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Entertainment

Zombies Will Eat Your Brains (And Fall in Love With You)?

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Today’s topic is thanks to Erica Pike – “apocalyptic topics with or without zombies”. So here’s my take. Shifters seem to be all the rage, especially in MM paranormal romance. Zombies have had their moments lately in popular culture – see World War Z, Warm Bodies, and the Walking Dead. But there’s so much more potential in these rotting meat sacks. So my question today – how can we put a fresh spin on the whole zombie craze, either in romance or in paranormal or sci fi in general?

Man Gets Pregnant in New Film

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A new indy film, “Paternity”, looks at the possibility of a man becoming pregnant, something we’ve discussed at the QSF discussion group before: Check out this first look at the upcoming Indiegogo-funded film Paternity Leave starring Chris Salvatore and The Cove’s Charlie David that filps the whole idea of gay parenting on its head in a heartwarming and funny way. Here’s the film synopsis: Greg (Jacob York) finds out that he’s pregnant with his partner Ken’s (Charlie David) baby. Dumbstruck by the news, their relationship takes twists and turns through hardship and hilarity, while we’re left wondering if they’re going … Read more

Jupiter Ascending Trailer

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OK, so it’s not actually gay, but who doesn’t want to see Channing Tatum in pretty much anything? Non-disclaimer disclaimer – no one has asked us to post this or paid us to do so. I just really wanna see this film: From the makers of The Matrix trilogy comes another futuristic science fiction film – Jupiter Ascending. Jupiter Ascending has Channing Tatum (Caine) and Mila Kunis (Jupiter Jones) as its lead stars. The film will follow the life of Jupiter Jones, an ordinary cleaning lady who always dream of the stars. She is always wondering what is in store … Read more

How Magic Conquered Popular Culture

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Editor’s Note: After yesterday’s discussion on how we can use Fantasy to explore our own community and issues, this article from Lev Grossman at Time seemed particularly apropos: ———— hen I was a kid, in the 1980s, fantasy was not entirely OK. It had, let us say, some unpleasant associations. It was fringey and subcultural and uncool. In my suburban Massachusetts junior high, to be a fantasy fan was not to be a good, contented hobbit, working his sunny garden and smoking his fragrant pipeweed. It was to be Gollum, slimy and gross and hidden away, riddling in the dark. … Read more

The Love Lives of Intergalactic Queers

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In the Doctor Who season premiere episode ‘Deep Breath’ nearly a million Australian ABC viewers via BBC simulcast, repeat evening viewing and iView, were treated to an intimate lesbian kiss between Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh) and wife Jenny (Catrin Stewart), that created quite a stir based on its primetime “family viewing” time slot. Ok, they may have been “sharing oxygen” to avoid detection by cybernetic sword-wielding breath detectors, and one may have been a reptile and therefore not human, and despite being married they may live out their roles as master and servant to be seen as socially acceptable, but … Read more

Where Are All the Gay Sci Fi Films?

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Last month, we reported on a planned, to-be-crowdfunded sci fi film, Credence, about two gay parents and their young daughter. It got me thinking. If gays in mainstream sci fi books are few and far between, LGBT characters in sci fi films are practically non-existent. Especially if you discount villains. So here’s my challenge to you today. What gay sci fi novel do you think would translate well to film? Who would star in it? And where on Earth could it be shot to capture the spirit of the book? Just one rule – it can’t be one of your … Read more

Straight Women Love Gay Porn

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OK, so it’s not specifically sci fi, gay or fantasy, but this caught our eye since such a large proportion of both writers and readers of MM romance are women: In 2001, Salon received the equivalent of a Dear Abby letter from a straight women confessing, “[Gay porn] turns me on like no heterosexual porn ever has. What’s up with that? Am I a freak?” In response, writer Tracy Clark-Flory recounted her experience co-judging the Air Sex Championships, during which the all-female panel of judges was often “recoiling in disgust.” That is, until a man unexpectedly and vigorously began reenacting … Read more

How True Blood Became a Paranormal Allegory for Gay Rights

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In 2000, Alan Ball, a TV writer who’d worked on Grace Under Fire and Cybill, hit the jackpot. American Beauty–a satirical melodrama he’d written about the suffering, brutalizing, twisted soul of the suburbs–won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director (Sam Mendes), and Best Actor (Kevin Spacey), which is not too shabby for a movie that was originally turned down by Chevy Chase. Ball, whose script had already earned him a Golden Globe, took home the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The 43-year-old Ball found himself turned overnight into a very hot property. In an earlier era, this would … Read more

To Be Takei

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A gay sci fi icon is profiled in a new documentary: The third feature-length project from filmmaker Jennifer M. Kroot, whose previous endeavors include the 2003 sci-fi/fantasy Sirens of the 23rd Century and the 2009 biographical doc It Came from Kuchar, details the professional achievements, political activism, and personal life of Takei, who proves to be as accomplished as he is downright likable. The weight with which Kroot approaches the three principal aspects of Kroot’s life tends to vary, leaning in favor of his work for gay rights, but we find ourselves duly engrossed in his personal and professional stories … Read more

“Doctor Who” Features Its First lesbian Kiss

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Doctor Who has been criticized for featuring an on-screen lesbian kiss for the first time ever, in last night’s season premiere. The latest episode of the sci-fi series, titled Deep Breath, aired last night on BBC One to over 7 million people, in addition to special screenings in over 400 cinemas. In the episode, Silurian lizard-woman Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh) was forced to lock lips with her human wife Jenny Flint (Catrin Stewart) – the first time they have done so on screen. The pair have recurred on the show since 2011 and have long been portrayed as lovers. See … Read more