Charlie Jane Anders

The Lost Sword-And-Sorcery Classic From the Art Director of Star Wars

If you saw Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back in the theater in Europe or Australia, you may also have seen a short film called Black Angel. This ground-breaking 20 minute sword-and-sorcery film was directed by Star Wars art director Roger Christian, and it influenced the look and feel of 1980s fantasy films like Legend…

Must-Watch Video of the Day: Life-Size Superman Flies Over the Beach

This video might just make you believe a man can fly, all over again. This live-sized “Superman” is actually a custom-built RC plane, but when you see it flying through the sky it actually looks reasonably convincing. And actually graceful. I love the way Kal-El glides over the waves in this video. [LiveLeak via Mashable]

Tarantino’s third alternate history movie will be a much bloodier version of Red Tails

If you didn’t get enough cathartic revenge for historical wrongs from Django Unchained, then rejoice. Quentin Tarantino isn’t done showing the victims of racial abuse rising up and killing the oppressors. His third alt-history movie, Killer Crow, tells the story of African American soldiers during World War II who go on a crazy rampage and…

Absolutely Stunning Concept Art of Paris 2084

This is some of the most mind-blowing artwork of future cityscapes we’ve ever beheld. French artist Paul Chadeisson created these amazing images for the video game Remember Me, previously known as Adrift. It’s a polluted, dirty, neon-soaked metropolis, full of corruption, hot latex outfits and flying vehicles. And we want to go there now. Check…

A Good First Stab at a Vampire Diaries Drinking Game (Disguised as a Workout Routine)

Really, all you have to do is take the exercises on the list below and replace them with shots of different types of liquor, and you’re good to go. I would suggest a few other things, like guzzling straight from the bottle every time Stefan says “Your emotions are… heightened.” And Tobias Buckell suggests doing…

The Year in NSFW!

This year, io9 explored the outer limits of sexuality, from the most delightful pin-up art to the weirdest sex museums. We delved into indecent 1970s cosplay and incredibly strange films. We explored the history of porn featuring superheroes and space adventurers. Here’s all the best NSFW content from io9 in 2012. Top image: pin-up art…

Gerry Anderson or Michelangelo Antonioni? It’s slightly harder to tell than you’d expect

We’re still mourning the late, great Gerry Anderson — so it’s a perfect time to pay tribute to his visual sense of style. His puppet space opera Thunderbirds was more stylish and “mod” than people ever gave it credit for — and over at Some Came Running, ex-Premiere Magazine writer Glenn Kenny posts some screencaps…

The Most Unrealistic Movies of 2012, According to Scientists

This year’s movies thrilled and delighted us — except for some scientists, who were distracted by all the unrealistic stuff and bad physics. Popular Science has a great rundown of the most unrealistic stuff in 2012’s movies, including Looper’s time travel, The Avengers’ helicarrier, and Amazing Spider-Man’s web-slinging. Even James Bond is not left unscathed.…

12 Lessons That 2012 Taught the Entertainment Industry

This was a year of massive victories and horrendous defeats. Science fiction and fantasy rocked pop culture like never before, but that just meant the stakes were higher and the lessons were harsher. For every Avengers, there was a John Carter. Television shows struggled and died. Publishing convulsed. Here are 12 lessons that the entertainment…

Come watch two hours of Matt Smith’s Doctor Who with us on Saturday!

We’re having yet another of our monthly Doctor Who-watching parties this Saturday at 4 PM — and this time around, we’re watching two Matt Smith Christmas specials: “A Christmas Carol” and “The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe.” It’s at the Variety Screening Room in downtown San Francisco from 4 to 7:30, and there will…

The Greatest Science Fiction Porn Movies of All Time: 1961-1991 [NSFW]

Science fiction has long encompassed every aspect of human experience — including sex. For as long as we’ve dreamed of going to space, we’ve dreamed of getting it on there. And porn has embraced science fiction as well — from 1968’s softcore masterpiece Barbarella to the 1990s cyberpunk boom to the recent craze for porn…

Support new original horror fiction from Ellen Datlow!

There are remarkably few places that publish new short horror fiction nowadays — and there are also relatively few anthologies that don’t have a rigid theme, like zombies or witchcraft. Enter editor Ellen Datlow, who used to edit stories for Omni and SciFiction, and now puts out a lot of our favorite anthologies. Datlow has…

Sex World!

Spermula Clips

Great Quotes about Writing from Game of Thrones Author George R.R. Martin

George R.R. Martin is a master craftsman, whose A Song of Ice and Fire series was a legend even before HBO turned it into a massive hit TV series. His strengths include astounding world-building and an ability to get inside the heads of a wide variety of viewpoint characters, one at a time. How does…

Barbarella Caps, Clips and Photos

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Could the U.S. economy stop growing forever?

We take economic growth for granted — it’s one of the defining characteristics of our economy that it grows, year after year. Any period when the economy doesn’t grow is called a recession, and this is a kind of temporary economic emergency. Top image: Kanu101/Flickr. But sociology/economics professor Robert J. Gordon argues that we shouldn’t…

A Few Reasons to Make it to the Comic Store This Week

So yeah, it’s the holiday week, and there’s almost no new comics out. But a few brave publishers are launching new series — including a couple which actually sound like they might be worth the trip to the store. And there’s a couple new trades that might be worth catching up on as well. Here’s…

What’s worse: an all-powerful hero, or an all-powerful villain?

Sometimes, a hero becomes so powerful, nothing can touch him or her. Take pre-Crisis Superman, who juggled planets and laughed off nukes. And sometimes, a villain is so unstoppable, your best defense is as much use as a cardboard box. Like the Borg. Or the Observers, who are an army of teleporting super-intelligent telepaths who…

Did George Lucas copy Star Wars‘ opening catchphrase from an ad in a fashion magazine?

Check out this ad, which appeared in a 1974 issue of Vogue Magazine. Does it remind you of anything? Did you feel a faint disturbance in the Force, as if a million Star Wars fans were realizing that absolutely everything in George Lucas’ seminal classic is borrowed from other sources — even the iconic phrase…