S&L Podcast - #497 - Some Desperate Sniffles
/We learn a lot about nunchucks and old best SciFi lists, but we spend the majority of our time mulling over Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh. We also kick off a cozy October horrorish read.
WHAT ARE WE NOMMING?
Tom: Chicken Alfredo lasagna
Veronica: Pumpkin spice crème cookies from Whole Foods
QUICK BURNS (Add Timestamp)
Any news or announcements.
A lot of people wanted us to talk about Marvel and DC losing joint trademark protection for the word superhero. I could not find a good explanation of what trademarks they held. Trademark law is so frequently misunderstood that until I do find that out, I can't intelligently comment on the withdrawal of that protection.
— Tom
https://www.law.com/therecorder/2024/09/30/joint-marvel-dc-trademark-of-super-hero-canceled-amid-challenge-by-creator-of-superbabies/?slreturn=20241002142830
Tamahome: Hot off the presses—Top 50 Sci-Fi novels voted on in 1998 at Locus. Words in Time on YouTube just did a video about it. I don’t think they’ve done a poll like this since? The Witches of Karres?
https://worldswithoutend.com/lists_locus_bestsf.asp
Seth: Mary Robinette Kowal, translator? She makes her debut as a translator with The Night Guest, a work of psychological horror by Hildur Knútsdóttir. A woman suffering from chronic fatigue gets a smartwatch, which finds she's been walking 40,000 steps in her sleep.
The book sounds neat, but mostly I'm just thinking there's basically nothing Kowal can't do.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/127306444.The_Night_Guest
Trike: October’s new Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror releases are here to haunt your bookshelf.
https://gizmodo.com/octobers-new-sci-fi-fantasy-and-horror-releases-are-here-to-haunt-your-bookshelf-2000503585
Seth: Brandon Sanderson has plans to build a bookstore on the site of a closed city park. He’s calling it Dragonsteel Plaza.
https://www.sltrib.com/artsliving/2024/09/29/brandon-sanderson-has-bought-land/
BARE YOUR SWORD (Add Timestamp)
Feedback from the audience.
Ruth: I also remember the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles! (Not surprisingly, as Ruth Tilltab and I are the same age, and we both grew up in the UK). There was a period when the UK was very against anything to do with ninjas or nunchucks. I remember Bruce Lee movies were edited to remove the nunchucks, and so was the Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles cartoon show. According to the Wikipedia article, the cartoon producers even changed Michelangelo’s signature weapon to a grappling hook because of the UK controversy over nunchucks.
Steve: While I agree the specificity of the UK rules is bizarre, one of the reasons why nunchucks were banned is that after the release of Enter the Dragon in 1973/4, there were several incidents of gang violence where the participants were found in possession of nunchucks. As a result, nunchucks and depictions of nunchucks were banned to avoid influencing "the youth." The main reasoning was that it is relatively simple to produce nunchucks, so the "barrier for entry" is very low, making it more likely that kids would be influenced to use them.
BOOK OF THE MONTH DISCUSSION
Kick Off
A Night in the Lonesome October by Roger Zelazny
Bookshop Link
Amazon Link
Wrap Up
Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh
Bookshop Link
Amazon Link
SDG: Dulce et Decorum Est
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/22925185-sdg-dulce-et-decorum-est
SDG: Queer Identity
https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/22918852-sdg-queer-identity
