Category Archives: Reviews

My thrill of podcasting as a special guest

I love podcasts, and will someday elaborate further with some personal favorites listened to.

But for now, surprise! I’m a special guest on Junk Food Dinner, an awesome, long-running podcast reviewing pop-culture, cult, obscure movies of the past and present. Hosts (currently Kevin Moss, Sean Byron, Parker Bowman) cover related news, share commentary, slice of life stuff with wit and fun bits of trivia. Usually each week, three movie works are chosen and discussed. For movies fans, I highly recommend you add Junk Food Dinner to your podcast list, or check out their vast 10 plus years of over 600 episodes.

For episode #604, I co-host as cover for Parker Bowman, keeping its trio formula. I have covered for Kevin Moss on Junk Food Dinner many years ago. Keep in mind though, I am not a podcasting professional. Talking with no script for public consumption with the least stress for the editor is tough work, and takes practice and skill to get that radio-quality banter and confidence. To be a guest with less experience takes bravery, but also super fun. I think I did better this latest time.

For this episode, we kick off their Junk Food Dinner’s “Sci-Fi-ebruary,” focused on science fiction movies. But this year, JFD delves into various films focused on various Afro-centric, Afro-futurism, and African American cultural themes. For #604, we cover The Last Angel of History, Welcome II the Terrordome, Attack the Block. I also share my thoughts and views on recent cult movie/TV news, having a good time with personal tidbits on my cultural background. You can give that a listen by clicking on the link on the picture below the following disclaimer, or seeking out JFD on various podcast apps and check out #604.

Disclaimer: The podcast contains some profanity, body humor, sometimes crude humor (while doing their best to keep things positive) with some subject matter that may not be family friendly. The JFD audience may differ from the Traveling Orion audience. Much of my input is a side of that I don’t share often share here.

I brought in The Last Angel of History for discussion, an amazing short film from the mid 90s. It’s a meta lined art documentary with a fictional outline, but with real life perspectives on the relation of Black contributions to science fiction, music, writing, and futurist ideals. We get a plethora of guest input from important culture contributors including George Clinton, Derrick May, Samuel R. Delany, Octavia E. Butler, Nichelle Nichols, Juan Atkins, DJ Spooky, Goldie, Ishmael Reed, Greg Tate, Bernard Harris, Kodwo Eshun, Carl Craig, and more.

Here’s a trailer. I highly recommend you check this out if such things interest you.

Overall, I had a wonderful time being a podcast co-host, and would love to do this again. But, I would definitely need to improve, taking each broadcast as an experience. If I had the time and funds to do it, I would also love to take this Traveling Orion blog on the road as a podcast (also do more filming shorts). That’s all still possible someday, so please help encourage me if you think I should!

– Orion T

Goodbye Forever, 2021…

What a year, that 2021!

It was just a weird, bothering time around the Sun. Early on, the January 6th attack on the Capitol felt very surreal. The pandemic still lingers on, ending with the rise of the Omicron variant. Anti-vaxxing movements have become mainstream. Supply chains involving mass cargo on boats have slowed down drastically. There’s still some computer chip shortage. Workplaces are in need of new workers, but a lot not wanting to return to a being underpaid and treated poorly (I am among them). Seattle received some record heat weather at around 108 degrees Fahrenheit, while having two crazy snowfalls in opposite winter seasons. Lots of brutal weather around the world, probably from climate change. Crypto currency is a super crazy thing people are into now. NFTs are huge, and the less you know about them, the better…unless you are super into them. Inflation is wacky. There is so much that we could have done without, but made the year interesting.

I’ve also been very busy with a lot of personal baggage while dealing with a mid-life crisis. There’s a lot of ups and downs, but I do my best to keep going and always find new things to smile about. Sometimes, that’s with friends new and old, in person or online. There’s a lot of mental health concerns among us. But, there’s good stuff. I have new, bigger apartment. I cook a lot more. I have an exciting project that I have been spending a lot of time on, and will hopefully reveal with satisfiable progress in the coming months ahead.

I also adopted Smokey, a 3 yr old rescue cat from Seattle Humane animal shelter.

How cute is Smokey? She demands a lot of attention sometimes, usually when I am on my computer. I have much to write on the challenges of cat ownership, which I will eventually share.

Here are some other fun things and notes that I loved about 2021:

  • Favorite full movie released in 2021 – The Suicide Squad, directed by James Gunn
  • Favorite animated movie released in 2021 – Klaus (on Netflix)
  • Favorite documentary released in 2021 – Life in Color with David Attenborough
  • Favorite standalone streaming TV series released in 2021 – WandaVision (on Disney+)
  • Favorite continuous or new streaming TV series in 2021 – Chucky (The TV series)
  • Best satire of 2021 – Don’t Look Up (movie on Netflix)
  • Best dumb pop culture trend of 2021 – Squid Game
  • Favorite short audio stories and narratives – NPR’s This American Life
  • Favorite YouTube channel of 2021 – Casually Comics, a look at comics past and present, with very fun commentary
  • Best music album of 2021 – Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders & The London Symphony Orchestra – Promises
  • Favorite movie soundtrack vocal of 2021 – Billie Eilish – No Time To Die (For the James Bond: No Time to Die)
  • Favorite fiction book I read in 2021 – Crossings by Alex Landragin (came in 2019, but I really liked it)
  • Favorite non-fiction book I read in 2021 – Black Journalists, White Media by Pamela Newkirk (2020 released)
  • Favorite graphic novel of 2021 – The Body Factory by Heloise Chochois
  • Favorite comic book series of 2021 – Stray Dogs by Tony Fleecs and Trish Forstner
  • Favorite video game I played in 2021 – Yakuza: Like a Dragon
  • Favorite wrestling match of 2021 – Bryan Danielson vs Kenny Omega- AEW Buy In Event
  • Favorite food dish made in 2021 – Alton Brown’s Macaroni and Cheese, but modified with extra sharp white cheddar instead
  • Favorite hike of 2021 – Rattlesnake Lake Trail during the summer
  • Favorite city I never been to before in 2021 – Bellingham, Washington
  • Favorite local development in 2021 – The expansion of the Light Rail in Seattle to the Northgate area
  • Favorite park of 2021 – Ravenna Park
  • Favorite new food snack discovery of 2021 – Japanese import KitKats bars in obscure flavors

There’s more I likely missed. Yet, I think the above sums up my year well. Now, I must join friends online for the final hours of 2021. Stay safe and look forward to 2022!!

Orion T

May the 4th be with you, always

Another busy day today, but I took some time to enjoy this May 4th tradition that is now Star Wars Day.

I spent my lunch and later evening reading a some short stories out of Star Wars: From a Certain Point of View, a stellar anthology of 40 short stories from 40 writers, focusing on the viewpoints of non-main characters present during the events of Star Wars: a New Hope. I really love this idea, and enjoying pretty much every story so far (halfway through). I highly recommend for anyone who loves Star Wars, or just enjoys a good short story where anyone in a galaxy far, far, away has a special story to share.

The day is almost over now, but I love Star Wars every day. It’s just one of the many great things that binds us together. and inspires me to keep adventuring. And remember…

Back to some Science Fiction..

Shifter

Back to some science fiction..

I recently wrote another comics review for the graphic novel, Shifter by Anomaly Productions. Shifter is a story involving multi-dimensional travel, mind-linking and murder. I read and reviewed the motion comic version smartphone app for its story and interactivity (print version also available out there). For that, check out the review on my friend’s blog, All Day Comics (click here).

So lately, I was thinking over my renewed love for science fiction. But not just in our traditional print and media forms, but how changing technology could bring new dimensions to such storytelling. I discuss on the how in my Shifter review, where the addition of an accessible appendix lore enhances the overall story. Throw in augments to the art and sound mixes, than the product can change for the better. I am also currently reading and engaging with the interactive puzzle/novel Device 6, playing Tengami, and looking forward to the listening to the Clarkesworld Magazine podcast for new sci-fi/fantasy short stories.

Such quick gratifications on these curious escapes enriches my sci-fi geekiness. But, I wonder what else is possible, or changeable in how we receive our imaginative stories? And perhaps more importantly, how soon?