Our Opinions Are Correct

Back during the Cold War era, we were awash in stories about nuclear armageddon: either living through it, or trying to prevent it. And now, experts say the threat of nuclear holocaust is the worst it's been in over two decades. So how will pop culture respond? We talk about what a 21st century nuclear-war story might look like.  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

A lot of science fiction takes place in the near future, somewhere in the next century or so. But what about the far future in 10,000 years, or a million? How do writers and creators imagine deep time and make it plausible? We discuss our favorites and some misfires. Then Charlie Jane talks about her new novel, The City in the Middle of the Night (out now!), which explores a human society thousands of years from now.  Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We love the show Steven Universe now, more than ever. This cartoon about a magical child has gone through a lot of changes in the past couple of years, and now its cosmic mythos has become a lot more complex—and the theme of identity has only gotten stronger. In this episode, we pull apart the show's themes, including colonization, non-toxic masculinity, and the power of families. Show notes here: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Let's talk about sex! In this episode we explore sci-fi tropes about where sex is going in the future, where it seems that we're doomed to become aromantic hedonists or asexual drones. We also talk about the greatest hits of scifi and fantasy sex. Special guest Lux Alptraum talks about her new book, Faking It, about the lies women tell about sex in real life, and where we see those lies popping up in science fiction too. See links and show notes at: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We need hope now, more than ever. So it's a good thing that more and more SF creators are trying to write hopeful stories---but what does it mean to be hopeful? Is hope a genre, or just a theme? And what the heck is "hopepunk" anyway? We talk about the books, movies and TV shows that are giving us hope, and what it's like to write a story about striving for a better tomorrow. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

We know you just want to curl up by the fire and bask in pop culture of yesteryear this holiday season. But too bad. We're here with special guest Katharine Trendacosta to interrogate the meaning of nostalgia in science fiction. We discuss remakes, reboots, rebranding, historical references, and traumatic memories--and how all of these are shaping the future of the genre. Plus Disney. We have many thoughts on Disney. As always, you can find show notes, references, and transcripts on www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

Doctor Who is a brand new show this year. Not only is there a lady Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker, but the show's whole format feels totally different. Three companions! All new monsters! But even more than that, the show has a new, more upbeat attitude. And it's tackling new themes, including the meaning of family and the dangers of capitalism. Join us as we go deep into the time vortex to unravel the meaning of Doctor Who in 2018. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

This holiday season, let's add everyone's biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Or hey--let's not! In this episode, we talk with scholar and editor Jaymee Goh, whose doctoral research focused on cultural appropriation and steampunk. She tells us what cultural appropriation is, and why it's become a source of political debate in fantasy and science fiction. Also: we discuss that one terrible scene in Back to the Future. You know the one. Show notes: www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com/shownotes

It's easy to stick prosthetics on someone's face and call them an alien. But how do we represent a truly alien form of consciousness? In this episode, we talk about science fiction that succeeds (or fails) to evoke alien minds--whether they hail from other planets, or evolve inside our computers. Plus, we talk to guest Lisa Margonelli about her new book Underbug, which explores termite society. Did you know that termites socialize using butt juice? Learn all about that and more!  See our full show notes at www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com

With the U.S. midterm election coming up, it's time to look at representations of democracy in science fiction. The genre is often skeptical or satirical when it comes to democracy--you can see this in everything from episodes of The Prisoner to the movie Idiocracy. But science fiction is also a testbed for dramatic re-imagingings of this political system, offering a hopeful look at a more egalitarian world. Our guest Malka Older, a human rights worker and author of the novel Infomocracy, talks to us about how to improve democracy with storytelling. Full show notes and links at www.ouropinionsarecorrect.com.