Brain Fuel – Page 2 – John A. Underwood

Another Reason Last Jedi Nailed It

The Last Jedi opened the door to the galaxy’s military-industrial complex. Rise of Skywalker should have dealt with it.

Future Police

In 2014, Ursula K. Le Guin called on science fiction and fantasy writers to envision alternatives to capitalism. To depict through fiction possible ways future societies might build better worlds, rather than endlessly retreading the same old cyberpunk corporate dystopias. To use works of speculative fiction to propose a way forward. In 2004’s The Libertine,Continue reading “Future Police”

A Problem With Language

Something’s been bugging me for a while. It’s about fictional languages and how I fucked up handling one of them.

My Grandfather’s Antenna

My grandfather turned 90 last month, and I’d like to share an anecdote from the Long, Long Ago. I love this anecdote because it encapsulates a number of my granddad’s characteristics, and because it has a serious atompunk/dieselpunk flavor to it.

The Sad Tale of the Ininite Monkeys, Who Just Wanted Science Fiction Without Politics

This post is adapted and expanded from a Twitter thread. It may sound familiar to some of you. Do not click this link. (“Indie Sci-Fi Authors Are Upending Traditional Publishing, And It’s Turned Into A War”) It’s hot garbage. I warned you. It’s an article from The Federalist, a conservative web-magazine founded about six yearsContinue reading “The Sad Tale of the Ininite Monkeys, Who Just Wanted Science Fiction Without Politics”

The Naked Facebook

This post first appeared in 2012, before our opinion of Facebook got even worse. It therefore is somewhat dated. -JU In 1956, Isaac Asimov wrote The Naked Sun, second in a series of science fiction murder mysteries starring Earth detective Elijah Baley and his human-appearing robot partner, R. Daneel Olivaw. I highly recommend The Naked Sun, asContinue reading “The Naked Facebook”