#i enjoyed the expanse tv show and now reading the books

[bloopitynoot]

13 WangXian Social Media Au's

This list was requested by @yiling-laozu-is-loml and is all about WangXian social media stories. NOTE: All of these fics are tried and true! They include fics I have read an enjoyed and wanted to share.

Request:

WangXian

Social media can include; group chats, online forums, blog, tweets, OF, youtube etc really the public eye (I included some actor/famous/reality tv with fans fics too) or chat based fics.

if applicable Bottomxian only

book canon only if applicable

If you want a specific rec list for WangXian dm me! I love putting these together :)

Enjoy the list!

1 Welcome to Pepper & Bun! (9560 words) by PaidSubscription

Chapters: 1/1 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Dating Advice Columnists, Relationship Advice, Demisexual Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Bisexual Disaster Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian, Mastermind Nie Huaisang, Inspired by Twitter, Autistic Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian Has ADHD, Getting Together, Fluff and Humor, Those Who Can't Do Write Advice Columns, Idiots in Love, Mainly Wei Wuxian Because Canon, Podfic Available Summary: Wei Wuxian: Did you catch our first letter? Shall we meet up and discuss it? Lan Wangji: No need. Sent draft just now. Wei Wuxian's email pings with 'Column Copy- Final Draft.' It contains two words.   "Dump him." OR: Gossip Editor Nie Huaisang strikes gold when he picks Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji to be co-writers of a new dating advice column. The only slight problem? Lan Wangji has never dated.

NOTES: Okay this fic was so damn sweet!!!! If this was a real advice column I would be invested in an unhealthy way- the two of them are adorable. It gives a little bit of frenemies to lovers and I am always here for this dynamic- the duo who seemingly has nothing in common falling for one another. My heart! Also Nie Huaisang is a marketing genius.

2 For a Good Time, Call (170842 words) by ScarlettStorm

Chapters: 21/21 Rating: Explicit Additional Tags: Modern AU, Getting Together, Pining, Porn, like in the writing and also as a plot point, onlyfans au, repressed lan zhan, sex worker wei ying, in this house we support sex work, Minor Angst, major shenanigans, hornt(tm), way too many details about onlyfans probably, they say write what you know, No beta we die like wei wuxian, mental health, therapy is good actually, in which I reveal my true otp and it's anyone in the untamed/therapy, okay so actually more angst than I was expecting, a surprising amount of genuine feelings, whoops?, Background Jiang Cheng/Wen Qing - Freeform, background lan xichen/nie mingjue, background Jiāng Yànlí/Jīn Zixuān, Nonbinary Nie Huaisang Series: Part 1 of See all this and more for just ten dollars a month! Summary: The picture is of Wei Ying, that much is clear. It’s of a lot more of Wei Ying than Lan Zhan is used to seeing. He supposes that, technically, Wei Ying is dressed. It’s a bare technicality, since one of Wei Ying’s hands has rucked up his black tank top practically to his collarbone, showing a long expanse of abdomen and one nipple. Sweat beads on his sternum, catching the light like jewels. His other hand is--Lan Zhan feels his eyes widen, as though unable to look away from a train wreck--on his hip, one thumb tugging down the waistband of a pair of red briefs. Wei Ying is biting his lower lip and looking directly into the camera, sultry, his eyes dark and inviting. His erection is obvious, outlined against the red of the briefs and framed carefully with the hand on his hip. Lan Zhan’s brain goes wildly, screamingly blank. Or: Lan Zhan accidentally finds his best friend's OnlyFans account and has an ongoing emotional crisis.

NOTES: I love an OF plotline and this one is exceptionally good. Poor Lan Zhan going THROUGH the moralities of not only finding your besties OF account but also subscribing and also finding it too hot to handle. The amount of tears and cash this poor boy spends. It has a happy ending so no stress with his moral angst! ALSO the sequel is so so good KILF (Knits I'd Like To Fuck in (pls note the sequel has them tagged as switches so full disclosure there if it is a deal breaker for you).

3 兔's Clues | Tu's Clues (12296 words) by Anonymous

Chapters: 2/2 Rating: General Audiences Additional Tags: Crack Treated Seriously, Single Parent Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian, Minor Jiang Yanli/Jin Zixuan, Fluff and Humor, Misunderstandings, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Minor Lán Huàn | Lán Xīchén/Niè Míngjué Series: Part 2 of AUs only a mother could love Summary: Most childrens’ show hosts are cheerful, energetic people who wear eye-catching clothing. The man on-screen is none of those things. This man (“that’s Lan-xiong!” A-Yuan says helpfully) is eye-catching for completely different reasons. When A-Yuan had started talking about 'Lan-xiong' and rabbits, Wei Wuxian had briefly recalled 18-year-old Lan Zhan sitting back on his heels with two baby rabbits in his lap, but the idea of his high school crush hosting a childrens' show had been so ludicrous that Wei Wuxian had chalked it up to coincidence. So either Wei Wuxian is hallucinating or that is indeed Lan Wangji on-screen, talking to two rabbits. As the host of a childrens' show. --- or: A-Yuan's new favourite thing is a show about solving clues left by rabbits… or something like that. Single dad Wei Wuxian is very much not prepared to see his high school crush hosting a childrens' show.

NOTES: So listen, this is tagged as Crack Treated Seriously and honestly the energy was not so Crackish. It was a surprisingly adorable and very cute fic. Lan Zhan WOULD be a stoic AF bunny handler as a children's tv host.

4 shoot your shot -- hot or knot (51435 words) by defractum

Chapters: 5/5 Rating: Explicit Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Alternate Universe - Hunger Games Setting, Canon-Typical Violence, Extremely Dubious Consent, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Humor, Additional Warnings In Author's Note Summary: "Hi, I'm Wei Wuxian. I'm a Career Omega and this is my fourth season on the show. I like spicy food, archery and alphas who are funny. Or maybe I don't, I haven't rolled over for one yet." On-screen, Wei Wuxian winks at the audience laughter. Hot or Knot is the world's most popular reality TV show. Part dating show, part survival show, Hot or Knot is everyone's guilty pleasure - and Wei Wuxian is a fan favourite. - The Love Island/Hunger Games reality dating tv show A/B/O au

NOTES: Okay, but here's the thing. This is S tier crack fic and no one can change my mind. Did I think I would be out here reading a Love Island/Hunger Games/ ABO reality show fic- absolutely not but let me tell you *slaps fic* this baby has so much good shit in it. Just pls trust me and go in with open energy LOL

5 episodes (34947 words) by kasunn

Chapters: 8/8 Rating: Mature Additional Tags: Fluff, basically all fluff, Youtuber Wei Ying, Social Media, Actor Lan Xichen, Artist Jiang Cheng, Chef Jiang Yanli, Babysitting, lowkey kidfic, Surgeon Lan Zhan, Canon typical feels, Taiwanese Wei Ying, Copious amounts of Chinglish, pets!, Secret Relationship, Kind Of, bad pet names, Established Relationship, wen yuan is a wen Summary: “Lan Zhan-gege,” Wei Ying sighs when he reads the tweet and Lan Zhan pats his knee. “I said hello,” Lan Zhan says. That he did. The tweet simply reads ‘Hello’ with a waving hand emoji. Terrible. Wei Ying is ashamed of himself for not teaching him better. “Your brother is going to kill me,” Wei Ying says. (or just a lot of domesticity between Wei Ying the Youtuber and Lan Zhan (his husband) + a mild, mini mystery for Wei Ying's viewers)

NOTES: I love this fic so much. The wholesome domestic energy is everything. WY is a youtuber and quite popular online in this and his husband is a mysterious man no one sees or knows anything about- obviously fans get curious and oh, Lan Zhan gets twitter.

6 you are safe / loved / worthy / enough (150003 words) by everythingispoetry

Chapters: 28/28 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - College/University, Social Media, Mental Health Issues, Healing, self-care, Anxiety, Hurt/Comfort, the mortifying ordeal of self-acceptance, Falling In Love, Depression, Slow Burn Summary: One of the more timid-looking posts, in pale greens and creams and yellows, says Hello, I'm managing to be fairly high functioning right now but I'm really not doing as well as it may appear, and Lan Zhan feels as if someone sneaked into his mind and read his most secret thoughts, the ones he's never even dared to admit to himself. (Lan Zhan falls apart and finds himself through the most unexpected means.)

NOTES: So a few things with this fic; first it takes the prompt social media a little lighter as in social media is used for healing and there are social media talks but it isn't the forefront of the fic, second CW if you struggle with depression this fts that heavily and in a descriptive way. So heads up there. This fic is stunning, it's about healing, recovery, autonomy and love. That being said, your boy Wangji really goes through it in this fic. The poor guy is Not Okay. It is a beautiful fic though and he does get better.

7 Badreads (37442 words) by arabii

Chapters: 8/8 Rating: Mature Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Writing & Publishing, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Humor, Bullying as a Flirting Technique, Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian in Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian's Body Summary: Lan Zhan rated it ★☆☆☆☆ August 12, 2022 shelves: should-have-abandoned Picked up solely because I thought that a book release clouded with so much controversy would at least be entertaining to read. I was wrong. How does Wei Wuxian manage to make a book containing cannibalism, necromancy, and a sex cult boring? Lan Xichen and Wei Wuxian are romance authors with large social media followings. Nie Huaisang sees an opportunity to get publicity by faking a relationship between them. This action will have consequences.

NOTES: I absolutely LOVE when Lan Wangji is a Bitch and this is peak Bitchiness. WY and LXC are romance writers and LWJ is a book reviewer with 0 fucks to give. The brutality in which he makes a point to read and review each of WWX's books brings me so much joy. and OFC they fall in love.

8 Falling to the Rhythm (128916 words) by Selenay

Chapters: 14/14 Rating: Explicit Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern: No Powers, Alternate Universe - Dance, Alternate Universe - Strictly Come Dancing Fusion, Ballroom Dancing, Dancer!Wèi Wúxiàn, Violinist Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Pining While Dancing, Oblivious Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian, Gratuitous Costume Descriptions, Gratuitous dancing descriptions, Slow Burn, Rating applies to later chapters, The unbearable romance of being cared for, Podfic Available Series: Part 1 of Wangxian Strictly AU Summary: "So it's a bet?" Jiang Cheng said. "Dance the showcase if you get him, fancy coffee machine if you don't?" Wei Wuxian considered the machine. "Fine. You're on. I want it in red." "Don't start planning your caffeine overdose yet." "It's in the bag," Wei Wuxian said cheerfully. "There's no way they'll match me with someone like Lan Wangji."   Teaching Lan Wangji to dance in front of the nation for twelve weeks, how hard can that be? Wei Wuxian is about to find out.

NOTES: I love everything about this fic. It was so good and light (a tiny sip of angst because competition and some pining). The Strictly Come Dancing (basically Dancing with the Stars for North America) is *chefs kiss*. Also the fact that WY went in on it for a bet because he wanted a coffee machine I cant.

9 Gusu's Drag Race (55079 words) by DizziDreams

Chapters: 15/15 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Additional Tags: the gang's all here, Drag Queens, Drag Race AU, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Nonbinary Character, Gender Changes, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, whistleblower, There Was Only One Bed, Alcohol Abuse, ambiguous setting, American political system - Freeform, Big Bang Challenge, Background jyl/mianmian Summary: Meet the Queens of Gusu’s Drag Race Season 5! by QIN SU Oh my god, we’re back again. Hot on the heels of the shocking finale of season 4, Gusu’s Drag Race is back, with perennial judge Lan Qiren, Gusu’s grumpiest shufu, and featuring the return of the grandmother of drag Baoshan Sanren. And this season is already promising one. “We’ve never had such a strong cast of refined, professional queens. It has the makings to be the greatest season of Drag Race yet.” Big talk for the Emmy-award-winning show that has shot dozens of queens to fame, bringing drag to the mainstream. “The mainstream may be taking notice, but there’s nothing mainstream about drag done right,” says co-host Baoshan Sanren. “Drag is about disobedience. It’s rebellious and anti-mainstream by its very definition, and we’ve got some queens this season with the chops to prove it.” With all that to look forward to, let’s Meet the Queens who’ve already captivated our judges.

NOTES: I know I said that Hot or Knot was PEAK Crack, but this one is up there too! We have the MDZS ensemble, we have Drag, we have unionization and the fight for working conditions, OH AND INCLUDED ART. This was so fun to read.

10 Yesterday Once More (22725 words) by Sweetlittlevampire

Chapters: 7/7 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Long Lost Family AU, Adoption, Family Reunions, Reunions, Lost Love, Getting Back Together, Family Feels, Found Family, Angst with a Happy Ending, Mild Angst, Happy Ending, Podfic Welcome, Podfic Available Summary: „I remember him as…sunny,” Sizhui tells her. “His whole personality radiated sunshine and warmth. He was always smiling, always cracking a joke. He loved playing and rough-housing with us kids, but he could also be very gentle if he wanted to. Looking back, he couldn’t have been older than twenty-five; he was probably even younger than that, now that I think about it. But despite the short time we’ve spent together while he was looking after the kids at the orphanage, he always felt like a father to me.”   In which Lan Sizhui goes on a TV show, to find the man he saw as a father figure while he was in the orphanage, and who disappeared one day. …and who just so happens to be his adoptive father's long-lost love.

NOTES: Okay way less crack, this fic actually made me tear up. A wholesome journey Sizhui centric in which he goes on a reality TV show to find his Xian-ge. The "show" was so beautifully narrated and "produced" and the ending ultra sweet.

11 Love at Second Sight (49893 words) by flowerofgusu

Chapters: 17/17 Rating: Explicit Relationships: Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji/Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian Characters: Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian, Luo "Mian Mian" Qingyang, Wen Qing (Modao Zushi), Wen Ning | Wen Qionglin, Jiang Yanli, Jiang Cheng | Jiang Wanyin, Lan Yuan | Lan Sizhui Additional Tags: Background SongXiao, background mianqing, Romance, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Reality TV, Musicians Wangxian, Comphet Wei Wuxian, Coming Out, Demisexual Wei Wuxian, Rated E for the Small Amounts of Smut, Eventual Smut, Romantic Comedy, Falling In Love, Misunderstandings, Rivals to Friends to Lovers, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage Summary: Popstar Wei Wuxian agrees to go on Nie Huaisang’s reality TV show, wherein celebrities play an arranged married couple for a month. His manager, Wen Qing, insists this will be good publicity—plus, the funds raised will go to a children’s music school. He’s excited—he’s never been in a relationship before, let alone a fake-arranged-marriage. But when he finds out that he’s been arranged to be married on the show to his rival Lan Wangji, he doesn’t know whether to grin and bear it, or run the other way. How much can he act smitten for the cameras?

NOTES: On a good day I am already too invested in real life trash reality tv so it's no surprise that I am here to include yet another reality tv dating show au. This one was so good. I love a good "fake it till you accidentally actually fall in love" trope and this one does that plus a solid slowburn to realization exquisitely. These poor babes so oblivious- such messes.

12 cookin' up a storm, piece of cake (9562 words) by livinginaworldofnoise

Chapters: 1/1 Rating: General Audiences Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Social Media, Baking, the dumbest comments u have ever seen, wei wuxian being a troll for nearly 10k words, lan wangji suffering the most that any recipe blogger has ever suffered, Baker Lan Zhan | Lan Wangji, Wei Ying | Wei Wuxian is a Little Shit, Crack, content warning for absolute unhinged nonsense, told in the form of recipe comments and emails, Epistolary Summary: yiling_patriarch: first time making a cake with alcohol! it’s still in the oven but it smells great so far ↳ Gusu Lan Kitchen: There is no alcohol listed in the ingredients for this recipe. yiling_patriarch: i didn’t have any oranges or orange juice so i replaced those with a can of orange sparkling margarita! tasted super weird [★★☆☆☆] ↳ Gusu Lan Kitchen: Are you being deliberately obtuse? OR: life is tough for baker!lwj when online troll!wwx won't stop commenting on his recipe blog

NOTES: I know @yiling-laozu-is-loml has already read this (and the next fic) but I legally (not actually) had to include this one on this list. This fic is so damn cute- flirting through bad baking, trolling, and blogs??? What is there not to love. It is extra sweet how they end up together in the end.

13 don’t threaten me with a good time (60023 words) by livinginaworldofnoise

Chapters: 11/11 Rating: General Audiences Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Reality TV, Alternate Universe - The Great British Bake Off Fusion, wwx is a chaos demon determined to make gbbo more exciting, lwj cares about the Integrity of Bake-Off, who will win????, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, gbbo au, content warning for absolute unhinged nonsense, Enemies to Lovers, by enemies i mean BAKING RIVALS of course, the last two chapters are the twitter reactions to the show so, Social Media AU, Podfic Available Summary: “I’m using orange liqueur to make my cake more interesting. Give it a bit of a kick, you know?” Lan Wangji’s expression has only changed minutely—not a lot of range there, it seems—but Wei Wuxian can tell he is perturbed by this information. “Alcohol? In cake?” “Honestly, I’m not sure any cake should even be made without alcohol,” Wei Wuxian says, offering another beatific smile that Lan Wangji does not return. OR: the great british bake-off au???

NOTES: Bake off AU! BAKE OFF AU! It's got cakes, scandal, disasters, enemies to lovers, and clothing so distracting WWX bluescreens. A very wholesome social media + reality TV competition. I highly recommend for good vibes. Bonus with the juniors idolizing Lan Zhan- such little cuties.

[theomenroom]

It's halfway through the year! Got any favorite albums/books/tv shows/whatever to recommend?

Ooo yes!

Whatevers first, I've been hyperfixated on the video game I Was a Teenage Exocolonist for the past month or so. It's very good; I found the core gameplay loop deeply engaging (maybe even hypnotic); on multiple occasions I've spent several hours longer than I intended playing it late into the dawn. The characters are very blorboable, as evidenced by the amount of meta I've been putting out. I also enjoy it as a smart commentary on game design; I think I've got a meta piece to that effect somewhere on here.

Music-wise, I don't listen to whole albums straight through that often (much more "single track on manual repeat" for me. automatic repeat wears it out but letting it wait a minute or two for me to press it again keeps me going), but when I do, my comfort album remains Within Temptation's The Unforgiving. For something that's new to me this year, Oceans of Slumber's album Starlight and Ash came out in 2022 but I didn't listen to it all the way through until February of this year; I was missing out.

I also love pretty much Sirenia's entire discography; I'm listening to Riddles, Ruins, and Revelations right now and it's a solid no-skips album (and the third track has found its way to my on-repeat plays more than I'd like to admit).

For individual tracks that have made it into my manual-repeat loop a bunch lately, Aimee Mann - Avalanche (something about her vocals and the specific lyrics give this song a strong haunting energy I can't quite place but very much enjoy) and The Gaslight Anthem - The '59 Sound have both wound up there, as have a bunch of Scarlet Dorn tracks (Queen of Broken Dreams, Heavy Beauty, and Until the Waters Run Dry just off the top of my head). also Like Matches, by Mercury Circle with the singer from Oceans of Slumber.

Books-wise, I'm super excited to read my pre-release copy of Alyson Greaves's When You Fell From Heaven, a lesbian teen romance between a cheerleader and a gymnast with gender hijinks. I didn't expect to be into it but I'll read whatever she puts out and not just because she's my friend. She's splitting it out into multiple books and has given the first book a revision pass and expansions to make it gayer after posting it chapter by chapter (which I've already read) before officially getting it up somewhere. I unfortunately haven't been as much of a long-form reader as I used to be, or else I'd have more books to rec.

I'm not a big TV-watcher, but I was recced dungeon meshi enough times to get me to watch it and it's very good.

Anyway. yeah. That's what I've been into, arts and entertainment-wise.

Thanks for asking me!

[lucatielsgirlfriend]

good morning. i mean afternoon <3

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

7. earbuds or headphones?

8. movies or tv shows?

9. favorite smell in the summer?

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

18. ideal weather?

19. sleeping position?

21. obsession from childhood?

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

28. five songs to describe you?

32. top five favorite vines?

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

56. favorite tradition?

64. favorite website from your childhood?

66. favorite flower(s)?

72. worst subject?

82. pc or console?

88. your greatest wish?

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

94. favorite season?

96. desktop background?

and i have to ask this one ^-^ 98. favorite historical era?

omg you love me and you want to know everythig about me ^-^

5. bottles is easiest, but a crisp glass soda feels so nice!

6. out of those the styles that i think look best on me are boho and sportswear :) i like goth but im not really in the culture

7. headphones. i found this really nice compact travel set so im not totally unaware when i wesr them out!

8. tricky. I do love movies, but tv shows are easier to digest for me so i watch those more

9. um. probably when water hits the hot ground. rain or otherwise. like waterguns. bbqs are also really nice :>

10. i was a fat kid so not many. i really enjoyed badminton and tennis and also rounders or baseball

15. i remember liking Kensuke's Kingdom for a book report but idk if holds up... I also enjoyed when we analysed poetry in our final year ^^

17. um i have three pairs of slip on sketchers so those. theyre easy and shoes r expensive :p

18. heavy summer rain 🤤 thunder or not

19. i roll around a lott in my sleep, so i wake up in all sorts of positions. its usually easiest to get to sleep on my side tho.

21. i was a pokemon kid. show, cards, games and merch. always on that damn ds

26. i kinda hate the heat, so chilling in front of a fan with a sippy drink and music is sooo good. i liked the beach when I last went though!

27. stupid-cold bonfire nights are realllly nice. my birthdays right around guy fawkes so lots of nice memories there. im also more active in winter because it gets darker faster and i dont sweat as much.

28. five... umm: 'Laughing Gas - The Fratellis'; 'Override (A) - Area 11'; 'Knees Deep - The Beths'; 'To Be Better - Miracle of Sound'; 'Moment of Forever - Willie Nelson'. ^-^;

32. umm idk i was never really on vine... literally none come to mind sorrry

46. naked for sure especially in summer. t-shirt and bottoms on the coldest nights. ^-^

56. tradition... not sure I have any anymore. when i was a teenager we used to go to the lake and follow a river and have a shitty bbq by the side with a bluetooth speaker. and everyone would jump in the water and I never would hehe

64. YouTube. I yearn for the old days of YouTube... I was just becoming sentient when youtube was coming around so i was on it a lot

66. tulips! esp orange ones :>

72. maths. numbers hard.

82. PC all the way from my shitty laptops to here. i love my compuper

88. umm many. to be a girl. to be able to be social without anxiety attacks. to be able to afford things. to not be scared of intimacy. for my pets and family and friends to live forever and always be happy. many many wishes.

92. lamps. i hate overheads especially white ones.

94. Autumn. idk I like the colours. and there's usually a lot more happening around then. halloween and birthdays and getting cooler.

96. usually a game still. or art from a steam trading card or smthn. right now it's a boss from Slay the Spire :)

98. I dont know a lot about history as I should. but I'm interested in gold rush/ westward expanse era stuff, what little I know of it. I should learn more history... Idk sometimes ot just doesnt go in, and I have fuck awful recall ^-^;

[aj-lenoire]

i say this as someone who legitimately really enjoys shadow and bone on netflix. i personally wasn’t the biggest fan of the original trilogy and i think they really elevated the storyline by streamlining it and changing a few things. i adored the six of crows books, meanwhile, and love seeing characters interact who never met in the books.

all of that being said, i am a little bummed at how inej and jesper have been treated narratively. like i know some stuff has to be cut for time, that’s just how making a tv show works, but the two deleted scenes that were released were both examples of jesper being more than the wise-cracking, smooth-talking sharpshooter. they actually showed him being vulnerable, similar to that flashback with his mother, and they cut them.

and with inej, well, one of those scenes also had her opening up a little about her trauma, or more specifically, about her brother, and i can’t help but feel a little like the writers gave her a brother so it would be easier to get her to stick with kaz and side with him at certain points. meanwhile all of her trauma regarding being trafficked and forced to work in the menagerie is kind of swept under the rug

(THEY KILLED TANTE HELEEN OFF-SCREEN!! THE LYNCHPIN OF INEJ’S ARC ABOUT OVERCOMING HER TRAUMA AND OVERPOWERING THOSE WHO HELD SO MUCH PSYCHOLOGICAL POWER OVER HER!!! AND THEY KILLED HER OFF-SCREEN!!)

this is not me whining about the books being better (well arguably it is a little bit) but i really do urge anyone who likes the show to at least read the six of crows duology, because we get a lot more on how inej feels about heleen and the menagerie—for a long time, she has panic attacks whenever she tries to walk past the building in the street, her standing up to heleen is a huge moment of healing and fighting back for her, and the brunt of that in the show seems to be done by amita suman’s (incredible) acting, rather than actual dialogue and it being the point of a scene—compared to, say, kaz’s trauma over his brother getting multiple flashbacks across the season, and jesper getting a really sweet (if somewhat rushed) scene with his mother and accepting that he’s grisha

now i’m not saying they should’ve had scenes showing inej’s time at the menagerie, but after the first season set stuff up, including jordie and jesper being grisha, i was expecting more expansion on inej’s trauma, and maybe it’s just me but it really felt like “i was forced into sex slavery and duped into signing away my freedom to a horrifically physically abusive woman” had been pushed aside in favour of “i want to find my missing brother and the guy i like has a phobia of human contact”

which, like, perfectly reasonable storylines, and excellently fleshed out (well, one of them anyway), but a core facet of inej’s character and arc is her working to leave ‘the lynx’ behind, and becoming the wraith is a part of that healing, until, by the end of the duology, she leaves that behind too and becomes a ship captain—she doesn’t need to hide in shadows anymore to protect herself.

and she finds her parents! she’s reunited with her family and it’s really sweet! they didn’t need to add in a brother, and i really do suspect it was to make her more sympathetic to kaz—which wasn’t needed! she was exactly as willing to throw down against pekka in the books, when she didn’t have a brother who got kidnapped with her!

[stereogeekspodcast]

[Transcript] Season 4, Episode 9. Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire

One of the best shows on television right now is Interview With the Vampire. The Stereo Geeks review the first two seasons and share their hopes for season 3. Spoilers ahead

Listen to the episode on Spotify.

Ron: Hello and welcome to a new episode of Stereo Geeks. Today we’re reviewing Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire. 

I’m Ron.

Mon: And I’m Mon.

Ron: We will be discussing both seasons of Interview with the Vampire so beware of spoilers. 

Mon: We have a long connection with the Vampire Chronicles. We heard about them when we became fans of the Aussie band Savage Garden, their name was taken from this series. We decided to give the first book a read and even watched the rightfully panned film adaptation. I’ve gone on to read several more of the books. 

Ron: I did learn from my WWAC colleagues that the movie was a box office success in North America. That’s not what we heard in our part of the world!

Mon: Oh interesting. Let’s call it a critical failure then. 

The books are an… acquired taste. They’ve certainly gone places–they’re weird, and sometimes problematic, but the appeal, for the few of us who’ve read them, has been the expansive, complicated world filled with characters who are not defined by labels. 

When I heard they were adapting the series into a TV show, I’ll admit, I was concerned. What exactly would they adapt? It’s easy to fall into the traps and tropes of a vampire story featuring two male, immortal leads–the film is there as proof. Would the show head the same way?

Season 1 thoughts 

Mon: I started watching the first season from a hyper-critical point of view. I was so immersed in everything that I thought I didn’t like that I clean forgot to enjoy the first few episodes.

In fact, I didn’t relax until you started watching it, Ron. And then I saw the show from a completely different angle–this is not a show that cares about your comfort. It’s a show about larger-than-life, extraordinary characters desperately trying to be normal. But what is normal when you’re an ancient vampire?

Ron: What made you so tense about the show? I remember asking you if I should watch it and you were so unsure!

Mon: The violence, gore, and depravity–these are not stylistic elements that I like to engage in in my entertainment, and Interview has a lot of that. So, I convinced myself that I didn’t like this show. It was a guilty watch, and maybe a guilty pleasure. But I was wrong–it’s not a guilty anything, it’s art; it’s storytelling. Interview is very direct about the pain and suffering these characters face and cause. This show made me realize something about myself, I don’t like being uncomfortable, and these characters make you uncomfortable. Deal with it. And now I’m ok enough to deal with it that we’re doing a whole episode on the show. 

Ron: Okay wow. I also don’t like being uncomfortable or cringey but those were the exact elements that took this show through the stratosphere for me. I loved the first season. I didn’t know what to expect from it but it was a fascinating character study, and an examination of relationships. It wasn’t afraid of being camp and queer because that’s what the people of the time didn’t want to see but Louis and Lestat were shoving the campness in their faces. And it really leaned into the unbearable discomfort of unhappy relationships. 

Ron: The race swap for Louis de Pointe du Lac, played by Jacob Anderson, was a stroke of genius. As was setting the start of the story in the early 1900s. It really complicates the story world and Louis’ relationship with Lestat de Lioncourt, played by Sam Reid.

Mon: You never know what brilliance will emerge from one change, but race-swapping Louis gives the show, at least in the first season, a whole new dynamic. I wrote about why this change elevated the story at Collider.com. We’ve linked to the piece in our show notes. 

Ron: Season 1 took us into Louis’ world. He’s a Black man making his way in a New Orleans that is very white and segregated. He’s still treated like a second class citizen even by the people who are regular patrons at his establishment. But among his own people, he’s terrified of being his true queer self. Lestat gave him a way to transcend the social norms of heterosexuality and race. But then Lestat is the one who becomes such a danger to Louis. We get a few episodes of the two of them just being happy together and then when they find Claudia, played by Bailey Bass in season 1, they’re this happy little family. Of course everything goes to hell. And so much of that is down to the toxic dynamic between Lestat, Louis and Claudia. 

Mon: The main reason the raceswap works, along with setting the story during the Jim Crow era, is that it becomes more than just a vampire story. Now it’s a story about race and discrimination, retribution and justice. Louis is white in the books, has plantation connections, which means he would have had slaves. Even if it was never addressed in the show, how much would we like, let alone, love him, in the show? 

Ron: I’m going to interject here to recommend a very good YouTube video by Princess Weekes about the numerous confederate vampire stories out there. We’ll link to it in the show notes. 

Mon: My favourite thing about the raceswap is that it gives new meaning to Louis and Lestat’s relationship. Suddenly the story isn’t just about lust and longing, it’s about saving and belonging. 

Ron: I am very impressed by the direction they went with for Daniel Molloy, played by Eric Bogosian. He is not afraid to call Louis out for creating this fantasy version of Lestat in his head for his memoirs. He’s also the one who puts into words that Louis and Lestat’s relationship was abusive.

Mon: The role of the interviewer in a story can be such a thankless and boring choice for an actor, and yet, Daniel Molloy, is as much a character in the story as Louis and the rest of the vampires. I was initially concerned with the choice to age-up Daniel that much, but there’s a whole new dimension to his and Louis’ interactions knowing that this is part 2 of their interview, and not their first meeting.

Ron: Speaking of the change to Daniel, I haven’t read the books. How faithful is this series to the books you read?

Mon: The show differs from the books quite a bit. Daniel being older is one thing, and this is, essentially, a re-write of how Louis told his story before. 

Claudia having a two-season arc is only possible because they fill out her role so much. And it’s for the better as well. I don’t remember Antoinette in the books–Lestat did not have a romantic paramour to make Louis jealous, not one I recall, anyway. He was just mean. The timelines are off, which isn’t a bad thing, but it’s hard to keep track of where I am in the adaptation. It’s small fry. The creators are using beats from the books to tell their story, not necessarily the same story as the books. 

Ron: So things like that reveal in the season 1 finale with Louis declaring Armand, his greatest love. That wasn’t in the movie so it was a surprise that got me. Especially since Armand, played by Assad Zaman, had been pretending to be Louis’ housekeeper Rashid all season. What a way to get us excited for season two. 

Mon: I loved that reveal. Did not see it coming. And I especially like that we get a Spaniard of Indian origin. Europeans of colour do not often show up on screen in a significant way. And it made perfect sense too–because, in the books, Louis and Armand are together.

Season 2 thoughts 

Ron: The second season has a very different tone and style than season 1. It’s very focused on the Théâtre des Vampires and there are extensive scenes of the rehearsals and plays the vampires put on. There’s a lot we see of a new character, Santiago, who is played by Ben Daniels.

Mon: Yeah, Season 2 is vicious, and stressful. This show does not ease up. And the tensions within tensions of who’s playing whom are diabolical. Plus, the threads that Daniel, and the viewer, keep trying to pull at about Louis’ story and Armand’s hand in everything that happened to Claudia make this riveting viewing. 

Mon: I don’t remember the Théâtre des Vampires having such a large role in the books, it was probably just one section. This is a significant change in the show, but gives Louis and Claudia the screen time needed to develop their relationship, not to mention we get to see Louis and Armand’s romance grow.

For some reason, I can’t remember Santiago from the books, even though I know he plays an important part in the story. I’ve just blanked him out. The show’s version is super memorable though.

Ron: The expanded world of vampires that we’re introduced to is interesting and grotesque. The first few episodes see Louis and Claudia travelling Europe during World War II looking for vampires and instead they keep running into the worst of humanity, because you know, war. And when they finally meet vampires in Romania, it’s an absolute horror show. They’re starved and near death and being led by this vampire who’s too old and too frail. It’s only in France that the coven finds them and for Claudia especially, this is such an amazing experience because she gets to be with vampires who aren’t abusive, like Lestat, or monsters, like Bruce from season one. But that doesn’t pan out either! By the end of season 2, the vampires are openly admitting to their monstrousness, but it’s just so unfair to Claudia, who got to see so little good in her human and vampiric life. 

Mon: See, this is why I’m so glad you decided to watch the show despite my apprehension. You’re watching this like a character study, which is exactly what it is. I don’t know what I was doing, but I’m so glad I get to chat with you about this show. 

Ron: Gee thanks. I’m super surprised by your apprehension. We’ve had such a long association with this story that I honestly couldn’t wait to see it. I didn’t expect it to be a character study but from the moment Louis appeared on screen, I knew this wasn’t going to be a salacious, surface-level plot about vampires killing people. 

Ron: The first season was really a study of the three main characters and their dynamic. In the second season there isn’t as much Louis but the world became so much richer, that I didn’t mind it as much. Lestat spends most of this season as Dreamstat, this idealized version of the real person in Louis’ head.  

Mon: Dreamstat is a cool nickname. 

Ron: I can’t take credit; the internet named him that. 

Mon: Funny that you felt there wasn’t enough Louis in Season 2. I was surprised at how little Lestat there was. It makes sense, of course, the first book doesn’t have much Lestat, but I didn’t think the show would sideline the main white guy. I’m very cynical. But Lestat taking a step back meant Claudia and Armand took centre stage, and I’m all for that. 

Ron: Delainey Hayles takes over as Claudia in the second season. Excellent choice. The casting change felt surprisingly seamless for me. 

Mon: Absolutely seamless casting. She matched Bass’s energy, but brought so much more anger and pathos. Plus, she spouted so much dialogue in so many different languages. 

Ron: Hayles managed to follow in Bass’ footsteps while making the role completely her own. Her screen time is expanded this season and that is for the betterment of the show. We get a proper sense of just how hard it is to be her, a grown woman trapped in the body of a child for all eternity. What was essentially a selfless act to save a child’s life has turned into a cruel and selfish decision that Louis and Lestat made on Claudia’s behalf. 

Acting

Ron: Jacob Anderson is remarkable. I love watching him. He’s so expressive but knows when to hold back. That scene in the 70s when he’s absolutely tearing into Armand, calling him boring, all while this fake blood is plastered on his face, it was so incredible to watch. The loving father-daughter bond between Louis and Claudia, Anderson absolutely sells it. In season two they’re more brother and sister because of Claudia’s insistence on it but one can see that Louis loves her like a daughter. And yet! Louis struggles to deal with the harsher side of being a parent. Learning the truth about what Bruce did to Claudia, Louis sits in his coffin and cries quietly. And the whole time I’m yelling to the screen, to Louis, to go and hug his child. 

Mon: BT dubs, there’s no Bruce in the books. 

Ron: Oh interesting. 

That final two-parter in season 2 when Lestat finally admits to having hurt Louis, and his apology, Anderson’s acting was sublime. Without a single word, just with his expressions, he tells the audience how little he thinks of Lestat’s apology. It’s a masterpiece. 

Mon: He’s stellar. Where’s he been all this time?

Let’s talk about Assad Zaman as well. He’s British of Bangladeshi origin. In Interview, we learn that Armand was originally Arun from India (which Bangladesh would have been part of during that period), sold to slavery and taken to Spain, where Marius found him, renamed him Amadeo, and then turned him into a vampire. He’s so good at playing this tragic character, a reluctant hero and leader, but also so devious. I’m just floored by the layers of his performance. He can convey so much by just sitting in place with his head cocked to one side. 

Ron: Assad was a delight to watch. Even with those contact lenses, you could always tell when Armand was being his true self, when he was hiding something, and when he was truly sorry about something that had gone down. I’m so glad he got such a large role here. It made up for the lack of Lestat. 

Mon: And let’s not forget the Brat Prince himself, Lestat. Sam Reid is so good at stepping away from the spotlight and then stealing it when needed. He plays Lestat’s narcissism so well; he’s cruel and mean and yet he knows how to convey his heart break. In Season 2, he has so little to do and yet he commands the camera so well. 

Ron: I did not know Lestat was called the Brat Prince. What a hilarious name. I feel like Sam Reid had a really tough task. Tom Cruise has such a massive fan base and people still love his Lestat. Even Stuart Townsend got some fans for his performance. But Reid makes Lestat his own. It helps that he has insane chemistry with Jacob Anderson. Their Louis and Lestat are very believable as a couple. Reid does a good job of playing up the charm when Lestat wants something, and he’s downright terrifying when things aren’t going his way. But I like that he can still bring pathos to Lestat. He’s not just over the top—Lestat is trying to live his best life when he no longer understands what living is meant to be. What’s life to an immortal? And somehow Reid manages to make that a relevant existential question for us mortals. 

Ron: Both Bass and Hayles were excellent as Claudia but Hayles got to be a lot of different versions of Claudia. Hayles brings a great deal of rage and frustration to Claudia because she is so much older by season 2, yet she’s still being treated like a child. And that awful show she has to put on for the theatre. I love how committed the actors are to these characters and this story because, after all, vampires aren’t real, and immortality isn’t a problem for us, but they demonstrate the pathos of their characters’ situations to make it seem like reality. 

Mon: Bass and Hayles are stars in the making. I hope they get fantastic opportunities. You don’t bring that level of energy and complexity and only get a season to flaunt it. 

Queerness

Ron: This show is so unapologetically queer. Straight people? Never heard of them! Well, not really, but the central romantic triangle is these three men from three very different parts of the world. The scene in the finale when Louis declares to Lestat that he’s going to spend his life with Armand, that’s the epitome of queerness in this show. But it really sucks that Louis thinks he can only be with these two awful men. He keeps seesawing between them and they both suck!

Mon: The books are very gay, but sometimes too vague about it, which annoys me. The show is clearer and gayer, which I really like. I was worried about that going in because Anne Rice had a whole homophobe stage of her life–don’t ask me—but she walked it back, I guess, seeing as she and her son had a hand in getting this series off the ground, and the show is not shy about being queer. 

Mon: The Season 2 finale comes down to one thing–this is a love story. It’s about a man, Louis, desperate for love. He’s known it with Lestat and Armand, and they’re both devils, but they’re safe and known devils. It’s cute in the most dramatically violent way. You can’t blame Louis for his poor choices in men—he had to hide his sexuality for a long time and he struggles with being a vampire, at least in the past, so vampires who love him back, even if they’re toxic, is perhaps comforting to him. 

Ron: And then Claudia gets a romance with Madeleine which isn’t in the books, is it? 

Mon: Is it a romance here? Or is it a companionship? Claudia’s an old soul in a child’s body, so can Madeleine love her romantically? I like that they leave it vague. 

Ron: In the book, Madeleine and Claudia had a mother-daughter relationship but that doesn’t work in the show’s story. Claudia wants to be an equal so she wouldn’t have wanted a mother. But it’s so tricky with Claudia being 14 forever—how do they give her a partner who isn’t immediately suspect for wanting to be with a 14 year old. I like how they built up the friendship between Claudia and Madeleine, laid the groundwork for Madeleine understanding what Claudia is, and they only get together after Madeleine is turned into a vampire. It worked for me. Of course, now they’re both dead so… I guess we don’t have to think about it anymore. 

Hopes for season 3

Ron: The show has now been renewed for a third season and it’s set to be following Lestat’s music career. The finale of season 2 sets that up very subtly! I would love to spend more time in that world but I’m worried about where Louis might fit in.

Mon: Lestat starting his rockstar career is going to be wild. But who he’s starting it with is even wilder, because the characters mentioned in the Season 3 summary weren’t in the band in the books.

Mon: The show is now so different from the books, that I can’t predict what a Season 3 will look like. I mean, they mention space in the Season 3 summary. Space! Dude, it’s too soon for this space stuff.

Ron: So I’m trying to avoid all this information about season 3 but space huh?

Mon: Yep, space. Let’s leave it at that.

The fact that Lestat has Akasha’s blood in the past is a huge change in the timeline. Akasha and Enkil are the original vampires, from whom all vampires are born. That’s been retconned, somewhat in recent books, but let’s not get into that. Lestat having Akasha’s blood is the reason he’s virtually unkillable. It explains why he survived Season 1, but this throwaway line in the finale makes it tricky for them to adapt the storylines from Queen of the Damned onwards.

Anyway, back to Louis. Louis’ fate is with Armand or Lestat. In the books, Louis is with Armand. Them breaking up in Season 2 is a big deviation. Who’s he going to end up with finally, especially since Lestat has other lovers from the books who could be introduced. 

Ron: I’d also love to see more of Daniel Molloy. He’s a vampire now. Who turned him? Is it Armand? How does he feel about being an older vampire? I want to see the world through vampire-Daniel’s eyes. And I would really like to explore his relationship with Louis. They’re clearly fond of each other. 

Mon: In the books, Armand turned Daniel. And Louis seems to suggest the same in the finale, but who knows. They’re always surprising us. 

Mon: I’m intrigued by the introduction of the Talamasca in Season 2, and I understand there’s a show coming as well. The Talamasca are a secret society, kinda like the X-Files but for occult creatures. How interesting will that be? I’m not sure. I watched the first season of the other AMC show, Mayfair Witches. That’s also adapted from a series in the same Immortal Universe, and Lestat popped up in the books a couple of times. I could not get into that show at all. Not enough gay people. Hehehehehehe.

Ron: The queerness of Interview is such a highlight for me. It’s hard to watch straight shows now. Haha. 

Mon: But, honestly, I think we’re invested in Interview because Lestat and Louis have been a part of our lives for a really long time, and the creators have made a show that’s not just about them being vampires. It’s about people, and the messiness that comes with it. I didn’t find that in Mayfair. So, what’s the Talamasca show going to have? Lestat’s long-time partner, David Talbot is/was part of the Talamasca. He’s not joined Interview yet, so that’s a possible connection to interest us.

Speaking of David, I don’t know if they’ll be able to introduce him, or if Daniel will take over that role. I say that because Daniel has met Raglan James–the Talamasca dude in the sushi bar in Season 2, and David enters the books when Lestat encounters Raglan. I’ll admit, I’m gutted that Raglan seems to be an old white guy on the show. He’s a body snatcher in the books, and when Lestat meets him, he’s in the body of an Anglo-Indian man. I think, in a way, the creators tried to appease us by making Armand Indian instead. 

All to say, I haven’t a clue what to expect next. There are so many books to be adapted, but Louis’ not in them much, if at all. If they pivot to Lestat being the main character, I worry that they’ll lose the viewers, many of whom have tuned in specifically because Louis is Black and has a certain lived experience. But I want more seasons, and I have hope that the creators will make the right choices in telling the stories needed.

Ron: I want to add that this show has such a fan following. Two podcasts I’ve been listening to did entire series on this show because they became so obsessed with it. I’ve had random people I follow on Twitter regularly calling on more people to watch the show because it is literal perfection. I can’t think of anything I would change. I’m desperate to get my hands on some of the scripts because it’s going to help me become a better a writer. And some of the direction for this second season especially, that scene when the Theatres abduct Louis, Claudia and Madeleine and the background actors are frozen, or rather acting frozen, they really knew how to ratchet up the suspense. 

Mon: This show is literally art–there are screengrabs from this show that are homages to artworks. We need more of that. And we need more shows that effortlessly include queer stories and feature characters from different races and ethnicities. This show has done that for two seasons. It could do so much more if the seasons continue.

Season 1 was about racial dynamics and interpersonal relationships in a world that doesn’t accept queer people. Season 2 was about autonomy, especially bodily autonomy, and monstrosity—what it really means when applied to people, be they vampire or human. The show can examine anything and everything and wrap it around a glorious romance. I’d love to see that. 

[artbookisland]

What I’m reading these days #5

Previously:

* What I’m reading these days #01 * What I’m reading these days #02 * What I’m reading these days #03 * What I’m reading these days #04

Hey everyone, I hope you're doing all right! It's been a long while since I wrote one of these posts, almost 5 years actually... Yeah, recently I've been more focused on sharing scans than texts like these or artbook reviews, sorry!

Anway, these days I'm reading four cool books at once so I figured I could make you (re)discover something, so let's go!

What a surprise, yes, I'm reading Dragon Ball again, last time was 6 years ago so I thought I could revisit this cool universe that always brings me back to my childhood. In France we have a "Perfect Edition" which has a bigger format than usual mangas, a new translation and all the original colour pages so it's a great pleasure to read! I'm always in awe when looking at Toriyama's watercolours, they were absolutely beautiful.

I'm not going to dive much further into Dragon Ball because I've already talked about it a lot, maybe take a look at this old article. 

///

Now something completely different, if you are an avid TV show enthusiast, you might have watched the sci-fi show The Expanse. I discovered it after a few seasons had already aired and really enjoyed it (except maybe the last two seasons which had some flaws in my opinion). I quickly learned that before being on TV it was a very good series of books by a couple of authors writing under a single name: James S.A. Corey. So naturally I started buying and reading these books, loved them and realised that the adaptation was quite good. It took some years but I eventually finished reading the nine books and at that moment, just when I thought I was out of this amazing universe, I saw that there was a collection of The Expanse short stories published under the title Memory's Legion.

So that's what I'm reading right now and just like the rest of the series, it's very cool and definitely fills some interesting holes in the Expanse's lore (plus I always enjoy good sci-fi short stories)! You will learn a little bit more about the guy who came up with the Epstein drive that made space travel a lot easier in the story, the backstory of a cruel but intriguing character (Cortazar), the life of a young Amos (even before he was called Amos), etc. It's a very good read if, like me, you've finished the main series and still want more!

///

Let's keep our heads towards the sky for this next book: Moonfire by Norman Mailer. I stumbled upon it in a bookstore in Lyon, France and the cover immediately caught my eye. It's a small but thick book which contains as much text as photos from NASA's Apollo 11 mission (the first time humans beings walked on the Moon back in 1969). Being an astronomy and space exploration fan I just had to buy it and I'm glad I did!

Actually I thought it would be a historico-scientific recollection of this incredible event of the XXth century but that's because I didn't know Norman Mailer! I will let you read his Wikipedia page but he wasn't "just" a writer, he also was a journalist, a poet, an essayist and so on. So instead of simply telling us what happened in that important period of human history, he includes himself in the story as a character and shares his thoughts about the situations, the people, the technology, etc. It makes for a surprising yet very interesting read as he takes this unique opportunity to analyze, criticize even our modern society and more specifically the USA's society of the time.

I'm about halfway through the book and I really enjoy Mailer's way of telling the story but also the incredible photos of the event, most of them taken during the mission itself by astronauts Armstrong, Aldrin and Collins, I cannot stop looking at these shots and wonder what their experience was like. They freakin' walked on another celestial body (actually only two of them did while Collins was busy being the loneliest person in the history of Human life, flying above the far side of the Moon)!

///

A couple of my friends work at a local comic book shop and thanks to them I often discover very cool comics, mangas and bandes dessinées (what we call european comics in France). Also it's worth mentioning that the french publisher Urban Comics (they publish a lot of american comics here) is trying to make a selection of their books more affordable and compact for people who don't have much money or space in their home that they can dedicate to comic books. And so in this effort they have started a collection called "Urban Nomad" in which all prices are below 10€ (approx. 10 USD). The first one I picked is Watchmen.

I have watched the movie adaptation when it came out... 14 years ago (ouch!) and really liked it but kind of forgot about it, which is a good thing because now I can re-discover the story in its original format: on paper!

And what a story! Since the first pages I was sucked in by the strength of writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons and colorist John Higgins. The story is so good and feels so contemporary that I have to keep reminding myself that this was made in 1986-87! If you don't know anything about Watchmen I won't spoil it for you but the story takes place in a version of our world where masked vigilantes are already has-been, one of the reasons being the accidental transformation of a man into a God-like version of himself. Because of this event, the course of history is different from the one we know and live in, and in this context one of the few remaining masked vigilantes (pictured on the cover) is investigating a series of murders among his former colleagues. This is all extremely well integrated into the politico-historic context of the time (though once again it's somewhat different from our reality) and it's easy to recognize the quality of Moore and Gibbons' work!

///

Well, that's it for now, I hope you've discovered something, if so let me know! And I'll try not to wait five more years to write a "What I'm reading these days" again. See ya!

[firespirited]

Silo is great TV. Well written, well acted, well designed, decent pacing and stakes, a few clichés and odd accent choices here and there but a solid thrilling story.

I'm just a little burnt out on sci-fi noir, especially with a cliffhanger. Noir and the dystopia are the main sci fi types that get adapted or even get big and I've been reading or watching it for thirty years now. I just don't enjoy the catharsis of finding the truth at great cost unless there's a significant arc of character growth involved at this point and that's not something the descriptions or reviews mention.

That's the nugget of gold I'm looking for: it was present in the final episodes of Station Eleven, it was in Altered Carbon s2 Takeshi encountering his clone at a different stage in life, to cite recent examples. Sometimes the premise is the compelling factor which is why I'll probably watch Foundation and hope it isn't another noir but in the future =p.

I just don't care about the world building or sets anymore. Last year I watched a show set in some garage with styrofoam and hardware store props made to look like a futuristic prison cell and and it was compelling anyway. The noir is built on grief then some satisfaction at finding out why, how and maybe fixing it for the future. Ok, well I've done that a hundred times at least so it needs to end properly and have serious character growth. Hopefully the next season or more will complete the arc and story. I reserve my judgement for now, it's a solid story but it's just a noir like too many others.

I feel like we need a descriptor for sci fi stories stories so people like me, with dystopia 'survival' or dystopia 'noir' fatigue, can tell from a word that this one is different.

I actively avoid the survival genre but made an exception for Station Eleven because of the deliberate subversion (almost gave up on it too), I would like to know when to make exceptions or just strap in for a noir story because I don't hate them, I just need to be in the right head space.

I'm thinking the larger problem is might be a problem of reviewers: long term viewers of genre TV that are less focused on the mechanics/aesthetics of the worlds and quality of the acting/writing and a big picture view: is this character study satisfying? Is this a novel way of exploring social dynamics or are we rehashing class struggle but with different terms.

The Expanse did all that great but lost me once we moved away from character growth and other forms of sentience and the mess of season 3 which was ye olde lord of the flies with adults, army surplus props and probably in Vancouver. Do you have any idea how many times that's been done since the late 90s? You have any idea what kind of intense character study it would take to get me to watch Yellowjackets? It would have to be all bottle episodes, no mystery, no strategic withholding to keep you hooked, just full truth then psychological deep dives.

Anyway good TV, probably fantastic books.

I enjoyed Childhoods End so much more despite stupid pacing, surface level farm dude,a 'bad' end, and Charles Dance in a ridiculous modern-Satan-lore rubber costume because it made me wonder and ponder ethics at mass scale. (here's hoping Foundation tackles that) That felt fresh.

8/10 - gripping, really enjoyed the engine repair, the glimpses into smaller character's lives. There's a brief shot of a wheelchair user being carried up stairs so I'm guessing folks like me just live on their level and don't travel. Obviously I knew it was noir from the first episode and it was good enough for me to stick with it and probably get the books from the library (I really hope season 2 gives us more growth for Juliette and her people and I'd like more sci fi that expands the mind with wild concepts and brave hopes. ) .

[mlobsters]

was trying to watch the next supernatural episode and ...

just cried (again) over some comparative thing i'm doing for midnight mass and true detective, but was like it's spn watching time, not working on a dumb little project time. so i'm not sure i'm in a great mindset. let's see

oh maybe i should rewatch the s8e23 church scene now, see if it gets a response this time. science! nope. wtf. i'm one of the weepiest motherfuckers out there, i don't get this at all.

so i was thinking maybe i should bail on the ep today and see if i can grab some music from the expanse that might be similar to the bit used in the scene i mentioned.

well i don't remember the show well enough to think of specific scenes with that particular type of music so i go watch the title sequence to see if the music is close enough (which are FUCKING GORGEOUS and the MUSIC [composed by clinton shorter]) and that, people of the jury, MADE ME CRY. see: weepiest motherfucker. but sam breaking down in the church, nothing??? does not compute.

you know how sometimes a show will have a fucking slick, amazing title sequence with just the right music and you're like hot DAMN this show is gonna be awesome. but the titles wrote a check the show sadly could not cash? well, not the case with the expanse! i've read hundreds of scifi novels. i felt like so few movies (and rarer, tv shows) captured the feeling of even your run of the mill scifi book. this series delivered on a wish i had in my head for science fiction on tv. i read the books first, and the tv adaptation in some ways is better. and i really enjoyed the books, very much so.

anyway, i am terrible at selling people on watching things. but watch the expanse if you have even an iota of interest in science fiction. no caveats! some shows are recommended with reservations by me (a la america's test kitchen) like: the magicians. but the expanse is like, best buy, recommended ✅✅

fun fact maybe, clinton shorter did the music for district 9 too. that's a movie that also delivered on a wish, but it was hard to watch because of the emotions, so i haven't rewatched it

[endpoem]

Stuff I liked in 2022

‘Saul’ good (and other TV)

It’s not easy to say goodbye to Better Call Saul, the supposed end of Vince Gilligan’s Albuquerque cycle. I bought my dad the complete Breaking Bad on DVD for Christmas in 2014, and we watched the entire thing together, back before I had kids or a real full-time career. Jesse Pinkman, Nacho, Jimmy and Kim—these characters have meant the world to me for the better part of a decade, and Saul was absolutely the pinnacle.

El Camino, Saul season five, and the two halves of season six have been such a gift of flawless storytelling these last few years; sometimes they were the thing that got me out of bed in the morning. Logging into work on a Monday ain’t so bad when you’ve got more of Kim and Jimmy’s mischief to look forward to. Peter Gould, Gilligan, and company stuck the landing. If one of your favorite characters must die, you can’t ask for a more beautiful sendoff than “Rock and Hard Place.”

Bob Odenkirk’s book, Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama: A Memoir, was a great way to spend a weekend, as well, deepening my appreciation for an actor who’d already won my heart in the first couple seasons of Saul. (I’ll admit it: The character was never my favorite part of Breaking Bad. It took the Jimmy dimension to win me over and sell me on the idea of a spinoff. Mission accomplished, I guess.)

It’s a nice treat to see Odenkirk back in his home country of comedy, and it made for a good excuse to watch Mr. Show season one while I was waiting for Better Call Saul to come back from its mid-season break. Bob and I have a shocking number of things in common: five-nine, Irish-Catholic, Illinois guys, a cynicism born of trauma, severe impostor syndrome, et cetera. Anyway, I can’t wait to see what he does next.

I loved Atlanta season three; “New Jazz” was my favorite episode by far, probably because it focuses on Al (Paper Boi) and is weird even by Atlanta standards. I also enjoyed Stranger Things season four, which was a definite high for that series—Joseph Quinn was brilliant. And as a Halo fan going all the way back to 2001, I mostly dug the TV adaptation’s first season, though the finale was a bummer.

I’m a couple seasons into a Mad Men rewatch, trying to fill the void left by the Gilliverse, and it’s a different show now that I’m a father with two kids and more of a career. Unbelievably good.

‘The Rings of Power,’ classic Tolkien, and other fantasies

This was the year I got really into epic fantasy outside of, say, the Elder Scrolls games. The Rings of Power came along just in time to cure my post-Saul blues, and it certainly did the trick. It’s a gorgeous (and expensive) spectacle, with a rich, expansive world, mythic stakes, and some really great performances. And have you seen how beautiful that cast is? I’ve been known to develop the occasional TV or movie crush, Your Honor, but Morfydd Clark’s Galadriel is in a league of her own. My God. She’s great in Saint Maud, too.

After Rings of Power, I rewatched the extended cuts of the movie trilogy and bought a stack of books for good measure—The Hobbit, Rings, The Silmarillion, The Fall of Númenor, Tolkien’s translation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I just finished Fellowship of the Ring, which is exquisite, and I’ve been reading The Hobbit aloud to my daughter. We’re about three-fourths of the way through that one.

I finally saw the original Willow and Legend (1985) earlier this year, and thought both were excellent. (The Legend Blu-ray from Arrow Video looks stunning.) House of the Dragon was pretty fantastic—as good as Game of Thrones in its earlier seasons, only more focused. And the Disney Plus Willow series is probably my second-favorite fantasy work of 2022; it’s playing around with the same kind of Lovecraftian terror as John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness, and I can’t help but see it as a riff on the Star Wars sequel trilogy.

‘Andor’ and more

There was some good star stuff on the tube this year. “The Tribes of Tatooine,” the second episode of Book of Boba, elevated that series above the disposable feel of Mandalorian season two (“The Believer” notwithstanding). And Deborah Chow’s Obi-Wan Kenobi gave those of us who grew up on the prequels a magnificent bookend to the Obi-and-Ani relationship.

Light & Magic, the six-part docuseries on ILM, offered a phenomenal overview of special-effects history beginning with the inception of Star Wars and ending with the biggest breakthroughs of the CGI era. You could easily do a second season on the last couple decades of blockbusters and stuff like StageCraft, but maybe that’s a series for down the road.

But of course no Star Wars discussion this year could pass without addressing the main event, Andor, which can safely be called the best Star Wars story since 1983. Tony Gilroy is a masterful writer and showrunner, responsible for much of what people loved in Rogue One, and he brings all his intelligence and rage and love to Andor. He and his crew ought to be very proud. Who knew that all Star Wars needed was more Andy Serkis and Diego Luna? Gilroy, evidently.

Shadow of the Sith, a 496-page novel by Adam Christopher, was another Star Wars highlight in 2022. If you’re looking for a good Luke Skywalker book, or a good Lando Calrissian book—or some spooky Sith magic—you’ll find all of that and more in this moving Rise of Skywalker tie-in. For those curious about Rey’s parents, this is largely their story, as well, and it’s beautifully done. My favorite Star Wars book in years.

Always gamin’

I’m not a full-time games journalist anymore, so my gaming habits are a lot more relaxed than they used to be. Which is to say I play to have fun, now, and I can’t recommend it enough. I buy far fewer new games these days, for one, though I did love Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, and several games I’ve started but not yet finished.

One of my biggest games this year was Final Fantasy VII Remake, which I finally finished on the PS5. Hell of a game—if any video game can be called a masterpiece, that one comfortably belongs in the category. I also rolled credits on Mass Effect 2 and 3, and thought the latter was far superior to the middle chapter in spite of the general consensus. Regardless of how you feel about the very end, that game is quite an achievement for BioWare, and I hope Dragon Age: Dreadwolf is even half as engrossing.

I spent a lot of time playing Fortnite and Call of Duty online this year—something I plan to do a lot less of in 2023—but had plenty of fun doing it. I replayed a lot of familiar favorites: Skyrim, Halo Infinite, Fallout: New Vegas, Miles Morales. Most of my hours on the Nintendo Switch were spent with KotOR and KotOR II, and I’m currently struggling through an attempt to replay Morrowind on the Xbox, which is both painful and rewarding. I’m rediscovering a lot of the reasons why I fell in love with it twenty years ago.

At the movies

I didn’t go to the theater much this year, but I did watch 209 movies—most of them at home on my 65-inch TCL 5-Series. My top ten films of 2022 were The Fabelmans, Top Gun: Maverick, Elvis, del Toro’s Pinocchio, Watcher, Everything Everywhere All at Once, Pearl, The Batman, Nope, and Hellraiser. Fabelmans and Top Gun in particular made my heart soar; it’s nice to see both Spielberg and Cruise still delivering career-best work a full two decades after Minority Report, which was my favorite movie for a long time.

Outside of those ten, I also loved Kimi, Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, Revealer, and Confess, Fletch.

As far as new-to-me classics, I had a very fulfilling year working my way through the gaps in my Carpenter and Mann viewing, if nothing else—They Live, Prince of Darkness, Elvis ’79, Big Trouble in Little China, In the Mouth of Madness, Cigarette Burns, Ali, The Insider, The Keep… I spent a lot of time studying my favorite Carpenter flicks last year as I wrote the treatment for a horror script that’s lived in my head for a while, but I didn’t want to watch Prince of Darkness till after I’d finished a detailed outline of the story. In 2022, I logged fifteen Carpenter films and seven from Mann.

I saw Citizen Kane, F for Fake, The Bride of Frankenstein, The Godfather, Part II, Solaris (2002), The Meyerowitz Stories (every bit as good as Marriage Story), Twin Peaks season two and The Missing Pieces, Killing Them Softly, Jaws, Your Name, The Gambler (the one with James Caan, not Marky Mark), Bonnie and Clyde, Near Dark, The Hidden, Silent Running, the original 3:10 to Yuma, Joe Kidd.

It’s been a hard, stressful, scary, transformative year. But I’m grateful for the strides I made, both personal and professional, and for the media and stories that inspired me along the way.

Subscribe to my Substack newsletter.

[mybookplacenet]

Author Interview: Michelle M. Pillow

Tell us about yourself.: I'm Michelle M. Pillow, a NY Times and USA TODAY bestselling author with over a million books sold. I write across various genres but am best known for my romance and mystery novels. My fascination with the supernatural and the paranormal has always been a driving force in my writing. Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?: I grew up in the Midwest, where the blend of urban life and natural beauty often inspired my storytelling. The region's rich history and diverse culture provided a fertile ground for my imagination, fueling my interest in creating intricate, magical worlds. Do you have any unusual writing habits? I often write late into the night when the world is quiet. My writing setup changes depending on my mood and the stage of the writing process. I use a combination of notebooks, Post-it notes, and digital tools to keep track of ideas and plot points. You’ll often find me writing at my kitchen table or sitting up in bed with the TV on in the background. What authors have influenced you? I grew up in the Midwest, where the blend of urban life and natural beauty often inspired my storytelling. The region's rich history and diverse culture provided a fertile ground for my imagination, fueling my interest in creating intricate, magical worlds. Do you have any advice for new authors? Write consistently and don’t give up. The journey of writing and publishing can be challenging, but persistence and passion are essential. Don’t be afraid to revise and improve your work. Surround yourself with supportive people who believe in your vision, and always stay true to your unique voice and stories. What is the best advice you have ever been given? The best advice I’ve ever received is to trust the process and believe in your unique voice. Writing is a journey, and it's important to embrace both the challenges and triumphs along the way. Persistence and passion are key. What are you reading now? I’m currently reading a mix of genres, including some literary fiction and women's fiction, as well as work by author friends. I believe that reading widely helps to broaden my perspective and inspire new ideas. I'm about to dive into Prince with a Chance of Darkness by Mandy M. Roth. I love her Grimm Cove series. What's your biggest weakness? My biggest weakness is probably my tendency to overthink things. I want my stories to be perfect, and sometimes that can slow me down. But I’ve learned to embrace the process and trust my instincts. What is your favorite book of all time? That’s a tough question! One of my all-time favorites is Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. The wit, the romance, and the social commentary have always resonated with me. When you're not writing, how do you like to spend your time? When I’m not writing, I love spending time with my family and pets. I also enjoy watching my favorite TV shows or movies, reading books, and exploring new places. These activities help me relax and recharge my creative energy. Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you? The first story I remember that had an effect on me creatively was Edgar Allen Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart. What has inspired you and your writing style? Authors like J.R.R. Tolkien and Anne Rice have inspired me to blend romance, fantasy, and supernatural elements seamlessly. Their ability to create expansive, immersive worlds and complex characters has profoundly influenced my writing style. I also draw inspiration from personal experiences, travels, and observations of the world around me. What are you working on now? I’m currently working on the next book in the series following my newly released Urban Fantasy book Merely Mortal, titled Mostly Shattered. It continues the journey of the heroine Tamara and delves deeper into the supernatural world she navigates. What is your favorite method for promoting your work? I love engaging with readers through social media and my newsletter. It’s a great way to share updates, behind-the-scenes insights, and connect with my audience on a more personal level. What's next for you as a writer? Next, I’m looking forward to expanding the series that began with Merely Mortal. I have several exciting projects in the pipeline, including more stories set in the same universe and exploring new genres and themes. How well do you work under pressure? I tend to thrive under pressure. Deadlines can be motivating, pushing me to focus and be productive. While it can be stressful at times, I’ve learned to manage it and use it to my advantage. How do you decide what tone to use with a particular piece of writing? The tone of my writing is usually determined by the story and characters. I try to immerse myself in the world I’m creating and let the tone naturally evolve from the narrative and the emotions of the characters. Whether it’s light-hearted and humorous or dark and intense, the tone must align with the story’s essence. If you could share one thing with your fans, what would that be? I want to thank my fans for their incredible support and enthusiasm. Your love for my characters and stories means the world to me. Books are a journey we take together, and I’m grateful for each and every one of you who joins me on this adventure. Keep believing in the magic of storytelling and never stop dreaming. Michelle M. Pillow's Author Websites and Profiles Website Amazon Profile Goodreads Profile Smashwords Profile BookBub Profile Author Profile On Barnes & Noble Michelle M. Pillow's Social Media Links Facebook Page Twitter Instagram LinkedIn Pinterest YouTube Account Read the full article

[ozma914]

Covid Keeps Quarantines Coming

  I'm not even sure how to start when it comes to Covid. As a writer I'm a professional smart-ass, but with this I got my ass kicked, and didn't feel too smart about it.

Illness or injury traditionally accompany our vacations: Last December Emily and I came down with the flu when we were supposed to visit her family and friends in Missouri. This year we decided to head down on a Thursday.

On Wednesday we started to feel a little ... off. By Thursday morning we had to call it--we couldn't risk giving her father whatever bug was now traveling with us. It wasn't until Friday night that we began to suspect the modern medical boogieman, Covid. We missed the trip, we missed Saturday's Holiday Pops concert, and I felt so bad I couldn't even write. By the time it was done I had to contact my editor at History Press to push back our deadline for the Haunted Noble County book, because I'd planned to use half of my vacation to work on it.

The only question left: Could I turn it into a funny blog?

It doesn't LOOK like 102 degrees.  No. No, I could not.

The only thing we did was marathon the TV show The Expanse, and unsuccessfully try to listen to Good Omens on audiobook. (We kept having to go back when one or another of us fell asleep.)

You know, watching TV and reading books wouldn't be such a bad vacation. The problem is that for the first couple of days we were unable to enjoy anything, and in fact we were too sick to sleep. You heard that right. Over that first weekend I, who can't function on less than eight hours of sleep, stayed awake for twenty-fours straight. Even Nyquil wouldn't put me out.

Then, for a week after that, we were too sick to stay awake. That was the period during which we kept having to go back and decide what we remembered last from the audiobook.

"It was Agnes Nutter and the book, wasn't it?"

"No, it was Adam and the Them meeting the dog."

(We were both wrong: It was Crowley terrifying his house plants.)

I took this photo of Emily at the same time the one above of me was taken. She's in there, I swear.

 

Part of it--let's face it--is that I'm no spring chicken pox. When I was in my early 20's I once rode the back step of a fire engine to a mobile home fire on the edge of town--while running a fever.

This truck, specifically. What an awesome truck.

 A couple of years later I rode a different engine to Kendallville, to a tire fire so big it could have been seen from the International Space Station, if there'd been one at the time. I was coughing up junk that looked like it belonged in an alien invasion horror movie, despite never getting into the smoke. Yet there I went, for twelve hours. Our Chief later ordered me to go home and go the hell to bed.

 No more.

 It's not just that Covid is bad. My normal temperature runs around 97.6, and by the time it hit 100 not only could I not go to a fire, I couldn't pick up the TV remote. (Thus the marathon of one show.) It reached 102 at one point. My skin kept trying to crawl away to somewhere cooler, or so it felt.

Emily was running about a day behind me, so I had the pain of knowing what she was about to go through. She's still got a terrible cough weeks later, while mine is just awful. We were like the grandparents in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, just laying there in a lump. Christmas preparations? Hah! We'd bought a new, pre-lit tree, but we never even got a chance to fluff out the branches, let alone decorate it.

I kinda like it like this, though. Yes, it's black.

I was so sick--brace yourself for this--I lost my appetite.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've completely lost my appetite, and I was in the hospital for most of those. I dropped six pounds. This is not a recommended diet.

The moral of this story is, of course, don't get Covid. We didn't mind at all being quarantined, at least not until the chocolate ran out. (Everything tasted salty or metallic, except chocolate.) Other people in this area passed away from it, so we count ourselves lucky now that we're feeling 50% better.

Yeah, I'm exhausted all the time, but I work nights--I was already halfway there, anyway.

Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/-/e/B0058CL6OO

Barnes & Noble:  https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/"Mark R Hunter"

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4898846.Mark_R_Hunter

Blog: https://markrhunter.blogspot.com/

Website: http://www.markrhunter.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozma914/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MarkRHunter914

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markrhunter/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MarkRHunter

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@MarkRHunter

Substack:  https://substack.com/@markrhunter

Tumblr:  https://www.tumblr.com/ozma914

Remember, books aren't effective as masks, but they're great for quarantine.

[chill-that-ur-inmyhead]

1 - Are you interested in any reality TV shows? I really enjoy watching those shows when I am with friends but by myself not really.

2 - When was the last time you made plans with someone? What were you going to do with that person? Mother has booked a trip to Highclere Castle where Downton Abbey is set in August!

3 - How often (if ever) do you use moisturiser? Day and night

4 - Name five things you can touch from where you’re sitting right now: Candle, water bottle, vinyl records, scarf and hairspray  

5 - Have you had any of your wisdom teeth removed? What was the reason? (eg. infection, impaction, lack of space). I haven't

6 - What was the reason for your last hospital visit? I got a covid booster jab!

7 - Where was the last place you had an itch? legs!

8 - If you’re on a long car journey, would you rather drive or be the passenger? passenger but I will ofc do my fair share of the driving if needed

9 - What’s the earliest time you’ve had to wake up for work? What about the latest time you’ve clocked off for the day? For my current work 7am but I've had jobs where 6am starts meant getting up at 5am

10 - Do you use a laptop, desktop, tablet or phone to take your surveys? laptop since so much easier and my finger cramps up if I use my phone

11 - Are you fussy when it comes to how your surveys are formatted on your blog? Not at all

12 - How old were you when you first got internet access at home? Was it broadband or did you have dial-up first?  Since I can remember

13 - When was the last time you painted your nails? myself? last year probs but it never lasts

14 - What’s your typical order when you go to Starbucks (or wherever your favourite coffee shop is)? chai latte or matcha latte usually from pret

15 - What’s your favourite thing to have on toast? strawberry jam

16 - Do you have any debt? If so, are you on top of paying it all back? student loans and no

17 - What was the last thing you purchased with a credit card? Sainsburys shop

18 - Have you been to college/university? If so, has your degree been useful to you or was it a bit of a waste of money? YES, undergrad in English, converted that to a graduate diploma in law for a year and just finished the legal practice course masters. For what I want to go into, it has not been a waste of money and it was the right path for me.

19 - How often do you travel by public transport? For the past year, never, but when I move back to the city I will use it often.

20 - Do you have an instagram account? If so, how often do you post on there and what kind of things do you post? I do and I really don't post often at all maybe once a year.

21 - Are you close to your extended family? Do you wish you were closer? I'm fine with it tbh

22 - Do you prefer to give your pets human names or not? I wouldn't be opposed to it but it won't be my first choice

23 - Do you like having ice in your drinks? Yes

24 - When was the last time you went to a BBQ restaurant? Too long ago

25 - When was the last time you re-arranged the furniture? Is this something you like to do often? I used to love rearranging my room and showing my parents but haven't done it for a while.  

26 - Have you ever used a fire extinguisher? Would you know how to use one without reading the instructions? I have not and probs not maybe I should youtube it to be prepared.

27 - What’s the worst thing you’ve ever had to deal with at your job? Client's that are unhappy although my most recent company haven't had too many occasions of unhappy clients.

28 - What was the last thing you used your mobile phone for? listened to a voice note my friend sent me

29 - Did you used to play The Sims? What version or expansion pack was your favourite one to play? YES specifically Sims Castaway on PSP

30 - What was the last thing you used a lighter for? Lighting a candle

[partylikemajima]

Was thinking of reading beneath the rising but saw this review on good reads:

[talesfromthebandgeekmafia]

Guess who just stayed up until 1:44 in the morning to finish a 562 page book in one sitting like she’s eleven again

In related news The Expanse is the greatest sci-fi series of all time

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Up Against It, an "essential," action-adventure sf tale of bureaucrats and colonizers

I first discovered Laura Mixon’s fiction in 1992. I was working at Toronto’s Bakka Books and I was the “cyberpunk guy,” so when I unpacked a new box from Tor Books and found her eco-thriller/cyberpunk debut Glass Houses at the top, I grabbed a copy and read it on my lunch-break:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/327799.Glass_Houses

I ended up hand-selling cases of copies of Glass Houses, talking up this ground-breaking eco-thriller by a feminist hard sf writer who was also a working environmental engineer to everyone who came through the door.

Glass Houses was the kickoff to the “Avatars Dance” trilogy (with Proxies and Burning the Ice), which went from strength to strength. But Mixon was a casualty of the “midlist collapse” — a disaster in which consolidation in distribution and mass-market bookselling (at grocery stores, etc) killed thousands of writers’ careers. These consolidated firms used databases to track sell-through, and let it be known that the wouldn’t carry any writer who didn’t meet expectations. It was a wipeout for many beloved, working writers.

In 2011, Tor Books rebooted Mixon’s career by publishing a new book of hers, “Up Against It,” under a pen-name — a common tack to get around the mass-market retailers’ practice of boycotting writers who hadn’t sold at expected levels. That pen-name was MJ Locke, and I reviewed Up Against It when it dropped:

https://memex.craphound.com/2011/03/18/up-against-it-smart-whiz-bang-space-opera-pits-astro-bureaucrats-against-rogue-ais/

Up Against It was and is a hell of a book, and now Tor Books has brought it back, as part of its Tor Essentials line (with a new intro by The Expanse’s James SA Corey), which is genuinely essential reading:

https://us.macmillan.com/books/9780765382665

These handsomely packaged books, with new introductions and authors’ preferred text, span the history of the field and constitute a perfect library of science fiction classics, including modern and overlooked classics:

https://read.macmillan.com/torforge/tor-essentials/

In honor of the reissue, I’m republishing my original 2011 review. I’ve been a Laura Mixon superfan since 1992, and 30 years later, I find that I’ve become a giga-fan.

MJ Locke’s Up Against It is the cracking first volume of WAVE, a space-opera series that manages to be both original — full of smart new ways of looking at science fiction ideas — and old fashioned — full of the kind of whiz-bang action-adventure that made so many of us fall in love with the field in the first place.

The plot: Geoff and pals are a group of plucky young folks living in an asteroid habitat called Phocaea, a distant outpost of humanity on the Solar system’s frontier. They’re your basic high-spirited youngsters, enjoying such pass-times as hacking matter compilers to produce dancing skeletons that prance through the low-gee communal areas, using their rocket-bikes to salvage methane ice shrapnel that flies away when the colony brings in a big (and vital) rock of the stuff, and figuring out how to avoid the ubiquitous surveillance motes that are the million eyes of ‘Stroiders, a reality-TV show whose Earthside producers have paid handsomely for the privilege of spying on every detail of the Phocaeans’ lives. (See what I mean about whiz-bang space-opera nift?)

Things are not as good as they seem, though. A mysterious act of sabotage kills Geoff’s brother Carl and puts the entire colony at risk. And in short order, we discover that the whole thing may have been cooked up by the Martian mafia, as a means of executing a coup and turning Phocaea into a client-state. As if that wasn’t bad enough, there’s a rogue AI that was spawned during the industrial emergency and slipped through the distracted safeguards, and a giant x-factor in the form of the Viridians, a transhumanist cult that lives in Phocaea’s bowels.

In addition to Geoff, the story revolves around Jane, the colony’s resource manager, and her scenes are every bit as engrossing as Geoff’s hijinx: Jane is a bureaucrat engineer in charge of keeping the plumbing running on an artificial island of humanity poised on the knife-edge of hard vacuum and unforgiving space. She’s more than a century old, and good at her job, but she is torn between the technical demands of the colony and the political realities of her situation, in which the fishbowl effect of ‘Stroiders is compounded by a reputation economy that turns every person into a beauty contest competitor. Locke’s account of the gubbins and manoeuvring involved in keeping politics and engineering in harmony are sure to warm every geek’s heart.

[image ID: The cover for the Tor Essentials edition of Laura J Mixon's 'Up Against It.']

[avatar-news]

Avatar Studios masterpost!

Here’s absolutely everything there is to know about the big Avatar news from today’s ViacomCBS Paramount+ Streaming Event and investor day!

Summary of facts

Avatar Studios is a new studio at Nickelodeon. Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra co-creators and showrunners Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino are the co-Chief Creative Officers of Avatar Studios.

Avatar Studios will create original movies, series, and shorts set in the world of Avatar.

The first project is an animated theatrical film set to start production later this year.

One or more Avatar Studios Paramount+ Original Series will be among the 50 original shows coming to Paramount+ in its first two years.

The above image has been included in many articles and official social media posts. It’s presumably the current official logo of Avatar Studios.

That is a distilled list of the cold, hard facts from the whirlwind of news that has come out today, from many different sources. With that out of the way, the rest of this post will delve deeper into everything we’ve learned, including full-length quotes from the people involved.

Today’s event

Today, ViacomCBS (the company that owns Nickelodeon, and thus Avatar) held their “Streaming Event” and investor day. ViacomCBS is launching their big streaming service, Paramount+, on March 4th. It’s a rebrand and relaunch of their current streaming service, CBS All Access. Paramount+ is meant to be their big push to compete in the streaming wars with Disney’s Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+; WarnerMedia’s HBO Max; NBCUniversal’s Peacock; Apple’s Apple TV+; and, yes, Netflix’s Netflix by Netflix in collaboration with Netflix.

Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra are already on CBS All Access in full, and they, like all the rest of the content on the service, will automatically transfer over to Paramount+. (Currently we know absolutely nothing about when or if either show will leave Netflix. They’re currently on both Netflix and CBS All Access, so it’s possible they’ll remain on both Netflix and Paramount+ for some time.)

Here’s my livetweet thread from today’s event. Below, I’ll cover the notable stuff:

The first big mention of Avatar was when it was called out by the CEO as one of the ViacomCBS properties that were big hits on other streaming services last year.

It’s notable that it was mentioned among a list of exclusively adult, live-action series.

This is totally in line with the earlier stuff where the CEO mentioned it as having potential for Paramount+ original content.

The presentation also included something along the lines of: if you helped make one of our properties popular on another streaming service, there’s a good chance originals will be coming to Paramount+.

Basically, they saw how huge Avatar was on Netflix last year, and that visibility was up to the highest levels of the company.

And of course, finally they announced the creation of Avatar Studios. This was actually a few minutes after the news went up officially online, so at that point I lost track of the stream as I covered the news. But, I do know they didn’t show/announce anything else in the event besides the news that went up online.

Official quotes/statements

Here are the official quotes about Avatar Studios sent out today:

Joint official statement from Bryke:

“It’s hard to believe it’s been 19 years since we created Avatar: The Last Airbender. But even after all that time, there are still many stories and time periods in Aang’s world that we are eager to bring to life. We are fortunate to have an ever-growing community of passionate fans that enjoys exploring the Avatarverse as much as we do. And with this new Avatar Studios venture we have an unparalleled opportunity to develop our franchise and its storytelling on a vast scale, in myriad exciting ways and mediums. We are exceedingly grateful to Brian Robbins and Ramsey Naito for their enthusiasm and respect for the Avatar property and us as its stewards. From the start, they’ve supported our ambitious plans and created a positive, proactive environment for us. We’re excited to be back at Nickelodeon where Avatar began, doing what we do best in the biggest way possible. We can’t wait to build the great teams and productions to make all of this fantasy a reality.”

via Entertainment Weekly

Bryan on his Instagram and Tumblr:

“Bryke is back at Nickelodeon in a big way. ⚡️💙⬇️💙⚡️ Mike and I are heading up a new studio dedicated to expanding the Avatarverse.”

Mike on his Instagram:

“BIG announcement! @bryankonietzko and I are returning to #Nickelodeon as co-chief creative officers of Avatar Studios to develop new animated projects in the #avatarverse and oversee the franchise. Couldn't be more excited and inspired!”

Brian Robbins:

“Avatar: The Last Airbender and Korra have grown at least ten-fold in popularity since their original hit runs on Nickelodeon, and Ramsey Naito and I are incredibly excited to have Mike and Bryan’s genius talent on board to helm a studio devoted to expanding their characters and world into new content and formats for fans everywhere. Creator-driven stories and characters have long been the hallmarks of Nickelodeon, and Avatar Studios is a way to give Mike and Bryan the resources and runway to open up their imaginations even more and dive deeper into the action and mythology of Avatar as we simultaneously expand upon that world and the world of content available on Paramount+ and Nickelodeon.”

via Deadline

Brian Robbins was referred to as the president of Nickelodeon on Entertainment Weekly, and “President, ViacomCBS Kids & Family” on Deadline. Ramsey Naito is the president of Nickelodeon Animation.

Press release

The post-event ViacomCBS press release mentioned Avatar in two places:

First, right up at the top:

“Over 50 original series to premiere on Paramount+ over next two years, including Halo, Frasier, Criminal Minds, iCarly, The Real World, Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies, shows from the Avatar, Yellowstone, Star Trek and SpongeBob SquarePants universes and more”

The wording makes it unclear if it will be multiple shows from each of the final four franchises mentioned, or if it’s plural because it’s listing multiple franchises. It’s talking about the first two years specifically, so it’s likely that in that timeframe only one Avatar show would be ready, but in general it’s basically guaranteed that there will be multiple in the coming years.

The second place it’s mentioned is in the “Expansive Slate of Upcoming Paramount+ Original Series” - “Kids & Family” section:

“Avatar – Nickelodeon’s new animation studio division dedicated entirely to creating content based on the wildly popular world of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra. Led by the series’ original creators Mike DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, in partnership with the Nickelodeon Animation Studio, Avatar Studios will produce for Paramount+ a wide-range of Avatar-inspired content, ranging from spinoffs and theatricals to short form.”

Info from news

Across the many news sources today (sites, social media, etc.) this info has sort of coalesced:

What is Avatar Studios?

It has been referred to as a studio, a venture, a division of Nickelodeon, an animation studio division, etc. etc. etc.

As far as we know, it’s not an animation production studio and so doesn’t employ animators who draw the frames of animation themselves.

What does Avatar Studios make?

The various sources have said they’re making series, movies, and short-form stuff. The first two are pretty self-explanatory. The third, shorts, remains to be seen what it is. I could honestly see official TikTok videos or something, but that’s just my speculation. 😂

Right now it has been said that Avatar Studios will be making Avatar stuff only. Various wordings like “based on” and “Avatar-inspired” and “in the Avatarverse” have been used.

The question of live-action has arisen. Some places, including Mike’s post, specifically say animation, while Bryke’s official statement also says “myriad [...] mediums”. It’s highly likely there will be both animation and live-action at some point. Currently it’s probably animation-focused, with the first project being an animated movie.

Where will Avatar Studios content come out?

Another case where there have been various wordings used throughout the different news sources.

It has been said that Avatar Studios’ content will be made for Paramount+, Nickelodeon’s “linear” (meaning old-fashioned live TV) and digital outlets, third parties, and theaters.

Paramount+ is self-explanatory, that would be Paramount+ Originals streaming exclusively on Paramount+.

Nickelodeon complicates things a bit. I find it a little hard to believe that within a few years, new Avatar shows specifically for Nick’s TV channel will start being made. It’s possible statements to this effect are indicating the content will also end up aired on TV. ViacomCBS’s Star Trek universe’s first Nick show will be taking that route: first on Paramount+ and then later airing on TV on Nick, so I’m guessing something similar could be the case here. As for Nick’s digital side, they have episodes to watch on their website and apps, so I’m guessing that’s what that refers to-- I wouldn’t read into it too much. Nick itself is one of the sections on Paramount+, which also just makes my head spin a bit more.

Mention of third parties is also a little weird at first. ViacomCBS does double-dip a lot, so maybe Avatar Studios will also end up making shows for, like, Netflix and others, but it just seems like a weird business decision when they just announced Paramount+. One thing this could be referring to is potentially other mediums like books and games, for which it would make sense to be for other companies.

Lastly, theatrical. In their movies strategy, ViacomCBS announced that Paramount movies like the Mission: Impossible franchise will still be in theaters, but go to Paramount+ exclusively after a reduced 30-to-45-day theatrical window. (Some movies will also have the regular window, also a little confusing.) Some movies will also just be Paramount+ Originals in the first place, like the newest SpongeBob movie. Avatar Studios’ first project has been exclusively called a theatrical animated film. This seems to suggest that it will be in theaters at first, then a Paramount+ Original shortly after (probably the shortest, 30-day window if I were to guess). This is interesting because if it’s theatrical, that could suggest a big budget, especially if this is their first project they intend to make an impressive splash with. It could also potentially suggest 3D/CGI animation rather than 2D, but I personally don’t find that super likely. However, it could mean fancier 2D animation than we’re used to, and that’s saying a lot because we’re used to some pretty good animation from the Avatar franchise! The wording of “theatricals” could also just be used as a synonym for “films”, to indicate prestige, theatrical release quality and budget rather than made-for-TV or direct-to-DVD vibes.

In summary, it seems like right now, they’re covering all the bases, but if Paramount+ is as successful as they want it to be, it’s likely they would eventually (maybe quite soon) move more and more stuff into it exclusively. Currently, there’s also still a lot of uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and so the new state of the theatrical, linear, and streaming marketplaces hasn’t really crystallized yet either. The world does seem to be moving to streaming quite hard though, so while they’re covering all the bases right now, again, it’s likely most of this stuff will end up mainly as a Paramount+ thing.

And again, I mentioned TikTok as a possible experimental place for short-form content. Maybe. Especially if they make the next Avatar after Korra modern day?! Ok, let me not get ahead of myself...

Who will work at Avatar Studios?

We only know about Bryke so far. They’re the co-Chief Creative Officers.

Brandon Hoang, who was working with Bryke on live-action ATLA at Netflix, has confirmed he’s not involved. He also left Netflix at some point; not sure if it was at the exact same time or for the same reasons as Bryke, but he’s neither here nor there, as it were.

No, I don’t have anything to tell you about Jeremy Zuckerman. :)

Given that there will be multiple shows and movies, it’s likely that lots of different people will end up working on them. Bryke’s official statement said that they will “build [...] teams and productions” at Avatar Studios, and Mike also said that they will be “oversee[ing] the franchise”. Right now, we don’t know what exact role Bryke will have. They might write/direct/showrun some stuff themselves, or they might oversee other creatives they hire for those roles, or, likely, both-- different levels of involvement for different shows and movies.

As mentioned previously, Avatar Studios (probably) isn’t an animation production studio. This means they will still hire animation production studios, like Studio Mir, to do the animation itself. I say “like” Studio Mir, because I’m not sure if Studio Mir itself is free right now. They recently officially partnered with Netflix and have plenty of things on their plate there. So, it remains to be seen who will be doing the actual animation for Avatar Studios’ projects.

Lastly, this is an awesome opportunity to have the “culturally appropriate, non-whitewashed cast” assurance Bryke originally made for live-action ATLA both on and off the screen at Avatar Studios!

Netflix and live-action ATLA

There has been no news or updates on the live-action adaptation of ATLA being developed at Netflix, which Bryke was originally showrunning but left (to do all this!) over creative differences.

No, it’s not cancelled.

I suppose this makes it a little more likely that Netflix would choose to give up on it, but right now there have been no changes. The existence of Avatar Studios almost definitely has no effect on the licensing rights Netflix obtained to make a live-action ATLA adaptation-- that stuff is usually pretty iron-clad. Again, maybe in light of all this Netflix will choose to not go through with it, but they also might want to make it even more now to compete with Paramount+ on Avatar. We don’t really know the stances of the decisionmakers at Netflix, so we’ll have to wait and see.

Personal note

Over the last few months I’ve gotten a lot of, err, rude comments and messages whenever I said there could be new stuff coming. I’m really not here to say “I told you so”, because I don’t care-- I run Avatar News for fun.

But, I hope this goes to show that I wouldn't be posting things if I didn't have good factual reason to believe them, and that very much panned out very correctly here. Sometimes it’s directly or indirectly based on stuff I can't say publicly. I always have and always will post in a trustworthy, fact- and reason-based manner.

In light of that, and for just a bit of “I told you so”, here’s a timeline of all the Avatar News posts that led up to today. Definitely had a lot of fun re-reading these just now:

August 12th, 2020: Bryke left the Netflix live-action ATLA series two months ago. It’s not the end of the world.

September 15th, 2020: ViacomCBS is relaunching their streaming service next year as Paramount+, the future home of Avatar shows and movies?

September 17th, 2020: Anonymous asked: Do you think now that the original creators left the live action remake that they will make a new avatar animated series?

November 6th, 2020: CEO says Avatar franchise has potential for new original series on Paramount+, the new streaming service launching next year to compete with Netflix, Disney+, and HBO Max

January 4th, 2021: “This also brings up another interesting point, which is that Bryke actually originally pitched this storyline to Nick as an animated movie after the show. That obviously didn’t happen, but now that Paramount+ is coming and teasing potential new Avatar content…”

January 5th, 2021: Investor day announcement

January 21st, 2021: The Fire Nation Awaits 🌺 An in-depth look at the ever-elusive islands in the era of Korra and when we will finally pay them a visit. See section: Are they saving the Fire Nation for an animated movie?

February 12th, 2021: All seven seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra are coming to Paramount+ on March 4th!

February 20th, 2021: The musical themes of Avatar: An Avatar News interview with Jeremy Zuckerman. See section: “So, another streaming service: Paramount+.”

February 24th, 2021: Avatar Studios masterpost :)