About Yesteryear's Future
What is Yesteryear's Future all about?
SF Subgenres: Science Fantasy
Once upon a time, there was science fiction. But as the genre matured, the term was more tightly defined, leaving out many stories that no longer fit the bill. Thus the term science fantasy was born.
SF Subgenres: Magic Realism
Magic realism was first described in the world of art by a German art critic, Franz Roh, in 1925. Much of it is associated with Latin American and Caribbean artists.
Childhood Memories: Starman
This Christmas, I asked for and received the Starman DVD set. For those of you who do not know of which I speak, Starman was a Japanese superhero created in the late 1950s and based on Superman. In Japan, he was known as Supergiant and was the star of several 50-minute serials. In the early […]
Thoughts Provoked by Arthur C. Clarke’s Death
You may already know this — in fact, if you are any kind of SF fan, I know you know this — but Arthur C. Clarke has passed away. He was 90 years old. That’s how old my maternal grandpa was when he died. I’m not sure why I made that connection, but I did. […]
Semi-Off Topic Pet Peeve
Have you noticed a growth in the number of T.V. shows about U.F.O.s lately? They seem to be proliferating in the wake of the ghost-related shows. Anyway, I was watching one in the background the other day and I noticed a bit of poor word usage that seems to be common among the, for the […]
Science Fiction and Fear
A lot of science fiction stories explore different aspects of fear, most especially the fear of loss: loss of self or identity, loss of autonomy or freedom, loss of values held dear, and more. One of the classics that has been reinterpreted numerous times, including last year’s Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig film, The Invasion, […]
A Link Between Future Thinking and Science Fiction
I recently read Mike Treder’s Aug. 14, 2007, post at ieet.org about “Post-Millennial Malaise in SF?” and it got me to thinking about the link between future thinking and science fiction. I can’t remember if I mentioned this before, but there is a pretty good theory about the rise of science fiction that says science […]
Musings on Science Fiction TV
Each Fall I eagerly await the new slate of Science Fiction TV shows. Which ones will I enjoy and keep up with? Which ones will I enjoy and they’ll get cut anyway? Which ones will I pass on in disgust, only to discover they are a big hit? With each passing year, I’ve noticed an increasing number of science fiction and other genre-themed TV shows. But I’ve also noticed another trend — the “mundaning” of science fiction.
Contemplating Time Travel
The concept of time travel has always fascinated me, but not necessarily for the obvious reasons.