Tor.Com has started running a series of articles on African SFF (Science Fiction/Fantasy) writers. This is really awesome. SF/F Fandom tends to focus on writers and artists from the “Anglophone Zone” – The US, Canada, the UK, Australia, and the EU (yes, not all EU countries have English as their primary language, but English is a fairly major language in the EU). East Asian countries – primarily Japan, China, and to a lesser degree Korea have also been getting some attention as well, but Africa and Latin America have not gotten near the same degree of attention that other countries have had.

So, this article is great, and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.

Posted on by Alexander Case

Film Review: Interstellar

Sometimes, science and scientific concepts make for great story hooks. Time Dilation – the idea that as you approach the speed of light, time slows down for you while moving normally for everyone else – is one of those concepts. One of the few high points of Flight of the Navigator was how it used time dilation to create pathos with the main character’s family having out-aged him. Makoto Shinkai’s Voices of a Distant Star did it with a couple being separated by not only distance, but time (a theme that would carry over to much of Shinkai’s other work). Interstellar does this with a parent and child. Read more

Posted on by Alexander Case

Movie Review: Gravity

Gravity is, quite possibly, the tensest film I’ve ever seen, and is one of the most profound combinations of imagery and music (chronologically) since the Star Wars films and Koyaanisqatsi, and only eclipsed by Mad Max: Fury Road. Read more

Posted on by Alexander Case

Book Review: Splinter of the Mind’s Eye by Alan Dean Foster

The old Star Wars Expanded Universe wrapped up, now that I think about it, several years ago – being set aside in favor of a new EU which would tie more closely to the new Star Wars films. The Old EU got a lot of crap – some justified (Jedi Academy Trilogy), some maybe less so. Thus, I’ve decided to go through the old EU, in order of publication, to see how things evolved, and whether the good parts hold up, or if the bad parts have any redeeming qualities. Read more

Posted on by Alexander Case

Movie Review: Damnation Alley

I’m a fan of the Fallout series. I love the world those games build, and consequently when I discover a work that is formulative to that universe, it tends to give that work a little extra appeal for me. It’s part of the reason why I like some of the later portions of The Martian Chronicles and why I enjoyed A Boy and his Dog, which is a review for another time. Damnation Alley is a little less known portion of the sub-genre, but is still a remarkably enjoyable film. Read more

Posted on by Alexander Case

Film Review: Dark City (1998)

Dark City is a gloriously wonderful film, which pays homage to Film Noir from the ’40s and ’50s, German Expressionist film of the 1920s and ’30s, and (to a degree), psychic battle manga like Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira and Domu, along with the series Locke the Superman (which in turn inspired the first two works). Read more

Posted on by Alexander Case

Sealed Envelope – Star Wars, The New Era, and The Prophecy

This week I’m putting together a video with some speculation on Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and how The Prophecy from the prequel trilogy might tie in to the film’s plot (if it comes up at all). This was recorded Thanksgiving Weekend, well before the film came out, as a little sealed envelope – if my predictions are right, then I’m a genius! If I’m wrong, I look like a moron! Either way, you win! Read more