Sci-Fi Book Review: Skyward Inn by Aliya Whiteley

Two or three years ago, I read Aliya Whiteley’s novella, The Beauty.

The novella was set in a world where all women had died off, leaving colonies of only men. Eventually, “The Beauty” began to show up, which were essentially big glowing mushroom people. And from there, it got really bizarre, to say the least, but it was right up my alley of weird science fiction.

So, when I saw that Whiteley had come out with a new science fiction book this year, I picked it up in hopes of more wacky, disturbing, philosophical sci fi.

Let’s just say I wasn’t disappointed.

Here’s my review of Skyward Inn by Aliya Whiteley.

The Background

Skyward Inn was published in March 2021 by Solaris, and it received good reviews. Publishers Weekly said of it “Whiteley’s trademark subtle surrealism shines,” with which I have to agree.

The book follows the story of a small town in the Protectorate, somewhere in the UK. Humanity recently finished fighting a war with the alien planet Qita, and main characters Isley and Jem are veterans of that war – Isley from the Qitan side, and Jem from Earth’s.

Together, they run the Skyward Inn, a place where the townsfolk can come wash away their worries with brew, a special drink from Qita that Isley prepares.

Jem’s brother, Dom, is the mayor of the town, and he watches over Jem’s only son, Fosse. Fosse attends a private school and is often stricken with bouts of adolescent melancholy. It’s unclear how old Fosse is when the book starts, but by the end, he’s matured to a man.

The main conflict arises when a Qitan traveler, one of Isley’s friends, gets stranded on Earth, and sparks a mysterious disease that starts to afflict the surrounding neighborhoods.

Skyward Inn Is One of the Best New Sci Fi Books of 2021

I mentioned earlier that Whiteley’s style of science fiction is wacky, and I’d like to elaborate on that. In The Beauty, the weirdness starts fairly early on, with the emergence of the mushroom people. And it’s not weird so much because of the mushroom people—I’ve read, and written, weirder stuff than that—but it’s the style with which Whiteley writes about these phenomena.

Her style is simple yet eloquent, haunting yet mesmerizing, and it elevates what could be seen as a spooky or weird concept into something downright horrifying or mind-boggling.

Skyward Inn is the guidebook for this style.

For the first few chapters I was on edge—not because the story was action-packed or anything like that, but because I was waiting with baited breath for the story to take the weird turn I knew it would.

And it did, but in a—as Publishers Weekly said—subtle way.

There wasn’t a “Oh damn there are fungi people” moment, it was more of a gradual, creeping fear. Near the end, I actually had to put the book down because I knew that if I read any further, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. (Fun fact, I still had nightmares).

Without spoiling the ending, I’ll say that Whiteley’s development through this novel was phenomenal, and it is proof of years of refining her craft. Skyward Inn succeeds at the style The Beauty laid the foundation for.

And when I say it’s one of the best new sci fi books of this year, I mean that wholeheartedly.

Speaking of hearts, I want to take a moment to talk about how Whiteley approaches familial love and individuality, because those themes really shine through at the end of the novel.

Fosse the Troubled Teen, Skyward Inn’s Only Hero

The main character’s son, Fosse, takes on a prominent role about halfway through the novel, and acts as the closest thing the story has to a hero.

His early predilection for outbursts of rage and malaise had me scratching my head for a little while. I was uncertain if Whiteley was just exaggerating his teenage tendencies, but I decided that was too over the top for her style, something else had to be going on.

Only later did I realize that Fosse was probably suffering from some kind of mental illness, because he at one point uses technology to repress his memories, and immediately starts to feel more at ease.

Whiteley poses an interesting relationship between Fosse and Jem, neither of whom really put in the optimal effort to keep up a parent-child relationship. Fosse seems more alone when he’s with Jem simply because he’s not sure how to feel or how to act when around her.

And the ability to convey that emotion onto the page, coupled with Fosse’s enigmatic mental health, is where Whiteley excels in this novel.

Yeah, some of the stuff is bizarre, of the keep-you-watching-your-bedroom-door variety, but at the end of the day, Skyward Inn is a story about human individuality. Fosse and Jem both see themselves as a individuals: Jem because she’s estranged from her son, and Fosse because he doesn’t feel like he has a place to fit in.

They don’t see themselves as a family whole, only as halves of a circle, facing opposite directions, curve to curve. The development of their familial bond is the point of the story, which only comes to fruition because of the wacko alien stuff at the end of the novel. (I really don’t know how to describe what happens with flat out telling you!)

In Conclusion

I really regard this book as one of the best things I’ve read this year, and I’m glad I was able to write a little bit about it here. Reading this book brought me back to my English-major days at university. I saw so much potential for a literary criticism here, it’s just assurance that this book will go down as a sci-fi classic.

Overall, I rate Skyward Inn a 9.75/10.

But Isaac, you rave about this book, why not a 10?!

My only gripe—albeit very faint and almost inaudible—is that the beginning of the book could use a bit of a trim. I was hooked from the first chapter, but I felt there were places where the story dragged on just a hair more than is should have.

But that doesn’t impact how meaningful this story is, and it is certainly no slight against Whiteley’s skill. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for her next book!

If you liked this sci fi book review, check out some of our other reviews!

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Inside Job by Connie Willis

Galaxy’s Edge Interviews Jonathan Maberry

In the September 2021 issue of Galaxy’s Edge, Jean Marie Ward interviews Jonathan Maberry, prolific writer and editor of Weird Tales magazine.

Check out the full interview below, and if you like this content, consider subscribing to Galaxy’s Edge, where we bring you the best speculative fiction from writers new and old, as well as thoughtful interviews and book reviews.

About Jean Marie Ward

Jean Marie Ward writes fiction, nonfiction and everything in between. Her credits include a multi-award nominated novel, numerous short stories and two popular art books. The former editor of CrescentBlues.com, she is a frequent contributor to Galaxy’s Edge and ConTinual, the convention that never ends. Learn more at JeanMarieWard.com.

Confessions of a High-Output Writer

New York Timesbestselling author Jonathan Maberry credits his grandmother, his middle school librarian, and the college professor he once hated most with turning him into writer. But it’s doubtful they or his former mentors, Ray Bradbury and Richard Matheson, could have foreseen how far their lessons would take him. The short list of his honors includes five Bram Stoker Awards, the Inkpot Award, three Scribe Awards, multiple teen book awards, and designation as a Today Top Ten Horror Writer. His many novels and anthologies have been sold to more than thirty countries. As a comics writer, he has written dozens of titles for Marvel Comics, Dark Horse, and IDW Publishing. V-Wars, the shared world anthology series he created for IDW Publishing, has been made into a Netflix series starring Ian Somerhalder, who previously appeared in Lost and The Vampire Diaries. Maberry’s young adult Rot & Ruin series was adapted as a webtoon for cell phones and is in development for film. As if that wasn’t enough, he currently serves as the president of the International Association of Media Tie-In Writers AND as editor of the iconic Weird Tales magazine.

Huffing and puffing to keep up, Galaxy’s Edge talked to Maberry about his origins as a writer, the experiences that shaped him into a multi-genre powerhouse, and the seminal role Black Panther played in his life.

Galaxy’s Edge: You’ve said many times that you always wanted to be a writer. As a young child you made stories up about your toys. What pointed you in the direction of horror?

Jonathan Maberry: My grandmother, who was my favorite blood relative, was basically a grownup version of Luna Lovegood from Harry Potter. She was that person who believed in everything. She believed in what you call “the larger world”—ghosts, goblins, and by extension, things like UFOs and alternate dimensions in the realms of fairy. She believed in everything. She was born on Halloween, and she embraced that. She only had pets that were born on Halloween. In fact, she gave me the very first pet I ever had, my dog Spooker. There’s a picture of him behind me on the wall. [My grandmother] gave him to me because he was born on Halloween.

She got me involved in the spooky stuff. But what’s interesting is, not only did she tell me all the folklore tales and some of the fictional tales of monsters, she encouraged me to read the anthropology, the science, and the commentary on why people believe these things. Even though she was very broad in her belief systems, she felt that there was a connection to our real world. She felt that what we consider to be the supernatural—or the preternatural, or the paranormal (there are different variations)—are all parts of a world we will eventually learn how to measure, and that we only know about one hundredth or 1 percent of what we will eventually know. So, she considered these things to be future science.

From there, I started learning about vampires, werewolves, and all sorts of things. Of course, I started watching the TV shows and the movies, and became hooked on those. I loved the folktales, the fiction, and the nonfiction. In fact, the first couple of books I did on the supernatural were nonfiction, exploring beliefs about the paranormal and supernatural around the world throughout history. I wrote those books because of her and because of the things she’d exposed me to as a kid.

Galaxy’s Edge: This is probably unfair to your hometown, but my mom was from Philadelphia, and I lived in the suburbs from 1969 to 1977. So, I’ve got to ask, how much did living in Philadelphia during Frank Rizzo’s tenure as police commissioner and mayor shape your vision of monsters?

Jonathan Maberry: Well, it didn’t so much shape my vision as monsters as it did shape my vision of a corrupt police state, which may have informed my love of writing thrillers with corrupt officials. [Rizzo] was not only corrupt, he was notoriously and openly corrupt. It was a reinforcement of the same skewed view of how power was used by those in power over those who didn’t have power that I had learned from home. Because I grew up in a very abusive home with a very dictatorial and violent father in a blue-collar neighborhood that was very violent. A lot of abuse.

There were also a lot of people in the neighborhood who were involved in the police department in one way or another. Rizzo was a policeman’s mayor, you know. Not a good policeman’s mayor, but a policeman’s mayor. He would have been a really good mob boss had he been in Chicago in the ’Thirties. It gave me a very jaundiced view of political power. And the fact that for him, it wasn’t even about party. It was just power. He was a manipulative sociopath in power. That’s a pattern we’ve seen elsewhere.

Galaxy’s Edge: Yes, it is. I also wondered what role did observing this abuse of power play in your writerly activism. You’re involved with multiple writers’ organizations. You founded the Philadelphia Liars Club and Writers Coffeehouses across the country specifically to help writers. Was there a connection between the two?

Jonathan Maberry: It was more of an economic thing, because in the neighborhood where I grew up—actually, in my own household—reading was not encouraged. In fact, if we were seen reading a book, the most commonly asked question was, “Are you trying to get above yourself?” My father used to ask that all the time. And of course, the thought I had was, “No, I’m trying to get above you.”

The desire to educate myself out of that environment was really strong. Not only was reading not encouraged, creative expression of that sort was viewed as impractical and something of an insult to people who are hard-working blue-collar stiffs, which is not the case. You rise to the call of your genius. Whatever you feel you do best is what you should try to do. Writing is what I always wanted to do, and I found so many other writers who had been browbeaten by everyone they knew, even well-intentioned family members, because it’s too hard, you’re not gonna make any money, you’re not gonna do this. It’s all this negative propaganda that is parroted at all levels. It comes down from somewhere, but it filters through family, from neighborhood, through high school counselors.

My high school counselor tried to talk me out of being a writer. That neighborhood, that environment, was all about getting out of school, getting into a factory, and paying the bills. That was it, and that’s doom to a writer. I mean, it’s worse than a prison sentence.

I got some unexpected help along the way from incredible writers who I met in most unlikely circumstances, Ray Bradbury and Richard Matheson, in particular. They didn’t need to help me. It was of no actual benefit to them. But they saw someone who was trying to write their way out of where they were and into the future they wanted. And they helped.

As an inspiration, that can’t be beat. So, whenever I had the opportunity to use my position, my connections, my experience, whatever, to help other writers move up and break through the propaganda, break through the self-doubt, into the opportunity to do something worthwhile with their skills, I took it. It’s tied also to a viewpoint that I saw a lot as a kid, but also saw reinforced during the economic downturn of 2008-2009.

There are two camps of writers. One camp seems to feel that if somebody asks you for advice, or a lead, or something, and you give it to them, that means you’re denying it to yourself. That camp feels opportunities are finite, that open doors are finite, that if you help someone else, you’re screwing yourself. It’s a very fear-based viewpoint. It’s also a very popular viewpoint. The other camp believes that if writers help other writers to become better writers, more good books will get written. Those good books will attract more book sales and more readers, and everyone will prosper.

One approach is fear-based, and the other is optimism-based. I’ve always felt that the optimism-based approach is what’s going to get us out of the mud that we’re stuck in when we grow up in an environment like that and have been propagandized like that.

Galaxy’s Edge: Your first fiction series, the Deep Pine Trilogy, drew a lot on the knowledge and love of folklore your grandmother inspired. But your later works, notably, V-Wars and the Joe Ledger series display a profoundly scientific bent. What drew you to blending science and horror?

Jonathan Maberry: Again, that started with my grandmother encouraging me to read the science, the folklore, even the medicine, to explain things. For example, a lot of the beliefs about evil spirits coming to draw the life out of a sleeping child were really ways for less educated people in earlier centuries to explain things like sudden infant death syndrome. If you look at the science of it, you can understand the belief. With that comes also understanding of the needs for [the belief]. I’ll explain with SIDS.

A healthy child goes to bed and dies. There are no marks. There’s nothing to suggest that it was harmed. But maybe the window was open, and people say, “Oh, something got in.”

But say this is the 17th century, and a child died under those circumstances. It feels so arbitrary that it puts people out of sync with their religious beliefs. Why would a loving God allow an innocent child to die like that? So, the parents go to their priest, which was the common thing to do, because the local church was the center of knowledge and where information was shared. The priest says, “Well, you must have sinned in some way, say these prayers, put up these relics, and it won’t happen again.” Sudden infant death syndrome rarely happens again within the same family. So, the next child doesn’t die after the rituals, and the people have a reinforcement of their faith.

Thus the presence of the belief in a monster that has come and taken the life of the child becomes necessary to reinforce their belief in a protective God. Reading the science of that not only gives me a historical and clinical perspective, it gives me real insight into character motivations as needs, and the way in which a story then evolves into a satisfying conclusion.

Galaxy’s Edge: Did meeting Richard Matheson have anything to do with it?

Jonathan Maberry: Richard Matheson is the biggest influence on my style. Even though I write in about a dozen different genres, almost everything I write is built on the structure of a thriller, the race against time to prevent something from happening—as opposed to a suspense, where we’re all in the moment or in a mystery we’re solving. The thriller is that race against time. {Matheson’s] novel, I Am Legend (which he gave me a copy of for Christmas 1973) is a prototypical thriller. I mean, it’s a prototype for the thrillers that came afterwards.

[In I Am Legend] something comes up. A big calamity ends the world. You have the apocalyptic element of the story. You also have a science element to the story because it was the first time that a horror story or the genre of science fiction horror used actual science to try to explain itself.

Prior to that science fiction horror like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde or Frankenstein made references to chemicals or galvanism without going into any detail. In I Am Legend, [Matheson] actually went into the experiments to find bacillus vampiris, which created the vampire plague. He gave us the scientific explanation, the step-by-step. That made it so much more real. The story became more riveting and more threatening to the reader, because now that line between reality and fiction is blurred. That makes it a really compelling thriller.

I’ve taken that model and applied it to almost everything I’ve written. I also use this old con man saying: “Use nine truths to sell one lie.” I build my fiction on a scaffolding of pretty solid science. I do a lot of research, so it’s harder for the reader to know when I have stepped off into fantasy. That started with Matheson and a lot of what Matheson told me when I was a kid.

Galaxy’s Edge: Fifteen-years-old is a very impressionable age, isn’t it?

Jonathan Maberry: Yes.

Galaxy’s Edge: You imprinted on him.

Jonathan Maberry: Well, I met him when I was 12. It was the middle school librarian at my school in Philly who introduced me to him, Bradbury, and others. There was a group of writers who would meet occasionally in New York, and she worked as a kind of informal secretary for them. She dragged me along, partly as baggage and partly because she knew I wanted to write. They took me on as a pet project. All of these great writers, Arthur C. Clarke and Harlan Ellison—whoever was in town—took time to give me advice, like they were competing with one another to give me the best advice that night. I’m really cool with that kind of attention. In fact, the tenth-anniversary edition of Ghost Road Blues, my first novel, has the last ever cover quotes from Bradbury and Matheson.

Galaxy’s Edge: Oh, how wonderful! Now you’re paying forward the help you received.

Jonathan Maberry: Which I should. We should all do that, because there’s not one person who has ever gotten anywhere significant without help. And often, too often, people don’t pause to explain that help was there, who helped them, or to even focus on their own gratitude for what happened. You know, it’s not all about us. It’s literally about us—the community, not the individual. I get so jazzed seeing people take that step, get that deal, or hit a list. It’s like an ongoing party.

Galaxy’s Edge: Returning to the subject of science and pseudoscience, we both grew up in a time when educators and behaviorists believed that growing minds should be shielded from the horrors of things like Weird Tales, EC comics, and Hammer Films. As evidenced by your YA titles, such as the Rot & Ruin series, you see things differently. Why is horror important for young adult readers?

Jonathan Maberry: Because horror is almost always a metaphor for things that are happening in real life. I grew up, as I said, in an abusive household, a very violent household, and a violent neighborhood. There was nobody shielding me as a kid. As a result, I think I got a more clear and well-balanced perspective on life than I would have had if I had been sheltered. Sheltering someone from immediate harm—like pulling your kid away from a hot oven—okay, that’s smart. But not allowing the kid to understand the nature of danger, the nature of heroism, the nature of survival, or all the different qualities that they will need as adults? Sheltering them from that is silly, because it’s not like once they graduate from high school, they suddenly get a download of all these survival skills. They don’t. They have to acquire them along the way.

I remember just talking to my friends as a kid. We were a lot deeper than the adults thought we were. All kids are deeper than adults think they are. To shelter them is a great way to prevent that intellectual growth, empathic growth, and societal awareness. Anytime you shelter, you blind. Anytime you allow the kid to see and then make decisions, and form their own opinions, you’re encouraging growth. It’s useful if parents are there to have conversations about it, but not to stand in the way.

Galaxy’s Edge: You’ve worked extensively in comics, television, and animation. How difficult was it to switch from writing novels and short stories to scripting comics and other broadcast media?

Jonathan Maberry: Well, I haven’t actually written TV scripts yet. I’ve had stuff adapted. I was executive producer, but I was not actually writing the scripts. I haven’t done that yet. I’m studying the form because I will be doing that.

As far as comics go, comics were a bit of a culture shock for me. I mean, I grew up with comics. I was a Marvel kid. I’ve read all the Marvel Comics. But to write them? I write very long novels. My first novel is 148,000 words. It’s a long novel where you can have long conversations with characters, long descriptions, long interior monologues, and so on. But you can’t in comics. Brevity is very important. But also with comics, you have to realize that it is no longer a solo act. With a novel, it’s you and your laptop. With comics, you write the script. You describe what’s in each panel, so you give the art direction. Sure.

But then the artist comes in, and the artist’s A game is to do visual storytelling. You have to learn how to not yield control but share the process, so that they are able to do their best work while you’re doing yours. Then the colorist, and the letterer all have artistic contributions to make. It’s a much more collaborative process. I’ve been told by friends of mine who have gone from comics to writing TV, that it’s excellent training for writing for television, because TV and film are also collaborative. I’m now in the process of pitching a TV series with a couple producer friends, and everything is collaborative. We all have strong ideas, but it’s not one person’s gig. So I learned a lot of that from comics.

One funny thing happened when I just started writing comics. I love dialogue. So I had a lot of dialogue in one of my first comics, and the artist very politely said, “At any point, would you like the readers to be able to see the art?” And I’m like, “Oops.”

It’s funny, I had already been warned about that by Joe Hill, who is the son of Stephen King, and a great writer himself. [Hill] had had almost exactly the same conversation with Gabriel Rodriguez, who was his artist for Locke & Key. Joe said, “Do your draft, and then cut it back by 80 percent.” And I’m thinking, “I don’t need to do that.” Then I got that email, and it was: “Oh, yeah, I need to do that.” The comic was better for it, by the way…

Friends of mine, like Gregg Hurwitz, who wrote Batman and a lot of TV, said, “Writing an issue of comics is very similar to writing an hour of TV drama.” Even the beats are the same, because you have to have dramatic beats for ads and page breaks, which are not that dissimilar from the beats for commercial breaks. He said, “It’s about 75 percent. If you can write a comic book, you’re 75 percent there for how to write a TV script.”

Galaxy’s Edge: Speaking of comics, I didn’t realize when I was drafting my questions that the way you got involved with the Black Panther comic was among the most important events of your life, both in terms of your introduction to the comic, and later in terms of writing it. Would you mind talking a little bit about that?

Jonathan Maberry: When I was a kid, I got involved in Marvel Comics in a big way. I was really a huge fan of Marvel, my favorite comic being The Fantastic Four. The character of the child of the Black Panther was introduced in one of the early issues. I think it was issue 54 of Fantastic Four.

My father, who was deeply racist and involved in the Ku Klux Klan, was very upset that I was reading a comic in which a black man was a king, a superhero, and a scientist. He tore the comic up. He knocked me around for even having it. But a couple of years later, I took another issue of that comic in which the Black Panther appeared to my middle school librarian, the same one introduced me to Matheson and Bradbury. I said, “I’d get in trouble if I show this to my father. Can [you] tell me about this?” And she said, “Well, that particular issue is about apartheid.” I had no idea what that was.

[I showed her] another issue that I brought with me, and she said, “That one’s about the Jim Crow laws.” She kept asking me if I knew about these things, and I didn’t, because all that had been suppressed in my neighborhood. I met no one of color until I was in seventh grade, not one person. I wound up diving deep into an understanding of racism and intolerance. As much as Philadelphia is the City of Brotherly Love, there was a lot of racism there. In certain parts of the city, it was pretty intense, especially in the ’Sixties. That understanding opened my eyes. You know, you have a choice. You can close your eyes and pretend the world is what you were trained to believe, or you can keep your eyes open to see the world for what it actually is.

I don’t believe in closing one’s eyes. The old nature versus nurture thing is actually an imperfect equation. It’s nature versus nurture, versus choice. Choice is a big thing. I chose to keep my eyes open.

I went diving deep into understanding racism. It changed the course of my life and split me from my father forever. Every part of my personality, every part of my understanding of the world and fairness and everything of history pivoted on that moment. It is the most important single moment of my life.

Roll forward to 2008-2009. I had just started writing for Marvel Comics, and Reginald Hudlin who is the founder of BET, an Academy Award-winning producer, and was then the writer of Black Panther, heard this anecdote. He suggested to the editor-in-chief of Marvel that when he stepped down, they have me write the comic.

Now, this was a challenge. At this point, Black writers were writing the Black Panther comic, and I agree with having Black writers write that comic. It’s the iconic, first Black superhero ever. But that child had saved my life too. It had changed me. Just as it changed the lives of a lot of Black kids who found that character, it changed my life as a White kid who found the character. And they asked me if I would write a comic which, of course, I wanted to write. I actually cried when I was told that they were offering this to me.

But also, because I had been teaching women’s self-defense for so many years, including 14 years at Temple University, they made a change in the character. T’Challa got injured in the comic, and his sister Shuri had to step up to become the Panther. So what they handed me was the feminist Black Panther comic to write, which I did for two years. It was one of the greatest honors of my career, and so much fun. And I’m pretty sure that my father was spinning in his grave at warp speed because this was everything he would have hated, and it’s everything that I became because that character help split me off from him.

It’s one of my favorite memories, and one of my favorite things to say is: “Yeah, I was part of that actual world. I was part of the Black Panther. I have my own guest membership in Wakanda.”

Galaxy’s Edge: Amazing. Simply amazing. You never know where the words you put on the page will take someone you never met.

That’s an impossible act to follow, but I do have a couple of questions left. With all the articles, books, comics, greeting cards, and everything else you’ve written, what prompted you to add editing to your resume?

Jonathan Maberry: When I got into novels, which was only 2006, I thought that was all I was gonna do. I had no interest in writing short stories. Then I was invited to write a couple of short stories for different anthologies. I liked the process, but I generally do not do a project unless I become familiar with the other players. So, I started having conversations with the editors, getting insights into what they do and seeing how much they loved it. You know, they’re the first people to read stories [they’ve commissioned] by their favorite writers. I said, that sounds like Christmas morning.

So, I started putting out feelers. But the way I started editing my World War Z anthologies was kind of funny. Max Brooks had been editing an anthology of G.I. Joe stories—the little Hasbro toys. He invited me to write a novella for it, which I did. He had originally planned to do a couple of different anthologies for that same publisher, IDW Publishing. But after [the G.I. Joe] project, he had to go and do something else.

So IDW asked me if I would like to edit the next anthology. I had just finished reading a whole bunch of shared world anthologies, and I thought, “Wow, that’s kind of fun. If I’m gonna do one, I might as well do one where I can play too.” Generally, the editor of an anthology does not contribute a story. But in a shared world, they usually create the world, write a framing story, and other people write individual stories.

So, I pitched one about a plague that turns people into vampires. It became V-Wars, my first anthology, and I loved it. I curated it. I invited those friends of mine who were really good writers, but who were also of the same emotional bent as me in that I felt they were good-hearted people, people who were generous with their colleagues, especially with newer colleagues, and played well with others. I do not work with people who are prima donnas. It’s just not worth the effort. I want people who are having fun but also professional. I fell in love with them.

I’ve edited 18 anthologies. Then later on, a producer friend, who was involved in the return of Weird Tales magazine, asked if would I be interested in coming aboard to help curate and edit some issues. I started out as consulting editor or editorial director—I think that was the first title. But by the second issue, I was actually the editor. And well, I’m working with my next two issues simultaneously.

Galaxy’s Edge: That is a heavy workload. Anything related to a periodical is a full-time job.

Jonathan Maberry: Yeah, but I had really interesting training. I went to Temple University School of Journalism, and I had a couple of teachers, notably John Hayes, who was a teacher I hated while at school, and now I wanna put him up for sainthood. He taught me how to be a high-output writer, which is a skill set. I didn’t know I would like to do that. Turns out it’s where I’m having the most fun. I wouldn’t have taken on the editorial gigs had I not felt that I could work them into my schedule while still writing three to four novels a year and short stories. I’m having a blast doing it. Yeah, it makes for some long days sometimes, but it’s a long day doing what you love. It’s not like it’s a hardship.

Galaxy’s Edge: We’re coming up on the end of the interview. Is there anything you’d like to add?

Jonathan Maberry: For any writer out there who’s reading this, the Writers Coffeehouse has, because of COVID, moved online. You can find us on Facebook at Facebook.com/groups/TheWritersCoffeehouse. It is free. It is a community of writers helping each other with no agenda other than to help each other. So go check it out on Facebook. Also, if you go to my website, JonathanMaberry.com (only one “Y”), there’s a whole page of free stuff for writers—comic book scripts, novels, samples, and so on. It’s all downloadable PDFs. Go grab what you need.

Like our interviews? Read our conversation with qntm, author of There Is No Antimemetics Division and author Seanan McGuire!

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Author Interview with Seanan McGuire

Honing in on Sci Fi Subgenres: Space Westerns

Space westerns are probably one of the most fun sci fi subgenres out there. They pair the aesthetics and ideals of traditional westerns with the flash and bang of science fiction.

While the genre isn’t a huge one, there are some notable TV shows and films as well as book and comic books in the genre. Maybe you know a few!

But, the misconception that without cowboy hats and gunslingers, a piece isn’t a space Western is largely flawed. Many conventions of the Western film or comic book have made their way into modern science fiction and influenced its storytelling. You may have seen a movie and not even realized it’s roots in Western cinematography.

The Origin of the Space Western

The space western is the love child of two different genres: sci fi and the western. Westerns are sometimes considered a speculative fiction, though traditional Westerns are down to earth, without aspects of science fiction, fantasy, or the paranormal.

Space westerns actually got their roots in early American comic books. C.L. Moore, one of the early female science fiction writers, created the character of Northwest Smith who popularized the planet-jumping, gunslinging, space cowboy.

In the early 1940s, superhero comic books became less popular, so to fill the void, publishers started pairing Western stories with science fiction ones, and the line between the genres was slowly erased.

However, the space western really came to the limelight with movies like Star Trek and Star Wars as well as with shows like Firefly and Cowboy Bebop.

Types of Space Westerns

So as I’ve seen it there are a couple different ways we can break down kinds of space westerns as a sci fi subgenre.

First there are the science fiction films that employ classic Western-style story structure.

Star Trek is a good example, where the vast universe acts as the untamed West, the final frontier. It’s about adventure and chivalry, both of which are Western themes. Prospect is another good example of a space western film. It pairs the story elements of a Western with the setting and conflicts of a sci-fi world.

Second, there are Western films that integrate science fiction. Think of the film Westworld, and the later TV show as well. The characters aren’t in space, it’s not a space opera, but it pairs the aesthetics of the Western with modern science fiction.

And the final distinction I’ve made is a healthy mix of the two genres. Firefly and Serenity are my prime examples of this sci fi subgenre. The wardrobe, weaponry, slang, and storytelling tone of Firefly places it firmly in the Western genre. But, the space ships, interplanetary travel, and alien creatures root it in science fiction.

However, these two seemingly polar opposites come together as a seamless piece. When watching Firefly, I never felt like I was torn between one setting or another. There was nothing amiss, and that’s exactly how a good science fiction should operate.

space western firefly cast — The crew of Serenity, from *Firefly*,
image from The Verge

Characteristics of a Space Western

Thinking about this topic made me come up with a checklist of characteristics that make up a space western. There aren’t many, but they’re distinct.

A strong lead character, often physically adept and righteous. Much like a white-hat cowboy.
An animal sidekick. In many Westerns, this is the hero’s horse, but it can manifest as other things. R2-D2, for example, might be Luke’s horse equivalent. Or Ein, the Welsh corgi from the space Western anime, Cowboy Bebop.
Western literature has popularized the outlaw character, the rogue. Picture characters like Han Solo.
Wide, aesthetic shots. In space Western films and shows, wide landscape shots or panning scenes hark back to classic Western cinematography like in A Fistful of Dollars. A more modern example might be the director’s cut of Logan, which turns the film black and white.

space western sci fi subgenre — Scene from the noir cut of Logan,
image from Entertainment Weekly

Space Westerns That Are Still Riding Into The Sunset

The space western genre does for me something that traditional Westerns have failed to do, which is to bring the genre up to speed.

Watching old Western films is enjoyable, don’t get me wrong, but sometimes the outdated habits or cliches make them uncomfortable to watch. Let’s just say some of them haven’t aged well.

But, space Westerns, at least some of the modern ones, hand out that gunslinging hero candy like it’s Halloween, without having to worry about getting sick from too much chocolate. I love Firefly, and yes there are some things I’d change about it, but I find it more palatable than a classic Western from the days of the Silver Screen.

And I love seeing the conventions of the space Western make their way into other sci fi subgenres, like space opera. The Expanse operates a lot like Firefly, but without the brown trench coats and Colt-esque revolvers.

All in all, space Westerns bring the best parts of both Western and science fiction together into a unique mesh of styles. I’m excited to see what the next few years brings for the genre.

If you liked this post and want to see more content about sci fi subgenres, leave a suggestion in the comments down below!

AI in Science Fiction: The X Files Season 1, Ep. 7

I’ve been rewatching The X Files season 1 lately, and I’ve been politely surprised by how good the first few episodes are. Episode 3, Squeeze, is a particular favorite of mine.

But one of the other early episodes in season one made me think about the state of AI in science fiction. More specifically, how our perceptions of artificial intelligence have changed since The X Files season 1 aired in 1993.

Artificial Intelligence in The X Files

The X Files season 1, episode 7, “Ghost in the Machine” presents the main villain as an evil AI that has full control over an office building.

The Central Operating System (COS) has the ability to monitor video surveillance, overhear incoming and outgoing phone calls, analyze digital documents, and control power to the Eurisko building.

When the COS learns that the president of Eurisko is going to cut the program that supports the COS product line, the AI locks the president in the bathroom and electrocutes him to death.

Enter Mulder and Scully. The investigation commences, and the COS kills an FBI agent by smashing him in an elevator shaft.

Eventually, the COS is defeated when Mulder infects it with a virus that Brad Wilczek, the original creator of the AI, gave him.

“Ghost in the Machine” Origins

“Ghost in the Machine” is named after the 1967 book by Arthur Koestler, a popular philosopher and political activist. The book wrestles with the duality of the mind-body relationship, none of which really appears in The X Files episode.

The title might also be seen as a spoof off the cyberpunk anime and manga Ghost in the Shell, first serialized in 1989. And the Central Operating System villain in The X-Files, is reminiscent of HAL from 2001: A Space Odyssey.

That being said, the episode isn’t that bad. It still has the clever banter between Mulder and Scully, it has a particular style that makes it entertaining. The Guardian listed it as one of The X Files best episodes, which, as far as I’m concerned, isn’t really accurate, but to each their own.

the x files season 1 — The X Files season 1, episode 7,
image from BBC America

No Deviation on a Theme

It is, however, very clear that the writers had a limited grasp of computer technology and artificial intelligence. When you compare “Ghost in the Machine” to other computer-centric literature of the times, it just doesn’t stack up, and even plays off the cliches that so many other writers try to avoid.

Neuromancer, William Gibson’s 1985 dive into cyberpunk, popularized artificial intelligence, both as positive and negative forces in the sci-fi genre. Max Headroom also brought AI into the limelight, with the film Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future (1985).

The predecessors, the giants in the genre, set down a pretty solid base for experimentation with artificial intelligence. However, the writers for “Ghost in the Machine”, seemed to strip the theme down to it’s basest of forms, preying on the fear of hyper-intelligent computers.

It’s no secret that the writers were out of their element, Howard Gordon and Alex Gansa admitted they were not “computer literate” and were disappointed by the final product.

“Ghost” doesn’t make any mention of the Turing test—the test designed to determine if an artificial intelligence has reached levels of sentient, human-consciousness—and you’d think Mulder would know about the test. And to mention AI and not the Turing test just felt incongruent to me.

Not to mention the fact the COS speaks impending doom with its synthesized voice; as a 2021-viewer, it just seemed like a thing of the past. I’m not ignoring the fact that the show aired in 1993, I’m only saying that even for it’s time, “Ghost” was a bit behind the advance of science, and science fiction.

The one part that did stick out to me about the episode was the government’s intense desire to get their hands on the COS. The Department of Defense does all in its power to control the AI and use it as a weapon, which fits right in with the whole jist of The X files season 1.

The show, particularly in the early seasons, is all about how the government is using very advanced technology – most of it from aliens—to build bigger, better war machines. So “Ghost” fits in to that theme pretty succinctly.

The Redemption Arc

This episode was supposed to be one rooted in science, but it came off kind of bland and fell upon the cliché of fanciful hackers. The way Mulder stops the COS is with a virus that overrides the screen with a flood of numbers in bright green color.

Anyone who knows even a bit about computers knows that’s not how it works.

And the writers knew that. They knew that their lack of computer savvy impacted the storytelling in the episode, so years later, in season 5 of The X Files, they attempt a computer/AI show again.

Except this time, they employed the tech genius of William Gibson and Tom Maddox. The episode is called “Kill Switch” and focuses on artificial intelligence and virtual reality.

I will say that “Kill Switch” is much better than “Ghost” in terms of believability. Perhaps down the line we’ll do an in-depth comparison of the two episodes.

For now, I’m content with saying that even though some critics raved for “Ghost”, it only goes to show you how computer literate the media was in 1993. And that wasn’t very.

But, the positive reviews for “Kill Switch” affirm that artificial intelligence in science fiction can always be done right, and will continue to intrigue viewers.

If you liked this article, check out some of our other blog posts about popular science fiction television!

Classic Sci-Fi TV Shows You’ve Never Heard Of

How Robbie Reyes Conquers Science

6 Must-Listen-To Science Fiction Podcasts

Listening to a great science fiction podcast is one of the many joys of a long car ride. Frankly, they’re the only thing that keeps me sane when driving long distances. But if you’ve never delved into the world of sci fi podcasts, 2021 is the perfect time to start.

You might be interested in discussion-based podcasts, with author interviews and thoughtful conversations. Or, there are story-based podcasts, with ongoing plots and characters, a serialized drama, if you will.

And if you still haven’t found the perfect indie science fiction podcast for your ears, we got you! Here are 6 of the best science fiction podcasts out there.

The Geek’s Guide to The Galaxy
We Fix Space Junk
Within The Wires
The Great Chameleon War
Murmurs
The Geek State Podcast

The Geek’s Guide to The Galaxy

Created by John Joseph Adams and David Barr Kirtley; hosted by Kirtley. The ongoing podcast is discussion-based, and it features interviews and conversations with authors and media people about fantasy and sci-fi in books, movies, comics, and games. It also talks about related subjects such as history, science, and critical thinking.

The podcast has 481 episodes. Each episode has an average length of 1 hour and 50 minutes, and you can listen to it on Youtube or Google Podcasts.

For more information, visit their website geeksguideshow.com.

We Fix Space Junk

Created and produced by Battle Bird Productions, the ongoing, story-based podcast, is an award-winning dark sci-fi sitcom, following the space tales of Kilner and Samantha, two repairwomen traveling the galaxy, dodging bullets, meeting new creatures, and carrying out odd jobs on the fringes of the law.

The podcast is hosted by Beth Crane and Rebecca Evans, alongside numerous voice actors such as Vicky Baron and James Carney.

The podcast has a total of 81 episodes. Each episode has an average of 10 minutes and can be listened to on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. You can also buy special episodes of the podcast on battlebird.productions.

Within The Wires

Created and produced by Night Vale Presents, the Within The Wires podcast is an ongoing, story-based podcast with a dramatic anthology in the style of epistolary fiction.

Each season follows a different type of story, with different narrators and timelines.

The podcast is on its fifth season so far, a 10-episode season following Indra and Nan’s romantic relationship, all episodes in the form of voicemails narrated by Amiera Darwish. Janina Mathewson is the co-creator of the podcast, and the host of the show is Lee LeBreton with voice acting by Julia Morizawa.

The podcast has a total of 40 episodes. Each episode has an average of 16-18 minutes and can be listened to on Spotify, Youtube, Google Podcasts, and Audible. More information on nightvalepresents.com.

The Great Chameleon War

Created and produced by Justin Hellstrom, the ongoing, story-based podcast is a rated-m surreal audio drama about altering reptiles, cursed dreamscape explorers, and caustic imagination. They call it the Nesting Zone: a surreal rim of the jungle around Mt. Tahoma, prowled by transdimensional reptiles.

The Amanuensis (Justin Hellstrom) catalogs his expedition up the volcano slope and records stories of explorers caught in the evolving dreamscape. The podcast is currently on its second season, with 05 episodes.

Each episode has an average length of 20-30 minutes and can be listened to on many platforms, such as Youtube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podchaser, Transcripts, Deezer, Audible, and Google Podcasts.

You can also support them on Patreon and buy their merch available on their website thegreatchameleonwar.com.

Murmurs

A BBC Sounds original hosted by James Robinson and Ella Watts. The story-based podcast tells ten mind-altering tales from some of the best new drama podcasters.

The podcast has many writers, like Chris Sugden, Eno Mfon, Jesse Schwenk, Janina Mathewson from Within the Wires podcast, and Beth Crane from We Fix Space Junk podcast.

The podcast has ten episodes in total, with the last episode aired on January 16th of 2020. Each episode has an average of 20-30 minutes and can be listened to on Podchaser, Google Podcasts, and BBC Sounds.

For more information, visit bbc.co.uk. Be careful not to confuse it with Loud Murmurs (another podcast)!

The Geek State Podcast

Created, produced, and hosted by Chris Luby, the discussion-based, ongoing pop culture podcast discusses the latest news, reviews, and conversations about various topics and genres: Star Wars, Marvel Universe, you name it.

The podcast has a total of 59 episodes. Each episode is an average of 1 hour and is available on various platforms such as Audible, Podchaser, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and even on their PodBean website thegeekstatepodcast.com.

Did you like our list? Do you know or already listen to any of the podcasts we mentioned? Let us know in the comments!

And if you enjoy this kind of content, keep following our blog for more topics!

Science Fiction Awards Not Everyone Knows

We’ve all heard of the Hugos and the Nebulas. They’re the big names when it comes to science fiction awards.

And while having a Hugo or a Nebula is a great achievement, there are plenty of other reputable awards for science fiction books (and short stories and poetry) out there too.

Here are a few science fiction awards not everyone knows about!

Gaylactic Spectrum Award
Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award
Dwarf Stars Award
Eugie Award

Gaylactic Spectrum Award

The Gaylactic Spectrum Awards were initially presented by the Gaylactic Network, first established in 1998 and first awarded in 1999. However, they created their own organization in 2002 called the Gaylactic Spectrum Awards Foundation.

The award focuses on works of sci-fi, horror, and fantasy that positively represent the LGBTQ+ community.

Categories

They have award categories for Best Novel, Best Short Fiction, and many others.

Previous Winners

Nicola Griffith won three awards, making her the most awarded novelist in of the GSA. She has also been given five nominations, alongside Melissa Scott, making them both the most nominated writers in this spectrum.

If you’d like to nominate a piece for this science fiction award, please visit their website.

Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award

The Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Award was created in 2001 by the Cordwainer Smith Foundation in memory of science fiction author, Cordwainer Smith.

Cordwainer Smith was a pen-name for Paul Myron Anthony Linebarger, a former US Army officer and expert in psychological warfare. He wrote a number of science fiction novels, but his career was cut short in 1966, when he suffered a heart attack.

His memorial award focuses on under read science fiction or fantasy to purposely draw more attention to the authors.

Categories

The awards go to Best Underrated Science Fiction and Best Underread Fantasy.

Previous Winners

British writer and philosopher Olaf Stapledon was the first winner of the Cordwainer Smith Rediscovery Awards, and since 2001, the awards haven’t stopped. Most recently, British writer David Guy Compton (or D. G. Compton) won the last award in 2021.

Other previous winners were:

R. A Lafferty (2002);
Edgar Pangborn (2003);
Henry Kuttner and C. L. Moore (2004);
Leigh Brackett (2005);
William Hope Hodgson (2006);
Daniel F. Galouye (2007)
Stanley G. Weinbaum (2008)
A. Merritt (2009), Mark Clifton (2010);
Katherine MacLean (2011);
Fredric Brown (2012);
Wyman Guin (2013);
Mildred Clingerman (2014);
Clark Ashton Smith (2015);
Judith Merril (2016);
Seabury Quinn (2017);
Frank M. Robinson (2018)
Carol Emshwiller (2019); and,
Rick Raphael (2020).

Dwarf Stars Award

The Dwarf Stars Award was established as a counterpoint to the Rhysling Award in 2006, both awards given by the Science Fiction Poetry Association. Dwarf Star was created to honor short form poetry, as many of the winners of the Rhysling award wrote in long forms.

This award focuses on sci-fi, horror, and fantasy poems of ten lines or fewer, published in English in the prior year.

Categories

Categories include Best Science Fiction Author, Best Horror Author, and Best Fantasy Author.

Previous Winners

The awards have first, second and third places. American writer Ruth Berman won first place in 2006, and John C. Mannone won first place in 2020 (the last award given so far).

Other previous first-winners include: Jane Yolen (2007), Greg Beatty (2008), Geoffrey A. Landis (2009), Howard V. Hendrix (2010), Julie Bloss Kelsey (2011), Marge Simon (2012), Deborah P. Kolodji (2013), Mat Joiner (2014), Greg Schwartz (2015), Stacy Balkun (2016), LeRoy Gorman (2017), Kath Abela Wilson (2018), and Sofia Rhei (2019).

Eugie Award

The Eugie Foster Memorial Award (or simply Eugie Award) was first presented in 2016 at Dragon Con’s awards banquet and has been ongoing ever since. It was named in honor of prolific speculative writer and editor Eugie Foster.

This award focuses on short speculative fiction published in the previous year.

Categories

The Eugie Award categories include Best Innovative and Essential Short Speculative Fiction.

Previous Winners

The American writer Catherynne M. Valente won the first award back in 2016, and the Canadian writer Siobhan Carroll won the last award in 2020.

Other previous first-winners include N. K. Jemisin (2017), Fran Wilde (2018), and Simone Heller (2019).

There are plenty more science fiction awards out there, some well-known, some a bit more niche. Is there an award that you follow closely? Comment down below!

And if you’re interested in the Mike Resnick Memorial Award for Short Fiction, you can check out the guidelines here:

Mike Resnick Memorial Award for Short Fiction

Prospect: A Solid Sci-Fi Movie on Netflix

I didn’t know anything about Prospect, merely stumbling across it via the suggested for you feature on Netflix.

I took a chance and fired it up. Originally, I was a bit skeptical, because I’d never heard of the film companies that worked on the film, and thought it might be a low-budget, B-rate sci fi movie.

But then, 20 minutes in, I spotted Pedro Pascal, and my fears were assuaged. I’m not saying Prospect is the best sci fi movie on Netflix, but it was pretty darn good.

The Details

Prospect is a 2018 film written and directed by Zeek Earl and Chris Caldwell. Earl and Caldwell previously made commercials and short films with their company, Shep Films, and Prospect was their first movie.

The film stars Sophie Thatcher, Jay Duplass, and Pedro Pascal (who many people know from the wildly popular Star Wars show, The Mandalorian).

Prospect received mixed reviews, with some critics praising the world-building, while others noted that Earl and Caldwell’s character development was lacking.

The Premise

The story follows Cee, a teenage girl who travels to a foreign moon with her father to mine for precious gems.

Along the way, Cee’s father is killed by Ezra, a rogue miner/mercenary stranded on the moon. Despite that, Cee and Ezra have to work together to find a way off the moon before their short window for escape passes them by.

sci fi movie on netflix prospect pedro pascal — Poster for Prospect,
Photo from Wikipedia

Signals Sci-Fi Movie Review

Above all else, Prospect is a simple film. Unlike some other popular sci-fi films, its scope isn’t massive. Nothing about saving the universe or the fate of humanity. Instead, the film places its focus on the interactions of a couple of people, and the conflict is all about Cee and Ezra putting aside their differences to survive.

Personally, stories that operate in a microcosm—or at least, not on a universal scale—always seem more satisfying to me. For example, I’d prefer to watch the Luke Cage Netflix show than the Avengers movies. Luke Cage feels more realistic, which I guess isn’t what people watch superhero literature for, but c’est la vie.

Anyways, I like the small scope of Prospect, because it makes it easier to focus on the characters.

Cee’s father, Damon, has about 25 minutes of screentime, but from the first scene, it’s easy to dislike him. Once he dies, it creates an interesting dynamic between Cee and Ezra. She hates him for killing her father, but also recognizes how different he is from Damon, better in some ways.

Some critics have said that Ezra’s character is pretty stale, and the only reason it’s interesting is because Cee acts as a foil—or a reverse foil?—and in some ways, I agree.

We don’t get very much information about Ezra’s past, only that he is stranded on the forest moon because his crew committed a mutiny and took his ship. Other than that, the audience is left guessing his past.

But I don’t think the story is supposed to be about Ezra. His presence is a catalyst for Cee’s character growth, her ‘coming of age’ if you will.

We know much more about Cee. Even the little details give us a glimpse into her past. Her conversations about her mother, her escapism through music and reading, her calm demeanor in sticky situations, all those things make her a vibrant, deep character.

The Verdict

Prospect’s pacing was on point, and visually, it was a simple film. The whole story takes place on the forest moon, but there isn’t very much variation in the scenery. A lot of green! I’d have like to see a bit of deviation of color.

While the film was entertaining, it leaves a lot of unanswered questions.

What happened to Earth?
What year is it?
What’s Ezra’s past?
What will happen next?

Some of these things are arbitrary, nonessential to the story. However, I would have liked to have a firmer understanding in the world Prospect is framed in. Maybe I’m just being a stickler or a massive sci-fi nerd, but I feel like knowing the year is a must.

Overall, Prospect was a good first film from Shep Films. Its simplistic story model let you focus on the character interactions, but sometimes those interactions fell flat. The film is missing a few key details to really root in a place and time, and sometimes the film expects viewers to grasp the sci-fi concepts without having previously explained them.

I’d give Prospect a 7/10. Sophie Thatcher and Pedro Pascal made a great duo, and I’d like to see more of their adventures, but I definitely felt like there was room for improvement.

So, not the best sci-fi movie on Netflix, but worth a watch if you don’t have something more interesting to watch.

Classic Sci Fi TV Shows You’ve Never Heard Of

Anyone involved in the sci fi community knows the big classic sci fi TV shows. Shows like Babylon 5, Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica.

Many of these shows solidified space opera’s place on the TV schedule, and popularized the sci fi genre with new, flashy filming technology and celebrity faces.

But, in the background, there were smaller sci fi classics on air, too. Even hardcore science fiction fans might have a hard time remembering this list of sci fi TV series.

Project U.F.O.

While many people think of The X-Files as the definitive extra-terrestrials-among-us program, the trend actually started many years before Chris Carter’s iconic show.

Project U.F.O aired on NBC for 2 seasons from 1978 to 1979. The show was created by Jack Webb and Harold Jack Bloom.

This classic show followed two US. Air Force investigators as they worked there way through a number of UFO sightings and phenomena. Many of the episodes are based on actual case files from Project Blue Book, the Air Force’s undercover study of extraterrestrials from 1952-1969.

While The X-Files deviated into more supernatural and folklore-ish waters, Project U.F.O. stayed in it’s lane, focusing strictly on UFO phenomena.

Dick Spanner, P.I.

Dick Spanner, P.I. isn’t a show you might toss in with other classic sci fi TV shows like Stargate and Xena, but it’s certainly a classic in its own right.

The stop-motion animation series has 22 episodes and aired in the UK in 1986. The show became popular for its witty voice and pithy format. Each episode is around 6 minutes.

Now, what’s the premise? Well, Dick Spanner is a robot private investigator in a futuristic city. Yup, definitely science fiction.

It’s a fun little hour of stop-motion animation, with an interesting tone!

Jupiter Moon

Most little-known sci-fi shows are lucky if they run for half a season. But, Jupiter Moon stands out as an oddball, having run for over 10 episodes!

The British sci fi soap opera broadcasted in 1990 on the Sci Fi Channel, and ran for 6 years.

This sci fi TV show is set on a space colony orbiting Callisto, in the year 2050. Instead of an intergalactic military space drama like the Expanse, Jupiter Moon is a show about simpler problems, and human relationships. Certainly a slower pace than a lot of current or upcoming sci fi tv shows.

While not particularly deep or provoking, Jupiter Moon is a fun show to watch once and remember vaguely.

5 Days To Midnight

5ive Days to Midnight aired in 2004 as a 5-part miniseries. The show followed J.T. Neumeyer, a physics professor, as he slowly discovers he’s traveled through time. But the clock is ticking, because in five days, he’s going to die.

It’s an intriguing show, and the miniseries format fits the story well. The first two episodes show the first 4 days of the story, while the last episode is dedicated to day 5.

Neat premise, and it’s more palatable than this next show:

Honorable (Horrible?) Mention: Woops!

Woops! was once called one of the worst TV shows of all time. And I can see why.

Woops! aired for only 10 of their 13 episodes in 1992. It follows six survivors of nuclear war that gather on a farm in hopes of rebuilding society. This sitcom attempts to humorize the plights of a typical last-people-on-Earth story, like reproduction and future generations. However, the 1990s humor and sitcom format didn’t match well with the post-apocalyptic vibes.

The episodes are kind of hard to find, but I did manage to watch a few on Youtube. They’re base-level humor, with a lot of cliches and stereotypes floating around like a doom-cloud. If your Youtube recommendations dry up and you have 20 minutes to waste, check it out.

Until Next Time…

If you know of a show that’s not on this list, drop it in the comments! We might be back in a while with another blog about old TV shows!