Watchmen, The Mandalorian, more up for Hugo Awards—George R.R. Martin to host

Every year, science fiction and fantasy creatives gather at the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) and attend the Hugo Awards, which have been handed out since 1953. These awards honor the very best in the genre, from movies to TV shows to books to comics and beyond.

This year’s Worldcon was scheduled to run from July 29 to August 2 in New Zealand, but like many other public events this year, it’s been cancelled due to the coronavirus. However, organizers have arranged for the event to happen virtually, so people will still be honored.

Which people? Well, the Hugo nominations were just released. There are a lot of categories involved, including Best Short Story, Best Editor (Short and Long-Form), Best Fan Writer, and many more, but here are some of the highlights:

Best Novel

• The City in the Middle of the Night, by Charlie Jane Anders (Tor; Titan)
• Gideon the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir (Tor.com Publishing)
• The Light Brigade, by Kameron Hurley (Saga; Angry Robot UK)
• A Memory Called Empire, by Arkady Martine (Tor; Tor UK)
• Middlegame, by Seanan McGuire (Tor.com Publishing)
• The Ten Thousand Doors of January, by Alix E. Harrow (Redhook; Orbit UK)

Best Series

• The Expanse, by James S. A. Corey (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
• InCryptid, by Seanan McGuire (DAW)
• Luna, by Ian McDonald (Tor; Gollancz)
• Planetfall series, by Emma Newman (Ace; Gollancz)
• Winternight Trilogy, by Katherine Arden (Del Rey; Del Rey UK)
• The Wormwood Trilogy, by Tade Thompson (Orbit US; Orbit UK)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form

• Avengers: Endgame, screenplay by Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely, directed by Anthony Russo and Joe Russo (Marvel Studios)
• Captain Marvel, screenplay by Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck and Geneva Robertson-Dworet, directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Walt Disney Pictures/Marvel Studios/Animal Logic (Australia))
• Good Omens, written by Neil Gaiman, directed by Douglas Mackinnon (Amazon Studios/BBC Studios/Narrativia/The Blank Corporation)
• Russian Doll (Season One), created by Natasha Lyonne, Leslye Headland and Amy Poehler, directed by Leslye Headland, Jamie Babbit and Natasha Lyonne (3 Arts Entertainment/Jax Media/Netflix/Paper Kite Productions/Universal Television)
• Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, screenplay by Chris Terrio and J.J. Abrams, directed by J.J. Abrams (Walt Disney Pictures/Lucasfilm/Bad Robot)
• Us, written and directed by Jordan Peele (Monkeypaw Productions/Universal Pictures)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form

• The Good Place: “The Answer”, written by Daniel Schofield, directed by Valeria Migliassi Collins (Fremulon/3 Arts Entertainment/Universal Television)
• The Expanse: “Cibola Burn”, written by Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck and Naren Shankar, directed by Breck Eisner (Amazon Prime Video)
• Watchmen: “A God Walks into Abar”, written by Jeff Jensen and Damon Lindelof, directed by Nicole Kassell (HBO)
• The Mandalorian: “Redemption”, written by Jon Favreau, directed by Taika Waititi (Disney+)
• Doctor Who: “Resolution”, written by Chris Chibnall, directed by Wayne Yip (BBC)
• Watchmen: “This Extraordinary Being”, written by Damon Lindelof and Cord Jefferson, directed by Stephen Williams (HBO)

Naturally, I’m most interested in the TV category. For me, it would come down to a fight between “This Extraordinary Being” on Watchmen and “Redemption” on The Mandalorian, both terrific episodes of TV. 2019 was a banger year for sci-fi and fantasy.

If you want to vote on the winners, you can, but you have to become a “supporting member” of the convention, which will cost you at least $50. If you’re interested, check out the WorldCon site.

What’s more, A Song of Ice and Fire author George R.R. Martin will be hosting this year’s awards — or rather he’s the “toastmaster,” to use the con’s language. “I am still the Toastmaster, as it happens, but I guess that now I am going to be a Virtual Toastmaster,” he wrote on his Not a Blog. “Alternatively, I could just tie the rockets to the legs of ravens… really big ravens…”

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h/t Syfy Wire