One of the most reviled tropes in speculative fiction - at least recently - is that of the 'chosen one'. A single character who is handed a destiny often with special powers built in. This is especially the case in YA fantasy and sci-fi - which, incidentally is where a lot of sneering at this trope comes from. The dragons maintain, however, that 'the chosen one' is not a bad trope in and of itself. While it can certainly be handled badly, done correctly it forms the backbone of a fantasy tradition that pre-dates the novel and can be traced back thousands of years. This week Jules and Madeleine delve into the history of this trope and how it can be used well. On the slab this week Buffy the Vampire Slayer, A Court of Thorns and Roses - Sarah J Maas, He-man (circa 1980s) and many more.
Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Episode 353: High Fidelity and Historical Accuracy - Do Adaptations have a Duty to be Accurate
Episode 352: 2022 A Space Oddity - Sci-fi (& Fantasy) Tropes which Don’t Work
Episode 351: Picture This - Enhancing Scenes with the Right Frame in Speculative Fiction
Episode 350: When Pain Says No - Chronic Illness Representation in Speculative Fiction
Episode 349: The Stones Remember - Cursed Places of the UK
Episode 348: Written in Blood - Vampires of the UK and Ireland
Episode 347: Bat Beasts Kellas Cats and Wolf-men - Lesser Known Cryptids of Britain and Ireland Part 2
Episode 346: Wodewose, Owlman & Morag - Lesser Known Cryptids of Britain & Ireland
Episode 345: Once More with Feeling - The Successes and Failures of Musical Episodes in Genre TV Shows
Episode 344: Enough to Make a Cat Laugh - Tracing the Origins of Puss in Boots
Episode 343: Exiles, OutCasts and Outsiders - Solitary Villains and Isolated Heroes
Episode 342: Distant Fathers 2D Beefcakes and Tortured Villains - Sexist Tropes Against Men in Speculative Fiction
Episode 341: True Beauty is Found Within - Tracing the Origins of Beauty & the Beast
Episode 340: There is none so capable as Anne - Why we should celebrate gentle characters
Episode 339: You Can’t Take the Sky From Me - Weird Westerns and Why We love Them
Episode 338: There are Wolves in the Woods - What Folklore Can Teach Us About Storytelling
Episode 337: Relatable or Debateable - Avoiding Mediocre Main Characters in Speculative Fiction.
Episode 336: The Lesser of Two Evils - Creating Moral Dilemmas in Speculative Fiction
Episode 335: Cottage Core & Interdimensional Cafes - Cosy Speculative Fiction
Episode 334: Devotion, Betrayal & Misadventure - Queer Romance in Speculative Fiction
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