Confession: I never cared for Kushiel. So when the last of my World Fantasy books turned out to be a 580 page tome by Jacqueline Carey, I was a little wary.
Actual result? The worst problem with Starless is that it needed to be another couple of hundred pages. There's a pacing issue that's often symptomatic of one's editor saying "Enough already, you need to finish this book."
Really, Starless needed to be two four hundred page books to fully cover its epic story. The world building is interesting. The world appears to be flat (although this is never stated) and there are no stars...because they pissed off the sun and were exiled to Earth.
So, this is a world where the gods walk...but the gods are geographically limited. They can't leave their lands. So, fixing the entire mess? That requires mortals.
Enter Khai and Zariya. Zariya is a princess of the royal house of the desert kingdom of Zarkhoum (based off of various desert cultures). Khai is her chosen shadow, born in the same moment and bound to her by Zarkhoum's twin deities. IOW, soulmate.
It's a great concept and it's executed deftly, with the caveat of the pacing issues already mentioned.
I did have one small issue with Khai's characterization and background. As Zariya's chosen shadow, he is raised at a desert monastery/school of martial arts, because his primary role is seen as being her bodyguard.
Khai is phenotypically female, but is raised as an "honorary boy." The idea no doubt comes from the Afghan practice of "bacha posh," where families without a son will treat one of their daughters as an honorary boy, able to lead a male life. (And yes, Zarkhoum women go veiled and lead the same kind of life as women in Arabic and central Asian Muslim countries).
Except they don't tell him.
And somehow he gets to 11 without realizing he doesn't have... Carey tries to explain this by saying that the monks are big on privacy, but it's also stated that he's seen the "block and tackle" on male animals.
This is a bright, curious kid - he'd have noticed. I can't buy that he didn't realize. Khai spends the rest of the book varying degrees of genderfluid, which I can sort of buy as a way of resolving gender confusion.
But "why don't I have a block and tackle" would have come up long before puberty. Sorry, Carey, I just can't buy that a character so smart and observant...
Issues of Khai's gender aside, this is definitely an interesting book, and in my opinion, is better than Kushiel. It's shamelessly a fantasy - don't expect the laws of physics to apply. There's only divine magic in the world, often seemingly gifted in an arbitrary and capricious manner by gods who are honestly more Olympian than not.
And it is always nice to see a secondary world fantasy that leans on sources other than Medieval Europe.
Oh, and the sea wyrms are cute.
Mostly recommended.
Thursday, February 28, 2019
Wednesday, February 27, 2019
Review: Fireside Quarterly July 2018
This was a high quality issue - that sadly was not to my personal taste. It was just a little bit too literary for me. Quite a few of the stories were more vignettes than true stories, but to be fair this included my favorite, "The Ceremony." (but then, I have a weakness for twisted fairy tales).
If you enjoy literary short stories, most of them very short, you probably should consider subscribing. If you prefer more action and a more transparent writing style, then it's not for you. But that's not a knock on the quality - Fireside has a very distinctive editorial style that is bound to please some and not others.
Copy received at World Fantasy
If you enjoy literary short stories, most of them very short, you probably should consider subscribing. If you prefer more action and a more transparent writing style, then it's not for you. But that's not a knock on the quality - Fireside has a very distinctive editorial style that is bound to please some and not others.
Copy received at World Fantasy
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
The Oscars, Green Book, and Race
I'll be honest.
I didn't expect Black Panther to win Best Picture. It's a really good movie, but it's not literary enough to please the Academy.
But there was a good slate of nominees this year. Now, to be fair, I only watched Black Panther. As usual, the Oscars rewarded movies in genres and styles I don't much like.
The full slate:
Bohemian Rhapsody - reasonably decent, but not fantastic biopic about Freddie Mercury.
The Favourite - period piece lesbians
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman - a movie about a black guy and a Jew working together to infiltrate the KKK, which I'm told was quite excellent.
A Star Is Born - a musical that while it isn't queer, starred Lady Gaga, which automatically makes it queer. Sorry, but it does.
Vice - a biopic about Dick Cheney.
Roma - a Spanish language movie (it won Best Foreign Language Film) that, I am told, deftly handled issues of race and class in Mexico and hired an indigenous unknown to play an indigenous character, which gives it massive points.
and finally.
Green Book - a story about the travels of a famous black pianist and his chauffeur.
You have probably already heard the howls of anguish when Green Book won.
I have a good number of black friends, acquaintances, and professional contacts. Only one of them liked Green Book, and he's very religious and highly conservative and tends to deny we still have racism issues.
Because...and the quick explanation.
Green Book is about pianist Don Shirley. But Mahershala Ali, who played Shirley, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Green Book is a "black" movie that's really about the black character's white friend.
It's 2019. We should be past that. Inspired by a true story and written by the driver's son, it is entirely about the driver "getting over racism" while Shirley "learns about southern black culture." Yes, there are fried chicken jokes.
The movie is purely performative white back slapping about how we were so bad back then, but look! We can learn! All we need is a black friend.
Yeah.
This movie has black friends. And it won. Over two stories that put black voices truly front and center and one which dealt with other race issues well.
It made the entire awards show become a symbol of how race and racial issues are currently viewed in America. By white people.
I'm not knocking the achievements of any of the award winners, but by choosing Green Book as best picture, the Academy made the achievements of Ruth E Carter (first African American to win Best Costume Design) feel almost like a sop. Something given to the black people to keep them in their place and shut them up.
It's 2019. We need to stop even making movies that use black friends as props for white achievement, let alone awarding them.
(They did, however, recognize the animation genius of Into The Spider-Verse).
I didn't expect Black Panther to win Best Picture. It's a really good movie, but it's not literary enough to please the Academy.
But there was a good slate of nominees this year. Now, to be fair, I only watched Black Panther. As usual, the Oscars rewarded movies in genres and styles I don't much like.
The full slate:
Bohemian Rhapsody - reasonably decent, but not fantastic biopic about Freddie Mercury.
The Favourite - period piece lesbians
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman - a movie about a black guy and a Jew working together to infiltrate the KKK, which I'm told was quite excellent.
A Star Is Born - a musical that while it isn't queer, starred Lady Gaga, which automatically makes it queer. Sorry, but it does.
Vice - a biopic about Dick Cheney.
Roma - a Spanish language movie (it won Best Foreign Language Film) that, I am told, deftly handled issues of race and class in Mexico and hired an indigenous unknown to play an indigenous character, which gives it massive points.
and finally.
Green Book - a story about the travels of a famous black pianist and his chauffeur.
You have probably already heard the howls of anguish when Green Book won.
I have a good number of black friends, acquaintances, and professional contacts. Only one of them liked Green Book, and he's very religious and highly conservative and tends to deny we still have racism issues.
Because...and the quick explanation.
Green Book is about pianist Don Shirley. But Mahershala Ali, who played Shirley, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor.
Green Book is a "black" movie that's really about the black character's white friend.
It's 2019. We should be past that. Inspired by a true story and written by the driver's son, it is entirely about the driver "getting over racism" while Shirley "learns about southern black culture." Yes, there are fried chicken jokes.
The movie is purely performative white back slapping about how we were so bad back then, but look! We can learn! All we need is a black friend.
Yeah.
This movie has black friends. And it won. Over two stories that put black voices truly front and center and one which dealt with other race issues well.
It made the entire awards show become a symbol of how race and racial issues are currently viewed in America. By white people.
I'm not knocking the achievements of any of the award winners, but by choosing Green Book as best picture, the Academy made the achievements of Ruth E Carter (first African American to win Best Costume Design) feel almost like a sop. Something given to the black people to keep them in their place and shut them up.
It's 2019. We need to stop even making movies that use black friends as props for white achievement, let alone awarding them.
(They did, however, recognize the animation genius of Into The Spider-Verse).
Monday, February 25, 2019
Review: Plum Rains by Andromeda Romano-Lax
This slow moving novel is a brilliant exploration of culture, race, identity, and the issues that revolve around an aging population and the development of strong AI. The main characters are two women. Sayoko, whom everyone believes is a 100-year-old Japanese woman (spoiler: Not exactly) and her Filipina nurse, Angelica.
I could wish this book had actually been written by a Japanese person, as I don't know quite enough about Japan myself to know if Romano-Lax got the culture absolutely right, but there's a ring of authenticity from what I hear. (Also, trashing Alaska is original. Nobody ever trashes Alaska in their environmental disasters).
Plum Rains is ultimately about what it means to be human and how some of us base our identity around being needed. Even Hiro, the robot, is distinctly human in his motivations...as any AI created by humans is bound to be.
This is Romano-Lax's first work of speculative fiction, so it doesn't read like a traditional science fiction novel, but rather like what it is: Historical fiction set in the future. Stylistically, she is still very much a historical fiction writer. Some readers of science fiction may not like it as a result, but it may prove to be the perfect entry drug for those more used to historicals.
Recommended.
I could wish this book had actually been written by a Japanese person, as I don't know quite enough about Japan myself to know if Romano-Lax got the culture absolutely right, but there's a ring of authenticity from what I hear. (Also, trashing Alaska is original. Nobody ever trashes Alaska in their environmental disasters).
Plum Rains is ultimately about what it means to be human and how some of us base our identity around being needed. Even Hiro, the robot, is distinctly human in his motivations...as any AI created by humans is bound to be.
This is Romano-Lax's first work of speculative fiction, so it doesn't read like a traditional science fiction novel, but rather like what it is: Historical fiction set in the future. Stylistically, she is still very much a historical fiction writer. Some readers of science fiction may not like it as a result, but it may prove to be the perfect entry drug for those more used to historicals.
Recommended.
Friday, February 22, 2019
I have a peeve
This is so common and every time writers do it, I cringe:
Suddenly having a heroic character do a left turn and be all about retiring, leading a normal life, and having babies.
I thought it only annoyed me with female characters, but they're now doing it with Vibe...and I discovered it's just as irritating when the character is male.
Now, if this has been their goal all along, that's a different thing. Or if it's "I want babies, but I'm not going to give up doing what I do." (Alex Danvers comes to mind).
But when it comes out of the blue as a sudden change I want to go "Uh, guys."
It's just a peeve of mine and I had forgotten how annoyed I was by it.
Suddenly having a heroic character do a left turn and be all about retiring, leading a normal life, and having babies.
I thought it only annoyed me with female characters, but they're now doing it with Vibe...and I discovered it's just as irritating when the character is male.
Now, if this has been their goal all along, that's a different thing. Or if it's "I want babies, but I'm not going to give up doing what I do." (Alex Danvers comes to mind).
But when it comes out of the blue as a sudden change I want to go "Uh, guys."
It's just a peeve of mine and I had forgotten how annoyed I was by it.
Thursday, February 21, 2019
Review: The Initiation by Chris Babu
First, a confession.
I am as done with YA dystopias that involve people being born in or assigned to zones or regions as I was once done with vampires. Babu is coming in on the tail end of a trend and may well suffer for it.
Because, The Initiation is actually pretty dang good. It deals with the twin ideas that late stage capitalism is awful...but communism doesn't work either. Which, I admit, I rather agree with.
But I'm looking for the book which subverts the YA dystopia thing. I'm reminded of a book I sadly lost my copy of years ago, and which I can remember neither the title nor the author of, which turned the entire idea in this book on its head. The resonances were so strong I kept hoping against hope it was a subversion, but no, it seems to be another Divergent ripoff. It might well be better than Divergent, because it doesn't try to go on and on about ableism. But...it doesn't bring anything new to an already-saturated sub genre. A few years ago, I would have really loved this book. Oh, and yes, there's a love triangle. Well, love quadrangle, because the question is which of the two guys is going to end up with which of the two girls. But sigh.
(And now I'm going crazy trying to remember the other book. It was a lost colony ruled by the scholars, and the MC has enough and tries to fight them. It turns out the scholars are really the good guys and recruit...the people with the balls to fight them. And it's from, oh man, decades ago. I think I got my copy in the 1980s).
So, what I'd actually say about The Initiation is this. If you love YA dystopias set after the apocalypse that deal with social inequality and caste systems and come with love triangles and can't get enough of them, read it. You'll love it.
If you're done with the entire thing...then you probably want to skip it. Which makes me feel quite sorry for the writer.
Copy received in the World Fantasy book bag. For the curious, I have three left.
I am as done with YA dystopias that involve people being born in or assigned to zones or regions as I was once done with vampires. Babu is coming in on the tail end of a trend and may well suffer for it.
Because, The Initiation is actually pretty dang good. It deals with the twin ideas that late stage capitalism is awful...but communism doesn't work either. Which, I admit, I rather agree with.
But I'm looking for the book which subverts the YA dystopia thing. I'm reminded of a book I sadly lost my copy of years ago, and which I can remember neither the title nor the author of, which turned the entire idea in this book on its head. The resonances were so strong I kept hoping against hope it was a subversion, but no, it seems to be another Divergent ripoff. It might well be better than Divergent, because it doesn't try to go on and on about ableism. But...it doesn't bring anything new to an already-saturated sub genre. A few years ago, I would have really loved this book. Oh, and yes, there's a love triangle. Well, love quadrangle, because the question is which of the two guys is going to end up with which of the two girls. But sigh.
(And now I'm going crazy trying to remember the other book. It was a lost colony ruled by the scholars, and the MC has enough and tries to fight them. It turns out the scholars are really the good guys and recruit...the people with the balls to fight them. And it's from, oh man, decades ago. I think I got my copy in the 1980s).
So, what I'd actually say about The Initiation is this. If you love YA dystopias set after the apocalypse that deal with social inequality and caste systems and come with love triangles and can't get enough of them, read it. You'll love it.
If you're done with the entire thing...then you probably want to skip it. Which makes me feel quite sorry for the writer.
Copy received in the World Fantasy book bag. For the curious, I have three left.
Wednesday, February 20, 2019
Review: Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore
I don't normally mind books with a religious bent if they aren't too preachy - and Reincarnation Blues, while definitely Buddhist in its leanings is certainly not preachy.
It's also well written and I found the characters entertaining. My problem was a small one: I would have preferred the fascinating future timeline as a straight science fiction novel. It's unfortunate, and really just a matter of taste.
And, of course, humor is subjective, and I personally don't find people being eaten by sharks that funny. People on fire are funny. People being eaten by sharks makes me go "Can we please stop demonizing sharks."
If you find it funny, you'll probably find this book amazing. If not, well, one of the two most annoying forms of art is humor that doesn't make you laugh.
The writer was clearly laughing, though, so I recommend this book with that caveat. And I loved the future worldbuilding.
It's also well written and I found the characters entertaining. My problem was a small one: I would have preferred the fascinating future timeline as a straight science fiction novel. It's unfortunate, and really just a matter of taste.
And, of course, humor is subjective, and I personally don't find people being eaten by sharks that funny. People on fire are funny. People being eaten by sharks makes me go "Can we please stop demonizing sharks."
If you find it funny, you'll probably find this book amazing. If not, well, one of the two most annoying forms of art is humor that doesn't make you laugh.
The writer was clearly laughing, though, so I recommend this book with that caveat. And I loved the future worldbuilding.
Tuesday, February 19, 2019
Review: The Good Demon by Jimmy Cajoleas
Another one I got for free at World Fantasy.
I was quite disappointed. The Good Demon is a YA novel that can't quite decide on its views of Christianity and, to be honest, morality. That's because it's not about either, but it takes so long to reveal the true point of the story that you are kind of left wandering around wondering what it all means.
It does go into some good stuff about the nature of evil. But the plot itself is a little thin to hang the story on and the characters are not particularly memorable. The one strength of this book is that Cajoleas understands the concept of setting as character very well, and there are not enough contemporary fantasies set in small town America. As a background, there should be more done with this. (The novel would be gothic if there was a large scary house involved. Well, there sort of is, but not quite enough).
I'm not sure whether I can recommend this one or not. I'm inclined no, but other people will probably like it...and I'm not the target age group. Then again, if a YA novel isn't entertaining to adults, then we are probably doing it wrong.
Spoilers...
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The real theme of the book is that a relationship doesn't have to be romantic to be toxic and abusive. Which is, yes, an important thing to tell kids. I'm just not sure this book does it right. As for its view on Christianity, it turns out to be "God is good, narrow-minded evangelicals are bad," which I can get behind.
I was quite disappointed. The Good Demon is a YA novel that can't quite decide on its views of Christianity and, to be honest, morality. That's because it's not about either, but it takes so long to reveal the true point of the story that you are kind of left wandering around wondering what it all means.
It does go into some good stuff about the nature of evil. But the plot itself is a little thin to hang the story on and the characters are not particularly memorable. The one strength of this book is that Cajoleas understands the concept of setting as character very well, and there are not enough contemporary fantasies set in small town America. As a background, there should be more done with this. (The novel would be gothic if there was a large scary house involved. Well, there sort of is, but not quite enough).
I'm not sure whether I can recommend this one or not. I'm inclined no, but other people will probably like it...and I'm not the target age group. Then again, if a YA novel isn't entertaining to adults, then we are probably doing it wrong.
Spoilers...
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...
...
...
...
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The real theme of the book is that a relationship doesn't have to be romantic to be toxic and abusive. Which is, yes, an important thing to tell kids. I'm just not sure this book does it right. As for its view on Christianity, it turns out to be "God is good, narrow-minded evangelicals are bad," which I can get behind.
Monday, February 18, 2019
Review: 1635: The Cannon Law
This is the other 1632 book, and I'm afraid I found it less fun than the other. Although "The Cannon Law" comes with a delightful pun in the title (it's all about church politics) and reads well for somebody unfamiliar with the world and for those who didn't read the book it's a sequel to, "The Galileo Affair," nowhere does it state that this is the middle volume of a trilogy.
Which it clearly is. It doesn't end, it reaches a "break point" and I didn't find it intriguing enough to want to get the other books (pro tip to publishers: Don't give out middle books in trilogies. Use the first one, it works much better).
Andrew Dennis is a good writer, don't get me wrong, and the book certainly has many redeeming moments. I particularly loved Ruy Sanchez de Casador y Ortiz, even if he was rather too obviously inspired (consciously or otherwise) by Sean Connery's character from Highlander. If he wasn't, then certain laws of fiction apply.
It's a fun read, but I was left so unsatisfied by the break point ending that it kind of ruined it for me. I'd suggest waiting until book 3 (not even listed as coming soon) is out before going with this one.
Sorry, but sometimes breaking one book into two, as appears to have happened here, doesn't work.
Which it clearly is. It doesn't end, it reaches a "break point" and I didn't find it intriguing enough to want to get the other books (pro tip to publishers: Don't give out middle books in trilogies. Use the first one, it works much better).
Andrew Dennis is a good writer, don't get me wrong, and the book certainly has many redeeming moments. I particularly loved Ruy Sanchez de Casador y Ortiz, even if he was rather too obviously inspired (consciously or otherwise) by Sean Connery's character from Highlander. If he wasn't, then certain laws of fiction apply.
It's a fun read, but I was left so unsatisfied by the break point ending that it kind of ruined it for me. I'd suggest waiting until book 3 (not even listed as coming soon) is out before going with this one.
Sorry, but sometimes breaking one book into two, as appears to have happened here, doesn't work.
Wednesday, February 13, 2019
Review: 1634: The Ram Rebellion
I've so far avoided the 1632 series for the simple reason that I was afraid of developing a new addiction. I know some of the writers involved. For those who don't know: 1632 is a series in which the central conceit is that a small town from modern Western Virginia is somehow transported to 17th century Germany. And nobody cares about what this does to the timeline.
Somebody put not one, but two 1632 books in the World Fantasy book bag.
The first of these is "The Ram Rebellion." This is a mosaic novel of sorts, with the story told through a number of short pieces by different writers. Eric Flint and Virginia DeMarce are credited on the cover, but the book also includes work from Gorg Huff, Paula Goodlett, Stanley Leghorn, Rick Boatright, Kerryn Offord, John Zeek and Eva Musch.
It's very ra ra modern democracy in a way that sometimes gets trying, but otherwise tells a solid story about how German peasants in the 17th century are influenced by modern American ideas. The tone and feel is so consistent that it is hard to tell which pieces are written by which writers.
Oh, and the ram is named Brillo. Yes, there is an actual, literal ram.
One of the central themes of the book is the power of the press, for good and for ill.
I liked it. It didn't blow me away, and it didn't completely addict me to 1632 (good for my wallet and my shelf space). Fans will undoubtedly enjoy it, and I can vouch for the fact that it stands alone well.
Recommended.
Somebody put not one, but two 1632 books in the World Fantasy book bag.
The first of these is "The Ram Rebellion." This is a mosaic novel of sorts, with the story told through a number of short pieces by different writers. Eric Flint and Virginia DeMarce are credited on the cover, but the book also includes work from Gorg Huff, Paula Goodlett, Stanley Leghorn, Rick Boatright, Kerryn Offord, John Zeek and Eva Musch.
It's very ra ra modern democracy in a way that sometimes gets trying, but otherwise tells a solid story about how German peasants in the 17th century are influenced by modern American ideas. The tone and feel is so consistent that it is hard to tell which pieces are written by which writers.
Oh, and the ram is named Brillo. Yes, there is an actual, literal ram.
One of the central themes of the book is the power of the press, for good and for ill.
I liked it. It didn't blow me away, and it didn't completely addict me to 1632 (good for my wallet and my shelf space). Fans will undoubtedly enjoy it, and I can vouch for the fact that it stands alone well.
Recommended.
Tuesday, February 12, 2019
Farpoint Roundup and News
Farpoint was awesome. Except for getting home, when Baltimore Light Rail decided to put on a costume as Washington Metro, except with less organization. (Seriously. It took me three hours to get to BWI after giving up on getting to Penn).
I had the worst cosplay karma.
Dressed as River? Two Buckies, two Stephen Stranges and I think I glimpsed a Black Widow.
Dressed as Black Widow? Five Doctors.
I can't win ;).
Panels went well. "You Killed My Father!" was well attended but had an unusual number of early departures. People were probably trying to get to Wallace Shawn's talk and given how cool he seemed when I briefly talked to him, I don't blame them.
Even got a few people for the 3pm panel on space stations. Which got a Wallace Shawn cameo. He looked like he wanted to come in but Stephen Wilson dragged him away, no doubt to rehearse for Prometheus.
We just won't discuss the masquerade...
News: Due to a death in the family I won't be posting on Thursday or Friday of this week.
News: Due to a death in the family I won't be posting on Thursday or Friday of this week.
Wednesday, February 6, 2019
Is The Merc Going to Lose his Mouth?
With Disney acquiring Fox (and thus bringing together all the Marvel properties under one umbrella, finally, although presumably Sony will keep the animated Spidey rights, as there are already two Into The Spider-Verse sequels or spinoffs planned), some people were apparently worried that this meant that future Deadpool movies would be PG-13.
Disney is saying emphatically: No.
Once Upon A Deadpool did not do as well as they were hoping, which they seem to be taking as a sign that Deadpool's fans want him to stay adult-oriented. The talk now is of a separate Marvel brand for adult movies as opposed to the all ages MCU. I would imagine we may see the planned X-23 movie, which I'm anticipating will be super violent, under this banner. Also, the first Deadpool movie had a cameo of Penance. Although it would be more expensive and thus might be prohibitive for the smaller audience, a Morlocks movie would be hugely awesome and would also work better under an R rating.
Disney is saying emphatically: No.
Once Upon A Deadpool did not do as well as they were hoping, which they seem to be taking as a sign that Deadpool's fans want him to stay adult-oriented. The talk now is of a separate Marvel brand for adult movies as opposed to the all ages MCU. I would imagine we may see the planned X-23 movie, which I'm anticipating will be super violent, under this banner. Also, the first Deadpool movie had a cameo of Penance. Although it would be more expensive and thus might be prohibitive for the smaller audience, a Morlocks movie would be hugely awesome and would also work better under an R rating.
Tuesday, February 5, 2019
Y: The Last Man
I've only read the first two volumes of the comic (I do intend to fix that, but my to be read pile remains ridiculous).
Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra's story of what happens when every male animal on the planet bar two drops dead is considered a classic comic. It ran for six seasons.
It has now been ordered to series by FX, with Michael Green and Aida Mashaka Croal as showrunners.
We do have some casting news. Barry Keoghan will play Yorick, the eponymous last man.
Diane Lane is cast as "the lead" of the ensemble cast. She's playing Yorick's mother, which means if it's at all true to the comics, she shouldn't be the lead (this is an edit as somebody pointed that out). 355 should be the lead if it's anyone but Yorick...
Other regulars apparently include Lashana Lynch, Juliana Canfield, Imogen Poots, Amber Tamblyn and Marin Ireland.
The series is going to be screened some time in 2020, so presumably they'll be filming season one this summer.
There is no word on who will play the monkey.
Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra's story of what happens when every male animal on the planet bar two drops dead is considered a classic comic. It ran for six seasons.
It has now been ordered to series by FX, with Michael Green and Aida Mashaka Croal as showrunners.
We do have some casting news. Barry Keoghan will play Yorick, the eponymous last man.
Diane Lane is cast as "the lead" of the ensemble cast. She's playing Yorick's mother, which means if it's at all true to the comics, she shouldn't be the lead (this is an edit as somebody pointed that out). 355 should be the lead if it's anyone but Yorick...
Other regulars apparently include Lashana Lynch, Juliana Canfield, Imogen Poots, Amber Tamblyn and Marin Ireland.
The series is going to be screened some time in 2020, so presumably they'll be filming season one this summer.
There is no word on who will play the monkey.
Monday, February 4, 2019
The next generation 3D printer...
...is here.
3D printing is great. I've used it to make cosplay props, I know people who use it to make miniatures. Even better, how about cheap prosthetics for kids who otherwise wouldn't qualify because they'd only outgrow them? Medical gear for small clinics in the third world?
But they have one large downside.
They are slow. In many cases you start your 3D printer running in the evening and go to bed, and maybe in the morning your print will be done.
Now, the University of Berkeley has created what might be the start of the next stage of the technology.
Their new printer is highly limited. It can only print very small objects and only in one material, but it can print them quickly. It scans an object, then projects the image into a special resin. The resin solidifies only where the light hits it, with the rest of the resin simply going back into the reservoir.
So far, it's useful for, well...custom minis. And presumably the first ones will be very expensive. But it is a step closer to the replicator.
3D printing is great. I've used it to make cosplay props, I know people who use it to make miniatures. Even better, how about cheap prosthetics for kids who otherwise wouldn't qualify because they'd only outgrow them? Medical gear for small clinics in the third world?
But they have one large downside.
They are slow. In many cases you start your 3D printer running in the evening and go to bed, and maybe in the morning your print will be done.
Now, the University of Berkeley has created what might be the start of the next stage of the technology.
Their new printer is highly limited. It can only print very small objects and only in one material, but it can print them quickly. It scans an object, then projects the image into a special resin. The resin solidifies only where the light hits it, with the rest of the resin simply going back into the reservoir.
So far, it's useful for, well...custom minis. And presumably the first ones will be very expensive. But it is a step closer to the replicator.
Friday, February 1, 2019
CW Superhero Shows renewed
The CW has renewed all of its DC-based superhero shows (and will be adding Batwoman). Riverdale and the venerable (perhaps too venerable at this point) Supernatural were also renewed.
Oh, and AMC theaters are currently showing Black Panther for free, for those too broke to have seen it the first time.
(Last night, I had a terrible nightmare. I dreamt I walked into a library and there were no books on the shelves. Just all the other things libraries have been known to provide. I left and came back with...a posse...to do something about it. My horse started eating things).
Oh, and AMC theaters are currently showing Black Panther for free, for those too broke to have seen it the first time.
(Last night, I had a terrible nightmare. I dreamt I walked into a library and there were no books on the shelves. Just all the other things libraries have been known to provide. I left and came back with...a posse...to do something about it. My horse started eating things).
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