Hardholders, Drivers and GunLuggers — Mad Max: Fury Road and the Apocalypse World RPG
The Apocalypse World RPG is a seminal game in recent, if not all of, roleplaying history. The game allows the GM and the players to create, and play in a world ravaged by an apocalypse whose nature is mysterious, somewhat lost to time, and has left a mess of a world for people to try and survive in. Written by D Vincent Baker, the game features relatively simple mechanics, niche protection by defining classes for player characters, and tons of tools for the GM to up the stakes, bring the pain, and make hard moves to get the players to make the ugly bargains and hard choices in a post-apocalyptic society.
Shaun’s Rambles 001: The Gallo Conspiracy and Trial By Fire
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/ia601500.us.archive.org/15/items/ShaunsRambles001TheGalloConspiracyAndTrialByFire/ShaunsRambles001–TheGalloConspiracyAndTrialByFire.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSS…in which I begin a podcast of random thoughts had while driving home from work. In this edition: Some thoughts on the controversy over Irene Gallo’s statements about the Sad / Rabid Puppies Some thoughts on Trial By Fire by Charles Gannon and the absence of sf/f awards for adventure fiction Enjoy the rambles. You can download the mp3 directly from this link or stream the episode below.
Book Review: The Dragons of Heaven by Alyc Helms
In the darkened streets of San Francisco’s Chinatown, Missy Masters is struggling to take up the vigilante-hero mantle of her retired, estranged grandfather, Mr. Mystic. Missy shares his stubbornness, his intimate connections with Chinese culture, and his uncanny ability to cross into a realm of shadows and exert limited control over the creatures within. Just as she literally straddles worlds, Missy also dances a line of pretending to be an aged, but expert, male superhero while training to advance beyond her actual novice abilities. She aspires to the strength and moral right that her grandfather embodied while battling against memories of his emotional distance, his personal secrets, and the prejudices common of his generation. Typical of masked superheroes, she has two lives, the separate worlds of Missy Masters and of Mr. Mystic. And she has past experiences, a world away in China, that have led her to be the woman and vigilante of the present.
Retro Nostalgia: Mortal Kombat (1995; dir. Paul W.S. Anderson) and Ruining Your Childhood
I’ve just re-watched Mortal Kombat, the less-than-stellar 1995 video game adaptation directed by Paul W.S. Anderson. The same director who would two years later direct a far better film, Event Horizon (2007), which has the unfortunate reputation of being a movie most people hate. Why did I watch Mortal Kombat…again? Two reasons. First, I needed something to write about for this column, and it just seemed fitting that a 20-year-old film from my childhood happened to be streaming on Netflix. Second, I wanted to re-experience something from my childhood to see how well it would hold up. An experiment, if you will. And while other films from the 90s (and 80s) have not so much held up as become interesting in other ways as a result of age, Mortal Kombat is one of those gems that, frankly, has always been ridiculous. I just couldn’t see it when I was 11.
273. Waterworld (1995) — A Torture Cinema “Adventure” w/ Geoffrey Pelton & Kevin Lux
http://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode273TortureCinemaMeetsWaterworld/SandF%20–%20Episode%20273%20–%20Torture%20Cinema%20Meets%20Waterworld.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSJet skis, trimarans, and Dennis Hopper, oh my! The crew joins forces to destroy Jen’s childhood movie love, Waterworld. From gross urine water to Kevin Costner Fish Bait to explosions galore, we had much to say! Also joining us: Geoffrey Pelton and audio recordings from the infamous Kevin Lux! We hope you enjoy the episode! Note: If you have iTunes and like this show, please give us a review on our iTunes page, or feel free to email us with your thoughts about the show! Here’s the episode (show notes are below): Episode 273 — Download (MP3) Show Notes:
My Superpower: Beth Cato (The Clockwork Crown)
My Superpower is a regular guest column on the Skiffy and Fanty blog where authors and creators tell us about one weird skill, neat trick, highly specialized cybernetic upgrade, or other superpower they have, and how it helped (or hindered!) their creative process as they built their project. Today we welcome Beth Cato to talk about how the power of wielding cookies like shurikens relates to The Clockwork Crown. My superpower: I wield cookies like shurikens. Well, maybe that’s a bit of an exaggeration. I’m nowhere near as subtle as a ninja. The thing is, I love baking. I love to feed people the stuff I bake. The kitchen is my dojo. I do the full stay-at-home-mom-and-writer gig. I can only sit at the computer for so long. I need to stand up, move around, let my mind find free space to wander over plot problems.
