The success of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels and HBO's Game of Thrones series underscores the perennial popularity of medieval history-or rather ""medievalism,"" the idea of the Middle Ages. Medievalist movies, books and video games are lucrative property in the multi-billion-dollar entertainment industry, and Renaissance fairs, reenactment groups and historical martial arts clubs have become prominent in pop culture. Yet actual medieval history-especially medieval military...
The Handmaid's Tale and Philosophy (Popular Culture and Philosophy, #123)
In The Handmaid’s Tale and Philosophy, philosophers give their insights into the blockbuster best-selling novel and record-breaking TV series, The Handmaid’s Tale. The story involves a future breakaway state in New England, beset by environmental disaster and a plummeting birth rate, in which the few remaining fertile women are conscripted to have sex and bear children to the most powerful men, all justified and rationalized by religious fundamentalism. Among the questions raised by this riv...
Looming onto the television horror landscape in October 2011, a new drama known simply as American Horror Story gave its eager viewers a lurid and graphic weekly dose of psychological unease and gruesome violence. Embracing recognized horror conventions of spooky settings, unnerving events and terrifying monsters, series co-creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk employ shocking visual effects and a distinctive anthology format to ensure their show continues to provide a contemporary TV take on th...
Zombies have changed dramatically in the new millennium. They are no longer the comical, shuffling, mindless monsters of George Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968). In works such as 28 Days Later... (2002) and World War Z (2013) they are fast, rabid, and absolutely terrifying in large hordes. In Warm Bodies (2013) and In the Flesh (2013-2015), they are thoughtful, sensitive, and capable of ethics and empathy. Audiences of this modern cinematic monster have changed, too, from teenaged camp a...
The Twilight Zone
by Rod Serling, Charles Beaumont, and Richard Matheson
Between light and shadow, science and superstition, fear and knowledge is a dimension of imagination. An area we call the Twilight Zone. _x000D_ Anne Washburn (Mr Burns) adapts
The next entry in Sterling's pop-culture psychology series features 20 essays and an exclusive interview with Rod Roddenberry, son of 'Star Trek' creator Gene Roddenberry. In a fun and accessible way, Star Trek Psychology delves deep into the psyches of the show's well-known and well-loved characters. It uses academic and scientific theories to analyse and answer such questions as 'Why do Trek's aliens look so human?' and How can the starship's holodeck be used for therapy?' This compilation exa...
The Official Collection Volume 1 Heroes & Guardian Angels (Angel, #1)
by Titan Comics
Each volume brings together a collection of the best of the official Angel Magazine content, celebrating the unforgettable vampire with a soul, his ongoing quest for redemption, and those that helped him along the way. This un-missable volume collects together cast and crew interviews, in-depth features and behind the scenes pictures and secrets, making it an essential read for Angel fans old and new.
Contains the official biograpy of the Crypt Keeper, a history of EC Horror Comics, 105 covers, and other stories, facts, and features relating to Tale from the Crypt.
Stranger Things and Philosophy (Popular Culture and Philosophy, #126)
Stranger Things and Philosophy is an important book, the first of its kind to examine the fantastical world of this award-winning, widely beloved, phenomenal show with a philosophical lens. This is important precisely because the show rests so heavily on a complex and thought-provoking mythos based around secretive government experiments and a parallel dimension that darkly reflects readers' own. The series as a whole has asked more questions than it has delivered answers, and the chapters in t...
Doctor Who is now officially the most popular drama on television, from humble beginnings on 23rd November 1963 and eventual resurrection in 2005, the show has always been a quintessential element of British popular culture. Eleven Doctors, a multitude of companions, and a veritable cornucopia of monsters and villains: Doctor Who has it all. The Brief Guide to Doctor Who puts all the first Eleven Doctors under the microscope with facts, figures and opinions on every Doctor Who story televised. T...
The Science of Witchcraft (The Science of)
by Meg Hafdahl and Kelly Florence
A scientific discovery of witches in fiction-Chilled Adventures of Sabrina, Sleeping Beauty, Wicked and so many more! Kelly Florence and Meg Hafdahl, authors of The Science of Women in Horror and co-hosts of the Horror Rewind podcast called "the best horror film podcast out there" by Film Daddy, present a guide to the history of witchcraft through the stories and characters we all know and love. Reveal the spellbinding science behind the legends and lore surrounding fiction's most iconic witch...
This is the ultimate unofficial guide to Stranger Things! Now updated with all new Season 4 content and Season 5 speculation! If you love 80s references, scary monsters, playing Dungeons and Dragons, riding your bike, hanging with your friends and saving the world, then this show is for you, and this guide is all you need! Now packed with even more fun facts about your favourite episodes, character profiles, new series speculation, awesome pi...
Dark, dangerous and transgressive, Bram Stoker's Dracula is often read as Victorian society's absolute Other-an outsider who troubles and distracts those around him, representative of the fears and anxieties of the age. This book is a study of Dracula's role of absolute Other as it appears on screen, and an investigation of popular culture's continued fascination with vampires. Drawing on vampire films spanning from the early 20th century to today, this book is an examination of how different ge...
Supernatural: The Official Cookbook
by Julie Tremaine and Jessica Torres
Filled with delicious recipes inspired by the hit television series, this cookbook allows fans to experience the world of Supernatural like never before. Whether you're a seasoned chef, beginner cook, or diner food enthusiast like the Winchester Brothers, Supernatural: The Official Cookbook brings a variety both savory and sweet recipes from the show to life. When they aren't keeping humanity safe from all kinds of otherworldly threats, Dean and Sam often take time to eat and devise their next...
In October 1957, Screen Gems made numerous horror movies available to local television stations around the country as part of a package of films called Shock Theater. These movies became a huge sensation with TV viewers, as did the horror hosts who introduced the films and offered insight--often humorous--into the plots, the actors, and the directors. This history of hosted horror walks readers through the best TV horror films, beginning with the 1930s black-and-white classics from Universal Stu...
Do you possess Data-like recall of everything Star Trek: The Next Generation? Put that knowledge to the test with Hero Collector’s TNG Nerd Search Book. The next generation of Hero Collector’s Star Trek Nerd Search book is here, literally. Star Trek Nerd Search: The Next Generation follows the TOS-centric “Quibbles with Tribbles” and it challenges TNG fans to find the made-on-purpose mistakes across its 44 pages. Think of it as a next-level “Where’s Waldo” for all the diehard Star Trek fans thr...
New York Times bestselling author Robb Pearlman focuses on STAR TREK: DISCOVERY’s breakout star, Grudge the cat. Full of cat photos and whimsical illustrations! Sharper than a claw and more stunning than a phaser blast, The Book of Grudge’s Prime Directive features her take on everything from space travel to the proper care and training of an array of alien species, STAR TREK-inspired quotes, and haiku meditations on Grudge’s most favorite things, including napping and people (as long as they’r...
Stargate Atlantis and Beyond: In Their Own Words Volume 2
by Edward Gross
Re-enter the Stargate! The casts and crews of Stargate Atlantis, Universe and Origins, in new and archive interviews, look back at the beloved sci-fi spin-offs. The long-running science-fiction series Stargate SG-1 spawned the spin-offs Stargate Atlantis, Stargate Universe, and Stargate Origins, and those three shows get their moment in the spotlight with Stargate Atlantis And Beyond: In Their Own Words, the follow-up to the popular book, Stargate: In Their Own Words. Once again written by Ed...
The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years:From The Next Generation to J. J. Abrams
by Edward Gross and Mark A Altman
This is the true story behind the making of a television legend. There have been many books written about Star Trek, but never with the unprecedented access, insight and candor of authors Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross. The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years is an incisive, no-holds-barred oral history telling the story of post Original Series Star Trek, told exclusively by the people who were there, in their own words - sharing the inside scoop they've never told before - unveiling the oft...
Behind some of the most popular works of science fiction, fantasy, and horror there are forgotten stories of female creators. It's no secret that genres like science fiction, fantasy, horror, and more, have evolved from niche interest to mainstream staple in the last few decades. However, the countless women who have been instrumental in creating and shaping those genres for the last fifty-plus years have largely gone largely unrecognized -- until now. Pop Culture Pioneers explores and pays resp...
Because of the ongoing popularity of Leslie Stevens' 1960s television masterwork The Outer Limits, as well as later series creations Battlestar Galactica and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century, many casual television fans are still familiar with his name. Despite this, very little writing exists on his earlier Broadway contributions or his seminal film and television production company, Daystar Productions. Steven's personal life also remains relatively unknown. This biography focuses on the origi...