#Murderbot Media Review

[tribblefarmer]

Murderbot Media Review

How Murderbot feels about Star Trek: The Next Generation

(I’m going to mostly focus on the show, not the movies)

Pros:

The right kind of unrealistic +3

Lots of content +2

Large ensemble cast with recurring side characters +2

adventure/action serial with enough interpersonal drama to be interesting +2

No SecUnits +1

Anti-corporate message +2

The humans are friends with each other (and the alien crew members) +3

I think it would enjoy the practical effects, the CR probably overwhelmingly uses CGI. +1

Humans on a ship show, ART would enjoy watching with it. +5

Cons:

Too many sex scenes (but at least they’re off screen) -1

Bad things keep happening to security personnel -1

Why the fuck are there juvenile humans and civilians on this ship that regularly engages in combat? -1

Too much philosophy -1

The borg creep it out (Alien remnant contamination) -2

Data (hear me out) (will score in separate section)

Pros+Cons score= 15

Characters (by the order listed in the season one credits): 

Jean-luc Picard -  8/10

A good leader with a strong moral backbone who can keep his head in a crisis. He reminds it of Doctor Mensah. 

It likes that he mostly stays safe on the ship and listens to advice from his crew.

His constant philosophizing is a bit off putting. 

William T Riker- 5/10

Oh gross he’s making out with someone again.

Overall it likes him, but doesn’t have a strong opinion.

Geordi LaForge- 7/10

Augmented human

Seems like someone it would feel safe around

It likes that he’s friends with Data without talking down to him.

Tasha Yarr- 9/10

The Chief of Security!

Its favorite character in season one

Projects on to her a little,

It feels so uncomfortable about what happens in The Naked Now though.

It was so pissed off by the end of season one that it quit watching for a whole cycle.

Worf- 8/10

The new Chief of Security

Mixed feelings at first but grows to like him

Wishes the humans would listen to him more

Likes that he gets to be grumpy without consequences

Relates to him as a non-human who has to keep his identity in a human world

It is fairly ambivalent to Klingon culture and their focus on combat and pain, but likes the political drama.

Beverly Crusher- 7/10

Mom energy like Doctor Mensah

It likes and respects her

It finds her drawn out will they/won’t they romance with Picard a bit annoying. Just pick one and stick with it already.

It calls the romance annoying but it’s invested in the drama.

Deanna Troi- 5/10

Bharadwaj energy. Sometimes it feels a bit attacked by her keen observations.

It would not want to encounter someone with empathic powers irl, It’s annoying enough that ART can read its emotions in the feed.

Hates all her romances except what she’s got going on with Riker.

Mixed feelings about her being married to Worf in that one parallel universe.

Data- 2/10

Data makes it deeply uncomfortable.

Reminds it of Miki.

The crew’s human-form pet robot, except technically none of them own him.

It hates that he wants to be human.

It hates that he’s “fully functional.”

Why does Data get to live without a guardian but not it? It’s not jealous.

Whenever the question of whether Data is sentient comes up it gets really angry.

It doesn’t like how the rest of the crew are condescending to him sometimes. They just communicate with him badly.

Data is friendly, social, wants to be human, is a scientist, and experiments with art and literature. Is this what its humans want it to be? Will it ever be enough?

Has an emotion whenever he calls someone his friend or vice versa.

Roots for him in the courtroom episode though

It says it hates Data but pays more attention to him than any other character.

Wesley Crusher- 6/10

Juvenile human

He’s annoying but it also feels protective of him.

It doesn’t like how his character arc ends. It wanted him to graduate and rejoin the crew permanently. 

Q (honorable mention)- 8/10

Threat assessment high

Annoyance assessment max

It does think it’s funny that he puts humanity on trial for being shitty though.

Character score=65

(Murderbot likes drama serials, which are typically character driven, so this is the most heavily weighted section.)

Favorite episodes:

Encounter at Farpoint S1E1 & S1E2 +2

Redemption S4E26 & S5E1 +4

The Next Phase S5E24 +3

Attached S7E8 +2

Least favorite episodes:

The Schizoid Man S2E6 -1

Data’s Day S4E11 -1

In Theory S4E25 -3

Sub Rosa S7E14 -1

Most emotion-inducing episodes:

The Measure of a Man S2E9 -2,+3

The Hunted S3E11 -1,+3

The Offspring S3E16 -2,+3

The Most Toys S3E22 -2,+1

The Quality of Life S6E9 -1,+1

Episode bonus score= 8

Total score= 88/100

I think Murderbot would like Star Trek: The Next Generation a lot, and ART would enjoy watching it with it too. It would enjoy the characters, drama, and action, but be challenged by the way machine intelligences are portrayed in the show because of its own complicated feelings about itself.

If you want me to do a Murderbot review of another piece of media, send me an ask! These are not necessarily my opinions on this piece of media, they are what I imagine Murderbot would think. (I love Data.)

[ghostjelliess]

I made a tiny book review of Artificial Condition (Murderbot Diaries 2) in my notes 👻

[literary-illuminati]

Book Review 65 – System Collapse by Martha Wells

I’ve had this on preorder long enough to have entirely forgotten about it by the time I got the email that it’s available for pickup – but thanks to the magic of an extremely obliging local book store, I was still able to pick up and read the entire thing before it’s technically released. So score one for buying indie, I guess.

The book is set directly after Network Effect – directly directly, to the point where I needed to look up a plot summary to remind myself what the situation was – following our beloved rogue and rampant SecUnit, ART, and their assorted humans as they try to convince an abandoned and alien-contaminated colony’s inhabitants to trust them and accept evacuation with them (and also go along with the colonial charter they’re forging) rather than the indenture offers the corporate mission also on site are offering. Along the way there’s hacking, shuttle chases, gunfights, and plot-critical media curation.

Mostly though it’s about Murderbot having PTSD (on account of all the horrible trauma in Network Effect specifically, and also just its life generally) and absolutely zero idea how to cope. After a false memory/panic attack makes it crash out of nowhere it spends the majority of the book terrified that it’s going to crash or freeze up at some vital moment and get everyone killed, dealing with constant alien-related paranoia, and generally second-guessing itself and feeling useless and depressed. Absolutely no one around it has any idea how to deal with this, and their awkward attempts to be supporting are both endearing and entirely unhelpful.

Anyway, this is a Murderbot novel. Do you like Murderbot? Then you will like this. Do you not know the series? Then by god start with All Systems Red none of this will make any sense at all without context. Do you dislike murderbot? I mean hateread as you like but it is largely more of the same, don’t expect any series-saving twists for you.

It’s kind of absurd to call the series ‘cozy fantasy’ – by the end of the book SecUnit is down several extremities and bleeding out on the floor (as is traditional by this point) – but I feel like the series fills about the same emotional niche for me as like say Becky Chambers does for people with normal tolerances for low-tension sentimentality. The setting is a horrible dystopia and the plots are full of violence and trauma, but all that is more or less set dressing to stories that are actually about SecUnit making connections and deciding at a tortuously slow pace what sort of life it wants to have (usually several hours after commuting itself without thinking) while consistently running into the best possible friends and forming mutually affectionate relationships it absolutely did not want. It’s a story about fun, low-tension character dynamics, corporate kill teams aside.

I am being entirely sincere when I say the fact that SecUnit has no idea what it wants or what its doing is a selling point. In the same way, the fact that there’s never any real ~breakthrough~ or moment of sudden recovery is absolutely key to the book working. The story closes with it being hopeful and doing better but from any remotely reasonable baseline still being pretty far from ‘okay’ (in much the same way, it is utterly vital to the whole series that it has absolutely zero angst over ‘not being human’ or pinochle syndrome and only cares about ‘not being normal’ insofar as its had to work really hard on some automated scripts for walking and idle motions to pass as human while doing infiltration work).

Anyway, speaking of character dynamics – look, I’ve always been the first to roll my eyes when people complain about not being able to keep tracks or large casts. But every time I open one of these books, I realize I have only the vaguest idea who the vast majority of the (human) supporting cast is. Not really an issue with actually following the story, but I’m absolutely certain I’m missing out on some things.

The non-human supporting cast are great though. ART best spaceship, and I cared significantly more about the colony’s central control computer than any of the actual colonists. I’m like 70% sure this is intentional.

Stepping back, it’s interesting how the series’ setting has evolved over time. In All Systems Red the universe around SecUnit was incredibly broadly sketched, generic sci f playing with space opera and cyberpunk tropes it pretty much relied upon readers already being familiar with. This never exactly stops – especially for the aesthetics and technology, the book has a profound lack of interest in the specifics of what ‘projectile weapons’ look like or how spaceships work beyond the convenience of plot – but as the books go on the world definitely gets more specific and also broader. You can mostly blame ART for this, I think – there’s a definite shift in the tone of the setting when you introduce an institution like the University with power like it can throw around, and more generally make active resistance to and subversion to the corporate status quo a plausible and fruitful endeavour.

All this to say that there’s an offhand mention at one point about ‘intracorporate violence’ increasing and the system being increasingly unstable, and I’m curious what Wells is going to do with that going forward. Especially with the book’s final resolution and the status quo it sets up going forward.

Anyway like I said, it’s murderbot. This is the 7th book in the series. If you’re considering reading it you’ll probably love it.

[rocketsagan-blog]

The Murderbot Series - A Review

Or, why you too will love Murderbot.

This post will be covering themes and ideas from All Systems Red to System Collapse - BUT this will not spoiler-ize any particular book, just discuss some of the things and stuff.

About a year ago, I realized a couple of things which I hadn't had words for before (Thanks Internet!)

Emotions are hard to understand (because I'm autistic)

Body stuff is weird and often stupid (because maybe my gender is like a blob blur thing and chronic pain makes body detachment easier)

Communication is a nightmare (because see point one and two)

And that is about when I found the Murderbot Diaries.

Murderbot is not a person. But also, Murderbot is our very personable guide in a universe that is often unforgiving, very corporate, and usually dangerous. From my perspective (as a weird blob thing with feelings that make no sense, surrounded by people trying to tell me things that make event less sense), I kind of get where Murderbot is coming from.

The format of the series is also a treasure - short novellas is the backbone of the plot, which really helps with focus and drive to finish. One giant tome can feel overwhelming, but a whole bunch of 200 page little adventures? Heck yes.

Murderbot is cooler and snarkier than I ever can be, which makes me sad, but I can live with getting this guided tour of Murderbot's universe and perspective, as well as the bits of hope that get to shine through the pervasive future-capitalism is lovely. Maybe hiding in media and avoiding eye contact is totally cool if I can focus on the good in helping others sometimes.

10/10 - nab the first two books on your wait list, and enjoy the ride.

[violetcomplains]

So I finished the book and I really liked it but would have liked to see Three more. More spoilery spoilers under the cut.

I'm a big fan of how Three is just completely uninterested in entertainment media, opting instead to review educational modules and non-fiction. Like it's been about a week of being free and this construct is already bettering itself through learning. I think it'd be really funny Three shows up in later books with like a doctorate and a bunch of new skills and Murderbot has to pretend not to be kinda mad about it.

It was also pretty interesting having it confirmed that different SecUnits use different tech and the BE units have inbuilt projectile weapons as opposed to energy weapons. I wonder what the benefits and drawbacks of the different styles of arm-guns are.

[blessphemy]

How do you think Murderbot chooses media to watch? Do you think MB would pick up a new series if an actor from Sanctuary Moon was in it? Or do you think MB would be weirded out by seeing the actors in a new context or out of costume/character?

i think it filters by genre and stuff according to mood, scans the synopsis, and then just starts watching. it's got a homemade script for filtering things based on metrics such as "grittiness" and "creepy vibes." it's razor-honed the art of the scene-skip and DNF. its tastes are wide-ranging. i don't get the impression that it gives much weight to pubic reviews, production quality, or wider reception by society.

it might try a new series that has an SM actor in it but on the whole it lacks actor loyalty. i think if it saw the actors out of context or out of costume its reaction would be: "whatever." no inclination to interact. that's just some random human it doesn't know. ambivalence.

[dreamsy990]

rewriting my pinned post because this ones kind of old and i think i can be more brief

pronouns page if you want it

hi, im ash. my pronouns are he/they.

im aroace (more specifically aego, if you like microlabels) and even though i call myself enby most the time i think agender is a more accurate description. enbys just easier to type and more fun to say.

for the record i am Very bad at social interaction. so please know if i miss something, misinterpret your tone or your message, or whatever else, or even if i come off more aggressive than normal. im simply not good at this stuff.

im audhd and my psychiatrist thinks i could also have an anxiety disorder but i havent been officially diagnosed

my birthday is homestuck day (april 13) which i found out accidentally when i opened tumblr on my birthday and got bombarded with homestuck. for the record, no i have not read it. i tried and got very bored immediately.

PLEASE GIVE ME DRAWING SUGGESTIONS IM NEVER ANNOYED TO RECIEVE THEM!! theres a list of fandoms at the end for you to reference so you know whether or not i know about what youre asking for though

my normal tags are:

#doodles for my art #stale pepsi water as a completely non fandom related talking tag #random thoughts for media analysis and things i noticed #ash draws cats for warriors designs

otherwise things are tagged by characters (i tag full names (i.e. 'kris dreemur' and not 'kris' or 'kris deltarune') and fandoms (i also tag full media series names and not by acronyms (i.e. 'wings of fire' and not 'wof') and USUALLY not individual works (exceptions would be things like in my kh reviews where i tag the individual game im reviewing) (PLEASE NOTE older posts from me might not follow these tagging conventions)

fandoms i post about/have posted stuff for (but may not be actively part of):

-persona 5

-epic the musical

-danganronpa (mostly sdr2)

-ace attorney

-the adventure zone (mostly balance but a bit of amnesty)

-kingdom hearts

-final fantasy 7

-professor layton

-deltarune

-wings of fire

-zelda (mostly twilight princess and a bit of botw)

-gravity falls

-the hunger games (just the og trilogy)

-yugioh

-the murderbot diaries

-warrior cats

-pokemon (UNFORTUNATELY)

-detroit become human

[butchdarling]

review of every book I read this year btw

The Left Hand of Darkness Ursula K Le Guin

Probably one of my favorite books I've ever read if not my most favorite. The concept of a human ambassador on an alien planet is really good on its own and Le Guin executes it brilliantly. Really compelling world building and such good atmosphere (probably helped by the fact that I read part of it in January during a power outage lol). I also really liked the author's intro on this; it shaped the way I've looked at sci fi media since I've read it.

Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie

I feel like I was missing some of the historical context to really understand a lot of the symbolism in this one, but the prose and storytelling was strong enough on its own to keep me engaged. I think I would enjoy this one more if I read it as part of a class or book club.

Maurice by EM Forster

Demian by Herman Hessie

Could have benefitted from being just a little bit longer and exploring some of its ideas a little more in depth but also I do love a shorter book and everything it does discuss is really well done.

Shout out to gay people escaping the narrative got to be one of my favorite endings 👍

Frankenstein by Mary Shelly

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

Haunted houses and mentally ill women what more do you need. Couldn't put this one down I love the way the horror creeps in until it's suffocating.

I know it's a classic and everyone already knows this but damn what a good book. I knew a lot of the story going in but reading it myself was still a rewarding experience. I like how you can very easily trace all of Frankenstein's choices back to a fundamental fear of and unwillingness to face anything truly bad

Howls Moving Castle by Diana Wynn Jones

Honestly I kinda lost interest in this one about halfway through and idk if it's my fault for not really paying attention of the book's fault for not being interesting. I did like the ending though.

The Iliad

This was part of my Hades (video game) phase. I don't really have much interesting to say about it, but my favorite part was when Hektor visits his wife and she tells him she's scared of him dying and leaving her alone but he tells her it will be okay because it he dies in battle it will be okay because it will bring them both glory. And then he turns to pick up his son who starts crying at the site of Hektor in his armor and helmet. It's not an important scene by any means but the potency of the symbolism stuck with me.

All Systems Red and Artificial Condition by Martha Wells

These were really fun ily forever Murderbot <3. Murderbot really is the heart of these books and is a deeply charming character, at least to me. I feel like it's very easy in sci fi to either make AI a pure evil villain or basically human so it's refreshing to see a more nuanced take. I really want to read the rest of this series at some point.

The Time Machine by HG Wells

I liked the beginning (mostly the explanation of time travel and the fourth dimension) and the end (the Time Traveler going to the end of time was really cool) and I like the stuff in the middle conceptually but I think the execution was kinda boring. Another one I think that would be more interesting when discussed with other people who read it.

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

I feel like I would enjoy this one more if I read it again and took notes. I enjoyed it on a surface level but I feel like I missed a lot of the deeper themes. Loved the interpretation of time as a concept though.

The Traitor Baru Cormorant by Seth Dickinson

Reading this one rn so I haven't finished this one yet but I'm enjoying it so far. I got a little apprehensive when on of the reviews on the back compared it to doom, but so far it hasn't been too dense, if anything something about the style and narration is actually very comprehensive (at least for me). You might be able to make the argument that the presentation of colonialism and imperialism is a bit heavy handed, but I think it works for what it is, especially in the first couple chapters where it helps establish the world.

[pod-together]

Pod-Together Day 5 Reveals 2023

Where No Flan Has Gone Before (Star Trek) written by BookGirlFan, performed by lilolilyrae Summary: These are the reviews of the Starship Bakerprise. Its five year plan - to explore strange new pastries; to seek out new recipes and new dessert combinations. To boldly go where no flan has gone before.

Homing Beacon (Supernatural (TV 2005)) written by ReformedTsundere, performed by Ceewelsh Summary: Ambushed and captured on a recon mission, coalition fighter Dean Winchester is brought to an unknown location by an unknown party and thrown into a cell for unknown reasons. The only thing he is sure of is that he's pissed and that he's not alone.

periphery (no labels) (Tortall - Tamora Pierce) written by kitsunerei88, performed by korechthonia Summary: Lovers, Kel thought, rolling her eyes. At least there was one headache she didn’t have. She was about to tell her friend he could wait when she remembered that she’d get to see Dom while at Steadfast. It would be nice to be able to sit and chat for awhile without kidnapping, flight, and war to distract them.

Or: on falling together, in five scenes.

The Stars Are Still There (Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons)) written by Hagar, performed by klb Summary: “Please don’t be on your own,” Barbara says quietly. “Whatever you do, don’t isolate yourself. There’s very little that hurts us more than that.” “I think I learned that lesson in the Darklands,” Jim says. His voice is heavy, heavy and full of bone-deep exhaustion, of the weariness of the soul.

Death Wish [text, audio] (The Locked Tomb Series | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir) written by zombified_queer, performed by mistbornhero Summary: In another life, Harrowhark Nonagesimus was raised alone. In another life, Gideon did not grow up in the shadow of the Ninth House. In another life, they still find one another.

SWSSS (Star Wars Self-Saving System) [starting text, with pensieve podfics by Flowerparrish,GodofLaundryBaskets, sisi_rambles, bluedreaming, and Litra ] (Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù) created by Opalsong, GodOfLaundryBaskets, Sisi_Rambles, bluedreaming, Litrapod, and Flowerparrish Summary: When anti-fan Shen Yuan dies of outrage at the latest piece of trash he watches, he transmigrates into the world of the Star Wars. Can he fix all the plot holes in his beloved most hated series? Or will he unintentionally make things worse? At least he’ll be able to meet Anakin for real and tell him how special he really is. Oh. And Star Wars creator Shang Qinghua is there too. Surprise!

Satisfaction Brought Her Back [text, audio] (Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types) written by Trudemaethien, performed by stargateinmybasement Summary: The Torrent Command bunkroom has welcomed its newest member with open arms since Commander Cody was last able to spend any quality time there with Rex: Commander Tano. She’s an unquantified variable Cody was not expecting. Quantity and quality aren’t mutually exclusive though, and neither are the clones’ relationships. Rex is glad his two favorite commanders are able to get along so well. And Ahsoka continues to explore and expand her experiences.

Constructing a Biography (The Murderbot Diaries - Martha Wells) written by bluegeekEM, performed by kalakirya Summary: Murderbot finds the process of creating a biography for the upcoming documentary release... complicated.

All Manner of Things (Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types) written by nimblermortal, performed by Drel_Murn Summary: Julian is pretty sure he's not the Count of Lettenhove's daughter, but after he's thrown away his other marriage prospects, his father sends him to forge a political marriage with the Warlord of the North. Julian's just trying to survive, but in the face of true kingship and the Kaer Morhen Fanon Hot Springs, he might just learn to thrive. Accidental Warlord AU in which Jaskier is trans. With, perhaps, a few other changes along the way.

Reconditioning (Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling) written by BinteMuhammad, performed by SerenaEW Summary: Harry had gained an unexpected interest in potions, but that does not stop him from blowing cauldrons. To counter that, Harry throws himself headfirst in studying the theory. Ironically, he just keeps getting worse, and Harry can't figure out why. Umbridge is another obstacle, as is Professor Snape. Or is he?

The Solutions We Reach For [text, audio] (The Murderbot Diaries - Martha Wells) written by estelraca, performed by Koschei_B Summary: It was just supposed to be a boring mission for all of them--do a little archaeology, a little biology. But then they actually found the people they were doing the archaeology on, and, well, things got a lot more complicated.

[lightineventide]

Book Review: "All Systems Red" by Martha Wells

You know how it goes - you're wandering through a bookstore with no real intention to buy anything, and then you see a relatively small, curiously looking tome in the sci-fi section. Surprisingly, it is cheaper than most new books (in this case, the translated version is from the end of last year), even though the only available edition is hardcover. The premise looks interesting enough, so you, having been kinda disappointed from your last few reads, think "Why not?" - and proceed to have the best reading experience in a long time...

Can't relate? Yeah, I also didn't think I would, until yesterday.

My blog isn't a book review one, so that's the first and probably the only such post that I'll make. But I am so excited that I don't want to miss the chance to try to hook others up to try this book! It's just that good!

The series /The Murderbot Diaries/ is about a cyborg-like (part robot, part human) construct designed as a Security Unit (SecUnit). The SecUnit manages to override its governor module, thus enabling it to develop independence, which it primarily uses to watch media. As it spends more time with a series of caring people (both humans and fellow artificial intelligences), it starts developing friendships and emotional connections, which it finds inconvenient. - premise on our beloved Wikipedia. I think it sums up well a lot of what initially made me curious about the book.

To put it simply, the last few books I've read were more or less disappointing, so I didn't have much expectations for this one, too. However, Murderbot became easily one my favourite book characters of all time after just a few pages! Why? I related a lot to its hesitation to open up to humans 😄 and frustration with the corporate world, while also absolutely loving his dry humor. I strongly recommend this book to all readers, not just sci-fi lovers - it is a lighter read than most from the genre, while still being able to really hook you in and keep you on the edge till the end. The plot moves quickly, while always feeling fleshed-out just the right amount, in my opinion. It's very action-packed, which contributes to the not very taxing but fun experience. I also found the ending to be really satisfying, since it doesn't leave you feeling required to read the next books in the series - it can be a one-off read (bonus: the last twist was unexpected to me and I love how it ties with the book's themes - I think it makes the story unique, but I'll add that under a "Spoilers" cut, just in case). And that's something I've come to really appreciate in newer books. 💙

1000/10 //Maybe the biggest sci-fi nerds won't find this book so endearing, but for everyone else, you most probably won't do wrong by picking it up! It's really entertaining!

Ok, now notes with spoilers:

I feel like Murderbot's decision in the end to leave the crew was the perfect one for its character. As someone who related to it mainly because his unwillingness to open up to people, I was a little disappointed when all signs up until that moment pointed to the usual cheesy happy ending. I think the real one wrapped up this part of the explored themes especially well, unlike in a lot of popular media today. It makes Murderbot's struggles feel real, as such things for sure don't just *magically* disappear. So, many bonus points for that!

[canonicallypolyamrecs]

welcome!

this blog is a side project built from my own frustration at how hard it is to find creative media with canon polyamorous relationships represented. i wanted to create a repository of what i find and consume. this pinned post will serve as a rec list, with links to my reviews as i complete them.

books

Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao | F/M/M

A Novel Arrangement by Arden Powell | F/M/M | review complete!

The Companion by E. E. Ottoman | T4T(4T) F/F/M | review complete!

True Love Bites by Joy Demorra | F/M/M | review complete!

Silver Under Nightfall by Rin Chupeco | NB/F/M

Consort of Fire by Kit Rocha | F/F/M | review complete!

Imperial Radch series by Ann Leckie | polycule of 4 but it's complicated

Books of the Raksura by Martha Wells | F/M/M V + society with normalized polyamory

Honorable Mention: The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells | several background polyamorous relationship + their families

movies & TV

Professor Marston & the Wonder Women | M/F/F (historical fiction based on Wonder Woman creator/s)

The Expanse | polycule of 6

Black Sails | two V's F/F&M and M/M/F

video games

Hades | F/M/M

When the Night Comes | M/M/player's gender (x2)

Honorable Mention: Boyfriend Dungeon | polyamorous romance options that are acknowledged/supported within game and implied some romance options interact with each other as well.

graphic novels & comics

Muted (webtoon) by Miranda Mundt | F/F/F | review complete!

Love Me to Death by Toonimated | F/M/M | s1 review complete!

podcasts

The Penumbra Pod: Second Citadel | M/M/F

to read/watch/play list

about the reviewer: i'm a 28, white, bi, nonbinary from the u.s. my pronouns are they/them and you can call me A. i have a mfa in creative writing, which might peak through in how i review things. my favorite genres are science fiction, fantasy, romance, and mystery which will bias my reading habits. [credit for profile pic] you may find me writing romance under the penname Willow B. Sullivan.

faq

q: can i send a rec?

a: yes, please! if there are major trigger warnings i'd appreciate them, but they aren't a requirement. my only ask is please don't send anything where pregnancy or incest are a large part of the narrative.

q: can i submit a review?

a: not at the moment, but i may reconsider as i get this more put together.

q: will you cover x media which has a really popular ot3/ot4/etc.?

a: no, though i may do a special edition posts on some of my favorites. probably the biggest debate was Leverage/Leverage: Redemption but sadly at present i don't feel i can count among "canon" (though i will be popping the biggest bottles if it ever does become fully canon). i may rethink the "word of god" type canon later, but for now, that's where i land.

[montdargent]

mid-year book tag

tagged by @pinkasrenzo

1. Best Book You’ve Read So Far in 2024? going postal, by terry pratchett. another discworld book, no one is surprised 🐢🐘🥏

2. Best Sequel You’ve Read So Far in 2024? technically going postal is a sequel. besides that, the dreaming vol. 4: waking hours, by willow wilson and nick robles

3. New Release You Haven’t Read Yet, But Want To? the chalice of the gods, by rick riordan because my percy jackson love has been revived

4. Most Anticipated Release For Second Half of 2024? heavenly tyrant, by xiran jay xhao (i would have said alecto the ninth but it doesn't have a release date yet! tamsyn!! i desperately need news)

5. Biggest Disappointment? i haven't been disappointed much by any books. but i guess i was hoping to like the first two installments of the dead boy detectives series more than i did

6. Biggest Surprise? piranesi, by susanna clarke. from the (very) little i knew of it i thought it would be more abstract and confusing and although it was that at times, i got really into it after the first 1/4 of the book and ended up absolutely loving it!

7. Favorite New Author? ryoko kui. dungeon meshi was the first manga i ever read, i devoured (!) the series in two weeks and it took over my life. she changed the way i look at so many things, especially certain fantasy tropes and characters and her art style tickles my brain so goood

8. Newest Favorite Character? murderbot from the murderbot diaries series by martha wells. it's so funny and tragic and i would love to sit and watch trashy media with it any day

9. Newest Fictional Crush? heather after from waking hours i just need one chance please! ❤❤❤

💕Best Ship💕 disaster bisexual triad wu zetian/li shimin/gao yizhi from iron widow. more heroines should get two boyfriends who are also boyfriends with each other i think. for the culture

10. Book That Made You Cry? i don't think i cried but i came close at many points in the dungeon meshi series, especially the end

11. Book That Made You Happy? dungeon meshi world guide: the adventurer's bible, by ryoko kui. let's bring back world compendiums for fantasy books i love that shit so much! show me all the character lore and worldbuilding and "useless" deatails you could't fit into the main story!

12. Favorite Book Adaptation You Saw This Year? for adaptations of books i have actually read, dungeon meshi (shocker). otherwise, interview with the vampire (s2 was so good it rewired my brain)

13. Favorite Review You’ve Written This Year? i don't write reviews but i did gush extensively about dungeon meshi on a discord server

14. Most Beautiful Cover? dungeon meshi: volume 11, by ryoko kui but honestly the all the covers for the series are works of art

15. What Books Do You Need To Read By The End of The Year? i still have 7 on my list for the reading challenge i'm doing. but i also intend to finally finish the discworld series

[imitationgame77]

Modes of Media etc (and Murderbot)

(This is not a meta. Just a kind of reflection on my addiction to the muderbot series.)

I enjoy reading, listening, and watching, but usually prefer reading to other ways of consuming (not sure it is the right word) stories. That is mainly because it is the most self-paced and I can pause anytime I want to savour it, or get puzzled over, go back a few pages to check, and so on. It also gives me the freedom to use my mental imagery - how it looks like, how it sounds like, how it smells like, and even how it feels like. If I watch a dramatised version afterwords, I can enjoy that, too. Even though they often have to edit them to make it shorter, less complex, etc., but it can give the images that I may have failed to create myself. Like, I could not have created that vast and beautiful cinematography of the Lord of the Rings.

I started listening to audiobooks about 2 years ago. I had had listened to some before that, but I started a subscription following my friend's recommendation. At first, I found it slightly stressful, because while it was handy to enjoy 'reading' while commuting to work, I often got distracted by outside stimuli. I also found that I needed to like the narrations as well as the story itself. With nonfiction, I find female (or higher pitched) voice easier to listen to, as it is less likely to be drowned out by train noises. But for fictions, I found a woman doing a man's voice by rather forcefully deepening the voice a teency bit distracting. I saw reviews on Audible that many people find men doing a woman's voice fake and distracting, but I seem ok with that so far. Maybe watching all these Monty Python and other British comedies where men pretending to be (very fake) women has immunised me. I don't know.

Anyway. I first encountered The Murderbot Diaries on Audible on my friend's recommendation. I was hesitant at first, because, I had watched some Sci-Fi dramas like Star Trek, but I had not read many sicence fiction or non-fiction, and was not sure my imagery skills were up to understanding it. Also, without any prior information, the word "Murderbot" gave me an impression of a horror-sci-fi. Like, a friendly domestic robot going on sudden murder-rampage type. So, I looked up some brief introduction of All Systems Red, and decided it to give it a try. With Audible subscription fee at £7.99 per month, I generally went for longer titles than 3 hours and 17 minutes (All Systems Red, by Kevin R. Free). (I am that shallow, I know. At primary school in Japan when we were allowed to take out 3 books max during summer holiday, I used to select them by their thickness...) Fortunately, the first 3 novellas were free to subscribers!

It was confusing at first. To a novice Sci-Fi reader, concepts like HubSystem, SecSystem, terraforming, feed communication, etc were a lot to take in. Also, there were lots of characters whose names were unfamiliar to me (maybe easy enough to native English speakers fluent in fantasy and sci-fi?), and it was impossible to keep track of who was who (except Dr Mensah and perhaps Gurathin), when I was just helplessly listening to the audiobook.

Nevertheless, I got hooked quite quickly. Murderbot is a very relatable character, and fortunately, the story did not start with its grim history - it started with its journey to learn to live with autonomy and to interact with people around it as a person, instead of a robot or an appliance. I loved its snarky and self-deprecating, but actually caring and vulnerable character.

I also liked the narration a lot. Kevin R. Free narrates with various voices and acting, but never overacting. He still leaves enough to our imaginations. At least that is how I feel. But since it was still difficult to understand with audio only, I got a Kindle version as well. Seeing all the unfamiliar names and terms spelt out was immensely helpful. But as I moved onto later books, I started having more and more of emotions. And wanted to revisit here and there to savour again, as well as analyse my reactions. So I ended up buying hardback editions as well. I don't think I have ever bought 3 versions of a book. And it was rather expensive, too. I don't have subscriptions to Apple TV, but I have the feeling that I may start that once Murderbot becomes available...

[cmdrburton]

✨ Fic Writing Review 2023 ✨

thank you for tagging me, @incomt65 😊

Words and Fics

The Murderbot Diaries

Two drabbles and two double drabbles for the All Systems Love 2023 event! Featuring the Barish-Estranza SecUnits (but mostly Three not being okay): taking count (G, 100w), the view (G, 100w), battery dream (G, 200w), and real enough (M, 200w)

That one fic I wrote about an OC from the Corporation Rim. I had fun with the worldbuilding: Lecter's Great Adventure (G, 13,050w)

Two anon MB/ART fics set in a shared alternate universe (E)

The Transformers (IDW Generation One)

An expansion of Optimus' dream in exRiD #51: A Dream to Forget (Optimus Prime/Starscream, E, 1,786w)

Rodimus making bad decisions because he's sad and jealous: Table Scraps (Drift/Rodimus Prime, E, 3,407w)

Starscream dealing poorly with Rodimus as the Arisen, written for the Transformers Rare Pairing Fest 2023: Uneasy (Rodimus Prime/Starscream, M, 4,144w)

An anon fill for the Maccadam's Back Room kinkmeme (Deadlock/Ratchet, E)

Total word count: 32,786

Top Fics by Kudos

The ratchlock kinkmeme fill, which tops by both kudos and bookmarks. I see you 😏

Fandom Fic Events 2023

All Systems Love 2023 (The Murderbot Diaries)

TF Rare Pairing Fest 2023 (Transformers - All Media Types)

Upcoming in 2024

Looking at my WIPs and... not sure how much of this will see light, but there's at least three fics in there in various stages of completion. All IDW1 Transformers, and all pairings I've done before, because I'm predictable that way. Currently noodling away on a drift/rodimus syphoning fic because the concept's squatting on my brain like a malevolent little insect and I need to show it to the world.

Not tagging anybody, but if you'd like to please do! I'd like to see what you've written during the year :3 rules copied below!

Rules: Feel free to show whatever stats you have. Only want to show Ao3 stats? Rock on. Want to include some quantitative info instead of stats? Please do this. Want to change how yours is presented? Absolutely do that. Would rather eat glass than do this? Please don’t eat glass, just keep on scrolling.

[okayto]

Mini-Review: The Disastrous Life of Saiki K

Kusuo Saiki is a psychic. And a telepath. And a telekinetic. You know what, just assume that any psychic power you've ever heard of is available to him. But apart from that, he's a regular grumpy sixteen-year-old boy who just wants to be left alone to enjoy his coffee jelly. Unfortunately for him, that's not likely to happen – with the school's hottest girl crushing on him, friends who either can see ghosts, think they're superpowered, or are too dumb to live, and parents who can't quite keep it together, Saiki's life is anything but calm as he finds himself using his powers to keep the world functioning.

The first time I watched Saiki K was several years ago, before I was even logging all my viewing via these reviews. I was just getting back into anime, after a combination of first college busyness and then a soul-sucking job saw the time and energy I had for fun things dwindle. After a couple years at a new job, I realized that I was doing a lot of work that left one of my monitors open, and that no one was nearby to care, so I pulled up Netflix and was immediately distracted by a pink-haired cartoon boy.

Saiki is a comedic mashup of school and shounen tropes, and keeps its tongue firmly in cheek as it follows Kusuo Saiki (Saiki being the family name and what most characters call him, as is normal in Japanese culture) as he deadpans and snarks his way through life, just trying to get through high school without getting discovered for the immensely-powerful psychic he is. Unfortunately, a bunch of annoyances (his view)/friends (their view) hang around and hijinks ensue.

This is a series that just wants to be silly. The first episode helpfully explains not just that Saiki is super powerful, but that he has affected the world so things like brightly-colored anime hair are normal (so no one questions his naturally-pink hair), among other things. It's explicitly "anime logic works because we want it to," which was fourth-wall-breakingly hilarious the first time I encountered it. (It's still funny, 3 or 4 watches later.)

Saiki is, of course, the star of the show, reluctant as he may be. His deus ex machina powers mean he can fix pretty much anything, but his desire to hide said powers, as well as a (however-reluctant-he-is-to-admit-it) kind personality lead to involvement in everything from deadly stage magic to Santa Claus impersonation to saving island castaways.

And really, all the guy wants to do is eat coffee jelly, and occasionally watch media or play a game without getting telepathically spoiled for it.

His dry, sarcastically deadpan voice drives the show as he narrates straight to the audience. You often can't tell whether he's speaking to himself/the audience, or to another character, putting him in the position of a narrator unwillingly drawn into the story itself. (Fun game: try and spot how many times Saiki visibly uses his actual voice, based on whether you see his mouth move when he speaks. It's not often!)

(Incidentally, other people on this site have brought up the personality similarities between Saiki and Murderbot of the Murderbot Diaries books. Both protagonists would like to be left alone to their hobbies, both are unwillingly befriended and acquire a group of people they care about and also have to keep rescuing. If you like Murderbot, Saiki is personality-wise a very similar mood.)

The extended cast really makes the series. While there are episodes that focus on just Saiki (Saiki and multiple quests to obtain coffee jelly, Saiki vs. cockroach in his house, etc.), most involve his family (odd), preexisting friends (rock-brained Nendo, fantasy LARPer Kaido), and classmates that attach themselves to their expanding group through the series.

My favorite was a character who showed up in season 2, Mikoto Aiura. She's a fortune-teller and while she doesn't have Saiki's prodigious talents, she could potentially be a threat...or an ally. Truly, one of the most fun things through the series is not just seeing Saiki's reluctance to calling his friends friends starting to wear down, but the two other characters with specialized powers themselves. They give Saiki a way of being known that he doesn't usually get outside his family, and it's fun to see him realize he can enlist others to help on occasion.

Verdict

English Dub? Yes for the first season, and the fourth (6-episode) season, although the latter had a different cast. Both casts are fine, and I can't be entirely sure that my preference for the first season's cast isn't mainly due to the fact that I had more exposure to them, but Jerry Jewell's Saiki is so dry and sarcastic it wins me over. The second dub cast was good in its own right, and the cast did an excellent matching voices. There are several in the second dub that I prefer--Saiki's rock-headed friend Nendo sounded more like a person and less like a cartoon the second go-round, and several female characters were less high-pitched in ways I preferred.

So really: the dubs are great. It's sad that the entire series isn't dubbed, especially because the rapid-fire snark means subtitles sometimes go very quickly.

Visuals: Meh. It's not bad, but no one is going to watch this for the art, and it's often pretty simple.

Worth watching? Oh HECK yes. It's incredibly fun--I have watched this at least three or four times. It's silly and comedic, perfect when you want something lighthearted. Each normal-length episode is also broken up into five minisodes, so it's perfect for when you won't be watching for a long time, or if you get interrupted frequently.

Important to note that despite there being four "seasons," only the first two are normal-length (24 episodes each). The third are two extended-length specials, while the fourth consists of 6 episodes.

Where to watch (USA, as of June 2023): Funimation (season 1 only; sub & dub), Netflix (all), Tubi TV (season 1 only; sub), BR (season 1 only; sub & dub)

Click my “reviews” tag below or search “mini review” on my blog to find more!

[pythonmelon]

A short list of media I currently enjoy and recommend

-The Empty Bowl- A meditative cereal news and review podcast that is very good for chilling out and easy but semi-informative listening, helps me relax or fall asleep while also sparking my Food Brain a lot

-Just King Things- A podcast dedicated to reading, contextualizing, and reviewing Stephen King books in publication order. If you're a King fan its both academically educational and generally just really fun and funny, it's gotten me to evaluate King works in different ways and read/reread more King stuff after a long time

-Homestuck Made this World- I am not caught up on this one yet but it's a podcast from the same people who make Just King Things, a completed work reviewing and contextualizing all of Homestuck from the perspective of a new reader and someone who was there from the start.

-The Murderbot Diaries- A series of novellas and novels by Martha Wells told from the perspective of an anxiety-riddled security unit in a far-flung space faring future dealing with providing security to humans and their issues, as well as murderous political and corporate entities.

-Be Kind, My Neighbor- A comic by Yugo Limbo (of Limbolane games, the people behind Smile for Me and the upcoming Great God Grove) about love, murder, being a weirdo in society, evil cults, and body dysmorphia

-Disasterpiece Publishing House- A podcast about reading and taking in some of the best and worst internet literature and other pieces of media, it often gets raunchy and bizarre but has so, so much personality and fun.