Things Were Simpler Then

On Monday Warner Bros. dropped a new trailer for Blade Runner 2049, the sequel to Blade Runner, starring Ryan Gosling and, reprising his role as Rick Deckard, Harrison Ford. To say that I’m looking forward to this film is an understatement.  It’s quite possibly the film I am most anticipating this year, edging out even Justice League.  (ForContinue reading “Things Were Simpler Then”

Fifteen Influential Authors

I saw this on Facebook a few days ago, meant to answer it, and got sidetracked into other things. That happens. The rules: Don’t take too long to think about it. List 15 authors (poets and comic writers included) who have influenced you and who will always stick with you. List the first 15 youContinue reading “Fifteen Influential Authors”

Moriarty’s Identity and the Sherlock Christmas Special

Last night, PBS’s Masterpiece Theater aired the Sherlock Christmas special, “The Abominable Bride.” That was well-made nonsense. If you ever thought the biggest problem with the Canon was that it wasn’t phildickian enough, Moffat and Gatiss wanted to reassure you that, yes, Sherlock Holmes can indeed mess with your mind. “The Abominable Bride” wasn’t whatContinue reading “Moriarty’s Identity and the Sherlock Christmas Special”

The World of The Man in the High Castle

The first time I read The Man in the High Castle, I was disappointed in it. It was only the second Philip K. Dick novel I had read (the first was Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?), and I closed the book thinking, “Is that all there is? It just ends there? Really?” I hadContinue reading “The World of The Man in the High Castle”

The Radio Free Albemuth Kickstarter

When I was in college, I did a “binge read” of Philip K. Dick. A “binge read” involved taking an author and, for a semester, reading as much of his work as I could get my hands on. One semester I did a binge read of Larry Niven. The next semester was Orson Scott Card.Continue reading “The Radio Free Albemuth Kickstarter”

On “Rebel Flesh” Not Rebelling

Suppose that, in the near-future, there are industrial jobs that are too difficult for humans or robots to perform. They still need to be done, but there’s a high risk of death to a human or the loss of the investment of a robot. Either would make the work cost-prohibitive. But it’s the future, andContinue reading “On “Rebel Flesh” Not Rebelling”

On Republican Policies and their Impacts

Like millions of Americans, I paid some attention last night to the State of the Union address and the two Republican responses, one from Paul Ryan of Wisconsin (who, much to my chagrin, did not mention the Fantastic Four at all), the other from Michele Bachmann of Minnesota. Abler commentators than I have parsed andContinue reading “On Republican Policies and their Impacts”

On Things I’ve Been Reading

I haven’t done one of my comic book reading round-ups since, umm, well… it’s been about nine months. I’ve read a lot of comics in the past nine months. I’m not going to try and catch up on things I’ve read; instead, I’ll point out three things I’ve read recently. Do Androids Dream of ElectricContinue reading “On Things I’ve Been Reading”

On A Needed Holiday

On occasion, my mind is stunned into a stupor. Sometimes it doesn’t take much. Writing about Twilight: New Moon collector dolls sufficed this morning; a thousand brain cells cried out in terror and were silenced. While in that slack-jawwed state, however, something occurred to me. There’s no Philip K. Dick Reading Day. There’s a TolkienContinue reading “On A Needed Holiday”