Imaginary Worlds

20/11/2024

In honor of the release of Wicked, this week we hitch a ride on a tornado to hear three stories about people who tried to get to Oz, even if it was just in their minds.

In honor of the release of Wicked, we’re hitching a ride on a tornado to hear three different stories about Oz. We hear how the “rainbow chaser” L. Frank Baum failed at every career he tried until he sat down to write The Wizard of Oz. We learn about Baum’s frenemy W.W. Denslow, who illustra...

19/11/2024

I finally got to see Star Wars land at Disney World. The rides were enjoyable but the best part for me was seeing the ships and droids at full scale, and the littlest details like the control panels on the walls, or the decor of the cantina. Even the shops had individual backstories. They also didn't play Star Wars music anywhere because they fully committed to the overall concept that you're on a spaceport in the timeframe of the sequel trilogy. Design wise it was a great choice that paid off. The downside is I felt like everything was aimed at trying to make Kylo Ren happen. It made me miss Darth Vader even more.

06/11/2024

Take a break from doomscrolling to do some Doom-listening! This week, we look at why Marvel Studios is betting its future on Doctor Doom by talking with comic book writers Brian Michael Bendis, Mark Waid and Ryan North about how they’ve depicted the character in different ways, and whether Doom bears a resemblance to real world authoritarians.

All Hail Doom! The supreme ruler of Latveria has successfully defeated The Fantastic Four and The Avengers. Marvel Studios is bowing towards his will, casting Robert Downey Jr. as the iconic villain and betting their fortunes on Doctor Doom! But Victor von Doom is more than a classic bad guy. He is

23/10/2024

This week, we dodge chainsaws, butcher knives and alien jaws to learn how Final Girls survive horror films, and why the definition of The Final Girl needed to evolve.

Horror movies are best known for their monsters and villains – but there’s another half to the equation. The Final Girls who survive horror films and live to see another sequel have been fueling the genre for half a century. Freddie Krueger met his match in Nancy. Michael Myers can’t outwit La...

23/10/2024

Here's a behind-the-scenes look at the work required for cosplayers at Comic Con.

Armed with glue guns, Popsicle sticks, safety pins and more, a hub of costume repairers stands at the ready to make sure all goes according to fantasy.

19/10/2024

Annual NYCC slideshow, including a tribute to Jack Kirby in cakes and cookies.

09/10/2024

New technologies allowed us to learn about exoplanets that could sustain life. What would those aliens look like? This week, we look at the overlap between astrobiology and science fiction.

For a long time, imagining what alien life could look like was mostly the job of science fiction creators. But in recent years, the field of astrobiology has gotten a boost from the discovery of faraway exoplanets with atmospheres which could support life. In trying to imagine what aliens could look

02/10/2024

Today we're officially announcing our new Patreon-only ad-free chat show Between Imaginary Worlds. If you pledge $10 a month or more, episodes of Between Imaginary Worlds will appear between regular episodes of the show in your ad-free feed. The new show is a more casual, conversational format with different guests talking about their favorite SFF worlds, what they're looking forward to, pet peeves and a lot more. You can also listen directly on the show's Patreon page.

creating Imaginary Worlds

30/09/2024

Today is International Podcast Day! There are lots of posts where people ask for recommendations. If you're a fan of IW, feel free to spread the word! Personal recommendations are the best way to gain new listeners. Thanks!!

25/09/2024

This week, we look at the role that role-playing games have in prisons, and why some prisons have tried to ban games like D&D, Pathfinder and Magic the Gathering.

Role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder aren’t just played in game shops or living rooms. They’re also very popular in prisons – if the prison officials haven’t banned them. I talk with Joseph Krauter, who is formerly incarcerated, and David Annarelli , who is currently...

11/09/2024

We continue looking back at the last decade through the lens of Imaginary Worlds. This week, we roll the dice and click start on the games that defined a decade. And we explore why indie games thrive more in tabletop culture than video games.

The screenshot above is from a 2014 doc on my desktop called "My Show brainstorm." In the second part of our retrospective on how Imaginary Worlds has covered sci-fi and fantasy in the last 10 years, we look at the world of gaming. I visit the game shop Sip & Play and talk with t

28/08/2024

As we near the 10th anniversary of Imaginary Worlds, we look back at how this podcast chronicled changes in sci-fi fantasy worlds and why the entertainment industry and the publishing industry have been on their own journeys in the past decade.

When I began my podcast in September 2014, I was mostly sticking with topics that I was familiar with like blockbuster movies and animation. I liked science fiction, but I was not as familiar with traditional fantasy, literature, tabletop games, and most anime. My understanding of the depth and brea

18/08/2024

For the 10th anniversary of Imaginary Worlds, I asked Sean C. Jackson to create more episode art for the merch store. I am so excited about these! You can see what they look like on t-shirts, mugs, stickers and more at: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/imaginary-worlds?ref_id=6372

14/08/2024

This week, we get locked in a room we’re in no rush to leave. We look at how escape rooms are merging with immersive theater to create a new kind of interactive live entertainment.

I used to think escape rooms were gimmicky activities where everyone scrambled to solve puzzles while I stood around feeling useless. On the other hand, I love immersive theater, where an interactive play unfolds as you walk through a space. I thought they were very different types of live entertain

31/07/2024

This week, we delve into the field of audiobook narration and learn about the incredible skills it takes to bring sci-fi and fantasy worlds to life with only the human voice.

The field of audiobooks has exploded since the introduction of mp3 players, and it continues to expand. But it takes a unique set of skills to voice audiobooks in sci-fi and fantasy genres. I talk with audiobook narrators John Pirhalla , Luke Daniels , Amy Landon , and Heath Miller about juggli

17/07/2024

Four years ago, I produced an episode called Fantasy and Fascism. This time, we shift our focus from how SFF worlds have depicted fascism to why people vote away democracy with “thunderous applause.”

In the years since my 2020 episode Fantasy and Fascism , I knew that I had to make a follow-up episode. The political landscape was changing in ways I didn’t expect while major sci-fi fantasy franchises were reflecting those anxieties. Last time, I focused on how SFF worlds depicted fascism. This ...

03/07/2024

This week, we hear an episode from the podcast Twenty Thousand Hertz about the musicians that create sounds no one’s ever heard before for Hans Zimmer to use when he composes his scores to films like Dune, Interstellar, or Blade Runner 2049.

Who really composed the scores of Dune, Interstellar, Blade Runner 2049, The Dark Knight, Man of Steel, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Lion King? Were they all written by Hans Zimmer? Or were those scores put together by a team of musicians at Hans Zimmer’s studio Remote Control? The podcast Twe...