Book Review: Planets for Sale by A.E. van Vogt and E. Mayne Hull Evana Travis was supposed to be traveling to live with her sister on Doridora III. But there was a reason this spaceflight was so inexpensive. After Earth had finally gotten its act together and improved working conditions to be actually comfortable, the… Continue reading Book Review: Planets for Sale
Movie Review: eXistenZ
Movie Review: eXistenZ (1999) directed by David Cronenberg In the not so distant future, virtual reality games are a commonplace. At a deconsecrated church, genius game designer Allegra Geller (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is about to plug a dozen lucky volunteers into a demonstration of her new title, eXistenZ. But just as she’s activating the main… Continue reading Movie Review: eXistenZ
Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931
Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931 edited by Harry Bates Strange Tales was published as a direct competitor to Weird Tales, the top fantastic/occult story pulp magazine of the time, starting with this issue in 1931. It had more of an action slant to its editorial policy as compared to the more idea-heavy stories of… Continue reading Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931
Book Review: Ashenden or The British Agent
Book Review: Ashenden or The British Agent by W. Somerset Maugham Archduke Ferdinand has been shot, and Europe is rapidly tipping in to the Great War. Britain can no longer rely on a small number of trained government agents to handle its necessary intelligence efforts. But who to recruit? Perhaps a writer who’s currently between… Continue reading Book Review: Ashenden or The British Agent
Movie Review: Black Jack: The Movie
Movie Review: Black Jack: The Movie (1996) directed by Osamu Dezaki The Twentieth Century is still waning, but it looks like the people of the Twenty-First Century, the superhumans, have already arrived! At the most exciting Olympics in decades, record after record is smashed by athletes from around the world. They’re from different countries, so there… Continue reading Movie Review: Black Jack: The Movie
Manga Review: Case Closed Volumes 65-67
Manga Review: Case Closed Volumes 65-67 by Gosho Aoyama Premise: Teen detective Shinichi Kudou (Jimmy Kudo in the American version) is trapped in the body of a child. As Conan Edogawa, he solves mysteries anyway, while trying to track down the Black Organization that did this to him. See my previous entries. We open Volume… Continue reading Manga Review: Case Closed Volumes 65-67
Book Review: The Mad Visions of Al-Hazred
Book Review: The Mad Visions of Al-Hazred edited by H. David Blalock The Cthulhu Mythos is littered with the names of mysterious books and manuscripts containing forbidden knowledge. The most commonly used one is the Kitab al-Azif, the “Book of Night Insects Buzzing” (among the possible meanings), usually referred to by the Latin translation’s name,… Continue reading Book Review: The Mad Visions of Al-Hazred
Book Review: MagnifiqueNoir Book One: I Am Magical
Book Review: MagnifiqueNoir Book One: I Am Magical by Briana Lawrence College life can be hard to balance. There’s classes, social life, maybe a part-time (or even full time) job, and of course fighting off monster attacks. Or at least that one applies to gamer girl Bree Williams and her friends in MagnifiqueNoir, a team… Continue reading Book Review: MagnifiqueNoir Book One: I Am Magical
Open Thread: Top Ten Lists for 2019!
Another year ends, and it’s time for top ten lists! Top Ten Posts of 2019! Book Review: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table Book Review: The Financial Expert Book Review: The Sea-Wolf Book Review: The Black Tulip Manga Review: Vagabond Volume 2 Anime Review: Dororo (2019) Manga Review: Weekly Shonen Jump (2018)… Continue reading Open Thread: Top Ten Lists for 2019!
Book Review: Dirty Doc Ames and the Scandal That Shook Minneapolis
Book Review: Dirty Doc Ames and the Scandal That Shook Minneapolis by Erik Rivenes City government corruption is a recurring problem in American politics. Some cities are notorious for their local corruption levels, while others have it come and go. Minnesota cities are no exception, though it has seldom reached the level of Mayor Albert… Continue reading Book Review: Dirty Doc Ames and the Scandal That Shook Minneapolis