Sweeping pandemics turn up often in fantasy and sci-fi, whether they form part of the back drop or the main thrust of the plot. There is something about a plague that captures the imagination and short cuts our survival circuits in a way that other natural disasters - Earthquakes, Tsunamis, Volcanic eruptions - just doesn't touch. So what is it about a good pandemic that grips us? From post apocalyptic fiction discussing the dual nature of morality, such as Stephen King's The Stand or Kirkman, Moore and Adlard's The Walking Dead, to epic fantasy looking at the creation of anti heroes, such as Scott Lynch's Gentleman Bastard series or Give the Dark My Love by Beth Revis, a deadly plague hits our deepest fears where other acts of god just don't reach. This week the dragons take a tour through pandemics in speculative fiction, starting with the history and epidemiology of The Black Death and The Great Plague in Europe, following the scars that exist on our racial memories even today and following the trail to its conclusion in SFF. A wild ride and not for the squeamish!
Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 67: That Ship has Sailed - Happy Endings, Fan Service & the Appropriate Finale
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 66: Strange Familiarity - the Uncanny in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 65: The Strange Case of Professor Lupin - the Subversive Power of Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 64: Rogues, Renegades and Robin Hood - Our Favourite Outlaws in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 63: Mentors, Wizards and Wise Women - Portrayals of the Elderly in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 62: Occult Detectives - Urban Fantasy and Mystery
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 61: Lords of Misrule - Tricksters, Con-artists and Grifters
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 60: Comic Can't - Conventions, Talks and Launches
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 59: Room 101 - the Concept of Dystopian Hell
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 58: One Ring to Rule them All - Magical Artefacts that made the Hero
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 57: Defying Gravity - the Incredible Unlikeliness of Musical Theatre
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 56: Symbiosis - Why we need Writing Buddies
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 55: Break 'em to Make 'em - the Heroes who Rise from the Ashes
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 54: Frost Giants to Snow Queens - the Frozen Heart of Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 53: The Wizard of Oz to Wicked - Adaptations and Reimagings in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 52: Dragons, Wyverns and Wyrms - Happy Anniversary!
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 51: Happily Ever After - the Evolution of the Disney Princess
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 50: Dreamscapes and Nightmares - Writing the Unconscious
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 49: Barghests, Bogey Beasts and Black Shuck - Black Dogs of the British Isles
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 48: Mermaids, Selkies and Sirens - Legends of the Sea
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