New York Magazine | unfridged

Jan 20 2017

Weekend Reading List: New year, new list, new hope

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2016 had to get one last jab in, taking away our beloved Carrie Fisher. The Mary Sue pays tribute. The Cut gives us fifteen of her best quotes. The Rolling Stone looks back on how she championed mental health issues. We all miss her.
You need to listen to 1999 David Bowie talk about the potential of the internet. [io9]
I’ll be honest, I only discovered Sevdaliza’s music by going down the rabbit hole of YouTube recommended videos. But I’m so glad she’s in my life now, with her videos that spin dark fairytales out of hellbeast femmes fatales and gynoid royalty fantasies.
“Sex magic: how to cast spells with your orgasms.” [Broadly]
Afropunk’s compiled a mindblowing list of 10 black cosplayers who killed it last year.
Go look at Amber Thomas’s amazing interactive breakdown of gender equality in the dialogue of 2016’s highest grossing films.
I am very excited about XX, the women-created horror film anthology. Annie Clark (aka St Vincent) is just one of the hugely talented directors contributing. [Little White Lies]
On a similar note, Agnieszka Smoczynska’s The Lure, a film about man-eating, singing mermaids, is out soon. It looks like good fun. [IndieWire]
“We are in the era of the black geek.” [Afropunk]
io9 has a nice piece of writing on superheroes, real life heroes, and teaching children bravery.
Comic Katie Goodman’s song on Alien and inspirational women is very funny.
“The speculative dread of Black Mirror.” [The New Yorker]
The complex interplay between gender and AI is a topic that’s gaining ever-increasing popularity (and relevance) as we continue pushing the capabilities of chatbots, androids, and digital assistants. The New Yorker has an excellent piece on the perils of writing gender into chatbots, and a recent episode of Bitch magazine’s podcast charts the gynoid from Metropolis to Westworld, and beyond.
I CANNOT believe that I forgot to mention that I spoke to Becky Chambers about her novel, The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, for the Mary Sue! It was a great experience, and you can read the interview here.

Tagged Afropunk, Agnieszka Smoczynska, Alien, Amber Thomas, Annie Clark, Becky Chambers, Bitch, Bitch magazine, Bitch Media, Black Mirror, Broadly, Carrie Fisher, David Bowie, Gizmodo, IndieWire, io9, Katie Goodman, Little White Lies, Metropolis, New York Magazine, Princess Leia, Sevdaliza, St Vincent, The Cut, The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet, The Lure, The Mary Sue, The New Yorker, Vice, Westworld, XX

Oct 31 2015

Weekend Reading List: Happy halloween!

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Everybody’s talking about horror films! I feel like a started a trend, yaknow?
- Autostraddle has a list of imaginary lesbian horror films.
- And here’s a pretty comprehensive guide to Canadian horror cinema! Woo Ginger Snaps! [Exclaim]
- Bitch has a great piece on home invasion movies and their relationship to domestic violence, and talks about Unfridged favourite Wait Until Dark.
Turning to decidedly less frightening cinema, here’s a beautiful short documentary on the films of Hayao Miyazaki and what it is that makes them so special. [Nerdist]
And here are recipes for the delicious food in Miyazaki movies! [Buzzfeed]
The Mary Sue revisits Back to the Future II, and discusses the terrible treatment of the character of Jennifer.
An interview with Steven Universe‘s Rebecca Sugar! She talks about music, kind humour, and her brother Steven. [The Mary Sue]
Palestinian Harry Potter fan Mia Oudeh wrote an open letter to JK Rowling about the author’s recent support of Israel, where she expresses her disappointment and compares Palestinian struggle to the battle of Hogwarts.
Every Halloween this needs to be said: Don’t wear racist ass costumes. Look, CollegeHumor even has a handy flowchart for you.
Hey Kotaku reviewed Sex Criminals! I’ll admit to not reading the whole thing (spoilers), but I’m on board with anyone talking about Sex Criminals.
Buzzfeed is withdrawing from the South by Southwest Interactive festival due to the decision to cancel to panels on harassment in gaming, giving the following statement:“We will feel compelled to withdraw … if the conference can’t find a way to do what those other targets of harassment do every day — to carry on important conversations in the face of harassment.” [New York Magazine]

Tagged Autostraddle, Back to the Future II, Bitch, Bitch magazine, Bitch Media, Buzzfeed, CollegeHumor, Exclaim, Ginger Snaps, Harry Potter, Hayao Miyazaki, JK Rowling, Kotaku, Mia Oudeh, Nerdist, New York Magazine, Rebecca Sugar, Sex Criminals, South By Southwest, Steven Universe, Studio Ghibli, The Mary Sue, Wait Until Dark

Oct 26 2014

Weekend Reading List: Acceptable princesses and electrical powers

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All sorts of great stuff from Bitch magazine! First up, a profile of the Lady Planeswalkers Society, a woman-centric Magic: The Gathering league based in Washington. And then, a really fascinating exploration of MMOs, RPGs, and erotic role players.
The Mary Sue is really into Shanoa, the protagonist from Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, and for good reason.
ALSO WE ARE GETTING A LIVE ACTION STATIC SHOCK SERIES AND MY CHILDHOOD IS COMING BACK TO LIFE. [The Mary Sue]
Programmer Brie Code spoke at Toronto’s Gamercamp festival recently, trying to answer a very loaded question—”what do women want?”—and coming up with some good points along the way. [Gamesindustry.biz]
Boing boing has a very interesting defence of the Disney princess. Your mileage may vary (and when it comes to Disney, mine certainly does) but since the monolithic children’s brand isn’t going anywhere, further discussion seems to be in order.

And more Gamergate coverage:

Felicia Day spoke about the fear this situation has caused her, and the loss of the kinship she used to feel with other gamers. It’s a beautiful, mild piece of writing. Regardless, according to the Daily Dot, it took very little time for her to be doxxed. I’m so sorry you have to deal with this Felicia. I’m so sorry anyone has to deal with this.
“It’s not censorship to ignore you.” [New York Magazine]
“A summary of the Gamergate movement that we will immediately change if any of its members find any details objectionable.” [Clickhole]
“Gamergate goons can scream all they want, but they can’t stop progress.” [Wired]

Top image: ~~The only reasonable response to Gamergate~~ Wonder Woman #174, Phil Jimenez

Tagged #GamerGate, Bitch, Boing Boing, Brie Code, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, Clickhole, Daily Dot, Disney, Felicia Day, Gamercamp, Gamesindustry.biz, Lady Planeswalkers Society, Magic: The Gathering, New York Magazine, Phil Jimenez, Shanoa, Static Shock, The Mary Sue, Wired

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Tag Archives: New York Magazine

Weekend Reading List: New year, new list, new hope

Weekend Reading List: Happy halloween!

Weekend Reading List: Acceptable princesses and electrical powers