CONvergence 2024: Everyone’s Invited is just around the corner, and I am very much looking forward to it. It will be great to see friends and acquaintances, go to panels and learn/experience things, be on panels and share my knowledge, and all the fun things one can do at a convention! I hope to see you there!
I had been considering reading Elizabeth Moon for most of my life, but I somehow never got around to reading any until now. I loved the characters and how they were all unique and yet believable, and found the concept of how rich peers would play at being Old Earth nobles and mix “traditional” names with “modern” names.
Hi, folks! Minicon 56 is a week away. This will be my first in-person convention since CONvergence 2019, and first convention since CONvergence 2020. I am looking forward to Minicon - I get to see friends whom I don’t get to spend much time with the rest of the year, I get to go to panels and learn things, and I get to be on panels and share my knowledge and experience on subjects that I find interesting.
Last season, I started to take some time to sit down and talk to fellow POC folx in the geek community about our experiences. Now that we’re in season 2, the discussions continue. Today we have a returning special guest - writer and cosplayer, Sonni de Soto (she/her). You can find Sonni with the following links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sonni_de
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sonni_de_soto/
Linktree: https://linktr.ee/sonnidesoto
Content Warning - Mentions or Discussions of:
COVID-19
Eyes
Religion
Spoiler Warning:
The Good Place
The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Race and Culture in the Honorverse”. Please note: MarsCon 2018 was seven months before the release of Uncompromising Honor (HH14). Shadow of Victory (SI4) was the most recent novel in the current timeline.
Content Warning: Slavery does get discussed in this panel, and there are white men trying to whitesplain it away.
David Weber's Honor Harrington series presents a very diverse gambit of humans in a far future when race does not seem to matter as much as politics. Juxtaposed against our own realities, how does this fundamentally affect our perception of the Honorverse?
With: Justin Grays, Stephanie Stensland
In this episode, we discuss topics ranging from Religion and Vampires to Transformers and Star Trek.
Hosted By:
Justin (xe/xem) - https://www.justingrays.org/
Nat MN (they/them)
Sarah (she/her)
Content Warning - Mentions of:
Dysmorphia
Religion
Sex
Vampires
Werecreatures
Books/Comics/Series Referenced:
The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Cleavage Optional: Gender, Cosplay, and Genderbending Cosplay”.
Content Warning: Blackface does get mentioned during this panel.
How is the cosplay experience different for women and men? Why is genderbent cosplay so popular? What fans aren't doing it and what characters aren't being genderbent? What does this mean for trans and non-binary characters and fans?
With: Bridget Landry, Justin Grays, Kris Heding
The adventure of cleaning up audio and improving show notes from previous panels continues in today’s episode of Justin on Panels. We are still working through MarsCon 2018, with the panel “Star Trek”. Please note: at the time of recording, only season 1 of Star Trek: Discovery had been released.
A talk about the last 52 years of Star Trek, 6 Shows, and the 13 movies. Yes there will be spoilers for Star Trek Discovery.
With: Tony Artym, Elizabeth Erickson, Justin Grays, Joan Marie Verba, Stephanie Stensland
There were a couple of panels at Minicon 54 that I attended and wrote up in my retrospect post. Over the years, I have been referring back to that post and telling people which panel to look at. It has occurred to me that the panels that I’ve referred to the most need their own individual posts, and so I’m reproducing them here.
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At Minicon 2019, I attended a number of fantastic panels and took some notes at most of them. These notes reflect my thoughts as the panelists were speaking, and may not align with what the panelists meant to say.
Last week’s episode of Star Trek: Picard is “Mercy” (PIC 2x08). This is the antepenultimate episode! Thank you for joining me on this adventure.
I totally meant to post this last week, but I had a lot on my mind and a lot going on, and so it got delayed until today. The night before the penultimate episode. Oh, brains!
I react to the fourth episode of HALO on Paramount Plus. Although I have seen a number of negative reviews out of fandom, I am still enjoying the show. It is fun sci-fi from my point of view. There is a developed storyline, there is plot development, there is characters with individual motives, and it’s told in an entertaining manner that captivates my personal interest. In my personal opinion, it is good.
Tonight’s episode of Star Trek: Picard is “Monsters” (PIC 2x07). This episode deals heavily with mental health and mental illness. If you need help with mental health issues, you can look to MentalHealth.gov, United Way 211, the National Alliance on Mental Illness Helpline, or a number of local places. Help is out there.
I react to the the third episode of HALO on Paramount Plus. As someone who has not played the HALO campaigns outside of HALO: Reach, I am not overly familiar with the franchise. Therefore, my expectations aren't much more than a superficial understanding of who some of the characters are and the alien design.
I find that I am very invested in the show so far - it has the kind of storytelling that I like. Instead of being a blockbuster movie from the get-go, it builds on itself. That’s the kind of stories that I like. it’s a strong start, but not the most explosive.
Tonight’s episode of Star Trek: Picard is “Two of One” (PIC 2x06). I am out visiting family, and so my setup is slightly different. I’ll be back at my usual recording space soon. I also don’t yet have a camera, but that will happen soon. Again, thank you all for helping me get to a place where I can have a camera and for encouraging me to keep creating.
I react to the the second episode of HALO on Paramount Plus. As someone who has not played the HALO campaigns outside of HALO: Reach, I am not overly familiar with the franchise. Therefore, my expectations aren't much more than a superficial understanding of who some of the characters are and the alien design.
