Queer SFFH

Two Old Farts Talk Sci-Fi

Queer SFFH (Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror) has been with us for a very long time. One of the first English-language science fiction novels is Frankenstein, 1818, and it was written by bisexual author Mary Shelley. And representation has recently reached new heights, in both how many queer creators there are, but also the number of queer characters appearing in SFFH, in books and media, but also in the quality and impact they have in storylines. Rachel A. Rosen joins Troy and David, to discuss the topic. Rachel, being a first guest, is asked about her earliest genre memories, and her first genre love. She then is asked the standard 6 questions for first time guests: Fave Author; Fave Novel; Fave Shorter Work; Fave Movie; Fave TV Series; and, Fave TV episode. Troy presents an overview of queer representation in science fiction, fantasy, and horror, as part of his history segment. Rachel mentions the influence of the character Dax from DS9, and other queer creators, including Francesca Lia Block, Clive Barker, and Mary Shelley. The "Bury Your Gays" trope is discussed. Is Hollywood getting better at depictions of queer characters? Doctor Who and queer culture is discussed. Many queer Doctors, and queer companions have been featured. Russell T. Davis is openly gay, and he has brought in queer characters and trans characters, more than any other showrunner. The 15th doctor is openly gay. Bill Potts (played by Pearl Mackie) was the first openly gay companion. Xena and Gabrielle as gay icons is covered. Is Dr. Frank-N-Furter a gay icon or a caricature? Rachel and Troy and David spend time talking about the third episode of The Last of Us. Troy does a history, for this episode.

= = = RACHEL A. ROSEN lives and makes trouble in Tkaronto (Toronto) in the country currently known as Canada. A genre strumpet with an outlook darker than VantaBlack, she straddles urban fantasy, cosmic horror, dystopian futures, and eco-fiction. Her stone-cold bummer of a first novel, Cascade (The Sleep of Reason Book 1), was published by The BumblePuppy Press in 2022, and with Zilla Novikov, she’s the co-author of The Sad Bastard Cookbook: Food You Can Make So You Don’t Die.