COMICS REVIEW: Looking at the 2019 Best Graphic Story Hugo Finalists
Welcome to the latest installment of my comics review column here at Skiffy & Fanty! Every month, I use this space to shine a spotlight on SF&F comics (print comics, graphic novels, and webcomics) that I believe deserve more attention from SF&F readers. This month, I’m going to take a look at the nominees for this year’s Best Graphic Story Hugo Award. Warning: these reviews contains spoilers! As regular readers will know, I’ve been in the habit of using this space to both recommend works that might otherwise be overlooked by Hugo voters during nomination season and taking a look at the short list in advance of the deadline for voting. If you aren’t already familiar with this year’s ballot, you can read the complete list here, but if you don’t want to click away, here are the finalists for this year’s Best Graphic Story Hugo:
Screen Scouts #19: Babylon 5 (Season 3; Episodes 9-12)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFScreenScouts19Babylon5S3E912/SandF–ScreenScouts19–Babylon5–S3E9-12.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSDystopian shenanigans, busted councils, and Centauri rivalries, oh my! The Babylon 5 re-watch of Season 3 continues! Shaun, Mike, and Paul tackle episodes 9 through 12. This podcast is packed with big reveals, terrifying prospects, and disturbing ideas. We tackle the collapse of Earth Federation, the echos of the Nightwatch, the development of our favorite characters, and the show’s approach to imperialism and racism. And that’s just scratching the surface! So climb aboard the the White Star and join us on our adventures in the B5 universe! We hope you enjoy the episode!
361. Megan E. O’Keefe (a.k.a. Lady Soapminster) — Velocity Weapon (An Interview)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFEpisode361MeganOKeefeVelocityWeapon/SandF–Episode361–Megan_OKeefe_VelocityWeapon.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSSurvival, corporations, and stolen tech, oh my! In today’s episode, Paul Weimer and Daniel Haeusser interview Megan O’Keefe about her new Space Opera novel, Velocity Weapon! But is it a Space Opera? Or is it a heist novel? Perhaps a thriller? No, wait! It’s a time-travel story about the unbreakable bond between siblings! Find out what compelled Megan to tackle Space Opera, how the story evolved into it’s present form, the importance of showing a functioning family unit, why she showed the dark side of a highly advanced society, and so much more! There are some spoilers in the latter half, so watch yourself if you haven’t read the book yet! We hope you enjoy the episode!
#05. Crosscurrent – Thrawn and On and On (A Star Wars Literary Podcast)
https://media.blubrry.com/skiffyandfanty/dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/archive.org/download/SandFThrawnandOnandOn5Crosscurrent/SandF–ThrawnandOnandOn5–Crosscurrent.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadSubscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Android | iHeartRadio | Podchaser | Podcast Index | Email | TuneIn | Deezer | RSSJack up your hyperspace engines and get your Sith bath salts ready! Shaun, Alex, and Kate bounce back in time to the OLD Canon (Legends) for an in-depth discussion of Paul S. Kemp’s Crosscurrent. And “time” really is the word of the day. The crew of this absurdly comical starfreighter take a look at how Kemp’s novel deals with Force users in two drastically different time periods, the role of vengeance and doubt in the battle between the Dark and Light, and even the eccentricities of the Unknown Regions. Plus, this is the first book they’ve read that is downright creepy, so you better believe they’ve got a few things to say about getting the willies while reading a Star Wars novel. We hope you enjoy the episode!
Book Review: A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE by Arkady Martine
Yes, Paul Weimer already delivered a ‘squee-tastic’ review of Arkady Martine’s debut novel, A Memory Called Empire, here earlier this week. But this novel is so notably brilliant that it’s worth fueling that hype with even more squee. Martine’s debut includes nearly all of the elements I would potentially look for in a great science fiction novel, balancing each of them to hit so many positive notes that I suspect other readers will find it just as elegantly captivating. Until now, I’ve never gotten to read a new release and think: This deserves to win all of the awards. I cannot fathom anything else coming this year to approach this level of achievement. Compared to Paul, I’m not as broadly read in the genre, and I’m ashamed to say I still haven’t even read Dune! I did, however, grow up adoring the novels of Asimov, and the space opera setting of A Memory Called Empire immediately drew my thoughts to his linked series. Martine takes the philosophical and political-historical intellect underlying the best of Asimov and refreshes the out-of-date social and cultural perspectives of his works. Several others have also drawn comparisons to the more modern Imperial Radch novels by Anne Leckie. While I liked Leckie’s Ancillary Justice, the narrative voice of Martine’s novel and the themes addressed through its plot resonated even stronger with me.
Book Review: A MEMORY CALLED EMPIRE by Arkady Martine
Last year, I read a debut author’s space opera that was hyped by many as the Next Big Thing. Comparisons to Dune were explicitly made. The text showed that the author clearly was writing in conversation with Dune, trying to catch that magic about a big broad space opera by focusing on the life and times of a protagonist destined to have an enormous impact on their universe. But for me, that novel fell down on a number of fronts and was an enormous disappointment. This is not that book. This book steps into those shoes, attempting to capture that Dune magic, and walks miles in them. And for me, it succeeds where that other novel failed. This is A Memory Called Empire by debut novelist Arkady Martine. A Memory Called Empire is a dazzling space opera involving a Byzantine plot that immerses the reader in a fully realized world with a cast of interesting characters.
