1 July 2015-7 July 2015
Notices
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General Fandom
Why Funimation’s statement on fanart is a double-edged sword for creators: Aja Romano (blog) - "On the other hand, Funimation's stance on the issue basically argues that fanart definitely "infringes the copyright holder's rights"-they're just not going to do anything about it."
topic:fanart, topic:copyright
Shipping Real People is OK… As Long As There’s Boundaries: Uve (blog) - "I, for one, have been obsessed with singers, actors and even a basketball team over my life as a fangirl and I know that, sometimes, some common fandom practices can get somewhat controversial."
topic:rpf, topic:shipping
Collins’ Crypt: Even At 17, You’re Still Too Young For Some Horror Movies: Brian Collins (blog) - "For the past year and change since he was born, people have asked - usually joking but sometimes not - when I will let my son watch this or that horror movie. I've given it some thought; I don't want to get too ahead of myself, but this horror-loving dad finds thinking about such things a fine way to daydream as I rock him to sleep or feed him that mush he calls food."
topic:parenting, topic:movies, topic:horror
The Subversive Science Fiction of Hip-Hop: Rose Eveleth (blog) - "The prototypical "science fiction" nerd might be portrayed as a white teenage boy, but the themes and struggles present in science fiction are deeply connected with those present in black culture."
topic:music, topic:sciencefiction, topic:race
Aniwords - What Makes a "Good" Season?: Isaac Akers (blog) - "At the end of a season of anime and at the beginning of a new one, the question that seems to be on everybody's mind is: "Is this season going to be better or worse than the last?""
fandom:anime
The Big Bad: Superheroes Without Supervillains: mikelywhiplash (blog) - "Somehow, the greater realism applied to superheroes, the less room there is for supervillainy. Instead, we’re left with a handful of tropes, with only a few bad guys able to break out of the box. This dynamic is crucial to the ways our current crop of superhero blockbusters reflects our wider psychology."
topic:superheroes, topic:villains
Video Game Accessibility: A Legal Approach: George M. Powers, Vinh Nguyen, Lex M. Frieden (journal) - "Video game accessibility may not seem of significance to some, and it may sound trivial to anyone who does not play video games. This assumption is false. With the digitalization of our culture, video games are an ever increasing part of our life."
fandom:gaming, topic:videogames, topic:disability, topic:law
Five Super Villain Schemes So Crazy They Might Just Be Crazy: Ryan Britt (blog) - "Perhaps. But there are some super villains who actually seem at least a little bit sane, and still somehow manage to enact schemes that are flawed to the point of being silly. Here are five of the most absurd super villain schemes, complete with my advice on what these big baddies should have done instead."
topic:villains
Character Development: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "According to the last paragraph the book is about 'the prince who didn't want to be king'. Which, okay, good start for growth. But since he had in fact been kinging on increasing scales since the beginning, not quite what I was looking for."
topic:writing, topic:characterdevelopment
Specific Fandoms
The 100
The 100 Has Some of the Best Female Characters on TV. Yes, Really: Morgan Glennon (blog) - "When you go looking through the television landscape for nuanced, multi-layered female characters, your first stop might not be The CW. Yet the network is quietly airing a television show featuring some of the most dynamic women on the dial. I’m talking, of course, about The 100."
fandom:the100, topic:femalecharacter
Airboy
Unpacking the Transphobia in ‘Airboy’ #2: Charlotte Finn (blog) - "So, there are big problems here. To unpack them one by one, we start with the notion of "the trap.""
fandom:comics, topic:lgbt, warning:misogyny, warning:transphobia
Airboy #2’s Transmisogynistic Tropes and Their Dangerous Impact on Trans Women: Marcy Cook (blog) - "The story is irrelevant to me at this point, I’ve described why the issue is offensive to multiple people within the comics industry and had reactions ranging from "So?" to sarcasm questioning my intelligence, I‘ve also had "That’s awful!" so at least some of the explaining was worthwhile. I don’t care if you think the story is well written, if it’s highly offensive then it’s without redeeming features."
fandom:comics, topic:lgbt, warning:misogyny, warning:transphobia
Back to the Future
A Consumer’s Guide to Back to the Future: Matt Melis (blog) - "Back to the Future was the first film of my childhood that clearly understood that people and, more importantly, times are defined by both what we purchase and what we wish we could afford."
fandom:backtothefuture
Battle Royale
Episode 34: Battle Royale: The Canon (podcast) - "A legendarily controversial movie, Battle Royale is seen by many as the basic inspiration for The Hunger Games, so we definitely go off on a few tangents there. Also tangentialized: Japanese history post-WWII, other Japanese filmmakers, yakuza movies and whether or not violence in film is fun and can make you a bad person."
fandom:battleroyale
Black Panther
The Journey to Wakanda: Afrofuturism and Black Panther: Aaron Reese (blog) - "What makes Black Panther an especially vital character to bring to a broader audience is his pedigree and the introduction of his native homeland, Wakanda."
fandom:marvelcomics, fandom:mcu, topic:race
Braveheart
Braveheart Turns 20: The Bloody Pleasures of Mel Gibson’s Moral Universe: Collin Brennan (blog) - "Viewing Braveheart as a history lesson is problematic; viewing it as a window into Gibson’s moral psyche is, however, fascinating, and it helps me to understand why I’ve always found his films so viscerally satisfying."
fandom:braveheart
Brooklyn 99
"Brooklyn 99" is 99% for Women: LA Ryter (blog) - "With the film industry dominated mostly by cheesy super-hero movies and depressing dramas, Brooklyn 99 is a refreshing escape."
fandom:brooklyn99
Buffy
Bitches, Badasses & Beauties on Pedestals: The Importance of Buffy’s Women to Its Men: Megan Purdy (blog) - "It’s not a problem that men get a lot of attention in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is a problem that female characters are so often hinges for male characters’ development."
fandom:btvs
Drusilla sired me… but you made me a monster.: drusillathekiller (tumblr) - "The way Spike sees it- though his word is far from gospel- while Dru is responsible for him becoming a vampire, Angel and Angel alone is the reason he became so brutal and twisted."
fandom:btvs
Vampire vs. human personalities: drusillathekiller (tumblr) - "Perhaps I was being too harsh on the show by accusing it of being contradictory; yes, the way in which some characters claimed that vampires and their human counterparts are completely separate entities and some characters claimed they aren’t did clash a little, but maybe that was intentional."
fandom:btvs
Simone Doffler-- the Big Bad that Wasn’t: goodmorningsunnydale (tumblr) - "I really wanted to like Simone as a character and a villain, I really wanted to be excited when she showed up in an issue, and I really wanted her death to be satisfying on some level. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case."
fandom:btvs
Why do you think Darla, Angel, Spike and Drusilla are so powerful?: marshmallow-the-vampire-slayer (tumblr) - "I think their uncharacteristic powers, strength and skills have to do with their lineage. They are all descendants of the Master through Darla, and we all know the Master wasn’t your run-of-the-mill vampire. "
fandom:btvs
Spike and Angel analysis part 1: mysterylover123 (tumblr) - "Exploration of the relationship between the two characters."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Season 2 Eps 1 and 2:beccaelizabeth (DW) - ""When she was bad" I had few thoughts about. Long long fight scenes. Weird long view of the classroom at the end, went on for like a whole minute with tacky music and no lines. How short did this episode come in?"
fandom:btvs
Buffy The Vampire Slayer: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "I've watched season two up as far as Ted.
It got much better and I'm enjoying the episodes now, up until this one, which creeps me the hell out way too much to decide if it's good or not.
I just don't necessarily have much to say about individual episodes. More about relationship arcs."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Season 2: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "I watched Inca Mummy Girl, Reptile Boy, and Halloween. One classic out of three."
fandom:btvs
If "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" Were Set In Britain: Daniel Dalton (blog) - A list of things that would be different about the show if it were set in Britain.
fandom:btvs
By the Sword
The Valdemar Reread: By the Sword: The March: Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of section in question.
fandom:valdemar
Cosmere
Words of Radiance Reread: Chapter 45: Alice Arneson (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapter in question.
fandom:cosmere
How Can We Use Mistborn’s Allomancy to Travel Faster Than Light?: Chris Lough (blog) - "Essentially, there’s more we need to learn before we know how Hoid (and perhaps others) travel from system to system. If this traveling method will be explained in a Mistborn trilogy, then it stands to reason that the method for traveling faster-than-light will be developed utilizing Allomancy, Feruchemy, Hemalurgy, or a combination of the three powers."
fandom:cosmere
Danmachi
Aniwords - So, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon or Not?: Isaac Akers (blog) - "Rather, we're given a chance to see a surprising number of perspectives on the topic, which is (to spell it out simply) "how should a boy treat girls?""
fandom:danmachi, fandom:anime
Doctor Who
23: City of Death, or, Exquisite. Absolutely exquisite: Pex Lives (podcast) - Discussion of the episodes in question.
fandom:doctorwho
The Lodger: louisedennis (LJ) - Discussion of the fifth series episode.
fandom:doctorwho
Dragon Prince
Rereading Melanie Rawn: Sunrunner’s Fire, Chapters 29 and 30: Judith Tarr (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapters in question.
fandom:dragonprince
Rereading Melanie Rawn’s Dragon Prince Trilogy: It’s a Wrap!: Judith Tarr (blog) - "As much as I can quibble details and narrative choices (and I certainly do), she did things that very few others in fantasy at the time were doing."
fandom:dragonprince
Empire Trilogy
Rereading the Empire Trilogy: Mistress of the Empire, Part 17: Tansy Rayner Roberts (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the section in question.
fandom:empiretrilogy
Fire Emblem Fates
[UPDATED] Fire Emblem Fates Dabbles in Drugging Women to Make Them Like You, Gay Conversion Therapy: Dan Van Winkle (blog) - "Now we’ve learned some more details about ways you can interact with a non-heterosexual character in the game, and it involves drugging her drink to trick her into loving a dude."
fandom:fireemblem, topic:lgbt, warning:rape
Does Fates Have a Cruel Future in Store For LGBTQ+ Fans?: Tsunderin (blog) - "However, back during the last week of June, Nintendo of Japan made a statement that Fates would be the first game in the series to offer the chance for a homosexual relationship concerning the player character. This should be a great thing, and part of me is still a little excited that they even gave the player this option, but the way I see it, Fates’s gay marriage option is more like a bronze-plated turd than an offer of goodwill and acceptance."
fandom:fireemblem, topic:lgbt
Game of Thrones
A Brief Treatise on the Rules of Thrones 2.07: A Man Without Honor: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "The title, of course, refers to the Kingslayer, Jaime Lannister, making his first appearance in six episodes."
fandom:gameofthrones
H.P. Lovecraft
The Lovecraft Reread: Bet You Didn’t Know You Could Get Into This Much Trouble Using Calculus: "The Dreams in the Witch House": Ruthanna Emrys and Anne M. Pillsworth (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the story in question.
fandom:lovecraft
Hannibal
Hannibal Review 3.05 "Contorno": Meredith Borders (blog) - Analysis of the episode and speculation about future events.
fandom:hannibal, warning:spoilers
Harry Potter
The Harry Potter Reread: The Order of the Phoenix, Chapters 21 and 22: Emily Asher-Perrin (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapters in question.
fandom:harrypotter
This Fan Theory Might Finally Explain The Final Step To Making A Horcrux: Brad Esposito and Jemima Skelley (blog) - "Today, Reddit user sirlionel13 offered up the explanation that the final, and most horrible act in the creation of a horcrux, is cannibalism."
fandom:harrypotter
Hercules
Hercules Isn’t a Zero: Lindsey Loree (blog) - "As a long time fan of Kevin Sorbo’s brand of Hercules, I had my doubts with regards to Dwayne Johnson’s ability to pull of this mythic character."
fandom:hercules
Inside Out
Inside Out Feels: Fangirl Chat (podcast) - "Erich Schoeneweiss (Geek Out Loud, Del Rey Books) and Sarah Woloski (Fangirls Going Rogue, Skywalking Through Neverland) join Teresa Delgado and Tricia Barr on the latest episode of Fangirl Chat to talk about the emotional highs and lows of Disney Pixar’s Inside Out."
Note: Includes links to four other articles analyzing the movie.
fandom:insideout, warning:spoilers
The Science of ‘Inside Out’: Dacher Keltner and Paul Ekman (newspaper) - "As scientists who have studied emotion for decades, we were delighted to be asked. We ended up serving as scientific consultants for the movie, "Inside Out," which was recently released."
fandom:insideout, topic:science, warning:spoilers
JFK
Don’t Forget Your Dying King: The Ecstatic Truth Of Oliver Stone’s JFK: Jacob Knight (blog) - "Stone isn’t so much solving the case as he is opening the eyes of the viewing public to the very idea that we should be scrutinizing every piece of information ever presented to us."
fandom:jfk, topic:history
James Bond
Bond Girl: Re-Watching and Re-Evaluating Never Say Never Again: Zina Hutton (blog) - "Never Say Never Again and Thunderball are basically the same movie but with Bond at different stages of his life."
fandom:jamesbond
Jane the Virgin
Jane the Virgin, Romantic Triangles, and Giving Female Characters the Agency They Deserve: Abbey White (blog) - "In reality, Jane the Virgin doesn’t only utilize triangle development for her two romantic suitors. The series also employs the conflict-generating device in other aspects of Jane’s life, from her family to her career."
fandom:janethevirgin
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
All The Mirrors of the World: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "Having carefully built the storytelling machine that is Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell over three episodes, Harness and Haynes here start to explore some of the less obvious things that it can do."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell, warning:spoilers
Microreview [TV]: a return to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell - series (2015): English Scribbler (blog) - "From the rare advantage of having already seen the whole series here in the U.K. and knowing BBC America is only 4/7 of the way through, I don't wish to say stop watching an absorbing and largely wonderful effort of filmmaking, but I do wish to highlight where in many ways the story has gone not-so-right for me."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell, warning:spoilers
Magical Mondays: The Peculiar Magic of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell: Lady Saika (blog) - "Despite having owned the book Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell for many years, it was only recently that I sat down with a mind to actually read it."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell
Jurassic Park
Jurassic World: A Summary: Foz Meadows (blog) - "Let’s talk about what the fuck the scriptwriters were even on when they wrote this mess, sweet Christ on a goddamn bicycle. Because even without all the shit mentioned above - and it is, as Dr Ian Malcolm so famously said, one big pile of shit - the script is more full of dropped threads than an amateur’s sewing basket."
fandom:jurassicpark, warning:spoilers
Hulk Smash Jurassic World: Film Crit Hulk (blog) - "BUT WHAT HULK HONESTLY DIDN'T EXPECT WAS SUCH A HATEFUL, CONFUSED ATTITUDE FROM THE MOVIE ITSELF."
fandom:jurassicpark, warning:spoilers
The Killer
Forum: The Killer: Mike D’Angelo and Scott Tobias (blog) - Detailed discussion and analysis of the movie.
fandom:thekiller
Legend of Zelda
Are The Triforce and Goddesses Evil?: ProtoMario (video) - "The goddesses watch over Hyrule and have protected it from Ganon’s evil plans but there is some evidence to suggest the goddesses aren’t the caring, divine entities they seem to be."
fandom:legendofzelda
The Women of Legend: Din, Nayru and Farore: Jon Lett (blog) - "I have noted in the past that I greatly wish for the goddesses to be a part of the series again, but I would like most of all if they could be portrayed how many mediums portray holy entities: full of hubris and with a disdain for lower beings such as mortals."
fandom:legendofzelda
Macbeth (1978)
Shabcast 8: Pex Lives (podcast) - "This time, myself and my actorly buddy Elliot Chapman (returning guest from the Macra shabcast, and Big Finish's new Ben Jackson) discuss Shakespeare's great tragedy 'Macbeth', and Shakespeare generally."
fandom:shakespeare
Mad Max
Apocalypse, Dystopia, Revolution: Fury Road’s New Future: Kristian Williams (blog) - "The future Fury Road presents is a judgement on the present - but also a warning and a challenge."
fandom:madmax
Magic Mike XXL
Female pleasure looks mighty odd in Magic Mike XXL: Tasha Robinson (blog) - "The theater crowds also have the remove of voyeurism; they know this graphic sexual display is for their entertainment and titillation, but that they don’t have to participate as anything but viewers. They know they’re safe from getting tossed around, used as props, or given faux-facials they weren’t primed to expect."
fandom:magicmike, warning:spoilers, topic:sex
Marvel Comics/Sleeping Beauty (Grimm version)
Comics, Fairy Tales, and Female Agency: How Does Sleeping Beauty Stack Up Against Scarlet Witch?: Eugenia Hu (blog) - "Comics, as our modern fairy tales, have brought us anti-heroes, villains with real motivations you can (kind of) understand, and more diverse characters in general. But what about female characters? As fixtures in both fairy tales and iconic comic storylines, surely they’ve evolved, too?"
fandom:marvelcomics, fandom:fairytales, topic:femalecharacter
Orange Is the New Black
If there’s a right way to depict rape on TV, ‘Orange is the New Black’ did it: Iman Hasan (blog) - "But we’re now past the point of thinkpieces that ask, "Is rape overused as a plot device?" We already know-the answer is yes. Now it’s time to dig a little deeper and ask, "How can rape be portrayed sensibly? Does it need to be present at all?""
fandom:orangeisthenewblack, warning:spoilers, warning:rape
Outland/Runaway
Our Massive Future Cop Series Begins With Outland and Runaway!: Birth, Movies, Death (podcast) - "We begins with the great Outland and not-too-shabby Runaway. If you haven’t seen either, I recommend them both, though Outland is way better."
fandom:outland, fandom:runaway
Overlord
Overlord, Episode 1: Mage in a Barrel (blog) - "This is a trapped-in-an-MMO anime, but the thing that sets Overlord apart from its high-profile counterparts (SAO, Log Horizon) so far is that Overlord combines a sense of familiarity and a feeling of fond nostalgia to generate an intensely melancholic tone through the first part of the episode."
fandom:overlord, fandom:anime
Oz
Interpreting Oz: Ken Derry (blog) - "The first thing I noticed is that most scholars who write about this stuff do not mention Baum’s genocide editorials at all. The ones who do consistently fall into one of three categories."
fandom:baumoz, topic:racism
Parks and Recreation
Fandom and genre: Comic distance and emotional attachment in Parks and Recreation fandom: ingerlisekbore (blog) - "To me, there seems to be a tension between this idea of distance and the attachments that fans develop to their fan objects, and so I´m interested in exploring how comedic texts also invite audience investment and how online fan responses to comedy might negotiate this push/pull dynamic. So what I want to do here is to try to unpack the notion of comic distance and to use the case study of the Tumblr-based fandom of mockdocumentary sitcom Parks and Recreation to explore how these Tumblr posts articulate different affective registers."
fandom:parksandrecreation, topic:fandom, topic:comedy
Penny Dreadful
Penny Dreadful Goes Full Scooby Doo: Genevieve Valentine (blog) - "Penny Dreadful has spent its entire season building to a supernatural faceoff. And this week, the show goes for a pulpy haunted-house ride that’s so Victorian, we hit the Varney Singularity. Ruh-roh!"
fandom:pennydreadful, warning:spoilers
Pokemon
Poke-Theory: The Kanto/Johto War Of Annexation: The Insightful Panda (blog) - "As you can imagine, some theories are better than others; but there is one in particular that still manages to capture our imaginations even 15 years later. Some would even call this the ORIGINAL Poke-Theory. I’m of course talking about The Kanto War."
fandom:pokemon
The Red Baron
The Red Baron: Something Every Historical Film Should Do: aelarsen (blog) - "At the end of the film, however, it actually does something I heartily commend. As with many biopics, it ends with an epilogue sequence telling us about the characters."
fandom:theredbaron, topic:history
Saga
Book Club: Saga, Week 1: Overthinking It (podcast) - "We are Overthinking the comic book series "Saga," and this is Week 1, covering Chapters 1-3 of the series."
fandom:saga
Sense8
Sense8: Like Whoa, Love is Amazing, AMIRITE?: Carrie S. (blog) - "What hooked me? The romances, and how the romances hook into the idea that people need to connect to other people in order to emotionally and physically survive."
fandom:sense8, warning:spoilers
Serpico
Serpico: New York police corruption classic shoots from hip - and hits target: Alex von Tunzelmann (blog) - "Al Pacino hits his mark as a whistleblower patrolman who confronts dirty New York City cops in Sidney Lumet’s historically accurate 1973 drama."
fandom:serpico, topic:history
Sherlock Holmes
Canon discussion: The Greek Interpreter: sherlock60 (LJ) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the story in question.
fandom:acdsherlock
Silicon Valley
’Silicon Valley’ Adds Women, Convinces Me It Shouldn’t Add Women: Katharine Murray (blog) - "Where the male characters are all really quirky and specific, the female characters are vaguely competent and bland - they fit into the comedy stereotype that says women have their shit together more than men do, and that means they have to act as a stabilizing influence, buzz-kill, or mom. It’s a stereotype that flatters women in some ways, and usually seems well-meaning, but also leaves us out of the fun."
fandom:siliconvalley, topic:femalecharacter
A Song of Ice and Fire
A Read of Ice and Fire: A Dance With Dragons, Part 27: Leigh Butler (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the section in question.
fandom:asoiaf
Top Characters #6 Eddard Stark: Chris Kesner (blog) - "Every story possesses a character who symbolizes the "heart" of the text. This character brings emotional resonance and humane value to the readers, as his or her ideology is one that every reader also universally appreciates. In A Song of Ice and Fire, this character is Eddard "Ned" Stark, the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North."
fandom:asoiaf
A reader’s guide to the Feastdance: Stefan (blog) - "It was my colleague from the "Boiled Leather Audio Hour" Podcast, Sean T. Collins, who picked this idea up and undertook the work of creating a reading order in which you alternated between chapters of both AFFC and ADWD. When you read the chapters this way, it feels like you're reading the book as it should be. You never, ever should read it any way else."
fandom:asoiaf
Star Trek
The Simple Feeling and Beyond: Kirk and Spock’s Place in Queer History: Vrai Kaiser (blog) - "But those fine individuals are too often dismissed as delusional or ridiculous, "projecting things that aren’t there" (or "recognizing things that I do not personally relate to my life experiences and therefore it isn’t a thing). So instead, let’s focus on the proponents of queerness behind the scenes."
fandom:startrek, topic:lgbt
Star Wars
The Evolution of Women in the Star Wars Universe: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi: Amy Richau (blog) - "The sixth Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi (ROTJ), has more female characters than ANH or TESB in a wider variety of roles. However, some of the female characters may not be the roles you were looking or wishing for."
fandom:starwars, topic:femalecharacter
Kay Returns to Nerd Lunch for Return of the Jedi: Nerd Lunch (podcast) - "So I reconvened with CT, Pax, Jeeg, and Michael May to discuss the divisive Episode VII: Return of the Jedi. As usual we talk about our favorite and least favorite parts as well as how it fits for us personally in the rest of the trilogy."
fandom:starwars
Why Star Wars Comics are More Essential than Ever: metro (blog) - "Ever since Marvel released their adaptation of the original film back in 1977 which led to a 107 issue run right through to 1986, comics have been at the forefront of Star Wars literature."
fandom:starwars, topic:comics
Steven Universe
Strong in the Real Way: ‘Steven Universe’ and the Shape of Masculinity to Come: Ashley Gallagher (blog) - "Steven is truly the beating heart of the show, but it’s not because he’s a boy. In fact, many of his defining characteristics are distinctly un-boyish, as far as popular media tropes are concerned."
fandom:stevenuniverse
Superman
Man of Steel: A Retrospective: DRUPKINS (blog) - "But while watching Man of Steel I finally realized why I also connected with Clark. His story is also that of the Other. The illegal alien who must hide who he is to survive in a bigoted and savage world."
fandom:dccu, fandom:dccomics
The Neverending Battle Made Easy: Donovan Grant (blog) - "With the Ferguson analogy inelegantly at the forefront, let’s describe how this doesn’t work and what makes its evocation of recent events improper."
fandom:dccomics, topic:racism, topic:socialjustice, topic:whitewashing
Ted 2
Dumber Than Your Average Bear: Wesley Morris (blog) - "You never expect a movie to hurt you. Disappoint? Dismay? Depress? Fine. But when a movie has a field day asserting the humanity of a fake toy bear at the expense of your own, it hurts."
fandom:ted, topic:racism, warning:spoilers
Teen Wolf
Teen Wolf: "Parasomnia" Review: MadameAce (blog) - Summary and analysis of the episode.
fandom:teenwolf, warning:spoilers
Teen Wolf: "Dreamcatchers" Review: Lady Geek Girl (blog) - "This week’s episode of Teen Wolf featured lots of ladies being awesome, a large dose of body horror, and the death knell of one, if not two, of the fandom’s favorite ships. And I actually really like this episode."
fandom:teenwolf, warning:spoilers
Terminator
366: You Drop This Acid, You Will Travel Through Time: Overthinking It (podcast) - "Ben Adams, Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee and Matthew Wrather overthink Terminator Genisys."
fandom:terminator, warning:spoilers
Terminator 2: Did The T-800 Really Learn the Value of Human Life?: Overthinking It (blog) - "This prompted a long email exchange on the ending of Terminator 2 which was lost in the Overthinking It vaults…until now."
fandom:terminator
Terminator: Genisys Changes History But Doesn’t Add Much New to the Franchise: Natalie Zutter (blog) - "Terminator: Genisys might as well be called Terminator: Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey. Partly because of the brief-but-important presence of Doctor Who‘s Matt Smith, but mostly because the franchise is rebooting itself with the ol’ "let’s create an alternate timeline" gambit."
fandom:terminator, warning:spoilers
True Detective
True Detective Review: "Maybe Tomorrow": Scott Wampler and Phil Nobile Jr (blog) - Discussion and analysis of the episode.
fandom:truedetective, warning:spoilers
If you have meta to submit or rec, please comment to this post or to the screened Submissions Post. If you'd like to give us blanket permission to link your meta please comment to the Blanket Permissions Post. If you have feedback or questions, check out our FAQ, Contact the Mods, or PM/email. If you'd like to volunteer to link-find or mod, please comment to the Volunteers Post.
General Fandom
Why Funimation’s statement on fanart is a double-edged sword for creators: Aja Romano (blog) - "On the other hand, Funimation's stance on the issue basically argues that fanart definitely "infringes the copyright holder's rights"-they're just not going to do anything about it."
topic:fanart, topic:copyright
Shipping Real People is OK… As Long As There’s Boundaries: Uve (blog) - "I, for one, have been obsessed with singers, actors and even a basketball team over my life as a fangirl and I know that, sometimes, some common fandom practices can get somewhat controversial."
topic:rpf, topic:shipping
Collins’ Crypt: Even At 17, You’re Still Too Young For Some Horror Movies: Brian Collins (blog) - "For the past year and change since he was born, people have asked - usually joking but sometimes not - when I will let my son watch this or that horror movie. I've given it some thought; I don't want to get too ahead of myself, but this horror-loving dad finds thinking about such things a fine way to daydream as I rock him to sleep or feed him that mush he calls food."
topic:parenting, topic:movies, topic:horror
The Subversive Science Fiction of Hip-Hop: Rose Eveleth (blog) - "The prototypical "science fiction" nerd might be portrayed as a white teenage boy, but the themes and struggles present in science fiction are deeply connected with those present in black culture."
topic:music, topic:sciencefiction, topic:race
Aniwords - What Makes a "Good" Season?: Isaac Akers (blog) - "At the end of a season of anime and at the beginning of a new one, the question that seems to be on everybody's mind is: "Is this season going to be better or worse than the last?""
fandom:anime
The Big Bad: Superheroes Without Supervillains: mikelywhiplash (blog) - "Somehow, the greater realism applied to superheroes, the less room there is for supervillainy. Instead, we’re left with a handful of tropes, with only a few bad guys able to break out of the box. This dynamic is crucial to the ways our current crop of superhero blockbusters reflects our wider psychology."
topic:superheroes, topic:villains
Video Game Accessibility: A Legal Approach: George M. Powers, Vinh Nguyen, Lex M. Frieden (journal) - "Video game accessibility may not seem of significance to some, and it may sound trivial to anyone who does not play video games. This assumption is false. With the digitalization of our culture, video games are an ever increasing part of our life."
fandom:gaming, topic:videogames, topic:disability, topic:law
Five Super Villain Schemes So Crazy They Might Just Be Crazy: Ryan Britt (blog) - "Perhaps. But there are some super villains who actually seem at least a little bit sane, and still somehow manage to enact schemes that are flawed to the point of being silly. Here are five of the most absurd super villain schemes, complete with my advice on what these big baddies should have done instead."
topic:villains
Character Development: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "According to the last paragraph the book is about 'the prince who didn't want to be king'. Which, okay, good start for growth. But since he had in fact been kinging on increasing scales since the beginning, not quite what I was looking for."
topic:writing, topic:characterdevelopment
Specific Fandoms
The 100
The 100 Has Some of the Best Female Characters on TV. Yes, Really: Morgan Glennon (blog) - "When you go looking through the television landscape for nuanced, multi-layered female characters, your first stop might not be The CW. Yet the network is quietly airing a television show featuring some of the most dynamic women on the dial. I’m talking, of course, about The 100."
fandom:the100, topic:femalecharacter
Airboy
Unpacking the Transphobia in ‘Airboy’ #2: Charlotte Finn (blog) - "So, there are big problems here. To unpack them one by one, we start with the notion of "the trap.""
fandom:comics, topic:lgbt, warning:misogyny, warning:transphobia
Airboy #2’s Transmisogynistic Tropes and Their Dangerous Impact on Trans Women: Marcy Cook (blog) - "The story is irrelevant to me at this point, I’ve described why the issue is offensive to multiple people within the comics industry and had reactions ranging from "So?" to sarcasm questioning my intelligence, I‘ve also had "That’s awful!" so at least some of the explaining was worthwhile. I don’t care if you think the story is well written, if it’s highly offensive then it’s without redeeming features."
fandom:comics, topic:lgbt, warning:misogyny, warning:transphobia
Back to the Future
A Consumer’s Guide to Back to the Future: Matt Melis (blog) - "Back to the Future was the first film of my childhood that clearly understood that people and, more importantly, times are defined by both what we purchase and what we wish we could afford."
fandom:backtothefuture
Battle Royale
Episode 34: Battle Royale: The Canon (podcast) - "A legendarily controversial movie, Battle Royale is seen by many as the basic inspiration for The Hunger Games, so we definitely go off on a few tangents there. Also tangentialized: Japanese history post-WWII, other Japanese filmmakers, yakuza movies and whether or not violence in film is fun and can make you a bad person."
fandom:battleroyale
Black Panther
The Journey to Wakanda: Afrofuturism and Black Panther: Aaron Reese (blog) - "What makes Black Panther an especially vital character to bring to a broader audience is his pedigree and the introduction of his native homeland, Wakanda."
fandom:marvelcomics, fandom:mcu, topic:race
Braveheart
Braveheart Turns 20: The Bloody Pleasures of Mel Gibson’s Moral Universe: Collin Brennan (blog) - "Viewing Braveheart as a history lesson is problematic; viewing it as a window into Gibson’s moral psyche is, however, fascinating, and it helps me to understand why I’ve always found his films so viscerally satisfying."
fandom:braveheart
Brooklyn 99
"Brooklyn 99" is 99% for Women: LA Ryter (blog) - "With the film industry dominated mostly by cheesy super-hero movies and depressing dramas, Brooklyn 99 is a refreshing escape."
fandom:brooklyn99
Buffy
Bitches, Badasses & Beauties on Pedestals: The Importance of Buffy’s Women to Its Men: Megan Purdy (blog) - "It’s not a problem that men get a lot of attention in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is a problem that female characters are so often hinges for male characters’ development."
fandom:btvs
Drusilla sired me… but you made me a monster.: drusillathekiller (tumblr) - "The way Spike sees it- though his word is far from gospel- while Dru is responsible for him becoming a vampire, Angel and Angel alone is the reason he became so brutal and twisted."
fandom:btvs
Vampire vs. human personalities: drusillathekiller (tumblr) - "Perhaps I was being too harsh on the show by accusing it of being contradictory; yes, the way in which some characters claimed that vampires and their human counterparts are completely separate entities and some characters claimed they aren’t did clash a little, but maybe that was intentional."
fandom:btvs
Simone Doffler-- the Big Bad that Wasn’t: goodmorningsunnydale (tumblr) - "I really wanted to like Simone as a character and a villain, I really wanted to be excited when she showed up in an issue, and I really wanted her death to be satisfying on some level. Unfortunately, this isn’t the case."
fandom:btvs
Why do you think Darla, Angel, Spike and Drusilla are so powerful?: marshmallow-the-vampire-slayer (tumblr) - "I think their uncharacteristic powers, strength and skills have to do with their lineage. They are all descendants of the Master through Darla, and we all know the Master wasn’t your run-of-the-mill vampire. "
fandom:btvs
Spike and Angel analysis part 1: mysterylover123 (tumblr) - "Exploration of the relationship between the two characters."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Season 2 Eps 1 and 2:beccaelizabeth (DW) - ""When she was bad" I had few thoughts about. Long long fight scenes. Weird long view of the classroom at the end, went on for like a whole minute with tacky music and no lines. How short did this episode come in?"
fandom:btvs
Buffy The Vampire Slayer: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "I've watched season two up as far as Ted.
It got much better and I'm enjoying the episodes now, up until this one, which creeps me the hell out way too much to decide if it's good or not.
I just don't necessarily have much to say about individual episodes. More about relationship arcs."
fandom:btvs
Buffy Season 2: beccaelizabeth (DW) - "I watched Inca Mummy Girl, Reptile Boy, and Halloween. One classic out of three."
fandom:btvs
If "Buffy The Vampire Slayer" Were Set In Britain: Daniel Dalton (blog) - A list of things that would be different about the show if it were set in Britain.
fandom:btvs
By the Sword
The Valdemar Reread: By the Sword: The March: Ellen Cheeseman-Meyer (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of section in question.
fandom:valdemar
Cosmere
Words of Radiance Reread: Chapter 45: Alice Arneson (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapter in question.
fandom:cosmere
How Can We Use Mistborn’s Allomancy to Travel Faster Than Light?: Chris Lough (blog) - "Essentially, there’s more we need to learn before we know how Hoid (and perhaps others) travel from system to system. If this traveling method will be explained in a Mistborn trilogy, then it stands to reason that the method for traveling faster-than-light will be developed utilizing Allomancy, Feruchemy, Hemalurgy, or a combination of the three powers."
fandom:cosmere
Danmachi
Aniwords - So, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon or Not?: Isaac Akers (blog) - "Rather, we're given a chance to see a surprising number of perspectives on the topic, which is (to spell it out simply) "how should a boy treat girls?""
fandom:danmachi, fandom:anime
Doctor Who
23: City of Death, or, Exquisite. Absolutely exquisite: Pex Lives (podcast) - Discussion of the episodes in question.
fandom:doctorwho
The Lodger: louisedennis (LJ) - Discussion of the fifth series episode.
fandom:doctorwho
Dragon Prince
Rereading Melanie Rawn: Sunrunner’s Fire, Chapters 29 and 30: Judith Tarr (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapters in question.
fandom:dragonprince
Rereading Melanie Rawn’s Dragon Prince Trilogy: It’s a Wrap!: Judith Tarr (blog) - "As much as I can quibble details and narrative choices (and I certainly do), she did things that very few others in fantasy at the time were doing."
fandom:dragonprince
Empire Trilogy
Rereading the Empire Trilogy: Mistress of the Empire, Part 17: Tansy Rayner Roberts (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the section in question.
fandom:empiretrilogy
Fire Emblem Fates
[UPDATED] Fire Emblem Fates Dabbles in Drugging Women to Make Them Like You, Gay Conversion Therapy: Dan Van Winkle (blog) - "Now we’ve learned some more details about ways you can interact with a non-heterosexual character in the game, and it involves drugging her drink to trick her into loving a dude."
fandom:fireemblem, topic:lgbt, warning:rape
Does Fates Have a Cruel Future in Store For LGBTQ+ Fans?: Tsunderin (blog) - "However, back during the last week of June, Nintendo of Japan made a statement that Fates would be the first game in the series to offer the chance for a homosexual relationship concerning the player character. This should be a great thing, and part of me is still a little excited that they even gave the player this option, but the way I see it, Fates’s gay marriage option is more like a bronze-plated turd than an offer of goodwill and acceptance."
fandom:fireemblem, topic:lgbt
Game of Thrones
A Brief Treatise on the Rules of Thrones 2.07: A Man Without Honor: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "The title, of course, refers to the Kingslayer, Jaime Lannister, making his first appearance in six episodes."
fandom:gameofthrones
H.P. Lovecraft
The Lovecraft Reread: Bet You Didn’t Know You Could Get Into This Much Trouble Using Calculus: "The Dreams in the Witch House": Ruthanna Emrys and Anne M. Pillsworth (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the story in question.
fandom:lovecraft
Hannibal
Hannibal Review 3.05 "Contorno": Meredith Borders (blog) - Analysis of the episode and speculation about future events.
fandom:hannibal, warning:spoilers
Harry Potter
The Harry Potter Reread: The Order of the Phoenix, Chapters 21 and 22: Emily Asher-Perrin (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the chapters in question.
fandom:harrypotter
This Fan Theory Might Finally Explain The Final Step To Making A Horcrux: Brad Esposito and Jemima Skelley (blog) - "Today, Reddit user sirlionel13 offered up the explanation that the final, and most horrible act in the creation of a horcrux, is cannibalism."
fandom:harrypotter
Hercules
Hercules Isn’t a Zero: Lindsey Loree (blog) - "As a long time fan of Kevin Sorbo’s brand of Hercules, I had my doubts with regards to Dwayne Johnson’s ability to pull of this mythic character."
fandom:hercules
Inside Out
Inside Out Feels: Fangirl Chat (podcast) - "Erich Schoeneweiss (Geek Out Loud, Del Rey Books) and Sarah Woloski (Fangirls Going Rogue, Skywalking Through Neverland) join Teresa Delgado and Tricia Barr on the latest episode of Fangirl Chat to talk about the emotional highs and lows of Disney Pixar’s Inside Out."
Note: Includes links to four other articles analyzing the movie.
fandom:insideout, warning:spoilers
The Science of ‘Inside Out’: Dacher Keltner and Paul Ekman (newspaper) - "As scientists who have studied emotion for decades, we were delighted to be asked. We ended up serving as scientific consultants for the movie, "Inside Out," which was recently released."
fandom:insideout, topic:science, warning:spoilers
JFK
Don’t Forget Your Dying King: The Ecstatic Truth Of Oliver Stone’s JFK: Jacob Knight (blog) - "Stone isn’t so much solving the case as he is opening the eyes of the viewing public to the very idea that we should be scrutinizing every piece of information ever presented to us."
fandom:jfk, topic:history
James Bond
Bond Girl: Re-Watching and Re-Evaluating Never Say Never Again: Zina Hutton (blog) - "Never Say Never Again and Thunderball are basically the same movie but with Bond at different stages of his life."
fandom:jamesbond
Jane the Virgin
Jane the Virgin, Romantic Triangles, and Giving Female Characters the Agency They Deserve: Abbey White (blog) - "In reality, Jane the Virgin doesn’t only utilize triangle development for her two romantic suitors. The series also employs the conflict-generating device in other aspects of Jane’s life, from her family to her career."
fandom:janethevirgin
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
All The Mirrors of the World: Philip Sandifer (blog) - "Having carefully built the storytelling machine that is Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell over three episodes, Harness and Haynes here start to explore some of the less obvious things that it can do."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell, warning:spoilers
Microreview [TV]: a return to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell - series (2015): English Scribbler (blog) - "From the rare advantage of having already seen the whole series here in the U.K. and knowing BBC America is only 4/7 of the way through, I don't wish to say stop watching an absorbing and largely wonderful effort of filmmaking, but I do wish to highlight where in many ways the story has gone not-so-right for me."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell, warning:spoilers
Magical Mondays: The Peculiar Magic of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell: Lady Saika (blog) - "Despite having owned the book Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell for many years, it was only recently that I sat down with a mind to actually read it."
fandom:jonathanstrangeandmrnorrell
Jurassic Park
Jurassic World: A Summary: Foz Meadows (blog) - "Let’s talk about what the fuck the scriptwriters were even on when they wrote this mess, sweet Christ on a goddamn bicycle. Because even without all the shit mentioned above - and it is, as Dr Ian Malcolm so famously said, one big pile of shit - the script is more full of dropped threads than an amateur’s sewing basket."
fandom:jurassicpark, warning:spoilers
Hulk Smash Jurassic World: Film Crit Hulk (blog) - "BUT WHAT HULK HONESTLY DIDN'T EXPECT WAS SUCH A HATEFUL, CONFUSED ATTITUDE FROM THE MOVIE ITSELF."
fandom:jurassicpark, warning:spoilers
The Killer
Forum: The Killer: Mike D’Angelo and Scott Tobias (blog) - Detailed discussion and analysis of the movie.
fandom:thekiller
Legend of Zelda
Are The Triforce and Goddesses Evil?: ProtoMario (video) - "The goddesses watch over Hyrule and have protected it from Ganon’s evil plans but there is some evidence to suggest the goddesses aren’t the caring, divine entities they seem to be."
fandom:legendofzelda
The Women of Legend: Din, Nayru and Farore: Jon Lett (blog) - "I have noted in the past that I greatly wish for the goddesses to be a part of the series again, but I would like most of all if they could be portrayed how many mediums portray holy entities: full of hubris and with a disdain for lower beings such as mortals."
fandom:legendofzelda
Macbeth (1978)
Shabcast 8: Pex Lives (podcast) - "This time, myself and my actorly buddy Elliot Chapman (returning guest from the Macra shabcast, and Big Finish's new Ben Jackson) discuss Shakespeare's great tragedy 'Macbeth', and Shakespeare generally."
fandom:shakespeare
Mad Max
Apocalypse, Dystopia, Revolution: Fury Road’s New Future: Kristian Williams (blog) - "The future Fury Road presents is a judgement on the present - but also a warning and a challenge."
fandom:madmax
Magic Mike XXL
Female pleasure looks mighty odd in Magic Mike XXL: Tasha Robinson (blog) - "The theater crowds also have the remove of voyeurism; they know this graphic sexual display is for their entertainment and titillation, but that they don’t have to participate as anything but viewers. They know they’re safe from getting tossed around, used as props, or given faux-facials they weren’t primed to expect."
fandom:magicmike, warning:spoilers, topic:sex
Marvel Comics/Sleeping Beauty (Grimm version)
Comics, Fairy Tales, and Female Agency: How Does Sleeping Beauty Stack Up Against Scarlet Witch?: Eugenia Hu (blog) - "Comics, as our modern fairy tales, have brought us anti-heroes, villains with real motivations you can (kind of) understand, and more diverse characters in general. But what about female characters? As fixtures in both fairy tales and iconic comic storylines, surely they’ve evolved, too?"
fandom:marvelcomics, fandom:fairytales, topic:femalecharacter
Orange Is the New Black
If there’s a right way to depict rape on TV, ‘Orange is the New Black’ did it: Iman Hasan (blog) - "But we’re now past the point of thinkpieces that ask, "Is rape overused as a plot device?" We already know-the answer is yes. Now it’s time to dig a little deeper and ask, "How can rape be portrayed sensibly? Does it need to be present at all?""
fandom:orangeisthenewblack, warning:spoilers, warning:rape
Outland/Runaway
Our Massive Future Cop Series Begins With Outland and Runaway!: Birth, Movies, Death (podcast) - "We begins with the great Outland and not-too-shabby Runaway. If you haven’t seen either, I recommend them both, though Outland is way better."
fandom:outland, fandom:runaway
Overlord
Overlord, Episode 1: Mage in a Barrel (blog) - "This is a trapped-in-an-MMO anime, but the thing that sets Overlord apart from its high-profile counterparts (SAO, Log Horizon) so far is that Overlord combines a sense of familiarity and a feeling of fond nostalgia to generate an intensely melancholic tone through the first part of the episode."
fandom:overlord, fandom:anime
Oz
Interpreting Oz: Ken Derry (blog) - "The first thing I noticed is that most scholars who write about this stuff do not mention Baum’s genocide editorials at all. The ones who do consistently fall into one of three categories."
fandom:baumoz, topic:racism
Parks and Recreation
Fandom and genre: Comic distance and emotional attachment in Parks and Recreation fandom: ingerlisekbore (blog) - "To me, there seems to be a tension between this idea of distance and the attachments that fans develop to their fan objects, and so I´m interested in exploring how comedic texts also invite audience investment and how online fan responses to comedy might negotiate this push/pull dynamic. So what I want to do here is to try to unpack the notion of comic distance and to use the case study of the Tumblr-based fandom of mockdocumentary sitcom Parks and Recreation to explore how these Tumblr posts articulate different affective registers."
fandom:parksandrecreation, topic:fandom, topic:comedy
Penny Dreadful
Penny Dreadful Goes Full Scooby Doo: Genevieve Valentine (blog) - "Penny Dreadful has spent its entire season building to a supernatural faceoff. And this week, the show goes for a pulpy haunted-house ride that’s so Victorian, we hit the Varney Singularity. Ruh-roh!"
fandom:pennydreadful, warning:spoilers
Pokemon
Poke-Theory: The Kanto/Johto War Of Annexation: The Insightful Panda (blog) - "As you can imagine, some theories are better than others; but there is one in particular that still manages to capture our imaginations even 15 years later. Some would even call this the ORIGINAL Poke-Theory. I’m of course talking about The Kanto War."
fandom:pokemon
The Red Baron
The Red Baron: Something Every Historical Film Should Do: aelarsen (blog) - "At the end of the film, however, it actually does something I heartily commend. As with many biopics, it ends with an epilogue sequence telling us about the characters."
fandom:theredbaron, topic:history
Saga
Book Club: Saga, Week 1: Overthinking It (podcast) - "We are Overthinking the comic book series "Saga," and this is Week 1, covering Chapters 1-3 of the series."
fandom:saga
Sense8
Sense8: Like Whoa, Love is Amazing, AMIRITE?: Carrie S. (blog) - "What hooked me? The romances, and how the romances hook into the idea that people need to connect to other people in order to emotionally and physically survive."
fandom:sense8, warning:spoilers
Serpico
Serpico: New York police corruption classic shoots from hip - and hits target: Alex von Tunzelmann (blog) - "Al Pacino hits his mark as a whistleblower patrolman who confronts dirty New York City cops in Sidney Lumet’s historically accurate 1973 drama."
fandom:serpico, topic:history
Sherlock Holmes
Canon discussion: The Greek Interpreter: sherlock60 (LJ) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the story in question.
fandom:acdsherlock
Silicon Valley
’Silicon Valley’ Adds Women, Convinces Me It Shouldn’t Add Women: Katharine Murray (blog) - "Where the male characters are all really quirky and specific, the female characters are vaguely competent and bland - they fit into the comedy stereotype that says women have their shit together more than men do, and that means they have to act as a stabilizing influence, buzz-kill, or mom. It’s a stereotype that flatters women in some ways, and usually seems well-meaning, but also leaves us out of the fun."
fandom:siliconvalley, topic:femalecharacter
A Song of Ice and Fire
A Read of Ice and Fire: A Dance With Dragons, Part 27: Leigh Butler (blog) - Summary, discussion and analysis of the section in question.
fandom:asoiaf
Top Characters #6 Eddard Stark: Chris Kesner (blog) - "Every story possesses a character who symbolizes the "heart" of the text. This character brings emotional resonance and humane value to the readers, as his or her ideology is one that every reader also universally appreciates. In A Song of Ice and Fire, this character is Eddard "Ned" Stark, the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North."
fandom:asoiaf
A reader’s guide to the Feastdance: Stefan (blog) - "It was my colleague from the "Boiled Leather Audio Hour" Podcast, Sean T. Collins, who picked this idea up and undertook the work of creating a reading order in which you alternated between chapters of both AFFC and ADWD. When you read the chapters this way, it feels like you're reading the book as it should be. You never, ever should read it any way else."
fandom:asoiaf
Star Trek
The Simple Feeling and Beyond: Kirk and Spock’s Place in Queer History: Vrai Kaiser (blog) - "But those fine individuals are too often dismissed as delusional or ridiculous, "projecting things that aren’t there" (or "recognizing things that I do not personally relate to my life experiences and therefore it isn’t a thing). So instead, let’s focus on the proponents of queerness behind the scenes."
fandom:startrek, topic:lgbt
Star Wars
The Evolution of Women in the Star Wars Universe: Episode VI: Return of the Jedi: Amy Richau (blog) - "The sixth Star Wars film, Return of the Jedi (ROTJ), has more female characters than ANH or TESB in a wider variety of roles. However, some of the female characters may not be the roles you were looking or wishing for."
fandom:starwars, topic:femalecharacter
Kay Returns to Nerd Lunch for Return of the Jedi: Nerd Lunch (podcast) - "So I reconvened with CT, Pax, Jeeg, and Michael May to discuss the divisive Episode VII: Return of the Jedi. As usual we talk about our favorite and least favorite parts as well as how it fits for us personally in the rest of the trilogy."
fandom:starwars
Why Star Wars Comics are More Essential than Ever: metro (blog) - "Ever since Marvel released their adaptation of the original film back in 1977 which led to a 107 issue run right through to 1986, comics have been at the forefront of Star Wars literature."
fandom:starwars, topic:comics
Steven Universe
Strong in the Real Way: ‘Steven Universe’ and the Shape of Masculinity to Come: Ashley Gallagher (blog) - "Steven is truly the beating heart of the show, but it’s not because he’s a boy. In fact, many of his defining characteristics are distinctly un-boyish, as far as popular media tropes are concerned."
fandom:stevenuniverse
Superman
Man of Steel: A Retrospective: DRUPKINS (blog) - "But while watching Man of Steel I finally realized why I also connected with Clark. His story is also that of the Other. The illegal alien who must hide who he is to survive in a bigoted and savage world."
fandom:dccu, fandom:dccomics
The Neverending Battle Made Easy: Donovan Grant (blog) - "With the Ferguson analogy inelegantly at the forefront, let’s describe how this doesn’t work and what makes its evocation of recent events improper."
fandom:dccomics, topic:racism, topic:socialjustice, topic:whitewashing
Ted 2
Dumber Than Your Average Bear: Wesley Morris (blog) - "You never expect a movie to hurt you. Disappoint? Dismay? Depress? Fine. But when a movie has a field day asserting the humanity of a fake toy bear at the expense of your own, it hurts."
fandom:ted, topic:racism, warning:spoilers
Teen Wolf
Teen Wolf: "Parasomnia" Review: MadameAce (blog) - Summary and analysis of the episode.
fandom:teenwolf, warning:spoilers
Teen Wolf: "Dreamcatchers" Review: Lady Geek Girl (blog) - "This week’s episode of Teen Wolf featured lots of ladies being awesome, a large dose of body horror, and the death knell of one, if not two, of the fandom’s favorite ships. And I actually really like this episode."
fandom:teenwolf, warning:spoilers
Terminator
366: You Drop This Acid, You Will Travel Through Time: Overthinking It (podcast) - "Ben Adams, Peter Fenzel, Mark Lee and Matthew Wrather overthink Terminator Genisys."
fandom:terminator, warning:spoilers
Terminator 2: Did The T-800 Really Learn the Value of Human Life?: Overthinking It (blog) - "This prompted a long email exchange on the ending of Terminator 2 which was lost in the Overthinking It vaults…until now."
fandom:terminator
Terminator: Genisys Changes History But Doesn’t Add Much New to the Franchise: Natalie Zutter (blog) - "Terminator: Genisys might as well be called Terminator: Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey. Partly because of the brief-but-important presence of Doctor Who‘s Matt Smith, but mostly because the franchise is rebooting itself with the ol’ "let’s create an alternate timeline" gambit."
fandom:terminator, warning:spoilers
True Detective
True Detective Review: "Maybe Tomorrow": Scott Wampler and Phil Nobile Jr (blog) - Discussion and analysis of the episode.
fandom:truedetective, warning:spoilers