Speculative Fiction Links of the Week for October 23, 2026

 

It's time for the latest weekly round-up of interesting links about speculative fiction from around the web, this week with the Masters of the Universe live action film and Masters of the Universe in general, VisionQuest and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general, Clayface, Lanterns and the DC Cinematic Universe in general, Wildwood, Wicker, Klara and the Sun, season 2 of Cyberpunk Edgerunners, Crystal Lake, The Devils at fifty-five, the search for the next James Bond, tributes to Tom Skerritt and Ryu Murakami and much more.

Speculative fiction in general:

• Emily C. Hughes shares her favourite recent horror novels. 
• Molly Odintz shares horror novels coming out this fall. 
• Alex Brown shares must read short speculative fiction for September 2026 
• Annalee Newitz explains why pronouns matter in science fiction 
• James Davis Nicoll shares four SFF books unjustly doomed by circumstances beyond their creators' control. 
• Olivia Blake shares her favourite Halloween themed novels. 
• Kevin Johnson shares his favourite holiday horror reading 
• Katherine Daniel shares five horror stories with settings just as creepy as their characters 
• Lorna Wallace shares five horror books told from the monster’s POV
• Dawn Kurtagich talks about wellness culture and horror fiction  
• Natalie Kikic explains how Croatian folklore inspired her gothic novel The Haunting of Lavender House 
• Nghi Vo shares her appreciation for The Adventures of Sindbad by Krúdy Gyula 
• Japanese horror and cult author Ryu Murakami has died aged 74. 
• Isaiah Colbert remembers Ryu Murakami. 

 

Comics and Art:

• Maxwell Pishny ranks the DC Comics Absolute series. 
• Ashley Land discusses what he thinks is the most important Batman comic.  

  

Film and TV:

• Justin Carter claims that Dune is the blockbuster the 2020s didn’t know they could have 
• Luke Buckmaster calls Gnomes a pulpy horror-comedy 
• Phil Hoad calls Vampire Carnival a horror romance with good looks but not much to chew on 
• Phil Hoad declares that the Indonesian movie Ghost in the Cell uses horror for social commentary as it skewers corruption and hypocrisy with likable silliness and raucous energy  
• Dante Luiz declares that the adaptation of My Sad Dead is a perfect introduction to Mariana Enriquez’s oeuvre
• Cath Clarke calls Ghosts: The Possession of Button House a spooky spin-off that unleashes new levels of giddiness.
• Kayleigh Donaldson calls Yaga a steamy and enjoyable supernatural thriller whose ambition exceeds its grasp 
• Ann Michelle Harris calls Kaiju Girl Caramelise a cynical, thoughtful, funny twist on the usual coming-of-age rom-com anime  
• Leslie Felperin calls Children of the Wicker Man a documentary about how the folk-horror classic haunted the family that made it 
• Cheryl Eddy declares that the documentary Boorman and the Devil explains how the legendary horror flop The Exorcist II: Heretic came to be  
• Ben Child notes that yet another proposed Star Wars movie has been put on hold and that Lucasfilm will have to make a movie eventually. 
• Devan Suber claims that movies have finally figured out survival horror
• Olivia Rutigliano shares her favourite folk horror movies. 
• Matthew Byrd and Leah Schnelbach share their fifteen favourite horror movies set in seaside towns 
• Cheryl Eddy lists fourteen upcoming adaptations of fantasy novels. 
• Leah Thomas shares spooky anime for Halloween. 
• Leah Thomas shares anime for fans of Philip K. Dick
• Matthew Byrd shares director James Gunn's favourite body horror films. 
• Kelly Robinson revisits the 1929 animated short film "The Skeleton Dance". 
• Ann Michelle Harris revisits the 1963 horror film The Birds. 
• Kali Wallace revisits the 1971 dystopian crime movie A Clockwork Orange 
• Cheryl Eddy revisits the 1981 horror film Fear No Evil. 
• Haley Zapal revisits the 1986 horror movie Poltergeist 2. 
• Alex Wallace revisits the 1987 animated film  The Brave Little Toaster  
• Haley Zapal revisits the 1988 horror film Child's Play. 
• Tyler Dean revisits the 1988 horror comedy Beetlejuice. 
• Peter Bradshaw revisits the 1996 horror movie Scream. 
• Judith Tarr shares her appreciation for the character of Salem in the 1996 TV series Sabrina the Teenage Witch 
• Keith R.A. DeCandido revisits the 1999 Babylon 5: Crusade episode “Racing the Night” 
• Rachel Sigee revisits the 1999 science fiction comedy Galaxy Quest.  
• Chris McFeely talks about the Lovecraftian monster known as the Dweller in the Depths from Transformers lore 
• Actor Michael Gray, best known for playing Billy Batson in the 1974 superhero TV-show Shazam!, has died aged 75.
• Actress Leslie Parrish, best known for her roles in Star Trek, Batman, The Manchurian Candidate and The Giant Spider Invasion, has died aged 90.  

 

Tributes to Tom Skerritt:

• Actor Tom Skerritt, best known for his roles in Alien, Picket Fences, Contact, Top Gun, MASH and many others, has died aged 93.
• Benjamin Lee remembers Tom Skerritt. 
• Jen Lennon remembers Tom Skerritt. 

 

Comments on the Masters of the Universe live action film and Masters of the Universe in general:

• David Canfield interviews Travis Knight, director of Masters of the Universe, Wildwood and Bumblebee. 
• Matthew Rudoy and Tatiana Hullender report that Travis Knight has said that he would love to make a Masters of the Universe sequel, but that the decision is out of his hands. 
• Digital Charcuterie muses if we will ever get to see the third season of Masters of the Universe Revelation/Revolution. 
• Watch "Mini He-Man?", the latest episode of the Masters of the Universe: Tales from Eternia animated series.  
• Watch "Attack on Castle Grayskull, Part 1", the latest episode of the Masters of the Universe: Tales from Eternia animated series.  

 

Comments on Clayface, Lanterns and the DC Cinematic Universe in general:

• Jesse Hassenger declares that Clayface brings a Universal Monster sensibility back to the DC Universe 
• Jen Lennon declares that Clayface takes the revenge body to a whole new level 
• Leah Schnelbach declares that Clayface writes checks its body horror can’t quite cash 
• Benjamin Lee calls Clayface very gory but not very good  
• Jarrod Jones declares that Clayface's Gotham City reflects DC's focus on telling good stories in spaces created solely for them.
• Alex Brown shares their favourite scenes from Lanterns. 
• Ben Child muses whether a Zack Snyder DC Universe might not have been such a bad thing, after all

 

 Comments on VisionQuest and the Marvel Cinematic Universe in general: 

• Keith R.A. DeCandido shares his thoughts on "Reboot" and "Malware", the latest two episodes of VisionQuest.  
• Jen Lennon shares her thoughts on "Reboot" and "Malware", the latest two episodes of VisionQuest.  
• Sam Barsanti shares his thoughts on "Reboot" and "Malware", the latest two episodes of VisionQuest.
• Matt Webb Mitovich interviews Terry Matalas, showrunner of VisionQuest.   
• Matthew Byrd discusses how the showrunners and actress kept the importance and identity of the character "Butcherbird" in VisionQuest secret. 

 

Comments on Wildwood: 

• Jen Lennon calls Wildwood a technical wonder, with an ambitious and moving story.  
• Frank Scheck calls Wildwood an ambitious stop-motion epic that is both a technical and emotional triumph  
• Monica Castillo declares that Laika tops itself with the stop-motion fantasy epic Wildwood 
• Andrew Osmond declares that Wildwood takes stop-motion animation to a new level. 
• Peter Bradshaw calls Wildwood a pleasingly old fashioned stop-motion magic-forest odyssey
• Tara Bennett shares a look behind the scenes of Wildwood. 

 

Comments on Wicker:  

• Monica Castillo calls Wicker an odd affecting fairy tale.  
• Rebecca Aizin interviews Alexander Skarsgård who plays the Wicker Man in Wicker. 
• Lily Ford recounts how Wicker became the horniest, most tender film of the year 
• Rachel Handlen explains what would actually happen, if you tried to have sex with a wicker man.
• Watch a trailer for Wicker. 

 

Comments on season 2 of Cyberpunk Edgerunners:

• Isaiah Colbert declares that season 2 of Cyberpunk Edgerunners can’t quite outrun the long shadow cast by season 1.
• Isaiah Colbert interviews Bartosz Sztybor, showrunner of Cyberpunk Edgerunners. 

  

Comments on Klara and the Sun: 

• Jesse Hassenger declares that Klara and the Sun isn't as cutesy as it seems at first, nor does it ever transcend that cuteness.  
• Emmet Asher-Perrin declares that Klara and the Sun isn’t up to any task, least of all friendship 
• Xan Brooks interviews Taika Waititi, director of Thor: Ragnarok, Thor: Love and Thunder, What We Do In The Shadows, Jojo Rabbit, Klara and the Sun and many others.  

 

Comments on Crystal Lake:  

• Matthew Byrd discusses how Crystal Lake gaves Jason Voorhees a controversial origin story. 
• Jarrod Jones finds that Crystal Lake dulls Friday The 13th’s jagged edges 
• Daniel Kurland interviews Brad Caleb Kane, showrunner of Crystal Lake. 
• Rebecca Nicholson interviews Linda Cardellini, who plays Pamela Voorhees in Crystal Lake and Laura Barton in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. 
• Glenn Garner interviews Jonathan Tison who plays Jason Voorhees in Crystal Lake. 

 

Comments on The Devils at 55: 

• Isaiah Colbert calls the 1971 horror film The Devils a towering monument of pure filmmaking 
• Leah Schnelbach revisits the 1971 horror movie The Devils. 

 

Comments on the search for the next James Bond: 

• Adrian Horton reports that the screentests for the next James Bond are expected to take place this week. 
• Stuart Heritage explains what the James Bond auditions might look like. 
• Alasdair Stuart talks about the search for the next James Bond as well as Slow Horses.  

 

Awards:

• The finalists for the 2026 Bookseller/Diagram Prize for the Oddest Book Title of the Year have been announced
• The winners of the 2026 Arthur C. Clarke Awards (not the British literary award) have been announced.
• The Self-Published Science Fiction Competition has announced that they will no longer allow AI generated covers.  

 Writing, publishing and promotion: 

• Lindsay Merbaum discusses the parallels between writing and practicing witchcraft.  
• Rebekah Faubion discusses how romance influences her horror and crime writing.
• The Guardian reports that the Canadian publisher Boréal have ended their relationship with novelist Thélyson Orélien over his alleged use of AI  
• Haroon Siddique and George Francis Lee report that all books by Irish writer Sally Rooney will be withdrawn from sale in the UK due to Rooney's support for Palestine Action, which is classified as a terror group in the UK 
• Emma Loffhagen reports that Sally Rooney's novels are selling out in UK bookstores prior to being withdrawn from sale in the UK over Rooney's support for Palestine Action, which is classified as a terror group in the UK 

 

Interviews:

• Krystle Matar interviews Alix E. Harrow.
• Emma Loffhagen interviews Marlon James and Nicholas Boggs

 

Reviews:   

• Gayle Surrette reviews Fury in Death by J.D. Robb 
• Beejay Silcox reviews Life Out of Order by Audrey Niffenegger 
• Sasha Bonkowsky reviews Scion by James Islington.  
• Alex Wallace reviews The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire by Chris Kempshall 
• Alexis Ong reviews A Compendium of Supernatural Entities Found in the Government Girls Higher Secondary School by Kuzhali Manickavel 
• Paul Weimer reviews Villain by Natalie Zina Walschots  
• Alex Brown reviews The Bishop of Durham Attempts to Surrender the City by Susanna Clarke 
• Paul Weimer reviews Cello's Gate by Maurice Africh 
• Natalie Zutter reviews Bodies of Magic by Freya Marske.
• Adrian Collins reviews Voice of Command by Richard Swan 
• Z.B. Steele reviews Requiem of Dice by Timothy Wolff 
• Camestros Felapton reviews Pretenders to the Throne of God by Adrian Tchaikovsky.
• Grimdark Magazine reviews An Edge Sharp Enough by Jesse Q. Sutanto
• John Valeri reviews The Ghost and the Dead Librarian by Cleo Coyle  
• Alex Brown reviews The Unhaunting by Micaiah Johnson 
• Doreen Sheridan reviews Accumulation by Aimee Pokwatka 
• Melissa A Watkins reviews Where We Go at Night by Ikwo Ntekim 
• Isaiah Colbert reviews I Am the Night: The Ultimate Unauthorized History of Batman: The Animated Series by Daniel Dockery.

 

Classics reviews:

• Brian Collins revisits the 1943 horror story “Greenface” by James H. Schmitz 
• Fiona Moore revisits the 1971 literary fantasy novel Grendel by John Gardner, George Pritchard revisits the 1971 YA fantasy novel The Wild Hunt of Hagworthy by Penelope Lively, David Levinson revisits the 1971 science ficiton novel The Coins of Murph by Leo P. Kelley and the 1971 historical fantasy novel The Master of Miracle by Sulamith Ish-Kishor
• Gideon Marcus revisits the November 1971 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction.  
• Brian Collins revisits the 1989 science fiction story “Family” by Joyce Carol Oates  

 

Con and event reports:

• Mark R. Kelly shares his experiences at the 2026 World Fantasy Convention in Oakland, California. 
• Isaiah Colbert shares the program for the 2026 ICON Festival of Comic & Narrative Art in Los Angeles, California.

 

Science and technology:

• Justin McCurry reports that Japan has launched a historic mission to collect rocks from Mars’s moon Phobos
• Richard Luscombe reports that mysterious ‘black triangles’ have been spotted over a sensitive site in the western US.
• Olivia Rutigliano reports that the mystery of who was buried in a Roman sarcophagus found on the premises of Westminster Abbey in 1820 has finally been solved. 

 

Gaming: 

• C.T. Phipps reviews the video game A Plague’s Tale: Requiem 
• Nicole Carpenter reports that Electronic Arts is closing down the legendary video game studio BioWare and that hundreds of employees will be laid off.  

 

Toys and collectibles:

• Jay Glatfelter reviews the DC Premium Batman: Hush Rooftop Bat-Signal Diorama set from Mattel Creations 
• Cybertron Sanity reviews the Hasbro Transformers Legacy Gears action figure. 
• Cybertron Sanity reviews the Hasbro Transformers Age of the Primes Venin action figure. 
• Cheryl Eddy shares a look at the Exorcist Regan MacNeil 1/6 scale figure by Sideshow

 

Free online fiction: 

• "A True and Faithful Chronicle of the Anglo-Saxon Voyage to the Moon in the Year of Our Lord 1261" by Jordon Jones in Beneath Ceaseless Skies. 
• "Islands in the Styx" by James Morrow in Beneath Ceaseless Skies. 
• "Sonatina of Sorcery" by J. VanZile in Swords and Sorcery Magazine.
• "The Date" by Ian McDonald in Reactor.
• "Matters of the Heart" by Eric Schaller in The Dark. 
• "Shambling Groaning Brain-Dead Endocannibal on Exeter Street" by Ferdison Cayetano in Nightmare Magazine.  
• "The Job" by Elizabeth Bear in Clarkesworld. 
• "How Does One Person Kill a Mountain?" by Shi Heiyao, translated by Andy Dudak in Clarkesworld.
• "Ice Like Honey" by Rob Cameron in Lightspeed.  
• "All the Shapes We Have Ever Been" by Kehkashan Khalid in Lightspeed.  

 

Trailers and videos:

• Watch a trailer for season 3 of The Rings of Power. 
• Watch a trailer for Slayground. 
• Watch a trailer for Above the Below.