed innocent dolphins and sea turtles
- Matthew Williams reports that the Nyx space capsule, which is carrying human ashes and cannabis plants and seeds, has crashed into the Pacific Ocean.
- A.J. Dellinger reports that one million robots are working in Amazon warehouses, graudally pushing humans out.
- Sharon Adarlo reports that a startling percentage of neuroscientists say we could extract memories from dead brains
- A.J. Dellinger reports that in order to combat AI deep fakes, Denmark is giving its citizens the copyright for their own face.
- Pluralistic report that everybody's Meta AI prompts are in a live, public feed, including personal information.
- Margarita Bassi reports that DNA analysis has helped to rediscover the recipe of the Roman fish sauce garum.
- Peter Burditt reports that singer John Denver nearly took part in the fateful Challenger flight that ended in disaster in January 1986.
Toys and collectibles:
- Pixel Dan reviews the Mattel Masters of the Universe Origins Despara and Battle for Eternia four-pack.
- Toy Habits reviews the Flip-Or The Champions of Nefarity action figure and accessories by Hatter Toys
- James Whitbrook shares a look at Jazwares San Diego Comic Con exclusive toys.
- James Whitbrook shares a look at new Lego sets coming out in July.
Free online fiction:
- "The Diner at the Intersection of Duty and Despair by John Chu in Uncanny Magazine
- "The Walled Garden" by Fiona Moore in Clarkesworld.
- "Missing Helen" by Tia Tashiro in Clarkesworld.
- "The Bloody Briar" by Ali Abbas in Swords and Sorcery Magazine.
- "The Lord of Mars" by Meghan McCarron in Lightspeed.
- "What Else, What Else, in the Joyous City?" by Sadoeuphemist in Lightspeed.
- "Whalesong" by Guan Un in The Deadlands.
- "An Insufficiency of Light" by Jason M. Waltz in Swords and Heroes.
- "The Black Refinery" by Nadia Amatullah King in Strange Horizons.
- "Skin and Bones" by Gary McMahon in The Dark.
- "Asking for It" by Kristi DeMeester in Nightmare Magazine.
Trailers and videos:
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