Book Review: A Treasury of Science Fiction

Book Review: A Treasury of Science Fiction edited by Groff Conklin “A Treasury of Science Fiction” was first published as a hardback in 1948; the edition I read was the paperback reprint from 1957 which only contains eight of the original thirty stories. This was one of the first major science fiction collections, and set… Continue reading Book Review: A Treasury of Science Fiction

Book Review: Murder in Blue

Book Review: Murder in Blue by Paul Petersen Eric Saveman, the man codenamed The Smuggler, has come a long way from his career bringing marijuana into California. Nowadays he works for ZED, a secret branch of the CIA that also works domestically. His current assignment is to infiltrate a Soviet computer facility and steal a… Continue reading Book Review: Murder in Blue

Book Review: Beyond Human Ken

Book Review: Beyond Human Ken edited by Judith Merril This 1954 paperback anthology is a partial reprint of the 1952 hardback of the same title, choosing twelve stories of the original twenty-one and skipping the prefaces that were in that edition. The theme is non-human beings of various kinds, pulled primarily from the science fiction… Continue reading Book Review: Beyond Human Ken

TV Review: Unriddle Season Two

Xiaoman and Bun contemplate their next move against a killer.

TV Review: Unriddle Season Two At the end of Season One, Singaporean police officer Hu Xiaoman (Rui En) and streetwise informer Bun (Li Ping Chen) were able to find their friend and mentor Officer Zhang Yuze (Ping Hui Tay) and clear his name. So, now Xiaoman can finally concentrate on whether she wants to date… Continue reading TV Review: Unriddle Season Two

Movie Review: Horror Hotel (1960)

Nan gets ready for light jazz dancing.

Movie Review: Horror Hotel (1960) directed by John Llewellyn Moxey In 1672 Massachusetts, the tiny town of Whitewood has supposedly been plagued by witches. The townsfolk have chosen Elizabeth Selwyn (Patricia Jessel) as their scapegoat and burn her at the stake. Elizabeth curses the villagers as she is consumed by the flames. Cut to Professor Driscoll… Continue reading Movie Review: Horror Hotel (1960)

Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1

Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1 edited by Cory Sedlmeier As has been mentioned on this blog before, by the late 1940s, superheroes had become passe in comic books. A handful continued to be published over at National Publications (DC) on a regular basis, and there was the odd minor publisher title,… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Marvel Masterworks: Atlas Era Heroes 1

Book Review: Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters

Book Review: Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters edited by Tim Marquitz & N.X. Sharps Like many a Godzilla fan, I have a fondness for movies where gigantic monsters rampage across the landscape. The fandom has more or less adopted the Japanese term for such monsters, kaiju. While the big critters have been a staples of… Continue reading Book Review: Kaiju Rising: Age of Monsters

Movie Review: Terror By Night

Watson and Holmes discuss the case with their client sitting opposite them.

Movie Review: Terror by Night (1946) directed by Roy William Neill The Star of Rhodesia, a large diamond, has long been associated with blood and death, bringing woe to its owners and those around them ever since it was dug up. The current owner is Lady Margaret Carstairs (Mary Forbes), a formidable dowager. Her son Roland… Continue reading Movie Review: Terror By Night

Magazine Review: High Adventure #168: Wonder Stories

Magazine Review: High Adventure #168: Wonder Stories edited by John P. Gunnison This issue of pulp reprints gets its content from Wonder Stories November 1930 (when it was still edited by Hugo Gernsback) and Thrilling Wonder Stories December 1942 (after Gernsback had been bought out by the Thrilling Group.) As you might imagine, this means… Continue reading Magazine Review: High Adventure #168: Wonder Stories

Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931

Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931 edited by Harry Bates Strange Tales was published as a direct competitor to Weird Tales, the top fantastic/occult story pulp magazine of the time, starting with this issue in 1931. It had more of an action slant to its editorial policy as compared to the more idea-heavy stories of… Continue reading Magazine Review: Strange Tales September 1931