Escape Pod 45: Are You Ready For the End of the World?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:30 — 18.9MB)

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Show Notes

Rated PG. Contains a planet in peril, almost-helpful aliens, and a sociopathic football player. One or more of the three fail to come out on top.

Referenced sites:
Infection by Scott Sigler

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Are You Ready For the End of the World?

by Danny Adams

Would you like to know how to escape the imminent destruction of the Earth?

Sure, we all would.

And this site can help. Our specially-trained instructors can assist you in putting together your very own personal starship to get off this planet before its obliteration.

Escape Pod 44: Show and Tell

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:52 — 16.4MB)

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Show Notes

Rated PG. Contains mild scenes of violence enacted by somewhat strange children.

Referenced sites:
The Numbers – Movie Budgets
Lies and Little Deaths: A Virtual Anthology
The Speech Accent Archive

Show and Tell

By Greg van Eekhout

Dex asks if he can keep the bullet, and Brindi says to give it back, and Teacher reminds her to say please. Brindi agrees to throw bullets at the rest of us, so she does the thing with her finger and it’s BOOM, BOOM, BOOM and whip-whip-whip for the next few minutes.

When she’s done there’s smoke in the air and it stinks and we applaud and give back her bullets. Brindi has had a great show, and I don’t know how anyone can beat it.

Show and Tell is important because it prepares us to be impressive.

Escape Pod 43: Little Worker

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 36:12 — 24.9MB)

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Show Notes

Rated X. Contains sex, violence, domestic slavery, and furries you don’t want to mess with.

Referenced sites:
Voices: New Media Fiction
Girl Genius Radio Theatre
The Podcast Pedant

Little Worker

By Paul Di Filippo

At home, Little Worker could do pretty much as she pleased, as long as she was there should Mister Michael need her. At the office–and in other public places–she had to be more circumspect and diligent. Little Worker was on duty her, in a way that was more intense than behind the electrified fence and active sensors of the estate. (Once, one of the men at the Training School had said: “Little Worker, you are the most diligent companion I’ve ever trained.” The men of the school had been nice, in their stern way. But no one was like Mister Michael.)

Today, however, Little Worker’s mind was not on her work.

Genres:

Escape Pod 42: Practical Villainy

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:05 — 18.6MB)

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Show Notes

Rated PG. Fictional animals were harmed in the making of this podcast. Also knights, damsels, dragons, and medieval economies.

Referenced sites:
Dragon Page Wingin’ It

Musical guest: Jonathan Coulton.

Practical Villainy

By Janni Lee Simner

The first thing I want you to know is that I drowned those kittens for a reason. Villains rarely do anything without purpose, and I’m no exception, to that or any other rule. Irrational, passionate acts are for heroes, with their bright armor and their grand ideas, their conviction that with enough heart they can right any wrong, unravel any curse. My dragons were once well-fed on their kind, and their skulls still decorate the spikes above my gates.

EP Flash: Fools Seldom Differ

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 3:24 — 2.4MB)

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Show Notes

Rated G. Kids, don’t try this at home.

Fools Seldom Differ

By Jeff Noyle

The thing about the Ice is, you can get really, really, really bored. I spent a whole week here yesterday. So, you know that giant slanting floe with the scoop-up at the end that I sent a picture of? Carls and I said “oh cool, that would make a great ski-jump.” Only I was dumb enough actually to try it. About two minutes ago.

Escape Pod 41: Ambient Sleaze

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 40:01 — 27.5MB)

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Show Notes

Rated R. Contains profanity, some physical violence, and violence against dignity.

Ambient Sleaze

by Jeffrey R. DeRego

“Good god, who’d do something like that?” Sarah rummaged through her purse for a handkerchief but couldn’t seem to focus on the task. Her mind was consumed with images of Tony’s perforated body.

“Well, I’ve seen the Tony Autumn Show, so we’ve got an APB out on everyone with a sense of moral decency and every freak, transvestite, midget wrestler, incestuous dad, jilted lover…”

EP Flash: One Million Years B.F.E.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 11:52 — 8.2MB)

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Show Notes

Rated G. Contains ignoble savagery and predomestic strife.

One Million Years B.F.E.

By Merrie Haskell

Am determined to become strong, lithe, deadly, noble cave-woman type figure, √° la Ayla of Clan of the Cave Bear. I will fashion stone tools, hunt and gather food and live pristine, pure life of Homo Erectus-type person–at one with nature. Ah. Air is so fresh. Quite lovely.

Escape Pod 40: Even Vadsø Thaws

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 20:05 — 13.8MB)

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Show Notes

Rated PG. Contains themes of ecoterrorism and global disaster. If you can explain that to your kids, it’s family-safe.

Referenced sites:
Short-Short Stories by Bruce Holland Rogers
SciFi Dimensions

Musical guest: Red Hunter.

Even Vadsø Thaws

By Bruce Holland Rogers

The only person who might understand is Sponheim, the Corrections Sociologist. He just arrived. It’s his job to understand me thoroughly and to write a report that his successors will use to decide if it’s safe to revive me. His report will help them decide if I am no longer a threat to society because society has changed enough to deal with me, or has learned to treat behaviors like mine.

“I am already remorseful!” I tell him at our first interview. “I won’t do it again!” We are sitting at a table by the water. A light mist falls. “I shouldn’t have done it, shouldn’t even have thought about it. Once, I was one of the people fighting to preserve the last wild polar bears! I wanted to protect the earth!” I get myself worked up. I am close to tears.

EP Flash: The Team-Mate Reference Problem in Final-Stage Demon Confrontation

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 8:22 — 5.8MB)

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Show Notes

Rated G. Important safety tip. (Thanks, Egon.)

The Team-Mate Reference Problem in Final-Stage Demon Confrontation

By Constance Cooper

Colleagues, ours is a uniquely demanding profession. In no other job do you endanger your coworker’s soul if you call out to him in the course of your duties. But since a demon has power over you once it knows your name, well-meant warnings such as “Buck! Behind you!” can have tragic consequences.

Genres:

Escape Pod 39: My Friend is a Lesbian Zombie

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 37:05 — 25.5MB)

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Show Notes

Rated X. Contains profanity, sexual situations, and the undead, in various combinations.

Referenced sites:
The Sci Phi Show
Tangent Short Fiction Review
The Town Drunk
Radio A.D.D.

My Friend is a Lesbian Zombie

By Eugie Foster

I don’t know how it happened. I’m the last person I’d go to if I were a zombie; I’m not into the occult thing at all. But I was the only friend Mandy had in this city, so she came to me with her sob story. Lucky me. So there she was, kicked back in my bed, having herself a good, long cry and I was stuck with her, wondering how long until she began stinking. That was really unfair of me, I know, but there was a goddamn walking, talking corpse snuggled up in my good sheets and I was a little concerned about it.