Hardcovers
1. The City and the City by China Mieville
2. Naamah's Kiss by Jacqueline Carey
3. Hylozoic by Rudy Rucker
4. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
5. An Empire Unacquainted With Defeat by Glen Cook
6. Julian Comstock: A Novel of 22nd Century America by Robert Charles Wilson
7. Green by Jay Lake
8. Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
9. Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
10. Empress of Mars by Kage Baker
Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Lightbreaker by Mark Teppo
2. Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey
3. Prefect by Alastair Reynolds
4. Altered Carbon by Richard Morgan
5. Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey
6. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey tie with The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
7. Mirrored Heavens by David J. Williams
8. Edge of Reason by Melinda Snodgrass
9. Juggler of Worlds by Larry Niven & Edward M. Lerner
10. Victory of Eagles by Naomi Novik
Trade Paperbacks
1. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
2. Burning Skies by David J. Williams
3. Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey
4. Alive in Necropolis by Doug Dorst
5. World War Z by Max Brooks
July 01, 2009
June 01, 2009
Notes from a DVD Geek
By Jeremy Lassen
The big release for science fiction fans this month is a documentary about legendary SF writer Harlan Ellison. This documentary, "Dreams With Sharp Teeth", is directed by the producer of "Grizzly Man" (You know… the documentary about the guy who disappeared while filming bears in Alaska,) Erik Nelson.
This documentary is not a tell-all attack piece, nor is it an even-handed, balanced documentary that gives equal time to Ellison's critics. Instead, it is a riotous celebration of the man, his work, and the character that he has created, "Harlan Ellison", over the course of his career. Many funny tidbits and gems are in this documentary and in the associated "extras" on the DVD.
In celebration of this documentary, I'd like to point out some of the movies and TV episodes that have been based on Harlan Ellison's work.
Probably the most famous movie adaptation is "A Boy and His Dog", staring a very young Don Johnson. This story of Ellison's is one of his most memorable, and the movie does it some justice . . . even though the tone of the film does tend to veer wildly from act to act.
One of the most (in)famous movies inspired by Ellison's work is James Cameron's original "Terminator" movie. Ellison sued to get a credit for this movie, and won, claiming it was inspired by his Outer Limit episodes "Soldier," and "The Demon With a Glass Hand". Despite losing this battle in court, director (and script co-writer) James Cameron has always resented this assertion, and there seems to be a back-and-forth battle of the credit line in the various home video versions of this film, with Ellison's story credit slipping in and out of the credits as each new version of the film is released.
Moving past "Terminator", we can get to some of Ellison's television writing, which includes the above-mentioned Outer Limits episodes and the famous Star Trek episode, "The City on the Edge of Forever". He was also responsible for the episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents' "Memo from Purgatory." There were numerous other lesser-known TV episodes that he banged out early in his tv writing career, from episodes of "Burke's Law", to an episodes from "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea".
Much later, several of his stories were adapted for the 1980's "The New Twilight Zone" series ("Crazy as a Soup Sandwich," "Gramma," "One Life," "Furnished in Early Poverty," "Paladin of the Lost Hour" and "Shatterday").
There were also a couple of "Babylon 5" episodes written by Ellison, a "New Outer Limits" episode from 1999 based on "The Human Operators", and a "Masters of Science Fiction" episode based on his story "The Discarded."
There were many other legendarily unproduced pilots and scripts, which Ellison chronicles at length in his books, THE GLASS TEAT, and THE OTHER GLASS TEAT. [Editor's note: Both of these volumes are now out of print.]
Moving away from Ellison, to another cult SF personality, Joss Whedon's "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" hits DVD in June. This one was the "online only" production that Whedon worked on during the writers' strike last year, and it's now more widely commercially available, with a bunch of extras on the DVD that were not part of the original download.
And, moving from the cult SF side of the house to the cult horror side of the house, I bring you the most unlikely adaptation to ever be made. "Header". A movie based on Edward Lee's "classic" splatter-porn short story, soon to be available on DVD. This looks to be a mostly mediocre low budget horror film, but wow. "Header". Edward Lee. I can't wait. It's like when I found out "The Girl Next Door" was being made into a movie. But somehow sleazier and seedier.
And that's all I've got for you this month.
The big release for science fiction fans this month is a documentary about legendary SF writer Harlan Ellison. This documentary, "Dreams With Sharp Teeth", is directed by the producer of "Grizzly Man" (You know… the documentary about the guy who disappeared while filming bears in Alaska,) Erik Nelson.
This documentary is not a tell-all attack piece, nor is it an even-handed, balanced documentary that gives equal time to Ellison's critics. Instead, it is a riotous celebration of the man, his work, and the character that he has created, "Harlan Ellison", over the course of his career. Many funny tidbits and gems are in this documentary and in the associated "extras" on the DVD.
In celebration of this documentary, I'd like to point out some of the movies and TV episodes that have been based on Harlan Ellison's work.
Probably the most famous movie adaptation is "A Boy and His Dog", staring a very young Don Johnson. This story of Ellison's is one of his most memorable, and the movie does it some justice . . . even though the tone of the film does tend to veer wildly from act to act.
One of the most (in)famous movies inspired by Ellison's work is James Cameron's original "Terminator" movie. Ellison sued to get a credit for this movie, and won, claiming it was inspired by his Outer Limit episodes "Soldier," and "The Demon With a Glass Hand". Despite losing this battle in court, director (and script co-writer) James Cameron has always resented this assertion, and there seems to be a back-and-forth battle of the credit line in the various home video versions of this film, with Ellison's story credit slipping in and out of the credits as each new version of the film is released.
Moving past "Terminator", we can get to some of Ellison's television writing, which includes the above-mentioned Outer Limits episodes and the famous Star Trek episode, "The City on the Edge of Forever". He was also responsible for the episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents' "Memo from Purgatory." There were numerous other lesser-known TV episodes that he banged out early in his tv writing career, from episodes of "Burke's Law", to an episodes from "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea".
Much later, several of his stories were adapted for the 1980's "The New Twilight Zone" series ("Crazy as a Soup Sandwich," "Gramma," "One Life," "Furnished in Early Poverty," "Paladin of the Lost Hour" and "Shatterday").
There were also a couple of "Babylon 5" episodes written by Ellison, a "New Outer Limits" episode from 1999 based on "The Human Operators", and a "Masters of Science Fiction" episode based on his story "The Discarded."
There were many other legendarily unproduced pilots and scripts, which Ellison chronicles at length in his books, THE GLASS TEAT, and THE OTHER GLASS TEAT. [Editor's note: Both of these volumes are now out of print.]
Moving away from Ellison, to another cult SF personality, Joss Whedon's "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" hits DVD in June. This one was the "online only" production that Whedon worked on during the writers' strike last year, and it's now more widely commercially available, with a bunch of extras on the DVD that were not part of the original download.
And, moving from the cult SF side of the house to the cult horror side of the house, I bring you the most unlikely adaptation to ever be made. "Header". A movie based on Edward Lee's "classic" splatter-porn short story, soon to be available on DVD. This looks to be a mostly mediocre low budget horror film, but wow. "Header". Edward Lee. I can't wait. It's like when I found out "The Girl Next Door" was being made into a movie. But somehow sleazier and seedier.
And that's all I've got for you this month.
May Bestsellers
Hardcovers
1. The City and the City by China Mieville
2. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3. In the Stormy Red Sky by David Drake
4. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
5. Empire Unacquainted with Defeat by Glen Cook
6. The Revolution Business by Charles Stross
7. Conspirator by C.J. Cherryh
8. Empress of Mars by Kage Baker
9. Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
10. Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
Mass Market Paperbacks
1. The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
2. Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi
3. Line War by Neal Asher
4. Relentless: The Lost Fleet by Jack Campbell
5. Dragons of Babel by Michael Swanwick
6. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
7. Lightbreaker by Mark Teppo
8. The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds
9. Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey
10. Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
Trade Paperbacks
1. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
2. World War Z by Max Brooks
3. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie tie with
Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey tie with
Jack Wakes Up by Seth Harwood
4. Burning Skies by David Williams
5. Palimpsest by Cathrynne Valente
1. The City and the City by China Mieville
2. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3. In the Stormy Red Sky by David Drake
4. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
5. Empire Unacquainted with Defeat by Glen Cook
6. The Revolution Business by Charles Stross
7. Conspirator by C.J. Cherryh
8. Empress of Mars by Kage Baker
9. Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
10. Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris
Mass Market Paperbacks
1. The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
2. Zoe's Tale by John Scalzi
3. Line War by Neal Asher
4. Relentless: The Lost Fleet by Jack Campbell
5. Dragons of Babel by Michael Swanwick
6. The Devil You Know by Mike Carey
7. Lightbreaker by Mark Teppo
8. The Prefect by Alastair Reynolds
9. Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey
10. Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
Trade Paperbacks
1. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
2. World War Z by Max Brooks
3. The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie tie with
Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey tie with
Jack Wakes Up by Seth Harwood
4. Burning Skies by David Williams
5. Palimpsest by Cathrynne Valente
War and Conciliatory Fantasy
by Alan Beatts
I'm in the process of reading a review copy of Joe Abercrombie's new novel, BEST SERVED COLD, which will be published July 29th. For my money it's even better than his FIRST LAW series and he's managed to hit the balance between grim and funny with more accuracy than before. For those of you who aren't familiar with his work, Abercrombie writes relatively dark fantasy a la Steven Erikson or Glenn Cook, filled with morally ambiguous characters and situations. Reading along I found myself thinking of a comment that China Mieville made once about how he neither enjoys nor wants to write "conciliatory fantasy". His feeling is that fantasy as a genre can take on the same sort of tough questions and complex characters that are more usually the domain of science fiction (or even mainstream lit). I agree with him and furthermore I think that we've been seeing a renaissance of sorts in that type of fantasy writing. I think that it, perhaps, shows a maturity in the genre and among the readers that, in some ways, parallels the change in Western movies in the 1960s.
I'm in the process of reading a review copy of Joe Abercrombie's new novel, BEST SERVED COLD, which will be published July 29th. For my money it's even better than his FIRST LAW series and he's managed to hit the balance between grim and funny with more accuracy than before. For those of you who aren't familiar with his work, Abercrombie writes relatively dark fantasy a la Steven Erikson or Glenn Cook, filled with morally ambiguous characters and situations. Reading along I found myself thinking of a comment that China Mieville made once about how he neither enjoys nor wants to write "conciliatory fantasy". His feeling is that fantasy as a genre can take on the same sort of tough questions and complex characters that are more usually the domain of science fiction (or even mainstream lit). I agree with him and furthermore I think that we've been seeing a renaissance of sorts in that type of fantasy writing. I think that it, perhaps, shows a maturity in the genre and among the readers that, in some ways, parallels the change in Western movies in the 1960s.
May 01, 2009
Notes from a DVD Geek
by Jeremy Lassen
Hey everyone. Got some new release info for you this month, and some rambling about "Star Trek".
First up: "The Uninvited" hits DVD this week. It's a US remake of the Korean horror classic "A Tale Of Two Sisters". It’s fairly decent, (if a little bit dumbed down,) but given how convoluted and obtuse the original was, this isn’t really a terrible problem. I enjoyed this one.
"S. Darko" proves the Joe Bob Briggs rule of sequels: just do the same damn thing over again. This beat-for-beat sequel to "Donnie Darko" is by the production company of "Donnie Darko," but original "Darko" director Richard Kelly had nothing to do with it. In fact he's pretty vocally disavowed it. But. . . it occurs to me that if Kelly had turned in this movie instead of "Southland Tales," he might still have a career in Hollywood. If you just want to experience the frission of "Donnie Darko" again, check out "S. Darko". It does exactly what a sequel is supposed to do - give you precisely the same experience all over again.
Hey everyone. Got some new release info for you this month, and some rambling about "Star Trek".
First up: "The Uninvited" hits DVD this week. It's a US remake of the Korean horror classic "A Tale Of Two Sisters". It’s fairly decent, (if a little bit dumbed down,) but given how convoluted and obtuse the original was, this isn’t really a terrible problem. I enjoyed this one.
"S. Darko" proves the Joe Bob Briggs rule of sequels: just do the same damn thing over again. This beat-for-beat sequel to "Donnie Darko" is by the production company of "Donnie Darko," but original "Darko" director Richard Kelly had nothing to do with it. In fact he's pretty vocally disavowed it. But. . . it occurs to me that if Kelly had turned in this movie instead of "Southland Tales," he might still have a career in Hollywood. If you just want to experience the frission of "Donnie Darko" again, check out "S. Darko". It does exactly what a sequel is supposed to do - give you precisely the same experience all over again.
April Bestsellers
Hardcovers
1) WWW: Wake by Robert J. Sawyer
2) Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3) Imager by L.E. Modesitt, Jr.
4) Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
5) Revolution Business by Charles Stross
6) Mystery of Grace by Charles de Lint
7) Storm From the Shadows by David Weber
8) Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele
9) Temporal Void by Peter F. Hamilton
10) Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Mass Market Paperbacks
1) Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt
2) Renegade's Magic by Robin Hobb
3) Dragons of Babel by Michael Swanwick
4) Spook Country by William Gibson
5) Spell Games by T.A. Pratt
6) Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
7) From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris
8) The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
9) Deathwish by Rob Thurman
10) Kethani by Eric Brown
Trade Paperbacks
1) Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente
2) We Never Talk About My Brother by Peter S. Beagle
3) Matter by Iain M. Banks
4) The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
5) Ravens in the Library edited by Phil Brucato & Sandra Buskirk tie with
You Might Sleep by Nick Mamatas tie with
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
1) WWW: Wake by Robert J. Sawyer
2) Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
3) Imager by L.E. Modesitt, Jr.
4) Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
5) Revolution Business by Charles Stross
6) Mystery of Grace by Charles de Lint
7) Storm From the Shadows by David Weber
8) Coyote Horizon by Allen Steele
9) Temporal Void by Peter F. Hamilton
10) Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Mass Market Paperbacks
1) Court of the Air by Stephen Hunt
2) Renegade's Magic by Robin Hobb
3) Dragons of Babel by Michael Swanwick
4) Spook Country by William Gibson
5) Spell Games by T.A. Pratt
6) Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson
7) From Dead to Worse by Charlaine Harris
8) The City, Not Long After by Pat Murphy
9) Deathwish by Rob Thurman
10) Kethani by Eric Brown
Trade Paperbacks
1) Palimpsest by Catherynne M. Valente
2) We Never Talk About My Brother by Peter S. Beagle
3) Matter by Iain M. Banks
4) The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
5) Ravens in the Library edited by Phil Brucato & Sandra Buskirk tie with
You Might Sleep by Nick Mamatas tie with
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
April 01, 2009
Notes From A DVD Geek
by Jeremy Lassen
I’m going to make it short and sweet this month. Just the good stuff!
Two films of note (recently released on DVD domestically) by Japanese director Takashi Miike: The first is an adaptation of “Crows Zero” from the popular manga of the same name. This one might be seen as "Heathers" meets "The Sopranos" --Japanese style. The other is "Sukiyaki Western: Django". This one is Akira Karasawa’s "Ran" meets "A Fist Full of Dollars". It’s in the tradition of a spaghetti western Django movie, but has a mind-blowing color pallet, and over-the-top stylization of Miike. Good stuff all around. While neither of these movies is exactly horror or science fiction, they get special mention here because of Miike’s interest to genre movie watchers in general, and because they are so damn surreal as to quite possibly be fantasy.
I’m going to make it short and sweet this month. Just the good stuff!
Two films of note (recently released on DVD domestically) by Japanese director Takashi Miike: The first is an adaptation of “Crows Zero” from the popular manga of the same name. This one might be seen as "Heathers" meets "The Sopranos" --Japanese style. The other is "Sukiyaki Western: Django". This one is Akira Karasawa’s "Ran" meets "A Fist Full of Dollars". It’s in the tradition of a spaghetti western Django movie, but has a mind-blowing color pallet, and over-the-top stylization of Miike. Good stuff all around. While neither of these movies is exactly horror or science fiction, they get special mention here because of Miike’s interest to genre movie watchers in general, and because they are so damn surreal as to quite possibly be fantasy.
March Bestesellers
Hardcovers
1. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
2. Caryatids by Bruce Sterling
3. Lamentation by Ken Scholes
4. Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
5. Storm From the Shadows by David Weber
6. Contagious by Scott Sigler
7. Fool by Christopher Moore
8. Judging Eye by R. Scott Bakker
9. White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison
10. The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan
Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Death's Daughter by Amber Benson
2. The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
3. Escapement by Jay Lake
4. Mainspring by Jay Lake
5. The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton
6. Territory by Emma Bull
7. Small Favor by Jim Butcher
8. Galaxy Blues by Allen Steele
9. Night Life by Caitlin Kittredge
10. Lost Colony by John Scalzi
Trade Paperbacks
1. Breathers: A Zombie's Lament by S.G. Browne
2. Jailbait Zombie by Mario Acevedo
3. Postsingular by Rudy Rucker
4. Palimpsest by Catherynne Valente
5. Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow
1. Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
2. Caryatids by Bruce Sterling
3. Lamentation by Ken Scholes
4. Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
5. Storm From the Shadows by David Weber
6. Contagious by Scott Sigler
7. Fool by Christopher Moore
8. Judging Eye by R. Scott Bakker
9. White Witch, Black Curse by Kim Harrison
10. The Steel Remains by Richard Morgan
Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Death's Daughter by Amber Benson
2. The Good Fairies of New York by Martin Millar
3. Escapement by Jay Lake
4. Mainspring by Jay Lake
5. The Dreaming Void by Peter F. Hamilton
6. Territory by Emma Bull
7. Small Favor by Jim Butcher
8. Galaxy Blues by Allen Steele
9. Night Life by Caitlin Kittredge
10. Lost Colony by John Scalzi
Trade Paperbacks
1. Breathers: A Zombie's Lament by S.G. Browne
2. Jailbait Zombie by Mario Acevedo
3. Postsingular by Rudy Rucker
4. Palimpsest by Catherynne Valente
5. Shambling Towards Hiroshima by James Morrow
Miscellany - Watchmen, Ebooks, Current Reading
by Alan Beatts
This month I've a collection of miscellany for you all. Sort of a sound-bite article, with bits about eBooks, The Watchmen (both movie and comic), and some teasers about stuff I've read that you won't be able to buy for _months_.
The Watchmen --
I made time (with some difficulty) to go check out the movie about two weeks ago and I've got to say, I was almost completely happy with it. There might have been one or two little things I would have changed but they were so minor that they're not really worth mentioning.
The thing that really stood out for me in the film was the sheer (and very deeply _not_ Hollywood and _not_ safe) faithfulness to the original material. I really didn't expect it, despite hearing all about how respectful the production was meant to be (really, I thought that was a case of "the lady doth protest too much"). Granted there were a few changes but I thought that they were mostly wise choices that reflected the differences between film and graphic novels.
This month I've a collection of miscellany for you all. Sort of a sound-bite article, with bits about eBooks, The Watchmen (both movie and comic), and some teasers about stuff I've read that you won't be able to buy for _months_.
The Watchmen --
I made time (with some difficulty) to go check out the movie about two weeks ago and I've got to say, I was almost completely happy with it. There might have been one or two little things I would have changed but they were so minor that they're not really worth mentioning.
The thing that really stood out for me in the film was the sheer (and very deeply _not_ Hollywood and _not_ safe) faithfulness to the original material. I really didn't expect it, despite hearing all about how respectful the production was meant to be (really, I thought that was a case of "the lady doth protest too much"). Granted there were a few changes but I thought that they were mostly wise choices that reflected the differences between film and graphic novels.
March 01, 2009
Notes From A DVD Geek
by Jeremy Lassen
This month I want to talk about Kaiju. Giant monsters! Men in rubber suits! The destruction of large cities by rampaging beasties. How can one go wrong with that? And while bad Godzilla knock-offs can get old after a while, there’s enough variation to be found in the genre (giant alligators in the sewer, giant snakes in the jungle, etc. etc.) to keep things fresh.
This month I want to talk about Kaiju
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