review of Vikings 3.9 

Vikings.  Another close call for Paris, which again manages to hold on against a Norse onslaught.   Maybe it\'s unsuccessful because Ragnar isn\'t with them, in the throes of the wounds from the previous battle or maybe the illness that\'s wreaking havoc.   And, in the end, it\'s he who is conquered - at least, in part, spiritually.

Because, much to his people\'s horror - especially Floki - Ragnar is baptized by the reluctant French bishop.   Ragnar\'s motivation is clear and understandable.  He thinks he may be dying, and wants to be in the same heaven as his friend, Athelstan, whose conversation Ragnar so very much values.

The French bishop thinks Ragnar will go to hell, even if he is baptized.  But the immersion is a good move for the French, because it at least gives them some sort of common ground with the leader of the military demons who have been attacking them.

The indomitable Count Odo also sees that Rollo is the man to beat if Paris is to be successfully defended.   Rollo nearly reached Odo and the Princess last week, and in episode 3.9 he single-handedly stops a fearsome rolling engine of spikes that was literally chewing up the Vikings and obstructing their attack on the city.   I\'m still expecting to see some kind of relationship between Rollo and the Princess before this series is over.  She looks at him with hate, but the intensity of that emotion could at some future point go a different way.

Meanwhile,  speaking of hate, Ecbert in Wessex is getting more hateful by the hour, now taking his son\'s wife as a mistress after allowing her ear to be chopped off several episodes ago.  I can\'t recall the last time a character who seemed so decent turned bad so quickly.

The Paris action has been the best on the series so far, and I\'ll be sorry to see this season end so soon.

See also Vikings 3.1. Fighting and Farming ... Vikings 3.2: Leonard Nimoy ...Vikings 3.3: We\'ll Always Have Paris ... Vikings 3.4: They Call Me the Wanderer ... Vikings 3.5: Massacre ... Vikings 3.6: Athelstan and Floki ...Vikings 3.7: At the Gates ... Vikings 3.8: Battle for Paris

And see also Vikings 2.1-2: Upping the Ante of Conquest ... Vikings 2.4: Wise King ... Vikings 2.5: Caught in the Middle ... Vikings 2.6: The Guardians ...Vikings 2.7: Volatile Mix ... Vikings 2.8: Great Post-Apocalyptic Narrative ... Vikings Season 2 Finale: Satisfying, Surprising, Superb

And see also Vikings ... Vikings 1.2: Lindisfarne ... Vikings 1.3: The Priest ... Vikings 1.4:  Twist and Testudo ... Vikings 1.5: Freud and Family ... Vikings 1.7: Religion and Battle ... Vikings 1.8: Sacrifice

historical science fiction - a little further back in time

like alternate realities? jump into The Other Car

The Chronology Protection Case movie, with new extended ending

With The Closer now ending its Winter 2011 season, and only six episodes left to go this coming Summer of 2012, it seems a good time to as...

With The Closer ending its Summer 2011 run, and only a few episodes left for Brenda Leigh Johnson in the Winter finale, the question looms...

Who is Ben Hargrove?  He's the nom de plume - fictitious name - which Ken Cosgrove uses when his science fiction and fantasy stories ar...

Having delved into the meta-realms of unreal science fiction with Ben Hargove some five episodes ago, Mad Men 5.10 continues the enjoyabl...

Well, we got the apparent shock of the series on Game of Thrones 1.9 last night - after following the advice of the eunuch and others to c...

A Postcard from Isaac Asimov to Me - From 1979

I posted my blog about Nobel Laureate Paul Krugman and Isaac Asimov in several other venues last night, including the Daily Kos , where a ...

An excellent, nerve-wracking, powerhouse Season 2 finale of The Following tonight, in which, against all odds - almost no one significant ...

Hey, you've all seen that Citibank commercial, with the woman climbing to the top of an awesome rock formation, and another woman belti...

I caught the first three episodes of the new season of Dexter last night - Season 7, set to premiere on Showtime September 30 - courtesy o...

Vikings Season 2 Finale: Satisfying, Surprising, Superb

A thoroughly satisfying Vikings Season 2 finale tonight, the surprising course of which had me fooled until the truth was revealed. I ad...

radio stations that have played tracks from

Twice Upon a Rhyme ... JackMix.FM ... RockOn365 ... Garage Lombus ... Way Off the Grid Radio ... BeautyRadio.com ... mjc Radio ... Progulus Radio ... fatBuzz ... The Rock Doctor ... Radio BGC ... Swan Fungus ... Gratitude Radio ... Travelling Underground ... Real Hit Radio ... More than Music and Memories ... Boston Internet Radio ... Memory Lane Radio with BIG BOB ... Outside the Dial ... Family Dog Radio ... Golden String Radio ... Positively Charged ... R@dio Dimension ... My Retro Radio ... Plastic Tales from the Marshmallow Dimension, WNYU, 89.1 FM, New York City ... Pete Fornatale\'s Mixed Bag, WFUV, 90.7 FM, New York City ...Click and get lucky!

The Plot to Save Socrates on 10 Perfect Summer Reads Authored by NYU Alums

This blog quoted in New York Times & Los Angeles Times & Boston Globe & The Atlantic!

TWICE UPON A RHYME on iTunes and Amazon ... SPUN DREAMS on iTunes and Amazon ...

ICYMI: recent interviews with Paul Levinson in Barren Island Books ... The Morton Report ... SpecMuse ... The Cult of Me ... Patrick Satters blog ... Hungry Writer ... Kathleen Valentine\'s blog ... Take the Plunge ... Writer\'s Bloc ... Noahkmullette-gillman blog ... Book Goodies

Shelfari: Book reviews on your book blog

Cellphone: The Story of the World\'s Most Mobile Medium and How... by Paul Levinson

Digital McLuhan #16 on Robert Anton Wilson\'s recommended book list ...

Sopranos Conference at Fordham Universty, May 22-25, 2008

Enjoy Levinson\'s Field Guide to Republican Tics

EllisLanding ... wide variety of books in excellent condition at low prices

Paul Levinson, PhD, is Professor of Communication & Media Studies at Fordham University in New York City.  His 8 nonfiction books, including The Soft Edge (1997), Digital McLuhan (1999), Realspace (2003),  Cellphone (2004), and New New Media (2009, 2nd edition 2012), have been the subject of major articles in the New York Times, Wired, the Christian Science Monitor, and have been translated into 12 languages. His science fiction novels include The Silk Code (1999, ebook 2012), Borrowed Tides (2001), TheConsciousness Plague (2002, 2013), The Pixel Eye (2003), The Plot To SaveSocrates (2006, ebook 2012), and Unburning Alexandria (2013).  His short stories have been nominated for Nebula, Hugo, Edgar, and Sturgeon Awards.  Paul Levinson appears on "The O'Reilly Factor" (Fox News), "The CBS Evening News,"  “NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” (PBS),  “Nightline” (ABC), NPR, and numerous national and international TV and radio programs. His 1972 album, Twice Upon a Rhyme, was re-issued in 2009 (CD) and 2010 (remastered vinyl). He reviews the best of television in his InfiniteRegress.tv blog, and was listed in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s “Top 10 Academic Twitterers” in 2009.

Chronicle of Higher Education puts Paul Levinson in Top 10 (#7) of Academic "High Flyers" on Twitter ... Online University Data puts PL in "Top 50 Online University Professors on Twitter Worth Following"...

Dear Paul, I just dreamed of airships flying between raindrops. I just returned from 2042 CE, where I sold my hardcover copy of The Plot to Save Socrates for seventy million Neo-Euros, because it had your response to this e-mail from way back in 2007 scotch-taped onto the inside of the cover. A Paul Levinson collector paid top Neo-Euro, because of the authentic archaic e-mail printout from you. It turns out that not many of your e-mails from before your tenure as CEO of HBO/Cinemax and terms as United Nations Secretary General will survive that far into the future. So, please respond to this e-mail, to help found my great-grandchildren\'s fortune. My Will will stipulate that they must share with your great grandchidren. Thanks! Tom

President, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, 1998-2001

I’m proud to be on the May 8 page of this calendar, with the following quote:

"What begins as a seemingly innocent campaign against indecency … always segues in short order into political censorship."

YouTube one-on-one with Bill O\'Reilly, Patrick Buchanan, Jesse Ventura, James Cameron, more

Educated Tastes food, drink, restaurants, recipes, groceries

Reverbnation Twice Upon a Rhyme and Spun Dreams albums

12 Monkeys Season 1 Finale: "Time Travel to Create...

Thomas Maier: Masters of Sex and Biography Come to...

science fiction magazines for sale: Analog, Fantasy and Science Fiction, Locus

"the only people who have proof of their sanity are those who have been discharged from mental institutions"— Marshall McLuhan

The Factor about the private lives of news anchors

James Harris covers my "Looking for Sunsets (in the Early Morning)"

winner Locus Award for Best First Science Fiction Novel, 2000

"Forensic detective Phil D’Amato is one of my favorite characters" --Connie Willis

"A superb and often amusing account of one of the greatest revolutions in human history" --Arthur C. Clarke

100 rare + unreleased tracks were on sale April 18-21, 2011. All proceeds went to help Japan! Thanks for your generosity! Tracks included Tori Amos, Sara Bareilles, Josh Ritter ... and Paul Levinson singing "Sunshine\'s Mine"!

Twice Upon a Rhyme reviewed in Jan-Feb 2011 Shindig Magazine

Paul Levinson appears on "The O\'Reilly Factor" (Fox News), "The CBS Evening News," "Nightline" (ABC), the "NewsHour with Jim Lehrer" (PBS), "The Dylan Ratigan Show" (MSNBC) and frequently on NPR and all-news radio...