Author Archives: Eric

RavenCon Report

Posted on by

Day 01

Doing this a little differently than I have in the past. Much more a “as it happens” thing ~ or as close to that as I get. I’m writing this while in the middle of day 2 at the con. We’ll see how it all shakes out (and if I actually get back to this before I have to go all the way home).

Getting to the con from home was a challenge. There are 0 things the con can do about travel distance or traffic challenges, but it was certainly part of my experience. the 3.5 hour drive that was supposed to get me here took about 5 when I finally got here and got checked in. That was… not ideal. It was a difficult way to start.

Once I was actually here, at the venue, I discovered their wayfinding / signage to be lacking. Getting around here is not an easy thing when you’ve never been here before. There are actually 3 buildings containing various aspects of the convention and NONE of that is clear from the entry drive or signage from the parking area(s). I realize that wayfinding signs are part of my day job / professional life, but it makes such a huge difference to a persons experience. Bad signs meant it was hard to find the hotel registration. Then it was hard to figure out the right parking area / path to my room in the building next door. THEN I had to go and figure out con registration in the third building.

I figured it out, but by the time I got through all that I was just beat. I was done, I just didn’t know it yet.

I grabbed the person I’m rooming with and grabbed a bite to eat at a local sub shop, then came back to find 0 parking spaces available at the hotel lot near my room. Very frustrating.

I headed off to a panel that said it was about role playing informing your writing. What I got from the panel was a lengthy discussion about story telling informing your gaming. NOT the sort of panel that overwhelmed me and filled me with a desire to go and do more.

In the end, I decided that I was well and truly exhausted from the combination of a long work week and a miserable drive. I turned in early… missing out on the kind of fun you find at cons, like light up ice cubes for your party drinks!

Hopefully day 02 will bring more and better things…

You Should Be Watching

Posted on by

Jung_E

This was originally published in Watch The Skies April 2023 edition.

In another dystopian future entry, the Korean film Jung_e presents some very real questions about what developing A.I. means and presents a picture of how that can effect the people most closely related to any project connected to that development.

The earth has warmed, the waters have risen. Humans have moved off the earth to various space platforms. Three of these platforms band together and declare war on the other platforms. In an attempt to create a winning edge, the allied forces take an elite soldier and attempt to clone her brain. This cloning is intended to create a soldier with all the skills, subtlety and loyalty of the original soldier in an easily replicated way. These clones will turn the tide and win the war for the allies. The experiments continue to run into an unknown obstacle, frustrating their attempts to complete this new A.I. soldier.

There are a number of pieces that are drawn into the film. I see a little bit of Robocop in there. I see a little bit of Ex Machina. There’s a touch of Ghost In The Shell. These are the things I see mixing and swirling around the story of the soldier and the doctor working on creating this new brand of soldier. It brings up a number of questions, but doesn’t necessarily answer them. This is a movie worth watching for the discussions it will give you after watching, along with a couple of very exciting action sequences. You should be watching Jung_E.


You should check out the trailer here:

Uncommon Indeed

Posted on by

Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is another book I would not have picked up on my own. This was a recommendation / selection from the Watch The Skies fan group / book club. I’m quite glad I did get it and read it.

I would place this story in the same category as “The House in the Cerulean Sea” and “Victories Greater Than Death”. The main character is trans, and Asian. Not anything I relate to, but this book is written in such a way that the empathy is there. I was pulling for Katrina. I wanted Satomi to help her.

The characters are interesting. The setting has the feel of a place the author knew well. The story has a lot of hope in it, and that feels like something we could use more of. You should pick this one up.



View all my reviews

Oath

Posted on by
Love the Elmore cover art!

Oath of Swords by David Weber

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I picked this up for two main reasons. First, I was between a couple of science fiction reads and wanted something unlike either. Second, I am an old school lover of sword and sorcery stories. Oath certainly fit the bill for old school sword and sorcery.

I really enjoyed the simple fact that the paladin Bahzell was NOT what one might expect from the modern depictions or presumptions about what it means to be a holy warrior. This holy warrior also happens to be a berserker with an physical presence that can’t be ignored.

The world building here is solid. The magic system plays within the rules that are set out. The travel between places and the hardships involved with that travel all rang quite true. I would quibble with the way the characters spoke, but it was consistent throughout the book. Once you got the hang of how the words were flowing it was easy to read.

IF you’re a fan of old school sword and sorcery novels I’d recommend you pick this one up.



View all my reviews

Art Still Happens

Posted on by

It’s been some time since I’ve said anything about it, but I do still create graphics (art feels like a strong word for what I do) and put it out there in the world. This is the cover for this month’s Watch The Skies fanzine, without the text.

Inspired by Light From Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

You Should Be Watching

Posted on by

Hot Skull

This was originally published in Watch The Skies March 2023 edition.

The main character

I didn’t go looking for this show, but then when I found it I was in. I don’t find shows about deadly plagues nearly as interesting these days, but this show managed to bring me in.

Hot Skull is a dystopian story involving a new, terrifying pandemic called ‘Jabber’. It’s called this because the first symptom is the victim speaking gibberish. This pandemic has caused panic and an authoritarian agency has taken control, herding people into various locked communities and using armed troops to enforce curfews and quarantines. The antagonist is a man named Murat who struggles against this agency, as he seems to be immune to the effects of the disease. Everyone wears noise canceling headphones and eye each other with suspicion while out in public.

The story is dark. The characters are very real. There aren’t Hollywood stereotypes at play here… this is a Turkish language series. Yes, subtitles but worth it. Looking at a pandemic from a non-American point of view is just one aspect of this show that makes it worth the effort.


You should check out the trailer here:

The City We Became

Posted on by

The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I read, finished and enjoyed this one. It was a very real feeling set of characters who moved through and met the very Lovecraftian challenges arising in New York City together. As a reader I clearly got the mental struggle each of them went through as their lives changed when the spirit of the city itself became part of them. It was refreshing to see the wide variation in points of view as well.

I likely would have enjoyed this story a lot more if I were in some way involved or invested in NYC. Honestly, being a Boston person my whole life, it made a lot of the ‘feel’ a little bit off for me. I could easily see a reader diving deep into this story and being in love, but that wasn’t ever going to be me.

If you’re a fan of existential horror, you’ll probably like this book quite a lot.



View all my reviews

The Let Down

Posted on by

I tend to stick to genre related things when I have down time and want some entertainment. My downtime is relatively limited so I want to go with things that look or feel like something I would find enjoyable. Often, I put movies or shows onto a list (watch later, or whatever the particular service calls it). Then, as most people do (I suspect) I go and watch many things that are NOT in fact on my list. Occasionally I’ll go back to one of the lists and pick up something I’ve been meaning to watch. Something that strikes the “I’ve been meaning to watch that…” chord.

Yesterday, I went back and pulled Dragon Blade off one of those lists. A sort of historical looking action/sword fighting movie with Adrian Brody, John Cusak and Jackie Chan. Great line up, right? The movie being something about Romans attempting to lay some kind of claim to the silk road. Cool. Has to be cool… right?

No. Not so much.

I’m not going to review the movie here. It was a mess. There’s a reason you haven’t heard of it. In fact, I’m not going to link to the trailer for this thing either. Do not recommend as the meme goes. What I will say is that it’s such a let down to wait and wait until what feels like just the right time (sword fighty Saturday matinee, amiright?) and then just get let down.

Do you find your level of expectation having an impact on how you feel about a show or film once you’ve finished watching it?

You Should Be Watching

Posted on by

Lockwood & Co.

This was originally published in Watch The Skies February 2023 edition.

The main characters

Lockwood & Co. was a complete surprise. It was not a show that was on my radar, and I knew nothing about it when I started watching. I sat down with the family and we watched almost the whole season in a single sitting. Yes – the show caught us and we binged it.

Lockwood & Co. is a supernatural detective thriller story set in an alternate world where ghosts have come back to this world and can kill those still living. The only ones able to detect the ghosts are the youthful members of society who have some kind of psychic abilities. These kids are lined up at various agencies that investigate and remove ghosts. Lockwood & Co. are one of the newest of these agencies, and we follow psychic Lucy Carlyle as she joins up with this company.

The show has a great, quick pace. The characters are fun and believable as people. The chemistry among the lead actors is fantastic. You like them and you’re rooting for them right away. Through various ups and downs the first season is tight and clean. Be warned – the end of many episodes are the sort of cliff hangers that demand you watch the next episode right away. This is definitely one you should be watching.

Check out the trailer here: