In Brightest Day: Addiction in Geek Media

Many people do not understand why or how other people become addicted to drugs. It is often mistakenly assumed that drug abusers lack moral principles or willpower and that they could stop using drugs simply by choosing to change their behavior. In reality, drug addiction is a complex disease, and quitting takes more than good intentions or a strong will. In fact, because drugs change the brain in ways that foster compulsive drug abuse, quitting is difficult, even for those who are ready to do so.

—National Institute on Drug Abuse (x)

From Tony Stark’s alcoholism to Sherlock Holmes’s 7% solution, geek media is rife with portrayals of addiction and substance abuse. As someone who has watched close friends and family members struggle with real addiction, I have a very personal stake in these fictional portrayals. It means a lot to me if a show that includes an addict among its characters takes the time to treat addiction as the complex problem it is. And because of this, I am tremendously turned off by shows that act like an addiction is something that can easily be gotten rid of.

Top 20 Romantic Couples in Geekdom (10 Canon/10 Fanon): 2014 Edition

This Valentine’s Day, as all Valentine’s Days, will not succeed in bringing our city down. This Valentine’s Day, as all Valentine’s Days, will soon recede into painful memory, fading with time, until another foul Valentine’s Day is upon us again.

—Welcome to Night Vale, “Valentine”

It’s that time of year again, nerd friends. That awful time of year known as Valentine’s Day. Once a year, before Valentine’s Day, our authors nominate and then vote on ships for our Top 20 Romantic Couples in Geekdom (10 Canon/10 Fanon) list. It is during this time that the LGG&F writers go from peaceful coexistence straight into full-blown anarchy as each writer battles for their favorite ships to make the list.

So now, blood-stained and bruised, it is my job as Supreme Overlord of LGG&F to bring you this year’s Top 20 Romantic Couples in Geekdom.

Oh, My Pop Culture Religion: Steven Moffat, the New Feminist

gif via giphy

Few people inspire more division and frustration in the geek world than Steven Moffat. Showrunner of Doctor Who and co-creator of BBC’s Sherlock, Moffat’s storylines and female characters have attracted plenty of accusations of misogyny. But Moffat refuses to acknowledge any problems with the way he handles his shows. It’s abundantly clear that he believes he’s a feminist… and I think he might be right. Although he probably doesn’t know it, I believe Moffat is a New Feminist. New Feminism is a flavor of feminism popular among many religious conservatives, arising from a supposedly “biblical” view of the sexes.

Web Crush Wednesdays: Sherlock: The Game

You know what the best thing is about fandom? You get the chance to make friends based on shared interests. You know what the best thing about that is? Sometimes the friends are so cool and so creative that the whole world gets to experience something fantastic.

Such is the case of Sherlock: The Game. I found out about this game via a friend I’d met through Sherlock fandom, which just goes to that the internet is not, in actuality, driving us unto a lonely hellscape with only computers for company. During the two-year-long hiatus for series 3, two fans got together and decided that Sherlock would translate very well to an old-fashioned RPG. The original plan was to just do a “small project”, as one of the creators told The Daily Dot; yet fast forward a year, and those two fans have turned into 200; the game itself has turned into a massive undertaking complete with main cases and side cases. From The Daily Dot:

Sherlock: the Game begins, of course, in 221B Baker Street. The starting concept for the game revolves around a month in the life of John Watson. The object? Keep Sherlock’s boredom meter from getting dangerously high by solving crimes—and keep your own money meter from getting too low.

Sounds amazing, right? At this point the only thing that might stand in Sherlock: The Game‘s way is if the BBC decides to insist that the game infringes on its copyright. The creators say that the game is legal under fair use law in both the U.K. and the U.S., but if the BBC contacts them, they’ll have to shut it down. As a fan of both Sherlock and collaborative fan endeavors, I hope that doesn’t happen. Just listen to all the accents in their behind-the-scenes video (which also has captions in twelve different languages). This is a truly international effort of love.

If you’re interested in this game, you can find out more about it via Sherlock: The Game‘s Facebook, Tumblr, or Twitter. If all goes well, the team will release the game for free as a downloadable PC game. Despite not being much of a gamer myself, I can’t wait to play this!

Sherlock: “His Last Vow” Review

So here we are, the last episode of Sherlock before another agonizing wait. As much as I’ve enjoyed the first two episodes of series 3, they felt incomplete to me. My feelings about each episode are pretty much summed up in both Saika’s and Luce’s reviews. This series has felt much more character-driven than the past two series, which were much more of a “case of the week” or “overarching villain” nature. The first episode was very much about repairing John and Sherlock’s relationship, and the second episode dealt with how Mary would fit into that dynamic. Now I see that both episodes were absolutely necessary to prepare the audience for this series’ final act, “His Last Vow.”

Spoilers abound under the cut.

Sherlock: “The Empty Hearse” Review

I’ve just finished watching “The Empty Hearse”, and, well, it’s a very strange feeling. Finally having Sherlock Series 3 is surreal. I was actually not really looking forward to watching it; I have become exhausted over the past year by the depth of my dislike for the majority of the cast, fandom, and writing team, and I tuned in more out of duty to this blog than a genuine desire to see more of Sherlock and John et al.

Given my apathy, I am surprised to report that I enjoyed the episode. I’m not sure if it was a case of having such low expectations that I couldn’t possibly be disappointed, or whether it was actually good, but, well, there you go.

Spoilers abound beneath the jump.