I’m reminded of “The Hero as Werwolf” by Gene Wolfe, another very dark left-behind-by-the-singularity vision.

What the...?

<blanket type="wet">RC blimp</blanket>

Charlie, you didn’t even mention the striking familiarity of the title!

I agree that the little future-history rant at the beginning is particularly nasty, but since the viewpoint character is <spoiler>a delusional megalomaniac</spoiler>, one reasonable reading is that <spoiler>all the SFal elements except The King in Yellow are parts of his delusion.</spoiler>

The King In Yellow isn’t even remotely a novel—it’s a collection of barely-related short stories, wildly uneven in quality. The first story, The Repairer of Reputations, I would totally vote for for a short story Hugo. There is a lot that is confusing and unsatisfying about it, but as with much of Phil Dick, that only…

When I started work on my werewolf story, I didn’t want to waste time fretting about the viewpoint character’s name, so I just called him Ota, from prOTAgonist. I ended up sticking with it, and the story did pretty well.

I think you should provide more detailed instructions on what the correct hairstyles for artists should be. Otherwise, people of goodwill might accidentally choose looks that you have deemed unacceptable.

Voted Most Likely to be Mistaken for a Very Buff Otter

Per your larger point, I should confess I have neither read the book nor watched the movies, and have no intention to do either.

I actually think Stark is a great example of what I'm talking about. His inventions cannot be replicated or reverse-engineered—they spring uniquely from his personal genius, his blueprints more like spell scrolls than tech in the real world.

In defense of the wonky technology stuff, it sounds not a hair different from the way technological innovation works in every superhero comic ever, and 95% of SF. Even some very skillful storytellers can't resist playing with the Lone Science Genius trope.

My goodness that was comprehensive.

...and ride recumbents??

You seem to be using "hipsters" to mean "people who like things I don't, and are therefore all the same."

Oh noes! Someone is dressing up as a cartoon character in their spare time for the wrong reasons!

Isn't that two words?

Amanda Waller, though DC has "fixed" her appearance in New 52

Sexy Fat Female Captain America is my new hero.

I think, in the second paragraph, "controversy" is a problematically gentle euphemism for "scientific fraud."