Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction Science Fact December 1984

The cover by Jack Gaughan for "The Elemental" is more symbolic than an actual scene from the story.

Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction Science Fact December 1984 edited by Stanley Schmidt Continuing to dig through my pile of stuff that I’ve been meaning to reread, I found this issue from the year I actually subscribed to Analog.. This was an indulgence as I was underemployed at the time, but a magazine in the… Continue reading Magazine Review: Analog Science Fiction Science Fact December 1984

Webtoon Review: Kid Cosmic Season Two

Group hug!

Webtoon Review: Kid Cosmic Season Two Quick recap of Season One: Comic book-obsessed orphan Kid discovers five alien Cosmic Stones of Power, turns them into rings, and takes the name Kid Cosmic. He’s joined by his grandfather Papa G, teen waitress Jo, little girl Rosa and cat Tuna Fish to form the Local Heroes. Together… Continue reading Webtoon Review: Kid Cosmic Season Two

Movie Review: Dementia 13 (1963)

Kathleen is crowned.

Movie Review: Dementia 13 (1963) directed by Francis Ford Coppola Lady Haloran (Ethne Dunne) has summoned her family to their castle in Ireland for the annual commemoration of her daughter Kathleen’s death. Eldest son John (Peter Read) has sent his regrets, and his wife Louise (Luana Anders), as he has been forced to travel elsewhere on… Continue reading Movie Review: Dementia 13 (1963)

Book Review: Catfishing on CatNet

Book Review: Catfishing on CatNet by Naomi Kritzer It is the not too distant future, a time of self-driving cars, drone package delivery, and robots teaching sex ed. Steph Taylor doesn’t think too much about technology, as she has other concerns in her life. Ever since she can remember, her mother has been moving them… Continue reading Book Review: Catfishing on CatNet

Manga Review: Orient #1

Manga Review: Orient #1 by Shinobu Ohtaka 150 years ago, the Land of the Setting Sun was run by samurai warlords who oppressed the peasants and ruined the land in constant fighting. Then the gods arrived and defeated the samurai. Now the gods rule the land and have brought peace and prosperity. Or at least… Continue reading Manga Review: Orient #1

Comic Strip Review: Guilded Age Volume Three

Comic Strip Review: Guilded Age Volume Three written by T. Campbell & Phil Kahn, illustrated by John Waltrip Note: The following review contains SPOILERS for the previous two volumes. The Peacemakers are an elite band of adventurers who are contracted by the city state of Gastonia, which is majority human but has people of other… Continue reading Comic Strip Review: Guilded Age Volume Three

Movie Review: Cat People (1942)

Irena's fear of physical contact is putting a strain on her marriage to Oliver.

Movie Review: Cat People (1942) directed by Jacques Tourneur Marine engineer Oliver Reed (Kent Smith), like many New Yorkers, enjoys visiting the Central Park Zoo. Today he found a new attraction, a pretty fashion sketch artist hanging around the black panther cage. She turns out to be a Serbian immigrant named Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) who… Continue reading Movie Review: Cat People (1942)

Book Review: Rod String Nail Cloth

Book Review: Rod String Nail Cloth by T. Aaron Cisco The subtitle of this book is “An Afrofuturist Mixtape.” You can read more about Afrofuturism at this Wikipedia article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrofuturism but for the purposes of this review, it’s the intersection of speculative fiction with the African Diaspora experience and cultures, and in particular the experience… Continue reading Book Review: Rod String Nail Cloth

Manga Review: Call Me Princess

Manga Review: Call Me Princess by Tomoko Taniguchi When Makoto Takenouchi was a little girl, she served as flower girl at her sister’s wedding. Shin and Shoko get along very well, and Shin has become Makoto’s ideal for a husband. Someone who will support her, and be kind, and call her “Princess.” One day at… Continue reading Manga Review: Call Me Princess

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine September/October 2021

Cover by Brian Stauffer

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine September/October 2021 edited by Janet Hutchings “The years keep coming and they just keep coming.” It seems like just a few months ago I reviewed a 75th anniversary issue of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine, but in fact it was five years ago, and here’s the 80th anniversary issue. It’s… Continue reading Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine September/October 2021