Blog Posts

Book Review: Ninth Step Station

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Ninth Step Station is an excellent collaborative effort which entertains and asks hard questions about crime, investigation, surveillance, and the future of technology in a well imagined near future setting. The locale is Tokyo in the 2030s. After an attack by China on Japan, much of Japan is under Chinese occupation, and half of Tokyo is held by them as well, with a border zone between occupied Japan and free Japan managed by ASEAN, led by the United States. Tensions are high in this divided Tokyo of the future. The peace seems fragile and ready to erupt at any moment, forces scheme to survive and thrive, and the day to day life of people on both sides of the divide is under constant stress.

The Skiffy and Fanty Show Podcasts

Signal Boost #50 – T. Frohock (Where Oblivion Lives) and Alex Harrow (Empire of Light)

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https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFSignalBoost50FrohockAndHarrow/SandF–Signal_Boost_50–Frohock_and_Harrow.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSS In today’s episode of Signal Boost, Paul talks to T. Frohock about her new Los Nefilim series novella, Where Oblivion Lives. T. treats us to a glimpse of what life was like just prior to the Spanish Civil War, how she deals with the trauma of World War I, the queer relationship between Diego and Miguel, the villainy of humanity, and more! T. is a long time friend of the show, and we’re so glad she finally got to join us! Then Jen interviews Alex Harrow about their new science fiction novel, Empire of Light! Alex tells us about the complicated relationships between the characters, the importance of queer representation and how they specifically try to combat many of the negative queer tropes, why the super powers that they created for Empire of Light (the Voyance) comes with consequences, the importance of finding community, and more! We hope you enjoy the episode!

The Skiffy and Fanty Show Podcasts

At the Movies #73: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)

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https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFAtTheMovies73SpidermanIntoTheSpiderverse/SandF–At_the_Movies_73–Spiderman_Into_the_Spiderverse.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSFamily, bagels, and toe-shoes, oh my! Our first 2019 episode of At the Movies is basically Becca, Alex, Julia, and Stephen doing a lot of squeeing, shedding a few tears, but mostly just the squealing. I’m pretty sure Alex actually squeaks with joy at one point. That’s how much they loved Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. And despite trying really hard to get Stephen to play the villain, he just can’t get into destroying the multi-verse. Just trust us when we say that this is just under an hour of pure love and happiness, and we hope you enjoy it.

Blog Posts

Korean Drama Review: Arang and the Magistrate

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Sometimes there are shows that fill you with excitement because they seem like they’ll give their female characters compelling motivations and genuine agency in the plot, only to completely disappoint you by reverting to the same old misogyny and conservatism found in any other show. Arang and the Magistrate was one such show for me. Although I enjoyed watching it in the beginning, I was left with bitterness at the end because the women in the series received such disappointing resolutions to their character arcs. (Warning ahead for spoilers!)

Blog Posts

Short Fiction Review: December 2018 – January 2019

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One of my favorite stories I’ve read recently is “The Thing About Ghost Stories” by Naomi Kritzer, which appears in Uncanny Magazine. It’s a ghost story about a folklorist who studies ghost stories. If you like ghost stories, classification systems, mother/daughter relationships, or academic scholarship, this is a story for you. “2086” by T.K. Lê, which appeared in Strange Horizons, is another ghost story of sorts. It’s an accessible yet difficult story about immigration, family, and who’s actually valued and wanted within society. I also loved “On the Origin of Specie” by Vajra Chandrasekera, which appears in Nightmare Magazine. It’s a dark, compelling, and claustrophobic examination of taxation, protest, and agency. Lastly, for an intriguing story that blends science fiction with mythology, I recommend you check out “One’s Burden, Again” by Natalia Theodoridou, which appears in Clarkesworld Magazine.

The Skiffy and Fanty Show Podcasts

Screen Scouts #17: Babylon 5 (Season 3; Episodes 1-4)

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https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFScreenScouts11Babylon5S3E14/SandF–ScreenScouts_11–Babylon5_S3E1-4.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSAngry unions, shifty colonialism, and Vorlon jokes, oh my! The Babylon 5 re-watch finally returns with Season 3! Shaun, Mike, and Paul talk about the first four episodes of the season, tackling the way this new season brings back to familiar ground, the continuing mysteries and unveiling of the Shadows, the strangeness of Vorlons, the delightfulness of Marcus, the development of our favorite characters, and so much more! So climb on board the the White Star and join us on our adventures in the B5 universe! We hope you enjoy the episode!

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