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Carnival of Feminist Sci Fi & Fantasy Part III: Reviews, Reactions, and Recommended Further Reading
Welcome to Part III of the Feminist Science Fiction & Fantasy Carnival! This is, I promise, the last part of my particular Carnival, but if you've been having fun you may want to know that this Carnival is a monthly feature. Keep abreast of new developments at the main site! Should you just be joining me, Women, Gaming and You! was posted on Monday, and These Things We Love And How We Interact With Them was posted Tuesday.

[I think this pic is awesome, as is the artists other work. Check out her powerful women!]

As I've said before, I'm a big reader, and I'm so glad there's been a lot of great discussion about books around the blogosphere lately, as I'm running out of things to read (again). I've got highlights of various flavours of fantasy and sci-fi for your enjoyment today.

Modern Matriarch reviews Darwins Paradox, an eco-thriller where the main character carries a highly-evolved virus:

In Darwin’s Paradox, Julie Crane is civilization’s darkest pariah and only hope. The alpha patient who carries a highly evolved virus, she is blamed with the death of thousands and the murder of law enforcement officials who tried to detain her.</p>

We first meet Crane in the wilderness where she ekes out an existence with her husband and daughter. However, her reoccurring nightmares and the desire to protect her family agitate her growing sense of restlessness. When her highly evolved senses warn her that they are being followed, watched, perhaps even hunted, Crane decides she has no choice but to face the past.

She follows this up with an Interview with the author, Nina Munteanu, talking about the various metaphors in the novel.

[Aside - Darwin's Paradox sounds like it's in a similar vein to the film Code 46, which I thought was awesome, and thus I'm really thinking of nabbing this book.]


In a more classic sci-fi adventure, Chris from Book Lovers: Get Your English On! reviews the classic Feminist Sci-Fi Novel Benefits, attempting to see if the novel stands the test of time.

My response in the new century was mixed. The story remained as interesting as it did the first time around. However, the character development was more stilted than I remembered.

Don’t get me wrong: it’s a great book and worth reading. In fact, I think every woman should read it if only to understand how precious our bodies are and how little we should trust a government that wants to control them. However, readers must get ready for a static feminism (which in itself is an oxymoron).

On the Fantasy side, Melpomene reviews Jennifer Roberson's (of Tiger & Del fame) new series, Karavans

Hmm. It's a toss-up. On the one hand, Roberson's writing at full force here. All the delightful sensory details that made the dry deserty world of Tiger and Del a reality are present. You can feel the dust coating your face in Roberson's lushly realized world. And she neatly establishes that it's a world in flux — the Hecari invaders are anever-present threat, without overwhelming the story. Bethid, one of the secondary characters, is the first female courier… and she's young… but older enough than some of her newer colleagues that they're literally astounded that there was once a time, as little as two years ago, when the guildmasters didn't think women should be couriers. But wilt thou leave me so unsatisfied? Maybe it's because there are only two books in the series so far, but yeah, I felt hungry in the bad way at the end.Like, there was a lot of fluff and a lot of awesome, but not necessarily a lot of meat on the bone.

And, as a reminder that Science Fiction & Fantasy does not necessarily mean Dystopian Futures and Swords & Sorceresses, a review of Once Bitten, Twice Shy over at Smart Bitches Love Trashy Novels. The Romance genre has certainly branched out since I was reading Johanna Lindsey as a kid! This novel involves CIA agents, Vampires, assassins, and other things that make me want to pick it up and toss it into my "Urban Fantasy" pile of great genre reads:

Generally we have a lot to say around these parts about kickass heroines who go all wussy or, God forbid, humpity sex fiend on us. Or,for that matter, heroines who are labeled as strong, feisty, or even lethal on the back cover but then spend the whole plot hiding behind or whimpering for a big hulking male to come and kick the ass on her behalf. Highly unsatisfying.

Which is why I am so pleased when I discover a genuinely kickass heroine. Jasmine Parks, aka “Jaz,” in Jennifer Rardin’s new series (Yes, yes, another series. I’m going to read a stand-alone single title next, I swear) is 100% bonafide grade A certified-by-Oregon-Tilth Kick.Ass. What are the ways in which the ass is kicked by Jaz? Let me count them:

So, interest of full confession before you read on: I don't watch t.v. I'm a globe-trotting sort of gal, and I just can't bother with getting a t.v. set or (when I get a furnished flat) turning on the cable. I've readall the following essays, but I can't really comment on them too much because t.v. is that weird moving picture box that some people have. Some days I miss t.v., and having interesting commentary to read about what's on makes me miss it even more.

This past month saw a lot of talk about Battlestar Gallactica with the release of the made-for-t.v. move Battlestar Gallactica: Razor. There was much discussion around the blogosphere of the show, as one can imagine. (All these links contain SPOILERS so read at your own risk.)

kiwi_grrl writes a fairly good summary of events in the episode (or so I would assume - I haven't seen it) in Battlestar Gallactica, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

However, there is one aspect (or, rather, you could see it as two) that I really want to touch on, and that is the portrayal of women, and women of minority status (gay or of colour) within the series, and specifically, within Razor this weekend.

Basically, in a nutshell, Razorfilled in a number of the holes surrounding how the Battlestar 'Pegasus' survived the first Cylon attack which all but annihilated humanity, waged war on the Cylons, and then met up with Gallactica and the civilian fleet. It also filled in a chunk of Commander Adama's background with the Cylons, and gave us a hint of what may be to come surrounding the final season of BSG, starting in March '08.

One of the biggest things one notices, however, is that virtually all the major characters in this movie were female. Leaving aside Adama, and his son Lee, the characters of Kara Thrace (Starbuck), Admiral Helena Cain, Aide Kendra Shaw, Technician Gina are all the central figures in this film. Male characters actually take second-shift, as merely supporting characters that allow the story revolving around these women to play out.

While gamerchick (a very long-time member of my flist - she may be the first person I friended on LJ back in 2003) writes about her reaction to Admiral Cain and the reactions of fans to her portrayal in the series as a whole and in Razor in particular in Of genre television, Helena Cain, and Gender Roles:

There was a time about a year ago when I briefly made myself extremely unpopular with some of my best friends for asserting two strong opinions about Battlestar Galactica - specifically, that we were meant to look at Admiral Cain and the crew of Pegasus as a cautionary tale rather than an irredeemable villain (which has since been strongl ysupported by the events of Razor), and that the strong negative reaction to her, both among my friends and among fans in general, was partially due to her being female. I would like to be able to say that I felt sorry for having gotten so worked up about something unimportant, but the truth is that I can't bring myself to believe it'snot important. This post is my attempt to defend that idea.

The trouble is, I'm not sure if I can, not directly. As my friends rather bluntly pointed out, she wasn'tmale, so how can we know how viewers would have reacted to a different presentation? They insisted that they would have reacted no differently to a male Admiral Cain, but they can't know that any more than I can. Rather, I think my strong reaction to Cain was the last straw following a lifetime of seeing female characters in SF and fantasy be marginalized and detested by otherwise reasonable people. It was a rage that had been brewing in my mind for years, and of which my friends were the unfortunate recipients.

ide_cyan in whileaway also talks about the show, as do the comments, in Battlestar Gallactica: Razor but I can't find a quote that isn't full of spoilers, so I will merely point out its existence for those who wish to read it and the comments.

In another show that's seeing a re-imaging, Stella Kevlar at Superhero Sewing Circle (which is, quite frankly, the best name for a blog ever) talks about the new Bionic Woman in From One Fake Superhero To Another:

First of all, everyone’s been throwing around the word “feminist” when it comes to this show. As far as I can tell, the only thing that “feminist” apparently means with regard to television is “female lead,”“muscular woman in trench coat and mullet,” or “girl on girl fight.” There’s nothing feminist about this show, at least not by a relevant (post-modern) definition of the term, for several reasons, which I will get to momentarily, so be patient.

Of course, in other shows getting re-imaging, the Dr Who spinoff Torchwood gets a good look at the character of Gwen Cooper by MaggieCat over at The Hathor Legacy.

The first quality isn’t one that’s usually given to women in procedurals but it’s not impressive that she can do these things because she’s a woman, but because she is unique to this setting. The rest of the team includes a time-traveller, a computer genius, doctors,and support guru- the ability to see the randomness of humanity and make it clear isn’t easy, and being trained to deal with people the way she has been is invaluable. The empathetic role does fall under the purview of the typical female character but Gwen is not trapped in that role by a soft heart, although she has one, it’s a general interest in humanity. When the team investigates something that turns out to have been caused by humans, not aliens, it’s not sympathy that makes her stop Jack from killing the leader but a desire to know why and how they could have done such things. That curiosity is definitely a trait I can get behind.

One cannot at all talk about Dr Who or its spinoffs without talking about the recent death of Verity Lambert. Gene Cowan writes a loving eulogy to the original producer of the show that's launched a thousand scarves, as well as gathering together various media reports about Lambert's life and death:

Lambert died yesterday at the age of 71. She was the epitome of 1960s chic, a feminist simply by her determination to succeed in the male-dominated television industry. Her fierce defense of the iconic Daleks in “Doctor Who” when called on the carpet by the BBC, who wanted to excise them from the program, ensured that the program became a hit and a national treasure

.


I'm going to draw this section to a close with a discussion about a show I know no one has seen yet - Joss Whedon's new series Dollhouse.

Echo (Eliza Dushku) [is] a young woman who is literally everybody’s fantasy. She is one of a group of men and women who can be imprinted with personality packages, including memories, skills, language—even muscle memory—for different assignments. The assignments can be romantic, adventurous, outlandish, uplifting, sexual and/or very illegal. When not imprinted with a personality package, Echo and the others are basically mind-wiped, living like children in a futuristic dorm/lab dubbed the Dollhouse, with no memory of their assignments—or of much else. The show revolves around the childlike Echo’s burgeoning self-awareness, and her desire to know who she was before, a desire that begins to seep into her various imprinted personalities and puts her in danger both in the field and in the closely monitored confines of the Dollhouse.

Yonmei over at Feminist Sci-Fi - The Blog! discusses whether the show will pass the Frank Miller test:

So, the pressing question is: given that the lead female character’s job description includes prostitution, will Dollhouse pass the Frank Miller test?

Even creepier is the fact that these “childlike” characters,mind-wiped and “imprinted” to be anyone’s fantasy, obviously do not have the ability to consent to these jobs, thus turning any sexual assignments into rape.

The comments in that discussion are where it's at, and I strongly recommend going into them and seeing the various reactions to Joss and his work, as well as the implications of what this should could be about.


From little moving pictures to big moving pictures!



The Ghost of Dr Violet Socks at Reclusive Leftist talks about the new Beowulf movie (which, again, I haven't seen) in In Which Dr Socks Asks the Burning Question: Is There Anything Hollywood Won't Pornify?:

The unwritten but unsecret rule in Hollywood, as in the rest of contemporary Western culture, is that if it’s female, it’s gotta be fuckable. Exceptions can be made, such as in the case of outer space creatures (Alien, for example, and while I haven’t seen the sequels I don’t believe the alien ever appears in stilettos and thong to do battle with Sigourney Weaver in a vat of baby oil, though I could be wrong), but these are rare. A powerful female who can’t be reduced to a butt naked fuck-me Barbie doll is a noxious and unnatural thing,too awful to contemplate, like Hillary Clinton or Janet Reno. So instead of Grendel’s Mother the Monster of the Mere, we get Grendel’s Mother the Super-Hot Naked MILF with Huge Breasts and Stiletto Heels That Appear To Be Growing Right Out Of Her Feet.

Femtique takes on similar issues in Resident Evil: Extinction as well as the racial issues at Media Girl:

The first image one sees at the beginning of the film is Alice half naked on the bottom of a shower stall. This is an example of physical and sexual objectification. There is a pattern of horror, suspense, and action movies where at some point in the film a woman or several women are sexually vulnerable and / or physically objectified. It is as ifthese film makers are saying, "We can have a woman with a lead role as long as she looks sexy doing it. We need to make sure we see some skin somewhere."

We are so close to being done I can almost taste it. I mean, don't get me wrong - this Carnival has been the most fun, the most interesting thing that I've done in the Community for a long time, but wow, am I ever dangerously close to being entirely thought-out. I don't want to read another thoughtful piece again for at least another 48 hours. Luckily for y'all and me, I read these all earlier in the week and thus can still share them with you with my full enthusiasm intact!


Things I Forgot To Put In Earlier In The Carnival


Gaming Stuff:

seajules talks about the racist and sexist issues in 7th Sea (a roleplaying game set in mythical Europe with a swashbuckling theme - I love it to pieces, but as with most things I love, I'm highly critical of it) in Bring Your Own Role To Play:

There are more issues, though. Every nation has a ruler or group of rulers. One of those rulers is a woman (an Elizabeth I/King Arthur mash-up). It's explicit in the write-up of several nations that women are second-class citizens. Which, to my mind, begs the question, "Why?" This is a role-playing game with the very public goal of providing an escape into swashbuckling adventures. Why make your female players either deal with the same stupid baggage they have to deal with in real life, or work up their own world building to depart from the sexist stupidity inherent in your creation?

While I'm at it, why make your players of color have to either choose white European analogs for their characters' backgrounds, or have to choose badly-researched mishmashes of non-European countries, or have to make up their own cultures and histories and geography? Yeah, the creators started expanding those aspects of the world before the bizarre rolling system changeover that kinda killed the game dead in the water (and from which it's still struggling to recover), but seriously. Why put these barriers in your completely fabricated world in the first place?

Jeff Fecke at Shakespeare's Sister tell us about a new Collectible Card Game Just For Girls! (guess what, it's pink) in I'll Trade You Two Cadillacs for Your Tom Cruise:

Unlike Magic and Pokemon Cards, the Bella Sara horsies were designed without a "competitive component,"because, according to Danish card designer Gitte Odder Braendgaard,"Girls like something beautiful, something nice to look at."

Yes,that's right: girls hate competition! They want something fluffy and pink and pretty so they can bake pies and comb their hair and look at unicorns!

Now, maybe this is just me speaking as the brother of a girl who would always come out of goal cleats-up, so as to encourage opposing forwards to back off, but it seems to me that there are one or two girls out there who do, in fact, like competition. Until we beat it out of them, of course. Indeed, absent competition, what's the point of this? Magic and Pokemon sold because obsessive game-players would buy packs of cards looking for just the right one. That's not going to happen here, no matter how pretty the cards look. Girls might buy a pack or two, but that's it. It's not just sexist -- it's bad business strategy.

Fandom Interactions:

juxtoppozed wrote about the fandom reactions and hatred of Lana in Smallville in Lana: rodent. temptress. frigid asexual. un-All American Girl Next Door. Let's break it down:

At first I dismissed the niggling, thought it was because my automatic pilot is on “deconstruct” and kept quiet about it for a long time, but it’s really quite the blatant distinction. One I can’t ignore. Out of the *entire* cast, only Kristin Kreuk’s character is likened to an animal.Of all the creative insults people could conjure up—really, really think about this: think about how the sky is the limit insult-wise--it’s a simple rodent that is used most consistently,just for her. Additionally, she has been likened to a temptress,putting good men under her “spell”, others aghast that Clark would ever see anything in her, etc. There have literally been fanfics where he breaks out of her evil spell and goes for Chloe. She has been called a boy-body, her body childlike, its features denoting asexuality.Alternatively she's been described as a secret nymph.

The derogatory dialogue around Lana is too specific, and too specific to her alone, to dismiss it.

Of course, fan interactions aren't just things we can watch or read, but things we can listen to. gamerchick, on top of everything else great and wonderful she is, is also a song writer and singer with a new album coming out in March 2008. Her Beloved Porcupine Music includes downloads to some outstanding songs that relate to fandom and to her favourite Sci-Fi shows. I particularly recommend Rogue, Underneath the Mask (somewhat about Star Wars) and Valley (completely about Firefly) in terms of her sci-fi related songs, although Clear Water and Every Angel are some of her best works ever, so don't hesitate to check them out. All those songs are available for download here. And if you want to listen to the creepiest cover of I Think We're Alone Now, you can find it a bit lower down on that page as well. Trust me, it's well worth the listen.


Comics:

(Check out Planet Karen, which is a totally awesome webcomic by Karen Ellis!)

heavenscalyx wrote A Four Colour Filk called 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover:

The problem is all the writers' fault, she said to me
Superheroes behave so pathologically
You seem to think you're stuck but I must disagree
There must be fifty ways to leave your lover

She said it's really not enough to sit and brood
If you wait too long, you'll be depowered or just screwed
Unless you like to be drawn in the nude
There must be fifty ways to leave your lover
Fifty ways to leave your lover

Last, but certainly not least, I bring you something to make you laugh: So I Have This Theory About Santa...

I was thinking about all the other Santas you see around, doing jobs at malls or bell-ringing. Then I thought about the elves, whose enslavement has never quite made sense to me.

So you have Mr. and Mrs. Claus owning a shop. Occupying this shop are a bunch of juvenile-looking gender-ambiguous slaves.

You see a lot of Santas around, but there are generally much fewer Mrs. Clauses.

And why is it that they feel the need to travel all over the world once a year?

I think it's a hive.

And at that point, gentle readers, I bring this Carnival to a well-deserved close. Thanks to those of you who ploughed through all three parts - it's been a long haul, but I do think every part of this Carnival has been worth it, and I hope you do, too. The Carnival of Feminist Science Fiction and Fantasy is held roughly once a month, with rotating hosts. Next month is the 19th Carnival, hosted by Karen Healey at Girls Read Comics (And They're Pissed, so be sure to get in touch with her if you wish to submit articles for next month.

Also important: Be sure to check out The 5th People of Colour Sci-Fi Carnival at shewhohashope, which includes all sorts of nifty things that passed me by this month. There's an entire great section on Anime and Manga, as well as wuxia (traditional coming of age stories set in Ancient and Medieval China). It is, as it always is, a marvellous set of reads, so do be sure to check it out!