OK - Steampunk - LOVE IT

This is simply a link to another blog. BUT, the topic is Steampunk, which is "a sub-genre of science fiction and fantasy featuring advanced machines and other technology based on steam power of the 19th century and taking place in a recognizable historical period or a fantasy world." Steampunk is based on cyberpunk from the mid to late 80s and has progressed into many things - artwork (Thomas Willeford, Joshua Hipplethwaite <-- great names, btw), novels, movies (Time Machine, Golden Compass, Sherlock Holmes, Wily Wonka, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen), blogs upon blogs, video games (Myst), animations (Monty Python), TV shows (Doctor Who, Warehouse 13), fashion (Etsy is full of it!), and even a Facebarf page, which leads its visitors to a company's website.  Steampunk's deepest roots go back to the 19th century with H.G. Wells and Emily Dickinson.

The attractions it holds for me are in the details, the metalwork, the sub-textual darkness (Emily Dickinson), the story, the old mixing with the futuristic.  This Candy Factory is a prime example of the intrigue, the beauty, and especially the underlying darkness or sadness of some of Steampunk's "message", if you will. Here are pictures lifted from the linked website before:

 

The sad part is that Steampunk, as we know and love it, might be over and done. It appears in a Justin Bieber video (Santa Claus is Coming to Town) and it's TERRIBLE. I'm not even going to entertain it with a link here. I don't want to promote that. It's plastic and out of context (IMHO). Critics are saying the video is the demise of Steampunk and the "movement" will wain as a result. I would  hope that the likes of Justin Bieber wouldn't have THAT great an influence on a worldwide trend.