Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Some Fantastic Issue 9
Some Fantastic Issue 9 / Matthew Appleton, 4656 Southland Av., Alexandria VA 22312 / www.somefantastic.us / primarily via PDF, free, but $2@ for printed copies / This excellent genzine is much less idiosyncratic than any of the other sercon publications out there, and in that way fills a necessary niche. You can't find items like this issue's interview with John Scalzi many other places. (It's terrifying to discover that Scalzi was born in 1969 -- but that is my favorite year.) Nor would a zine like The Drink Tank, say, run an article like Megan Baxter's "Portrayal of Gender Identity in Firefly". But uniqueness is a virtue and Some Fantastic does have virtue on its side; its articles avoid the pomposity of phony intellectualism and are often rather sassy. Reviews range from the DVD of Howl's Moving Castle to The Island (underrated, I thought, or maybe I just agree with Esquire about Scarlett Johansson) and reviewers range from Chris Garcia to Steven Silver. Best read: Jessica Darago on River of Gods, a book which might have won the Hugo had it been released in America simultaneously with the UK. Fine writing by fine writers, including people not often seen in fanzines; Some Fantastic is just what it says.
