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Broadswords and Blasters Issue 5: Pulp Magazine with Modern Sensibilities
In this issue we’ve got a tale loosely based on the legend of Yennenga of Burkina Faso. What happens when the prophesied warrior wants something more out of life than warfare?
When the palace guards stage a coup against the royal family, will the young daughter of the family escape to a new world or stay where her home and heart are?
What happens when a small town calls out to the evil that dwells in dark places, and the evil answers?
Can a small contingent of warriors hold back the villainous forces of Kagan Kadir, whose lieutenants are each more horrific than the last?
Stranded on a planet, can a frontier space man escape? If he leaves, what will he be forced to leave behind?
A man can’t remember how he got on the train. He doesn’t know the other passengers, but each has a story to tell. What kind of destination is Oblivion anyway?
And finally, our cover story—to what ends will an emperor go to become a god, and what might it cost a man to oppose him?
When the palace guards stage a coup against the royal family, will the young daughter of the family escape to a new world or stay where her home and heart are?
What happens when a small town calls out to the evil that dwells in dark places, and the evil answers?
Can a small contingent of warriors hold back the villainous forces of Kagan Kadir, whose lieutenants are each more horrific than the last?
Stranded on a planet, can a frontier space man escape? If he leaves, what will he be forced to leave behind?
A man can’t remember how he got on the train. He doesn’t know the other passengers, but each has a story to tell. What kind of destination is Oblivion anyway?
And finally, our cover story—to what ends will an emperor go to become a god, and what might it cost a man to oppose him?
100 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 6, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 5, 2018
DISCLOSURE: My writing has been purchased by, and published in, a different issue of this periodical.
As the new wave of pulp periodicals advance beyond their initial issues, they’re starting to take on individual identities and approaches towards the genre. B&B bills itself as “a Pulp Magazine with Modern Sensibilities,” so it’s unsurprising that cultural diversity is a major element of its editorial voice; issue five prominently features both Wuxia and tales born of the folklore of Sub-Saharan Africa.
As I’ve written elsewhere, though, for me the standout element of B&B is the sheer originality of the story concepts. It’s all action-focused pulp, mind you, but Gomez and Mount find room within the genre for material that’s weird in the best sense of the word. Previous issues included material which, while original and well-executed, was clearly influenced by authors such as Lovecraft or Farmer. The stuff in Issue #5, by contrast comes hurtling at the reader from no easily discernible source, like a meteor out of a clear blue sky. Is this a Brechtian take on a monster movie I’m reading? Is this an honest-to-God medieval ballad? I love that this stuff makes it to market in the modern decentralized publishing environment. I love that there’s a particular market that appears to prioritize it.
Issue #5 is pretty clearly B&B’s strongest in overall quality. Any pastiche of styles and concepts this diverse is going to produce a story or two that isn’t to an individual reader’s particular taste. But it’s a question of taste, not of quality, IMO. Everything in here is written at a standard that would make it a highlight of any given past issue.
Particular attention, however, must be paid to L Chan’s “Petals, Falling Like Memories,” which is line-perfect and rich in both conceptual clarity and descriptive action. This is the best single thing B&B has published to date, an award-worthy piece of fiction that can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with anything produced by the new generation of pulps.
With the pulp action having achieved a consistently high level and the magazine’s vision and voice clearly established, I’d kind of like to see B&B start experimenting at the design level. For instance, the no-frills, just-the-story-ma’am approach to internal layout might be worth reconsidering—some of these stories beg for internal artwork, or at least for some variation in the wall of text. Or maybe that’s just a kindle thing; as a bit of a luddite who’s reading on one for the first time, I’m unsure.
As the new wave of pulp periodicals advance beyond their initial issues, they’re starting to take on individual identities and approaches towards the genre. B&B bills itself as “a Pulp Magazine with Modern Sensibilities,” so it’s unsurprising that cultural diversity is a major element of its editorial voice; issue five prominently features both Wuxia and tales born of the folklore of Sub-Saharan Africa.
As I’ve written elsewhere, though, for me the standout element of B&B is the sheer originality of the story concepts. It’s all action-focused pulp, mind you, but Gomez and Mount find room within the genre for material that’s weird in the best sense of the word. Previous issues included material which, while original and well-executed, was clearly influenced by authors such as Lovecraft or Farmer. The stuff in Issue #5, by contrast comes hurtling at the reader from no easily discernible source, like a meteor out of a clear blue sky. Is this a Brechtian take on a monster movie I’m reading? Is this an honest-to-God medieval ballad? I love that this stuff makes it to market in the modern decentralized publishing environment. I love that there’s a particular market that appears to prioritize it.
Issue #5 is pretty clearly B&B’s strongest in overall quality. Any pastiche of styles and concepts this diverse is going to produce a story or two that isn’t to an individual reader’s particular taste. But it’s a question of taste, not of quality, IMO. Everything in here is written at a standard that would make it a highlight of any given past issue.
Particular attention, however, must be paid to L Chan’s “Petals, Falling Like Memories,” which is line-perfect and rich in both conceptual clarity and descriptive action. This is the best single thing B&B has published to date, an award-worthy piece of fiction that can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with anything produced by the new generation of pulps.
With the pulp action having achieved a consistently high level and the magazine’s vision and voice clearly established, I’d kind of like to see B&B start experimenting at the design level. For instance, the no-frills, just-the-story-ma’am approach to internal layout might be worth reconsidering—some of these stories beg for internal artwork, or at least for some variation in the wall of text. Or maybe that’s just a kindle thing; as a bit of a luddite who’s reading on one for the first time, I’m unsure.
April 29, 2020
Like the previous volumes, this one was also a mixed bag with some good and some 'meh' stories.
1. Alison McBain's 'After War': A bright, harsh, linear story. Ended a bit too swiftly to develop greater emotional depth.
2. Aaron Emmel's 'Irini': Read like a supercharged foreword to a fully-fledged fantasy— that we are probably NEVER going to get! Now, how frustrating is that?
3. J. Rohr's 'Let It All Bleed It': The best piece of this book— with dark humour and surprising pools of darkness within.
4. David F. Shultz's 'Jerold's Stand': Good, clean fantasy that made me ask for more. Alas, that was not to be found here!
5. Dianne M. Williams' 'Giving up the Ghost': A bit excessively surreal for new pulp.
6. Tom Howard's 'Last Train to Oblivion': Awesome! The final twist completely stunned me.
7. L. Chan's 'Petals, Falling Like Memories': Meh!
I would try to find out more works written by some of these authors. That would be my takeaway here.
Your call.
1. Alison McBain's 'After War': A bright, harsh, linear story. Ended a bit too swiftly to develop greater emotional depth.
2. Aaron Emmel's 'Irini': Read like a supercharged foreword to a fully-fledged fantasy— that we are probably NEVER going to get! Now, how frustrating is that?
3. J. Rohr's 'Let It All Bleed It': The best piece of this book— with dark humour and surprising pools of darkness within.
4. David F. Shultz's 'Jerold's Stand': Good, clean fantasy that made me ask for more. Alas, that was not to be found here!
5. Dianne M. Williams' 'Giving up the Ghost': A bit excessively surreal for new pulp.
6. Tom Howard's 'Last Train to Oblivion': Awesome! The final twist completely stunned me.
7. L. Chan's 'Petals, Falling Like Memories': Meh!
I would try to find out more works written by some of these authors. That would be my takeaway here.
Your call.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews