Fangs for the Fantasy Podcast 2015, Episode 3

It's time for episode 3 of the Fangs for the Fantasy podcast! We continue our critical analysis of the genre in all it's many forms, all through our social justice lens

You can join us here and you can listen live on our youtube channel, here, or in our sidebar. All will also carry a recording after the show is finished. As ever all our previous podcasts can be found in the archive

This week we look at the season finale of Lost Girl, American Horror Story, The Librarians (on which Renee is totally wrong), Resurrection. We also discuss The Returned (US) and the terrible appropriation in Grimm, Sleepy Hollow and the terribleness of Katrina.

We also discuss lack of LGBT characters in our current shows and the cancellation of In the Flesh

The podcast begins at 7:00pm EST (technology willing)






Like all  the Fangs for the Fantasy podcasts (archives here) we read a book and discuss it on the show. 

19th January - 26th January: Unbound by Jim C Hines

26th January - 2nd February: A Lady Integrity by Shelly Adina

2nd February - 9th February: The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr

9th February - 16th February: Fury’s Kiss by Karen Chance

16th February - 23rd February: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop
23rd February - 2nd March: Dark Debt by Chloe Neil

12 Monkeys, Season One, Episode Two: Mentally Divergent

This episode begins in 2043, with Jones listening to a recording of Cassandra's, in which she talks about the plague starting with Leeland and when she gets to the part about the true architects, Cassandra brings up the army of the 12 Monkeys.  Jones finds the image Jennifer drew in a mental institution back in 2015  of a monkey and decides to send Cole and Ramse to investigate.

In 2043, Ramse and Cole make their way through a parking lot at night.  Cole heads in against Ramse's warning about a potential ambush.  The two men make their way through a building by flashlight and enter room 249 to find a drawing on the room.  Ramse feels that this doesn't make any sense because the recording says that Leeland is responsible. Ramse questions if Leeland is in fact dead. Cole confirms Leeland's death and adds that the recording said that the plague started with Leeland. Ramse questions if Cole wants to return to the past because Jones originally said that "this is one and done," but Cole now believes that Jones was wrong.  After going through files, Cole notes that the file on 248 is missing and that it's the only one that's gone. ( it's worth noting that the director made a mistake here, unless there is some meaning here I am missing. The men entered room 249 but are talking about room 248.) Suddenly, Ramse and Cole are attacked but manage to get the upperhand on their opponents quickly. 

Cole and Ramse enter return to the science lab and Ramse tells Cole that he is not the same man since he got back. Cole denies that this is the case but Ramse responds that he understands that Cole is sad since he's been back, adding that anyone would be.  Ramse brings up that Cole had access to food, sights and yes, the girl but Cole assures him that it's not like that. Ramse reminds Cole that he's not from there but here. They then discuss whether or not Cole is going to see Cassandra again.

It's now 2015 in Washington D.C., and Cassandra calls Aaron for help.  When Aaron arrives, Cassandra thanks him for coming and admits that she didn't have anyone else to call, as he drives through the city.  Cassandra directs Aaron to take her to her grandparents old store because she wants to lay low for a little while.  It's not long before a disagreement happens between them about Cole.  When Aaron says that he wants to help, Cassandra suggests that he question why there were no charges laid against her, why she  was released to the security firm to begin with, and particularly why they never made it the police station.

In the future, Jones says that the symbol (read: 12 monkey symbol) appeared in all of the major cities, adding that there was a design to ensure that the virus hit with maximum impact.  Cole questions if the guiding hand was the army of the 12 monkeys.  Jones says it's not clear yet who the 12 monkeys were and that they could have been a terrorist organization, or even religious fanatics. Cole wonders if he should go to 1987 to see Leeland but Jones says that they don't yet have enough power to send him that far back. Instead, pointing to a picture of Jennifer, Jones says that they are sending him back to 2015 to track her down because she is somehow connected to the 12 monkeys.  Cole suggests that Cassandra would be great at helping him get inside the institution but Jones does not want Cassandra to become Cole's accomplice.  Cole reminds Jones that she wasn't there and Jones points out that Cole could have corrupted Cassandra's timeline and prevented her from leaving the message which would have stopped their entire investigation. Jones suggests that Cole is risking everything by playing with time, adding that she has learned enough about time to fear it.

Cole is given an injection and Ramse tells Cole that he wants him to do a shot, get laid and find some vintage. Cole jokes about sleeping with Ramse's mother.  Cole lies down in the travel machine and is told that he is being sent to Philadelphia in 2015.  Cole questions if Jones has the right time and location because she was off the last time by weeks but Jones assures him that she has it all handled.

In the past, Cole finds himself next a tank. Cole is suddenly surrounded by soldiers because instead of Philadelphia in 2015, Jones has sent him to North Korea in 2006.  Talk about a bad landing spot. Cole is led away by the soldiers and taken to an interrogation room, screaming that he cannot understand the soldiers.

In the 2043 the alarms go off and Jones realises that Cole is in the wrong place.  The scientists work hard to track the signal with the intention to sling shot Cole to where he needs to be.  In 2006, a General takes a note from Cole's pocket and says that Cole is American, which is good for him.  In 2043, Ramse is starting to freak out and Jones reminds Ramse that he is only there because Cole wants him to be.  Jones believes that it is Cole's destiny to stop the plague from ever happening. Jones iniaties the sling shot, just as the North Koreans start to beat on Cole.

Cole is then shifted to J.D. Peoples Mental Hospital in 2015. Cole finds himself being escorted into the hospital after assaulting. Dr. Sandman tries to get some basic information from Cole and tells him that he is likely suffering from PTSD.  Cole is then told he is going to be hospitalized for 24 hours.

Cassandra is still frantically trying to find information on the army of the 12 monkeys from Jeremy.  Cassandra turns to the television, when it is reported that Goines has died of a massive heart attack.  This of course is not how Goines died. Frustrated, Cassandra grabs her things and leaves.

At the hospital, as a patient Cole has freedom of movement. Jennifer passes by him to take her medicine and though she approaches him, Cole has yet no idea that Jennifer is the person he is looking for. Cole, a little bit entranced, follows Jennifer until he connects her last name with Leeland.  Steps away from the nurses station, Jennifer coughs up her medicine and talks to Cole about her love of primary numbers. Cole asks about the number 12 and Jennifer says that 12 in not a primary and that Cole is not as smart as her.  Cole as Jennifer to teach him and she readily agrees, asking him what he wants to learn. Cole asks about the army of the 12 monkeys and what she knows.  When Jennifer laughs, Cole pushes her into her room and ironically against the wall on which she drew a monkey.  Jennifer says that she cannot talk about the monkeys because it's against doctors orders.  When Cole gets insistent, Jennifer explains that there are a dozen agents in her father's kingdom who have eyes like Cole's.  Jennifer claims that she set these agents free and got them all shot.  Jennifer gets over excited, causing Cole to have to cover her mouth and warn that he will hurt her if he has to.  Jennifer then calmly says that the 12 monkeys are her cover band.  Jennifer pushes the panic button and when the orderlies burst in, Jennifer tells them that Cole tried to kill her.

Unbound (Magic Ex Libris #3) by Jim C Hines

Isaac is in a difficult place – his magic bound by Gutenberg, he has suffered a terrible loss. Without his magic he is helpless but he is determined to try and find Jeneta, especially as the Porters are far more distracted by the Followers of Bi Sheng who have exposed them – and magic – to the world.

Meridiana, an ancient threat that has been long imprisoned, is using Jeneta to her own ends – the conquest and domination of the whole world with the aid of her Ghost Army. It’s a terrible threat to face with not even a scrap of power left to him

I have always loved this world on many levels. Of course, there’s the sheer imagination of it – the concept of magic drawn from books, the many creatures of mythology that both exist in the world and have also been drawn from books to create a near infinite pantheon from which to draw. I love the concept. I also really love the geeky shout outs – this series is a great big revel in genre fiction, full of references to books that so many readers will know and love. It’s an homage, it’s a celebration and in the middle of it is Isaac who is every bit as geeky and adoring of literature as we are. I love it.

I also like how the world has developed. In part we have the Ghost Army as antagonists – but their depiction is also woven into the world in general, suggesting old magical practices have had to alter and die because of the effect of the ghosts. It’s a personal taste thing but I love it when elements of a story have clearly shaped the world and we don’t have a plot that sits clumsily on top of the world.

There’s also a major change in this book – magic is being exposed, step by step. It’s not done in a major way and the main characters are definitely more distracted by other things happening – but its growling and we get blog posts, articles and news reports covering so many different ramifications of magic being revealed. We have laws being pushed to try and limit and restrict magic. We have author’s organisations suddenly realising they are responsible for producing devastating weapons and monsters with their works of fiction – what onus rests on an author who creates a weapon that can be pulled out of that book and used? And then there’s the realisation among many people that magic can perform miracles, cure devastating illnesses – which is definitely something to celebrate but also turns into the horrible question “well, why haven’t they?” If magicians could cure cancer but instead kept their magic secret, well that’s a terrible thing to absorb. Especially when magicians may be your closest family who let your loved ones suffer rather than use their magic to help. I think this is going to be a major element of the next book.

The nature of the big bad was also an interesting twist I liked.

On top of the world we have Isaac who I really like – and not just because of him being an avatar of all things geeky. He spends a large amount of the book completely powerless and spending most of it in the presence of Gutenberg and Juan De Ponce de Leon and even Lena who are all immensely powerful people. But Isaac’s true strength shows through – he’s intelligent, very imaginative and has a brilliant but easily distracted mind and he is very very well read. He is a librarian and that is his power. Towards the end of the book, that imagination is what powers him back to magic – and throws in a nice level of epic in the final confrontations which I always appreciate.

We also have a lot of diversity in the book – and most of them are interestingly written to bring out some nuance to the characters. I loved the constant presence of Nidhi, a South Asian bisexual or lesbian woman in the book. As a non-magical human she seems to be the one with the least impact in the story – but as a therapist the other characters are constantly turning to her for both support but also advice. They rely on her a lot to hear about the condition of those around them – because all of them have been through such extreme stress and loss and are facing such a huge threat that many of them are hurting and close to breaking. Nidhi is an expert and everyone treats her as such. There’s none of the fictional trope of contempt for the therapist or disregarding the psychiatrist’s opinions – her input is welcome, needed and valued. I also like the growing dynamic between her and Isaac.

Book of the Week

It's another Monday and time for another episode of the Fangs for the Fantasy Podcast!

You will be able to listen to us on our youtube channel, or by the link in the sidebar or by the post here that will be posted. We hope to see you there

Like all  the Fangs for the Fantasy podcasts (archives here) we read a book and discuss it on the show.  For those wanting to read with us, our next books of the week are

19th January - 26th January: Unbound by Jim C Hines

26th January - 2nd February: A Lady Integrity by Shelly Adina

2nd February - 9th February: The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr

9th February - 16th February: Fury’s Kiss by Karen Chance

16th February - 23rd February: Vision in Silver by Anne Bishop
23rd February - 2nd March: Dark Debt by Chloe Neil

The Leftovers, Season 1, Episode 7: Solace for Tired Feet

Someone has posted lots and lots of posters with Gladys’s face on them and the words “save them” underneath – Laurie and other members of the Guilty Remnant aren’t happy about this and rip the posters down. While she’s doing so, she sees Jill passing and they have an angst moment before Aimee pulls Jill away.

Jill and friends go to the woods to play a fascinating game of “who can stay locked in a fridge the longest”. Because these are the most bored teenagers in the world. Jill wins, of course, and the handle breaks so they can’t get her out. She starts suffocating when an old man – her grandfather (who was in a mental institution) lets her out. He tells her not to tell Kevin she saw him then leaves.

Over to Nora and Kevin who are both awkward in their flirting and surprisingly cute. But when they go to Nora’s the GR are there smoking at them – Kevin argues, Nora is more pro-active and gets the hose. Nora invites Kevin in and amusingly mocks the GR and their tactics of stealing photos, though she realises it may be a faux pas given Laurie’s membership. Unfortunately, the GR have broken the mood and the awkward causes them to raincheck

Kevin goes home to Jill and Aimee (has Aimee moved in?) and Jill asks about her grandfather – asking specifically if he hurt anyone. Kevin says yes – and Jill tells her dad that her grandfather is out of the mental hospital.

Kevin calls the police together where we learn his dad (the ex-police chief) burned down the library before checking himself into the mental hospital. He sets the police looking for him while he goes and visits Mayor Lucy. They’re both worried about someone getting hurt – but when he suggests searching her house she succinctly replies “fuck you, Kevin I haven’t spoken to your father in a month.” Apparently his mental illness grew too much for her to deal with. She also believes he’s going to see Kevin not her.

Which leads to Kevin going home and making sure there’s a gun by his chair as he listens to the police radio. He falls asleep and has odd dreams about dogs, Dean, dead GR, guns and his son. He wakes up, in bed, with his hand bandaged and a dog tied up outside. His hand has been bitten. When Jill and Aimee wake up (does she live with them?) Aimee says that Kevin brought the dog home and apparently she helped him doctor his hand.

He goes out when he gets a call from Dennis, one of his officers. Dennis approached Kevin’s father (they always got on before) and the old man brutally beat Dennis. He then ripped the library apart. Interviewing a man there, Kevin learns that his dad used a computer, broke it and tried to borrow $200 to get something for his son.

While Kevin’s at the library his dad goes to his house – and Jill finds him wrestling over his shirt with the new angry dog. She takes him in and gets him something to eat, talk about his voices (who call her Snow White) and he asks to borrow $200 and when she says no, he asks for tranquilisers. Which they do have – because Kevin takes a lot of pills. He wants to drug the dog then starts arguing with the voices in his head. Which is when Kevin comes home – Jill called him before she let her granddad in and he praises her for it.

Grimm, Season Four, Episode Ten: Tribunal

"May the God of Vengeance

now yield me His place

to punish the wicked."

This episode begins where the last left off, with Monroe standing in front of the Wesenrein who are chanting.  Riken, the grandmaster, gives the order for Monroe to be purified and lower ranking Wesenrein respond by punching Monroe.

At the station, Hank and Nick tell Renard what they learned at the prison about Riken. Renard then questions if Rosalie has been contacted with a ransom demand.  Nick says that this is not about money and is about making an example out of Monroe.  Hank points out that officer Ackers is the only connection they have left because he was the one watching Rosalie and Monroe's house and was the one funneling information to Riken in prison.  Nick surmises that if Ackers was working with the Wesenrein, then he must be Wesen. However did you make such a huge leap Nick?  Renard suggests getting Wu to take a shot at Ackers, adding that Hank and Nick have to make sure that Wu can handle a vogue. Nick promises to make sure that Wu is ready.  Wu enters the office and reports that the phone found in Riken's home was used to call Monroe's house, the spice shop and officer Acker.  Renard orders that Acker is brought in and adds that there is one thing Wu has to do first.

Rosalie and Juliette go over the list that Truble made but at this point, Rosalie doesn't recognize any of the names.  Juliette points out that at least one person at her wedding is connected to someone on the list.  Juliet suggests going over the wedding guest list and Rosalie compares it to Truble's list.  Juliette offers to call Monroe's parents and inform them of what is going and Rosalie declines, saying that they would be on the first plane here. Rosalie adds that she doesn't want to put them through that until they knows something one way or another.

A Wesenrein dressed in a white robe, uses a skull as a chalice and flicks blood at Monroe, saying that without the shedding of blood, there shall be no atonement.  When Monroe asks if the Wesenrein even know what atonement means, he is slugged for his trouble.  Riken stands and declares that it is time for the tribunal to begin. Riken calls for the scroll and orders Monroe to stand and have his shackles removed.  Monroe is then told to approach Riken and informed that he is charged with marrying outside of his bloodline and befriending a Grimm.  Of the two charges, befriending a Grimm makes sense to me given the Grimms history with the Wesen.

Hank leads Wu into an empty interrogation room and tells Wu that he has been exactly where Wu is now. Wu very rightfully snarks about Hank missing the trip to the mental hospital.  Wu asks why Nick didn't tell Hank and Hank responds that Nick was afraid that Hank would believe he was "crazy".  Hank adds that this is the same reason that Wu was not told. Okay, I call bullshit given that they knew what Wu saw and that he therefore had good reason to believe. Hank tells Wu to prepare himself because he has to be ready for this.  Hank also warns that it's different when it happens fast and another thing entirely when it's right in front of your face, giving you no place to go but the bin.  Hank adds that Wu needs to get to a place where this is the new normal, causing Wu to ask how they do this.

Rosalie expresses frustration about not being able to make the connections between the list and her wedding guests.  Juliet brings up the topic of Adalind and questions if one has to be born a hexinbeast to become one.  Even at a moment like this, trust Juliet to turn the conversation to herself.  Rosalie says that she thinks so and that the transformation is grueling and the ones who are made, are more deadly.  Rosalie tells Juliet to stop worrying about Adalind right now and focus on the list. Rosalie suggests they talk to Bud because he seems to be the only connection.

Helix, Season 1, Episode 2: Reunion

Day 2

Because that art school grad is still wandering around, we open with Alan being all austere and monkish and unshaven cut with scenes of him rampaging around hitting and shooting silver-eyed people looking for a Julia. He killed them even while they begged. He did get a flashdrive of information from one of them, though, which led to this island (and the reboot).

He’s now known as Brother Gerome.

On to Sarah who wakes up bleeding from the nose and fingernails. She doesn’t seem overly concerned by this. She recognises Alan among the crowd of cultists. She goes looking for him, but only finds a cultist with some facial buboes who runs from her. She chases after him (I suppose a doctor for the CDC is a little terrier like when it comes to obviously infected people) but loses him due to her injured foot. She does find a rather awesome church/greenhouse room.

Cultists file in, including Alan. Michael, the cult leader, has a sermon for everyone and it’s all happy and creepy – when an infected child staggers into the room, calling for his mother. When she goes to him, the child attacks her. Sarah rushes to help – and she and Alan see each other.

She tells Peter and Kyle about the infection in the Abbey and calls for a quarantine and Michael and one of his lackeys come in (lackey thinks Sarah needs to be kicked out – I think the CDC doesn’t care much for abbey rules). Sarah also mentions the other infected person, Brother Isaac and Michael admits they need help. He offers all co-operation and equipment at their disposal.

Yeah I don’t trust him either

Sarah has Saren, the infected boy, restrained to take samples but he continues to struggle and fight. Peter, Kyle and random cultists go looking for Brother Isaac. They seem to think he will be hiding in the shadows and the tunnels. They split up – and Peter finds Isaac who violently attacks. The sight of the infected man charging at him pushes Peter into a flashback of season 1. Isaac manages to escape.

Back to the lab, Sarah complains about the outdated equipment while, simultaneously being suspicious that the cult has so much equipment. She also tells Peter about Alan – and Peter has a tantrum, he rants on about how discredited and criminal Alan is (for our exposition benefit) and how they should avoid him like the plague (he also refuses to see that Ilaria could have anything to do with the island. After all, what would Ilaria want with a secretive, isolated base like.. uh… oh yes, standard operating procedure).

Alone Michael talks to his suspicious lackey, Anne, who thinks they should expel everyone – she’s apparently shaky about the powers of the CDC and how expelling them wouldn’t keep them away. She talks ominously about a legacy they have to protect.

Constantine, Season 1, Episode 10: Quid Pro Quo

We open with an ominous black cloaked wizard sends some evil smoky magic down a chimney to kidnap a little girl. It’s like an old school more ominous telling of Father Christmas (or, possibly, depending how noisy said child is, a parent’s Father Christmas).

To the Mill and John has beefed up the defences on the Mill to try and reassure Zed who isn’t that reassured. John also pushes from some actual answers from Zed and she tells him about the Resurrection Crusade. The cult leader things Zed is super special and important he’s also her dad. John declares how he will keep her safe before the Scry map becomes all scary and bloody on New York – which happens to be where Chas is heading to see his daughter. Time for them to head off – Zed already has news reports of people falling into comas and John shows off this week’s bad of tricks.

This comes with a flashback of Chas and John two years ago when John was much the same as he is now and Chas trying to save people from a really nasty concert/bar fire when John left. They pulled Chas out of the fire, apparently dead but he’s alive in the hospital with his wife and child. Looks like this was his first resurrection.

Chas arrives at his ex, Renee’s, place and it’s clear they don’t have the best relationship. He goes to his daughter – and finds her unconscious and bleeding from her nose. Chas calls John and Zed to meet him in the hospital and dramatically tells John that he’s the only one Chas trusts with his kid

Oh Chas you are screwed. John uses magic and finds that the girl, Geraldine’s soul has been removed which should be impossible. They take Geraldine’s doll for woo-woo purposes and Renee briefly shows up to tell us John is a terrible person.

Off to see a Medium called Fennel (because why not a medium named after an aniseed vegetable?) who knows John and points a shotgun at him. Everyone who knows John hates him, it’s a rule. After Chas takes that shotgun off him and throws in some threats, Fennel co-operates.

Time for a very spooky communicate-with-the-dead ritual which is, yes, intensely creepy. They speak to Geraldine – and then the creepiness goes up several notches as the soul thief takes over; the thief recognises John (and like everyone else who recognises John, isn’t a fan). He then uses magic to fry Fennel (which sounds more like a bad culinary idea than murder).