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The League of Less than Ordinary Gentlemen An Analysis of the Punk -Steam and Cyberpunk For this section I attempted to read and then subsequently drop League of Extraordinary Gentlemen by Alan Moore. The genre of both cyberpunk and steam punk has very much now become and aesthetic/look in contemporary and modern works. They have become now a setting which to place a story, game or show. What was then a genre in which tropes and conventional plot points existed now become a tool/setting to drive forward a story. The punk genres now serve as a critique/reflection of our society and values as a whole. For example, In the works Ghost in the Shell, Blade runner, Blade Runner 2049, and Deus Ex: Human Revolution, we are introduced to a world in which personal freedoms are gone and capitalism and materialism reign supreme. The ideas and practices of consumerism and the trade between personal rights in exchange for services and ease of life are prevalent in the works of cyberpunk. H

The Martian -Space Opera For this read I took a jab at reading The Martian by Andy Weir. Being set in the not so distant future of 2035, this take on space travel take a very realistic and conventional approach to space travel. This book in my term successfully makes science cool and enjoyable as much of the conflict that stems from the story is much of Man vs. Environment. The landscape and events are all working against him to kill him. The book deliberately goes into every detail of Mark Watney’s struggle against time and mortality. Although The Martian isn’t a grandiose space opera like Starship Troopers or Star Wars but it contrasts them by being very down and humble. Everything that Watney does for survival Is explained in every possible detail/step that works to inform the reader of the scientific thought/processes that propagate throughout the book. Much like our previous week’s take on contemporary urban fantasy I feel that this book/story fits more as a contemporary

Man in The High Castle - The Fiction of Ideas For this reading I attempted to read Man in the High Castle by Phillip K. Dick . This exercise in fictional ideas gives us an alternative history in which the Axis Powers won WW2 due to Nazi Germany developing the atomic bomb before the Allies. This fictional work deeply exercises social concepts and values throughout the story with the main setting of America being the hot spot of conflict between Japan and Germany. This share rule over America bring with it really interesting concepts and dynamics. Although the show with the same name has the same plot points/setting in the story it starkly contrasts with the narrative. While the novel first starts with Robert Childan the show starts with the spy named Joe Blake. Although the characters and backstories are relatively the same the differences of plot and choices are significantly different. While in the show the reel tapes are the main plot object that compels much of the confl

American Gods   -Contemporary Urban Fantasy "Call no man happy until he is dead"- Shadow Moon American Gods  by Neil Gaiman I found to be profoundly entertaining. Neil Gaiman in my opinion successfully modernizes the historical mythologies of varying Gods throughout recorded history. Through various misadventures the book follows the character called Shadow Moon. We see through the eyes of Shadow we experience everything he experiences, many of which were first for him and arguably the audience. This works in the readers favor as we in a sense area as clueless as him in his various misadventure through him we are introduced into this world Neil Gaiman has set the stage for. Neil modern dramatization/interpretation of old Mythological character are cleverly interlaced with the ideas of American values. This is done through the power of belief.           “So, what came first? Gods or the people who believed in them?” - Mr. Wednesday This implies that the

Bloodchild Our in class reading this week is Blood child by Octavia. This story was very intriguing to say the least. It depicted a future world in which humanity has become nothing more that glorified livestock for an alien race that was akin to a wasp. This fictionally constructed world had many elements that where questionable to say the least. The creatures/ruling party of this world reminded me of actual wasps that would inject their eggs into a living victim only to have its young devour it from the inside out. This surprised me in that sense that this far future. During the entirety of the reading I was hit with the over-arcing question of freedom vs security. In this world at least, the freedom of humanity has all been given up in name of a pseudo utopia. And the cost of freedom is to become glorified cattle to birth this race of arguable parasites. If giving up personal freedoms for peace leads to a pseudo utopia then is it worth it. This literary piece had me think o

The Hobbit: An unexpected Hero's Journey    The Hobbit was written by J R.R. Tolkien in 1937 after the midst of WW1 The Hobbit is a fantasy epic written. This book would be a major milestone in fantasy story telling. Having been written after WW1 the book explore themes of war, industrialization, and the hero's journey.     The book begins with a hole in the ground. There lives a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, Bilbo in many retrospects isn't you typical hero or protagonist of the story, he is an everyday man. This is similar to Tolkien's own experience as him and the other soldiers of the first World War were everyday men that were he reluctantly joined military. This in many aspects is vastly similar to the call to action of Bilbo Baggins, he is called to an adventure that far exceeds the norms of his everyday life. As he begins his journey he like Tolkien faced many challenges and along the way he had revelations. But by the end however the Banding company of dwar