Monthly Archives: May 2011

Undead in the West: PCA/ACA Call for Contributors

May 31st, 2011 | Posted in call for papers, undead

The Popular Culture Association and American Culture Association have issued a Call for Contributors: Undead in the West: Vampires, Zombies, Mummies, and Ghosts on the Cinematic Frontier (anthology) Deadline for abstracts: September 18, 2011 The frontier has long been framed as a landscape of life and death, but few scholarly works have ventured into the […]

Tagged in: , | 0 Comments

The Horrific Trauma of War: Memorial Day and Hopes for the Future

May 30th, 2011 | Posted in holiday

Horror historian David J. Skal has argued that the early Universal horror films were, in part, a response to the trauma experienced as a result of World War I. In The Monster Show: A Cultural History of Horror, Skal wrote: A good deal of this book has dealt with the long shadow of war reflected […]

Tagged in: | 0 Comments

Star Trek vs. Star Wars: Criteria for Assessing “Better” Science Fiction

May 26th, 2011 | Posted in science fiction, Star Trek, Star Wars

Yesterday one of the interesting media features I came across came from College Times. A piece by Janice Vega asked a question with its title “Which is better: Star Trek or Star Wars? Two mega-fans battle it out”. In the piece various facets of the two science fiction franchises are examined in competition and scored […]

Tagged in: , , | 4 Comments

LiveScience.com: A Brief History of Doomsday

May 22nd, 2011 | Posted in 2012 Mayan prophecy, apocalypticism, post-apocalypticism

In response to another failed doomsday prophecy, and in anticipation of the next to come in 2012 in connection with the Mayan calendar, a nice graphic comparison of various cultural, religious, and secular doomsday prophecies and scenarios from LiveScience.com. Related posts: “Doomsday America: The Pessimistic Turn of Post-9/11 Apocalyptic Cinema” “Pop Culture Explores the Apocalypse” […]

Tagged in: , , | 1 Comment

Fan Culture Exploration – MTV’s True Life: “I’m a Fanboy”

May 20th, 2011 | Posted in fan cultures, geek cultures

  Tags: True Life, MTV Shows In my ongoing research on fantastic fan cultures I came across this episode of MTV’s True Life that focuses on the phenomenon titled “I’m a Fanboy.” Although the program seems to include and reinforce some stereotypes of “fanboys,” no doubt basted upon MTV’s selection process in fan submissions rather […]

Tagged in: , | 1 Comment

Blurred Lines: Science Fiction, Horror, Science & Entertainment

May 18th, 2011 | Posted in aliens, horror, science fiction, zombie

The lines between science and entertainment are blurred these days. This is especially the case when it comes to things related to horror, science fiction, and the paranormal. This is evident in an upcoming program on the National Geographic Channel addressing the possibility of alien invasion in “When Aliens Attack” which will air on May […]

Tagged in: , , , | 0 Comments

Doomsday America: The Pessimistic Turn of Post-9/11 Apocalyptic Cinema

May 16th, 2011 | Posted in apocalypticism, horror, post-apocalypticism, science fiction

Fears, and perhaps for some, joyful anticipation, of apocalyptic doom is in the air. This is perhaps most evident with Christian radio and television preacher Harold Camping’s prediction of the end of the world on May 21st. But this is nothing new, and science fiction and horror films have often involved depictions of apocalypse. But […]

Tagged in: , , , | 3 Comments

Victoria Nelson: Guillermo del Toro’s Gothick Cosmos

May 11th, 2011 | Posted in Gothic horror, Guillermo del Toro, Victoria Nelson

While checking the quotes and bibliographical sources in a recent book I was introduced to the work of Victoria Nelson. Nelson is an independent scholar and the author of The Secret Life of Puppets (Harvard University Press, 2002), as well as the forthcoming Gothicka (Harvard University Press, April 2012). In the midst of a very […]

Tagged in: , , | 3 Comments

Freddy Krueger, Popular Culture, and Cute Monsters Once More

May 9th, 2011 | Posted in cultural studies, horror, toys

In a previous post I took part in a group effort from the League of Tana Tea Drinkers on the phenomenon of “cute” monsters in horror. In this series of posts the contributors tried to address why we take horrific items and produce less than frightening aspects of them for our enjoyment. I would like […]

Tagged in: , , | 0 Comments

University of Derby: MA Humanities in Horror and Transgression

May 5th, 2011 | Posted in degree program, horror studies

I learned about this degree program today so I thought I’d copy it here to give it a plug. From the University of Derby School of Humanities, an MA in Horror and Transgression: Why choose this course? * It combines taught and individual research modules to allow you to focus on your own research project, […]

Tagged in: , | 0 Comments
RSS for Posts RSS for Comments