Editor | Guy Haley |
---|---|
Categories | Science fiction |
Frequency | Bimonthly |
First issue | May 2007 [1] |
Final issue Number | October 2009 21 |
Company | Blackfish Publishing |
Country | United Kingdom |
Language | English |
Website | www.blackfishpublishing.com |
ISSN | 1753-9692 |
Death Ray was a British magazine [1] [2] devoted to science fiction and fantasy in all its forms, especially media-related topics and novels. It was published every two months, with the first issue going on sale in May 2007. [1] Typical issues were 132 pages, perfect bound, on glossy paper.
Death Ray was created by Matt Bielby, the ex-Future Publishing staff member who was editor [2] on some of that company's significant titles, [3] including Total Film magazine and SFX magazine, the dominant SF title. Death Ray is published by Blackfish Publishing, Bielby's magazine company, based in Bath, UK. [2]
At their launches in 2007 Death Ray and SciFiNow , launched April 2007, were the first magazines in recent years to challenge SFX's dominance of the science fiction magazine market in the UK [4] but neither has yet to approach SFX in terms of popularity or sales[ citation needed ]. (A UK version of the American science fiction magazine Starlog was published for a couple years beginning in May 2000.) However, the magazine has been described by one source as wordier and offering greater depth [5] than its two main competitors.
In August 2008, Blackfish Publishing announced it had been bought by Rebellion Developments, the video game producer who already publish 2000 AD and Abaddon Books. At that point, Death Ray changed to a new format (longer but quarterly) to allow Blackfish to launch other monthly special-interest titles such as Filmstar , [6] though the title is now bimonthly. [7]
In October 2009, it was announced that Death Ray was to cease production, with issue 21 being the last in its run. [8]
Regular sections of the magazine include: Heat Ray, a news section; New Gods, featuring interviews with current 'hot properties' in science fiction; Deep Thought, with opinion and 'think piece' columns; and Dark Stars, the name of the reviews section, particularly notable for its extensive coverage of books[ citation needed ].
Bielby has said[ citation needed ] that the magazine's name is influenced by a combination of a) the name of the influential 1990s Californian music magazine Ray Gun , b) the name of the Martian 'heat-ray' weapon from H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds (1898), c) the single issue story 'The Death Ray' from Daniel Clowes' Eightball comic book, d) an Australian comic book from WW2 called The Death Ray, and e) issue 64 of Marvel Comics' The Mighty Avengers , '...Like a Death Ray From the Sky!' (May 1969).
Forrest James Ackerman was an American magazine editor; science fiction writer and literary agent; a founder of science fiction fandom; a leading expert on science fiction, horror, and fantasy films; a prominent advocate of the Esperanto language; and one of the world's most avid collectors of genre books and film memorabilia. He was based in Los Angeles, California.
Syfy is an American basic cable television channel, which is owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division and business segment of Comcast's NBCUniversal. Launched on September 24, 1992, the channel broadcasts programming relating to the science fiction, horror, and fantasy genres. As of January 2016, Syfy is available to 92.4 million households in America.
Dreamwatch was a British magazine covering science fiction and fantasy films, books and television programmes.
SFX is a British magazine covering the topics of science fiction and fantasy. Its name is a reference to the abbreviated form of "special effects".
Radell Faraday Nelson was an American science fiction author and cartoonist most famous for his 1963 short story "Eight O'Clock in the Morning", which was later used by John Carpenter as the basis for his 1988 film They Live.
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A science fiction magazine is a publication that offers primarily science fiction, either in a hard-copy periodical format or on the Internet. Science fiction magazines traditionally featured speculative fiction in short story, novelette, novella or novel form, a format that continues into the present day. Many also contain editorials, book reviews or articles, and some also include stories in the fantasy and horror genres.
Locus: The Magazine of The Science Fiction & Fantasy Field, founded in 1968, is an American magazine published monthly in Oakland, California. It is the news organ and trade journal for the English-language science fiction and fantasy fields. It also publishes comprehensive listings of all new books published in the genres. The magazine also presents the annual Locus Awards. Locus Online was launched in April 1997, as a semi-autonomous web version of Locus Magazine.
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David A. McIntee is a British writer.
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Mundane science fiction (MSF) is a niche literary movement within science fiction that developed in the early 2000s, with principles codified by the "Mundane Manifesto" in 2004, signed by author Geoff Ryman and "The Clarion West 2004 Class". The movement proposes "mundane science fiction" as its own subgenre of science fiction, typically characterized by its setting on Earth or within the Solar System; a lack of interstellar travel, intergalactic travel or human contact with extraterrestrials; and a believable use of technology and science as it exists at the time the story is written or a plausible extension of existing technology. There is debate over the boundaries of MSF and over which works can be considered canonical. Rudy Rucker has noted MSF's similarities to hard science fiction and Ritch Calvin has pointed out MSF's similarities to cyberpunk. Some commentators have identified science fiction films and television series which embody the MSF ethos of near-future realism.
Matt Bielby is a magazine editor based in the UK. He is best known for launching and editing many successful titles in assorted markets during the 1990s, mostly on the subjects of computer and video games, and film and television. These include .net, Amiga Power, Super Play and PC Gamer.
Blackfish Publishing was a magazine publishing company based in Bath, UK. Its first title was Death Ray, a science fiction and fantasy title.
Flash Gordon is a short-lived science fiction television series that debuted on Sci-Fi in the United States on August 10, 2007 and continued airing new episodes through February 8, 2008. It has also appeared on the British/Ireland variant of Sci-Fi and Space in Canada. The series was developed by Peter Hume, who served as executive producer/show runner and wrote the first and last episodes, among others.
SciFiNow was a British magazine published every four weeks by Kelsey Media in the United Kingdom, covering the science fiction, fantasy and horror genres. It launched in April 2007, with the print publication ceasing in May 2020.
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