Looker 1981

Long before The Matrix, long before Avatar, a not-very-classic movie was made. It’s about a plastic surgeon  who touches up models searching for perfection, only to have them show up dead and yet somehow digitally imaged and still alive in the media. In 1981, the effects weren’t great, but being writing and direction by a young Michael Crichton (Jurassic Park, Twister, Runaways) was the push the studio needed to greenlight this film.  Even then, as a new author, Crichton held enough sway to put this on the screen. Add to that a stellar cast that included Albert Finney (Wolfen), James Coburn (The President’s Analyst), Leigh Taylor-Young (Soylent Green) and Susan Dey (yes, THAT Susan Dey), and this movie outshines a predictable  script to become a first draft of a cautionary tale about technology and the future.

Finney as the bemused surgeon, Coburn as the cynical corporate head, and Dey as the digitally exploited model make for a better than average popcorn afternoon. Terse editing, good directing, and a solid if dated script all make this movie work. The movies dubious distinction of being on the list of the top 100  sex scenes in science fiction notwithstanding, it is worth a re-watch. It’s soft, where dystopian movies tend to be harsh, the soundtrack is safe and nondescript, the moral is predictable as hell and yet,  the amazing acting talents of Coburn and Finney under pedestrian circumstances make this a treat to watch.

As is the problem with movies like this , they invariably settle into one of three categories, they either become timeless  classics (1984, any version will do), dated trivia (I, Robot, damn you Will Smith) or, in this case, a somewhat whimsical cautionary tale, that while missing the mark for the test of time it still fun to watch because on balance it is more positive then silly.

This is Dome sayin’: Remember fondly the innocence of youth, and enjoy every sandwich.

Our undead hostess interviews cosplayers during the 2012 Free Comic Book Day event at Double Midnight Comics in Manchester, N.H.

Chris and The Dome discuss Free Comic Book Day Mania with a very suspect Spiderman listening in. Keep your eyes peeled for a Deadpool cameo! One never knows what you will see at Double Midnight Comics, Manchester, N.H.

• Maurice Sendak dies at 83
• Disney shockingly greenlights “Avengers 2”
• The Avengers had super box office numbers.
• Joss Wheadon writes to YOU
• Disney’s Maleficent.
• Guillermo to make stop motion Pinocchio
• Next Generation is 25
• Leonard Nimoy comes out of retirement for Fringe
• Also to be Boston University commencement speaker
• James Cromwell cast for American Horror Story
• Poll:  What’s the best name for a Steampunk beer?

Tonight’s guest is Mike Dougherty, director of the Firefly/Serenity fan film Browncoats: Redemption. He gave us the inside scoop on his newest project, Z-Con. This new film is an original story about a podcast that becomes the only link to the outside world for a convention overrun by zombies. In three weeks (or so) a Kickstarter campaign will begin to fund the production. Like Browncoats:Redemption, all of the proceeds from Z-Con will go to charity, so the more funding it receives, the more  they can do to ensure large donations. To learn more about Z-Con, visit their website and their Facebook page.

In an interview gone horribly wrong, two members of Kiss Forever are “interviewed” by The Dome. No animals were harmed during the course of this interview.

Interviews with cosplayers at Double Midnight Comics, Manchester, N.H.

This uncomplicated premise is the core of Hero Envy. It is the story of four friends, all
huge comic fans themselves, who must find a way to prevent the end of the world. The
brilliance of Hero Envy is that it’s a comic for comic fans about comic fans and it plays to
that strength from start to finish.

On almost every page you will find a reference to another comic book that will make diehard fans grin from ear to ear. These are written into the dialogue so smoothly that they will not take away from the story if you don’t get them. The characters, and their group dynamic, are all very likable and provide plenty of humor on their own. I found the Comic Con sequence to be priceless, really capturing the essence of what its like to be there all while poking fun at the culture surrounding those events.

The art enhances theme, fitting the feel of the comic perfectly. At first it may seem simplistic, almost boring, but on closer examination it is anything but. The character expressions are so well done that they offer an extra layer of depth to the characters that is surprising and unexpected, and their individual expressions add an incredible amount of humor to the pages, driving the comics theme home.

By the end of the story you feel like you know the characters and could hang out with them yourself. That’s the best part about Hero Envy, it understands comics, the culture, and the people who love them. Making Hero Envy a refreshing blend of action and humor that shouldn’t be missed by comic fans everywhere.

Don talks about the return if his webcomic Dark Magic and Doughnuts and his art at Harrison’s Comics in Manchester, N.H.

An interview with artist Jason Casey at Harrison’s Comics and Pop Culture in Manchester, N.H. It contains a surprising homage to professional wrestling.

In a  strange alignment of the universe, we meet the Eat Sleep Comics Podcast at Double Midnight Comics in Manchester, N.H. during their Free Comic Book Day 2012 day-long event. Can two podcasts interview each other simultaneously? Let’s find out…

Ten Years of Comics in New Hampshire.

Summit City Comic Con

• Daredevil Reboot
• Van Helsing reboot casts Tom Cruise
• Coraline director to take on The Graveyard Book
• Tor goes DRM-free for all e-books
• Free Comic Book Day
• Read a preview of the new Serenity comic for Free Comic Book Day
• Boston Comic Con
• Benedict Cumberbatch to play Khan in ST2
• Fringe gets renewed
• Silver Circle online comic ends

This week’s guest is Zack Kruse, founder of Summit City Comic Con which takes place in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Summit City focuses mainly on artists and strongly supports the interaction of presenters in Artist’s Alley with guests. One of the ways they do this is by handing out “Con Bingo” cards. For each interaction on the card you can get a stamp at the corresponding table for completing it. Once the card shows “BINGO”, it can be turned in to be entered into a raffle for some fabulous prizes. Summit City also has some great activities specifically geared towards kids, such as a kids only costume contest and a kids’ comics workshop at the Allen County Public Library. Summit City Comic Con is May 12 at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Sky Pirates of Valendor

Sky Pirates of Valendor is a beautiful marriage of fantasy and science fiction elements that shouldn’t be ignored. If you have never heard of Sky Pirates or missed out on the first volume there is no need to worry.  The second volume does an excellent job of introducing itself and the previous story lines at the beginning and then dives right into the plot without skipping a beat.

Volume 2 opens with a tense bar scene, involving Tobin, captain of the Rouges Revenge, and Shyni, one of the many women in Tobin’s life.  The story kicks it into high gear almost instantly revealing details of both Tobin and Shyni’s past, while explaining how it connects to the political turmoil that faces Valendor and the challenges that lie ahead for Tobin and his crew.

Sky Pirates’ biggest strength is that the art and words come together almost flawlessly to help immerse the reader into the world of Valendor.  Things such as Tobin ordering whiskey at the bar, his problems with his father, and his issues with Shyni and ex-wife Gearz all help the reader connect with the characters on a human level that makes Valendor come alive.

The art work hammers this home by providing an incredibly high level of detail in every panel.  From the backgrounds, to the characters expressions, to the dirt on Tobin’s boots, it seems every detail in every picture is jumping off the page at you, bringing you deeper into the world of Valendor.  The art work shines brightest in the Issue 4 delivering an intense battle sequence worthy of any great action movie.

The back pages of the comic are jammed with extras that die hard fans will drool over.  Things such as ship schematics, maps of Valendor and the personal log of Captain Nickerson all add to extra elements to the comic and create a large and mysterious back story surrounding the world of Valendor.

Overall Sky Pirates of Valendor is a fun and exciting comic that delivers  on every level and shouldn’t be missed by anyone who considers themselves a fan of good artwork and great story telling.

Silver Vengeance

So here’s the story:  through no fault of anyone’s I got interrupted reading this book on 4 separate occasions and felt the need to retrace my steps when I started again. Why? It’s a complex read, and to give it justice you must immerse yourself in this reality. From the initial family turmoil, to the complex reality of adult Gabrielle Gayle’s life, Silver Vengeance is a story of coping with the hidden horrors of what you are and the reality that lies beneath the urban sameness we live in. It is a story of awakening for Gaby as she answers questions she has suppressed her entire life. Were-Witches (a chilling combination), boyfriends, family turmoil, and mother/daughter/sister issues all wrapped around the questions, “who am I? and what have I become?”

Urban Fantasy is becoming a more accepted mainstream genre. Kasey has a knack for juxtaposing gore and normalcy so that the mind is constantly asking more questions than the book answers…leaving the reader wanting more. She doesn’t waste words but instead gives the reader the chance to work with the story and paint pictures along with her. Reading about extraordinary circumstances in ordinary settings, I was left wondering what it is I miss in daily life that Gaby and other characters are forced to deal with every day.

Kasey introduces the reader to a new character and a new paradigm in urban fantasy.  When I was finally able, through no fault of the book, devote the time to reading this, I was deeply appreciative of the depth of her characters, the richness of her setting and its bloodthirsty under current marks this book as something special to read and look for more of. I heartily recommend it.

For the purposes of full disclosure, this book was a review copy sent to SFSN. No other remuneration was given or implied.

Norman Spinrad

• Poll:Which sci-fi doctor is LEAST likely to give you medical attention?
• Boston Comic Con Wrap up
• Star Trek TV Series on hold again

Tonight’s fascinating guest is Norman Spinrad:  author, essayist, and screenwriter.  Although he could not discuss his lost Star Trek script, He Walked Among Us, we could (and did) discuss his thoughts on the past, present, and future of the Sci-Fi genre. If you like what you hear, we recommend checking out Norman’s blog, which contains more of his thoughts as well as information about the digitization of many of his published works.

“The saddest day of your life isn’t when you decide to sell out. The saddest day of your life is when you decide to sell out and nobody wants to buy.”–Norman Spinrad

(Correction: On this podcast we mistakenly state that J.J. Abrams directed Wall-E. The film was actually directed by Andrew Stanton, but everything we said about it being awesome is still true.)

Displayed at Lotus Gallery were a number of original works and sequential pages of both popular and local artists. The show serves a reminder of the creativity and originality of the art that goes into the mythos of comics. It is a good reminder of the talent of the people who bring us stories of pain and glory, fall and redemption.

The Summit City Comic Con preview event runs on Saturday April 27th from 6pm to 9pm and Saturday April 28th from 12pm to 4pm at Lotus Gallery, 1301 Lafeyette St. Fort Wayne, IN 46802.

Keep Calm and Carry a Raygun

• Facebook Poll: Sci-Fi’s Greatest Visionary
• I Robot on Blu-ray 3D
• Sin City2
• Bill and Ted 3
• Prometheus Site
• RIP Jonathan Frid
• Scientists invent not a REAL sonic screwdriver!
• Silver Circle to debut their  Official Trailer at BCC
• Boston Comic Con

This week Dave Gordon was excited to tell us about the third annual Watch City Festival. The original steampunk city, the Watch City Festival  is a street fair that takes place all over Waltham, MA which has a rich industrial history that blends perfectly with steampunk themes. Events include a choose your own adventure pub crawl, hot air balloon rides, mime classes (for kids), and special performers all over the city. Many events are open to the public, but purchase of a pass entitles the bearer to all events as well as special discounts at many restaurants and shops. The Watch City Festival is presented by the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation  and runs May 11, 12, and 13 in Waltham MA. Passes are: Adults – $20 for the weekend or $15 per day – Children – $10 for the weekend or $7 per day.

• Poll:  Who’s your favorite sci-fi feline?
• Boston Comic Con
• Maggie upgraded on Walking Dead.
• Boston Comic Con
• http://www.mapofthedead.com/
• Boston Comic Con
• New documentary about voiceovers: I Know That Voice
• Boston Comic Con
• District 12 is up for sale
• Boston Comic Con
• CenturyGuild.net

Spider Robinson

It is a wonderful day indeed when a fan gets the chance to meet an author, one on one, face to face. Well, if you are a Spider Robinson fan (if you read or listen to us you damn well better be) and you live anywhere near Vancouver, your pleas have been answered. Spider is going to be “Special Guest” at the  Fan Expo Vancouver and April 21, 2012. FEV is a new convention to Canada and Spider will be there, not on a panel but just to sit and chat and sign books. White Dwarf Books will have many of Spider’s books available for you to buy. Drop by, say hello, and get the chance to speak for a moment with one of the real gentlemen of Science Fiction. Tell him Sci Fi Saturday Night sent you!

Go Back to Hogwarts by Juli Mayers

• Poll:  Who’s your favorite radioactive sci-fi character?
• Adam West gets a star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
• CBS shuts down fan production of old Star Trek Script
• Film: The Raven
• AT&T Discovers lost Henson film
• Neil deGrasse Tyson corrects Titanic
• A real archer rips on Hawkeye

Tonight we were joined by not one, but three guests!

Juli Mayers is a perennial Boston Comic Con fixture in Artist’s Alley. She is accepting commissions before and during the convention, and you can see her work on her Deviant Art page. Juli also draws the webcomic Wicked Unscripted.

Reprising her appearance last week, we also had the pleasure of speaking to Laura Ortiz, but this time she was joined by her equally fabulous Holliston co-star Corri English. (NB: Watch the premiere episode of Holliston before you tune in this week… spoilers!) Holliston airs on Tuesdays at 10:30 PM on FearNET, but if you and don’t get that channel (we don’t!), you can catch up on iTunes every Wednesday.

• The Poll:  Who is the most incompetent sci-fi villain?
• DC lingerie
• Hunger Games has a record opening
• 1984 is remade again.
• Batman LIVE gets US tour dates
• Mars Attacks: The Musical???
• Game Of Thrones: Season 2
• Mythbusters’ Grant Imahara Playing Sulu in a New Star Trek Fan Film! [io9]
• Total Recall Trailer
• Gandalf Steps in to Save The Hobbit Pub?
• A Tardis Wedding Ring

• Poll:  Who are the best minions?
• Michael Bay swears he will not ruin Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
• Doctor Who’s new companion
• Java, you want your fucking zombies? [SPOILERS for Walking Dead]

Tom Sniegoski

• The poll:  who’s your favorite Buffy villain?
• Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Intro Remade With Toys
• The Legend of Korra
• Doctor Horrible 2 is ready to film!
• AMC Theaters to host a Marvel movie marathon
• Spider Robinson’s Petition to preserve the CBC’s musical archive
• Graceful Woman Warrior
• Encyclopedia Britannica done with books
• Steve Carell involved in Magic Kingdom
• The Hunger Games
• The Walking Dead
• Boston Comic Con exclusive:  Lee Falk’s widow to sell original Phantom and Mandrake art

Tonight’s guest is author  Tom Sniegoski (Goodreads), whose diverse work includes comics, young adult novels, and adult novels.  He frequently collaborates with friend-of-the-show Christopher Golden. Tom is currently working on the 3rd book in his  series based on the Bone comics by Jeff Smith, and Bone: Quest for the Spark #2 is available now! He told us that the next installment of the Remy Chandler series is on its way, and we discussed the publisher model and why no one has read his hidden gem, Legacy.

• Poll:  Which sci-fi character best represents their city?
• Bender elected to DC School Board
• Two Hunger Games clips
• Disney does NOT want you to see this NSFW John Carter comic
• People literally going crazy over squirrel meat
• Fox kills Terra Nova
• American Horror Story re-casts actors as new characters
• James Cameron going underwater to film Deepsea Challenge
• Massive solar storm about to hit.
• Douglas Adams wrote for Doctor Who
• Neil Gaiman’s Douglas Adams Biography
• L5-Series CG art in every frame.
• Silver Circle in the news!
• RIP Ralph McQuarrie - Star Wars concept artist
• Back to the Future Hoverboard: Making of
• Bid on Nathan Fillion’s steampunk arm from Castle

Fredrick Brown was a master of short fiction. His quick wit and acerbic sense of timing made many of his stories timeless. It has been said that Philip K. Dick was a devotee of his writing and you can see many similar models in Dick’s work. His stories were the basis for many episodes of Star Trek-TOS, Blake’s 7, and The Outer Limits. Perhaps his most prophetic novel was The Lights in the Sky Are Stars, a poignant story of an astronaut begging Congress to refund the Space Program (sound familiar?).

This door has a time lock set to open in one hour. For reasons you will soon understand, it is better that you do not leave this room before then. There is a letter for you on the desk. Please read it.

Thus begins the tale of a man transported into his possible future. Written in 1954, this is a story of time travel and a historical look at how we thought our world might be today.

Submitted for your approval, “Hall of Mirrors”:

 For an instant you think it is temporary blindness, this sudden dark that comes in the middle of a bright afternoon.

It must be blindness, you think; could the sun that was tanning you have gone out instantaneously, leaving you in utter blackness?

Then the nerves of your body tell you that you are standing, whereas only a second ago you were sitting comfortably, almost reclining, in a canvas chair. In the patio of a friend’s house in Beverly Hills. Talking to Barbara, your fiancée. Looking at Barbara—Barbara in a swim suit—her skin golden tan in the brilliant sunshine, beautiful.

You wore swimming trunks. Now you do not feel them on you; the slight pressure of the elastic waistband is no longer there against your waist. You touch your hands to your hips. You are naked. And standing.

Whatever has happened to you is more than a change to sudden darkness or to sudden blindness.

You raise your hands gropingly before you. They touch a plain smooth surface, a wall. You spread them apart and each hand reaches a corner. You pivot slowly. A second wall, then a third, then a door. You are in a closet about four feet square.

Your hand finds the knob of the door. It turns and you push the door open.

There is light now. The door has opened to a lighted room … a room that you have never seen before.

The rest of the story can be found here.

Robot God Akamatsu

Harris Tobias is an enigma in the world of indie writers. His Facebook and blogspot pages are rather cryptic. For a man who has written several novels and hundreds of stories, there is simply not much to find out about him.

This story, featured in Quantum Muse, is a variation on a theme:  a tale spinning through time, literally.  Myrna and Lester Crump need a vacation. Hearing from their friends about the wonders of a temporal trip, they come to pay a visit to Lorna Trabish to seek out the obscure and different…

Submitted for your approval, “The Travel Agent”:

 “Well, there’s no time like the present you know?” Lorna Trabish leaned on her desk for emphasis and opened the brochure. A full figured woman in her early sixties, Lorna looked the part of the eager to please travel agent. “We have tours to fit every budget and every activity level.”   She eyed the heavyset couple sitting across from her and gave them a dazzling capped tooth smile.

“You could visit the pyramids. We’re having a big promotion right now—two for the price of one. A tremendous savings. It’s filling up fast. You get to be a part of a slave gang and actually help build the pyramids. Just think of the stories you can tell your friends. It’s very exciting. We have a wonderful guide who will be your overseer. You get to live with a slave family and…”

“I don’t think that’s for us,” interjected Myrna Crump who had been leafing through the brochure during Lorna’s breathless pitch. “Lester doesn’t like the sun.”

The rest of the story can be found here.

• Poll:  Who do you want to see at next year’s Boston Comic Con?
• Help Spider and Jeanne Robinson’s daughter fight cancer / Spider Robinson’s daughter needs your help!
• Ghost Rider creator ubersued by Marvel
• The Superhero Movie Guilt Calculator
• On a lighter note: the Walking Dead Mid-Season return

Queen City Kamikaze Con

• Facebook Poll: Our listeners’ favorite DOOMED romantic couple is Dr. Horrible and Penny
• 37th Boston Sci-Fi Film Festival runs Feb 10-20
• Harrison Ford to play Decker in Bladerunner movie?
• Raiding the Lost Ark documentary
• Lucas says Greedo Shot First
• Timecrimes director releases full trailer of Extraterrestrial
• The Kitchen Sink film
• A live action Jetsons film?
• M. Night Shyamalan, After Earth
•  The Walking Dead
• American Horror Story is renewed.

Nauticon

• Facebook Poll: Wonder Woman wins sexiest heroine.
• Alex Kingston on the fate of River Song.
• Tickets on sale for Granite State Comic Con 2012.
• Vote for SFSN in the NH Hippo Press.
• Happy Birthday to Bob Shaw and Brent Spiner.
• Watchman prequels.
• The end of Torchwood.
• CW’s Beauty and the Beast’s 911 origins.
• Wannabe Hobbits arrested.
• WB drops Elfquest, because it’s the same as The Hobbit.
• The Walking Dead return packs more action.
• Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark has original artwork replaced.
• Trailer for Trollhunter.

Our guests are Pam Larson and Mary Dumas of Nauticon, a 21+ Fanvention to be held in Provincetown, Ma., May 18-20. Nauticon is billed as an event where all fans of any type of fandom can attend and feel comfortable discussing topics of a more adult nature than is normally appropriate at general conventions. Also atypically, Nauticon doesn’t feel the need to pigeonhole themselves into a set theme, rather going with “cool stuff we like”. Pam and Mary also work on humongous events like Anime Boston, and are working on a bid for WorldCon in Disney World. As a side note, while on the show, Pam and Mary announced that they would nominate SFSN for A HUGO AWARD! Thanks guys!

“How do authors find their way to Fiction Friday,” you ask? Well, each one has their own road less traveled to Sci Fi Saturday Night and none more circuitous than this entry. A chance remark by one of the original hosts of the show to an acquaintance brought Timothy to us in a series of emails.  The course of the emails revealed any number of interesting coincidences to explore over the coming days, not the least of which was his website, Quantum Muse, a repository for a host of writers.

Timothy O. Goyette has lived in New Hampshire all of his life,  except for an 8 year stint in California.  Tim is the Editor of Quantum Muse a web zine with weekly flash fiction and monthly short stories in Science Fiction, Fantasy and Alternative.  It is also an online writer’s group. Some of Tim’s stories are in the collection: Quantum Musings.  Others are on the Quantum Muse site.  He writes both serious and humorous stories.

Animal right and animal testing takes a turn for the macabre and disturbing in a story of two girls and Mr. Whiskers in a somewhat foreboding future. Submitted for your approval is the second story featuring his characters Sasha and Katrina, Was it My turn to Put Out the Rats?

“This won’t hurt, Mr. Whiskers.” Katrina said as she wrapped her fingers around the pudgy body of her favorite rat.

“You shouldn’t make friends with those wretched creatures.” Sasha said. She moved in with the syringe. “Just hold it still, will you?”

“You aren’t vermin, Mr. Whiskers, are you?” Katrina touched noses with the sniffing rodent.

“Don’t make me sick.”

“Do you ever wonder what we’re putting in our furry friends?”

“If it were really important they’d have one hundred thousand dollar-a-year scientists working on it in some secret lab in New Mexico. Let’s not get carried away.”

The rest of the story can be found here.

Mime Very Own Book

Doug Jones joins us to talk about his new book, Mime Very Own Book, a coffee table book in which he depicts famous and infamous people and events in classic Doug Jones fashion. We talked about his previous work, including the just wrapped Neighborhood Watch, which opens in July, 2012. We also discussed why At The Mountains of Madness was shelved. He shares some “secrets” of his prosthetic work in Hellboy and the choices between special effects and makeup, and gives us a little tease about Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming Frankenstein project.

The mystery of Leigh Lane is manifold. Living in Montana with her family, she is a writer of dark fiction, reminiscent of some of the most fear-inducing science fiction ever written. She has a unique sense of pace and a quirky use of words and juxtaposition  that makes even the most simple and straightforward of plots and motivations twist and tumble. The  intelligence in her writing  is wonderful. This week’s Fiction Friday story is a selection from  Of Mind and Matter, a compilation of her short stories.

Submitted for your approval in its entirety, “The Search for Intelligent Life”.

Sal could contain her excitement no longer. After over three months of travel, she and her crew were now on the brink of a new frontier. “This is it, guys!” she finally said, her urge to speak prompting a realization that she had been holding her breath for far too long. She took a deep breath.

The captain remained calm, or at least he appeared so, but the first officer gave an eager chuckle in response to Sal’s words.

“Its moon looks just like ours,” Sal continued.

“The planet itself looks a lot like ours,” the first officer added. “I wonder if the life- forms are as similar.”

“Let’s not lose our focus,” the captain said sternly.
Sal and the first officer exchanged glances.
“We’ll have plenty of time to celebrate, once we’ve returned home,” the captain continued. “Right now we have a job to do.”
“Yes, sir,” the first officer said, his mood already abating. He looked down at his console. “Shouldn’t we be going slower?”

The captain took a look. “Sal, what’s going on?”

Sal accessed the manual thrusters, finding that two of the five were receiving minimal power and one of them hardly functioned at all. She hit the intercom button on her panel. “What are you two doing down there?”

“We’re working on it!” one of the technicians nervously responded, his voice crackling through the intercom.

“All systems tested functional,” the first officer snapped.
“They were never tested for such long distances,” Sal muttered, suddenly feeling spiteful in her fear.
The technician’s voice came over the intercom again: “We must have burned out half the system in the acceleration. The diagnostics don’t seem to be functioning, either!”

“So what do we do?” Sal yelled back.

Silence.

The captain stormed over to Sal’s console. “We need an answer! What are our options, Zee?”

“There’s nothing we can do, sir,‖ the technician responded. ―At our current speed, we might be able to survive a crash if—”

“A crash?” the captain interrupted, suddenly breaking into a sweat. He turned to Sal and the first officer.  “Prepare for impact. “ He returned to the console. “We’re counting on you, Zee.”

Sal felt sick and dizzy. She had known that the mission was high-risk. What they were doing had never been done before. In theory, based on the results in the testing rooms, this was all supposed to be a success. They would be heroes when they returned home.

If they returned home.

The idea of traveling to another star system would have been considered ludicrous not even five years ago, let alone the idea of actually finding another planet that harbored intelligent life. All it took was a radio wave found from space a month before the beginning of the project, one that came as a surprise to even their greatest scientists, one that was clearly sent as a call toother planets. Within a few months, antimatter propulsion was a reality.

The mission was to observe the planet from a high orbit, and then determine whether some sort of contact would be feasible. The idea was like some strange dream when initially proposed to Sal. After decades of UFO sightings speculated in the news and talk of aliens reserved for the crazy, she now had the opportunity to be that UFO. Intelligent life on other planets could now be determined as fact; scientists like herself who lacked credibility because of their exploration in the matter would finally have their last word.

The reality of their imminent crash struck Sal back into focus, as the two technicians entered the room.

“What are you doing in here?” the captain roared.

The technicians both scrambled into the empty seats, preparing for the impact. “We’re not sitting in the belly of this thing just as she’s about to crash!” one of them said.

The captain held his tongue.

Sal studied her console. “I can reverse the thrusters we do have left, and then focus on the reverse propulsion system, once we’ve entered the lower atmosphere.”

The captain nodded, sweating profusely. “Whatever you think will give us the best chance.” He glanced over at the terrified technicians, disgust and contempt washing over his pale face.

“We’re going to make it!” Sal said, working hard on her console.

“I hope that whatever life is down there is friendly,” one of the technicians said with a deep, shaky sigh.

“We’re gonna die!” the second technician immediately cried out. The ship began to shake.

“Prepare for impact,” the first officer said, his voice trembling.

The crew strapped themselves into their chairs, and then braced themselves, bending their bodies over their knees and clasping their hands behind their necks.

The second technician began to pray, with tears streaming down his cheeks. “God help us!” he pleaded.

The ship slammed into the rocky terrain, bouncing a few times before sliding several hundred feet to a stop. The frail hull violently tossed the astronauts about, despite their efforts to brace themselves, and one by one it dealt them each a series of devastating blows.

Sal opened her eyes, a light moan escaping her. She had been badly injured, and she realized after a moment that her back had been broken.

“Oh God!” the second technician screamed at the top of his lungs. “Zee? Zee?”

The first technician lay limp in his chair, blood streaming from his mouth, nose and ears.

The first officer also appeared to be dead, as well, his head fractured from a strong impact against one of the consoles.

The captain appeared dazed, but not too horribly injured. He stared silently at his crew mates, his jaw slightly agape.

The second technician began to wrestle out of his belts.

The captain also got up, stumbling dizzily as he took a moment to gain his footing. He moved to the first officer’s console, gasping, his back and lungs spasming from one of the many heavy blows his body sustained. “The computers are off-line,” he breathed, struggling to regain his breath.

The panicking technician scampered to the door-hatch. “We’ve got to get out! We’ll run out of air! Open the door!”

The captain stumbled over to the technician, tackling him to the floor. “We don’t even know yet if this planet has the right consistency of oxygen! Are you crazy?”

“I can’t breathe!” The technician began to hyperventilate. The captain tried to hold him down, but the technician punched him in the face.

The captain continued to fight the technician. “For the love of God, get a hold of yourself!”

“Can’t breathe!” the technician gasped, and then threw the captain aside and darted for the door.

“What are you doing?” Sal cried, trying to get out of her belts. Shots of pain darted up and down her spine, but her legs were completely numb. She cried out, realizing that her back had been broken in the impact.

The technician pried open the door, despite a third attempt by the captain to hold him back, and a gust of sandy air filled the room. “Oxygen! We’re not suffocating!” he laughed. “Who’d have thought?” He peered through the door. “Doesn’t look like anything lives here – it’s all desert.”

“Well, you can’t just run out there!” Sal yelled, feeling helpless and dazed.

The captain kept his distance. “Maybe the people here live underground. Or perhaps this is their dead-lands. You can’t just assume—”

“Captain!” Sal yelled, hoping she might prompt him into stopping the technician from exiting.

“Wait!” the captain ordered.

The technician hopped out of the craft, turning with a grin. It took him a moment to realize that his feet were sinking into the sand. “Kinda mushy . . . .” His smile quickly faded as he realized he sank uncontrollably. He kicked and struggled in attempt to get back to the ship. The captain tried to reach for him through the door, but he was unable. He shuttered as,within seconds, the technician completely submerged beneath the surface.

Sal’s heart raced. “What just happened?”

The captain gazed out. “I don’t know.” He made his way back to his seat. “The terrain seems to be unstable.”

“Then why isn’t the ship sinking?”

The captain shook his weary head, confused. “Perhaps this is a carbon-based planet.” “Carbon-based?” Sal gave a look of doubt. “Carbon-based life forms only exist in theory.”

Exhausted and injured, the captain sat back in his seat. “We failed. . . .”

“But maybe the next team won’t.”

The captain sighed. “Maybe.”

As positive as Sal tried to remain, she had a hard time holding back her tears. She felt an incredible anxiety over the uncertainty of their fate. But worse than that, the captain was right. The mission was a failure. As far as everyone back home knew, they had found nothing. No one would even know that this planet, although not completely solid, had breathable air. They would not be getting the definitive answer they had been so patiently waiting for – the answer to that universal question: Are we alone?

The captain jumped to his feet as a loud rumbling seemed to grow near. He shrieked as he spotted a strange vehicle moving along the ground. “Humanoids, like us!”

Sal began to cough up blood. Her body had been more seriously injured than she had initially thought. “What do they look like?”

The captain shrugged. “Strange faces . . . tiny eyes.” He hurried to Sal’s side.
“I think I’m dying!” Sal coughed, her heart pounding and her mind growing faint.

“Maybe these humanoids can help you.”

Sal stared straight into the captain’s eyes. “If they’re a friendly race.”
The captain stayed by Sal as the humanoids approached the ship. “It’s going to be okay,”he assured her.

The humanoids spoke in a strange language, but both Sal and the captain could understand the fear in their voices, as well. It was not reassuring to know that they, too, were afraid.

Sal fought to remain conscious. She closed her eyes, her thoughts becoming jumbled and her mind slowly feeling detached from her body.

“Captain . . .” she mumbled, unable to finish.

“I’m here, Sal,” he responded, staring at the door.

The humanoids had weapons in their hands . . . and such ugly creatures they were, from up close. They had noses and ears that protruded unnaturally from their jagged faces. The creatures varied greatly in shape and size, as did the strange colored masses of short thread that grew over the bulk of their visible bodies and extended to great lengths from their heads and faces.

The captain cowered back. He saw much evil in the tiny eyes of these humanoid-beasts. “We come in peace,” he said, his voice shaking.

They began to speak in their strange language again, seemingly provoked by the captain’s words.

Sal tried to get a good look at them, but she felt herself fading quickly, her eyes straining to remain focused.

Sal thought about what would have happened if a UFO had crashed on her home planet, and wondered how her people would react to the introduction of an uninvited alien species. And with that, she proceeded to scream.

•  This week’s Facebook poll: The Raven is our readers’ favorite Poe story.
• The CW orders Green Arrow pilot and a reboot of Beauty and the Beast.
• SyFy’s Swamp Volcano & Arachnoquake.
• Will George Lucas stop making movies?
• Spielberg on Robopocalypse.
• Eight years ago, Paramount lost the rights to John Carter of Mars.
• Marcus Nispel directing Hack/Slash.
• BBC’s Sherlock confirmed for a third season.
• FDR American Badass, the most recent alternate history film.
• MMA Fighter Gina Carano vies to play Wonder Woman.

Our guest is writer and artist Ben Templesmith. We reminisced about meeting Ben two years ago at Boston Comic Con, and his participation in our Jeanne Robinson fundraiser jam sketches. (Adding color isn’t cheating Ben!) We examined why 30 Days of Night (the book and/or the movie) didn’t feel like a huge career boost. Ben mentioned that Wormwood: Gentleman Corpse would definitely be continued, and when asked about his artistic inspiration, didn’t miss a beat in naming Ralph Steadman. Meet Ben in April, at Boston Comic Con.

LJ Kentowski always wanted to be an FBI Agent. She pursued this dream for most of her formative years, throughout college, and passed the first round of tests. She also met her husband to be, and when the choice came to stay or go to the FBI, she stayed. Luckily for readers, since that time she has decided to work toward her second dream of writing. Finding time after work, after tending to family, and after everything else, she writes. Her first novel, Guardians of Fate, has just been published and the second volume is due in August 2012.

Horror comes in many forms. It is somewhat easy to comprehend when it is a gore filled scene, limbs hacked, screams emitted; somewhat less so when it is something seen, yet unseen, when the participants in said event are no longer sure where truth lies and possibly worst of all when that truth is revealed to unseeing eyes.

Submitted for your approval, in its entirety, Kentowski’s short story:  ”Torn Apart”.

Stacey walked into the bedroom. Looking down at Jason sleeping peacefully in bed, she seethed with rage. How could he sleep so soundly knowing what he had just done?

Her hand trembling, she brought it down hard on Jason’s cheek. He woke with a start, jumping up from the bed. With eyes still focusing, he grabbed her upper arms, pinning them to her sides.

“What are you doing?” he yelled at her.

“How could you do this to me Jason? Where is she?” she questioned, looking around him.

Stacey didn’t see the woman anywhere. Where could she have gone? Unless she left through the window, she had to still be here in the room somewhere.

“There’s no one here but me and you!” he tried to convince her.

She relaxed the tension in her arms. “Jason, I saw you in bed with her. Where is she hiding?” She broke away from him and began looking in the closet and under the bed, to no avail.

“Did she go out the window? How could you do this to me, Jason?” she started to cry.

“Please calm down. There was no other woman.” He pulled her down to sit on the bed and looked up at her as he kneeled on the floor in front of her.

“Are you saying I’m crazy and just imagined seeing you with another woman in our bed? Is that really how you are going to plead your case, Jason? Can’t you show me an ounce of respect and admit what you’ve done?”

He hung his head down for a moment. When he looked up, there were tears in his eyes. He searched her eyes weighing how much he should reveal. She knew this was it. What was left of Stacey’s heart was destroyed.

“Ok, Stacey,” he said softly, “you’re right, I was here with another woman. I’m sorry you had to see that.”

“Who is she?” Stacey asked.
“Her name is Jessica,” he answered.
Terrified of his answer, she asked, “Do you love her?”
“Yes, but you don’t understand right now. I love you too. More than anything in

this world, Stacey, I love you.” Crying now, he looked so hurt and torn, as if he were the one that had been betrayed.

“How can you love me and hurt me like this? You can’t love us both. Love doesn’t work that way Jason!”

The reality of this was too much for Stacey to deal with. She needed to think this all through. Starting to stand up, she felt light-headed again and sat back down.

Jason noticed her falter. He grabbed her trembling hands in his. “Stacey, I need you to come with me. I think I can help you understand all of this. Will you try to understand for me? For us?” he pleaded desperately.

She looked at him. He was everything to her, but he had cheated. What more was there to understand? There couldn’t possibly be an explanation to make infidelity acceptable. She had now choice, however, there was nothing else but him.

The Truth

Karen A. Wyle is a reader’s writer. She has two different genres in which she works, and her writing is based on what she is interested in and what she reads. She began writing at a very young age, and finished her first novel at age 10. Her website shows the duality of her writing, focusing on both Sci Fi and children’s books. This short story combines the best of both of her muses.

The maternal instinct runs deep. Science fiction has dealt with this concept in many different ways, allowing the reader to look upon different paths, different futures. This is the story of Ellie Simmons, a story of her life, her loss and what she still may lose. In a dystopian future, wanting a child is dangerous enough, cloning one from the genetic code of her dead husband makes it not just dangerous but illegal.

Submitted for your approval, “The Baby”.

Ellie lay in the bed and would not open her eyes.

Once she opened her eyes, it would all begin. She would see the baby, and he would look like her lost Daniel. Daniel as a baby, of course. And she would have Daniel again, as long as they both should live. And she would never have Daniel again, as long as she lived.

She listened, but heard no breathing. There were so many other sounds — buzzes and hums of equipment, tinny music, wheels of carts, footsteps. A baby’s breathing would be too quiet. But should she be hearing it?

She felt and heard her own breathing accelerate in a panicky rhythm. Was the baby all right? Had something gone wrong?

She opened her eyes.

The rest of the story can be found here.

Edgar's Comics by David Johnson

• In this week’s SFSN Facebook Poll, The Restaurant At The Edge Of The Universe is the finest place to have a drink on New Years Eve.
•  The Alien Brothel.
• Dollhouse’s Dichen Lachman is a new character on SyFy’s Being Human.
• Kickstarter Project fully funded for Lachman’s  film, Sunday Punch.
• Benedict Cumberpatch and Noel Clarke cast in the new Star Trek.
• Star Trek Online is now free.
• Raiders of the Lost Ark compared to older adventure movies.

Our guest, David Johnson, is the writer, producer and director of the film Edgar’s Comics. The movie is a narrative documentary which explores two influential events in comic book collecting history. The first, is the accumulation of Edgar Church’s collection, and the second is it’s discovery by Chuck Rozanski. A Kickstarter Project is David’s effort to continue this movie to completion.

In the coming weeks, Resa Nelson will once again join us on the podcast to talk about the second installment in her Dragonslayer Series: The Iron Maiden. I thought this week for Fiction Friday I would send all the readers a gift from her. If you follow the link below, it will take you to her site where you can download a .pdf  mini-book of her short stories that were the genesis for her series. They are wonderful.

Submitted for your approval,  The Dragonslayer Stories.

Coderunner

It is getting harder and harder to define what a “gamer” is in a world that has embraced social and casual gaming. Most everyone I encounter routinely and actively plays games of one sort or another, and the extent of knowledge that people have about games is slowly rising. The community that I grew up in is changing, and the main thrust of that change has been focused around engagement and value in the games that people are playing. No longer is gaming the bastion of the obsessive and compulsive among the geek community. It is heartening to come across a game that not only hits a sweet spot for the “casual phone gamer” but also inspired in me the need to play the snot out of the game.

Coderunner is that sort of game. It draws you in from the moment you boot it up. And because of the visual style (that of a 1980s DOS interface) you actually feel like you are booting up a program. You can almost hear the tape drives chugging away in some ancient data center secreted away in a mountain protected by Richard Dean Anderson. The cold war-esque ambiance continues through the training videos, narrated by an appropriately British accent. But the real hook isn’t the graphics or the ambiance afforded by keen design. No, what really draws a player into this world of intrigue and danger is the story. A story which centers around you and the world you inhabit. The buildings and people you see every day take on a darker cast as the cloak and dagger routine begins, inviting you to view the world through different eyes:  the eyes of a spy.

The Department of Privacy has recruited you, as an appropriately curious person, to investigate s some events surrounding a high profile public figure from the government. Throughout the story it is hard to really know what side you are on, and at the end of the adventure you are offered a choice of how you wish to proceed. Do you side with the Orwellian institution and help to keep people safe? Or do you ally yourself with the shady underground, attempting to throw off the shackles of oppression?

The game uses Google Maps data to “see” the world around you and integrate what it knows about your location into the story. It was because of this that I found myself 3 blocks away from my apartment with one shoe on and one show in my hand. For the next 3 hours I visited bus stops, ATMs, and a school in order to get or give information about the people in the story. As Deep5, my handler, was talking into my ear I became not just a player, but a participant. I was so drawn into the story that I found myself looking at people passing me not he sidewalk wondering if they were enemy agents. I put my hood up to hide my face so I wouldn’t be recognized. I avoided places where I saw cameras, and modified my body language so that I would not be noticeable to the passerby.

I felt that I was a spy, not that I was playing one. And that is a tall order for a game to fulfill. By nature there is always an interface between game and game player. Be it a controller or a touch screen, we have to interact with an object in order to play. In Codrunner, the world is your interface and the phone becomes a secondary device. It is used in the game, but it isn’t the game itself. The game is played in your mind, by your imagination. The same imagination that would terrorize the backyard games of childhood and inspire you when confronted by a cardboard box find fertile ground in the universe of Coderunner.

We had a chance to speak with Jeff MacPherson , one of the team who created Coderunner on the podcast, and I highly encourage you to go back and listen to the conversation we had. He had some great things to say not only about what Coderunner is, but what the future holds for this incredible universe.

(iTunes Link)
(Coderunner Website Link)

Written and directed by Greg Pak, who is known primarily for his work in comics for Marvel and his short films, this outing is a tour de force of emotion and contrast. There are several choices Pak makes, first and foremost of which is an almost completely Asian cast. While, after a few brief moments, it does not detract in any way, one is left wondering at that choice while acknowledging how well it works.

Of the four vignettes, my favorite has to be the one with the most tenuous tie to Sci Fi, called “The Robot Fixer”. This story centers on a mothers attempt to connect with her dying son through the repair of his childhood robot toys. At times stereotypical and other times gut wrenchingly emotional this is something anyone who ever wants to make a film should see. No crashes, no special effects, simple human emotion, both raw and tender. It was chilling and I wished this segment would never end.

This feature has won 23 awards and quite frankly deserves a showing in your living room some rainy Sunday afternoon. To quote from Greg Pak, “Everything is changing…except the human heart”. I heartily recommend this film as a stunningly beautiful antithesis to any other robot movie you may have ever seen.

Huldufolk by Rob Watts

• This week’s  SFSN Facebook Poll reveals Patrick Stewart should play The Dome in his biopic!
• The Top 5 Hard Science Retractions of 2011.
• Ghost Rider creator loses lawsuit.
• Buy a Batman print and help a talented artist with her medical bills.
• Pirates of Penzance meets Firefly.
• The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe hits record low ratings.
• Cruise ships follow The Titanic.
• Doctor Who MMO Worlds In Time.
• Neverending Story E-Reader cover.
• The Hobbit trailer.

Our guest is Rob Watts author of Huldufolk, a horror novel set in both Iceland and Massachusetts. He is also a musician and songwriter for The Traffic Lights, an Icelandic Trance band whose music is integral to the book. Currently, the book and CD can only be purchased together. Go watch the teaser to get a taste of the book’s deliciously creepy setting.

Kasey Shoemaker

• Last Minute Geek Gifts:
• Dead RedHead – Plush Cthulhu
• Illustrator X – Creations from Mike Brown
•  Lance Henriksen Near Dark print
• AwakeByJava – The Olloclip
• Dome – Ben Bova’s Power Play
• Nancy Drew Vampire Slayer
• Doctor Who updates for Amy and Rory, Matt Smith, and a hint about a new Doctor.
• STOS solar powered mailbox
• 3-D movies, Joss’ opinion and The Avengers.
• NYCC Geek Speed Dating update on TLC.
• Edgar’s Comics, the movie.

Author Kasey Shoemaker joined us to talk about her new novel, Silver Vengeance, the first of four books in The Silver Series. She discussed the setting in New England and why it is important to this series.We also talked about writers moving out from behind their computers into the public, and different reactions from their audience.

Stacey Longo writes horror fiction of a particularly diabolical nature. Her themes prey upon the most primal of fears and her craft is clean and precise, stark, sharp edged terror. She grew up on a dairy farm in Glastonbury, CT  and lived on Block Island, RI for ten years, which is where she began her writing career as a humor columnist for the Block Island Times from 2000 – 2006. Upon returning to Connecticut, she turned her pen to horror writing. Her short stories have appeared in numerous anthologies and Shroud magazine. This is a short story Stacy contributed to Epitaphs: The Journal of the New England Horror Writers.

Submitted for your approval, in its entirety, the customary tale of a young couple who hop the fence to spend the sunset in terror on a “Private Beach”:

Tom and Shanna walked right past the NO TRESPASSING sign. She was carrying the blanket; he had a bag of fried chicken from a fast food joint and a bottle of champagne. It was a solemn night for Tom; he was going to tell Shanna how he felt, that while he wasn’t ready to marry her yet, he certainly felt that he would marry her someday, and he had a tiny diamond ring with sapphire chips in the band to prove the seriousness of his intent. He was the one that suggested an evening picnic on the beach.

Tom and Shanna had been a couple since his senior year of college, when they’d met in biology class and found themselves lab partners. He was struggling to pass the course. Shanna, two years younger, excelled in science, and had tutored him through the class. They’d been partners ever since, and over the past two years, he’d only cheated on her once; something she’d never found out and he’d never shared, but he was proud of himself just the same. Only cheating on a girl once was a personal best for him, and was all the proof he needed that Shanna was the girl he was meant to marry. Someday.

They had about 45 minutes of daylight before the sun set over the water, and he intended to make the most of the romantic setting. They trudged over the dune, passing the sparse tufts of razor-like grass, agreeing without speaking to head toward a flattened semicircle of sand next to a large, blackened log of driftwood. The wind tugged at the blanket as Shanna tried to smooth it down; she found a rock and a plank of wood, left over from a bonfire, to secure the corners.

“Take a walk?” she asked, smiling at Tom with her emerald green eyes, and he felt his jeans tug uncomfortably for a moment. He nodded, and they latched hands, strolling down the beach.

It was low tide; there was a line of seaweed and debris that the ocean had rejected tracing a path down the sand. The wind was warm, but agitated—Tom had to blink repeatedly to keep grains of sand out of his eyes. “Watch your step!” Shanna yelped, sidestepping an opaque glob with tendrils. “Here’s another one!” she squealed, moving in closer to Tom, as if she needed him to protect her from the dead jellyfish. They meandered on, walking closely, Shanna occasionally stopping to examine a shell or pretty stone. “What’s with all the dead jellyfish?” Tom complained, stepping squarely on a gelatinous mass. He was grateful to be wearing his sneakers. He was pretty sure that jellyfish could still sting, even when dead, and he didn’t want to experience that ever again. He’d been stung by a jellyfish when he was 14, vacationing in Pensacola with his folks, and the pain he’d felt then, ten years ago, was still easy for him to recall to this very day. He’d wound up in the hospital, feverish and unable to breathe, and although the doctors had told him there was a chance he’d grow out of his allergy to sea jelly venom, he’d never tested that theory. His chest tightened at the sight of the lifeless orbs that littered the beach like raindrops. “Maybe we should head back to the blanket,” he said with a nervous laugh.

Shanna bobbed her blonde head in agreement, and they turned around. “Maybe it’s mating season or something,” Tom commented, and Shanna shrugged. “Could be. Or it’s a lemming-like mass jelly suicide?,” she offered, weaving her way around the jellyfish bodies. “Although it doesn’t seem as bad back this way.”

This was true. Tom noticed there were fewer bodies back toward the section of beach where they’d tacked down their blanket. Had it been this way when they’d started their walk? Tom wasn’t sure, but he was glad. The jellyfish bodies were starting to make him lose his appetite, and he didn’t want an air of squeamishness to affect the heartfelt vow of affection he had planned for later on.

Tom and Shanna made it back to their picnic spot quickly. Their dinner and champagne were still sitting on the blue-checkered cotton blanket, waiting for their return. “Look at the sand! It looks like a Zen garden,” Shanna said softly. The sand was rippled like circles on a pond; Tom hadn’t noticed when they’d first spread out the blanket, but admittedly, he’d been admiring the way Shanna’s black jeans hugged her backside.

“Yeah, neat,” Tom grunted, sitting down and opening up the bag of chicken. “Let’s eat—I’m starving!”

Shanna swatted at his arm, but settled in next to him on the blanket.They ate quietly, hungrily; Tom occasionally paused to offer a smile at his girl. She was beautiful, even when confronted with the messy task of eating chicken on the beach; she dabbed at her mouth delicately with a napkin between bites, which made Tom’s heart skip a beat. If it weren’t for his college loans, and his new job, and the upcoming real estate license exam that he had to study for, he’d marry her right now. But Shanna still had a semester left of college, and had no idea what she wanted to do for a career; best to wait until they were both more settled and secure. Shanna stopped for a moment, looking at him curiously.

“You sure are deep in thought. What’s on your mind?” Tom winked at her, wiping his hands on his jeans. Now was as good a time as any to bring out the ring and make his promise to her.

“Shanna, I …” he stumbled over the words. Breathing deeply, he tried again. “I wanted to talk to you tonight. I was hoping—hoping—listen, maybe you should ditch the chicken bones.” Shanna had the bones from her dinner carefully cradled in a napkin in her hands.

“What should I do with them? I don’t want to litter,” she grinned, and blushed slightly.

“Toss them over the dune like I did,” he frowned, but she shook her head.

“I can’t throw that far, you know that. I’ll just bury them in the sand, I guess.” Shanna shifted over to the side of the blanket and started digging. When she had a hole big enough and deep enough to dispose of her bones,

she slid her hand in with the chicken remains. “Oh!” she gasped, and tried to pull back. Her hand remained in the sand. “Tom, help! I can’t get my hand out! Something’s got me!”

Tom leaned forward. Dusk was starting to fall, but he could see that her left arm was buried in the beach up to her elbow. “Are you trying to be cute or something?” He snickered nervously, unsure of what kind of game she was playing. Was she making fun of him?

“Tom!” Shanna screamed, and her whole body seemed to lurch forward into the sand. He scrambled to get up and help her, but it was too late: he watched, horrified, as her head, then her torso, and lastly her legs disappeared in one fell swoop into the beach. The sand shifted, resettling; the meditative ripples reappeared on the surface.

“What the hell was that? Shanna?” Tom’s mind was racing over what he’d just seen. His girlfriend had just nosedived under the sand, and not so much as a handprint remained. Quicksand? He’d never heard of quicksand yanking someone in and smoothing itself out like he’d just witnessed this sand do.

There had to be something under the beach, he decided. Some sort of —worm, or giant vole—had just sucked his girlfriend down into its lair.

Tom laughed; it was a high-pitched, manic screech that did not sound like him at all. He kneeled down next to the spot where Shanna had disap- peared and started scooping, looking for any sign of her—her shoe, her leg, some sort of proof that she’d really just been there. He pawed at the sand frantically, and then he felt it.

A tug. And it wasn’t from a giant worm or sand-tunneling vole. It was the sand itself, sliding around his wrist, pulling gently at first, then more firmly, furiously; Tom ripped his hand away quickly, and not without a little force. The surface of the beach leveled out, settling back in to rippled circles.

Tom looked around frantically. The whole beach, he had to consider, could be like this. The path through the dunes back to the car was about a yard away. His heart sank as he realized that the parking lot where his Jeep now sat was nothing more than packed sand; he wouldn’t be any safer in his SUV than he was on this thin blanket. He looked down the beach. In the fading sunlight, he looked for the jellyfish carcasses that had mottled their path when he and Shanna had strolled down the shore earlier. He couldn’t see any now. He assumed that the beach had swallowed them up as well.

Tom felt a hot tear escape from the corner of his eye; he was going to die here, suffocated by the sand, he was sure of it. If he even made it to the car without being pulled in to the beach, he would have to act pretty quickly to drive the Jeep out of the lot before the whole vehicle was gulped down into the earth. His car was known to be temperamental on the best of days; one false start and he and the car would be history. He stared at the waves that mocked him from the ocean, lapping at the shore. His romantic night was history. He should have proposed, he thought, chastising himself. Why was he thinking they should wait? Life was short. He should have grabbed on to the chance to marry Shanna while he could, instead of his convoluted plan to “promise” her to marry her “someday”—it sounded lame even to him now, he realized, scowling. He watched the seaweed floating on the waves, winking in and out of sight, mocking him. He was an idiot. And now Shanna was gone, before he could even tell her how stupid he was, how much he loved her …

There was something about the seaweed that distracted Tom from his self-flagellation. It floated in toward him, and then pulled away with the tide again. It floated. Just like Tom would, if he could make it to the sea. He could make a dive for the ocean, and pull his feet up off of the sand, and float to freedom. He’d seen breakwater rocks a little way down, and even now, lights were shining in the seaside mansions that abutted the beach. If he could make it to the water, and swim to the rocks, he could walk his way to safety without stepping once on the dunes that waited to consume him.

Tom breathed deeply, trying to steady his nerves. It was just a short sprint to the ocean. He thought he could make it. Had to believe there was a chance. He pulled off his sneakers and tossed them off the blanket. He counted one, two, three—his sneakers were sucked down with a quick‘bloop!” into the sand. Three full seconds. Tom was pretty sure he could make it to the sea in three seconds. Maybe four.

He couldn’t stay on the blanket for one more moment, he realized in terror. There was nothing to stop the beach from pulling him down where he stood; as if in response to his train of thought, he felt the ground shift beneath him. Here goes nothing, he gulped, and tore away from the blanket toward the darkening ocean. He felt the sand tug at his feet as he ran, lungs burning. His steps became more difficult as he got closer; the sand was pulling hard now, making it seem like Tom was running through mud; he yanked his feet free, diving into the waves headfirst. The water was cool, but not unpleasant; his body warmed up quickly as he swam out further, trying to increase the depth between himself and the seabed below. He started to cry in earnest now, in relief; he had beaten the beach, the crazy, carnivorous stretch of sand that even now he thought he could hear roaring in frustration over his escape.

He looked around while treading water, and spotted the black silhouette of the breakwater rocks to his right. The moon shone brightly now, picking up the phosphorescence on the waves. Tom blinked. The phosphorescence was below the surface, as well, lighting up orb upon orb of drifting jellyfish, lazily swimming through the undertow. He realized his arms were ablaze, and wondered how many tentacles he’d brushed in his frenzied swim to escape the sand; even now, he felt the sting of jellyfish tendrils on his calves as his legs flailed below the surface. He couldn’t stay here among this school of jellies. He kicked out toward the rocks in a frenzied crawl stroke, even as his chest started to seize.

]]> http://www.scifisaturdaynight.com/?feed=rss2&p=5245 0 http://www.scifisaturdaynight.com/?p=5139 http://www.scifisaturdaynight.com/?p=5139#comments Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:00:56 +0000 SamanthaB http://www.scifisaturdaynight.com/?p=5139 I was a little leery about getting into this book, but I am so glad that I did. What a great zombie book! Instead of dealing with what happens when the zombie outbreak happens, its dealing with how people go on living when the outbreak is controlled but not gone, and it does it very, very well.

The book opens by introducing Georgia and Shaun Mason, a brother sister duo of bloggers making their living by blogging in a world after zombies. Along with their friend Buffy, they are chosen for the honor of being the first bloggers invited on the campaign trail with presidential hopeful Peter Ryman. While this is great for their careers, it starts to fall apart almost from the start.

Mira Grant has written a great book. The characters are as fleshed out as any character can be, Shaun and Georgia read like a real brother and sister, Buffy is adorable, and I would vote for Peter Ryman in a heartbeat. While obviously you know this is a zombie book and something is going to go horribly wrong, Grant throws curve balls at you left and right. There wasn’t a moment in this book where I was thinking, “‘Oh yeah, that’s happening because of that and why haven’t these supposedly smart people figured out that person’s evil?” Not one moment. That is the very definition of awesome.

I also really liked how the book wasn’t straight up horror. There was a lot of humor to be found in the book, and a whole ton of mystery. It reads a lot like a political thriller, which isn’t usually my thing, but helped the book stand out from other zombie stories.

I also loved how well explained the zombies were. Grant made it seem creepily plausible that this could happen. It’s easy to believe in the world she’s created and that is the mark of the best books in my opinion. This one is without a doubt worth the read.

Miller addresses the seemingly inevitable tension between science and religion in a fairly unique way for a work of fiction. What sets his approach apart is his unwillingness to make the conflict one of black and white, and his rejection of demonizing either. One of the foundations of the story in Fiat Homo is the “Simplification”, where those of learning and knowledge (science writ large) were vilified, hunted down, and killed after the first nuclear war, presumably by those who turned to their faith in the aftermath of the Flame Deluge. Yet the Catholic Church, through its support of the monastic Order initiated by the technician Isaac Leibowitz, took on the preservation of knowledge (much as the Church did during the Dark Ages). In Fiat Lux there is an awakening of science, and one of the monks at the Abbey even shows himself to have a healthy dose of scientific intuition, creating an arc lamp (which, interestingly, temporarily replaces a crucifix on the wall). The Order makes their repository of knowledge available to the natural philosophers of the time–but on the Abbey’s terms, as though maintaining control of the knowledge within its walls will ensure its proper use. When Thon Taddeo questions the motives for the Order’s stewardship of the knowledge, he and the Abbot argue whether science should serve God (and therefore be controlled until Man was worthy), or should serve the secular world. Miller leaves this argument unresolved, seeming to say that science, as science, doesn’t necessary conflict with the beliefs of the Church, but rather depends on the use it’s put to. And it seems Miller feels neither is better than the other at using it. Both the distrust of the past by the Thon and his willingness to sanction Hannegan’s acts to further science, and the distrust of the future and seeming unwillingness to make the knowledge they’d preserved easily available to the awakening world by the Abbot, show that Miller thought neither the ideal steward. The Wandering Jew‘s inability to find what he seeks in both the practitioners of science and faith further strengthens that message. This ambiguity remains in the ironic ending to the story, where the preservation of knowledge and the Order are both entrusted to a starship, its faith-based crew, and a colony of men on another planet–turning the wheel of history back to start once again, the question unanswered as to which–science or faith–will have the wherewithal to succeed.

The book similarly takes an ambiguous stance in the treatment of the State vs Church issue. Miller sees an uneasy truce between State and Church at best, and even though it’s clear he feels the State will always take more questionable moral positions, there’s also an ambivalence about the actions of the Church. This underlying, repeating theme shows up in Fiat Lux when the Poet, rather than staying out of the way, takes on a cavalry soldier slaughtering refugees (ostensibly a moral act). After the fight, with both the Poet and the soldier wounded, the Poet hears the wounded soldier’s confession as he stabs him in the throat, killing him (not so moral an act)–then dying himself.

The conflict between Church and State is particularly blatant in the interaction between Texarkana and New Rome in Fiat Lux, and again the State’s actions are portrayed as immoral based on Hannegan’s deceit and lies to his supposed allies. But there’s just a hint of impropriety in Father Apollo’s actions in alerting the Church of his suspicions, and in New Rome’s actions in placing Texarkana under Interdict–then removing it. While Hannegan’s making all the clergy answerable to him within his realm and brutally murdering New Rome’s representative, Father Apollo, show the evil side of the State, Miller again seems to question the acts of the Church as well. Hannegan’s angry proclamation against New Rome includes reference to the “great confusion and spiritual neglect among all the faithful” that New Rome’s flip-flopping on Interdiction caused, which seems out of place among the fiery rhetoric that permeates the rest of the decree.

Later, in Fiat Voluntas Tua, we see a conflict between the rules of the State (on euthanasia for hopeless radiation cases) and the moral code of the Church against suicide, leading to conflict between those ministering to the wounded in the early attacks and the Abbot. While the abbey is ideally located for the treatment of refugees, the Abbot won’t permit it unless the doctor agrees not to recommend euthanasia, lecturing him that he can’t allow the Church’s rules to be broken within the walls of the abbey. When the doctor breaks that promise, he sends him down the road, making the refugees walk an additional several miles, but even worse, sends several novitiates to the euthansia camp to picket it, trying to prevent the State from following its laws on its property. Finally, the existence of the Quo peregrinatur plans is Miller’s capstone on the distrust between Church and State, and while it presents a way to continue (and repeat the mistakes of) the human race, it also violated the laws of the State against unauthorized starship launches. Hence, even though it seems the acts of the Church are more morally sound than those of the State, it’s clear Miller sees neither as without reproach.

A Canticle for Leibowitz is an amazing story simply as a story. The additional theme of the cyclical nature of history and its sub themes regarding science and religion and State versus Church, all crafted with fine ambiguity, opens interpretation of the story to the reader. In my mind it doesn’t lead one to the author’s conclusions/beliefs, but rather raises unanswered questions for the reader to ponder, and perhaps reflects questions that Miller himself had. That quality further sets the book apart as a unique and satisfying work.

In this first article I’ll provide a quick synopsis of the book to entice you to read it and to provide some background for a second article in which I’ll briefly discuss how Miller addressed two themes in the book that are relevant to today’s world: the give and take between church and state, and the dynamic tension between science and religion. I’ll also cover how I see them being cyclical in Miller’s eyes00.

The book is divided into three sections: Fiat Homo, Fiat Lux, and Fiat Voluntas Tua (pulling on my HS Latin, Let There be Man, Let There be Light, and idiomatically, Thy Will be Done, respectively). Fiat Homo takes place six centuries or so after a nuclear war (called the Diluvium Ignis, or Flame Deluge, in the book), with mutants of various sorts roaming the countryside and the world still trying to recover from the orgy of violence against science and learning that the war spawned. Somewhere in the American Southwest (my best guess is somewhere near Gallup, NM), at the isolated abbey dedicated to preserving knowledge from before the war, Brother Francis Gerard is on a Lenten fast for novitiates. He spots a mysterious traveler, who inadvertently leads him to an underground fallout shelter that harbors relics from the abbey’s patron, Isaac Edward Leibowitz. These relics are eventually presented to New Rome (but not without considerable torment of Brother Francis by the Abbot in the meantime), which results in Leibowitz being beatified as a Saint. Brother Francis represents the Abbey at the beatification in New Rome, but meets with a mishap on the way back, ending this first section.

In Fiat Lux time has vaulted forward another six centuries or so, and the Albertian Order of St. Leibowitz is still busy preserving and trying to interpret the knowledge they’d saved from before the war, and science is making a comeback–as are competing “kingdoms” and rumors of war. The Einstein of the age, Thon Taddeo Pfardentrott, attempts to get the abbey to send him some of their historical technical texts, but the monks refuse. The Thon and his party finally come to the abbey, where he is amazed, (and slightly miffed to learn that all his discoveries had been discovered before), by all he finds in the Leibowitz Memorabilia. While he’s there, battles rage among the different kingdoms that have sprung up across the old US, sparked by dealing and double-dealing by the Prince of Texarkana, who is the Thon’s cousin. There is considerable give and take between the monks and the Thon over what’s contained in the Memorabilia (as well as the technical achievement of one of the monks–an Edison to the Thon’s Einstein) and they part on adversarial terms, reflecting in microcosm the battle between Church and State going on around them.

The next six hundred years or so reflect the ascension of science over faith, and lead to the last section in the book, Fiat Voluntas Tua. The world is a technological one and, with the exception of interstellar travel, one not easily distinguishable from our current world or, for that matter, from the world that resulted in the Flame Deluge. The Monastic orders have persevered and the Albertian Order of St Leibowitz still sits in its abbey in the southwest, still responsible for the Memorabilia. It also has become a repository of monks with a variety of space-related skills and experience, including starship operations–an unstated and not publicly acknowledged hedge against the possibility of another societal meltdown, with a plan (Quo peregrinatur) to move the order and the Memorabilia to one of the space colonies should nuclear war once again break out. As events unfold leading to that meltdown, the Church finds itself with little constructive it can do to prevent it from happening other than initiating the Quo peregrinatur. In the meantime, the Abbot finds himself in conflict with the State over euthanasia for severely radiation-poisoned people. When the breakdown does occur–moving from an initial detonation of a couple of nuclear devices to a full out nuclear exchange–the selected members of the Order manage to leave the planet just in time, once again repeating their prime purpose of saving and perpetuating knowledge.

You’ve probably noted the significant number of Latin phrases in the article, and there are many more in the book; Miller felt they more accurately reflected the Catholic Church (he wrote the book before the Vatican II Council allowed contemporary languages to be used in Mass rather than Latin). A decent place to find translations for all these phrases, if you’re so inclined, is here.

This summary is minimalist, as I don’t want to give away too much of the story–Miller’s writing and characterization are so deep and rich that the story is far better told in his words. It’s more to whet your appetite, and provide background for my observations about what Miller had to say about science vs religion and Church vs State in my next article, coming soon.

Kristi Petersen Schoonover

This week’s SFSN FaceBook Poll result: The ultimate Joker was Mark Hamill.

• This week’s Holiday Geeky Gift Ideas:
• Dead RedHead - The Walking Dead graphic novels.
• AwakeByJava – Glitch, the snarky fun (free) MMORPG.
• Dome – Smallville: The Complete Series on DVD.
• Kriana – Soft Kitty Singing Plush.
• Illustrator X – Classic Shogun Warriors.
• Zombrarian – Keyboard Cat: The Toy.
• Double Midnight Comics: ‘Twas The Wednesday Before Christmas
• Marvel to release four issue canon prequel to The Avengers movie.
• RIP  Joe Simon, co-creator of Capt. America.
• Portman angry at being fired from Thor 2.
• Two classic Doctor Who episodes discovered!
• Kavalier and Clay to become a mini-series.
• George Takei asks us to “Kill Twilight”.
• Dracula 3-D with Rutger Hauer.
• Raiders of The Lost Ark opening in stop motion animation.
• Incredible trailer for The Narrative of Victor Karloch.
• Community has been conjuring Beetlejuice for 3 seasons.
• American Horror Story house is for sale.

Our guest tonight is author Kristi Petersen Schoonover. We talked about, her writing style, what makes her stories so unique and briefly about her upcoming book, Bad Apple. Also check out our review of her current novel,  Skeletons in the Swimmin’ Hole - Tales from Haunted Disney World.

Avenging Angel by Bob Bois

Bob Bois is a horror writer living in the mysterious hills of Central Massachusetts. Many of the flash fiction pieces he posts on his blog, Sitting in Darkness, have grown into larger, more detailed stories that are being sent out for publication. Born and raised in Salem, MA, Bob is currently at work on a collection of short stories set in his hometown. Bob writes some very dark fiction, so if that’s not your cup of tea, head for the Sunday comics.

In this week’s Fiction Friday offering, State Police Lieutenants Linda Einhorn and Martin Sutherland are faced with a plethora of bodies, murder victims, left in the most unusual poses for a diabolical reason:

Linda reached for her vibrating cell phone on the nightstand. She didn’t need the ringer; she wasn’t sleeping well these days.

“What?” she mumbled.

“Linda, we’ve got another one.”

Linda sat bolt upright. “Like the others? You’re sure?”

“Propped up on all fours. Tail, mane – the works. This one’s extra special, though.”

Linda waited, her eyes wide. She looked at the photo of a young girl on the nightstand.

“For Chrissakes, Marty, spit it out. This isn’t a game show.”

“This one has…more accessories. Just get down here and see it.”

“It? These were people once, Marty. Have some fucking respect.”

You can find the rest of the story here.

The subtitle of this book says it all: Tales from Haunted Disney World. Each of the the short stories ties into this theme. This book is hypnotic and in many ways it’s not what I expected (to be completely honest, I am not sure what I did expect given the title and concept).

The stories span everything from albino adoptees to haunting childhood memories of a mother’s final days. It explores ideas like what happens to closed attractions at the eerily magical theme park to the religious implications of, of all things, Epcot Center. The book keeps you wondering where each story leads, what brought these characters to this point in their lives, and why Disney World ties each of these lives together in such interesting ways. What this book doesn’t do is disappoint you by giving into the temptation of cheap thrills. Its is a series of well crafted tone poems, each one designed to chill you in a way you do not expect.

My favorite story in the is collection is a whimsical morality tale aptly entitled “All This Furniture and Nowhere To Sit,” a tale of a man whose wife hoards collectibles.  He sees his life devolving and is powerless to break the spell that holds his wife, home, and wallet in perpetual terror as the house terrifyingly brims to overflowing and he loses control of everything he holds dear.

Kristi shows an precision in her writing that sometimes gives you just a quick glimpse of the picture she is painting, just enough to let the reader form the inevitable conclusion she is drawing you into. Her literary choices are very clean and clear; little is ambiguous. The terror she brings to the reader is on the surface almost pleasingly simplistic, but as you are ensnared in the web of her adroit storytelling you begin to be caught up in the complexities and the stories become even more chilling. It is very cool to read horror fiction that gives you something that you can work with as a reader. These stories don’t just beat you over the head with a bloody arm, instead they hold that arm out to shake your hand. Seriously, who else could write a horror story about Flash Mountain?

You can purchase Skeletons in the Swimmin’ Hole on Amazon

For the purposes of full disclosure, this book was a review copy sent to SFSN. No other remuneration was given or implied.

• This week’s Holiday Gift Ideas:
• Dome – Futurama Monopoly
• Kriana -Knitted Superhero Finger Puppets
• Java – glif and gorillapod
• Dead RedHead – Fritz Leiber
• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll: Favorite Animated Sci-Fi Movie was a tie between Heavy Metal and The Incredibles.
• BBC’s Sherlock Holmes returns.
• Starship Troopers director also did The Fast and the Furious.
• Guy Ritchie to direct The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
• Another Philip K. Dick movie in pre-production.
• Harrison Ford begins a film set in space for the first time since Star Wars.
• Star Trek Two
• Cabin In The Woods trailer.
• RIP Jerry Robinson, creator of The Joker.
• Justin Bieber kills Steampunk.

Legendary actor Lance Henriksen and writer Joe Maddrey join us to talk about their new book, Not Bad for a Human: the uncensored, unabashed and amazing story of Lance’s life and times. We discuss the process of putting the book together. Lance also told us about his “Alimony Movies”, Aliens, Millennium, Pumpkinhead, and a new project called Bring Me The Head of Lance Henriksen. Check out the Millennium fan site, Back To Frank Black. Also, get your limited edition copy of Not Bad for a Human while supplies last!

Craig D.B. Patton

Craig D.B. Patton is a member of New England Horror Writers and a graduate/survivor of the Borderlands Press Boot Camp. He has lived most of his life in New England, the exception being 11 wonderful years in Chicago.  It was while there that he figured out he was a writer.  He has written mostly short stories, poems, several Christmas pageant plays,

Craig D.B. Patton

and a bit of Twitter fiction.  Currently, he is working on his first novel and, in his own words, “ …since it is the first draft of my first novel, trying not to let the stench overpower me while I learn.  All of my work can be labeled as speculative fiction.  All of my stories are true, including the parts I make up.” Some of his stories have been published in Shroud Magazine, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Pocket Books), and other markets. His first published poem recently appeared in A Sea of Alone: Poems for Alfred Hitchcock (Dark Scribe Press), and more are forthcoming in The Terror at Miskatonic Falls (Shroud Publishing) and Illumen.

Submitted for your perusal: the story of the grief a mother and father feel after the loss of their son and the terror of the events after.

He checks his watch. 05-23-10 4:15 A.M. He shows his wife. She nods and tightens her grip on his hand to stop the trembling. Their son will be home again very soon.

It has been four years since their son vanished in a massive truck bomb explosion in Baghdad. Witnesses said he was standing right next to it when it went off.

There was an empty, flag-draped casket at the funeral. Framed photos everywhere, overcompensating for the lack of a body. A field’s worth of flowers. Well wishes and military salutes. Then tail lights receding down the long dirt road from their home and a settling, spreading emptiness.

For weeks, they remained deep in shock. Sometimes they even believed their son still lived. The casket flag and the condolence letter from the President in the family room reminded them otherwise.

The swelling boil of their grief ruptured on their son’s birthday in July. They wailed. They smashed dishes. They screamed at God. How could He take their son? They had prayed every day for his safety. He had been a pious man, respectful and humble, eager to do good in this troubled world.

God did not answer.

On the first anniversary of their son’s death, they were not at home. They had gone to her sister’s home in Minneapolis, seeking comfort from family.

When they returned, they opened the front door and stared. The living room was trashed. Paintings hung askew or lay on the floor. The mirror and lamp were shattered. Plants were toppled, spilling dirt onto the floor.

They called the police.

The rest of the story can be found here. “Aftershocks” will be reprinted in The Best of Wily Writers – Volume 2 and is presented here by permission of Wily Writers and the author.

Dark City 1998

So, here is the problem. Most of you readers have probably seen this movie, but not in its true form. I happened to catch this move on TV and was disgusted by the way it was hacked, the inability to see half of it and the incredibly garbled audio. At that point I shut off the tuner and flipped on the ole DVD and saw a good movie, it’s called Dark City and when seen as it should be it’s a visual feast, an aural treasure, and an emotional thrill ride. This is a really good movie.

This cast is amazingly complex. Rufus Sewell, Jennifer Connelly, Kiefer Sutherland, and William Hurt are the mainstays of this cast. Each of them carries, with intense precision, this film from an obscure art film into mainstream Sci Fi with emotion and depth to what could have easily been cardboard cutout characters.

Writer/Director Alex Proyas (The Crow) adds a uniquely noir vision to this already bleak story. The opening scene alone is one of the most frightening scenes on film. In it, John (played by Rufus Sewell), wakes up in a strange hotel room, naked, in a bathtub and a bloody face, with no memory of how he got there. The scene holds as quiet desperation plays over his face, until the uncomfortable silence is broken by the overloud ring of the telephone. This is one of the best film openings in existance and its impact carries through the rest of the film.

The use of special effects in this movie should be a guideline to anyone directing in the genre:  if you use big effects, do not substitute flash for story, make them work together. They do. It does. It’s a wonderful movie. Cinematographer Darius Wolski worked with Proyas on The Crow, so they had some unique chemistry working on a second very dark film and it shows. The almost effortless melding of visuals, effects and music makes this a real treat.

Trevor Jones composed the score, in brilliant understatement. His many previous efforts included In The Name of the Father, Sea of Love, and Last of The Mohicans but give no indication of his ability to match the bleak visuals with a stunningly beautiful soundtrack.

This is Dome, sayin’: Don’t watch this one on cable, it’s too damn good!

Blood Feud by Steven Roman

• Rocky Horror Picture Show voted Best Musical in this week’s SFSN Facebook Poll.
• Previous Guest Michael J. Sullivan’s book launched this week.
• Watchmen 2.
• Why are ghosts so horny on American Horror Story?
• Original work print of Manos: Hands of Fate found.
• Mid-Season Finale of The Walking Dead.
• Action Comics #1 sells for 2.16 Million.
• The Munsters has a director.
• Holiday Gift Ideas:
• Kriana – iPad
• Illustrator X – Rare Harlan Ellison Book Sale
• Dead RedHead – Han Solo in Carbonite Chocolate
• AwakeByJava – Multi-touch Keyboard and Mouse
• Dome – Batman Cosplay Slanket

Steven Roman

Our guest is Steven Roman, author of the series The Saga of Pandora Zwieback. He talks about the process of putting together his series and his association with artist Bob Larkin. We also discussed the genesis of the main character, Pandora, and the New York underground in which much of the first book is set. We also talk about his work in the comic industry, his own art, and his company Starwarp Concepts.

Ben Bova

One might guess that someone who can write fascinating stories would automatically make a great guest. In to many instances this has proven not to be the case, but NOT with Ben Bova. Mr. Bova has been a frequent guest on our show, dating back to our old radio broadcast days. From the moment he first joined us, he was a mesmerizing guest. In one instance, when we had a 3 hour time slot to fill, Ben was set to join us in the second segment of our first hour. We had scheduled 3 other interviews to round out the show, but at each commercial break we decided to keep going with Ben. As luck would have it, he was as amused by us as we were spellbound by him and he has returned many times.

Like many other Sci Fi authors, Ben has a background in hard science and infuses his work with a future grounded in a plausible technology. One of the most interesting things he ever said to me was, “I have come to believe science fiction is history that simply hasn’t happened yet.”

Submitted for your approval, a story about the military, the CIA, and a computer.

“The Next Logical Step” by Ben Bova:

“I don’t really see where this problem has anything to do with me,” the CIA man said. “And, frankly, there are a lot of more important things I could be doing.”

Ford, the physicist, glanced at General LeRoy. The general had that quizzical expression on his face, the look that meant he was about to do something decisive.

“Would you like to see the problem first-hand?” the general asked, innocently.

The CIA man took a quick look at his wristwatch. “O.K., if it doesn’t take too long. It’s late enough already.”

“It won’t take very long, will it, Ford?” the general said, getting out of his chair.

“Not very long,” Ford agreed. “Only a lifetime.”

The CIA man grunted as they went to the doorway and left the general’s office. Going down the dark, deserted hallway, their footsteps echoed hollowly.

“I can’t overemphasize the seriousness of the problem,” General LeRoy said to the CIA man. “Eight ranking members of the General Staff have either resigned their commissions or gone straight to the violent ward after just one session with the computer.”

The CIA man scowled. “Is this area Secure?”

General LeRoy’s face turned red. “This entire building is as Secure as any edifice in the Free World, mister. And it’s empty. We’re the only living people inside here at this hour. I’m not taking any chances.”

“Just want to be sure.”

“Perhaps if I explain the computer a little more,” Ford said, changing the subject, “you’ll know what to expect.”

“Good idea,” said the man from CIA.

“We told you that this is the most modern, most complex and delicate computer in the world … nothing like it has ever been attempted before—anywhere.”

“I know that They don’t have anything like it,” the CIA man agreed.

“And you also know, I suppose, that it was built to simulate actual war situations. We fight wars in this computer … wars with missiles and bombs and gas. Real wars, complete down to the tiniest detail. The computer tells us what will actually happen to every missile, every city, every man … who dies, how many planes are lost, how many trucks will fail to start on a cold morning, whether a battle is won or lost …”

General LeRoy interrupted. “The computer runs these analyses for both sides, so we can see what’s happening to Them, too.”

The CIA man gestured impatiently. “War games simulations aren’t new. You’ve been doing them for years.”

“Yes, but this machine is different,” Ford pointed out.

You can find the rest of the story here.

In Once Upon A Time, bounty hunter Emma Swan’s world is changed the night ten-year-old Henry shows up on her doorstep and announces he is the baby she gave up. He wants her to come with him to his home town because he believes she is a character from his book of fairy tales. While she thinks the kid is a little crazy, she still gives him a ride home. While not truly believing him, she still cares and ends up staying in the town. While the show is busily setting up this part of the story, it is also flashing to the fairy tale world. The fairy tale world aligns with the story Henry is telling Emma and shows the viewer the troubles that lead to Snow White giving up her only daughter, Emma, to our world.

While the plot might seem challenging to follow, it really wasn’t. The pilot did a good job of smoothly gliding back and forth between the two worlds and made it very clear how the worlds are connected. The show sets up the fact that somehow Emma is supposed to come back into the lives of her parents in fairy land, but it’s unclear exactly how she will do that. Emma, Henry, and the evil queen are all great characters from the start and interact well together. Henry is likeable and cute, totally believable as the precocious kid hero, while Emma’s mix of vulnerable and tough doesn’t seem like an act.

The show was a little sweet for me, the opening scene in fairy land with the evil queen interrupting was the only part that got me really excited. While I enjoyed the show, and will probably watch it again, I tend to like my fairy tales a little darker. They story they are telling isn’t a light and fluffy tale, but they seemed reluctant to dive into the grit of it during this episode. On the other hand, it seems like it is going to be a good show that families with preteen and up children could watch together, so perhaps that was their goal.

Grimm follows cop Nick Burkhardt as he discovers first a horrible murder scene, and second that he is one of the last in a line of Grimms, people charged with keeping the world safe from monsters. Since his mother is very ill, the family trait has awoken in him and he must now keep the world safe from the fairy tale monsters we all know.

Grimm appears to be much more of a monster of the week type show, but with plenty of overlying story to build up as well. Of the two shows it is the one that seems more likely to succeed to me. Unfortunately it seems that shows which have more emphasis on a continuing story, as Once Upon A Time does, are less likely to catch on. Time and again we’ve seen these sort of shows canceled before their time. That being said, I honestly preferred Grimm. The overall story was appealing and easy to get into, there were a couple laughs and a lot of moments that pulled me right in. I’m more interested to see what happens to Nick than I am to know what happens to Emma in Once Upon A Time.

The show plays out a lot like a modern day fairy tale, smoothly blending the dark underlying themes of fairy tales into modern situations. The characters are well written, though there isn’t really a stand out moment for any of them. The actors work well together, aside from the Nick and his fiance who don’t seem to have any chemistry. On the other hand, Nick and his mother have some great moments.

Grimm does have one of the same main problems as Once Upon A Time, it’s hard to imagine how each can keep the story going. Based on the preview, it seems as if Grimm will be dealing with the same monsters from the pilot, and even if not, how many monsters are there in the fairy tales? If they start making up their own, doesn’t that detract from the main plot? Once Upon A Time seems like a story meant to be a movie or a miniseries, not a TV show, and certainly not one that lasts season after season.

All that being said, these shows are two interesting additions to the TV season, and both are at least worth a try.

Coderunner

• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll reveals that our listeners believe Audrey II is the hungriest Sci Fi character.
• Diablo Cody says the new Evil Dead has maximum gore.
• Spider Man the Musical in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. No one injured – this time.
• David Mack’s Kabuki featured in Dexter.
•  Twilight movie causes seizures.
• The Walking Dead.
• Anne McCaffery dies at age 85.
• H.R. Gigier’s Aliens On Ice.
• Grimm vs. Once Upon A Time.
• Area 51 Mocumentary comes to TV.
• Will there be Tribbles in the next Star Trek movie?

Jeff Macpherson as DeepFive

Our guest is Jeff MacPherson, the infamous Doctor Tiki, from Tikibar TV. He reminisces about his days at the Tiki bar and introduces us to his new game for iPhone and iPad, Coderunner.  In Coderunner, you are a spy for the government in an Orwellian world. The game combines elements of augmented reality and classic dystopian themes in a way that creates a very personal and unique experience.  You can find Coderunner on Facebook, Twitter and it’s official website. Also stay tuned for AwakeByJava’s upcoming review.

Kristi Peterson Schoonover

I became acquainted with Kristi through the New England Horror Writers Association. We met at a conference, and quite frankly, there may not be a more interesting group to speak with. So many interesting individual writers with different takes gathered together under their umbrella–but that is another story for another day. Kristi wasn’t at that meeting, but got our website from someone who was and sent me a blind introduction. Her short fiction has appeared in Carpe Articulum, The Adirondack Review, Barbaric Yawp, New Witch Magazine, Toasted Cheese, and others, including several anthologies such as  In Poe’s Shadow from Dark Opus Press. She holds an MFA from Goddard College, has received three Norman Mailer Writers Colony Residencies, and is editor for Read Short Fiction. Her horror novel, Bad Apple, is forthcoming from Vagabondage Books.

This submission from her is called “Screams of Autumn”. To quote from her, “A young Connecticut wife discovers that sometimes a scream is better left ignored”. Enjoy:

Emily had just slid a pan of pumpkin seeds in the oven when she heard a scream from outside.

She peered through the floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked three acres of tangled woods. Now, on the second weekend of October, they were a brilliant tapestry of yellows, greens, and rusts.

“Ryan,” she called to her husband. “Did you hear that?”

He was a quiet man who liked his easy chair and his books. “Hear what?”

“A scream. I heard a scream. Out there, somewhere.”

“Probably the neighborhood kids.”

The nearest children were at the other end of the block, and they were forbidden to play in the woods.

Again, she heard the scream, the piercing shriek of someone impaled. She hugged her long sweater housecoat close. “You don’t hear it? God, it’s awful.”

The rest of this story can be found here.

Join our TalkCast on 12/17/11 when Kristi will be our guest to talk about her collection, Skeletons in the Swimmin’ Hole: Tales from Haunted Disney World.

• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll.
• Silver Circle submitted to thet SXSW Film Festival.
• Doctor Who Movie will have NOTHING to do with the TV series.
• Hunger Games releases their first trailer.
• Asa Butterfield will be Ender in Ender’s Game.
• M.Night Shymalan teams up with  Will and Jayden Smith.
• Bryan Fuller is re-booting The Munsters.
• Kristen Stewart in Akira.
• Star Trek II will not be called Star Trek II.

Our guest, author Michael J. Sullivan, talks candidly about the trials of bringing his writing to the public. He shared with us the process of his 6 self published books being picked up by a publisher and combined into 3. He also answered our questions about his style and the choices he made with his characters and narrative. Check Michael out at Goodreads, and purchase Theft of Swords.

This week we have a very special tie-in Fiction Friday. We recorded the podcast on Thursday, during which we had the pleasure of interviewing Michael J. Sullivan about his series, The Riyria Revelations. He has kindly offered us a short story that is a prequel to his series as a Fiction Friday special feature.

From Michael’s website:

Eleven years before they were framed for the murder of a king, before even assuming the title of Riyria, Royce Melborn and Hadrian Blackwater were practically strangers. Unlikely associates, this cynical thief and idealist swordsman, were just learning how to work together as a team. In this standalone first installment of The Riyria Chronicles, Royce is determined to teach his naive partner a lesson about good deeds. Join Royce and Hadrian in this short story (5,400 words) about one of their earliest adventures.

The story is available in a multitude of formats, so go here and find the one you prefer.

Manley Wade Wellman

First of all, what a great name, Manley Wade Wellman. Born in 1903, and best known for his Fantasy and Horror classic stories, he also worked on the comic The Spirit while Eisner was in the military during WWII. He won both the World Fantasy Award and the Poe Award. Aside from his books and short stories, he was an active participant in the golden age of television drama, penning original scripts and adapting his short stories to shows like Twilight Zone, Lights Out and Night Gallery.

Submitted for your approval, “Devil’s Asteroid” is a story about the trials of convicts on an alien planet. Fitzhugh Parr is in the unenviable position of coming in to take over this…”little hell”.

It was not very large, as asteroids go, but about it clung a silvery mist of atmosphere. Deeper flashes through the mist betokened water, and green patches hinted of rich vegetation. The space-patroller circled the little world knowledgeably, like a wasp buzzing around an apple. In the control room, by the forward ports, the Martian skipper addressed his Terrestrial companion.

 

“I wissh you joy of yourr new home,” he purred. Like many Martians, he was braced upright on his lower tentacles by hoops and buckles around his bladdery body, so that he had roughly a human form, over which lay a strange loose armor of light plates. In the breathing hole of his petal-tufted skull was lodged an artificial voice-box that achieved words. “I rregrret—”

 

Fitzhugh Parr glowered back. He was tall, even for a man of Earth, and his long-jawed young face darkened with wrath. “Regret nothing,” he snapped. “You’re jolly glad to drop me on this little hell.”

 

“Hell?” repeated the Martian reproachfully. “But it iss a ssplendid miniaturre worrld—nineteen of yourr miless in diameterr, with arrtificial grravity centerr to hold airr and waterr; ssown, too, with Terresstrrial plantss. And companionss of yourr own rrace.”

You can find the rest of this story here.

Third Wave by Dave Gordon

• This week’s SFSN Face book Poll.
• We are in love with Boston Comic Con.
• Helena Bonham Carter as Miss Havisham.
• Once More With Feeling, the most musical episode of Buffy turns 10.
•  Godzilla. again.
• Marvel’s ALIAS coming to TV.
• SyFy will begin airing Lost Girl in January.
• Ridley Scott’s Bladerunner sequel is starting up and he discusses the Prometheus prequel.
• It’s an ubercool Farnsworth iPhone app.
• DS9 now available on Netflix.
• Stephen King’s Under The Dome comes to Showtime.
• J.J. Abrams wants Benicio del Toro  as the next Trek villain.
• Will Tennant star in Fright Night 2?
• AwakeByJava suggests you see the Babbage Analytical Engine.

Our guest is Dave Gordon whom we met at The Great New England Steampunk Exhibition. Dave talks about his career and how science fiction and steampunk have influenced him. He discusses his Muybridge Online Archive as well as his various installations and his current residency at the Charles River Museum of Industry and Innovation.

As a bonus, Zombrarian has found a Muybridge Knitting Pattern.

Repo Man

If you’re a fan of retro-drama, this is your movie. Harry Dean Stanton and Emilio Estevez are the most unlikely buddy team since Boris and Natasha. And quite frankly, they’re funnier. Alex Cox has created a moment in and out of time, at the same time, time-wise, if you get my drift, and I’m not sure I do.

This movie has a lot to offer the unwary viewer:  nukes, aliens, time travel, government conspiracy, punk rock, LA, UFOs, and the typical teen angst that accompanies any Emilio Estevez movie. Chock filled with comedy, satire, violence, sight gags (including the end credits), and music that includes Iggy Pop, The Ramones and Black Flag.

This is a movie that ages well. While it may not be as relevant as it was in 1984, it is still a cult classic in the best sense of the term. Eat the FOOD. Enjoy the story as it spirals out of control and the morality tale it portends to preach. Or…….just watch it and enjoy. I did. Over and over again.

• This Week’s SFSN Facebook Poll: Our fans’  favorite character to come back from the dead is Buffy Summers.
• RIP – Richard Gordon, creator of Fiend Without A Face and Dragstrip Girl.
• Kate Beckinsale is 3D in Underworld Awakening.
• Networks see Grimm and Once Upon A Time as the same?
• Women have their pick of guys at comic cons… but do they want them?
• American Horror Story renewed as ratings continue to grow.
• The next Twilight Zone movie produced by Leo DiCaprio.
• I, Frankenstein stars Aaron Eckhart.
• A British man thought the moon was a UFO.
• Your flying car is waiting, Mr. Jetson.
• Anne Rice picks a fight with Stephanie Meyer.

Our guest is long time friend of the show, Bob Shaw: the man behind Comic Art House, and one of the coordinators of Boston ComicCon. Tonight he brings us the first official news about this event. One of the biggest additions to the show is an original art auction, the sole purpose of which is to help defray the rising costs of a quickly expanding convention. We also discussed part of the list of confirmed guests. Boston Comic Con will be held on April 21-22 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston.

The confirmed guests include:

• Skottie Young
• David Peterson
• Craig Rousseau
• Billy Tucci
• Todd DeZago
• Norman Lee
• Herb Trimpe
• Cliff Chaing
• Sergio Aragones
• Sara Richard
• Jason Pierson
• Tim Sale
• Renee De Liz (Womanthology)
• Roger Andrews
• TJ Dort & Joe Haley
• Ken Branch
• Charles Paul Wilson III

The Saga of Pandora Zwieback

Everything you know is wrong. Thus is the life of Pandora, a delusional goth teen with severe antisocial tendencies and a history of  paranoid visions. She is exiled to upstate New York with her mother and estranged from her father,  the curator of Renfield’s House of Horrors, a NYC Paranormal Museum. Pan searches for not who she is but what she is. An errant tasering begins unlocking the keys to what she is and the role she plays in a world that lives just under the collective subconscious.

OK, so having just reread the above paragraph I know it sounds a bit disjointed and incoherent. So is Pan. That’s why she has Sabastienne, the 400-year-old protectress of the universe. This unlikely paring makes for one of the most wondrous duos ever to grace the pages of a Paranormal Buddy Story. Equal parts Sorcerer’s Apprentice and 48 Hours, this is a mystic rollercoaster ride that glimpses a demonic past and uncertain future in the hands of two unlikely women who the fates have pared.

Steven Roman has an interesting style in this series; constantly cutting back and forth in time to the back-stories of the myriad characters. It’s a style that works well within the fast pace structure. As this is the first in a series, this book does a good job of establishing tone, setting, characters and intensity. I found myself nearing the end of the 300+ pages wondering where and how in the hell he was going to end this and was more than a little surprised, perhaps shocked would better describe it.

This is Dome, sayin’: Its charmingly fun, addictively energetic, explosively violent and almost terminally endearing. Oh, and highly recommended.

For the purposes of full disclosure, this book was a review copy sent to SFSN. No other remuneration was given or implied

• This week’s Facebook SFSN Poll winner is The Gunslinger.
• The new Miyazaki Trailer.
• Dark Tower headed to HBO.
• Alice Cooper to be in Dark Shadows.
• Steven Spielberg hated Indiana Jones IV.
• Whedon’s Much Ado About Nothing. The official website.
• Ender’s Game release date announced.
• The theory behind building a space station on an asteroid.
• Once Upon A Time.
• The Walking Dead  Season 3.
• Romero’s The Zombie Autopsies.
• Great New Product: Open the pod bay doors, iPhone.

Robert Sheckley

Robert Sheckley was one of the few science fiction writers to have a true sense of humor that translated into his work. A multiple Hugo and Nebula nominee, he was best known for his absurdist outlook and his stories were uniformly wry with a futuristic bent. His fan peers included Douglas Adams, Neil Gaiman, and Harlan Ellison.

This story, “Bad Medicine”, is a fan favorite. It’s the story of a man being treated by a psychotherapy machine intended for…

On May 2, 2103, Elwood Caswell walked rapidly down Broadway with a loaded revolver hidden in his coat pocket. He didn’t want to use the weapon, but feared he might anyhow. This was a justifiable assumption, for Caswell was a homicidal maniac.

It was a gentle, misty spring day and the air held the smell of rain and blossoming-dogwood. Caswell gripped the revolver in his sweaty right hand and tried to think of a single valid reason why he should not kill a man named Magnessen, who, the other day, had commented on how well Caswell looked.

What business was it of Magnessen’s how he looked? Damned busybodies, always spoiling things for everybody….

Caswell was a choleric little man with fierce red eyes, bulldog jowls and ginger-red hair. He was the sort you would expect to find perched on a detergent box, orating to a crowd of lunching businessmen and amused students, shouting, “Mars for the Martians, Venus for the Venusians!”

But in truth, Caswell was uninterested in the deplorable social conditions of extraterrestrials. He was a jetbus conductor for the New York Rapid Transit Corporation. He minded his own business. And he was quite mad.

Fortunately, he knew this at least part of the time, with at least half of his mind.

The entire text can be found here.

October always brings a shiver of anticipation to my graveyard flesh. Not only is it the season of Halloween (and my wedding anniversary!) but every autumn Illustrator X and I always make a point to visit the annual Rock-n-Shock convention in Worcester, MA. For those who have never experienced the Rock-n-Shock, it’s the premiere convention for horror movie lovers in the Northeast. Greats of horror have been in attendance over the years, from the legendary George Romero, Julian Sands and Malcolm McDowell to some of today’s stars of indie horror, music, literature and comics.

This year was a big one for Rock-n-Shock. First heads on the chopping block were multiple members of the various “Nightmare On Elm Street” series, (be)headed up by Freddie Krueger himself:  Robert Englund. The lines were long – and I mean longer than the fight in “They Live” – for Mr. Englund. X and I were fortunate enough to tickets at 11:30a for the 3pm signing and even then we stood in line for over an hour to get some signatures, a joke and a hearty handshake. I must say, despite the literal hundreds of people who he talked to, shook hands with and signed items for, Mr. Englund continued to be gracious and had a good sense of humor. And a bit of trivia:  Mr. Englund let X know how much he loved our Brain in the Jar logo shirts!
As I said, there were several other NOES cast members (sorry ladies, no Johnny Depp) including the lovely and VERY friendly Amanda Wyss and Rodney Eastman from NOES 3 and 4. The lovely Heather Langenkamp – Nancy herself – was supposed to attend, but unfortunately had to cancel due to a family issue. It was posted on the site that she would be in the NE area next year.
The next major movie cast on the (death) list for X and I was from the wonderful vampire film directed by Oscar winning director Kathryn Bigelow, “Near Dark”. Lead science fiction/horror/action hero Lance Henriksen was at the top of the DeadRedhead’s “stars to meet” list and he didn’t disappoint. Mr. Henriksen – who just recently published a book of his memoires called “Not Bad for a Human” – was funny, entertaining and quite the gentleman! X and I are hoping to have Mr. Henriksen on the show in the fairly near future. Next to Mr. Henriksen was the pretty, blonde “Mae” of “Near Dark”, Ms. Jenny Wright. Ms. Wright may also be known to some of our more esoteric fans as the pretty blonde from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall” who asks Bob Geldof “do you want to take a bath?” Ms. Wright spoke to us for a while and gave me a big hug at the end.
Last, but far from the least treat for your Dead Redhead was getting to meet Sherman Howard, otherwise famous for being Bub the Zombie in George Romero’s 1986 version of “Day of the Dead” – the movie that made your Dead Redhead the star she is today! Bub is one of the most famous zombies in all of zombiedom and this was the amazing actor who brought him to life. Thank you, Mr. Howard, we salute you! (Hey, can you pass me my…never mind)
Perhaps the most welcome part of the convention was the energy and kindness shown by the celebrities. With only a few exceptions, these folks were polite, gracious – and in one case when out of his way to show his fans how much he appreciated their support (yes, I’m looking at you Rowdy Roddy Piper). Rock and Shock also had authors, movie vendors, t-shirt vendors, many DIY jewelry and clothing vendors and all sorts of things for the horror aficionado. Make it a POINT to get yourselves to next year’s Rock-n-Shock.

The Running Man

This is the world Stephen King envisioned way back in 1982. I’m not saying that our world has become what he envisioned, but it’s also not 2025 yet. In his world the air in cities is so bad that lung cancer is out of control. A few people live well, but the majority (the 99%?) are so poor they work at jobs that compromise their health and subsist on subpar fast food, but everyone has FreeV to provide entertainment and doctored news while libraries and real knowledge are only for the elite. Something about all that hits a little close to home for me. Especially with American’s obsession with reality programming. Is it really such a big leap from Fear Factor to The Running Man? Maybe, maybe not.

Reading this, it’s easy to see why Stephen King has been such a vocal fan of The Hunger Games. A lot of the themes are the same, and both books convey the same feelings of class division and blood sports to the reader. While King’s book is darker, it’s also a more believable vision. He paints the image of decaying, still inhabited cities as accurately as a man who is standing inside one. The stark differences he creates between the haves and have-nots are easy to imagine. Richards is a desperate man, and the reader feels that with him. While he does things we would like to say we wouldn’t do, you’re rooting for him to do those things because it’s the only way to survive.

From start to finish, this book pulls you in and sets your head spinning. The chapters are fairly short and add to the urgency of the whole thing. You might as well be piggybacked on Richards because you are there with him. This might be King’s greatest gift as a writer. I would recommend this book to anyone else enjoying today’s boom of dystopian novels, because obviously King was thinking about it while half of today’s authors were still reading Doctor Seuss. A word of warning though, don’t read the forward, because King spoils the ending in it, or at least he did in my edition of the book!

Kathleen Marden & The Dome

• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll – Name your favorite evil robot.
• The Walking Dead, Season begins with 2 record ratings.
• American Horror Story
• Scarlett Johansson’s catsuit and other Marvel(s) for sale.
• Michael Bay says no to Transformers 4.
• BSG – The Movie to be written by John Orloff.
• Joss Whedon and Warren Ellis together for the new Wastlanders web-series.
• Jupiter Ascending by the Wachowski Brothers.
• Will an Americanized version of Misfits work?

Our guest is Kathleen Marden, niece of Betty and Barney Hill. She is the trustee of The Hill’s estate and conservator of the vast amount of files and documents generated by this event.  (the Hill collection is part of  the Milne Archives at the University of New Hampshire Library in Durham, NH.). She is a lecturer and co-authored 2 books with Stanton Friedman. During our interview she talks about the use and misuse of hypnosis in investigations and the abuse inherent in disinformation within UFO investigations.

I know that this series is generally reserved for lesser known authors (and if you have a story you’d like to submit please send it on), but good old EAP deserves a bit of a mention this close to Halloween.

October is usually a time here at SFSN where we highlight the horror aspects of “stuff we like”, and Poe is one of the quintessential masters of horror. So I present to you a piece that I know you know. We all know it, it’s “The Raven”. What makes this version and this post so special is not the piece itself necessarily, but the presentation. After the jump, if you dare, find this most famous poem read by none other than John de Lancie. Can there be anything more chilling than Q reading certain doom?

Jess and Jeff Finn

• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll.
• Neil Stephenson on “Gold Farming”.
• Man goes through plastic surgery to become Superman.
• CW Shows coming to NetFlix.
• The Avengers Trailer comes out.
• Robert Downey, Jr. was as disappointed in Ironman II as everyone else was.
• Thor 2 pushed back to November 2013.
• The Divide trailer.
• American Horror Story
• Seth MacFarlane wants to do Star Trek.
• A present from Dark Horse for Free Comic Book Day.

Strange Septembers

Our guests are ‘Docufologists’ Jeff and Jess Finn. Their movie, Strange Septembers, was first shown at the 2011 Exeter UFO Conference and Festival. They spent a year researching, and interviewing over 100 relatives, friends, co-workers, and acquaintances associated with both the Hill Abduction and the Exeter Encounter. Initially setting out to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Betty and Barney Hill’s September 19, 1961 UFO experience, the Finns’ documentary grew to include the September 3, 1965 UFO experience that has become known as the Incident at Exeter. Strange Septembers can be purchased here.

Our prior  ‘Cast of an interview with Betty Hill can be found here.

Our prior ‘Cast with Stanton Friedman can be found here.

As this first novel in this series moves forward we are privy to the stories of many of the characters in this universe:  the shapeshifters, the alchemists, the artisans, the many lands and peoples. But first and foremost this is a coming of age story of a damaged youth. Over and over, Astrid is forced by circumstance to become what she is destined to be. The secretive past that slowly unfolds around her, the secrets of the society she lives in, the lands she travels through, and ultimately who she falls in love with are all wound around the iron blade of the Dragonslayer’s Sword. Crafted by Astrid, the sword is a metaphor for her life as it is intertwined with the lives of those around her and those she is destined to touch.

Astrid touched me. Her struggle to understand her life, the lives of those around her and her place within the universe is engaging and exciting. The universe Resa creates for her is richly detailed and starkly beautiful and sometimes terrifying. This is a wonderful fist installment of what portends to be a delightful series I am very much looking forward to reading and enjoying and suggesting to others.

This is Dome, sayin: Astrid is a young lady with a mission and her love to guide her. I hope I will be reading stories about her search for a long time.

For the purposes of full disclosure, this book was a review copy sent to SFSN. No other remuneration was given or implied.

The Whisperer in Darkness

Tonight’s TalkCast is dedicated to the memory of Armitage Tambascia, daughter of Alex and Joy Tambascia, who were guests on the ‘Cast.

• We’ll miss you Steve Jobs, a man who made science fiction into science fact
• This week’s SFSN Facebook poll results.
• Fringe holds its audience, Terra Nova, not so much.
• DC grabs market share over Marvel for September.
• Marvel attempts to reboot Jack Kirby.

This week’s guest is Steve Bissette.
He teaches at The Center for Cartoon Studies. On October 20th he will host the premiere of the film “The Whisperer In Darkness” as a fundraiser to help White River Junction’s Main Street Museum, which was damaged by Vermont’s recent floods. He will be speaking at the Vermont Law School on Oct. 21 on the subject, “Marvel vs. Jack Kirby: Legal Rights & Ethical Might”, and on Oct. 30, he will  appear at The Saturday Fright Halloween Spooktacular VI Special.

James H. Schmitz

James Schmitz was best known for writing the “Space Opera”. This genre was known for its strong female roles. His life was one of service to his country and prolific writing, his two passions. Well over 100 novels and short stories were penned between 1940 and 1981 and his writing remained in print late into the 20^th. century. Unfortunately, now his work is almost forgotten. His novelized series, The Demon Breed, The Eternal Frontiers, The Universe Against Her, and The Witches of Karres are classics worthy of remembering and rereading.

Presented today, “An Incident On Route 12,” a short story about a desperate man in a world he cannot comprehend:

He was already a thief, prepared to steal again. He didn’t know that he himself was only booty!

Phil Garfield was thirty miles south of the little town of Redmon on Route Twelve when he was startled by a series of sharp, clanking noises. They came from under the Packard’s hood.

The car immediately began to lose speed. Garfield jammed down the accelerator, had a sense of sick helplessness at the complete lack of response from the motor. The Packard rolled on, getting rid of its momentum, and came to a stop.

Phil Garfield swore shakily. He checked his watch, switched off the headlights and climbed out into the dark road. A delay of even half an hour here might be disastrous. It was past midnight, and he had another hundred and ten miles to cover to reach the small private airfield where Madge waited for him and the thirty thousand dollars in the suitcase on the Packard’s front seat.

If he didn’t make it before daylight….

He thought of the bank guard. The man had made a clumsy play at being a hero, and that had set off the fool woman who’d run screaming into their line of fire. One dead. Perhaps two. Garfield hadn’t stopped to look at an evening paper.

But he knew they were hunting for him.

The rest of the story can be found here.

This book was ridiculously good. This review has to start with that because it was my immediate feeling while reading and after reading.  Now, for the details.

I picked up Ashes with almost no idea what it was about. From the cover and the little I had heard about it, I knew it was something end-of-the-world-ish. This book does something that few of the dystopian/end of the world books I have read do:  it shows us how the world ends, and that was both terrifying and thrilling.

Ashes opens with the main character Alex hiking off into the woods with the ashes of her dead parents.  Alex has an inoperable brain tumor and assumes she will probably be as dead as her parents soon. It’s clear she’s considering suicide, but that’s not really the point of the hike. When an electromagnetic pulse blasts through the world, Alex finds herself alone with a grief stricken little girl named Ellie. Together they try to survive with few supplies and a growing number of odds against them. When they meet up with another young man, Tom, they become a group of three, still unsure if they are the only survivors. An enthralling fight for survival unfolds from there, pitting the group against other survivors, the coming winter, and people who have changed into something like zombies.

All the main characters in this book are amazingly fleshed out. They have their good moments and bad moments and read like people you know. Each of them is damaged in some way, but all of them possess an unwavering will to live. Alex is the sort of female lead that even Katniss from The Hunger Games wishes she could be (okay maybe that’s mean, maybe I mean Katniss from Mockingjay). Talk about strong! She depends on Tom to help them survive, but she never needs him to save her. These three are thrown together due to circumstances and it reads very real that Tom and Alex hide their pasts from each other, only letting the truth out in small pieces. Ellie is epically bratty and annoying at first, but that changes quickly as she bonds with Tom and Alex and realizes she needs to change due to circumstances.

Now talk about dark, this book is pretty damn honest about how cruddy things are going to be if this ever happens. People are straight up fighting for their lives and are often injured and Bick pulls no punches in her descriptions of  fighting and wounds. The world she describes feels as real as if it were happening right outside your front door. And if Bick knows half as much about surviving as her characters do, then I hope I can find her when the world implodes.

Outside of the main characters, she’s spot on for how the mass of survivors would likely act in this situation. While a few do some together to form community, for those on the outside it is going to be a fight for survival. That fight would be bad enough if it was just a lack of resources and such, but add in the zombie-like creatures and it becomes a whole new level of fighting for your life. Every group in this book is in it for themselves, whether that means they hurt Alex and her friends or help them, you know they have their own agenda.

So as I said, awesome book, go get it today!

Most Biblical prophesy seems to be based on passages in Luke, which predict a proliferation of war and strife (Luke 21:10) and all manner of natural disasters (Luke 21:11) as signs of the end times. And certainly a span of a several years that includes widespread famine, wars and strife between nations and/or sects of people, earthquakes and tsunamis and volcanoes and storms and drought–well, that matches up with the Bibilical prediction quite well. The only problem is that what I’ve just described, while perhaps an apt description of the first decade of this century, also describes the period from 70-80 AD (Roman civil wars and fighting against the Jewish uprising, Roman invasion of Scotland; eruption of Vesuvius and tsunamis in Italy; droughts in Germany and Italy; famine in Ireland and Italy; floods in England). Nor is this the only other period in history where the rather general “signs of the end times” applies. The period of the Hundred Years War certainly fulfills the “prophesy” (and with the Black Death killing 30% or more of Europe’s population, is probably the closest to being correct), as well as the four years of WWI and any number of other time frames. More specific proclamations of the beginning of the end times supposedly based on the Bible include William Miller’s prediction of the Second Coming of Christ and the end of the world by fire between between March 21, 1843, and March 21, 1844 (and subsequently, October 22nd of 1844 when the first prediction didn’t pan out). More recently (but in a strangely parallel way), Harold Camping initially predicted the end of the world sometime between Sep 15-27th, 1994 (based on a reference in John 21:1-14) and then May 21, 2011 (and now October 21, 2011). There have been any number of additional specific end-of-the-world predictions based on interpretations of the Bible, some by cultists, others from major religions–and yet we’re still here. As such, based on the historical record, predicting 2012 as the end of the world from Biblical prophesy has no basis in reality.

Another school of thought ascribes the end of the world in 2012 to some sort of cosmic event, either a collision with the supposedly mysterious rogue planet Nibiru, a killer solar flare (or coronal mass ejection), or a disastrous celestial alignment (refuted here). Most are familiar with historical occasions of Halley’s Comet being hailed as a harbinger of doom, starting at least as early as 989 AD and most recently in 1910, but there have been other predictions of the end of the world from celestial objects, including earlier predictions that Nibiru would end the world in May 2003. Similar predictions were made for Comet Hyakutake (1996), Comet Hale-Bopp (1997), and Comet SOHO (1998), with only those members of the Heaven’s Gate cult having their world come to an end…of their own volition. Further back in history, in 1186 AD, the Letter of Toledo claimed that the alignment of “all” 7 planets (all that were known at the time) in Libra on Sept 23rd would result in the “Deluge Conjunction” and in the end of the world (Bar Hebraeus, a Jacobite Syrian bishop, wrote “..all the astronomers predicted that a universal flood and a mighty whirlwind would take place in the world, and all mankind would perish.”) In 1974 a best selling book, The Jupiter Effect, predicted that the alignment of all the major planets on one side of the sun in 1982 would generate a combined gravitational force that would exert tidal forces on the Sun. These tidal forces, in turn, would increase sunspot activity that would cascade the earth with high-speed particles that would cause abrupt changes to the planet’s rotation. Yet in spite of all these predictions of the end of the world by cosmic misadventure, we’re still here. While a globe-altering event from space could happen (ask the dinosaurs), 2012 is no more and no less likely to be the year something like that happens…and the odds for any given year are exceedingly small.

Finally, there are the end-of-the-world predictions tied to what I call “calendar doom”–cataclysm tied to some specific date on a calendar, without necessarily any specifics as to its cause. For 2012 that comes in the form of Dec 21, 2012, and is primarily driven by the end of one of the periods (13 Baktun) in the Mayan Long Count Calendar. The three most comparable failed end-of-world panics associated with “calendar doom” were the end of the millennium in 1000 AD, the year 1666 AD, and Y2K. As with the Mayan Long Count calendar 2012 “predictions”, the panic associated with 1000 AD was largely based on the end of a major “era”–in this case 1000 years after the birth of Christ, with the expectation that the end of the millennium would see Christ’s second coming and with it the end of the world. Needless to say, the world survived the first millenium, giving rise to any number of other predictions based upon calendar numerology. Many saw 1666 as an end-of-the-world year because it represented the millennium plus the number of the beast. The year 2000, in addition to the concerns over the Y2K computer bug, also brought millennial fears (another major “era” ending) which were far more widespread because of modern communications. One site notes 42 failed predictions of the end of the world for the year 2000. In each case the end of some major epoch measured with some arbitrary time tracker (real, or contrived, as with 1666) supposedly presaged the end of the world. And yet–we’re still here.

I’ve touched upon several categories of failed end-of-the-world predictions that parallel those being made for Dec 21, 2012. I hope I’ve shown that these 2012 proclamations of doom are nothing more than rehashes of past failed end-of-the-world soothsaying, gussied up in new outerwear. Why some people get so worked up about these things is another article altogether, although there’s an interesting piece that looks at that question from a psychological perspective, and another that explains how the concept of cognitive dissonance allows believers of failed predictions to refuse to believe the predictions were wrong. In the interests of fairness, though, I’ll make my own prediction for those who are steadfast in needing an apocalyptic time frame. Sometime around 5 billion years from now, as our sun begins to transform into a red giant, life as we know it on earth will end. That’s just too far out for me to worry about, though!

• This week’s SFSN Facebook Poll: The DeLorean is the hottest Sci Fi   Car, take that, McFly.
• Locke and Key, The Board Game.
• Kriana recommends Goodreads.
• What does Dark Shadows really hold for us?
• Peter Dinklage wins an Emmy.
• Cameron talks about Avatar MMO.
• DC’s New 52 gets old very quickly.
• True Blood’s Pam in Once upon A Time.
• Ender’s Game casting notes.
• The Walking Dead Season 2 and webisodes.
• Teasers for Prometheus.
• Sulu & The L Word.

Our guest tonight was the author Resa Nelson, who we met at The Great New England Steampunk Exhibition. We talked about her new Dragonslayer series, in particular , the first book, The Dragonslayer’s Sword and book two in the series, The Iron Maiden, which is set to be released in December. We discussed the depths of her research into sword construction and becoming part of the Academy of the Sword Guild at the Higgins Armory Museum. You can receive a free e-book of her short stories by signing up for her newsletter, and you can buy The Dragonslayer’s Sword via Amazon.

Fiction Friday – The Dragonslayer's Sword

I met Resa Nelson at the Great New England Steampunk Exhibition a few weeks back. Tucked in among the costumed artists and participants were a few writers, some looking apprehensively at the throngs in their various costumes. Sitting at one table was Resa, smiling at people, engaging in casual conversation with ones who stopped. I spoke to her and was immediately captivated by her story, (both  her writing and her back story) so much so, in fact, that she will be on the TalkCast this Saturday.

I am currently reading one of her books, The Dragonslayers Sword, which is categorized as a YA Novel. In point of fact it transcends that pigeonhole most wonderfully.  It is a very complex story with some very real, rich characters and I am thoroughly enjoying it. As a little taste of what she writes,  I want to share with you the short story of the same name that is the basis for the novel. It was originally published in Science Fiction Age magazine.

“The Dragonslayer’s Sword”

By Resa Nelson

 

Heat stood around Astrid like a wall when she worked, built in layers by the fire and the metal tools she used. The bellows wheezed as she pumped them, her arms aching, smoke stinging her eyes, until the charcoals burned bright yellow. The smithery was outside, adjacent to her cottage. Rows of tall, ancient poplars surrounded the cottage and the smithery, giving shade and privacy.

 

Astrid enjoyed the heat of the smithery, loving the way it baked into her skin. When it became too intense, she’d set down the horseshoe or dagger or whatever else she might be tapping into shape, and step back into the cool of the day for relief. One September day, at such a moment, Astrid paused and turned around to find the dragonslayer standing behind her.

 

Astrid gasped, because it was the first time anyone had seen her blacksmithing body. Although fully clothed, she felt as vulnerable as if he had just found her naked.

 

The body nature had given her was small but sturdy. As with any woman, Astrid’s legs were the strongest part of her body, her thighs and rump large but muscular from running long distances between villages when she was a girl, delivering messages or trading light goods. Also as with any woman, Astrid’s chest and arms were soft and rounded. She had not been born to develop the body of a blacksmith.

 

It wasn’t unusual that Astrid changed her body when she worked, enlarging her chest and arms several times until the upper half of her body looked more like a man’s physique than a woman’s. Everyone changed their shape as they needed or wanted to. Only Lenore caused anyone’s eyebrows to raise, because she was indiscreet about the times and places she chose to alter her body: Lenore would toss her head back and laugh as she’d sprout larger breasts and longer legs while crossing the road from one man’s side to another. It was unusual for anyone else to change shape in such a crude manner. And yet Lenore was respected because no man had ever been able to alter her body by staring at it–Lenore had the confidence to maintain whatever shape she chose, no matter how anyone else might want her to appear.

 

Unlike Lenore, Astrid felt sensitive about changing to her blacksmithing body, because it meant finding the male qualities within herself.

The rest of the story can be found here.

This is Dome, sayin’: I hope you will join us on the TalkCast to meet her as we talk about her wonderful universes.

The Dome and "Friend"

I spent the day of 9-3-11 in Exeter, New Hampshire at their 3^rd. Annual UFO Festival along with Illustrator X and The Dead Redhead. Yes, I know, kooks and octogenarians with tin foil hats, right? Well, yes and no. There were copious numbers of the usual suspects:  aged men in suits telling of The Coming of Tan and other such drivel, lecturing on and on with maniacal precision about the 4000 year old issues that have plagued the universe’s multitude of beings.  The heretics in their tattered clothes handing out  mimeo copies of the latest conspiracy involving the alien abductions of whomever for whatever purpose.

Then there were the well-spoken, well-educated, well-intentioned, well-educated participants. Those who were thoughtful, reasoned and dispassionate in their approach were in attendance to lend an air of authenticity and genuine inquiry into the event. Among them were:

Stanton Friedman

Stanton Friedman: Stanton has been a voice of reason in the UFO community, not an apologist. He does not suffer fools on either side of the debate and has no use for those who will not bring their evidence into the light for meaningful clinical verification and review. His background in hard science is a boost to his personal philosophy that validity relies upon finding the truth.

Katheleen Marden: Kathy is a writer and lecturer and the niece of Betty and Barney Hill. As an “insider” to the events after their abduction experience, Kathy was very upset at the “seemingly” deliberate misinformation disseminated by supposed debunkers, experts and major news organizations about the Hill incident. In a one-hour lecture she provided chapter and verse of misinformation alongside actual factual record of the events. It proved to be both enlightening and somewhat amusing to see the lengths some went to distort actual testimony and affidavits.

There were the skeptics there as well. I am always amused by them, especially considering that many of them are my good friends, and I have come to believe that I am by and large tolerated by the Skeptic Community for having an open mind and respecting their point of view. I wish there was more of this, but more often than not there is an ever-growing intolerance between the Skeptic community and the UFO community. I had a wonderful conversation with Stanton at the conference and I postulated that regardless of the side they were on, once a “believer” believed, their faith became unshakable and steadfast. Any information/facts/evidence to the contrary of their belief was summarily tossed out. I am beginning to understand that this is common on both sides of the equation. The level of both deliberate and sloppily unintentional misinformation on both sides of this discussion is making any REAL skeptical inquiry next to impossible.

Consider the concepts of two writers. Fritz Leiber told us that when times are good, science tells the truth and magicians tell people what they wish were true. In bad times people sell their souls for magic. Robert Heinlein told us in his novella WALDO, that magic and science are two sides of the same coin, with the unifying factor being Man.

This is Done, sayin’: If there is ever to be any real meaningful discourse on UFO’s it will come from those willing, not to believe, but to listen.

So let’s put our hands together for this amazing group of folks and the unique way in which they serve up our favorite fandoms, both old and new, every Saturday night.  They’ve had immortals like Ben Bova, Harlan Ellison, L. Neil Smith, and Spider Robinson drop by, and they’ve been gracious enough to also allow not-as-well-known illustrators like yours truly to share some studio time.

SO fire up your time machine of choice –hot tub, DeLorean, police box, or just stand naked in the middle of a ball of electricity –we aren’t fussy.  Let’s step back to the ancient days of February 2006, when Netflix was just getting rolling with that whole “streaming” thing, our iPods were mostly first-generation Shuffles, the Galactica hadn’t yet found Earth, we were still getting used to David Tennant, and we all still adored Shia LeBouf.

Enter Dru Silla, Zombrarian, the Dead Redhead, AwakebyJava, the mysterious Illustrator X, Kriana, and especially The Dome, to share with us a few insights on paving the way for this remarkable journey.

• Zombrarian talks about Doug Jones.
• The Dead Redhead talks about Ben Bova.
• Awake By Java talks about Chris Golden.
• Illustrator X and the Harlan Ellison Experience.
• Kriana with Browncoats at the Hellmouth.
• Dome talks about David Mack and very special segment with Spider Robinson

And so much more!

As well you may ask, “Who was Michael Hart and of what importance was he to Fiction Friday?” Mike was the inventor of e-books, founder of Project Gutenberg and a self-professed “Copyfighter”. I have extolled Project Gutenberg many times. It has far reaching implications for electronic publishing and is an invaluable repository of what would otherwise be lost informational history. It’s mission statement is:

“Encourage the Creation and Distribution of eBooks”

“Help Break Down the Bars of Ignorance and Illiteracy”

“Give As Many eBooks to As Many People As Possible”

His pioneering work benefits everyone now and for coming generations. While much information available electronically is factually suspect or transitory, Mike’s accomplishment is a living breathing entity that grows exponentially with each day. It is a testament to any writer who ever put pen to paper and each new generation, and it garners inspiration from their collective past. I can think of few things on the web of more cultural significance and importance than Project Gutenberg.

There is a wonderfully poignant article about Mr. Hart written by Cory Doctorow on his amazing website, boingboing, which is a must read (both the post and the website). I would be foolish to think I could do any better than he did. Thank you, Cory, thank you Michael.

Monday

FOX – Terra Nova 8:00pm NEW

Spielberg takes us 85 million years into the past to erase the sins of the future. FOX is banking on this Future/Past series that infuses itself with many of the basic tropes of a successful Sci Fi Series:  Dystopian Future, Overpopulation and Time Travel. The beauty of its success hangs on the writing. Over and over we stress that writing is the difference between trope and tripe and this show has all the earmarks of having a great shot.

Why You Should Watch – The producers name says it all, Steve has made his bones and on the basis of that alone

ABC – Castle 10pm

Richard Castle

Mal Reynolds – Detective. While not genre, who cares? It is Not To Miss Nathan Fillion. A great concept, a stellar cast, clean crisp writing and classic villain of the week writing makes this one of the high-water marks in network TV. If you are a discerning watcher, there are frequently barbed side comments  at past roles. This show has subtext and I like it.

Why You Should Watch – Its consistently smart, well acted and it’s Capt. Tight Pants. It’s got laughs and it’s just good entertainment, something quite rare on the networks.

Tuesday

CW Ringer 9:00pm NEW

Sarah Michelle Gellar (SMG) returns to TV without Scooby Doo, playing twins in a non-Parent Trap show about an ex-stripper and her “not dead yet” twin. A cool cast includes SMG, Ioan Gruffudd, Kristoffer Polaha and Tara Summers. It has a complex plot with SMG working to create disparate twins, and there are some very interesting twists and turns in the pilot. If the pilot is any indication of what the season has in store, I’m watching it. You should give it a try.

Why You Should Watch – SMG. Simply put, she is a wonderful actress who has been under used for years. JINKIES!

Wednesday

Catch up on your Favorite blog, Sci Fi Saturday Night!

Thursday

Aarti Mann

CBS The Big Bang Theory 8:00pm

Season 5 opens with an awkward explanation of Raj and Penny sleeping together, and the fun continues with our favorite super brained nerds. While we are all confident and comfortable with the basic premise, I find the show interesting because I know these people, I worked with these people. They are just like Sheldon Cooper. I know Howard’s mother, lets face it, we all do. Nerds with brains are the new cool, and this show is very cool.

Why You Should Watch – Jim Parsons gets less and less funny but Aarti Mann is smokin’. Nice trade off. Nerds rule.

CW The Vampire Diaries 8:00pm

Season Three. Never watched it. Evidently, they don’t sparkle. Good for them.

CBS The Mentalist 10:00pm

Wait for Psych to come back on. At least when they’re funny, it’s intentional.

Why Psych is better than The Mentalist:

• Psych is better written.
• Psych doesn’t take itself seriously.
• Psych has a better cast.
• Shawn and Gus have a great chemistry.
• Simon Baker can’t skateboard.

CW The Secret Circle 9:00 NEW

Think, Sabrina The Teenage Witch without a laugh track. Natasha Henstridge is on this show and that means I will watch. CW tries for relevance with a number of new shows and this one may hit the mark. Cassie Blake is the “normal” teenager, whatever the hell that is. Mom dies and the orphan is shipped off to live with Grams in Washington state. Yes, we have been here before, yes its derivative, yes its angsty teens. All that aside, it’s Thomas Dekker, Britt Robertson and the aforementioned Natasha Henstridge.

Why You Should Watch – It’s new and it doesn’t have a laugh track. I think it’s most definitely worth a try.

Friday NERD NIGHT!

CBS A Gifted Man 8:00pm NEW

A self-involved surgeon sees his dead wife. Think Ghost without Swayze and Moore and with lots of medical jargon. We have seen this before and watched it fizzle. Perhaps this time thay have the mix down correctly and it will be worth watching. I know I am not the most knowledgeable person but I simply don’t recognize anyone in the cast. The pilot was directed by series Executive Producer Jonathan Demme, which says something. I just wish I knew what.

Why You Should Watch – No clue.

 NBC Chuck 8:00pm

Yes, it’s the last season, and it’s my guilty pleasure. I wish I could say it’s because of the eye candy but the

Chuck

truth is I just enjoy it. The melding of man and computer is a well-worn trope and they have used it well in this series. The fish out of water medallion has been passed around the cast so well that almost everyone has worn it atone time or another. It may not be as well written as some would like but thats too bad. Smallville was on for far too long. This is Chuck’s last season. Sci Fi Spy Fi Fun.

Why You Should Watch – Adam Baldwin is just too damn good.

CW Nikita 8:00pm

Here is your eye candy show of the season. Returning for Season Two, Maggie Q makes this a great hour to watch. It’s not deep and there is nothing wrong with that. The premise has been worked over 3 movies and this second TV series. Maggie is what makes it work this time around. Without her , there is simply no real reason to watch.

Why You Should Watch – Because it’s fun.

NBC Grimm 9:00pm NEW

Who are the Grimms? What secret does this clan of hunters have? Do mythical villains masquerade in our modern world? Is this concept too high or is this going to become casualty of its timeslot. I hope not.

Why You Should Watch – Writer/Producer David Greenwalt (BTVS).

Fringe 9:00pm

So, is Peter alive or gone? How will Water and Walternate co-exist in a single unified universe? I care. This is one of the most finely-tuned, well-scripted genre shows on television. The actors are simply amazing, most doing double duty as slightly different characters in parallel universes. Now that the realities have melded, what can they do? What ever it is, I am there.

Why You Should Watch – Seriously?

CW Supernatural 9:00pm

Somebody told me this is a good show. Its competition is going to make sure I never see it, and I am told that is a shame. I guess I will never know.

Saturday

I am told there are many fine Microbreweries  that need your patronage. And if there aren’t, there’s always a new Sci Fi Saturday Night podcast.

 Sunday

ABC Once Upon A Time 8:00pm NEW

Cashing in on all the wonderful Fairy Tale movies of the past year…. oh crap.

This is Dome, sayin’: Watch and learn, watch and learn.

SFSN Cast by Illustrator X

• Nike Air Mags!
• Doc Brown pimps an Argentinean Electronics chain.
• MTV eyes Locke and Key.
• ABC grabs the pitch for The Last Resort.
• Joel Courtney (Super 8 ) in the new supernatural thriller The Healer.

Our first guest segment is with Steve Perry and Crystal Washington of The Southcoast Paranormal & Psychic Faire, Sept. 25^th, in Fairhaven Ma. The discuss some of the guests and events taking place over the faire and surprise guest Frankie B. Washington pops in for a bit.

Our second segment features Dr. Grymm and Emperor of the Red Fork Empire, two performers at the upcoming Great New England Steampunk Exhibition, Sept. 16^th to 18^th, in Fitchburg, Ma. Join the cast of SFSN next weekend for a steam powered good time!

First off, I saw none of the viral marketing for Apollo 18, so I went into the movie without any exposure other than the trailer. Since I don’t follow any movie sites, I missed any mention of the viral aspect of the film after the launch of the campaign. After doing some research, I’m not sure if what was available would have kept my interest. I remember in 2007, the Cloverfield viral marketing kept me interested in the film, and while I thought the film was okay, the viral campaign added to the experience as a whole.

As for Apollo 18, well, I can honestly say that I thought it was average, at best. It’s kind of hard to ignore the scientific inaccuracies of a found footage film set in space. The film is set in 1974, and has some discussion on the space race with Soviet Russia, I feel the significance of this time period lost on a generation where the space program is more of an international effort. Perhaps this is the Achilles heel of the found footage formula. The film does not have a real chance to build the type of tension necessary to make the space race relevant. Perhaps those points where made in the viral marketing? As of this writing, I’m unable to get onto any of the viral websites, including www.lunartruth.com.

One strength of the movie is the effort to create the semblance of the film and low-fi video that would come from 1974. The camera angles and frames take that amateur effort approach, and it’s played off beautifully. One complaint I read online was the fact that there were so many shaky cam scenes, which made the movie less desirable. I’ve heard the same complaints from everything the Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield, and those films were moderate found footage successes.

Overall, Apollo 18 does not bring any big-screen magic. It’s nothing original, but it is entertaining.

SyFy Original Move Jabberwock

Our Guests Tonight:

Michael Dougherty and Andrew Marnik talk about the wrap of Browncoats: Redemption and tease their upcoming  projects.

Michael Worth star of the SyFy Original Move Jabberwock (and the first vampire killed by Faith on BtVS) talks about the movie and other projects he is currently working on.

Fritz Leiber portrait by Ed Emshwiller

Chess Expert, Fencer, Playwright, Actor and perhaps one of the preeminent Horror/Fantasy Writers in America; that was Fritz Leiber. We spent an hour talking with one of his greatest fans, Harlan Ellison about his works, in which Ellison spoke in nothing but incandescently glowing terms, and rightfully so. Oft forgotten by sparkly vampire lovers, Fritz challenged his readers constantly but never left them wondering where they had gone. Leiber was a fascinating stylist, bringing the setting of his works to places one would hardly imagine.

No Great Magic is set in world of theatre, a world Leiber was very familiar with, having been born into an acting family. It melds theatre and magic as only he can. To quote from the 1951 short story “Poor Superman,”

“Consider the age in which we live. It wants magicians…. A scientist tells people the truth. When times are good—that is, when the truth offers no threat—people don’t mind.… A magician, on the other hand, tells people what they wish were true—that perpetual motion works, that cancer can be cured by colored lights, that a psychosis is no worse than a head cold, that they’ll live forever. In good times magicians are laughed at. They’re a luxury of the spoiled wealthy few. But in bad times people sell their souls for magic cures and buy perpetual-motion machines to power their war rockets.”

SFSN is proud to present No Great Magic:

I dipped through the filmy curtain into the boys’ half of the dressing room and there was Sid sitting at the star’s dressing table in his threadbare yellowed undershirt, the lucky one, not making up yet but staring sternly at himself in the bulb-framed mirror and experimentally working his features a little, as actors will, and kneading the stubble on his fat chin.

I said to him quietly, “Siddy, what are we putting on tonight? Maxwell Anderson’s Elizabeth the Queen or Shakespeare’s Macbeth? It says Macbeth on the callboard, but Miss Nefer’s getting ready for Elizabeth. She just had me go and fetch the red wig.”

He tried out a few eyebrow rears—right, left, both together—then turned to me, sucking in his big gut a little, as he always does when a gal heaves into hailing distance, and said, “Your pardon, sweetling, what sayest thou?”

Sid always uses that kook antique patter backstage, until I sometimes wonder whether I’m in Central Park, New York City, nineteen hundred and three quarters, or somewhere in Southwark, Merry England, fifteen hundred and same. The truth is that although he loves every last fat part in Shakespeare and will play the skinniest one with loyal and inspired affection, he thinks Willy S. penned Falstaff with nobody else in mind but Sidney J. Lessingham. (And no accent on the ham, please.)

I closed my eyes and counted to eight, then repeated my question.

He replied, “Why, the Bard’s tragical history of the bloody Scot, certes.” He waved his hand toward the portrait of Shakespeare that always sits beside his mirror on top of his reserve makeup box. At first that particular picture of the Bard looked too nancy to me—a sort of peeping-tom schoolteacher—but I’ve grown used to it over the months and even palsy-feeling.

He didn’t ask me why I hadn’t asked Miss Nefer my question. Everybody in the company knows she spends the hour before curtain-time getting into character, never parting her lips except for that purpose—or to bite your head off if you try to make the most necessary conversation.

The complete text can be found here.

The main character, sixteen-year-old Lucy, has lived through the end of the world and is surviving on her own in the wild.  She’s doing a pretty good job of it until she runs into a pack of hunting dogs.  Luckily, super-cutie Aiden is there to haul her up into a tree and save her. He lives not too far away with a group of survivors. When Lucy is forced to leave her little home, she heads for the camp and more importantly, toward Aiden, who she is already crushing on after one meeting. After that, the sweepers show up and the adventure begins.

It all sounds pretty exciting, right? Problem is, it never really actually is exciting.  Lucy and Aiden like each other, but the author doesn’t really give much reason for it. I’m sure someone probably thought adding a love story to the book would give it more appeal, but I felt like Lucy was much more interesting before she starts to think about Aiden all the time. I liked her as a loner. When you read about what she is doing to survive, it really makes you wonder what you could do in the same situation. Once she joins up with the other survivors, it almost feels like she is useless, even though she’s been living on her own for a year.

On his own, Aiden is an interesting character, a teen doing everything he can to help the group survive. While Lucy has learned to keep herself alive, he as learned to do what is best for the group and this is where they butt heads, until all of a sudden one or the other of them do something completely out of character without warning. This happened to both of them at least once, and left me scratching my head wondering why they had fought about it for so long.

Hearing the back story was probably the best part of the book, as Lucy explains how the world fell apart, what it meant for her family and what it meant for her. The ending was also good, some nice excitement as Lucy and the others try to escape from the sweepers. So it’s a book with a strong beginning and ending, but a center that drags.

City Of Sand by Josh Emmons

• This Week’s Poll Results: What comic book character should get the next big budget Hollywood treatment?
• Movie Round Up:
  Ghostbusters 3 is a go.
• Wreckit Ralph
• Fright Night
• Cosplay for A Cause
• Locke and Key will NOT been seen on TV.
• Exit Strategy
• New Star Trek for TV?
• 18 Things You May Not Have Known About Firefly.

Our guest tonight is Joshua Emmons. His web comic is City Of Sand.  He is also involved in Double Feature, a free to download iPad app, which he helped create.

Fiction Friday – The Street That Wasn’t There

Who the hell is Carl Richard Jacobi? In short, he was one of a host prolific of the pulp horror writers from the 30’s and 40’s and yet most of his work has largely been forgotten or pushed aside for the sparkly vampire nonsense that permeates current fiction. He wrote literally hundreds of short stories and novellas in many different pulp magazines and anthologies. In the mid-40’s he had a short story collection published with moderate success.

I present to you on this Fiction Friday one of his more intriguing tales, the story of a day in the life of Mr. Jonathon Chambers: “Man himself, by the power of mass suggestion, holds the

Carl Richard Jacobi 1908-1997

physical fate of this earth … yes, even the universe. Billions of minds seeing trees as trees, houses as houses, streets as streets … and not as something else. Minds that see things as they are and have kept things as they were…. Destroy those minds and the entire foundation of matter, robbed of its regenerative power, will crumple and slip away like a column of sand….”

This is the story of The Street That Wasn’t There;

Mr. Jonathon Chambers left his house on Maple Street at exactly seven o’clock in the evening and set out on the daily walk he had taken, at the same time, come rain or snow, for twenty solid years.

 The walk never varied. He paced two blocks down Maple Street, stopped at the Red Star confectionery to buy a Rose Trofero perfecto, then walked to the end of the fourth block on Maple. There he turned right on Lexington, followed Lexington to Oak, down Oak and so by way of Lincoln back to Maple again and to his home.

 He didn’t walk fast. He took his time. He always returned to his front door at exactly 7:45. No one ever stopped to talk with him. Even the man at the Red Star confectionery, where he bought his cigar, remained silent while the purchase was being made. Mr. Chambers merely tapped on the glass top of the counter with a coin, the man reached in and brought forth the box, and Mr. Chambers took his cigar. That was all.

 For people long ago had gathered that Mr. Chambers desired to be left alone. The newer generation of townsfolk called it eccentricity. Certain uncouth persons had a different word for it. The oldsters remembered that this queer looking individual with his black silk muffler, rosewood cane and bowler hat once had been a professor at State University.

 A professor of metaphysics, they seemed to recall, or some such outlandish subject. At any rate a furore of some sort was connected with his name … at the time an academic scandal. He had written a book, and he had taught the subject matter of that volume to his classes. What that subject matter was, had long been forgotten, but whatever it was had been considered sufficiently revolutionary to cost Mr. Chambers his post at the university.

The rest of the text can be found here.

Foundation’s Triumph

Foundation’s Fear, the first of this trilogy, fills in the details (and intrigue) behind Hari Seldon’s appointment to the position of First Minister. It takes place roughly between the first and second sections of Forward the Foundation. The sections that deal with Seldon read very much like something the Good Doctor would have written, although Benford’s version is much more a pacifist than Asimov’s “Twister” Seldon. The persona of Hari Seldon (and other key continuing characters) is greatly enhanced in this book; characterization was never one of Asimov’s strengths. And Benford attempts to provide answers to one of those questions raised in the original series: upon what exactly did Seldon base his insights into psychohistory? Benford also sets the stage for future concepts in the series (e.g., the planet Gaia) and provides the backdrop for the two books in the Second Foundation Trilogy to follow. There are also elements that don’t fit into the universe that Asimov created–different technologies (wormhole transportation versus hyperjumps), intelligent alien races, and all manner of new technologies. Overall it’s not a book that would be mistaken as one of Asimov’s, but in the end it stays true enough to the basic outline that it’s easily seen as an extension of the Good Doctor’s work.

The second of the Second Foundation Trilogy books is Foundation and Chaos, which takes place at the same time as the first section of Foundation. Greg Bear takes the first essential element in Asimov’s original Foundation, Hari Seldon’s trial for treason, and provides an engaging look at the events that lead up to it. The book expands the background and the intrigues that precede the trial, and provides a far more detailed explanation for why the trial ended as it did. Bear’s book also provides a robust follow-on to a key element in Forward the Foundation, providing background on the development and growth of the Second Foundation with roughly the same level of detail Asimov used to describe the development and growth of the First Foundation in Foundation. In the original Foundation Trilogy the Second Foundation just “is”; Bear provides the backdrop for its later appearance. His book also continues the incorporation of Asimov’s Robot series into the Foundation story, introducing a secondary story-line involving R. Daneel Olivaw’s efforts behind the scenes and a robot conflict between the Calvinists (those robots who believe in only the original Three Laws of Robotics) and the Giskardians (those who, like Daneel, believe in the Zeroth Law). With its focus on primary themes and characters from Asimov’s original Foundation and Robot series, this book feels more like it belongs in the Asimov universe than Benford’s Foundation’s Fear. It succeeds nicely in beginning to reconcile the pieces of Asimov’s original works that hadn’t been previously addressed. The only slightly jarring aspect of this book is Bear’s far more complex word usage and writing style, which certainly differentiates it from Asimov’s writing.

The final book in the Second Foundation Trilogy is Foundation’s Triumph, which takes place at the tail end of Seldon’s life, after the seeds of the two Foundations have been planted (roughly between Parts 1 and 2 of Foundation). In it David Brin deliberately picks up what Bear started in the previous novel–reconciling the inconsistencies and unanswered questions that came about as a result of combining two monumental series. Hari Seldon goes off in search of an answer to the one remaining major question he encountered during his development of psychohistory–the causes of periodic outbreaks of chaos, where worlds experience a tremendous outburst of creativity and then inevitably violently collapse. In the course of Seldon’s journeys (and at the same time as Dors Venabli, Daneel and Seldon’s granddaughter Wanda are off dealing with other issues), Brin manages to tie up the loose ends and provide reasonable explanations for apparent inconsistencies (for example, why has Man not encountered aliens in the course of inhabiting the known galaxy? Why has there been relatively little technological progress in all the millennia the Empire has existed?). He also nicely incorporates references to other Asimov novels (e.g., Pebble in the Sky and The Stars, Like Dust), not normally considered part of either the Foundation or Robot series, into his narrative. And of the three books in the Second Foundation Trilogy this one feels the most like something the Good Doctor might have written himself.

I wanted to bring attention to these three books for those who enjoy Isaac Asimov’s work but might not have heard about this extension of his literary universe. As I’ve noted there’s variability in how strictly these novels adhere to Asimov’s writing, from both a conceptual and stylistic standpoint. Some of the new concepts these writers introduce feel out of place in an Asimovian universe, and that might be a turn-off to true fans of Asimov’s work. Overall, though, I think the Second Foundation Trilogy does a good job of creating missing detail and more effectively tying the Foundation and Robot series together. And the books are all fun reads on their own.

Inception The TV Series Starring Dane Cook and Jennifer Aniston (Graphic by Photoshop)

How does one explain the current state of programming among the television networks? Is it an issue with current quality of programming? Yes. Is it an issue with pandering to a sub-genre they know little about? Yes. Is it money hunger and pandering to the lowest common denominator? Of course, but I am coming to the conclusion that there is more to this ill conceived plan than meets the eye.

EXAMPLE 1 – THE WALKING DEAD. AMC takes it’s one of its highest rated shows, The Walking Dead, showcases it at ComiCon, Parades the cast and show-runner from panel to panel for the three day event, then summarily fires the show-runner and slashed the budget in half. Frank Darabont was truly a dead man walking and never knew it. Cast and crew were stunned and were given the cryptic explanation “This isn’t working”. Seems to me it was working just fine, great show, interesting cast, explosive concept, and deviously crafted. Yeah, it wasn’t working, was it?

EXAMPLE 2 – EUREKA. SyFy Network, perhaps most noted for a few great series and a plethora of horrible made for TV movies, takes one of its highest rated shows and shortly after announcing that it is extended for another season, abruptly cancels it, not allowing the writers to bring it to a conclusion. In an interesting corollary, their propaganda magazine, appropriately named SyFy, has a feature article in this months issue about how wonderfully the now terminal show is doing. The explanation given was, it was too expensive. “We just couldn’t make the numbers work”. To be nice, SyFy has ordered one last episode to be shot beyond the current contract to allow for some closure.

EXAMPLE 3 – WONDER WOMAN. This was a mess from the very inception (hey wait…INCEPTION the television series, you dream and you get to…oh never mind). So here is what we get; Wonder Woman in spandex tights, Adrianne Palicki pouting, no hint of where she comes from or why is she here and who the hell knows what to do with a female Super Hero anyway? (….um…Marvel) Its premiere at ComiCon led to it’s demise , although the network quashed it after seeing the final cut and rightfully so. The question is why was it made so poorly, what were they thinking?

“What the hell were they thinking?” is a question worth asking as we grind inexorably toward the new season of strained lamb baby food /television. Well, if we are to believe LiveScience.com, Addiction is now defined as a Brain Disorder, not a Behavior Problem. Network programmers are addicted to ratings. These ratings are elusive and hard to command and when they don’t get them programmers act as any addict would:  destroying both good and bad to get their fix. How could we possibly expect them to behave rationally, or for that matter make intelligent decisions?

This is Dome, sayin’: I am pitching Inception the TV Series, starring Dane Cook and Jennifer Aniston. Any takers?

Old TV is new TV.

Our guests tonight are Susan & Everett Soares, to talk about the Sky Pirates of Valendor comics, and Joy and Alexander Tambascia of MECHA Software, LLC. announce their new Sky Pirates Facebook video game. They will be at the Great New England Steampunk Exhibition on Sept 16-18th in Fitchburg Mass. and we’ll be there too!

 His writing style in these short stories varied significantly from his novels. Many stories were a drawn out thought, never fully realized; an essence or tone poem. “The Skull” is one such example. In this short story, a man is given his chance at redemption, however the cost of this is the Devil’s dilemma.  Join him on his journey into darkness:

What is this opportunity?” Conger asked. “Go on. I’m interested.”

The room was silent; all faces were fixed on Conger—still in the drab prison uniform. The Speaker leaned forward slowly.

“Before you went to prison your trading business was paying well—all illegal—all very profitable. Now you have nothing, except the prospect of another six years in a cell.”

Conger scowled.

“There is a certain situation, very important to this Council, that requires your peculiar abilities. Also, it is a situation you might find interesting. You were a hunter, were you not? You’ve done a great deal of trapping, hiding in the bushes, waiting at night for the game? I imagine hunting must be a source of satisfaction to you, the chase, the stalking—”

Conger sighed. His lips twisted. “All right,” he said. “Leave that out. Get to the point. Who do you want me to kill?”

The Speaker smiled. “All in proper sequence,” he said softly.

The rest of this story can be found here.

This is by far one of the silliest movies ever made, and yet, I love it. This 1988 clunker was directed by Julien Temple and co written by Julie Brown, which in Hollywood means you get a co-staring role whether or not you should, and quite frankly that caveat should be put on almost every member of the cast. Lets make this clear; this is not a great film. It is what it is and that is a hysterically funny film, sometimes intentionally and sometimes purely by accident.

Three primary-color furred aliens crash land in a swimming pool. They emerge and meet three Valley Girls , one of whom works at the now notorious Curl Up and Dye Beauty Parlor (where else has this workplace been in movies?) , where (when fully body shaven) the aliens become passably handsome males and become instant party hits in a rather brain damaged rendition of 80′s California.

This film is funny. No one less than Roger Ebert thought so, although I wonder for his sanity based on that. Upon re-watching this film, I can honestly say this, It’s hard to say you like it, but I still do. It may not be laugh out loud but it does make you smile. It’s kind of like a Lucas/Spielberg film if they wrote it while incredibly sleep deprived. It has heart, it had grins, it has aliens and it had Robbie the Robot.

This is Dome, sayin’: It’s a stupid wonderful film. Enjoy it, that’s why they made it.

Anthony Del Col from Kill Shakespeare

• Our readers rock, thanks for participating in our Facebook Polls!
• The Troy Library is saved.
• Kurt Vonnegut’s book banned by a Business Professor. Slick Move.
• Jerk move – Eureka killed by SyFy
• Second Jerk Move – AMC cuts Walking Dead’s budget.
• Third Jerk Move - Raped Version of Metropolis goes to Blu-Ray.
• Rebeka Issacs will be at Double Midnight Comics in NH, for the new Angel and Faith Comic.
• David Fincher says 20,000 Leagues will be 70% CGI.
• Duncan Jones wants to do more Sci Fi.

In our second half, our guest is Anthony Del Col, Co-Creator of Kill Shakespeare. We met him at Boston Comic Con. He talks about the process of writing this series and the 9 year evolution of this project.

In the third half of our show, we discuss the NPR list of “Top 100 Science Fiction, Fantasy  Books“.

Fiction Friday

With the upcoming John Carter of Mars movie, I have been hearkening back to my formative days of voraciously devouring sci fi when I was a whelp. I recall going to a used bookstore in Manhattan with my father and uncle and having them both tell me all about Barsoom, Pellucidar, The Land That Time Forgot and The Lost Continent.

It wasn’t till I was much older that I understood the position Edgar Rice Burroughs  held in the company of authors; and the multitude of books, series and articles he wrote in his lifetime. Even the incredibly accurate Wikipedia lists ERB under 6 different writing categories. Prolific doesn’t begin to describe his work. The city of Tarzana in California is named after…umm..guess who? He built and maintained a ranch there, which eventually became the city. He is also one of the very few to have a crater on Mars named after him.

For your enjoyment, and in honor of ERB, and complements of Project Gutenberg, Here is the beginning of Thuvia, Maid of Mars.

CHAPTER I

CARTHORIS AND THUVIA

 Upon a massive bench of polished ersite beneath the gorgeous blooms of a giant pimalia a woman sat. Her shapely, sandalled foot tapped impatiently upon the jewel-strewn walk that wound beneath the stately sorapus trees across the scarlet sward of the royal gardens of Thuvan Dihn, Jeddak of Ptarth, as a dark-haired, red-skinned warrior bent low toward her, whispering heated words close to her ear.

 ”Ah, Thuvia of Ptarth,” he cried, “you are cold even before the fiery blasts of my consuming love! No harder than your heart, nor colder is the hard, cold ersite of this thrice happy bench which supports your divine and fadeless form! Tell me, O Thuvia of Ptarth, that I may still hope—that though you do not love me now, yet some day, some day, my princess, I—”

 The girl sprang to her feet with an exclamation of surprise and displeasure. Her queenly head was poised haughtily upon her smooth red shoulders. Her dark eyes looked angrily into those of the man.

 ”You forget yourself, and the customs of Barsoom, Astok,” she said. “I have given you no right thus to address the daughter of Thuvan Dihn, nor have you won such a right.”

 The man reached suddenly forth and grasped her by the arm.

 ”You shall be my princess!” he cried. “By the breast of Issus, thou shalt, nor shall any other come between Astok, Prince of Dusar, and his heart’s desire. Tell me that there is another, and I shall cut out his foul heart and fling it to the wild calots of the dead sea-bottoms!”

 At touch of the man’s hand upon her flesh the girl went pallid beneath her coppery skin, for the persons of the royal women of the courts of Mars are held but little less than sacred. The act of Astok, Prince of Dusar, was profanation. There was no terror in the eyes of Thuvia of Ptarth—only horror for the thing the man had done and for its possible consequences.

 ”Release me.” Her voice was level—frigid.

 The man muttered incoherently and drew her roughly toward him.

 ”Release me!” she repeated sharply, “or I call the guard, and the Prince of Dusar knows what that will mean.”

 Quickly he threw his right arm about her shoulders and strove to draw her face to his lips. With a little cry she struck him full in the mouth with the massive bracelets that circled her free arm.

 ”Calot!” she exclaimed, and then: “The guard! The guard! Hasten in protection of the Princess of Ptarth!”

The rest of this book can be found here.

This is Dome sayin’: It’s a book, you know that thing made outta paper. You read it.

Walter Tevis

If you know about Walter Tevis, it may be from The Man Who Fell to Earth. To be honest, I wouldn’t have even have known that if I hadn’t seen the movie, which is brilliantly flawed. This movie was my introduction to Tevis and the dazzling mind that produced some wonderful science fiction. A man who wrote in multiple genres, it wasn’t till much later that I realized that he also wrote The Hustler and The Color Of Money.

In his science fiction Tevis wrote about many subjects, the fall of cities, alien invasion, technology run amok but what I would like to give to you today is a short story called “The Big Bounce”. In this story, a professor, thru serendipitous research discovers a substance with amazing properties. The story sheds light on the art of scientific inquiry and how one handles unintended consequences.

 Let me show you something,” Farnsworth said. He set his near-empty drink–a Bacardi martini–on the mantel and waddled out of the room toward the basement.  I sat in my big leather chair, feeling very peaceful with the world, watching the fire. Whatever Farnsworth would have to show to-night would be far more entertaining than watching T.V.–my custom on other evenings. Farnsworth, with his four labs in the house and his very tricky mind, never failed to provide my best night of the week.  When he returned, after a moment, he had with him a small box, about three inches square. He held this carefully in one hand and stood by the fireplace dramatically–or as dramatically as a very small, very fat man with pink cheeks can stand by a fireplace of the sort that seems to demand a big man with tweeds, pipe and, perhaps, a saber wound.  Anyway, he held the box dramatically and he said, “Last week, I was playing around in the chem lab, trying to make a new kind of rubber eraser. Did quite well with the other drafting equipment, you know, especially the dimensional curve and the photosensitive ink. Well, I approached the job by trying for a material that would absorb graphite without abrading paper.”  I was a little disappointed with this; it sounded pretty tame. But I said, “How did it come out?

The  full story is available via Project Gutenberg here.

The purpose of the book is to show support for female creators in comics and media. There will be multiple short stories, “how to”s & interviews with professionals, and features showcasing iconic female comic creators that have passed, such as Nell Brinkley and Tarpe Mills. A Kids & Teens section will also be included, showcasing their work, and offering tips & tricks to help them prepare themselves for their future careers in comics. Overall, this is pretty much a huge book showcasing what women in comics have accomplished, and what we are capable of We are also hoping that by doing this book, it will encourage a new generation of women to pick up the pencil and create!

Part of what’s special about Womanthology is its equal opportunity aspects. Big- name professionals like Gail Simone are paired up with new and upcoming talent to promote opportunity and chances for those newcomers to learn, and give them a stage to show what they can do. For instance, Gail will be paired up with extraordinary new artist Jean Kang! Or for, another example, legendary artist Camilla d’Errico will be paired up with up and coming writer Raven Moore! Check out the Womanthology site for more exciting team ups!

This project is huge in scope and the rewards for Kickstarter backers are pee-your-pants exciting. We’re going to have some representatives from the project on the podcast some yet-to-be-determined time in the future, but the Kickstarter project ends on August 7, so we wanted to give you a chance to get your pledge in before it’s too late!

Super Knocked Up

• True Blood gets a season 5.
• Star Trek 2 bumped for GI Joe
• Our Facebook Poll votes for Darth as Best Villian.
• Lucas loses more money.
• Flight of The Navigator turns 25 with no reboot. Yay.

Our guests tonight are Jeff Burns, Writer and Director and Mark Pezzula, Star of Super Knocked Up: a new  action/comedy Web Series about a Super-Villain who gets “knocked up” by a Super Hero.

Fiction Friday

What can you say about Edgar Allan Poe? You might say he is the Grandmaster of Horror. You could posit that he is responsible for more nightmares than any other author. You may state that he is a tragic figure in literary history with a legacy of morbid curiosity that has never been seen since. You will get arguments with each of these statements, however they are all quite true. There are few authors whose name evokes a perfect understanding of their body of work. It is as if a Poe story or novel is imbued with the morbid curiosity of the darkness within us all.

Such it is with The Works of Edgar Allan Poe. This week’s Fiction Friday comes from the repository at Project Gutenberg.  Following the break is an excerpt from the short story “The Gold Bug”:

MANY years ago, I contracted an intimacy with a Mr. William Legrand. He was of an ancient Huguenot family, and had once been wealthy; but a series of misfortunes had reduced him to want. To avoid the mortification consequent upon his disasters, he left New Orleans, the city of his forefathers, and took up his residence at Sullivan’s Island, near Charleston, South Carolina. This Island is a very singular one. It consists of little else than the sea sand, and is about three miles long. Its breadth at no point exceeds a quarter of a mile. It is separated from the main land by a scarcely perceptible creek, oozing its way through a wilderness of reeds and slime, a favorite resort of the marsh hen. The vegetation, as might be supposed, is scant, or at least dwarfish. No trees of any magnitude are to be seen. Near the western extremity, where Fort Moultrie stands, and where are some miserable frame buildings, tenanted, during summer, by the fugitives from Charleston dust and fever, may be found, indeed, the bristly palmetto; but the whole island, with the exception of this western point, and a line of hard, white beach on the seacoast, is covered with a dense undergrowth of the sweet myrtle, so much prized by the horticulturists of England. The shrub here often attains the height of fifteen or twenty feet, and forms an almost impenetrable coppice, burthening the air with its fragrance.

In the inmost recesses of this coppice, not far from the eastern or more remote end of the island, Legrand had built himself a small hut, which he occupied when I first, by mere accident, made his acquaintance. This soon ripened into friendship–for there was much in the recluse to excite interest and esteem. I found him well educated, with unusual powers of mind, but infected with misanthropy, and subject to perverse moods of alternate enthusiasm and melancholy. He had with him many books, but rarely employed them. His chief amusements were gunning and fishing, or sauntering along the beach and through the myrtles, in quest of shells or entomological specimens;–his collection of the latter might have been envied by a Swammerdamm. In these excursions he was usually accompanied by an old negro, called Jupiter, who had been manumitted before the reverses of the family, but who could be induced, neither by threats nor by promises, to abandon what he considered his right of attendance upon the footsteps of his young “Massa Will.” It is not improbable that the relatives of Legrand, conceiving him to be somewhat unsettled in intellect, had contrived to instil this obstinacy into Jupiter, with a view to the supervision and guardianship of the wanderer.

You can find the entire text here in multi-format downloads.

From an acting standpoint Dern is a worthy counterpart to uncaring fellow astronauts and callously indifferent government. Doug Trumbull, who was Director, Co-Producer and Special Effects Manager, shows the depths of his talent in his very gentle touch, not letting the unimaginable horror of an apathetic government overshadow what is at heart a story of one man’s redemption. Musically, Peter Schickele provides a both dramatic and simple understated score, a talent which would prove to go against the grain of many future Sci Fi Classics. The movie is stolen, however, by the three ‘bots, who were played by bi-lateral amputees. Their suits, designed by Trumbull were worn by 4 different actors. Each suit was fitted to the unique body structure of the amputee actor. What Trumbull and the four did is nothing short of amazing. (For the record, the parts were played by Mark Persons, Steve Brown, Cheryl Sparks and Larry Weisenhunt.)

Ultimately, this is a sad film. It speaks volumes about the frailty of Earth and the callous nature of man. It reminds me a lot of Dr. Suess’ The Lorax, without the happy ending. Freeman breaks down, renounces humanity and gives his future to three two unlikely recipients.

This is Dome, sayin’: there is no heresy in science fiction films without light sabers. None at all.

• Thanks to Less Talk More Monkey for the opening music, Damn It Feels Good To Be a Lannister.
• Congrats to our own Amandatron3000 and hubby on the birth of their new cog.
• Betty and Barney Hill get a plaque in New Hampshire.
• Ridley Scott LOVES 3D.
• JJ Abrams brings us Alcatraz.
• The Wonder Woman TV Show really did stink.
• Futurama renewed for “2″ more seasons.
• Dark Towers  stalled.
• Summer Glau on Alpha’s.
• Why Christopher Eccleston really left Doctor Who.
• John Barrowman will do the Doctor Who 50th. Anniversary show.
• Locke and Key Pilot might have been…
• Tyra Banks is writing again, please make her stop.
• Captain America rocks the box office.
• UPDATE: The Troy Public Library needs your help now.

Our guest tonight, Ted Woods is a self-publishing comic artist based outside Ann Arbor, Michigan. His past works are “The Book of Love,” “Peril at Pont du Gard,” and “The Life and Legacy of Marcus Aurelius.” His upcoming work can be seen in the anthology “SCIENCE!” from Reasonably Priced Comics due out in August, and his own book “The Book of Love Vol. II” due out in September.

Fiction Friday

Who is Ward Moore? and why is he this week’s Fiction Friday? Well, Lucy, that takes a bit of ‘asplanin. First of all, Fiction Friday is going to be taking a trip in the Way Back Machine for the next few installments; a journey of discovery for our younger participants into the beginnings of modern SF, authors you might not have heard of, books you might have overlooked or never seen.

Also to every owner of an e-reader who says 99 cents is too much money: there is a plethora of free books available for the asking/wanting. Project Gutenberg is one of the most all-encompassing repositories of free e-books in multi-format DRM free. As I was exploring this vast library, I came across a sub collection of Golden Age Science Fiction, short stories, and novels. With a current collection numbering well over 100,000 e-books, their Sci Fi collection had me drooling, which brings me to Ward Moore.

Ward Moore was born in 1903. During his life he wore much that was considered Sci Fi or “Speculative Fiction”. I present to you today his second novel, Greener Than You Think. Its the story of a man, his dream, a superfertilizer and the havoc created by personal and corporate greed. Written in 1947, this novel is a grim forecaster of the crop manipulation and seed gene splicing that currently goes on…to what end?

A brief excerpt from the beginning:

I always knew I should write a book. Something to help tired minds lay aside the cares of the day. But I always say you never can tell what’s around the corner till you turn it, and everyone has become so accustomed to fantastic occurrences in the last twenty one years that the inspiring and relaxing novel I used to dream about would be today as unreal as Atlantis. Instead, I find I must write of the things which have happened to me in that time.  It all began with the word itself.  “Grass. Gramina. The family Gramineae. Grasses.”  “Oh,” I responded doubtfully. The picture in my mind was only of a vague area in parks edged with benches for the idle.  Anyway, I was far too resentful to pay strict attention. I had set out in good faith, not for the first time in my career as a salesman, to answer an ad offering “$50 or more daily to top producers,” naturally expecting the searching onceover of an alert salesmanager, back to the light, behind a shinytopped desk. When youve handled as many products as I had an ad like that has the right sound. But the world is full of crackpots and some of the most pernicious are those who hoodwink unsuspecting canvassers into anticipating a sizzling deal where there is actually only a warm hope. No genuinely highclass proposition ever came from a layout without aggressiveness enough to put on some kind of front; working out of an office, for instance, not an outdated, rundown apartment in the wrong part of Hollywood.  “It’s only a temporary drawback, Weener, which restricts the Metamorphizer’s efficacy to grasses.”  The wheeling syllables, coming in a deep voice from the middleaged woman, emphasized the absurdity of the whole business. The snuffy apartment, the unhomelike livingroom–dust and books its only furniture–the unbelievable kitchen, looking like a pictured warning to housewives, were only guffaws before the final buffoonery of discovering the J S Francis who’d inserted that promising ad to be Josephine Spencer Francis. Wrong location, wrong atmosphere, wrong gender.

This is Dome, sayin’: The entire book can be read on-line or downloaded copyright free in many formats here. Enjoy.

The League of Ordinary Gentlemen

• Avengers casting call draws thousands in Ohio.
• Spielberg plays the noob at ComiCon for The Adventures of Tintin.
• Torchwood gets a 21 share on the BBC.
• Disney’s first trailer for John Carter of Mars.
• The Internet replaces little girl’s stolen Tardis[Video].
• 13^th. Sookie Stackhouse novel to be the last.
• True Blood rocks the vamp house.
• Sean Bean in Snow White.
• Oz, the Great and Powerful.
• Ridiculous Emmy Nominations.
• A Game Of Thrones Shadows.
• Diablo Cody Rewrites Evil Dead.
• Fox buys RUST.
• Star Trek PADD official app creates iPad fact from science fiction.

Published in 2004, Just a Geek is the story of Wil Wheaton at a stage in his life where he’s happily married with two step children, and struggling to make it as an actor. One night in 2001 he decides to take control of his web presence by starting a blog, which he built himself. In the blog, he discussed his personal life, and struggles with auditions. Most of all, it was Wil being honest. While the news of his new blog spread throughout the web, he dealt with both positive and negative reactions.

As Wheaton continues to blog through his experiences with Star Trek conventions, auditions and antidotes about his days on the Enterprise, I began to realize how smooth the storytelling was (although he states in the author’s note that his early writing was cringe worthy). Most of all, the stories were interesting and funny. While maintaining the semi-daily blog Wheaton realizes that writing is what he loves to do, and begins to take it seriously.

The book itself are reprints of those early blog entries, along with narrative by Wheaton of what takes place before and after each blog post, giving you more perspective into the actual blog entries themselves. Just a Geek is well thought out, very easy to read, and is a satisfying memoir.

There is no doubt Wil Wheaton’s blog has brought him an impressive amount of attention, and his blog in it’s current form on TypePad has evolved considerably over the years. He’s also an avid Twitter user with over 1.8 million followers. Wheaton also appears on SyFy’s Eureka, TNT’s Leverage, The Big Bang Theory (where he plays an ‘evil’ version of himself) and a recurring role on the popular web series The Guild.

Wil Wheaton’s blog  

Dr. Eli Malefactor

• Torchwood Miracle Day episode 1
• Falling Skies picked up for a second season
• 30 Comic-Con exclusive toys you’ll sell your organs for [io9]
• This week, Warren Ellis writes a comic book in invisible ink [io9]
• Men In Black III
• Dollhouse: Epitaphs
• • First look at Dori, Nori and Ori from The Hobbit set [io9]

Surface: The Complete Series

The show follows two main story lines. The first story follows fourteen-year-old Miles, an average private school student in North Carolina with a perfectionist sister and a goofy best friend. After a close encounter with something in the water late one night, he returns to the spot and finds a cluster of eggs.  Taking one home with him, it soon hatches into a baby sea monster. While this causes him endless trouble, he and the creature-which he names Nim- are soon bonded and he does anything to keep it safe even as it grows larger and more uncontrollable. Carter Jenkins, who plays Miles, is cute and likable, at times not the best actor, but overall he’s engaging. Considering most of his important scenes are with computer animated Nim, I think he does a great job with the interaction and emotion required.

The second story line follows Laura Daughtery and Rich Connelly after their own encounters with the creatures lead them to each other. Laura is an oceanographer from California, intent on documenting what she believes is a new species, while Rich is a Louisiana Insurance agent who lost his brother to one of the creatures in a diving accident. Together they form an unlikely team as they try to reveal the creatures to the world for their own reasons. Their efforts attract the notice of government officials bent on keeping the creatures a secret, and their origin an even deeper secret.

This show really has it all, bad government, evil scientists, adventure, and adorable baby sea monsters. It’s an exciting show with plenty of tense moments, but also some laughs thrown in. In a world where the majority of shows seem to be same old same old, I think Surface stands out. We really need more sea monsters on TV. As I said, there are a lot of loose ends, but at least you know that going into this show.  Word on the internet is that the show was originally planned as a mini-series, which I think probably would have been better, because then the story would have been tighter. Overall though, I’ll watch it again.

So, what happens when a boy and his dog are among the myriad of victims of the apocalypse? In 1975, Harlan Ellison and L.Q. Jones adapted Ellison’s novella A Boy and His Dog for the screen.  Starring Don Johnson as the boy, Vic, and Tim McIntire as the voice of his dog, Blood, this tag team of survivors roam the wastelands of a ravaged America.

This is not just a good movie, it’s GREAT. I will admit, it’s kinda dated, but if you can get past that,  at it’s core it’s everything a good post-apocalypse move should be. Goons, reverse rape, talking dogs, a vast underground society where societal perversions abound. When was the last time you saw a movie with a hyper-intelligent telepathic dog? If you haven’t seen this movie, I dare say the answer is never.

As clear and strident a social commentary as Ellison ever wrote, this move is a fine adaptation of the source material. Set in Phoenix, Az. in 2024 (after WWIII) this movie survives and flourishes without high cost CGI Effects and vast sets. It survives on its wit. It survives with the slick acting of an very unassuming Don Johnson and, a villainous Jason Robards and a smolderingly sexy Susanne Benton as the flirtatious Quilla June.

L Q would later go on to do a myriad of films as actor, producer and director playing Pat Web in Casino, and other small but relevant parts in dozens of movies and TV series. That’s what A Boy and His Dog is, a bunch of small, juicy, relevant roles strung together by an overwhelming apocalypse and wry humor to mask the anguish that surrounds Vic. Each scene is commentary on who we were, what we are and what we are becoming. Its Harlan at his best (the film won a Hugo Award), Don Johnson at his earliest (his third movie role) and man’s best friend, Blood , as savior of us all. Vic and Blood survive because Blood is smart, period.

This Dome, sayin’: If you know Harlan Ellison’s work this movie should come as no surprise. It is a little gem upon the futuristic wastelands. Find it and see it.

However, that very familiarity is also proves something of a constraint on an all-human universe. If the author goes TOO far from the baseline he runs the risk of the framework becoming unbelievable, and pulling the reader from the focus of the story. By the same token, characters and their interactions also need to be plausible in order to avoid distracting the reader. And in the very large majority of good science fiction stories set in all-human universes, the authors manage to avoid these distractions (allowing for unpredictable reactions to entirely new stimuli). It galls me (and always will) when someone claims “science fiction isn’t REALLY literature.” The ability to build a believable society with plausible people WHILE introducing new technology or science makes science fiction just as compelling as literature as Beowulf or MacBeth, and the human-only universe at once both an easy and difficult setting for writers of science fiction.

Almost as prevalent as the all-human universe is one comprised of both humans and aliens. Ignoring early pulp fiction (where monstrous aliens were always tearing the dresses off buxom women), the first widely acknowledged mixed universe science fiction was the Lensman series by E.E. “Doc” Smith. Heinlein (e.g. Methuselah’s Children and Have Space Suit, Will Travel) and Asimov (e.g. “Green Patches” and The Gods Themselves ) also made forays into this domain.  But to me Larry Niven’s Puppeteers is perhaps one of the most intriguing and substantial alien societies that interact with humans. As a setting for science fiction the mixed-universe approach retains the advantage of a familiar touchstone (the human side) for the author to use in his story framework. It also opens the door to the creation of a society without the constraint of necessarily being a plausible extension of human society. The author is free to build his own worlds. That in turn gives rise to all sorts of possible conflicts/plots not possible in an all-human universe. It also, should the author choose, permits an examination of controversial societal concepts in a more benign environment than if they were inserted into a fictional human society.

This very flexibility can also be become a challenge for the author. He or she loses the shared background with the readers, and so has to build a new set of shared knowledge within the story. Having an alien scratch his chin (or something equivalent) and setting off a riot requires an underlying “why” to be established–and done so unobtrusively. It takes a particular talent to be able to describe an alien world/society without getting so bogged down in description that it pulls the reader from the flow of the story. Further, because so much of the alien world/society may differ, the author must be sure to remain internally consistent. So while science fiction that incorporates both humans and aliens can explore many more storylines than a human-only basis, it can also be much more difficult to write while maintaining story flow. There is also the danger of overusing a particular type of alien society (and thereby losing the novelty and opportunities for new plots that are a strength of the mixed universe), as seems to be the case in broadcast science fiction as my friend Winter is Coming so aptly points out in his recent blog post on Falling Skies. Overall, a mixed human-alien setting gives an author much more freedom to be creative and fresh; however, it also comes with more potential pitfalls that can derail the story.

A final potential science fiction setting is a universe populated only by aliens. Such a backdrop would provide the author with a blank canvass, as it were, to create a complete framework from scratch; to explore even the most far out concepts without the burden of making them believable in human space. Such a framework would have the same issues with setting a common background with the reader and maintaining internal consistency. However, it could perhaps allot more time for the author to describe the worlds/societies without compromising the pace of the story than possible in the mixed universe construct.

Its biggest potential problem, though, would be in the lack of any common background. Without the touchstone of humans and human society the author would have to give the reader something to latch onto, to care about, early on or risk having their work cast aside after a chapter or two. And that may be why I can’t think of any science fiction that is purely alien in nature. Asimov builds one internally in Part 2 of The Gods Themselves (the world of energy beings), but even then the book ties them back to a human universe. One wonders if writers in highly restrictive settings (e.g., the former Eastern Bloc countries), where anything even hinting at shortfalls in their particular society might be cause for “reeducation”, might use such a backdrop to subtly make their points.

So there you have it: my assessment of the pros and cons of different human/alien combinations as the framework for writing a good science fiction story, and some examples of each. Going through this thought process has given me an even deeper appreciation for how well the good science fiction writers, past and present, execute their craft. And because this post started as a personal thought process for my own foray into writing science fiction, I’d appreciate any insights readers of this piece care to leave.

My Best Friend is a Wookiee

• Holy Candied Lovecraft!
• Thor 2
• FAQ’s for DC’s 52
• True Blood returns.
• Rod Serling’s BioPic is in the works
• Game of Thrones, the comic series?

Tony Pacitti tells us about writing his book, My Best Friend is a Wookiee: One Boy’s Journey to Find His Place in the Galaxy.

Timequest - Go find it and see it.

It’s summer, and television sucks for the moment. The eventual lull in movies with the addition of the ever-present lack of audience manners that permeates the suburban movie-plexes leads me inexorably to my DVD collection for solace. There are any number of diversions for me, some well known, others… not so much. And so, from time to time, I will bring to your attention something you may not have seen.

For fans of Alternate History (and quite frankly, who isn’t?) I give you Robert Dyke’s, Timequest, a 2002 toss-up with some really interesting elements. Dyke, as writer and director, brings us a thought provoking film about the discontinuity of time travel. What, he posits, would happen if a time voyager, (Ralph Waite), were to stop the Kennedy Assassination. What would be the repercussions? How would America have been a vastly different place? In a time when dystopian outcomes were virtually required in books and movies, and darkness was almost compulsory, this film offered a positive theme:  Politicians seeing a bleak future, knowing what might happen and working for a better outcome, working for a more stable society and a more secure future. This was not the movie that America wanted to see, and that is a damn shame. This, for all of its low budget reality and feel, is warm, sensitive, amusing and poignant. It is, quite frankly, brilliantly cast and edited with both style and class.

A cast that includes Barry Corbin (Northern Exposure), Shelly Marks (Madness), Victor Selzak (Salt), Larry Drake (Darkman), Caprice Benedetti (Practical Magic) and the amazing Bruce Campbell(do I need to say anything here?) plays a sweet understated tone. Discussing the washed up group from Liverpool that Campbell wants to do a documentary on is just plain fun and that is frankly the tone of this film. It’s not fluff. It is amusing, pleasant, compelling and in very large part a very good Sci Fi Movie.

In a summer filled with a plethora of uninspired vapid mind candy, this film, as a bit of a timepiece in itself, is a great little 92 minute ride.

This is Dome, sayin’: any film that has Scout (The Wonder Dog) in the credits deserves a look-see.

Tracy Hickman

• RIP Gene Colan
• RIP Peter Falk
• Game of Thrones “Trusts Littlefinger”
• Terry Pratchett on Assisted Suicide
• Pottermore
• Falling Skies – :/
• Futurama Returns
• Torchwood will be different in the US and UK.
• Torchwood Motion Comic app features Eliza Dushku

Tracy Hickman updates us on the status of his Batman book! We also talk about our usual topics of new publishing systems a business models. Friend Tracy on Facebook, and check out his page. Also check out Xtreme Dungeon Mastery.

Get a 20% discount on “Blackshore” early subscriptions and writing seminars with the coupon code scifisat.

Normally, this is where I’d go over the premise of Falling Skies and outline the characters, but I’m not going to do that here. If you’ve seen any alien invasion movies or TV shows over the past twenty years, then you know what Falling Skies is about. It shouldn’t surprise me, but I was hoping that Falling Skies would show me something different. So far, there is nothing new under the sun. I can appreciate the fact that the show spared the audience of invasion scenes and jumped straight into the aftermath, but what transpired was your standard aliens vs human resistance fanfare.

What I don’t appreciate is TNT’s presentation of the pilot. Before every commercial break, they would show you what is “coming up on Falling Skies”. In a two hour premier, this gets old pretty quick. As a member of the audience I want to be surprised with what’s in store for me. Showing me scenes of what’s ahead really waters down the experience. If that’s not enough, I have to listen to the voice-over telling me “…and it keeps getting better.” Really? Well, I’ll be the judge of that.

Another interesting aspect was all the comments that were live-tweeted during the show. Aside from my cynical mind-set, I was surprised to see a fair amount of positive and mixed responses. Some people were confused with the fact that they didn’t show the invasion. Some thought the show’s pace was too slow. Others thought highly of the pilot and are looking forward to more episodes. According to TNT’s web site, it’s cable TV’s #1 series launch of the year with nearly 6 million viewers. However, as with any TV rating statistic…time will tell on the show’s actual success.

Silver Circle

It’s a rare moment when the fan community gets a look at the inner workings of a film from the ground up, rarer still when they are invited into the process. It was about 3 years ago, at Boston Comic Con that I first got introduced to Pasha and Megan and their unique concept for an animated film…what would ultimately become Silver Circle. We watched them work the Con, talking up their ideas and slowly begin to gather momentum and solidify. Now, here we are 3 years later and those of us in the fan community are about to see the final reward.

Their website is aflutter with all kinds of weekly updates. You can get to their Facebook Fan Page here and they have a newsletter that you can subscribe to.  There’s lots in store for Silver Circle,  read on for highlights:

They are submitting the film to Sundance, (Sept. submission for their Jan. show dates) and South by Southwest (aprox. Oct.) They are scheduling a series of test screenings in Aug. 2012 and are projecting a limited run release in conjunction with the full graphic novel. The Web Comic is very interesting and a quite good companion to the storyline. Check out the store for original Merch that helps them fund the day to day operations and is also pretty cool!

If you’ve heard our TalkCasts with Megan and Pasha, seen them at any Cons or just happened upon them or the project, you now have the ultimate chance to lurk away as the project we have all been watching for the past 3 years comes of age.

This is Dome, sayin’: Dystopia be damned. It’s never too late to join the party.

And now, after so long a wait and countless questions and rumors, Miracle Day is almost upon us. The planted stories and not-so-subtle hints abound on all the social media and I am NOT Immune. Expectations across fandom run from feigned disinterest to barely contained exuberance.

I stand firmly in the path of BRING IT THE HELL ON!  This is a show that is so sure of its storytelling skills that it killed off all but two of its main characters by the end of Season 3. It is brave enough to take on taboos and put them in the crosshairs of the characters: Existentialism, Gender Assignment and Equity, Religion, Moral Corruption, and in Miracle Day, The Value of The Human Life.

Love it or hate it, this is a series not to be missed, and I stand firm for the return of Jack Harkness and Gwen Cooper. Watch, comment, let us know what you think

Returning characters Jack and Gwen are joined on this 10 episode arc/series by such luminaries as Oswald Danes (Bill Pullman), Jilly Kitzinger (Lauren Ambrose) and Esther Drummond (Alexa Havins). The story unfolds as all across the world: nobody dies; they age, they get sick, they get hurt, but they don’t die. Man realizes resources are finite and this event is not natural, The CIA seeks answers with an agency of legend, Torchwood. The series begins on July 8th. on STARZ in the US.

Spider Robinson

In this interview, Spider and the entire cast hit on a range of topics. Ever the consummate gentleman, we discuss his beginnings and relationship with Ben Bova and Isaac Asimov, remember his wife Jeanne, how Mike Callahan was born, the state of politics, writing, music and whatever else wandered into the conversation. Join us as we enter Callahan’s Crosstime Saloon.

I had discovered online role playing in the late 1990s, and even though it was played though group instant messaging and email, it suited me and my increasingly busy life. Then the day came when I decided I was too busy for online roleplay. I was getting married, working full time and I had decided to go back to college.

So that’s how I missed the phenomenon that is Massively Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Games or MMORPGs for short. MMORPGs are video games played by large groups of people in the same virtual setting. Players assume the role of a character and can interact and team up with other players to face more challenging aspects of the game. MMORPGs started in the early 1990s, and grew in popularity throughout the past decade. With most games charging a monthly subscription fee to play, it has become a multi-billion dollar industry.

Even though I understood what MMORPGs were, I never gave it a second thought. Then I discovered The Guild; a Web series about a group of online gamers. The series reminded me of my old online roleplaying days, so I decided to do some research and try out MMORPGs for myself. Since I use an old Intel iMac, I can’t play most MMORPGs.

With my technical limitations and frugal mentality, I decided to try out Runescape, Battlestar Galactica Online, World of Warcraft, Pocket Legends, and Runes of Magic. For the first part of this series, I’ll only review the first three.

Runescape
Regarded as the most popular free MMORPG, this was my first MMO experience. The game is  browser-based, so I met all the technical requirements. However, once I started, I didn’t know what to expect. Runescape is fantasy adventure, and I have to say that I really gave it a chance, but I was bored with the intro quest; to help a computer controlled warrior defeat a dragon by getting things from his bag and following his orders while HE fights the dragon. This was my only quest in Runescape, and I haven’t been back since. I may be impatient, but I wasn’t having fun with the time I was investing.

Battlestar Galactica Online
Based on the SyFy channel original series, this free to play MMORPG is browser-based and uses in-game currency that must be purchased to do various things including ship upgrades. The graphics are astounding and run very smooth on a web browser. However, this is the game’s only good quality. Playability itself takes a little getting used to, and as you progress, you find that its nothing more than a shoot-up-game set in a non-canon story. In BSG: Online, you have two options as a player: you can assume the role of a new pilot who fights along side characters such as Starbuck and Apollo, or you can choose to be a Cylon. I have yet to explore the Cylon side of the game. Even though I enjoyed this game to an extent, I’m not eager to hop back on.

World of Warcraft
Deciding that the 2GB of RAM on my old Intel iMac was sufficient enough to run World of Warcraft, I downloaded the 10-day free trial. Since this is arguably the most popular MMORPG, my expectations were high. I was looking forward to some epic fantasy adventures as well as some group interaction.

Upon creating my Night Elf character, I entered the realms of World of Warcraft, where I was quickly put on simple quests where I can learn my fighting moves and character’s abilities. It was a little frustrating at first, fumbling with the keys and trying to fight creatures and beasts, but once I got used to it, gameplay was a lot of fun. One thing I wasn’t able to do was interact with other players, since the chat feature is disabled for trial accounts, unless I’m invited to a group chat. This made things difficult when trying to team up with other players.

As the trial came to a close, I was eager to complete more quests, and they were getting more difficult. One thing I didn’t like about the game was the amount of traveling my character has to do in order to move along in the game. I understand that it’s designed to help me deal with obstacles during a quest, but I was getting more frustrated with being killed on my way to my destination, and having to repeat the steps to get my character back on track. Overall, I enjoyed World of Warcraft, and it met my expectations.

Of the three games I covered, I’d choose World of Warcraft. However, I can’t justify paying a monthly fee for something I may not play for months at a time. In Part 2 of this post, I’ll discuss an iPhone MMORPG, as well as a newer free-to-play game that’s being compared in quality to big games like World of Warcraft.

The Eleventh Doctor and Amy arrive at Station 7 during Earth’s war with the Daleks. Station 7 is a top secret orbiting facility researching and storing Dalek technology. The station’s scientists claim they have tamed a Dalek, and naturally, this worries the Doctor. More secrets are revealed when the Daleks show up to reclaim their property. With time running out, and enemies closing in on the station’s inhabitants from all directions, can the Doctor and Amy rely on the only good Dalek to help them?

This was my first non-television Doctor Who experience, and I must say it did not feel like a Doctor Who story. I found the sequence of the art to be confusing and difficult to follow. On some pages, there is so much dialog that I had to really look at the illustration to understand what was going on. The story itself was not gripping or engaging. I was not at the edge of my seat, and by the time I deciphered the sequence of events, I had lost interest. I felt that the story, as a whole, did nothing to advance the overall Doctor Who universe.

Perhaps this adds to the notion that the Daleks need to be put to rest for now. The fact that the universe’s ruthless and most feared race is repeatedly getting their asses kicked by The Doctor and who ever he’s rolling with diminishes the potential that the Daleks showed. I just feel that the creators of this book really missed their chance to fully utilize both the comic book medium and show us something about the Daleks that we’ve never seen.

Published by BBC Books in 2010, Doctor Who: The Only Good Dalek was written by Justin Richards who’s written other Doctor Who stories, and has many young adult works under his belt. The book was illustrated by Mike Collins, who has illustrated the Doctor Who comic strip for many years. With this much experience behind them, I’m curious to see what else they can produce when not having to consider those pesky Daleks.

The Book of Lost Things

Like many lonely children, he is at first excited to find himself in a new world, but he quickly learns this world is just as violent and unfriendly as the one he left behind.  Talking wolves who walk on two legs hunt David as he makes his way through the land trying to find his way home.  Making friends along the way, David quickly learns that no one’s life is perfect and we all have our sorrows to bear.  In the end he must find the King, a man who’s lost control of his own land, if he ever hopes to return to the life he left behind, a life he misses more every day he is away from it.

Told through the eyes of a boy as he starts to become a man, David’s change from a sad, selfish boy to a brave, selfless boy is subtle and believable. This book is hard to put down once you get started. While the overarching story is engaging and easy to read, some of the best parts are the tales others tell David. These appear as short fairy tales within the book, and are reflections of the fairy tales we all know, but twisted and dark the way the Grimm brothers might have first told them.

The Book Of Lost Things is one of the few books I’ve read that I consider a fairy tale for adults and I highly recommend it. If you can think of others I should try, please let me know in the comments, because I’m always looking for similar books!

Super 8 is a fun-filled and action-packed superhero summer blockbuster. After eight superscientists are exposed to experimental hyper-nano radiation, each one manifests incredible superpowers. There’s Trickle, with the power of incessant dripping, Luminesca, who can always set a room to mood lighting, The Leveler, bringing your frames to straightened justice, Standoffish, always keeping evil to one side…

Wait…I think this was a dream I had recently after watching X-Men: First Class. Let’s start again.

Super 8 is the newest Spielberg mega hit directed by our intrepid Lost creator J.J. Abrams. It follows a plucky cast of geeky kids just on the cusp of teenhood during the late seventies as they work to create a short film to enter into a competition. The movie is filled with character development, subtle but important turning points, and a blossoming innocent romance. Oh, and a giant monster that is destroying their sleepy town.

I don’t want to give out too many spoilers, so I’ll try to focus on how I felt instead. For one thing, this is not a kid’s movie in any way, I was actually quite frightened for several parts of it (the train scene alone, holy crap). For another, it’s great fun hearing the under fifteen crowd dropping swears all over the place, but you can still see them getting used to this indiscretion which makes it more sweet than jarring. Also, there was also JJ’s trademark Excessive Use of Lens Flare all over the place, but I could mostly ignore it because the story is engaging, and genuinely interesting, especially with the plot being primarily character driven (not to mention it’s one of the few “original” movies coming out this summer).

Super 8, could also known as Stand By Me: Monster Edition. The Goonies In Space. E.T. (short for Eating Terrestrials). The movie felt like a return to “old Spielberg” and even seems to have been filmed using older film (though I’m sure it’s really just a Photoshop filter.) The dialogue was also very easy flowing and similar to how people speak in real life (talking too fast, not clearly, or over one another) which one would think would be annoying to listen to, but I found it quite comforting and very funny at times. But the movie is dark, think Stephen King dark, and I actually had flashbacks to several SK stories while I watched, which is a big thumbs up from me as a huge SK fan.

All in all, I would say this is a solid sci-fi flick that will surely entertain and bring us twenty somethings back to a time of walkmans, tape decks, and shag rug. My only real gripe is the end was a bit too “feel good” for my tastes, but that shouldn’t be unexpected for a Spielberg film. I would also very much recommend seeing it in the theaters because the special effects are nothing to sniff at and if there was ever a movie that you needed surround sound for, it’d be this one.

Sweeter Than Wine by L. Neil Smith

• The reboot of the entire DC Universe.
• Fox to do King Kong animation from the gorilla POV.
• Britain ill equipped for the zombie apocalypse.
• British Film Board rejects Human Centipede II.
• Roy Skelton, voice of the Daleks, dies.
• Tron Legacy 2?
• Michael J. Fox to do voice in BTTF Video Game.
• Star Wars Kinect Game preview.

Author L.Neil Smith talks about his life, his writing, his philosophy and how it relates to his work and his new book, Sweeter Than Wine.

Cast of the Big Bang Theory: Howard, Raj, Sheldon, Penny, Leonard (Photo: CBS.com)

1. The Big Bang Theory
The Big Bang Theory is about the lives of a group of physicists (you’ve got your OCD nut, just plain geek, creepy nerd, and the Indian guy who can’t talk to women without alcohol) and constantly references nearly every aspect of geek culture.

Products that the characters use or wear have become overnight sensations on ThinkGeek (I’m talking about the personal soundtrack shirt). What other show on TV has it’s characters regularly visit a comic book store?  It also features some pretty geeky guest stars, such as “evil” Wil Wheaton, Summer Glau, George Takei, and Katee Sackhoff. From Warcraft players, to Star Wars fanatics, to PhD students in physics, this show has in-jokes for literally everyone.

Richard Castle, and Kate Beckett

2. Castle
Castle tells the story of novelist Richard (Rick) Castle, and his relationship with his muse, Detective Kate Beckett, as Castle rides along on her cases. Some of the references in Castle are a bit special, because Castle is played by Nathan Fillion, who formerly played Malcolm Reynolds (Captain Tight Pants!) in Firefly. It seems like Nathan just can’t resist slipping references to his previous role into Castle, and some of them are extremely subtle. From blue gloves (major subtle), to the first Halloween episode where he reprises his Reynolds costume, to Castle knowing Chinese  and stating “I learned it from a show I used to love”, this show will delight both casual and hardcore fans of Firefly.

But the fun doesn’t stop there, less frequently the show makes reference to other aspects of general geekery, with two of the most notable being their steampunk episode, and the episode devoted to a professional magician.

Community

3. Community
Community is about a lovable band of misfits attending community college for various reasons. Let me assure you, that even though Chevy Chase is involved, the show is incredibly funny.

On of the best characters is Abed. The show implies that he has Asbergers Syndrome and uses film in order to relate to the world. Thus, he is constantly making reference to all sorts of movies and television shows, not just geeky ones. Abed and Troy, his best friend, often do tandem movie references, such as their Alien Queen/Powerloader costumes in the Halloween episode where everyone is turned into zombies.

Sometimes, the whole cast gets in on the geekery, as evidenced by their Dungeons and Dragons Episode. Community has also gotten some pretty neat guest stars, including LeVar Burton and Jack Black.

Shawn and Gus, each with "delicious flavor"

4. Psych
Psych is a show about a psychic, who’s not a psychic, like Miss Cleo, but AWESOME. (If you didn’t understand that reference,  see “Craig Ferguson” below.) With his shiny-capped sidekick, Burton”Gus”  Guster, Shawn Spencer, “professional psychic,” is faking it ’till he makes it. Which will probably be never because the guy has serious commitment issues. Psych is witty and entertaining and manages to throw a surprising amount of geek culture references into the mix. Not the least of which was their Twin Peaks tribute episode. If that isn’t enough geek cred for you, they have also done an episode centered around San Diego Comic Con, guest starring George Takei.

Glee!

5. Glee
Glee’s premise is.. remarkably similar to a literal interpretation of the phrase “high school musical”. Since it’s set in high school, Glee’s plot mainly centers around jocks and cheerleaders (surprise surprise), but there’s a goth girl! Anyway there are two main reasons I’m including Glee in this roundup. Number One: fans call themselves “Gleeks”. Number Two: Rocky Horror Picture Show Halloween Special.  ’nuff said.

Grant Imahara, Geoff Peterson, Craig Ferguson

7. The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson
What talk show host has his own robot skeleton sidekick built by Grant Imahara of Mythbusters, and keeps a TARDIS on his desk? Craig Ferguson. Consider this tweetmail Craiggers: Kilborn has NOTHING on you (AssMöde!).

Craig’s style is self deprecating (in your pants!), and his sidekick is metal, and you just never know when a genre reference is going to pop up. Not that there aren’t occasional bumps in the genre road – when Matt Smith was interviewed the opening extravaganza was cancelled due to the network (CBS cares!) not procuring the rights to the Doctor Who theme song. No worries though, you can watch it here:

I’ll be honest, when I first started watching Doctor Who reruns as a kid, I was a bigger fan of the human(ish) villains than the monster types. The Valeyard, the Rani, the Master (RIP Anthony Ainley), these characters were fascinating, oozing schemes out of their ears, a true mental match for the Doctor, right up to their rapier wits for verbal sparring. And since they are so smart, they always have an ace or two up their sleeves, a back door from which they shake their fists to scream “You haven’t seen the last of me!” so the battle of wills is never really over, not that we really want it to be.

But I do with the Daleks. Steven Moffat (or Stevie-Mo, as I like to call him) has announced that the Daleks will be taking a (much needed, much wanted) break. “Rest” was the word used, as though in peace the dead horse that is the Daleks could be buried. Perhaps the Cybermen will be next?

Seriously, this has been something I’ve been saying a lot about the new Doctor Who for a while now. I love the series, I think it’s in great hands with Steve and I am looking forward to the show lasting as long as it did the first time around. What is especially good about the show is all the old material they can mine from the original series should they ever start running out of ideas. I think the Valeyard and the Rani will show up again, as well as many others (if the show stays as popular as it is now).

However, the Daleks are from a bygone era (the sixties) when sci-fi was just coming in to popular culture. Audiences weren’t used to in depth characters with extensive backstories, or even ones that had much of anything below the surface. Season long story arcs weren’t cheap or practical because viewers couldn’t be counted on to catch the next chapter each and every week, so one-shots were the norm. The Daleks were designed perfectly for this, with their singular mindless drive to destroy all inferior life, but with their many weaknesses (stairs!) they were an easy enemy. They still are.

Of course, they aren’t gone forever. You can’t take the Daleks out of Doctor Who any more than you can take the Cylons out of BSG. But in order for DW to remain as great as it is, the show will need to either create brand new monsters and stories (The  Weeping Angels, etc) or start reaching back and extracting some of the more obscure story lines from the older show. Personally, I don’t grieve the Daleks out-phasing, I never found them to be that scary or intimidating. I’m still unsure how they built all their technology without arms and hands, but I do understand how they were so easily (ex)terminated from the show.

Miracles

The series follows Paul Callan (Skeet Ulrich) and his search for miracles in the modern world. After his own miracle experience is dismissed by the Church, he joins up with a group called Sodalitas Quaerito, Latin for “Brotherhood in search of truth” led by Alva Keel (Angus Macfadyen). Paul has seen his blood form the words “God is Now Here”, and Keel explains to him that this has happened before, but everyone else has read the words as “God is Nowhere” a small but significant difference.  This story line forms the backbone for what is otherwise a mystery of the week type show.

It’s this backbone that really keeps the viewer coming back episode after episode. Each episode provides a couple more pieces of the puzzle while giving you a few more questions as well. It becomes clear early on that Paul’s closeness to things otherworldly leaves him open to both the good and the bad parts. He is a flawed character, at times swayed toward the lure of darkness.  Skeet Ulrich plays the role well, easily bringing Paul to life. He portrays him like most of us; eager to believe, but quick to doubt.

Though the show is certainly very entangled with religion, it’s episodes each have their own mystery that is not always related to religion, from ghosts, to possession, to time slips. Imagine  if Stigmata and Fringe were combined to question God and every other strange occurrence out there. Unfortunately, since this show only had 13 episodes, the overlying mysteries of Paul (is he meant for good or evil) and the “God is Nowhere” message, are never answered. Still, it is an engaging and enjoyable show and worth the buy. And as an added incentive for any other Buffy fans, David Greenwalt was the executive producer.

The Crow

Eric and his fiance Shelly are celebrating their engagement when they are viciously murdered by a street gang. A year passes and Eric is resurrected by a crow, a spiritual guide who helps him to understand his new power, as well as his purpose:  to avenge he and his fiance’s untimely murder. One by one Eric seeks out the members of the gang, and executes them along with anyone who stands in his way.

What I’m leaving out of that summary is all of the in-betweens that make this graphic novel an absolute treasure. It’s not a typical hack and slash revenge story. James O’Barr pours his heart into every page, and with every page turn, he’s going further off the deep end, and taking you with him. There are periods of sadness and loneliness expressed through music lyrics, short poems and flashbacks that are calming and almost dream-like…just to be ripped back into the reality of O’Barr’s pain.

O’Barr’s sequential art flows with ease, given the unconventional make-up of the graphic novel. The book as a whole is pieced together from the mini-series and from short pieces in other publications, and O’Barr uses this to his advantage. He’s definitely done his homework, and you can see the Will Eisner influence panel to panel. O’Barr also shows his artistic range as he uses harsh, scratchy lines for the main story. For flashbacks and other ethereal scenes, his art takes on a softer, lighter quality.

The comic was started by O’Barr as a way to cope with a personal tragedy early in his adulthood. He worked on The Crow in the early 80s, and it was published in 1989 as a mini-series by Caliber Comics. Over the past twenty years it has been collected as a graphic novel several times and released by numerous publishers. A long-awaited special edition graphic novel is scheduled for a July 2011 release. This version contains a lot of new material edited from the original publication, restored artwork and a new introduction by the author.

In earlier pieces here I’ve talked about the Heinlein “multiverse” and how I consider the idea of parallel universes one of the successful predictions of science fiction. Along comes physicist Brian Greene to support that assertion in a far more elegant way than I could. His book The Hidden Reality: Parallel Universes and the Deep Laws of the Cosmos explores the current understanding of elemental concepts in science and demonstrates how they point to the existence of parallel worlds/universes. Looking explicitly at advances in the understanding of cosmology, string theory, quantum mechanics, General Relativity, computational physics, and philosophy, Greene explains how the concept of a multiverse exists as an inevitable outcome of what we think we know in these fields and identifies nine different multiverses, all with different characteristics and properties. I’ll discuss each of the derived multiverses and point out where they might apply to sci-fi literature as a way to introduce the book.

Greene begins with cosmology theory and discusses two multiverse constructs–the Quilted Multiverse and the Inflationary Multiverse. The Quilted Multiverse is the result of an infinite cosmos, where there are an infinite number of copies of universes, some exact in time and activity, others differing in either time or activity or both. This multiverse is interesting from a science fiction perspective because it provides a framework consistent with the multiverses constructed by Heinlein and others. The Inflationary Multiverse concept is derived from that element of cosmology that postulates a multitude of rapid spatial expansions as the consequence of “big bang” events scattered widely among the cosmos. Each “inflation” brings rise to a “bubble universe“.

Elements of string theory give rise to the next three sets of parallel universes: the Brane, Cyclic, and Landscape multiverses. In the Brane Multiverse a multitude of three dimensional spaces (branes) are stacked up against one another (Greene compares them to slices of bread in a loaf), separate but just “next door.” This multiverse would match up with those stories where there’s a thin barrier between one world and the next (the three things that immediately come to mind are the Cobbly World in Simak’s City, Heinlein’s short story “And He Built a Crooked House”, and any number of Rod Serling Twilight Zone stories), where breaching a barrier (the “cut” in the loaf) allows you to pass into another universe via another dimension. The Cyclic Multiverse, a result of two branes repeatedly colliding and separating (causing each to start anew), is the first discussed by Greene that postulates temporally diverse parallel universes rather than spatially diverse ones. The final string theory based multiverse, the Landscape Multiverse, envisions bubble universes of a type similar to those from the Inflationary Multiverse, but nested within one another…bubbles within bubbles within bubbles. At a conceptual level the Landscape Multiverse might correspond to the construct used by Capt S.P. Meek in his short stories “Submicroscopic” and “Awlo of Ulm”, and by Henry Hasse in “He Who Shrank.”

Quantum mechanics provides the basis for the Quantum Multiverse. The Quantum Multiverse is essentially an outgrowth of the probabilistic nature of quantum mechanics; each possible outcome of a quantum measurement (think the Schrodinger’s Cat experiment) creates its own separate world. This multiverse seems to fit conceptually with the parallel universes in Asimov’s The End of Eternity and Ray Bradbury’s “A Sound of Thunder”, and with most time travel paradox stories.

General Relativity and its black hole offspring, combined with a bit of information theory, comprise the basis for the Holographic Multiverse. In a nutshell it supposes that the three dimensional reality we experience here is actually a holographic representation of two dimensional physical activities taking place in some distant location. Consequently there would be two tightly connected parallel universes, one the shadow of the other. From my perspective this multiverse is probably the least interesting from a sci-fi perspective in that it doesn’t allow for differences that can be exploited.

Computational physics provides the framework for the most speculative concept, the Simulated Multiverse. The Simulated Multiverse is exactly as it sounds–a multiverse created within the world of computer software, but with enough computational power so that it would seem “real” (Greene likens it to Second Life, but with the inhabitants having sentience and self-awareness rather than being simply avatars controlled from “outside” (and interacting within their world accordingly). In some ways this multiverse could be seen as an extension or offshoot of Heinlein’s “World as Myth” concept.

The final multiverse Greene discusses is the Ultimate Multiverse, derived from a philosophical perspective of “why choose one of the previous eight and wonder if you’re right?” The Ultimate Multiverse postulates that ALL possible multiverses exist, regardless of their origin or basis.

Greene, of course, does a far more extensive job of explaining why the scientific concepts lead to the various multiverses, and along the way provides a good discussion of the underlying science as well. He avoids equations and explains the science through historical anecdote and contemporary analogies (using Eric Cartman on a mountain to describe potential and kinetic energy is one interesting example). He makes the science understandable to an intelligent non-scientist without watering it down, although if science is not at least an interest the book might still be a tough read. His book is worth reading both for the science and for understanding how that science now predicts some of the concepts that science fiction writers have used for decades.

In honor of the special tribute to Isaac Asimov on the podcast this week I thought I’d share some thoughts on one of his superlative short stories (almost always ranked as one of the top sci-fi short stories all time), “Nightfall”. Although written when he was only 21, it captures two of the key elements that would pervade most of his writing from that point on. It is a sci-fi story based on a single out-of-the-box idea supported by common elements, and it incorporates the rationalist belief that knowledge is far more effective at solving problems than is ignorance.

As the Good Doctor writes in Nightfall and Other Stories, “Nightfall” grew out of the first part of an Emerson quote that the dean of modern science fiction, John W. Campbell Jr., shared with him. Rather than echoing Emerson’s sentiment, however, Asimov chose took a different tack and envisioned the infrequent appearance of stars as a frightful event rather than one of wonder. Starting with an impossibly complex solar system configuration (his “out-of-the-box” central idea), the story looks at a civilization that only sees the stars once in seventy generations. He then builds a society that, in the absence of the celestial mechanics that result in stars appearing only once every 2,000 years, would be one that any of us would find familiar. The consequences of that one difference, however, are significant.

Asimov frequently railed against those who saw science as a problem but not a source of solutions, and who felt that baseless belief was as good as solid science (for example, here and here). He used the consequences of his unique solar system in “Nightfall” to make this argument, with a cult mysticizing the arrival of the stars, preaching blind faith to them and their power, and a group of scientists striving to understand them and record data to prevent future civilizations from falling. The scientists are few in number and are targeted by the cult when the nightfall they’ve predicted comes to pass. The cult promises people immediate salvation if they storm the scientists and prevent them from collecting and recording their data. In the end the unthinking, unreasoning masses prevail, and “the long night [came] again”, dooming the world to another cycle of rise and fall.

These features make “Nightfall” very compelling reading. I’ve tried not to get too deeply into the plot because any interpretation on my part would fall far short of the story itself–and thereby detract from the pleasure of reading it. The story is a powerful example of how good science fiction can create completely plausible and self-consistent worlds without requiring a complete suspension of disbelief.

Phoenix Without Ashes

The story is set in the distant future and features Devon, a young man living in a puritanical world that stretches roughly fifty miles. When Devon begins to question the motives of the ruling party, and the decisions of the great machine that their society is founded on, Devon is hunted as a heretic. While on-the-run, he discovers a dangerous secret that will shape the future of his society and the course of the human race.

This summary is intended to be vague because I don’t want to spoil the story for anyone who hasn’t read it. Ellison’s ability to engage the reader never ceases to amaze me. I’ve read quite a few Ellison stories and they always force me to pay attention to the images I’m forming about the characters and setting, while at the same time he’s slightly twisting reality. In this case, Alan Robinson’s artwork does that for me. The comic reads like an Ellison story, a factor I hoped wouldn’t be lost when I opened the first issue.

The themes explored in this mini-series deal with man’s unwillingness to conform, and to follow his intuition and ask questions, even at the risk of being cast out, or worse. Our man Devon fights for his right to freely exist. On the other side of the spectrum, the antagonist in charge of their society finds Devon to be a troublemaker which needs to be dealt with by any means.

Phoenix Without Ashes also comes with some baggage, as this is not a newly written story. It’s resurrected from a failed 1973 Canadian produced sci-fi television series entitled The Starlost, which was conceived by Ellison, and was riddled with so many production problems, he left the show before the first episode aired.

Fellow writer Ben Bova was brought in as a science advisor, only to run into the same issues and eventually left the series as well. Ellison comments on his Starlost experience in the essay “Somehow, I Don’t Think We’re in Kansas Anymore, Toto” in his book Stalking the Nightmare. Coincidentally, Bova reflects on his experience in his satirical novel The Starcrossed. Nearly forty years after the Starlost debacle, Ellison brings his idea to life to a new generation, in a medium that can do his vision justice.

• Isaac Asimov’s Letter to a new Library

Tonight Ben Bova talks to us about his relationship with the legendary Isaac Asimov (and his limericks). He also tells us about his book Leviathans of Jupiter.

The short rundown of both the book and the movie is this: Teenage alien boy fled from his planet with a guardian and eight other kids when he was little. Now they all live on earth, but not together, and they’ve been hiding from the Mogadorians, who are trying to kill them.  They have to be killed in order, though they don’t explain why in the movie. John Smith is number four, and he is next in line to be killed.

The book dives deep into the how and the why of the Mogadorian’s attack on John’s home planet and the escape of the others and John. It also dives deep into John’s powers and how hard he has to work to gain them, and how hard it is to come out as an alien to your friends (even when one of them is a crazy UFO junkie).  Everything just seems to flow too easily for John in the movie. There is also little development of relationships aside from the one between John and his love interest, so I didn’t really care when people were in danger.

I’ll admit the book was a little slow for its subject matter, about halfway through you start wondering if this really is a book about aliens. However, all that slowness gave it much more depth, and gave the reader  more insight into what was really going on.  The movie skips all that, and jumps around through the plot to hit all the key points that progress the story. Unfortunately, it feels like that is all they’re doing. It also really bothered me that they pronounced things differently in the movie than they did in the audi0book, I would have preferred consistency.

In short:  read the book, skip the movie. The people I watched the movie with had no knowledge of the book, and they didn’t have much good to say about the movie either. The special effects were cool, but they didn’t even give John the main power he has in the book.  Overall, I’d rather watch Jennifer’s Body again.

• RIP Jeff Conaway
• Klingon for Beginners: A Video Tutorial! [Video]
• New movies coming out: Green Lantern, Captain America, X-men First Class, Cowboys and Aliens, Avengers
• The Misfits
• Science Fact: Water bug eats Turtle
• Doctor Who Mid Season Finale
• True Blood starts tomorrow
• Canadian series Lost Girl come to SyFy this fall

Pasha Roberts, the Producer/Director of Silver Circle talked with us about how production is going. While you wait for the movie to come out, go read the comic. For further reading check out the Production Blog, and Political Blog. The film will be submitted to both the Sundance film festival and SXSW.

Torchwood – Miracle Day,

Author Stephanie Wright talks about, and reads a short section of her new book, The Vampire’s Warden, the introductory book of her Undead in Brown County series.

Image courtesy of Mind's Eye Website

This Fiction Friday Monday (sorry it’s late), we continue last week’s story about Nadia, a character from the wonderful imaginations of the Mind’s Eye series creators Tom Brown and  Hande Barutçuoğlu:

Unlike most Travelers, Nadia didn’t mind winters. She knew it was because she was still too young to worry about most of the problems the northern winds brought with them along with the frost. With the grass gone, the horses needed hay. Also, the campfires needed dry wood, the water barrels kept freezing, and almost every morning a wagon had to be dug out of the rock-hard mud because its wheels had frozen into it overnight. Those were problems for adults too, things she would not have to deal with for another year or two yet.

True, it was near impossible for anyone to stay warm enough or clean enough, or to stay healthy for that matter; catching a runny nose or a hacking cough was just a matter of time. But Nadia seemed to be more resistant than most children. Besides, she loved seeing the horses in their shaggy winter coats, and food didn’t spoil as easily in the cold. But more than anything, she loved winter camp, when they drove their wagons out of the countryside and settled close to cities to have access to business, commodities and the warmth of barns on stormy nights. Nadia found cities fascinating, with their dull colours and lively streets, full of people and sounds and sights unfamiliar, and shops full of strange and wondrous objects.

This winter, the wind had blown the Travellers onto a city bigger than Nadia had ever seen. The buildings were taller than trees, the streets seemed to stretch on infinitely, and there were people everywhere, all the time.

“Such a crowded place,” her older brother Istvan commented. “And it’s not even market day.” They had left the camp together early in the afternoon to explore the city.

Nadia nodded in agreement, trying not to stare at the people they passed. She noted a few guards in uniform, a priest, and a rich man on horseback with clothes as colourful as the Travellers, but made of much finer fabric. On the same street, she also noticed an old woman in rags trying to sell mouldy bundles of dried thyme, a man bent double under the weight of a stack of damp firewood, and two grimy children younger than herself, begging for food from strangers. She found it hard to comprehend. Why does nobody help them? she wondered. Why does nobody even notice them?

Nadia was used to the way of the Travellers, where the sick and the poor were always taken care of. “A miserable person makes a miserable tribe,” her father always said. “Misery feeds envy, and with envy comes hate.” So the Travellers always made sure everyone had enough, and that no one had reason to envy another’s wealth. Not that anyone in the tribe was wealthy, but everyone had enough.

She walked up to the beggar children, who were shivering against the biting wind. She didn’t have any food or money to offer them, but there had to be something else she could do. After a moment of thinking, she took off the wool scarf draped over her hair, and wrapped it around the shoulders of the children. She could always knit another one. “There, that should keep you a bit warmer.” The children thanked her timidly and walked away, clearly unused to such generosity. Nadia shook her head. “This is just wrong,” she said, half to herself and half to Istvan.

“I agree.” Her brother looked around nervously. “This whole place is wrong. Let’s get back to camp, I could use a cup of hot tea.” He laid a hand on Nadia’s shoulder, and gently led her back to the main road, towards the colorful wagons in the distance.

As they got closer to camp, Nadia could see Istvan growing restless. She struggled to catch up with his quickened steps. “What is going on?” she asked. Instead of answering, her brother pointed towards the edge of camp. Now they were close enough for Nadia to see a dozen or so city guards standing by her family’s wagon. From their animated gestures, she could tell they weren’t there to buy pots or have their fortunes told.

Without another word, Istvan broke into a run. Nadia had no choice but to gather her skirts and run after him. When she reached camp, in a cold sweat and out of breath, her father was blocking the wagon’s only entrance with his body, as the guards tried to push their way past him. “This is my home,” he shouted hoarsely. “You cannot just force your way in, do you hear me? We don’t have what you are looking for!” Nadia’s mother stood beside him, just as ready to defend her home.

By this point, the entire camp had gathered around the wagon. Several dozen Travellers, men and women and children, surrounded the guards quietly yet menacingly. Nadia sidled up to one of the younger women. “What do they want?” she asked in a whisper.

“The key to City Hall’s treasure room,” the woman muttered. “Apparently someone stole it from a guard this morning, and of course the townies think one of us took it.” She shook her head.

Nadia knew what she meant. Settled folk were weary of Travellers, and considered them all thieves and ruffians.

“The guards were harassing some of the boys. Your father told them to go away,” the woman added. “That’s why they are picking on him. Once they find out he doesn’t have the key, the rest of us will be in line as suspects.”

Nadia saw Istvan make his way towards the front of the crowd to stand beside his parents. His eyes scanned the crowd quickly, and met with Nadia’s. “Stay there,” he mouthed. Nadia nodded mutely.

One of the guards chose that moment to push his way past Istvan, waved his truncheon threateningly towards Nadia’s father. “You call that scum hole a home?” he sneered. “Get out of my way you pikey, you’re detaining the law.”

Nadia saw Istvan take a rough step towards the guard, getting between him and their father. Everything after that happened very quickly.

The guard grabbed Istvan by the shoulder of his jacket and tried to push him away. Istvan responded with a punch, which knocked the guard off his feet. Instantly, the other guards were on him, and the entire camp of Travellers on the guards. Then several of the guards blew their whistles.

It was pandemonium. Sticks and truncheons were swinging everywhere, the frightened horses were neighing and the younger children were crying and scurrying for their mothers. Nadia was overwhelmed by a sense of panic, not knowing what to do with herself. She tried, in vain to reach her family but they were at the centre of the commotion and she couldn’t even catch a glimpse of them among the angry, fighting bodies. “Istvan!” she shouted frantically. “Dya! Dad!”

“Nadia, run!” Her mother’s voice carried over the din like an alarm bell. The note of desperation in it was unmistakable, and so foreign to Nadia that it doubled her fear. Looking around, she saw that the crowd of guards and Travellers was growing into a mob. The guards’ whistles, which attracted more guards from nearby, also started to attract the city people, who were only too eager to drive the Gypsies off their land. All the Travellers’ children, she realized, had disappeared. There was only one thing left for Nadia to do. Taking her mother’s words to heart, she ran.

Her only choices being the frozen countryside and the city, Nadia found herself running into town. She would be harder to spot among people, and perhaps she could find a place to hide. Groups of townspeople bearing sticks and shovels and other makeshift weapons ran through the streets towards camp, yelling obscenities and attacking anyone with darker skin or colourful clothes. Nadia saw a poor old man get trampled by them. Fearing for her own life, she dove into an alleyway that was half blocked by a heap of mouldy straw and rotting cabbage leaves. For lack of a better place to hide, she ducked behind the garbage heap.

She wasn’t alone. Beside her, with their backs half-buried into the garbage, were the two beggar children and a man with a pale round face. From the terrified expression on the children’s face, Nadia could tell that the man was a stranger to them. He had a mole under his left eye, shaped like a tear. Nadia’s mind raced back to her mother, and the fortune she had read in the man’s teacup. Then her eyes shifted towards the man’s hands that were clutched around a large, gilded key. “It’s you…” she whispered.

The man put a finger to his lips. “Quiet,” he muttered. “If they hear you, we all are as good as dead.” He moved over to make room for Nadia.

“You caused all this!” Nadia breathed through the sound of angry shouts and stomping footsteps.

The man nodded mutely, and for a moment his shame was written so openly in his round face that Nadia felt pity for him. “Can you return it?” she grimaced, knowing the answer already. Who would want to own up to a crime like this? “You could tell the guards you found it,” she added meekly.

“It’s too late.” The man shook his head. As he did, coins tinkled in his bulging pockets, and Nadia saw the glint of gold in one of them. You have already robbed the City Hall, she thought. That is why the townspeople are so furious. It really is too late.

She wanted to punch the man beside her, shake him, hurt him, make him pay for what he had done, but she knew that would be useless. What was done was done, and nothing she would do could change it. Instead, she pulled her knees to her chest, and watched the night fall on the city slowly and painfully.

She woke up to the chattering of her own teeth and only then realized that she had fallen asleep. The tear-marked man and the children were gone, and the twilit streets were deathly quiet, even though the screams of the mob were still echoing in her head from the night before. As she tried to get up, her muscles stiff with cold, she noticed something glittering on the ground beside her. She brushed some straw away to find a couple of gold coins, then her numb fingers closed around something long and slender. She picked up the key and hid it in her stocking, hoping against hope that it might be of some help to clear her family’s name.

Upon the thought of her family, a bitter feeling sank down her chest, colder than the icy winter dawn. She gathered her skirts and ran. Out of the alleyway, into the empty streets, out of this cursed city that she had come to loathe.

She ran until her lungs were on fire, and when she reached the campgrounds she was sweating despite the cold, out of breath and light-headed. There was nothing left of the camp. Nothing. Just wind and dust. Tears running down her cheeks, Nadia tried to fathom what had become of them. Maybe they had run away? That’s it, she told herself. They ran away. They must have. Any other possibility was just too much for her mind to handle at the moment.

A few dark spots on the frozen ground caught her tear-blurred sight. She walked around to find familiar objects scattered on the ground: an oat bag from someone’s horse, a tin cup, a green knit scarf, a yarn doll, and a deck of cards held together with a scrap of purple fabric… Dya’s fortune cards.

She picked up the deck, and wrapped the scarf around her bare head. Then she pulled the key from her stocking, and with all her strength and fury, hurled it as far as she could toward the horizon.

Not knowing where she was heading, Nadia strode away from the city, wondering what her Fate would make of her, or as her mother had said, what she would make of her Fate.

Written by The Guild creator/star Felicia Day, the story begins in the same style as the web series, with Cyd Sherman in front of a web cam spilling her guts about her life. She’s a back row violinist in an orchestra and in a rocky relationship with her boyfriend Trevor, who’s trying to start a rock band. Trevor does what he can to use Cyd, offering no affection despite her support of his rockstar ambitions.

She coasts through life unsure of her direction, and while on an errand for Trevor, she buys a video game on a whim, and begins to learn about massively multiplayer online role playing games. One-by-one, we are introduced to the players Cyd encounters in-game, who will eventually form the Knights of Good. These early interactions prove vital to Cyd’s development as a social gamer, while she deals with her life unfolding in the real world.

This story has more depth and substance than its web series counterpart, but fits perfectly with the established characters. While some parts are funny, the story as a whole is more focused on Cyd’s low self-esteem and awkward struggles to find people to connect to, until she discovers the game. I feel this is the story’s winning quality. There was something satisfying about Cyd Sherman transforming into her avatar ‘Codex’.

Complementing Felicia Day’s writing is Jim Rugg’s artwork. Rugg captures the likenesses of Cyd and the other characters from the web series very well. The advantage of the comic book format allows the storytelling to deeply expand the in-game scenes. Rugg’s handling of the in-game scenes to contrast the off-line story was a beautiful and unexpected detail.

Overall, The Guild graphic novel stands on its own as a well crafted story, but also fits nicely with the web series. The creative team did a nice job adapting the elements of the source material into comic book format, and even though it’s a short read, it’s very enjoyable.

Each guild character will star in their own one-shot comic. The Guild: Vork and The Guild: Tink one shots are also written by Felicia Day, and are currently available.

I love finding a great series of books to read after the last one has been published. That is what happened to  me with The Hunger Games trilogy. My friend told me I had to read it, and since I listen to her when it comes to books, I did.

The basic premise of the series is our world in an undefined future where everything has gone to Hell. With one central government holding control in an iron grip from the Capitol, each of the 12 districts must send one randomly selected boy and girl 12 or older for a televised fight to the death. And everyone is required to watch this on TV.

The Hunger Games (the first book) follows Katniss, a normal girl who’s been doing everything she can to help her family survive in a crappy situation. When she volunteers to go to the Hunger Games instead of her sister, you’re already on her side. Then add in the fact that the boy chosen from her district, Peeta, is someone who has helped her family before and now you’re not sure who you want to survive.

From the time they enter the arena, this book flies. You know it’s not going to be a book where people are in danger but are saved at the last minute, people will die. You’re not sure that there will be a happy ending for Katniss or Peeta.

Katniss is a smart, self sufficient girl, such a relief compared to so many girls in teen fiction who can’t do anything without a guy holding them up (::cough::Bella::cough::) Though there is a love story involved, Katniss never loses her strength to it nor do the books don’t revolve around it. This is the first in a great trilogy, worth anyone’s time. Visit the official site for more information. http://www.scholastic.com/thehungergames/

• Is Doctor Who getting “too scary”?
• NBC Passes on Wonder Woman, yet again but renews Chuck.
• ABC shuts down V and No Ordinary Family.
• Iron Sky – MOON NAZI’S movie ready for release.
• Neil Gaiman does Doctor Who.
• Arnold gets a divorce, we get Terminator 5 & 6.
• True Blood gets its first teaser for Season 4.

GraniteCon Manchester 2011 Line up

• The Cape Creative Team – Joe Hill, Jason Ciaramella & Zach Howard
• Sean Murphy
• Michael Raicht
• Peter Vinton
• Sara Richard
• Silver Circle Movie
• Nicole Hansche
• Jason Casey
• The Underburbs Guys

Mike Dougherty Producer/Director of Browncoats: Redemption and Andrew Marnik, the film’s Editor, join us with tales of their continuing saga in pursuit of production of the Blu-Ray edition of the film. They also discuss how much they are looking forward to Granite Con.

Image courtesy of Mind's Eye Website

Based on the Mind’s Eye webseries, this Fiction Friday we present the cast fiction short story  “Nadia: A Peaceful Protest”. This story sets the scene for some of the series to be found here. We will bring the rest of this story to you in the coming weeks.

A Peaceful Protest – Part 1

Nadia pulled her faded shawl tighter around her shoulders, and took another sip from the tin cup in her hands. The tea was bitter, but pleasantly hot in the cool autumn night. The wagon smelled faintly of damp horse and candle smoke, and sounds of laughter and drunken singing floated in the distance. The sounds of camp were familiar to Nadia, though she much preferred the sounds of travel – the rhythmic clip-clop of the trotting horses and the clattering of pots and pans that her father sold and mended. Still, camp was always a welcomed break; a time of business and rest for the adults, and a time of freedom for the children.

Nadia enjoyed watching her mother Zuzana at work. The woman’s shoulders were hunched in concentration, her scarf slipping down her black hair. She had one hand resting on a beat-up deck of cards, and the other hand held a tin cup similar to Nadia’s and her lips moved silently as her eyes searched for something at the bottom of the cup. Across the flat-topped chest that they used as a table sat a middle-aged man with a round, friendly face whose gaze was fixed on Zuzana. He wore a ragged gray shirt, but unlike many others in his state, he looked – and smelled – clean. In the flickering candle light, Nadia could see a mole under the man’s left eye shaped like a tear. Odd, she thought. That Fate should give him that mark on such a cheerful face.

Zuzana finally looked up from the teacup. Even though Nadia couldn’t see her mother’s eyes from her corner, she knew they were intense, piercing, and unsettling, like the eyes of a wild animal that was focused on its prey. The man’s jovial expression momentarily faltered. “Your path is laid,” Zuzana told him, her voice smooth and gentle, unlike her stare. “I see you holding a key. When you touch it, your rags turn into fine silk, and it leads you to a golden door adorned with rubies and diamonds. But when you open that door, it’s dark inside. Dark and dreary. And to enter, you must blend the tear on your cheek with the blood of innocents.”

The man smiled faintly. Nadia had a feeling he hadn’t heard much of anything past the silks and diamonds. She sighed quietly. Some people took her mother’s readings as gospel, others took them as a joke. But more often than not, they took them as fairy tales, they were allowed to come true provided everyone lived happily ever after. This man seemed to be no different.

“Now you must heed my words,” Zuzana told the man firmly. “You have the power to resist that temptation. Do not touch that key, and your soul will remain golden, and your heart as clear as rubies.”

The man shrugged. “The rubies in my heart cannot feed my children,” he replied with a light-hearted chuckle. Dropping a couple of copper coins onto the chest beside his teacup, he saluted Zuzana politely and left the wagon.

Nadia wished her own heart could remain that light. She never had the faintest doubt that her mother possessed the gift of Sight, and her faith now told her that this prophecy had been a grave one.

“Fool,” her mother voiced Nadia’s thoughts. “A kind soul, but a fool nevertheless.”

Nadia climbed off the pile of bedding she was perched on, and took the man’s seat across from her mother. “Do you think he’ll take your advice?” she asked, genuinely curious.

Zuzana shook her head. “His path is laid,” she repeated. “He will yield to the temptation.”

They sat silently for a while, looking out the curtain framing wagon’s door and out into the night. In

the distance, the campfire was flickering merrily. Nadia thought about the stories the travellers exchanged around the fire every night, and she had a sudden desire to hear a story herself. A story of truth, one she could believe. Slowly, she set her own teacup on the chest that was scratched with years of weather and travel. “Will you read mine, Dya?”

Zuzana smiled. “Somehow I knew you were going to say that.”

“I’m eleven,” Nadia argued hesitantly. “I’m almost a woman now, right? Do you suppose I’m old enough to have my Fate set?”

Her mother reached for the tin cup. “I would think yes. There is only one way to find out, isn’t there?”

Nadia clasped her hands together and waited patiently, and without a hint of anxiety. Do I really want to know my future? The answer, inside her, was clear. If the future can be read like a book, then yes, I would like to know what mine is about, but not necessarily how the story ends.

The sound of the cup touching the table-chest snapped Nadia out of her thoughts. Then, for the first time in her life, her mother’s penetrating stare met her own.

“Odd,” she said quietly. “Your cup – it can be read in so many ways. It’s almost as if the tea leaves are trying to talk to me, in many different voices, telling different stories…”

“Does that mean my Fate is not set yet?” Nadia asked.

“Yes and no,” Zuzana replied. “I’m not sure. I think it means your path will never be laid unless you lay it yourself. You, unlike that fool of a man, will always have the strength and wisdom to make the decisions that change the direction of your Fate.”

She paused. “That is a gift far greater than you think.”

Nadia remained silent and returned her mother’s gaze. Was Zuzana just speaking words of consolation because Nadia was too young to have her fortune written in her cup? Were these empty words to amuse a child?

Her mother, once again, interrupted her thoughts. “Do you believe me?”

“Yes, Dya.” Nadia swallowed down her doubts and nodded, feeling ashamed for questioning her mother’s honesty, even for a moment.

Zuzana’s solemn expression softened. “Good,” she said gently. “Believe also in yourself. You are still young. You are neither strong enough nor fast enough to protect yourself, nor are you powerful in your words and ways yet. Let your faith be your shield.”

Then she took a breath, and added in a whisper. “Let it also be your weapon, should you ever need one.”

Granite State Comicon

Sunday, May 15th., at the 2011 Granitecon at the Raddison Center in Manchester, NH. Hours are from 10:00 – 4:00. Kids under 10 are free. Joining us for the Con are Mike Dougherty & Andrew Marnik from Browncoats: Redemption. They will have copies of the movie for sale and there will be a showing at Double Midnight Comics after the Con at 5:00 pm.

This is Dome, sayin: Be there and join the signal.

Available in both cbr and cbz formats.

Robert Anton Wilson

• Boston Comic Con Recap.
• Peter Vinton,Jr.
• Our friends at Nerd Caliber
• Kill Shakespeare
• Sara Richard
• Zombie PETZ
• Oswald Chronicles
• The First Law of Mad Science
• Frank Quitley
• Gahan Wilson
• Joe Kubert
• David Mack

• Terry Moore

Our guest tonight is Richard Metzger who talks about Robert Anton Wilson and his works in both fiction and non-fiction.

There are any number of well known authors in science fiction (e.g., Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Vonnegut), and I’ve written about two of them in previous articles. There are other significant authors who are not as well known, however, and I thought I’d introduce one of them through one of his stories: Clifford D. Simak. While he wasn’t as prolific a writer as Heinlein or Asimov, Simak did write thought provoking (if somewhat pessimistic) novels that most sci-fi readers will find enjoyable (you can find a full listing of his works here). His focus was generally more on people than gadgets. One of his more dystopian works in that regard (but also a fun read) was his novel City.

City spins it’s tale in the form of histories and folklore told by the intelligent descendants of genetically modified dogs; these tales are mostly focused on the more or less mythical beings “men”. It has a little something for everyone: alien races, mutants, cross-species conflict, parallel universes, and one of the first instances of pantropy in science fiction. What makes it an especially interesting read for me is its prescient look (in 1952!) in the first half of the book at what an-internet centric, robot assisted world might lead to in terms of actual human interaction. Some of the trends we see today–increasing isolation, erosion of social coping skills, the virtual world becoming more real than the real world–form the basis for the eventual downfall of human society in the story. The second half of the book is equally somber. It examines an alternate dog-centric society based on nobler human ideals, and how that society could quickly be undone by the random acts of the few remaining humans.

City is thought provoking if somewhat downbeat, but is still an interesting read. I’ve read two other Simak novels that I also enjoyed: Time and Again and Cosmic Engineers. They both reflect Simak’s dystopian views of mankind’s future, but are also tales that make you sit up and think about things in ways you might not have before. Even though he was one of John Campbell’s stable of writers, Simak’s generally downbeat expectations for man’s future contrasts with that of most of his peers. That doesn’t make his works any less compelling or interesting reading! If you’re looking for another pioneer of sci-fi to read, give Clifford D. Simak a try. You may not have heard of him before this article, but I guarantee you won’t forget his stories once you’ve read them.

The Guild was created by and stars Felicia Day as Codex, an online gamer who’s life gets turned upside down when Zaboo, a fellow guild member (played by Sandeep Parikh), shows up at her apartment after mistaking Codex’s in-game friendliness as flirting. Zaboo’s creepy stalker-like advances prove too much for Codex, and she calls upon the rest of the members of the Knights of Good to help her, which leads to the guild’s first real life meeting.

As we meet the other members of the guild, we are treated to a mixture of characters ranging in age, gender and general kookiness. What they all seem to have in common is the importance of their gaming life over their real lives. This is an interesting look into the world of online gaming, and more importantly the people who choose to spend their time in a virtual world. While I feel the character traits are exaggerated for comedic purposes, I don’t think it’s too far from the truth.

The Knights of Good are led by Vork, brilliantly played by Jeff Lewis. Vork operates strictly by the rules and is not afraid to discipline the other guild members if they do anything that violates policy. Offline, Vork is a man who lives frugally, cutting expenses such as electricity and leeching his neighbor’s wifi in order to play the game full-time. He believes that a mutual hatred from the other members of the guild is what makes him an effective leader.

Other guild members are Clara, played by Robin Thorsen, who is a flaky full-time mom of three young kids, and often puts gaming ahead of her family. Bladezz, played by Vincent Caso, is a bratty older teenager who’s immature antics often conflict with the other guild members. Rounding off the main cast is Tinkerbella, played by Amy Okuda. Not much is known about Tink, only that she’s a college student who often comes off as cold and distant, but opens up in later episodes.

The first season of The Guild was an independent production and is well put together. The web series format perfectly suits the show, as the episode lengths are roughly five to six minutes long. The episodes first appeared on YouTube in the summer of 2007, and the first season was funded by loyal fans. I think this is a testament to how enjoyable the show is. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, considering the show’s creator Felicia Day, and the rest of the cast are also active gamers.

Even though I’ve never played a massively multi-player online role-playing game, I can somewhat relate to the characters. My online role-play experiences took place in the days before social media, however, the members of my group got entangled in each other’s lives both online and off, and The Guild made me feel nostalgic for those early days of online gaming.

The Guild official web site: http://www.watchtheguild.com

Amazon: The Guild: Seasons 1 & 2

Kriana and Zombrarian pose with Tom Brown (Mark) at Wizard World NE

• RIP Elisabeth Sladen.
• Doctor Who Season 6 begins.
• John DeLancie joins the cast of Torchwood.
• Fringe continues.
• The Cast of the ‘cast will be at Boston Comic Con next week.
• New feature on the website: Fiction Friday.
• Toni LoTempio is donating sales of her novel to “Kids Need To Read”
• Game of Thrones renewed after one episode.
• Free Comic Book Day is May 7^th.
• How your favorite author can now sign your e-book.

Thomas Gofton talks about the culmination of his series, Mind’s Eye, and his vision of it’s future. The finale airs on May 5th.

Samantha Boyette

So, for our first installment of Fiction Friday, I have the honor of reintroducing one of my favorite up and coming authors to you. Samantha Boyette has been on the TalkCast in conjunction with The Last Man Anthology, and I have also reviewed her new novel, Guardian of Morning. Being a somewhat sarcastic tweeter, a few weeks back I dubbed the end of a particularly pensive week with the ubiquitous holiday name of “Vampire Friday” (insert whatever inappropriate sucking analogy of your choice here). When I arrived back to my techno-strewn hovel, I was confronted with an email from the lovely Samantha with a story attached in honor of my new holiday. Thus I am now honored to present to you, The New World by Samantha Boyette.

I was seven when a flu vaccine gone wrong wiped out most of the earth’s population.  My brother Joey was nine.  It’s said that after this sort of devastating event three types of people survive.  The strong, the lucky, and the stupid.  My brother and I like to think we are the second type, though we have been the third type as well.  We never want to be the first.

The strong; I’ve met many men and women in the last two years who I normally would have put into the category.  Now it’s reserved for the blood suckers.  Who would have guessed that the stories that filled our lives for five hundred years could have some truth?  As the humans died off from the vaccine, vampires became the majority.

My brother and I survived for two years on kindness from strangers and dumb luck.  In many ways we have the vampires to thank for that.  They gave the surviving humans something to band together against.  Some people went to the vampires, thinking they would be turned.  Maybe some of them were, but I think most were food.

I’m not sure what we did different that day.  We’d always kept a low profile before, staying off the vampires’ radar, but that day we stumbled right onto it.  Long ago we got over the myth that we would be safe from them during the day; vampires moved about as they pleased.

I crouched beside Joey behind a bush, hoping we might have lost them.  The day was cool and windy.  A fine mist of rain blended with the sweat on my neck, and my brother was warm beside me.  We breathed in quiet, shallow breaths.

Nearby a branch snapped.  A vampire could move silently when it wanted, but they enjoyed chasing their prey.  We ran.  An ageless man was following us, running leisurely.  He laughed as we ran up the hillside.

He wasn’t the only vampire out there, but he was the one torturing us like a cat with a mouse.  We reached the top of the rise and tumbled down the other side with no chance of finding our footing.  We made it to the bottom quickly in a tumble of noise.

I landed stunned, but Joey was on his feet and dragging me to mine.  We ran to a thicket and crawled inside.  From there, were watched as the vampire stood at the crest of the hill, surveying the land for any sign of movement.

Not for the first time, I was thankful vampires were not as super human as they’d made us all believe.  They didn’t have super hearing, or the ability to smell us from two hundred feet away.  They could run fast, but not much faster than us.  Their advantage was that they didn’t tire.  Unless a vampire was right on you, you hid.  Running was the last ditch effort of the hopeless.

He disappeared from the rise, and I let out a low breath.  We weren’t out of the woods yet, though.  We could still hear them talking to one another, joking and laughing as if they didn’t have a care in the world.  They were all around us now, checking for any sign of us.  I felt good about the bushes we hid in, they were thick, and we were deep in the center.  Of any place in this crummy little bit of forest, Joey had found the one place we might survive.

A woman came into view, dark skin and hair, moving silently so we knew she was still looking for us.  She walked closer and closer to our bushes and we were back to holding our breath for fear of discovery.  She stopped halfway past the bush.  I don’t know if one of us moved and the brush rustled, or if the smell of two dirty, frightened boys was just too strong, but she stopped.

As she bent down, we froze.  She wasn’t hunting, but moving with the eerie grace they all had.  She peered at us through the bush and her dark eyes widened.

“You’re children,” she spoke in a voice like warm honey that had my body itching to be close to her.  My brother tugged on my arm, pulling me towards the other side of the bush.

“No, wait.  I’ll lead them away from you,” she said.  Joey stopped and looked at her with the same confusion I was feeling.

“Why?” he asked.

“Because you’re only boys,” she answered.  “I haven’t seen a child out here in over a year.  You must find others.”

“Uh, okay.”  Joey looked at me.  I shrugged; I had no idea what the crazy vampire was talking about.

“So young,” she said wistfully.  She reached toward me, but I pulled back and her hand caressed only air.  “Pray with me.”  She bent her head in prayer.  With her hands clasped together and face down, she looked human.  Not knowing what else to do, Joey and I clasped our hands together and prayed with her.

“Maddie,” a gruff male voice called out from behind her.  “What do you got there?”

“Nothing,” Maddie rose to her feet.

“I’ll see about nothing.”  He looked past the bush and then down at it.  When he crouched, Joey and I ran from the back of the bush.  Straight into the arms of the man who had been tormenting us for nearly an hour.  His pale face widened in a smile as he wrapped his hands around our skinny arms in a vice grip.

“She found lunch,” he said.

The other man came around and took Joey.  Now the tormenter clapped both hands around my arms, and I could barely move.  The other man looked in disappointment at Maddie.

“You shouldn’t cover for humans,” he said.

“They’re only boys, Chris,” Maddie argued.

“They’re food,” the tormentor said.  He licked my face, his tongue cold and wet against my skin.  I cringed away.

“We’re running out of food,” Maddie said.  She glared at the tormentor.  “We cannot live without humans.”

“You know we have a plan.” the tormentor shrugged.

“Enough,” Chris growled.  “Let’s go.”

Joey and I were flung over their shoulder and carried off.  It was uncomfortable, and I was terrified, but I was also a small boy, and I fell asleep.

*

I awoke as my body hit concrete.  The jarring impact rattled me to my feet in an instant.  I looked around like a trapped animal.  Beside me, Joey did the same.

“Little shit pissed on me,” the tormentor shouted.  He pulled off his shirt and threw it into the corner.  He took one big step towards me and smacked me across the side of the head.  The impact sent me stumbling back to the wall.

“Hey!” Joey jumped at him.  “Don’t you dare hit him.”  Joey was kicking and punching the man with no real effect.  The tormentor laughed and put his big hand on Joey’s face.  A quick shove sent Joey stumbling back a couple steps.

“Fuck off,” the tormentor said.  Joey ran forward and kicked the man’s crotch.  The vampire doubled over in pain.  I don’t think Joey really expected it to work, because he backed up again real fast.  Not fast enough.

The tormentor lashed out and had Joey by the arm.  He pulled him in and latched onto his arm with his teeth.  Joey screamed in pain.  I’d never heard him sound that way before, and I was frozen in terror.

“That’s enough,” Chris called.  “Drop him.  That isn’t how we do things around here.”

The tormentor let Joey go.  Joey back-peddled to me with tears streaming down his face.  I put my small arm around his shoulders, trying to comfort him.  The tormentor stalked out of the room.

“I’ll send someone in to clean that up,” Chris said.  The door closed behind him.

“You okay, Joey?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he answered through grit teeth.  “It hurts bad though.”  He had his hand pressed to the wound.  Joey started to laugh.

“Joey?” I thought maybe he’d lost it.

“You pissed on him.”  Joey laughed louder.  “You had an accident on some crazy vampire’s shoulder.”  I grinned, then I was laughing along with him.  It really wasn’t funny, but we’d learned to take a laugh when we found one.

We stopped abruptly at the sound of the door opening again.  Maddie stepped inside.  She gave us an apologetic smile and handed us clean clothes.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like crap,” Joey said.  He held up his arm to illustrate his point.

“I’m sorry, most of us aren’t like that,” Maddie answered.  She was laying out a first aid kit on a small rolling table.

“Oh, most of you don’t like to suck blood?” Joey asked with false innocence.

“Let me see your arm.”  Maddie smiled.  Joey pulled back.  “It needs to be disinfected, your hands are filthy.  Come on, I promise I won’t bite,” Maddie explained.

“Go on Joey,” I said smiling.  “She won’t bite.”

“You’re a funny kid, Nico.”  Joey scowled, but went to Maddie.

I watched as Maddie first cleaned the wound with a towel and water, and then poured disinfectant over it.  She secured a bandage around it.  Joey sat stone still during the entire process.  I could see him biting his lip and knew it hurt.

“I need to take blood samples from both of you,” Maddie said.  She pulled out a syringe and two vials.

“Why?” Joey asked suspiciously.

“We need to know you’re healthy before moving you in with the other humans,” Maddie explained.  She held up the syringe and raised an eyebrow at Joey.  When he nodded, she took her sample.  Then it was my turn.

“You two will stay in here over night,” Maddie said.  “If your blood is clean, we’ll move you into a group cell tomorrow morning.”

“I thought you didn’t want us to be trapped in here,” Joey said.  Maddie looked down at her lap.

“I don’t,” she said softly.  “I’ll figure out how to get you out of here, but for right now things must proceed as normal.”

“Just like any other vampire,” Joey spat out the words.  “All lies.”

“I’ll get you out,” Maddie said with more force.  “I promise.”

I put a hand on Joey’s shoulder, stopping him from saying anything else.  I believed Maddie.

*

We were moved the next morning.  The cell was cramped with barely enough bunk beds to go around.  We were told by the others that it was a temporary situation if you agreed to the vampire’s plan.  Those who were willing were allowed into a much nicer area and given free range of the vampire’s compound.  In exchange, their blood was pumped once every thirty days.

We could see these people from our cell, they walked around like sickly, pampered pets.  They were cleaner than anyone I’d seen in over a year, with new clothes and books to read.  When it was warm outside, you could see the small metal device implanted in the crook of their elbow in order to make taking the blood quick and easy.

*

After a week in the cell, being a pampered pet started to look awfully tempting to me.  In the cell we were fed once a day, and shared a toilet with about twenty people.  Apparently when they took you out for your blood, you were washed.  That was the real kicker, they were still going to take our blood.

“Eat it.”  Joey pushed his sandwich toward me.  “I’m not too hungry.”

“You gotta eat,” I argued.  He’d been letting me eat most of his food since we were captured.  He claimed he wasn’t hungry, but I didn’t believe him.

“I said I’m not hungry.  So just eat the damn food, Nico.”  I ate the food.  It was good, the best I’d eaten in a long time.

“Can we just agree to be pets?” I asked quietly.  I didn’t want everyone in the room to know I was considering it.

“Don’t be stupid,” Joey answered.  “We aren’t pets.”

“But we could have a real room again,” I said wistfully.  “And people taking care of us.”

“Not people.”  Joey swatted me on the back of the head.  “Vampires.  Vampires who pump us for blood, and  kill us.”

“But,” I started to argue, but Joey’s glare shut me up.

*

A week later it was down to fifteen of us in the room; the others had given in and allowed the vampires to implant them for long term production.  I’d tried to convince Joey a couple more times that we should do the same.  I worried about him every day.  He hadn’t had more than a few bites of his meals in almost two full weeks.  He seemed okay, but I worried he was sick, or simply starving himself for my benefit.

“This is the new world,” mumbled an older man from the bunk beside us.

“What?” Joey asked.

“The new world.”  The man turned to us.  “We’re dogs.  This is how they’ll keep themselves alive.  They let us breed out there you know.”  He motioned vaguely toward the high window through which we could watch the pets.  “They’re real kind about it too, don’t take blood from the woman who is with child, don’t start draining on a child until they’re seven.  Don’t take as much blood from them either.  This is the new world.”  He turned and continued mumbling to himself.

“We have to get out of here,” Joey said.  “I’m nobody’s dog.”

“How’re we supposed to do that?” I asked.  Maddie didn’t seem to have a plan.  She brought the food everyday, but had not yet said a word to us.

“I don’t know,” Joey answered.  “But we will.”

When Maddie brought our food that day, the old man told her he was ready for his implant.  She called for back up and two big vampires led him out of the cell.  Maddie leaned down to me and whispered.

“When you hear the siren, you run.  The door will be open.  Upstairs and out the door, head left to the fence.  There will be a boat by the break wall.”  She spoke so fast I was afraid I’d missed something.

“What did she say?” Joey asked as the door shut behind them.  I repeated her words in a hushed tone.

“Do you believe her?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Joey answered.  “But I’ll be listening for a siren.  Here, eat this.”

I took his food without argument.  I’d given up on trying to convince him to eat.  I hoped he would be strong enough to escape if we got the opportunity.

We were sleeping when the alarm went off, but not even a dead man could have slept through the head splitting pulse.  Joey and I were on our feet in an instant.  The others were looking around in bewilderment.  We went to the door, ready for the moment of truth.

The handled turned easily under my small hand, and we were out in the hall.  The rest of the prisoners flowed out after us, running in all directions.  We didn’t have time to stop them.  The fresh dawn air was sweet as we ran for the fence with a few of the others.  We reached the fence just as the guards were upon us.

Joey climbed the fence with an almost unnatural grace.  I did my best while most of the adults didn’t get very far before being pulled down by the guards.  I felt a guard wrap his hand around my ankle.  I kicked out, but his grip was firm.  He tried to pull me down, but my panic made me strong.  I clung for my life.  Joey disappeared above me.  I cried out, afraid he had left me.

“You’re not leaving,” the guard said.  “I haven’t tasted child in years.”

Two things happened almost instantaneously.  I felt the vampire’s teeth slip into the skin above my ankle and Joey reappeared.  Joey let a huge rock drop on the vampire’s head.  His teeth tore out of me as he fell.  Pain seared up my leg, but I knew he would be on his feet in a second.  I scrambled up and over the fence with Joey’s help.

“Come on,” Joey said.  We ran for a dock that jutted out into the water.  Beyond it was the break wall.

As our feet hit the dock, the vampires were running for us again.  We were both running faster than we had in our lives.  When we jumped from the end of the dock, we cleared half the distance to the wall.  It seemed to only take a few short strokes before my feet were touching rock and we were climbing the break wall.

The boat was there as promised.  A small two person boat with a pull-to-start engine.  Luck was on our side, and Joey started it on the first pull. When the first vampire stood on the break wall we were already safely on our way.

The day passed in silence as Joey steered us towards the relative safety of the world.  I cleaned my leg as best I could and wrapped a bit of my shirt around it.  When the boat began to run out of gas, we aimed for shore, pulling the boat far up so it wouldn’t be seen.  We began to walk again, same as we always did.  We’d escaped the worst this world had to offer and now we would keep on trying to survive.

That was a year ago.  Joey and I haven’t aged, we haven’t eaten, and we are stronger than ever.  We’re not vampires, we don’t crave blood.  We’ve searched out others like us, people who were bitten by a vampire, but not killed and not forced to drink their blood.  There are more than I would’ve thought; we’re a colony of near a hundred now.  We’re strong without weakness and our number will grow.  Humans will not be dogs, and the vampires will not win.  This is the new world.

Move over Shakespeare and Steinbeck, after a discontent winter (can anyone say, “Skyline”?), we are quickly approaching what has all the trappings of being a dynamic summer of Sci Fi Movies. Yet both the media and blogosphere are abuzz with general  suck y attitudes, fanboy complainers, and bad vibes aplenty. Well, Dome is here to tell you, I for one am gonna enjoy what I am now crowning:  2011 – The Sci Fi Summer of Fun, and here is why:

May:

Thor

Hell and Yes. Under-rated and almost ignored by the media. Is there a movie Natalie Portman isn’t drop dead beautiful in? Or was that Chris Hemsworth? Thor 2 was just greenlit, even before it’s release.

Kung-Fu Panda 2

Featuring the voice talents of Angelina Jolie, Jack Black and Jackie Chan, this promises funny summer silliness.

June:

X-Men First Class

Matthew Vaughn directs this prequel and despite all the groaning from the Marvel-ettes, I think this could be good. Jennifer um January Jones, Kevin Bacon, Micheal Fassbender, James McAvoy  and the original story by Bryan Singer. This is a classic retelling of how the zebra got his stripes. It should make for good Saturday afternoon viewing.

Super 8

Part homage, part flashback, part Goonies, part Close Encounters, this summer fare by JJ Abrams and Spielberg has the chances to do a slick alternate history rewrite for us and I am in for the game.

Green Lantern

Ryan Reynolds has been the moving target for this project for almost two years. The stills released and trailers look more than acceptable. It’s about time DC did something for Hal Jordan. Plus, there’s the really adorable video of Ryan Reynolds reciting the Green Lantern oath for a young fan, which ups the awesome quotient just by existing.

Mr. Popper’s Penguins

Do you really need a reason? Do you?…DO YOU? No real reason this is in here, except I cannot wait!

July:

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

One name says it all for this film, Megan Fox…I mean NIMOY!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2

I’ll bring the cake, you bring the flying broom; only muggles are going to miss this. There were some bumps along the way, but this has been an amazing franchise and it is kind of sad to see it end.

Captain America – The First Avenger

Yes, Yes, and HELL YES. This is the movie of the summer and I am staking my reputation (such as it is) on it. This is the one I am anxiously awaiting. The saga of Steve Rogers, played by Chris Evans, should bring the cycle back to the beginning of the Avengers and usher in a new wave of some of the best Comic Heroes ever. An amazing cast include Hugo Weaving, Stanly Tucci, Tommy Lee Jones and Dominic Cooper. Based completly on word of mouth, we can look forward to Capt. America 2, they have already begun scripting it.

Cowboys & Aliens

007 does Roswell in Tombstone. As Stan Lee would say, “’nuff said”.

August:

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

James Franco, John Lithgow and Sonja Bennett. OK, so there might be one or two I can plan on missing and I think this is one of them.

Conan the Barbarian

And I think this might be the other…

This Dome, sayin’: Enjoy The Sci Fi Summer of Fun. Let us know what ya think along the way. If I missed one of your faves or bombs, well… it’s just my opinion, lets hear yours.

In an on-going attempt to bring ”new and unusual stuff” to our viewers, Sci Fi Saturday Night is proud to present a new feature that we have dubbed Fiction Friday. Here’s the idea; you are a writer, aspiring or established. You (like us) want to bring your ideas to a wider audience. What better place to submit your piece of short fiction than to us?  Please submit your story to us here and every Friday we will hopefully highlight someone or something new, or at least new to you.

(Deep movie-phone voice) – Join us on a journey of discovery, a journey of new ideas.

Insert Story Here.

I began my lifelong love affair with Doctor Who in ’96, right after the made-for-tv movie aired and I was twelve years old. It didn’t take me long to discover old episodes of the show would play every Friday night from 10 to midnight. It wasn’t a school night so I was allowed to stay up late, and because I liked to watch them again and again over the course of the next week, I had a VCR tape that I would reuse to record each episode. I fondly remember falling asleep on the couch as the Doctor and Sarah battled alien hordes.

Elisabeth Sladen passed away this past Tuesday after a long and vicious battle with cancer. She is best known as the third and fourth Doctor’s constant companion. Later, after the series reboot, she reprised her role as the tenth Doctor’s companion for one episode (“School Reunion”) and was then the star of her own spin-off series, The Sarah Jane Adventures, complete with K-9, the Doctor’s faithful cyber-hound.

For so many, myself included, Sarah Jane was their favorite companion. Spunky, witty, and good looking (even in overalls), she captured the screen opposite Tom Baker. She was the eternal yin to his fiery yang, a voice of reason or retort whenever his head, or hair, got too big. She was the quintessential companion very much as Tom Baker was the quintessential Doctor. Her death comes as a complete shock to so many, cruelly thrusting us into sadness that should have come much, much later. It just doesn’t seem fair that a personality as sweet and bright as hers should disappear so soon.

May you freely travel through the stars now, Sarah Jane. Here, you’ll be missed.

Recently I put together a reading list of Robert Heinlein’s books for one of the other contributors to SFSN. He didn’t realize that many were thematically related, and that there was a “best” order in which to read them, which I pointed out. He suggested that might be a helpful topic for new readers of Heinlein, and he was so convincing that here I am. I point out two of Heinlein’s major multi-book themes, briefly describe how they evolve in his books, and provide a recommended reading order.

Heinlein was a prolific writer of both novels and short stories (a full list can be found here),  and not all were related.  Some of his better known works (I Will Fear No Evil, Friday, Double Star, and a host of others) were stand-alones, and Dome reviewed one of these earlier ( RAH – I Will Fear No Evil). Those stories can be read in any order without losing their energy and power to captivate. However, Heinlein also created two multi-book story lines, that of the Howard Families and of the World as Myth, that require reading these books in a specific order to grasp their full richness.

The first of these story lines, that of the Howard Families, focuses on a group of humans who have extraordinary lifespans by virtue of, in essence, selective breeding. Initially introduced in the aptly named Methuselah’s Children, this group of “oldsters” is chased off Earth by those who think they are hiding some secret technique of age prevention, their escape made possible by Lazarus Long, “The Elder”, who figures prominently throughout the rest of this story line. Time Enough for Love covers the memoirs of Long, giving background and depth to the lives and adventures of the Howard Families through nearly two millennia. The Number of the Beast continues Long’s (and his closer “family’s”) escapades and ties them into the World as Myth story line. The Cat Who Walks Through Walls has Lazarus and other key Howard Family members as important supporting characters in another combined tale that explores what might happen if people understood the World as Myth–and had the means to effect change. To Sail Beyond the Sunset is the last of the Howard Family books (and the last novel published before Heinlein’s death) and recounts the memoirs of Maureen Johnson Smith Long, mother and wife of Lazarus Long (the Heinlein universes are interesting ones!), ultimately wrapping up the Howard Family saga.

Heinlein used The World as Myth both as a useful new story telling framework and as a means to tie some of his earlier works together. Without giving away any significant plot details, the World as Myth postulates a a plethora of parallel universes (or a multiverse, in the words of some Heinlein reviewers) where what is fiction in one is the actual basis for another. Revolt in 2100, The Man Who Sold the Moon, Stranger in a Strange Land (whence came the word “grok”), and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress (also reviewed by Dome: RAH – The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress) are stand-alone stories in that they don’t use the World as Myth framework. However, Heinlein incorporates their principal elements into this formalized framework starting with The Number of the Beast, so reading those books beforehand will make the references to them understandable. From the World as Myth perspective The Number of the Beast also introduces the essential element for exploring and interacting with the various parallel worlds, the continua craft. The Cat Who Walks Through Walls draws heavily from The Moon is a Harsh Mistress story line and examines the apparent contradictions and possible issues with using the continua craft, especially when trying to change a time line. Finally, in To Sail Beyond the Sunset, the continua craft is key to rescuing Maureen Johnson Smith Long and otherwise setting all things right for the Howard Families.

Based on this very superficial coverage of these interrelated stories, my recommended reading order is:

1. Methuselah’s Children
2. Revolt in 2100*
3. The Man Who Sold the Moon*
4. Stranger in a Strange Land*
5. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress*
6. Time Enough for Love
7. The Number of the Beast
8. The Cat Who Walks Through Walls
9. To Sail Beyond the Sunset

Books with asterisks (entries 2-5) are simply listed in their order of publication, and can be read in any order between second and fifth without loss of continuity. Using the remainder of the order will ensure that the reader will follow the evolution of the two themes, which will make reading these particular Heinlein stories more enjoyable!

So I was driving down the Main St. of my little town, minding my own business and rocking out to some NPR when, quel surpise!  I noticed the billboard above had been that had been put in just that day.  Oh, the horror!  My granola eating hippy liberal bleeding heart nearly stopped.  A Family Radio billboard in my New England town?  How could this be? For those of you who have never heard of these people (jealous!), Family Radio is a broadcast organization, not a church, that believes that the world will end on May 21, 2011.  That’s right, according to these folks, we have less than a month left to make our peace with the Big Guy upstairs.

Now, I have no beef with your religion or beliefs.  I know no more than the next guy about what’s going on behind the curtains of our reality.  What annoys me about this group is that they’re touting this message and convincing people that they will never see the next May 22.  Husbands, wives, whole families have given away all their possessions, walked away from their houses and jobs all because of one person’s Biblical calculations.  What’s going to happen when the 22nd really does come around and these people are left with literally nothing?  While no one can say it was anyone’s fault but their own, I can’t help but feel a pang of Democratic sympathy for the sorry state they are going to be in.

All this got me thinking though, about what my, or rather, my reader’s Rapture would be.  Would Wil Wheaton come down from on high and take us all to the final frontier?  Perhaps the Doctor will finally appear to whisk us off our feet to a new dimension in time?  We can all hope, but in this case I’m talking about the Singularity.

The exact definition of the Singularity can vary, but most believe it is the point at which computers become so advanced that a super-intelligent being is formed (think Footprints of God by Greg Iles. Great book!), which in turn will infinitely further our society to the point where all our problems will be solved.  I feel kind of dumb, because before the writing of this article, I believed the Singularity was what was happening at the end of Neon Genesis Evangelion.  Or maybe that was my brain evolving into a higher state (haha, no, it was pretty much mush after that show).  There was a recent Time article on the very subject of the Singularity, wherein Raymond Kurzweil has stated, using his own math and Moore’s Law, that the event will take place in 2045.  Now, is Kurzweil any less of a loony than Family Radio?  Maybe, but at least he has a degree at MIT to back up some of what he’s talking about, and he’s designed several machines that help the disabled, whereas Family Radio seems intent on only making people afraid and little else.

And while I think the Singularity is as unlikely to occur as the End of Days, at least I can see the logic in the former.  After all, technology is advancing at a fantastic rate.  Thirty years ago, a Commodor 64 had an OS that was 32 kilobytes, and today the average OS is more than 4 GB, a number that in 1980′s was inconceivable.  I have a phone that would have been considered a supercomputer back then.  And our children are using and learning about our tech at a much younger age than we did, which means they will build stuff that goes even faster.  However, when we do finally create A.I., it probably won’t manifest in any way we expect it to, and it won’t solve all of our problems (c’mon, didn’t you all see the Matrix?).  Every culture from every time point in history has their idea of how it will all End, and none of them have come true.  So if you excuse me, I’ll be eating waffles, surfing the web on my tiny computer while I pity those poor souls on Sunday, May 22.

• Fringe sets a new tone of awesomeness.
• Little girl swears allegiance to the Dark Side.
• SyFy releases new schedule.
• Dragonriders of Pern in pre-production after 14 year delay.
• Doctor Who Season 6 debuts April 23 on BBC-A.
• Jeri Ryan tweets us!!
• Paramount options Martian Chronicles.
• Terra Nova suffers another delay.
• Cool new web comic: Disappointing Monsters.
• Out on DVD – Dark Skies.
• X-Men #1 sells for $ 200,00.00.

Our guest tonight is Colin Solan, who gives us the latest news from Boston Comic Con.

Guardian of Morning

I was asked to read her newest novel Guardian of Morning, the story of 2 young girls, Kara Hart and Dylan Perry. The title is evocative, but the reader is kept in the semi-darkness as to its true meaning for a long portion of the book. That begs the question, “what is this book about?” By the end, the reader discovers that it is a story of awakening, a quest to find ones true self in a world that does its damnedest to deny you.

And it’s not just one world, it’s three:  our world, Inbetween and Daylands. Each universe has its own laws, ecology, social structure, and  hazards. Throughout the beginning of the quest for identity and redemption Kara and Dylan learn about themselves, the roles they play, and the tasks they must overcome to live the love they feel for each other. It is in many ways a coming of age story, a growing together story, and most of all a love story.

Samantha writes in a style that invites the reader inside the lives of her characters. She gives her universes depth and substance. Her use of words paints pictures for the reader, so that you are always right there with the characters. Her characters have a depth and substance that is simply breathtaking. It would be very easy to fall in love with Kara.

The Vampire's Warden

I was introduced to Stephanie Wright’s work by a friend of a friend, as is often the case in this community. I grabbed onto her Twitter feed, checked out her web presence, and after we started a casual email relationship, I asked for a review copy of her book, The Vampire’s Warden, which she sent to me.

This novel is a retelling of the classic story of personal reality gone askew. Sarah Brightman’s world quickly unravels after the death of her father, she is onsumed with the tasks of keeping the family inn working, taking care of her sister Katie, and surviving in a small town. She then comes face to face with the ugly reality of what her life is to become as she reads her grandfathers journal and learns the truth about the land the inn stands on and the awful responsibility she now has. When you add mysterious Michael and Alex to the mix and begin to get glimpses their life stories, the full magnitude of the glade in the far back begins to unfold. This is the beginning of a simply spellbinding series, and I cannot wait for the next installment.

What these writers all have in common is the desire to tell a story, and they have two very compellingly different stories to tell. In a time when independent artists in all forms are finding an outlet, these are shining stars, writers to watch as they grow brighter, writers to watch out for.

This is Dome, sayin’: Give them a read.

From CafePress.com (also available as a coffee mug, t-shirt, etc.)

National Library Week kicked off yesterday and continues (shockingly!) all week. Dates to note are Tuesday, which is National Library Workers Day (just so you know, Zombrarian loves chocolate and works in a library, no pressure…), and Thursday, which is Support Teen Literature Day (remember, lots of classic Sci Fi/Fantasy started off as teen literature).

I can talk a lot about what your library can do for you. I can point out that most libraries have fairly extensive Sci Fi/Fantasy sections. I can mention that many libraries also have movies, e-books, music, graphic novel collections, and video games, ALL FOR FREE. However, other people have made far more eloquent statements on this topic. Of particular note are: author Philip Pullman (His Dark Materials), actor Wil Wheaton (Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Big Bang Theory),  and author/activist/blogger/MyHero Cory Doctorow.

Since it’s National Library Week, let’s be reminiscent of JFK and ask not what our libraries can do for us, but rather what we can do for our libraries.  Your library will have its own individual needs, which you can ask about when you go in to do one or more of these things:

1. If you already use your library, let them know you appreciate them. Librarians are people too, and they’d like to hear from you.
2. Tell them what you want! Librarians are not omniscient (see above re: librarians are human), and sometimes there just isn’t someone who knows a lot about a subject. If there’s a book/movie/graphic novel/whatever that you think the library should have, let them know. Better yet, donate a copy!
3. Are you a gamer? National Gaming Day (Nov 12 this year)  is sponsored by the American Library Association, and your library can participate! Let them know that you think it would be neat if they had a program. Volunteer to run a shortgame RPG, offer to bring your favorite board game and teach others to play, or just show up and participate.
4. Use your library! The more you go to the library, the more it helps the library.

According to Action Comics #252, April 11^th, 1959 is the day on which Supergirl came to Earth. Kara Zor-El was a supporting player in the DC Universe and was given  her own series on two occasions in issues 72-74 and issues 82-84. After the “Infinite Earth” saga, where she sacrifices her life, She was once again reborn as man-made life form by Lex Luthor.

Drawn over the years by such luminaries as Gary Frank and Jamal Igle, she has run the gamut from darling of the Super Heroes to sexy Vixen.

Happy Birthday Woman of Steel!

Echo by Terry Moore

• Browncoats: Redemption countdown.
• Chinese censors ban Time Travel TV, because it’s “made up”.
• George Takei’s audition for Spiderman: Turn off the Dark.
• Game of Thrones.
• Star Trek Episodes coming to Netflix.
• Paramount shoots down both Frakes and Shatner
• Star Trek 12 begins production in May.
• Star Wars: The Musical?
• They renamed it Rise of The Planet of The Apes.
• 10 Sci Fi Films better then Serenity and Empire Strikes Back.
• Ender’s Game Zero Gee.

Our guest is artist and writer Terry Moore. He talks about Echo, his new project Rachael Rising, Strangers in Paradise and his latest Eisner Nomination.

Tiki Dalek via tiki-talk.com

• Felicia Day tweets… something…
• Peter Jackson adding new characters to The Hobbit.
• April Fools Roundup:
  • Nathan Fillion puts fans into a panic.
  • Think Geek presents its 2011 April Fools products including  The Playmobil iStore.
  • Reanimating Alfred Hitchcock?
  • Pixar’s remake of Totoro.
  • EW’s list of Traffic Bait Headlines for any website.
• Checkout the Tiki Dalek.
• UFO’s predicted to buzz the Royal Wedding.
• DIY: Mario Coin Box.
• Lily Collins cast as new live action Snow White.
• Shatner, the Head Banger.
• Two unnecessary remakes: AKIRA and Total Recall.
• How to keep your coffee hot.
• Game of Thrones on HBO set to go.

This is Dome, sayin’: I’m proud, too.

By now most movie goers are familiar with director Zack Snyder and what he brings to the table. Suffice it to say that with Sucker Punch, it’s more of the same. While his attention to detail and dynamic visuals are uncanny, there is nothing new under the sepia-toned sun. I understand that most of the action takes place in a fantasy world, but the over the top action sequences were pointless and so tiring to sit through.

This was Zack Snyder’s first original story for a feature length film, and with movies like Watchmen and 300 under his belt, I was hoping he would bring to life a compelling story that would compliment his dynamic directing ability. Instead, Sucker Punch was confusing at best. The story jumps from one place to another with no logical reason, and most of it was predictable. Coupled with the pointless action sequences, I felt no emotional attachment to any of the characters.

Overall, Sucker Punch is not worth the hype, and if you’ve seen the trailer, then you’ve seen the movie. I feel that this was Zack Snyder’s chance to show what he can do with his own vision, and instead spliced in a bunch of slow-motion to fast-motion action sequences to a bland storyline. Snyder’s next film, Superman: Man of Steel, is scheduled for a 2012 release, and is written by David S. Goyer, who has a slew of comic book adaptations to his credit, including the current Batman film franchise.

For reference, Slither: Wow people, I thought FOR SURE that I would love this movie.  Nathan Fillion?  Check.  Comedy horror?  Check (LOVE Evil Dead).  Cult status?  Checkity check check!  However, I left the theater wishing I’d left earlier so I could have gotten my money back.  When people gushed over Slither, I literally thought we were talking about two different movies.  I don’t think I laughed the entire film, and it WAS  cheesy but not in a good way.  I don’t know if it’s because I was never really into the 80′s horror scene or if there is a piece of my brain that never developed properly to love this movie the way so many of my friends did, but I was just so disappointed.  In the end, I thought it was pretty boring.

But on the other side.  Oh man, I have a big secret guys.  There’s something I love…something I watched that when I saw it I thought it was just great.  The best, totally worth my time.  And I was reminded of just how I am in the minority about this by last week’s podcast.  So here goes:

I thought The Postman was a good film.

There I said it.  I even got a little teary eyed at the end when they had a statue of him erected.  I seriously felt good after watching it.  Maybe it’s because I really like post-apocalyptic scenarios and seeing people make the best of things when times are toughest.  Maybe it’s because I hate the mail system and my mail-person needs to realize they have TWO jobs (delivering AND TAKING my mail.  TAKE MY BILLS PLEASE OMFG).  So it’s nice, heartwarming even, to see someone give a crap about my letters.  And I have a soft spot in my chest cavity for reluctant heroes and ego maniacal villains too.

I’m not going to say that it’s the most amazing movie ever made, I guess I just don’t see what everyone is complaining about.  It’s not like the acting was horrendous or that the movie wasn’t actually funny at the time, but even my husband was complaining that he was going to start seizing if I made him watch any more of it (yes, I watched it again last night, for reference, and I haven’t changed my mind).  Sometimes I feel like I’m in the story “The Emperor’s New Clothes” and I’m the boy shouting that he’s naked, only I’m the person trying to convince people this movie doesn’t suck.

In the end, it doesn’t really matter though.  We all like and dislike stuff that may be different than the masses.  Sometimes that’s what makes us who we are as individuals!  For me, most of the time I will resist the status quo out of some misguided sense of snobbery, only to reverse my position at the last possible moment (Avatar: The Last Airbender tv show comes to mind…).  I’d be interested to see what all of YOU think, what you guys consider to be your alternative tastes.

Final word: I also believe Babylon 5 to be a hojillion times better than Star Trek.  *ducks out as people start throwing rotten tomatoes*

Browncoats: Redemption

Tim Brown who created the Ask SyFy to Air Browncoats: Redemption Facebook Page, and the Producer/Director of Browncoats: Redemption, Michael Dougherty answer questions. If you’d like SyFy to air Browncoats: Redemption, e-mail them on Monday!

• Douglas Adams “Lost” Doctor Who is being novelized.
• BBC sends out a Season Six Doctor Who Prequel.
• FOX actually renews Fringe.
• Happy Birthday Spock.

Michael Moreci talks about his new graphic novel QUARANTINED (a collaboration with artist Monty Borror) and his series Hoax Hunters.

Written and illustrated by Julia Yu, Goodnight Dune is a merging of Margaret Wise Brown’s 1947 children’s classic Goodnight Moon with elements of the 1984 movie version of Dune. Yu remained true to the illustrative style of the book, and maintained Brown’s gentle tone to include parts of the Dune premise.

As a science fiction fan and someone who reads to his toddler every night, I was very amused with Yu’s approach to this parody. Visually, she does the original book some justice by simplifying all of the iconic Dune elements such as the Baron Harkonnen, a crysknife, and an ornithopter. These are all spread throughout the story, and adds to the comedy that any fan of Dune would appreciate.

Goodnight Dune is available to view online here, and a printable version is available here.

One has to come to this series with an open mind, and accept the production value, the acting and the story telling with an understanding that Dark Shadows was created as a daytime soap in the sixties. The gothic concept was unheard of at the time. There is a certain charm to the black and white imagery, the eerie music and the campy acting. I feel that I’m at a disadvantage because I’m watching it on a computer screen, and not on a television.

So far I’ve watched the first six episodes, and I’ll admit that I’m hooked. Without the commercials, the episodes are roughly twenty minutes long. It’s not the show I was expecting, and the storyline is very slow. So slow in fact that I haven’t seen any paranormal elements. Again, I have to keep in mind that this was produced in a time in TV history when shows like this was new to daytime TV.

What’s hooking me in is the story itself. It’s mysterious at every turn. Even the protagonist, the young and curious Victoria Winters is a mystery. The opening of the first episode starts off with her voice over, “My name is Victoria Winters. My journey is beginning. A journey that I hope will open the doors of life to me and link my past to my future.” As she arrives in the small New England fishing town of Collinsport for the first time, she’s immediately met with repeated warnings to return to her home in New York City. In fact the mood is always dark, and the black and white camera-work adds to the tense situations that Victoria comes across.

The theatrical adaptation set for 2012 will be directed by Tim Burton, and written by Seth Grahame-Smith, who is also adapting his novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter for the big screen. The Dark Shadows movie will star Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins, Helena Bonham Carter as Dr. Julia Hoffman, and Michelle Pfeiffer as Elizabeth Collins Stoddard.

I will keep watching and report on my findings in the Collinwood mansion…if I make it back.

Bc:R Director Mike Dougherty, and Editor Andrew Marnik with The Dome, Kriana, Zombrarian and Dru

There has been a lot of drama and controversy surrounding the Firefly ‘verse lately regarding who will or will not win the lottery and start it up again. These people are missing out. Firefly is alive and well, not only in the hearts of it’s fans, but also with the new(ish) independent film: Browncoats: Redemption. If you’ve never heard of/seen Bc:R, it’s an incredible fan and volunteer effort to make a movie set in the Firefly universe but with a different set of characters. Despite the quality of the film and cameos from several ‘Big Damn Stars’, the movie has gotten less attention than I would like in the midst of crazy super-villain type plans to re-start the original show (Was that really the plan? Are you SURE that’s where the money was going…? Anonymous people collecting money would NEVER try to exploit passionate fans desperate for ANY glimmer of hope…)

After so much craziness, nearly overnight, a movement has sprung up on FireflyFans.net to get Bc:R aired on Syfy. Now I’m going to re-post TDBrown’s proposal and address their points one by one.

First off, let me say that I am NOT directly associated with the Producers of “Browncoats: Redemption”. I just feel that Airing BcR on SyFy is a good idea. Here are a few good reasons why:

1) It would be the first Non-profit Film to be broadcast on a Cable Network, at least I believe so.

2)It would provide great exposure for the Sereniverse, and provide major funds to the Charities BcR supports. This could be done by having SyFy donate directly to the Charities as payment for Airing the film, or they could convince their advertisers to donate, and perhaps mention it during their commercials. this would be good PR for all concerned.

3) SyFy is a Universal-owned property, as is Serenity. BcR was approved by Universal, so this is a good fit. The events in BcR take place after the events in Serenity. It isn’t a violation of Fox’s rights to Firefly; It’s an extension of Serenity.

4) If BcR is well-received by Fans and Critics, it could ignite yet another call for the resurrection of either Firefly or Serenity. It could also attract interest in expanding on the Sereniverse altogether. Perhaps, Browncoats: Redemption II?

5) The original films that SyFy presents on their “most dangerous night on Television” are of the same quality as(or sometimes worse than) Browncoats: Redemption.

First off: We on SciFi Saturday Night are good friends with the guys involved with Bc:R (in the way that we love them and like to have them on the show as much as possible!). In fact, Mike Dougherty is SO excited about this, that he’s coming on our show this weekend to talk about it. Now I’m not sure if this will be the first non-profit film aired on television, but it would definitely be the coolest one. As for point #2, did I forget to mention that all of the profit from Bc:R goes directly to charity? (It doesn’t even pass Go!) And not just any charities, all of the organizations: EqualityNow, Kids Need to Read, The Dyslexia Foundation, The Al Wooten Jr. Heritage Center, and The Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation are near and dear to the hearts of the people who worked on Firefly.

Point number three I could see lawyers disagreeing with, but Mike has the e-mail that says Joss Whedon approves of his project, signed in person by Joss Whedon. Do you need more cred than that? (Hint: No.) As for point four, there will be no Bc:R II Electric Boogaloo, if they don’t sell enough copies of Bc:R. This is and always has been the deal. So if you like the movie, and want more to come out of the project, please go buy it. And when you’re done, enter the coupon code SFSN2011 for $1 off. Christmas is just around the corner people, and nothing says love like Bc:R.

Point five needs it’s own paragraph. Syfy regularly airs crap like Mansquito and Sharktopus. Not only would Bc:R probably improve their ratings, it would improve their entire channel. I might even stop calling them Siffy. (Spoiler alert: No I won’t…)

To summarize the post-turned-essay: Do I want Bc:R on SyFy? Hell to the yes! If you want it too, here’s what you can do:

• Check out the original post.
• Send an e-mail to feedback@syfy.com requesting that they air Bc:R.
• Join the Facebook Group.
• Retweet supporting messages.
• Buy the film.
• Like the film on Facebook.
• Follow the film on Twitter.
• Listen to us this Saturday night, and bring your questions for Mike.

UPDATE:

We are extremely lucky to also be having Tim Brown, originator of the “Asky SyFy to Air Browncoats: Redemption” movement, on the show with Mike on Saturday.

Also you can now join the Facebook community which seems to be easier to link to than the group.

Peter Vinton Jr.

• Michael Gough, RIP.
• Wonder Woman’s new Costume, Me-Ow!
• Shia LeBeouf meets Joe Hill, horns ensue.
• Simon Helberg on Dr. Horrible, Part Deux.
• Kevin Costner will be Pa Kent.
• Fringe still on the bubble for renewal.
• Sandman television series back on again with “Neil” involved.

A quick spin of the Wheel Of Kittens (Rocco, we miss you!), reveals that nobody wants to win the Wonder Woman Collectible, so we move on to our guest, Peter Vinton Jr., who talks about his new project, The Monitor’s Guild, the Joss Whedon promotion on his website, his upcoming appearances at Boston Comic Con and Granite Con, and some of his new work.

To be entered to win this print and this print by Peter Vinton, simply comment on this TalkCast. Good Hunting Max.

I thought I’d write a somewhat more speculative article this week (with more potential for controversy, I suppose) about one of my favorite authors–Isaac Asimov. In particular, I’d like to look at whether the good Doctor might have gone one step beyond his acknowledged battle against the “Frankenstein Complex” in some of his writings.

Asimov’s considerable angst over the Frankenstein Complex (a term he is widely acknowledged to have coined) is well documented both in his stories (where Susan Calvin and the rest of the US Robots and Mechanical Men team frequently rail against it) and in his essays (e.g., “Machine and Robot” in Robot Visions, which is a nice sampling of Asimov’s robot stories and his non-fiction writings on the topic). Most sci-fi aficionados know that the “Three Laws of Robotics” were his literary creation designed to counter that complex. I won’t expound on them here other than to say they were his reactive response, a basis for allaying fears of robots. What is more interesting to me was what seems a more pro-active sub theme that I’ve never specifically seen addressed before–that he actually made his robots god-like.

Asimov himself hints at his feeling that robots should not only be useful tools that are not to be feared, but eventually ought to be admired and embraced as transcendent creatures. In “Machine and Robot” he ends his essay by saying:

So it may be that though we will hate and fear the machines, we will be supplanted anyway, and rightly so, for the intelligent machines to which we give birth may, better than we, carry on the striving to the goal of understanding and using the universe, climbing to heights we ourselves could never aspire to.

That vision of our creations being transcendent also comes through in some of his fiction. The earliest example of that is in his short story The Last Question, where Multivac and its many descendants (culminating in the Universal AC) are asked, essentially, whether it was possible to generally reverse entropy. Long after the last vestiges of mankind are gone the Universal AC ultimately has enough information to answer the question. With no one left to give the answer to, it decides that a demonstration is appropriate. [SPOILER ALERT!!!] The story ends with “And then there was light.”

Asimov’s toying with the idea of robots as higher order of being than humans is more fully developed through his character (and my namesake!) R. Daneel Olivaw. After a long period of association with humans Daneel formalizes a concept originally conjectured by Susan Calvin (in The Evitable Conflict) and pragmatically attempted by R. Giskard Reventlov (resulting in his “death”) into the Zeroth Law of Robotics (“A robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm.”)–seeing in himself an ability to do what humans cannot. He builds upon that in Foundation’s Edge and Foundation and Earth, where he admits to Golan Trevize that he’s been manipulating and shaping humanity for millenia, and had been key behind the force that drove the development of Psychohistory and the creation and growth of Gaia (a human society that essentially has the Ten Commandments hard wired in their psyche–at the cost of individuality). Both of these he saw as potential alternate routes for the preservation of humanity. There’s even a parallel to Christianity in Daneel’s giving humanity “free will” to decide which path they will follow (through the decision of Trevize on which of the two alternatives Daneel will impose). Even then, Daneel says he must fuse his mind with that of a Solarian child in order to “enable [him] to live long enough to establish Galaxia”–seeing himself as the necessary overarching intelligence to ensure that things go according to plan.

So, did Asimov decide to use Deus Ex Machina in its most literal sense in Universal AC and R Daneel Olivaw, believing that his positronic intelligences were a cleaner and better race than humans, or did he perhaps simply pattern the combination of his robot and Foundation literary universes on the underlying history of religion (much as he did in the original Foundation series, which was based on the rise and fall of the Roman Empire)? Only the good Doctor knows for sure, and we can’t ask him. What do you think?

From wordivore.wordpress.com

Title: Sunshine

Author: Robin McKinley

Format: Hardcover, Paperback, Audio

Sometimes, your beloved Zombrarian falls into despair. See, she loves her some vampire books, but vampire books are apparently really hard to write. She knows they are really hard to write because most of them really suck (and not in a good way).  She’s going to drop the third person, because it’s pretentious and annoying….

Anyway. When I get sad about vampire books, I turn to Robin McKinley’s book Sunshine, the ultimate cure-for-what-ails-you of the vampire genre.  The complicated motivations, emotions, and worldbuilding make it difficult to do the plot justice in a short summary, but I’ll give it a shot :

The book is set in an alternate universe where magic and supernatural characters are acknowledged, and sometimes even accepted, by regular society.  Some supernatural beings are good, some are bad, and all of them are under the jurisdiction of a special police force. Vampires are the only race generally acknowledged to be all bad.

The title character is a baker in her family’s coffee shop, who through a series of misfortunes ends up befriending a neutral vampire (not a baddie, but not necessarily a goodie), acknowledging her magic-handling heritage, and simultaneously helping and hindering the special police in their “fight” against a biggest-baddie-boss vampire. And she makes some of the most delicious-sounding pastries you can imagine.

Somehow, McKinley evokes the best of the vampire genre (Buffy, the original Nosferatu) while still making this book utterly her own.  Those familiar with her work know that she has a habit of mixing pragmatic characters with dangerous adventures and suddenly-activated magical powers that make the world look like an LSD trip at inconvenient times.  The post-post-apocalyptic world itself is reassuringly realistic (despite demons and were-creatures frequenting the coffee shop). Sunshine’s family is affected by issues of gentrification, wounds hamper characters’ everyday activities, the government is neither all good nor all bad,  and when you get covered in gore you look and smell gross.

The main characters in Sunshine are as  realistically flawed as the world they live in. And even the secondary and tertiary characters have fascinating personalities that would warrant a spin-off  if this book were a TV show.  There’s Sunshine’s boyfriend, the coffehouse chef, who is covered in warding tattoos, rides a motorcycle, and has a mysterious wartime past. Or her best friend, a librarian who loves going to flea markets and does intelligence work on the side.  I myself am totally in love with Yolande, Sunshine’s landlady, who is exactly the kind of intelligent, sassy old lady I want to be when I grow up.  It’s a testament to McKinley’s writing that these intriguing characters add spice to the story without overshadowing the gripping plot and Sunshine’s personal journey.

Fair Warning: McKinley states quite vehemently that there’s not going to be a sequel to this book, but that there may be a related novel once she’s done with her current book, Pegasus (which I am trying very hard to reserve judgement on until I read the second half, due out in2012).

Rating: 5/5, a gripping story that’s just the right mix of Buffy-esque action and Baking.

Zombies. People seem to have really fallen in love with the genre in the past few years. I remember watching both Resident Evil AND Shaun of the Dead the same night at our local theater, and then dragging my husband back to watch it AGAIN. I was at the edge of my seat during 28 Days Later (though I was partly watching to catch a glimpse of our newest Doctor…Christopher Eccelston! Yes, he had a role in that movie). Since then, I’ve become a bit zombie’d out, even annoyed. I haven’t read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies yet because, well, I don’t think even zombies can liven up that yawn-o-rama. Of course, it’s shows like The Walking Dead that restore my faith in zombie culture (and books like The Passage).

But what if zombies were real?

National Geographic has just put out an article this month about not one, but FOUR newly discovered fungi (so new, they don’t really have the correct nomenclature for them yet!) that “infects” ant species in Brazil, causing them to wander around looking for a good spot to promptly die and allow their fungus master to eat them from the inside out! Yikes! Just take a look at the pictures, they are UTTERLY HORRIFYING.

True, they aren’t “real” zombies in the sense that they don’t consume the living flesh of their ant brethren. But they are completely consumed by the fungus, which dictates their movements and may force them to infect other ants. The fungus will then have the ants find a stable place, like a leaf or a vine, and clamp down on it, effectively immobilizing themselves there, at which point the microorganism kills the ant, and begins the next phase of it’s life cycle…sprouting, using the ant’s body as sustenance. Ugh, I just felt a cold shiver go up my spine.

However, as new as this specimen is, this isn’t the first parasite I’ve heard of that uses ants to complete its life cycle. The Oatmeal originally introduced me to Dicrocoelium dendriticum, a parasite that also turns ants into their zombie slaves, forcing them to clutch a tall blade of grass for long periods of time to get eaten.  In addition to ants, the species uses snails and cows for temporary to permanent homes.  Humans can also be infected by this creature, which is classified as a fluke, not a fungus. But still! Another animal that uses mind control on ants. I guess their nervous system is just that easy to mess with.

Stories like this can keep me awake at night with how little we really know about the world around us.  Who is to say there isn’t a similar fungus/virus/worm that could make its way into our system and take us over, without anyone even knowing it?  The Nat Geo fungus has already shown that it can branch off and infect other animals such as flies or crickets.  Just a few more steps and you are up to vertebrates!  Gross.

But that honestly doesn’t scare me as much as what the article suggested, that because the environment in Brazil was quickly being taken over by encroaching human activity and climate change, we might not have enough time to study these specimens.  The delicate balance of their survival could be destroyed in the next ten, twenty years, as so many other species have been already, many we probably didn’t even know existed in the first place.  For me, the true terror is living in a world without biological diversity and devoid of the mysteries that make me thankful to live on this little rock.

[If you're interested in helping to preserve biodiversity, here is a list of some highly-rated eco-conservation charities.]

At first glance, you can spend a lot of time scanning the various sections and break-downs of each sub-genre. The timeline begins with the emotions of fear and wonder, and quickly divides into legend, mythology and philosophy. As more off-shoots of fiction begin to emerge, you can follow different paths to obvious historical staples such as Jules Verne, and H.G. Wells. When you scan further down the timeline, you can spot important names such as Asimov, Clarke and Heinlein. There is also a nod to prolific science fiction writer Fritz Leiber and author/screen writer Leigh Brackett.

The branches that form film and television are smaller when compared to the literature section, but Shelley includes major films such as Forbidden Planet, Star Wars and Wall-E, and has several interesting titles in between. He even includes a section on anime. The television listings include the obvious genre staples like the Twilight Zone and Star Trek, but you’ll be surprised at what else you find.

Ward Shelley clearly knows his science fiction history as he is able to fit so many important authors and works of television and film, especially when you consider how wide open the history of science fiction becomes. One thing that makes looking into this huge timeline so much fun is to discover what titles and authors Shelley left out. I could not find Spider Robinson, Firefly or Mystery Science Theatre 3000. Comic books and graphic novels were also not included. I can’t imagine the time and effort it takes to create a piece of artwork such as this, but it’s a brilliant effort, and according to his web site, this might be made into a poster.

Ward Shelly’s The History of Science Fiction (ver. 1)

Today we are offered Apollo 18, whose publicity is being fueled solely by social media and the interwebs. Good ploy for what may be the sleeper hit of the summer. The Facebooksphere and Twitterverse are abuzz with hits and teasers. More can be found here on the “unofficial” website, where secrets will slowly be revealed. Part of me is hoping for a hit, the other part (80%) is casting a sardonic eye at the Hollywierd publicity machine co-opting social media as just another sales tool.

Be that as it may, the box office is the final judge as to whether this will be another Cannibal Holocaust. The “found footage” milieu just refuses to die.

EPIC & DYANAGIRL

EPIC #0 by Tyler James and Matt Zolman:  A “No Spoilers” review

Imagine being a Super Hero. Imagine all the verve and vitality of youth and super powers and idealism. Imagine hormones run rampant, Imagine being in Florida during spring break. Imagine your secret vulnerability is …hot girls. Does the term screwed come to mind?

Thus is the life and times of EPIC, the latest superhero saga by James and Zolman. The story is very witty and paced quite nicely. The characters are fun and not deep, brooding and angsty (spell check says angsty is not a word, I disagree) and for that I am grateful; I’m not quite sure how well EPIC Noir would work. I like the idea of a teen superhero without the resident Teen Titan overdone clichés. Its fun and light. The artwork is very bright and very sunny-Florida-ish.

Here’s my problem. I am told that when I write a review, I tend to put more emotion than substance into it. I could go into excruciating detail about how the characters do whatever it is they have to do and the unfortunate situations they extricate themselves from.  Sorry, it’s difficult enough to do this when you can give spoilers, but I’m not gonna do it. I am gonna say this. I like the story, a lot. I love the artwork. It’s a fun read and a bunch of fun characters.

Come see Tyler James at Boston Comic Con and pick up a copy of Epic. Tell ‘em Dome sent ya.

Maybe it’s wet, tropical heat, visions of marshland, shrimp (mmm, shrimp!), or just those awful decorations on people’s lawns.  All in all,  it’s safe to assume that the very last thing you would think of is…snow?

It sounds like the beginning of a Michael Crichton book:   a couple of boys were ice fishing in Siberia (yes, Siberia) during a snow storm when a flamingo fell out of the sky a few feet away from them.  Luckily, the creature was unharmed, just really, really cold.  They took him home, warmed him up and fed him fish and buckwheat out of a bucket, then shipped him off to a zoo where he still lives today.

So, just a freaky, once-in-a-hundred-years event right?  Sure, except that it happened AGAIN a year later:  another flamingo was found by locals near a Siberian river, still alive but shivering cold!

What’s going on here?  Is it global warming?  Is it someone’s pet(s) that keep getting loose?  Is there some kind of freaky secret Siberian government funded laboratory where they are creating genetically enhanced super-flamingos?  Well, maybe, but there’s a much more plausible solution.

Everyone knows that there are several bird species that migrate during the winter months to a warmer climate.  Unfortunately, the mechanism behind migration is not yet well understood. Current thinking believes that the birds use visual cues and also the magnetism of the earth to guide them to their destinations every year, and some scientists even believe that birds can visibly see the magnetic field as they go.

The system is obviously quite sophisticated, and some say it is so accurate that you can predict to the day when a flock will return (though you can’t, not really).  But sometimes, something goes wrong.  Occasionally, the birds will end up in the wrong places, as if they’ve gotten turned around.  Basically, when this happens, they fly in the exact (as in 180 degrees) wrong direction from where they want to go, and end up in an even colder climate which inevitably kills off much of a flock.  This is called “reverse migration” and has been reported in small birds such as warblers, but not flamingos.  However, this particular species of flamingo is known to nest in Kazakhstan and winter in Iran.  The town in Siberia where the first flamingo ended up is, yup, exactly 180 degrees opposite from where it was supposed to be, near the Caspian Sea.  And since flamingos are social birds, it’s possible that there was a whole flock up in Siberia that all died off from exposure and the ones that were found were just the lucky survivors.

Awesome! Makes perfect sense right?

Well, after a little digging, maybe not. You see, there is a significant dearth of information on the subject of reverse migration, little more than the spartan Wikipedia article and a handful (if that) of scholarly papers that I can’t even read without a subscription. Because of this, I have to wonder how accepted this theory is by the ornithological community. What if the birds were just blown off course by a big storm? Or even just strong winds up in the stratosphere? There just doesn’t seem like enough evidence to support this complicated hypothesis, which makes me highly suspicious of the claim. Who’s to say these aren’t some pink-o-commie flamingos on their way back to the Motherland with secret plankton intel? All I can say is, if I told you, I’d have to krill you! (I’m here all week folks!)

• Zombies vs. Vampires on TVs Deadliest Warrior!!
• More Avatar! The good one!
• The Cape Finale only on-line, the episode is here.
• Super 8. Here’s the trailer.
• Supernatural…anyone watching? No, they’re all watching Fringe.
• E-Book DRM controversy escalates.
• Does Summit Entertainment own the word Twilight?
• Is Doctor Who really coming soon? HELL YES!

After the Wheel of Kittens was spun, we interviewed Toni LoTempio. We talked to her and her cat, Rocco, about her works, her book My Superhero Sister, the e-book publishing model and what coming up.
No Rest for the Wicca
My Superhero Sister (Superhero Diaries)

To get a chance to win the DC Direct, JLA, Wonder Woman collectable, simply post a comment on this week’s blog.

Title: The Passage

Author: Justin Cronin

Format: Available in both hard copy and e-book formats

I know I’m late to the party, but yesterday I finally finished The Passage by Justin Cronin. The story is set one hundred years in the future, after our world has been ravaged by a deadly virus that turns a portion of the population into infected “virals,” who devour what they can of the survivors. The main protagonist is a girl named Amy, who has gained near immortality due to government testing of the virus on children, though she herself is not infected. Cronin stated that he got the idea for the book when his daughter asked him to write a story about a “girl who saves the world” and then the rest just fell into place. Yes, the 700+ page book fell out of his brain, and honestly, I can’t be happier.

There are a lot of comparisons to Stephen King’s The Stand, but I can’t speak for them because even though I am usually a rabid King fan, I haven’t ever been able to get through it, though I will try again after finishing this book. For me, the story feels closer to that of Watership Down, my all-time favorite book, which is probably why I like The Passage so much. While the first part of the book takes place in the not-to-distant future, most of the story happens when a plucky bunch of survivors set out to discover where Amy came from, while also fleeing their colony’s impending demise. They travel a difficult road, but Amy, much like Fiver, seems to have otherworldly powers to keep trouble at bay. Eventually come across a second settlement called Haven, which looks inviting on the outside, but holds a dark and terrible secret, similar to Cowslip’s Warren. Even Peter and Alisha reminded me quite a lot of Hazel and Bigwig, but don’t worry, the story is still different enough that there are more than a few surprises.

Cronin’s book literally sucks you into it. Through his masterful world building, I slipped into this story as easily as a warm bath, knowing the characters as if they were my family, fully understanding all their actions and never feeling like they were being shoehorned into some unnecessary situation. I couldn’t wait to turn every page, even though I cringed to see I was nearing the end. Luckily, it turns out this is only the first book in a trilogy, the second and third are set to be published in 2012 and 2014, respectively.

While this has been considered the best science fiction book of 2010, the sci-fi part is really just a set up for what is a heavily character driven drama. You won’t find any advanced tech or mecha MacGuffin here, and even Amy is mostly a normal little girl. The only beef some readers may have with the story is that it does have a mild religious aspect to it, but I didn’t think the dogma was heavy handed. All in all, I recommend this book to anyone who loves immersing themselves into a whole new universe, though I caution that it might be a good idea to hold off until all the books are finished. I know it’s going to be a difficult wait for me.



And now we go live to Chicken Little with "Science" News

Everyone has pet peeves, and I’ll admit to having more than one myself.  One at the top of my list is the way that “facts” have become transient and separable when arguing a point or position; to borrow from the courtroom, what used to be “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth” has become “what you claim to be the truth, only those bits of the truth that support your position, and anything that sounds like it could be truthful.”  Or to stay within the literary realm, “factual reporting” is becoming downright Orwellian.

In particular, for the SFSN audience, it galls me when bits of science are taken completely out of context and used to “support” otherwise questionable claims–and associated science that argues against the interpretation is ignored or downplayed.  I recently (within the last couple of days) came across two such instances–they are by no means isolated, but they formed the basis for this rant, so they’re the ones I’ll point out.

In one case there have been a number of alarmist articles related to the earthquake swarm that Arkansas is currently experiencing, all pointing the finger at natural gas horizontal drilling (hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking”) or the injection wells used to store the waste water that the process uses (read more: Earthquakes in Arkansas May Be Man-Made, Experts Warn).  The evidence?  Proximity of the drilling to the earthquake epicenters (ignoring the fact that drilling takes place in many other parts of the state without any location-correlated earthquake activity) and the scientific “fact” (having occurred once in the last 50 years) that injection wells could trigger seismic activity.  Injection wells are used by a wide range of industries and government, so one instance in 50 years hardly constitutes a definitive causal relationship.  And oh, let’s also ignore the fact that there was a similar (but much larger in size) swarm of earthquakes in the same area (15 miles south) in 1982–long before there was any natural gas drilling in the area. While I’m not discounting the possibility the drilling activity contributes to what’s happening, the immediate jump to judgment that there is a causal relationship without any hard scientific proof is disturbing.

The second case happened as I was channel flipping and came across a program called Brad Meltzer’s Decoded on The History Channel.  While investigating the Georgia Guidestones (read more: American Stonehenge: Monumental Instructions for the Post-Apocalypse) the team visits an astronomer to talk about a “theory” they’d heard during their investigation that a huge solar flare would cause the end of the world in 2012.  In the lead-in to this segment Meltzer himself says, in an ominous tone of voice, “On top of that NASA recently predicted that the earth would see an increase in solar flare activity–in 2012.  Tic toc, tic toc.”  In the discussion with the astronomer they talk about the flares and ask “So what’s the concern, I read briefly about some kind of report by NASA there’s some worry about these?”, trying to tie it back to the earlier NASA report reference in the minds of viewers. In reality they referenced a different report about Coronal Mass Ejections (based on the answer the astronomer gave; read more: Understanding coronal mass ejections).  When the astronomer told them we were heading toward a normal solar maximum in 2012/2013, the investigator looked amazed, made a noise, and said “I’ve heard that number a lot”–making it seem like 2012 was something “special”.  No tie back to the first NASA report reference simply being a report that a normal solar max would likely occur in 2012/2013; no follow-up on solar cycles and the fact these maxima happen periodically; nothing about the predictions that this sunspot cycle will be one of the mildest in recent history (read more: New Solar Cycle Prediction).  Just an overall impression that a solar maximum the likes of which had never been seen before was coming in 2012.

The damage the selective use of science “fact” in both these cases causes is exacerbated by the fact that science education in the US (in my opinion, anyway) has been severely watered down (a rant for another time).  In other than in isolated pockets, there is a population that is increasingly credulous when they hear these arguments. People are willing to grant the patina of “supporting scientific evidence” to claims because they are unable to differentiate science from pseudo-science or science out of context.  Twisting the truth is bad enough, but using bits of science incorrectly to add “credibility” to what are, at best, weak claims truly is worse. And when “bad science” is picked over “good science” to make a point that results in harm to society (e.g., the uproar over vaccinations and autism: see Study Linking Vaccines to Autism Is “Fraudulent”), that’s just plain criminal.

Image from Cornell University/French Cullinary Institute

3-D printers, which have been growing in popularity since 2003, are cropping up a lot in the news lately. 3-D printers work by depositing any extrudable substance (for example: plastics or ceramic) in successive layers until the printed object is the size and shape desired. Although we won’t have replicators in our homes anytime soon, these printers have already shown their practical applications in manufacturing, fashion, and art.

But what about food, the most popular purpose of the fictional replicator? It’s been possible for years to print 2-D images in edible ink on edible paper for decoration, but recently Cornell University has been working with the French Culinary Institute to modify 3-D printers to work with food. The result produces edible sculptures from just about any food that can be pureed and pushed through the printer’s extruder.  For example, the little Space Shuttle pictured above is made from a scallop and cheese mixture.

The practical applications of this technology are mostly unknown. So far, the only one noted by FCI is to re-create food in textures that are otherwise not found in that particular food. For example, they are trying to make a meatloaf-like substance that “absorbs sauce like a sponge.” Cornell University also presents several highly-worded arguments that mostly translate to, “we can make it look really cool.”   I think that anyone with kids or any babysitting experience sees the immediate application of being able to play “here comes the airplane” with broccoli that actually looks like an airplane.

I wonder about whether this has any practical applications that don’t boil down to “let’s make this interesting.” The benefits of 3-D printers in manufacturing are due to economy of scale. Things no longer need to be mass-produced to be cost-effective.  Right now, for example, a company will produce thousands of pairs of sunglasses, and if only one person wants to buy them, the rest go in a landfill somewhere.  Someday, that company can sell the program to print the sunglasses instead of the glasses themselves, and only those who want a pair will produce one. Food, on the other hand, is already tastiest and healthiest if not mass-produced. And uneaten food does not have the same ecological impact as other unused products because it biodegrades. Printable food doesn’t have the same ecological or financial benefits, it’s just…fun

If I’m honest, I really want to try printed food for the novelty of it.  Our society has never gotten rid of something just because it wasn’t practical or particularly useful. “Just for fun” is a perfectly good reason to do something.  And maybe, just maybe, kids will eat their vegetables.

Epic by Tyler James and Matt Zolman

• The Game Of Thrones Trailer.
• Dead Island Trailer.
• Thundercats Reboot.
• Super.
• Suckerpunch.
• Resident Evil 5?
• Elizabeth Hurley as the villain in Wonder Woman.
• Diane Lane as Martha Kent in Superman.
• Anne Hathaway dishes to Oprah about Catwoman.
• The new Disney Dream Pictures.
• Peter Pan? Begins?
• Christopher Nolan noshes with the Bladerunner Prequel team.

After the Roulette Wheel of Bivalves, our guest tonight is Tyler James to talk about sketch cards, new models for bringing comics to the public and how much fun Boston Comic Con is.

To be in the running to win a prize package that will include a DC JLA Wonder Woman Action Figure, simply post a comment on this TalkCast.

The dichotomy of taking PKD’s works, many of which are little more than sketchy short stories and bringing them to film is becoming a reality as more mainstream producers become familiar with unique dystopian of the kipple ridden genius. In direct opposition to Bladerunner, in which the film makers took a fully developed novel and pared it down significantly and amputated a number of major themes, “The Adjustment Team” is really nothing more than a snippet of terror,  allowing the reader a glimpse into a logical dystopian future. How this translates from reader to viewer is yet to be seen.

The latest foray into future shock is The Adjustment Bureau, a feature film based on PKD’s “The Adjustment Team,” a 17 page short story; an interesting project on many fronts.  The film is written and directed by George Nolfi (The Bourne Ultimatum) and stars Matt Damon, Emily Blunt and John Slattery. In a terrifying mirror image of guardian angels and free will, PKD hits hard upon the themes of free will and predestination, forcing the reader to dwell on the premise that all is not as one observes, nothing new to even the casual reader of his work.

How will this play? Here is a clue. Looking back at what may be the finest PKD translation to the screen, Bladerunner, as unsatisfying as the comparison between book and movie was, each stood up on their own as cautionary tale.

This is Dome sayin’:  I will see the film based on the track record of the writer and director. I caution anyone who really cares to read the story. You won’t be disappointed. You will be frightened.

Many science fiction writers will say that they aren’t trying to predict the future (as Ben Bova recently opined “…most of us don’t believe there is a “the future” to predict. The future isn’t inevitable, immutable. It’s created, moment by moment, by the things we do. Or fail to do.”).    What more reasonable speculative fiction can do is shape the future.  While there are few explicit acknowledgments of science fiction leading to specific research or technological advances (Martin Cooper crediting the Star Trek communicator as his inspiration for the cell phone is one), one wonders how many advances were the result of inspiration derived from reading science fiction.

So many of the things we take for granted today were considered outlandish propositions by many when they first appeared in science fiction: beam weapons (lasers and particle beams) in E.E. Doc Smith’s Lensman series, the atomic bombs of H.G.Wells (The World Set Free), Asimov’s proto-wireless internet in The Last Question, and Heinlein’s six dimension parallel universe space (most notably in The Number of the Beast), to name a few that immediately come to mind.  All have their counterparts in either technology or scientific theory today.  Were these stories merely prescient, or more in line with Bova’s perspective, catalysts for the Butterfly effect?  Would our recent scientific and technological history be different if these authors (and others like them) had chosen different pursuits or had put forth different ideas?  As a scientist and a life-long reader of science fiction, I know that much of my “out of the box” thinking has been shaped by the alternate paths I was introduced to in my reading.

The point of all this rambling?  Just that I believe that science fiction that coherently breaks the bounds of conventional thinking  can be good science fiction–and good entertainment.   But that still doesn’t excuse “things” (for lack of a better term) like Mega Python vs. Gatoroid!

Gawd Bless America

• RIP – Nicholas Courtmey
• RIP – Dwayne McDuffie
• Kriana introduces our new staff; Kaia, M.D. Christie and RdaneelOlivaw
• IGN posts Flame Bait – The “supposed” Top 50 Sci-Fi TV
• Top Cat in 3D…And SPANISH!
• Dear FOX, You take Fringe, move it to Friday, watch it die and walk away.
• Wanna read the last chapter of the new Red Riding Hood novel? Don’t buy the book.
• This year’s Saturn Awards.
• We announce THE BRAINIES for 2010. An award nobody will understand.

The Hoop of Hulas is spun and Witchie Poo & Maynard Wynter are this week’s Grand Prize Winners (actual description of the term “grand” may not be as expected).

Our interview with Blake Freeman and Travis Roy centers on Blake’s new movie Gawd Bless America, which has just gotten a major distribution deal. The film deals with a chance encounter between Blake and Leroy Tessina and how Leroy’s beliefs lead Blake and Leroy on a journey of exploration about UFO’s and the paranormal.

If you would like to be next week’s Grand Prize Winner, simply post a comment on this blog and your name will be entered to win.

Minus the hilarity it’d be a fattening slice of gratuity and post-apocalyptic cliche. Horror needs balance to suit my sensibilities; there is no artistic merit in meaningless gore, especially set as a frame around scantily clad women brandishing surgical scalpels and a character who kills them to wear their faces. Then you have Paris Hilton‘s character, Amber Sweet, a spoiled brat who binges on surgery and painkillers.

Bousman handles it with gothic finesse, perhaps taking cues from George A. Romero (the zombie king) to include subtle comedy while taking care not to overshadow the flaws and struggles of his characters. The collapse of humanity, the subsequent obsession with biological perfection, and the emergence of a super villain with a vendetta effectively draw you in. And if you like the music, the plot won’t let you go.

Sarah Brightman‘s voice could shatter stained glass. Paul Sorvino lends the sedentary gloom and elegance of classical opera. I immediately re-watched it because I had to hear the songs again — “Zydrate Anatomy”, featuring lusty, lackadaisical vocals by Paris Hilton and the monster mash voice of Terrence Zdunich; “Chase the Morning” by the inimitable Sarah Brightman; and “Mark It Up” a tongue-in-cheek duet by Nivek Ogre and Bill Moseley — then I finally broke down and got the soundtrack.

Many compare Repo! to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. In terms of concept and definition, it is. Musically it feels more like Pink Floyd’s The Wall, although not quite as manic: challenging characters and subject matter; high moments of frenzy, tense moments of cynicism and melancholy. The songs are orchestrated excellently, all in the same major key, and each blends seamlessly into the next. Repo! succeeds on many levels — an unapologetic, original satire of Hollywood’s divas, starlets, and harlots.

According to the SyFy Channel website:

“Syfy’s all-new drama series Being Human, starring Sam Witwer (Smallville, Battlestar Galactica), Meaghan Rath (The Assistants), Sam Huntington (Cavemen, Superman Returns) and Mark Pellegrino (Lost, Supernatural) has commenced production in Montreal, Canada. Adam Kane (The Mentalist, Heroes) is Director and Co-Executive Producer with Executive Producer Michael Prupas (The Kennedys, Pillars of the Earth) and husband and wife Executive Producers/Writers Jeremy Carver (Supernatural) and Anna Fricke (Men in Trees, Everwood). Muse Entertainment is producing 13 1-hour episodes for Syfy.

Being Human, a re-imagining of the acclaimed UK series created by Toby Whithouse, follows three paranormal, 20-something roommates living in Boston – vampire “Aidan” (Witwer), werewolf “Josh” (Huntington) and ghost “Sally” (Rath) – as they struggle to hide their dark secrets from the world, while helping each other navigate the complexities of living double lives and trying to be human. Mark Pellegrino plays Aidan’s charismatic but menacing vampire mentor “Bishop.”

The producer is Irene Litinsky (Human Trafficking, The Phantom) of Muse Entertainment, the director of photography is Pierre Jodoin (The Last Templar, Secrets of the Mountain) and the production designer is Zoe Sakellaropoulo (The Last Templar, The Phantom).”

There are some differences between the two series, and I have to say that I personally, really like the US version. The UK’s version is much faster paced, with not a lot of time being spent on the plot or on character build up. Admittedly, the actors in the UK version  are more convincing; however most US shows start with the characters acting awkwardly and then something clicks after the first couple episodes and they fall right in sync with their roles….. Case in point: Vampire Diaries. Overall, I really love the wit and story line of the US version, AND the actors themselves are eye candy! This is a cross-over show I look forward to watching every week and I hope it sticks around!

Title: Witch & Wizard

Author: James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet

Format: Paperback (available in tons of other formats too, including e-book)

My aunt gave me Witch and Wizard as a Christmas gift because she knows about my obsessive love for the Hunger Games trilogy and had heard that Witch and Wizard was going to be “this year’s Hunger Games”.  Unfortunately, this is just not the case. Witch and Wizard doesn’t measure up to Hunger Games, nor to my standard for…well…anything.

Half of the problem with this book is that it’s got too much going on, the other half of the problem is that this book doesn’t have enough going on. I would expect a popular and prolific author like James Patterson to understand what goes into a successful “first in the series” book.  Instead of creating an interesting world populated with fleshed-out characters, Patterson gives us cardboard-cutout style people and places. Then he surrounds them with cheap and flashy special effects and expects readers to be distracted from the clunky writing, the bland characters he seems to have pulled out of a bin of mannequins, and the plot that jumps around so much that goes past ridiculous and into annoying.

For me, worldbuilding is the one thing that makes or breaks a fantasy novel. In Witch and Wizard, it’s practically nonexistent. Patterson picks up threads and drops them before the reader can even figure out if something is important to remember. You can’t tell if there are plot holes because rules and laws are not clearly defined, and even in a state of suspended disbelief I found some of the plot twists to be improbable and forced. It is as though the author thinks that fantasy readers are willing to forgo consistency simply because they are willing to forgo reality. And THAT is extremely condescending.

I will give James one thing though, the sonofabitch knows how to write something addictive. I may not have been drawn in by the writing, the characters, or the plot, but I still want to read the second book! I think its a morbid fascination in whether it will redeem the series or if it will continue the same…blahness…evident in the first book.  If it does, I’m writing the whole thing off, but there are seeds of promise here that might develop into something palatable.

Worst of all, it’s going to be a movie.  I have a sinking feeling that Witch and Wizard is going to be the next Twilight.  Get ready to hear about it for a long, long time.

Rating: 1.5/5, there’s hope, but not much.

Nicholas Courtney, known to generations of Dr. Who fans as “The Brigadier”, has passed away.  With him passes an era of Dr. Who that fans of the new Doctors will never know.  He was the Watson to the Doctor’s Holmes; a solid, stolid companion who stood on his own with no desire to chase after our favorite Time Lord or explore the universe.  As the head of the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce, he had a job to do, and did it with such dignity and precision that he earned the friendship and respect of the Doctor, the very antithesis of the military mindset.  The Brigadier’s whole character can be summed up from a scene in “The Daemons” where, confronted by a living stone gargoyle, merely turns to a nearby soldier and says “Right.  Chap with wings.  Five rounds rapid”.  He was that cool — Kirk at the helm of the Enterprise cool.

Nick Courtney is also legendary in having appeared with all of the original seven Doctors — playing opposite William Hartnell as Space Agent Bret Vyon, and the rest as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart — not one to let his scientific adviser  get the best of him no matter what threat the Earth was facing this time.  His final appearance on the show, playing against 7th Doctor Sylvester McCoy, shows the loyalty of the character — he protests when receiving a call asking him to come out of retirement for the sake of his country.  Then they mention that the Doctor is involved…

I’m sorry; I am not doing this man justice by rattling off trivia known to the most fleeting of Dr. Who fans.  All I know Nicholas Courtney from is his work on Dr. Who, but he was just—so—damn—good!  Please — go watch his classic episodes (most of the Jon Pertwee run) and salute one of the greatest side characters science fiction has ever known.

• Happy Birthday Sara Richard.
• Double Midnight Comics announces their new movie.
• Is Firefly coming back? Browncoats comment and so does Nathan Fillion.
• Harry Potter screenwriter to rewrite Akira.
• Superhero Dating? Sure!
• Who auditioned for Superman in the original Chris Reeve’s costume?
• Detroit gets a RoboCop Statue after all.
• Why is Green Hornet’s director doing UBIK?
• YOU can buy Natalie Portman’s Pants! Discuss.
• Adrianne Palicki IS Wonder Woman.
• Tonight I’m Frakking You.