(Image is of the Gerry Grace cover for Children of Dune)
Intro 00:07 // Synopsis 01:15 // Remarks 26:51 (narrative transformation of Fremen and House Atreides, Pharaonic Imperium, The Hero’s Journey and the Monomyth, agency in an established timeline) // Media 39:32
Rhi and Paul join Ralph to talk about Iain M. Banks’ Excession and The Culture. Post-scarcity, intelligent starships, body modification and first contact.
Show Notes
Excession (and other Culture novels) by Iain M. Banks
Rhiannon Lassiter, Paul Mitchener and Ralph Lovegrove
Overview of The Culture 00:50
Synopsis of Excession 05:40
Themes 12:05
Diverging human cultures
What do utopians do with their free time?
Benevolent interference in other civilisations
The edge of ascension
Contact and Special Circumstances
Sex positive
Transhumanism before it was famous
Death
Aside:The Player of Games 32:50
RPGs 38:30
Mindjammer by Sarah Newton
Flotsam (Josh Fox, based on Dream Askew by Avery Alder)
Microscope and Kingdom by Ben Robbins
Dramasystem by Robin D. Laws
First Contact scenarios 48:05
Event Horizon
Unto Leviathan by Richard Paul Russo
Eon by Greg Bear
2001 and 2010
The Fifth Element
Music Credits
“Is That You Or Are You You?” from Reappear by Chris Zabriskie
“But Enough About Me, Bill Paxton” from Direct To Video by Chris Zabriskie
The Babel-17 wiki page lists other works that were influenced by this book including Stephenson’s Snow Crash and Ted Chiang’s Story Of Your Life (made into the film Arrival).
In our first episode we talk about the utopian post-scarcity, post-gender space opera of Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice.
Show Notes
Fictoplasm episode 1: Ancilliary Justice by Ann Leckie, part of the Imperial Radch Trilogy
Ralph Lovegrove, Elizabeth Lovegrove, Becky Annison
01:00 Synopsis // 05:00 Comments // 12:20 Start of the RPG bit // 12:30 Liz’s game idea // 19:00 Becky’s game idea // 24:30 Ralph’s game idea
Games
Mellan Himmel och Hav (Between Heaven and Sea) by Eliot Wieslander and Katarina Björk // Livsgald by Simon Svensson, Kajsa Seinegaard, Carl Nordblom and Jennie Nyberg // Dream Askew by Avery McDaldno // Microscope by Ben Robbins // Archipelago by Matthijs Holter // Lovecraftesque by Becky Annison and Josh Fox // Rise and Fall by Elizabeth Lovegrove is part of the Seven Wonders anthology.