ellestra

The 2012 Nebula (and adjacent) Awards were awarded last night and the winners are:

NOVEL: 2312 by Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

NOVELLA: After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall by Nancy Kress (Tachyon)

NOVELLETTE: Close Encounters by Andy Duncan (The Pottawatomie Giant & Other Stories)

SHORT STORY: Immersion by Aliette de Bodard (Clarkesworld 6/12)

RAY BRADBURY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING DRAMATIC PRESENTATION: Beasts of the Southern Wild, Benh Zeitlin (director), Benh Zeitlin and Lucy Abilar (writers), (Journeyman/Cinereach/Court 13/Fox Searchlight)

ANDRE NORTON AWARD FOR YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY BOOK: Fair Coin, E.C. Myers (Pyr)

2012 DAMON KNIGHT GRAND MASTER AWARD: Gene Wolfe

SOLSTICE AWARD: Carl Sagan and Ginjer Buchanan

KEVIN O’DONNELL JR. SERVICE TO SFWA AWARD: Michael H. Payne

I still haven't read any of these but I'm happy about Ray Bradbury Award going to Beasts of the Southern Wild. All the other films were good entertainment but this one was something more. And congratulations to Gene Wolfe.

My thoughts on various season finales.

Person of Interest


Once Upon A Time


Revenge


Elementary


Scandal


Nikita


Doctor Who


I didn't care about anything else to write about it. Except for The Good Wife which I haven't seen yet .

So most series have been ending past couple of weeks and I'm still catching on so lets wait till The Name of the Doctor for reactions to that. Today lets look at what what's going to start pretty soon. All the networks are releasing promos for the next season new shows. There is a great deal of SF&F shows coming and that means some of them look pretty promising.

The CW has most SF&F series planned - in fact most of it's new stuff seems to be genre but it mostly looks bland and ridiculous (look at all those white, very pretty, young people pretending to be angsty teenagers - they all look identical). The one about aliens that look just like (white) humans with tattoo on the face is especially ridiculous. But I feel tempted by The Tomorrow People (because Mark Peregrino is evil and Jeffrey Pierce is not and that's how it should be) and teleportation and telekinesis and all that is ♥. And my version of OCD requires watching all the SF&F pilots so I will try The 100 but I'm not having high hopes. The TVD spin-off on other hand has Klaus as a main character and, as much as I love Rebekah and Elijah, I just despise him too much. I will check up on the other two of The Originals to make sure they stay undead.

Since I gave up on TVD I can watch Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. I like OUaT despite all it's flaws and lapses of logic because I treat it as fairytale (same as with Doctor Who in many ways) so I can suspend my disbelief on dream logic and just enjoy the face expressions of true love and adventure. The title of this spin-off is ridiculous but it has Michel Socha (and John Lithgow) so I'm willing to forgive the name.

However, of the ABC shows, the one that generated the most buzz is, obviously, The Avengers spin-off Agents of SHIELD. The moment ABC picked it up (who thought they wouldn't?) the promos where everywhere. It looks cool action wise but I just wish someone besides Clark Gregg and Ming-Na characters seemed less bland. I wish J. August Richards was on the main cast (whether he plays Luke Cage or not). All those young interchangeable agents are so blandly pretty it's hard to even care (they look like they came from CW show). I'm also mildly interested in Ressurection even though the religious undertones are not really my thing.

Intelligence is already giving me Chuck vibes only without the fun but maybe it'll be better then it sounds. However, Almost Human has the most interesting premise of them all. I'm a sucker for the robot/AI stories (which is why I stuck with PoI through the all the boring two guys save the week parts) so hopefully this will live up to the hype (but with JJ you never know).

For the non-SFF&F shows I like The Blacklist trailer (although both this and Hannibal on one network seems a little redundant). And some of the comedies marking the returns of same pretty well known actors to TV might be worth checking. But the one I want to like most is Killer Women because it has Tricia Helfer and Michael Trucco playing siblings and that's enough for me. It'd have to get very bad for me to stop want to watch them.

First I was busy preparing for the trip. I've been near and in Boston whole last week where spring still blooms so I felt little worse. Then I came back and something new started pollinating here while I was gone and I was even worse. And travelling always made me sleepy even when no timezone change is involved. So when I finally felt like posting yesterday LJ decided to have one of its fits and I couldn't post (even though it says today I'm on cluster 2 and it was supposed to be contained to 7 and 9 I experienced all the described symptoms).

So now that I'm back and this is working I wanted to comment on the renewal/cancellation news. I'm happy that basically all the shows I care about survived. I liked Deception and The New Normal and Go On were some of very few comedy shows I watched but I won't cry about any of them. All I really care about is getting another season. I was especially worried about Nikita but, even though it's getting shorter season next time, tomorrow's is not the last episode.

I'm sure we are all a little surprised by Community getting renewed. I know it's cool to hate it now but I still like it fine and look forward to more reference filled episodes. I'm also glad that both Heart of Dixie and The Good Wife will go on. Less surprisingly Revenge and Scandal got another season too. These all fill my quota of non-sff genre shows.

Everything else I watch turned out to be pretty popular this year and all the other stuff I really care about - OUaT, PoI and even Grimm - all were pretty sure bet even before the announcments. OUaT even is getting a spin-off but that's for another post.

Most importantly, however, Orphan Black has already been renewed for another season and I'm more excited about that then all the other shows combined.

EDIT: Defiance just got renewed for second season (good - it's getting more interesting). Warehouse 13 got 6 episodes last season next year. So it's going to be just Canadian imports (and Defiance) for me.

I went to see Oblivion today. I was to do it last week but couldn't walk so I did it today despite the weird eye pain. I really wanted to see it and I'm leaving next week.

I learned again that I've consumed too much SF in my life because, even though this was original story not based on any book/earlier work, I kept having a feeling of deja vu.

However, plot twists are not the main reason I went to see this movie (and trailers make you expect a lot of it anyway). I went to see the movie because aliens, space and apocalypse. And it delivers. It's so very, very pretty. The habitat in the clouds, the dragonfly-like flyer, even the water sucking machines - the beauty of the tech is incredible and so were the landscapes (it was filmed in Iceland and northern California). I kind of found myself envying their stuff and understanding why Jack wants to stay on Earth - this was the most beautiful post-apocalypse ever. But it's also the first thing that makes you feel suspicious when you also learn the date. It makes you wonder how we got all this built with all the war and destruction. The unveiling, even though expected, was interesting but would be better if we got more reaction to the truth. The best part for me was Jack and drones as he treats them like a sort of pets and they are acting like a dobermans with heavy artillery for the most part. The action part was pretty decent too - chases and fights and explosions. For the most part you can even forget that Tom Cruise turned 50 on the set.

From the beginning the week stuff is the romance part. I know that it was supposed to be romantic but it is kind of creepy, especially the ending. It also makes everything all the more predictable. However, I was happy that, contrary to what trailers made me believe Vicka is not the evil one. I was also a little taken back by all the Americanisms - all the most popular American sports make appearance and a lot of important stuff is tied to the Empire State Building. I'm not sure why but it sure makes it feel even more cheesy then the romance. Also the people not as happy to just enjoy the views can be a little bored with the beginning and voice-over and Jack just leaving a life of mop-up crew member (also WALL-E flashbacks even though this was much prettier post-apocalypse).



I enjoyed Oblivion probably more then I should because I wanted to see such a high tech sf with ships and aliens for a long time, because it's pretty and because it's pretty watchable. This is not a movie that has some deep thought or message but it works pretty well as an post-apocalyptic action movie and it has Morgan Freeman an Jaime Lannister in it (I'm saying this not because I don't know who Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is - I remembered since Wimbledon and I liked New Amsterdam - but because he pretty much plays Jaime only with guns and the look is straight from this season of GoT). Andrea Riseborough is fantastic as Vicka and broke my heart more then the whole romance plot. It might've been a better SF but is pretty good as eye-candy sci-fi movie. It's also not a sequel, prequel, remake or adaptation so, even though story isn't completely original, I was happy with not knowing exactly as it goes. And, of course as I mention at the start, after a while every story reminds you of another story. And then all that counts is how it is told. This one was told in a very pretty pictures.

So since my last post I got my period a week too early, I'm pretty sure I have peptic ulcer (all the symptoms are classic for duodenum one - thanks prednisone) and there is something wrong with my toilet. I also spent last two day trying to get a new Advair disc (containing my steroid - ulcers are annoying but I still need to breathe) because it turned out my doctor forgot to give me refills and I only realised when my friend who I asked to get it for me (because I can't walk) called me yesterday to tell me the pharmacy doesn't have my prescription and that doctor wasn't at work today and I would run out on Sunday but luckily other doctor prescribed it for me so I won't suffocate just yet. Oh and we have tornado warning today. I'm also being reminded that all of this is nothing but a papercut compared to what others've been through. Still, you can die from enough papercuts so in case I don't live till next week here are some quick thoughts on recent genre TV.

Doctor Who so far this year


Orphan Black


Defiance pilot was pretty but predictable. This isn't that bad in itself, especially since I enjoyed the second hour with the battle and the cool orb effects and I liked the tracking/deduction scene and ending. However, the way that each of the characters is such a horrible cliche (my teeth hurt every time our charming rouge with hart of gold called the naive but tough mayor "sweetheart") made it hard to watch sometimes. In the end I enjoyed a lot the action sequences, the alien starships - both arriving and falling down, fence, the terraforming (alienforming?) consequences and a lot of mythology of the show. Scavenging alien tech and former enemies forced to survive together is my kind of thing. I also can live with all the aliens being basically humanoids even if it makes no sense. However, if they don't do something about the characters and their relationships being more then basic archetypes I'm not sure if I can take it.

I also loved Nikita today - death (I expected it to be someone else), destruction (basically nothing's left) and broken friendships even though I saw the twist coming from a mile away.

My grandmother just died - her funeral was today and I couldn't make it - there wasn't enough time for me to get there on time. Instead I was just walking all depressed for the past couple of days. She was very sick for a long time. She had stroke years ago. She got much better but she then she started believing she can do all she did before and got another stroke. Still she was still pretty good for few years after. We talked through Skype and she could see me. When she was a kid all there was was radio and they didn't even have it since they didn't have electricity till the 70s in her village (and phones till after communism fell - there where notorious problems with getting a phone line in communist Poland). She lived long enough to do videocalls with me over the ocean though the internet. She kept asking me about new technologies (especially genetics) and, even though she knew about them mostly from Radio Maryja (awful, awful garbage), she was closer to understanding them then a lot of younger people I know. Just thinking about how many changes she had to get used to in her life and how many of those came recently and she still was able to use them reminds me how great she was.

Main reason I went home for Christmas was knowledge that was my last chance to see her. She wasn't able to talk to me for months. It was harder and harder for her to concentrate and respond to what was happening around andd even to have a conversation. We were told she probably had series of microstrokes. She still had moments one could talk with her when I was in Poland but it got worse and worse and she could barely even eat at the end. It still hit me bad when my dad told me. She was my last grandparent.

I also need to go to Boston in May so I planning my trip when the whole thing happened. Now, my parents are nervous at the though of me going there even if logically a chance that anything like that will happen again so soon in the same is extremely low (I think it's even safer now). Also the flight home I was thinking about was through Boston - I would probably got stuck and never made it anyway. Still watching the footage on repeat on the news I couldn't help noticing Polish flag right in the middle of the screen and that made me even more sad and angry. Because I wish I could be with my family right now instead of all alone here with everyone to busy to talk to me. Because all those people who were just enjoying life and now won't ever again and their family who lost their loved ones in one moment for whatever stupid reason it was done for.

Then I went outside and badly twisted my ankle today. So fun week so far...

So I've heard that Oblivion is pretty but lacking substance (just like Tom Cruise) and that means that even if it can deliver the effects one needs to look for story somewhere else. From the beginning Elysium was a surer bet (even if just for people involved). Will see if it's going to deliver. For now we can enjoy the trailer.



Syfy announced a large batch of very interesting projects it's developing - from miniseries based on Larry Niven's Ringworld and Arthur C. Clarke's Childhood's End to large batch of original space shows and few more non-space ones. All of them sound like they could be interesting in the right hands and if any of the space ones will actually get made I may even start pronouncing its name as sci-fi. Of course chances are high nothing of this will ever get made and the only space based show is going to be the remake of Blake's 7 which seems to follow typical route of the remakes of British shows - prettier cast, blander characters and more cliches. But I'm week and if you dangle spaceships in front of me I will come, and watch, even if it's not all that good.

Anyway out of those shows Infinity and Clandestine seem the most space-operish which is why I'm drawn to them the most but I also love the idea of Orion> because she seems like exactly the kind of character I would love. The Silver Shields also sounds interesting but a series based on The Watch is coming too and that's always going to be my first choice.

Add to that the android cop show (human - AI relations are my another pet love) and some other genre shows in development and there might actually be something interesting on TV pretty soon.

Today was finally the kind of day we should heave this time of year. It was sunny and 25C. I saw people swimming in the pool so the season can be called officially open. My parent skyped me happy that it finally got warm in Poland too. Just a week ago - on Easter Sunday they had a big snowstorm. Everything covered with at least 20cm of snow turning world into Winter Wonderland. Just on the wrong Holidays (people were making snow Easter bunnies and even, in some cases, decorating spruces all over again in their back yards - just adding eggs this time).

This is one of the photos he send me:


And then it snowed some more. Luckily it ended just for this weekend and my parents say it was sunny and warm (up to +10 in the sun) and it finally felt like spring.

Here it's been like spring for a while now. At least as far as plat blooming is concerned. And of course weather is sunny much more often than in Poland. However it was also unseasonably cold this year (March was colder then January). Even this Thursday was rainy and barley reaching 5C. But this weekend was very nice and in forecast prognoses 27-28C on Tuesday and Wednesday so our first heat wave is almost here.

The nice weather meant I spent the weekend doing things outside. I went to the botanical garden to look at blooms and take photos and then I re-potted the flowers. I went for a long walk today. Of course asthma doesn't like that so now all my muscles hurt as if I was actually exercising. My doctor would not be happy but I can't take any more drugs. I try to navigate a middle road between asthma and the side effects.

Still I'm sure that at least some of you this will make feel jealous:

British writer Iain Banks announced today that he has only few months left to live. He has terminal gall bladder cancer and was told he is very unlikely to survive a year. He wants to spend that time with family and visiting places he likes. He also said his publishers are doing everything they can to publish his new, and unfortunately last book The Quarry, before he passes.

The first novel of his I've read was Feersum Endjinn and I loved it. I loved how all the stories came together in the end and I loved the spelling (although I read it in Polish which is pretty phonetic to start with - I don't know how I would do with English). I then read a lot of his Culture novels and as so many others I wished I lived there - something only few SF (never fantasy ones) universes made me feel. I am in the middle of the latest Culture novel - The Hydrogen Sonata - right now. I though there will be many more to come and it makes me so sad it won't be the case. It makes me even sadder that that's because he will be gone. It scares me when I even try to imagine what one must feel knowing the end of one's life is so near.

I hope his last months will be happy and as pain-free as possible and that he gets to do all that he wants to do before he dies.

Last few days were big on award announcements.

The winner of the 2012 Philip K. Dick Award for original science fiction paperback published for the first time during 2012 in the US was announced on Friday at Norwescon 36:

Lost Everything, Brian Francis Slattery (Tor)

Special citation was given to:
Lovestar, Andri Snær Magnason (Seven Stories)


In UK the winners of the 2012 BSFA were announced on Sunday at Eastercon:

Best Novel
Jack Glass, Adam Roberts (Gollancz)

Best Short Fiction
“Adrift on the Sea of Rains”, Ian Sales (Whippleshield Books)

Best Artwork
Blacksheep for the cover of Adam Roberts’s Jack Glass (Gollancz)

Best Non-Fiction
The World SF Blog, Chief Editor Lavie Tidhar


The Baltimore Science Fiction Society has announced the finalists for the 2013 Compton Crook/Stephen Tall Award:

Glitch, Heather Anastasiu (St. Martin’s Griffin)
Shadow Ops: Control Point, Myke Cole (Ace)
Stormdancer, Jay Kristoff (Thomas Dunne)
Fair Coin, E. C. Myers (Pyr)
Scourge of the Betrayer, Jeff Salyards (Night Shade)

The award, which honors the best first SF/fantasy/horror novel of the year, will be presented at Balticon 47.

I have to admit I haven't read any of those winners or even nominees (haven't even heard of them). I don't know if that's because I'm so hopelessly behind or because they are not really my kind of stuff.


And last but not least (and certainly causing the most controversy as always) the nominations for 2013 Hugos:

Best Novel
2312, Kim Stanley Robinson (Orbit)
Blackout, Mira Grant (Orbit)
Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance, Lois McMaster Bujold (Baen)
Redshirts: A Novel with Three Codas, John Scalzi (Tor)
Throne of the Crescent Moon, Saladin Ahmed (DAW)

Best Novella
After the Fall, Before the Fall, During the Fall, Nancy Kress (Tachyon Publications)
The Emperor’s Soul, Brandon Sanderson (Tachyon Publications)
On a Red Station, Drifting, Aliette de Bodard (Immersion Press)
San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats, Mira Grant (Orbit)
The Stars Do Not Lie, Jay Lake (Asimov’s, Oct-Nov 2012)

Best Novelette
“The Boy Who Cast No Shadow”, Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Postscripts: Unfit For Eden, PS Publications)
“Fade To White”, Catherynne M. Valente ( Clarkesworld, August 2012)
“The Girl-Thing Who Went Out for Sushi”, Pat Cadigan (Edge of Infinity, Solaris)
“In Sea-Salt Tears”, Seanan McGuire (Self-published)
“Rat-Catcher”, Seanan McGuire ( A Fantasy Medley 2, Subterranean)

Best Short Story
“Immersion”, Aliette de Bodard ( Clarkesworld, June 2012)
“Mantis Wives”, Kij Johnson (Clarkesworld, August 2012)
“Mono no Aware”, Ken Liu (The Future is Japanese, VIZ Media LLC)

Best Related Work
The Cambridge Companion to Fantasy Literature, Edited by Edward James & Farah Mendlesohn (Cambridge University Press)
Chicks Dig Comics: A Celebration of Comic Books by the Women Who Love Them, Edited by Lynne M. Thomas & Sigrid Ellis (Mad Norwegian Press)
Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor Who, Edited by Deborah Stanish & L.M. Myles (Mad Norwegian Press)
I Have an Idea for a Book … The Bibliography of Martin H. Greenberg, Compiled by Martin H. Greenberg, edited by John Helfers (The Battered Silicon Dispatch Box)
Writing Excuses Season Seven, Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Howard Tayler and Jordan Sanderson

Best Graphic Story
Grandville Bête Noire, written and illustrated by Bryan Talbot (Dark Horse Comics, Jonathan Cape)
Locke & Key Volume 5: Clockworks, written by Joe Hill, illustrated by Gabriel Rodriguez (IDW)
Saga, Volume One, written by Brian K. Vaughn, illustrated by Fiona Staples (Image Comics)
Schlock Mercenary: Random Access Memorabilia, written and illustrated by Howard Tayler, colors by Travis Walton (Hypernode Media)
Saucer Country, Volume 1: Run, written by Paul Cornell, illustrated by Ryan Kelly, Jimmy Broxton and Goran Sudžuka (Vertigo)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form
The Avengers, Screenplay & Directed by Joss Whedon (Marvel Studios, Disney, Paramount)
The Cabin in the Woods, Screenplay by Drew Goddard & Joss Whedon; Directed by Drew Goddard (Mutant Enemy, Lionsgate)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Screenplay by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro, Directed by Peter Jackson (WingNut Films, New Line Cinema, MGM, Warner Bros)
The Hunger Games, Screenplay by Gary Ross & Suzanne Collins, Directed by Gary Ross (Lionsgate, Color Force)
Looper, Screenplay and Directed by Rian Johnson (FilmDistrict, EndGame Entertainment)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form
Doctor Who, “The Angels Take Manhattan”, Written by Steven Moffat, Directed by Nick Hurran (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who, “Asylum of the Daleks”, Written by Steven Moffat; Directed by Nick Hurran (BBC Wales)
Doctor Who, “The Snowmen”, written by Steven Moffat; directed by Saul Metzstein (BBC Wales)
Fringe, “Letters of Transit”, Written by J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Akiva Goldsman, J.H.Wyman, Jeff Pinkner. Directed by Joe Chappelle (Fox)
Game of Thrones, “Blackwater”, Written by George R.R. Martin, Directed by Neil Marshall. Created by David Benioff and D.B. Weiss (HBO)



I haven't read any of the novels except Blackout and it was fun but not anything special. However, from what I know about the other nominees they are pretty much on the same level. So in the end the most exiting for me are the Dramatic Presentation categories - film because all were pretty fun and TV episode because I wonder if Doctor Who will be beaten this time.

In the periodic news about the greatest fantasy epic - tor.com reports all about the serious problems behind the scenes of The Shadow War of the Night Dragons musical even after John Scalzi's falling out with his creative partners (and firing them and threatening them with his Campbell award and accusations of addiction to the cough medicine or maybe they were all just dicks just like the sound bite shows). John Scalzi says it's all false reporting and threatens to sue. In the end the Paul and Storm songs are probably all we'll ever see from this project (at least proceeds will go to charitable causes). And this could've been such a dark and story night.

In other charity events you can help wikimedia foundation and make the dog grow (this morning it still fit on the desk) on today's xkcd. It's also fun to visit to see all the versions of the comic (companies and schools change along with some other info in the panels). Meanwhile the day on the beach on is still going and you can watch and scroll through it here.

Meanwhile Google decided to show their two new services. Google Maps now has a treasure map option. Google Search has option to allow you to search by smell - Google Nose beta was available to public today.



Locus broke the news about William Gibson's sudden change of genre. His switch from cyberpunk to near future was gradual but this? This is total surprise. And the review of his new heroic fantasy Realm of the Enchanted Unicorn book says it is first of dodecology. They also report that Detroit renames itself Boilertown and becomes first all-steampunk city in America. The last story was deleted and the whole thing almost made me skip all the Locus stories but the authors of didn't deserve to be punished by association and this is still fun.

Finally - here's some of the controversies exploding over on twitter - from new Hugo Poetry category to Continental Philosophy jokes. And all the other today's news in pictures including things we all want to have and Curiosity quitting twitter due to trolling.

It finally got warm here. Just in time for holidays (in US Monday isn't a day off but at least here Friday is). It was warm and sunny today. I was even running around in just a t-shirt and it was just a little cool. It supposed to be even warmer in next 3 days (22C on Monday) although, in March tradition, it is to rain on Sunday. Even long term prognosis looks good (just one day of cold rain on Tuesday) but if we get cold rain it probably means another round of snow up North.

The March was colder then January here. In Poland (and rest of northern Europe) it is still winter. The snow melted on Christmas but they are having White Holidays on Easter. A week ago it was -15 at night. Today it snowed again. I would wish everyone spring for Easter but all is there in forecast is more snow and snow/rain mix with temperatures barely above 0 during day. So I just wish for the Jetstream to finally move and let the warm air in.

March 30th is almost here and these are things that are coming in 2 days.

Doctor Who




Orphan Black:

Round 4 of Suvudu's 2013 Cage Match is on and Gandalf is destroying as always. Surprisingly it looks like he will take on White Witch in the finals right now.

I was also surprised that Doctor Who is beating Star Trek: TNG in the final of io9's The Greatest Sci-Fi Shows Ever! poll. Not surprisingly Firefly beat everything in Wheadon special. The best part, for me, is that, in the end, the shows left standing actually are sci-fi.

If you don't care about any of that and since there is just a few days left here's the instuctions how to make dragon eggs for Easter:

This is one of my oldest drawings - the very second one I ever posted on the web. I still look at it sometimes and surprise myself by all the little lines and details. Did I really draw that?


sailing ship by ~elluranee on deviantART

If you are in the US you can watch the first 14 minutes of the new Syfy science fiction show Defiance. It has starships and alien landscapes and I hope this will work. I liked what I saw so far but Syfy has bad track record as far as cancelling stuff goes on one hand and The Cult (other O'Bannon show) is awful on the other so I'm a little anxious. I need some real scifi in my TV.

Every Friday people at Del Rey Spectra place a 50 page excerpt of a selected title on Suvudu and it's from across genres and includes new works from well known authors (Peter F. Hamilton, Karen Lord, Peter V. Brett my favourite George R.R. Martin stories about Tuf Wanderer) and series (Shannara, Star Wars). At least this allows you to try something new before deciding to get it.

Today's xkcd is one of those complicated ones. From time to time the story in this comic gets a new frame and moves on. If you don't have the time to sit and wait for the next event there is an auto-updating GIF posted by Primis on the forum that allows you to see the whole story so far.

Here's a movie I willing to support - Bill, the Galactic Hero based on a novel by Harry Harrison. I read the book long time ago and it's funny how current this anti-war satire still is in our time of iffy wars. Now Alex Cox created kickstarter to film it and all they need is 100K They already got 1/5 of that).

New Doctor Who episode is just a week away from now and here's a prequel to that:


For us in US there is also another series starting that day and here are first few minutes of the first episode of Orphan Black (Warning: includes suicide)


And, just because 3 is a good number for lists, here is a promo for the In The Flesh. The first episode aired a week ago on BBC3 and I hope it will show up on BBCA eventually. Until then we should all follow the safety instructions:

In this quick update I note that the Fandom Steel Cage Match March Madness has been won by Joan Watson. That's something for such a new fandom. I'm happy with the fandom once again pushing female characters to the top. Sometimes it feel nice to be reminded it's not all about the hate.

The io'9 poll for The Greatest Sci-Fi Shows Ever! has finished the 16 stage and all Star Treks, and Doctor Who are still in the running. But with Farscape and T:TSCC gone I don't really care that much which one of them will get the final price.

The Doctor is no longer in the running in the Suvudu 2013 Cage Match. He lost to Gandalf in round 2 and now it's pretty clear Gandalf is going to win this. And the only thing I'm sad about is that Bene Gesserit are loosing to Inigo Montoya in round 3. They have the Voice. And prana-bindu training. Generally I think that the idea to use only classic characters (and movie/TV ones) was not a good one. The poll numbers are pretty low and people just don't seem so excited about it despite Gandalf and Doctor being in it. For me the best part of previous ones were the match-up descriptions written by the authors themselves. It just made everything more fun and exciting. Like official fanfiction or something. Even if it lead to poll stuffing by fans.