Category Archives: fantasy

Reflections on “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio”

December 12th, 2022 | Posted in fantasy, Guillermo del Toro

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time it will come as no surprise that I am a huge fan of Guillermo del Toro. I’ve written numerous blog posts about his work (here’s an example), and edited an anthology on it titled The Supernatural Cinema of Guillermo del Toro: Critical Essays. […]

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“‘Carnival Row,” Fantasy and Religious Blind Spots

September 29th, 2019 | Posted in Christianity, fantasy

I recently started watching Carnival Row, the Amazon Prime series. This weekend involved some binge watching, and an element in episode 5 in Season 1 caught my attention. This episode includes several instances where a religious icon is shown in an orphanage. It is the image of The Martyr, a Jesus-like figure at the center […]

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“The Sacred in Fantastic Fandom: Essays on the Intersection of Religion and Pop Culture” now available

May 9th, 2019 | Posted in fandom, fantasy, pop culture, sacred, science fiction

The Sacred in Fantastic Fandom: Essays on the Intersection of Religion and Pop Culture (McFarland, 2019). This is another work of mine that was recently completed.  I am especially thankful for my co-editors who came on at my invitation to help finish the volume once an urgent personal issue upended my writing and editing schedule. […]

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Doug Cowan on “Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroes: How Myth and Religion Shape Fantasy Culture”

May 9th, 2019 | Posted in Douglas Cowan, fandom, fantasy, religion

Doug Cowan, a frequent guest at TheoFantastique, returns to discuss his book Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroes: How Myth and Religion Shape Fantasy Culture (University of California Press, 2019). Enjoy the interview, and pick up a copy of this great book.

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Titles of Interest – Gods of Thrones: A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Religions of Ice and Fire

January 18th, 2019 | Posted in fantasy, Game of Thrones, religion

Gods of Thrones: A Pilgrim’s Guide to the Religions of Ice and Fire A. Ron Hubbard and Anthony Le Donne Bald Move Books, 2018 Why is Tyrion hated by the gods? Does Dany have a messiah complex? Can Bran manipulate timelines? What would Nietzsche think about Jaime’s morality? These are just a few of the […]

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Book Cover for my forthcoming volume “The Sacred in Fantastic Fandom”

November 8th, 2018 | Posted in fan cultures, fandom, fantasy, religion, sacred, science fiction

The cover design for one of the book projects I’ve been working on for a while. My thanks to the best book cover designers UK has, and my co-editors who came on board when the needs of the book and my life circumstances at the time meant I needed a lot of help to get […]

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New title available – Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroes

September 25th, 2018 | Posted in Douglas Cowan, fantasy, myths, Titles of Interest

My friend and colleague, Doug, Cowan, has been prolific lately with his books. One of his latest is now available for pre-order: Magic, Monsters, and Make-Believe Heroess looks at fantasy film, television, and participative culture as evidence of our ongoing need for a mythic vision—for stories larger than ourselves into which we write ourselves and […]

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Godawa and ‘The Shape of Water’: Seeing Pagan Beasts and Missing the Love of the Beauty

April 9th, 2018 | Posted in Christianity, fairy tales, fantasy, Guillermo del Toro

The Shape of Water has won numerous awards, including various film festivals, eventually winning four Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Obviously, the film has been very well received, but no film is universally loved. There is always the subjective element, so it’s possible to find reviews from those for whom the film didn’t work. Even […]

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Trailer for del Toro’s “The Shape of Water” echoes the Gill-man

July 19th, 2017 | Posted in Creature from the Black Lagoon, fantasy, Guillermo del Toro

This looks very interesting. I’m a huge del Toro fan, hence my edited book The Supernatural Cinema of Guillermo del Toro. But this looks like his unique twist and nod to one of his favorite films, The Creature from the Black Lagoon.

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Mythicworlds: Straddling the way between sci-fi conventions and transformational festivals?

June 25th, 2017 | Posted in conventions, cosplay, cultures, faeries, fantasy, folklore, myths

I’m finishing the editing of a manuscript for McFarland that explores aspects of fantastic fan cultures in relation to the sacred. I am waiting for one more chapter to be submitted and then the manuscript goes off for peer review. In addition to editing and writing he Introduction I am contributing a chapter that contrasts […]

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