The Quatermass Book-Reading Blog 8: Lucky Number for Chinese

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Book 15...

REVIEW: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Official Movie Guide by Brian Sibley


It seems that this book-reading blog has a high proportion of movie making-of works. Having looked at the Harry Potter series and Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy, what should I go onto next? The answer is into Middle Earth...

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Official Movie Guide is, obviously, a making-of book for the first part of Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Hobbit. Interviews with cast and crew, and various explorations about how The Hobbit was brought to screen, are all present.

I think that a lot of my arguments about the previous making-of books also apply to this one. While excellently presented, there is a certain lack of substance at times. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot of information there that will please fans of the film series, but given the extensive pre-production woes, not to mention the logistics of the production itself (remember, the special features on the extended editions of The Lord of the Rings go for hours, probably longer than it would take to read this making-of book), I thought there'd be more material, all of it fascinating and interesting, to work with.

This isn't to say at all that the book isn;t interesting or informative. There are interviews not only with the main cast (Martin 'Bilbo' Freeman, the Dwarves, Andy 'Gollum' Serkis, and Ian 'Gandalf' McKellen), but also with other characters, like Sylvester McCoy as Radagast, or Barry Humphries as the Goblin King. One interesting interview has Andy Serkis discussing his role as second unit director, as well as a department solely dedicated to wearing down costumes so that the look lived-in.

Like all movie making-ofs I have reviewed thus far, this one is more of a triumph of style and presentation over substance. But that still doesn't meant that it isn't good. Far from it. It's very good.


9/10

First words: 'The question was: "Who are we going to get to direct this movie?".'

Last words: There's a pause, and then he adds with a smile, 'Mind you, that might be a dragon!'

Book 16...

REVIEW: Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis

World War II seems to be such a ripe setting for various works of fiction, and science fiction and fantasy seems to take root there, in which Nazis create supernatural weapons and the like. I stumbled across Bitter Seeds, the first book of the Milkweed Triptych quite by accident, but thought it worthy of further attention. The question is, was it?

The year is 1939. British spy Raybould Marsh is sent to escort an informant and his information from war-torn Spain back to Britain. But the informant mysteriously bursts into flames, and what little information Marsh gets back to his superiors is fragmentary at best, and seems to be the deluded rantings of a lunatic. But they are not, for the Nazi scientist Dr Von Westarp has found a way of creating soldiers with psychic abilities, and they intend to use them to bring Europe under Nazi rule. Marsh turns to an old friend, a warlock, for help, and it is the beginning of an escalation of World War II, where atrocities are committed by either side, and victory may be bitterly won...

Okay, so supernatural elements to the Second World War are cliched, it ain't funny. I admittedly haven't read much of this, save for the Hellboy comics, but the concept of Bitter Seeds has been done before. That it still manages to be entertaining despite this is good, but the story feels like too little stretched over too much. There's some interesting concepts, as well as what moral depths the British will plumb to defeat the Nazis, but all in all, it feels like the prelude to a bigger story, and while this is the first part of a planned trilogy, this still doesn't feel right for a standalone book.

Of the characters, the only two I feel are really interesting are the twins in the Nazi program, Klaus and Gretel. Gretel, in particular, is intriguing, and her motives are opaque, while Klaus struggles to gain the acceptance of his fellow psychics, no mean feat when he's of gypsy stock amongst Nazis. However, the other Nazis are mostly repulsive with little depth of personality. The lack of depth of personality could potentially apply to the British side. Marsh is fine enough, but he had moments where you wonder where his head is at, even considering what happens to him, and his personality seems to me to be interchangeable with warlock William Beauclerk, who is a somewhat more sympathetic, but also more shallow character.

All in all, Bitter Seeds had nice ideas and a decent enough story, but it didn't quite climb into the annals of greatness. A pity, really.


8.5/10

First words: 23 October 1920

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers.)

Book 17...

REVIEW: Batman: Hush, Volume 1 by Jeph Loeb, Jim Lee, and Scott Williams

I may have mentioned this before, but I'm actually not that big a comics fan. I know about many of the characters, but it wasn't until relatively recently that I began to look at the various famous graphic novels. However, I find myself particularly partial to Batman, and have reviewed The Killing Joke, Joker, and Batman: Year One in previous iterations of this book-reading blog. But I also intend to read other pivotal books in the Batman series. Years ago, I read Jeph Loeb's The Long Halloween, telling of the fall of Harvey Dent. Now, I come to Loeb's other acclaimed Batman story, Hush...

After a fateful encounter with Killer Croc over a ransom deal, and injuring himself pursuing Catwoman as she makes off with the ransom money, Bruce Wayne is forced to call his old friend, Dr Thomas Elliot, a skilled surgeon, to save his life. Afterwards, Batman tracks Catwoman down, who is after revenge on Poison Ivy for having her under control to snatch the ransom. But even as Batman and Catwoman head to Metropolis to confront Ivy, a mysterious bandaged figure watches from the shadows, intent on putting Batman through the gauntlet...

I think part of the problem with reading the first volume of Batman: Hush is that it is meant to be an ongoing story, and so there isn't much in the way of substance and payoff. Instead, it seems to be trotting from one Batman villain to another, while the main villain, Hush, watches from the shadows. The thinness of plot is alleviated by the backstory between Bruce Wayne and Thomas Elliot, which, while a blatant comic-style retcon to the average comic reader, feels fine to me. We even have welcome appearances by Superman.

The characters are good, but save for Catwoman and Thomas Elliot, not exactly the most interesting. This does come from being a continuing serial within a comic, though, as I'd say that most readers would be far more familiar with the characters' past, and Loeb is merely exploiting the backstory's hold on dedicated readers. Which isn't a bad thing, but it does feel like one has joined the story midstream. The art is good, but not stellar.

Overall, I must confess to some small disappointment with the first volume of Batman: Hush. Perhaps things will pick up majorly in the next volume. I hope so. It's not a bad graphic novel, just not as good as I hoped.


8/10

First words: My name is Alfred Pennyworth.

Last words: HA HA HA HA.

Book 18...

REVIEW: I Am Legend by Richard Matheson


Of late, I have been trying to head back and look at older science fiction works. And amongst them is the American post-apocalyptic thriller, I Am Legend. Adapted three times for film under varying titles, this famous story updated the vampire legend in many regards. But does this book, now nearly six decades old, still have what it takes to be good today?

A combination of war and a pandemic has wiped out much of humanity. The only man who survived the plague and its aftermath is the immune Robert Neville. But he is far from alone. Cannibalistic survivors, vulnerable to sunlight and garlic and mirrors attempt to attack him each and every night. During the day, Neville goes out and kills them with stakes. Alone, and struggling to maintain his supplies, his sanity, and his survival, Neville keeps on going despite the odds. But soon, events will come to pass that may give him cause for the greatest hope, or the deepest despair...

Okay, this is not great literature, this book. It's really more of a rollicking ride that is very singular of plot and rather old-fashioned, no surprise given that it was written in the 50s. Enjoyable and exciting, but not the greatest of stories, though the twist and how it ties into the title of the novel is welcome and enjoyable, even if some of the science is rather dodgy. And the feeling of Neville's isolation is palpable.

The characters aren't that great. They're not bad or atrocious, but considering that virtually all the novel is related from the point of view of Robert Neville, this doesn't help matters. Neville himself is rather too average a protagonist, and even given his self-teaching, I'm not convinced that he has the ability to do what he managed to do with the plague, even with practice. Ruth is a more intriguing, but due to the viewpoint, hardly-developed character.

In the end, I Am Legend is a good, but not great, story. It works well enough, and is enjoyable, but it's not quite at the level I hoped it would be.


8.5/10

First words: On those cloudy days, Robert Neville was never sure when sunset came, and sometimes they were in the streets before he could get back.

Last words: I am legend.

Book 19...

REVIEW: Doctor Who: The Dalek Project by Justin Richards and Mike Collins


Doctor Who, as a series devoted to time travel, is no stranger to the First World War. Part of The War Games was set in a place that the Doctor and his companions thought to be France during that war, Silver Nemesis claims that the titular statue influenced the beginning of the war, and Human Nature/The Family of Blood was set during the eve of the war, and even had a scene set during it. And now, we come to The Dalek Project...

In France, 2017, archaeologists have excavated what they initially think is ancient ruins, but is actually a Dalek spacecraft, deep below the surface. The Doctor saves them, but he realises that this was unfinished business from a recent adventure, one where he found industrialist Lord Hellcombe in 1917 who was fabricating the ultimate war machine: the Dalek. But the Daleks he is making is with the cooperation of a single Dalek, who is the representative of a stranded Dalek spaceship. But the Dalek Project, as always, has sinister intent, and the Doctor will be hard pressed to stop the Daleks from interfering in history...

I have to admit, this story isn't a great one. It's a good one, but it's also rather familiar, seeming like an expansion of Mark Gatiss' television story Victory of the Daleks. It could have been exciting, but while not bad, it just doesn't have the right zing to it that could have elevated it. However, the concept of the Daleks' project is an intriguing one, as is a brief speculation on the part of the Doctor as to how much the Daleks have interfered in human history.

The characters also don't quite work. Maybe if this was a TV story rather than a comic story, it might have worked a little better, but few of the characters are particularly noteworthy. The art style, too, has an element of not-quite-rightness about it, although that in itself is hard to define, and there is little actually wrong with the depiction of the Doctor and the Daleks.

The Dalek Project wasn't abysmal, but it could have been better in my opinion. A shame, really.


8/10

First words: 2017- North Eastern France.

Last words: At the going down of the Sun, and in the morning, you must remember them.

Book 20...

REVIEW: Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C Clarke

Although I have read Arthur C Clarke's novel of 2001: A Space Odyssey, I haven't gotten around to reading any of his other works. However, I have decided to try and redress this deficiency in my experience, and my choice was to read one of his most famous works, Rendezvous with Rama...

In the future, a massive, cylindrical object is spotted far in space, approaching the Sun. It is almost certainly artificial, and alien. Dubbed Rama, the object soon becomes the centre of massive speculation by Earth and its colonies throughout the solar system. An expedition is soon launched to investigate the massive object, which turns out to be a vast alien spacecraft, with an entire habitat built around the inner surface of the cylinder. Unfortunately, threats both within Rama and without may be prove to be deadly to the expedition...

The writing style of Rendezvous with Rama is rather dry, and feels almost like it should belong to science fiction at least a decade older than Rama is. In addition, the plot is rather singular, being more of one incident tacked onto another. Even so, Clarke's work done shows through, and there is quite a lot of imagination going on, with some wonderful and sometimes surreal images coming forth.

Unfortunately, the characters, while decent enough, don't quite come through. All of them seem to be of the old-fashioned school of writing, and science fiction writing in particular. And there is still a cold war edge to the proceedings that also hinders any attempt at timelessness. About the only mildly interesting characters are relatively minor: the irascible Professor Olaf Davidson, and Jimmy Pak, who gets some screen time during an impromptu flight across Rama that ends badly.

Rendezvous with Rama is old-fashioned and not stellar, but one can see many seeds of greatness. Arthur C Clarke, despite his dryness, knew how to write good fiction.


8.5/10

First words: Sooner or later, it was bound to happen.

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers.)

Book 21...

REVIEW: Akira, volume 1: Tetsuo by Katsuhiro Otomo


My first encounter with the famous manga Akira was actually through its even more famous (in English speaking countries, anyway) anime adaptation. A relative of mine was watching it, and I remember the disturbing imagery, with perhaps the one staying in my mind forever being Kaori being crushed by the mutating Tetsuo, exploding into a literal bloody mess. But while I have flicked through the manga adaptation, I have never, before now, tried to read it in earnest. Now, that is being changed...

In 1992, a massive explosion engulfs Tokyo, and sets off the third World War. Nearly three decades later, Neo Tokyo has been built near the ruins, and terrorism and gang violence are frequent occurrences. Shotaro Kaneda and Tetsuo Shima are friends, and rivals, in a biker gang, but when an encounter with a strange, wizened, ancient child causes Tetsuo to be hospitalised, Kaneda makes it his mission to track down the child. But he isn't the only one. Ruthless government agents, and a group of terrorists working to bring down the government, are also interested in the child. Why does the wizened child seemingly have the power to destroy anything with his mind? Why does a government agency seem so interested in Tetsuo? And what does it have to do with the mysterious Akira?

Okay, so maybe I'm coming to this story well after I've read books inspired by Akira, but it certainly doesn't have the impact that I thought it would. It's a good story, dark and complex and promising much for the future, but it is because of the latter in particular that the story comes down a little in my estimation. It's certainly an extremely violent story, something that is offputting, even though the violence is more about gore than guts.

At this moment, the characters are yet to show much signs of development. Kaneda is a hooligan who wants to hurt a small, frail child because of the accident that put Tetsuo in hospital, and the Colonel seems rather like a stereotypical government bully, albeit one with more intelligence and pragmatism than most. Tetsuo goes through the most character development, but his swerve into madness, while well-written, seems like he has more issues with Kaneda than were immediately apparent in my reading.

All the same, the first volume of Akira, while good and promising, didn't quite deliver the goods I expected. A pity, but maybe it'll pick up as the series goes on.


8.5/10

First words: At 2:17 P.M on December 6th, 1992, a new type of bomb exploded over the metropolitan area of Japan.

Last words: Precisely!

Book 22...

REVIEW: vN: The First Machine Dynasty by Madeline Ashby


Sometimes, I stumble across books purely by happenstance, and decide to look at them because they intrigue me. vN: The First Machine Dynasty is one of them. A cyberpunk thriller that examines the next stage of robotic evolution, it was one of those things that I decided to take a chance with...

In the future, a religion known as New Eden Ministries has created a form of self-replicating robot, a variation on the von Neumann machines, to act as company to those destined to be left behind after the Rapture. But even in the wake of scandals surrounding New Eden's paedophile leader, vN robots are now commonplace, capable of growing into adulthood within a short period of time. Amy Peterson has been deliberately starved of growth-inducing materials so that her human father and robot mother can grant her a normal childhood. But when Amy's grandmother Portia storms a kindergarten graduation and attacks Amy's mother, Amy is forced to devour her grandmother, growing to adult appearance in the process. But Amy has a lot of problems on her hands now. Various organisations are interested in what makes her tick, and either want to experiment on her, or destroy her. Portia lives on as another personality within Amy. And while she has an ally in the arboreal droid Javier, she may drive him away when he learns that she has the one thing a robot shouldn't have: the ability to kill...

Okay, I have to admit. vN is a good story with a lot of potential. While the ground it has trodden has been trodden so many times before, it still finds new and at times disturbing angles, and the story makes a little more sense when one considers (as one review on Amazon points out) that this is a variation on the fairytale of Little Red Riding Hood. But perhaps it's my reading style, but I either missed a lot of background information, or else there is less written into this story than it should be. Too much of the story feels divorced from its setting, and one has a hard time figuring out everything that is going on. It feels also like a retread of not dissimilar concepts to not just Philip K Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, but also Charles Stross' Saturn's Children.

Of the characters, the most interesting are the two main ones, Amy, and Javier. Amy is perhaps the easiest to follow, as, save for the opening chapter (told from the point of view of her father), the story is from her point of view. Javier is also interesting, but either I missed things (likely), or else I didn't know why he was wanted or on the run. Unfortunately, Portia is rather stereotypical as a robot villain, and with the exception of Amy's parents, the other characters aren't exactly notable.

vN: The First Machine Dynasty was a decent enough book, but not a great one. I wish it was.


8.5/10

First words: Jack had lived through this same moment before, with human women.

Last words: "I'm not finished, yet."

Book 23...

REVIEW: Akira, volume 2 by Katsuhiro Otomo


I continue my journey through the seminal manga work of Akira. A famous cyberpunk story about psychic powers and the ruins of a modern city, Akira has been hovering at the edge of my perception for some time. So what do I make of the second volume?

Kei and Kaneda have been captured by the military. Tetsuo, his powers on the increase, has initially allowed himself to be taken in for tests, but when he learns of his fellow psychics, and the mysterious Akira, all hell breaks loose. Tetsuo is determined to free Akira, an event that everyone in the know, from the brutal Colonel to the enigmatic Lady Miyako, are certain will end in total destruction. But Tetsuo refuses to listen to reason, and it seems that the end draws nigh...

Well, this volume of the story was less scene-setting compared to the last one and more action-filled, but it is no less quality for it. Indeed, we finally get to see who Akira is, and what he looks like, a revelation that would be startling, for those not spoiled. It's a rollicking great ride, albeit not as adding to the overall story, save for the intriguing subplot involving Lady Miyako.

The characters are the same as before, more or less, and while not great, they're far from bad. However, Kei shows some unexpected abilities, helped by the three main psychics. And the Colonel begins to show some more depth as the story develops. Lady Miyako is seen briefly, but tantalisingly, hinting at a later appearance.

Akira's second volume was good enough for me to continue with this series. Not great, but intriguing and involving enough.


8.5/10

First words: Te...tsu...o...?!

Last words: EEYAAAAAAA!

Book 24...

REVIEW: Wolfbreed by S.A Swann

The increasing influence of anime and manga on Western works can't be denied, with many books nowadays taking their cues from the styles and stories of many works. However, it is rare that a story actually admits being a wholesale revisioning. S.A Swann admits in his acknowledgements that Wolfbreed is his take on the violent manga and anime series Elfen Lied, about a violent psychic offshoot of the human race called the Diclonii. Although I haven't watched the series, or read the manga, I know of its violent and dark reputation. So how would Wolfbreed fare?

Prussia, in the 13th century. The Teutonic Knights have conquered Prussia, usurping the old pagan gods and bringing in the new Christian religion. But a discovery has led to them using the wolfbreed, werewolves, in their conquests. Udolf is eighteen, and one of the few survivors of a massive attack on his village eight years before, though he lost his arm, and his family. Now living with his adoptive parents, he finds his life turned upside down when he discovers, while poaching, a naked girl about his age. A girl who has been wounded in the head, and who remembers little. But at night, she speaks, and sings, and calls herself Lilly. But Lilly, unbeknownst to Udolf, is a wolfbreed, and her master, Landkomtur Erhard of the Teutonic Knights, wants her back. And soon, a papal decree will cause trouble not just for Lilly and Udolf, but for the entire village...

The story of Wolfbreed is good and entertaining enough. Not stellar, but it was certainly interesting enough to keep my interest. It rockets along at a good pace as a historical fantasy, although despite the source material and the time, somehow, the sex feels slightly out of place. Tone down the violence a little and remove the sex, and you have a book for young adults.

The characters are fine enough, not great, but good. Udolf is a good protagonist, and Lilly, as she deals with her own inner turmoil, is an intriguing character herself. And Erhard, who could be the villain, is more complex in his view of things than any other Teutonic Knight or their papal masters. Other characters are less complex, but work fine for the story.

Wolfbreed wasn't a spectacular success, but it was still a decent book. However, the sex and violence may put off some.


8.5/10

First words: In the darkest woods in Burzenland, south of the Carpathian Mountains, a knight of the Order of the Hospital of St. Mary of the Germans in Jerusalem, Brother Semyon von Kassel, ran as if he were in pursuit of the devil himself.

Last words: Hope.

Book 25...

REVIEW: Akira, volume 3 by Katsuhiro Otomo


For the last few books, I seem to have fixated on books involving people, and particularly children, being experimented upon, and even used as weapons. vN: The First Machine Dynasty, Wolfbreed, Bitter Seeds, and of course, my continuing reading of Akira. Now onto the third volume, the story, and action, is picking up...

Kaneda and Kei have managed to escape the underground base with the powerful child psychic Akira, and Testsuo, the psychotic psychic who was once Kaneda's friend, seems to be dead, but their troubles are far from over. They have few allies on their side. Kei's former boss, Government Opposition Leader Nezu, is determined to use Akira for his own selfish ends, disobeying the will of his erstwhile benefactor, the enigmatic Lady Miyako, and he is willing to kill any who stand in his way. The Colonel, in order to stop himself from being stripped of his command, instead initiates a coup d'etat that leaves him in control of Neo-Tokyo. And Lady Miyako seems to be determined to stop Akira from devastating the city once more. But fate has other ideas, and one way or another, the inevitable confrontation will end in calamity...

This volume of Akira not only ramps up the action, but also the machinations of the various characters involved. We have no less than four factions after Akira: the resistance, who are hoping to safeguard the child; Nezu, who wants to use Akira for his own nefarious ends; and both Lady Miyako and the Colonel, who, though on opposing sides, both wish to avoid Akira causing destruction once more. The last sequence of the book, a surprising one given that we are only halfway through the saga of Akira, is also very much a shocking game changer.

Nezu is finally exposed as one of the unambiguously evil, or at least supremely self-serving, characters in the whole series. Kaneda and Kei have less development than they should, though they get some superbly awesome moments (including a destructive, and funny, tank chase that makes a similar sequence from the Bond film GoldenEye pale by comparison), and both the Colonel and Lady Miyako are developed as, if not decent people, then pragmatists who are willing to go to extremes to save people. Akira himself is an enigma, one who could easily be called flat, if it weren't for the events during the climax.

While not elevating Akira to true greatness, the third volume raises the stakes and changes the game. I'm certainly hooked, and hope to read the fourth volume very soon...


9/10

First words: AAAH--!

Last words: Sakaki...

Book 26...

REVIEW: Sherlock: The Casebook by Guy Adams


Perhaps one of the biggest success stories of the BBC in recent times has been Sherlock, Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss' modernisation of the famous Sherlock Holmes books. Currently spanning two series of three episodes each, they have engaged the public's imagination with the transplantation of Holmes and Watson, played respectively by Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, into modern times. And now, this book comes along...

Sherlock: The Casebook acts as part scrapbook to Sherlock Holmes and John Watson's adventures, from A Study in Pink, to The Reichenbach Fall. Throughout are annotations from Holmes, Watson, and Mycroft Holmes. Another part details elements of the making of the TV series, ranging from how Gatiss and Moffat came up with the concept, to interviews with the cast.

Now, the fiction section is all very well, and is good for people who can't be bothered to watch through an entire episode of the series. But there's something lacking, and quite frankly, Sherlock's notes are perhaps more aggravating than the character himself. The fiction area is thus rather dissatisfying, and I wish it didn't take up as much of the book.

The non-fiction section is far more interesting, and I wish it did take up more of the book. We get some real insight into how the series was made, and I would have liked to see more, if possible. Unfortunately, not enough was brought in, with interviews, a bit of trivia relationg to which bits of stories were put into each episode, and even some analysis of previous Sherlock Holmes adaptations. But unfortunately, not enough.

While not bad, Sherlock: The Casebook is far from great. I just wish it had more to offer.


8.5/10

First words: Say what you like about trains- and folk do, they split opinion awfully-but people have good ideas on them.

Last words: It is a mistake to theorise without all the facts.

Book 27...

REVIEW: Akira, volume 4: Kei I by Katsuhiro Otomo


I haven't gotten any pithy remarks to make at the start of this review. However, the last volume of Akira ended with such a bang (literally) that I was hungry for more...

Like its predecessor city thirty years before, much of Neo Tokyo has been destroyed by the psychic boy Akira, apparently taking Kaneda, and undeniably so many other people, with it. In the ruins, a powerplay has erupted between two differing factions of survivors. On one side is Lady Miyako, a gifted old psychic who has taken in refugees of all sorts. On the other is the Great Tokyo Empire, with Akira as a puppet ruler, and the psychotic Tetsuo as its true tyrant. While a special forces group infiltrates the ruins of Neo Tokyo to assassinate Akira, Kei and Chiyako make their own way, trying to save the child psychics, while the Colonel has his own problems. But as the conflict between the two factions grow to a head, Tetsuo soon realises that, powerful though he may be, Akira is truly more powerful still...

With the change in storyline from post-apocalyptic cyberpunk to just plain post-apocalyptic, the storyline has gotten significantly darker. But this still fits, though the even darker tone for an already dark story is jarring. Some elements don't work, but others (particularly Tetsuo realising just how badly his powers pale in comparison to Akira's, partway through the volume) do.

Tetsuo seems born to be a dictator, and so this seems a natural development, but Akira, interestingly, begins to get a little bit more development, considering that most of what he does is enigmatic at best, and almost cardboard at worst. Kei and Chiyako seem rather suited to the post-apocalyptic scenario, as does the Colonel. However, it is Lady Miyako who probably gets the best character development, going from a somewhat more sinister, machiavellian type, all the way to a more sympathetic, even heroic type of character.

While not as great as the last volume, the fourth volume of Akira manages to keep the storyline going well. And now, I start heading towards the conclusion...


8.5/10

First words: We're just about there...

Last words: Is it over...?

Book 28...

REVIEW: The True History of the Black Adder: The Unadulterated Tale of the Creation of a Comedy Legend by J.F Roberts

As noted before, I seem to be reading a disproportionately high amount of making-of books lately. However, most of them are film related. This book, however, details the making of a TV series, specifically, the famous BBC historical comedy series Blackadder. This review has been a long time in the making, but does the book come up to scratch?

The making of Blackadder is almost as tortured and twisting as the many metaphors that make up its humour. In this book, we learn how many of those involved in both creating the show and making it came together much earlier, how Blackadder built on earlier precedents of historical comedy, and how other shows influenced Blackadder, or were influenced by it. And we learn the story of what made it an icon of British comedy TV...

This book has perhaps the opposite problem to the previous making-of books reviewed. It is more substance than style, and while by no means a boring or onerous read, it still lacks a certain polish that would have made it truly great. On occasion, it lingers more on the projects that the Blackadder cast and crew had outside the series, and less on the actual series themselves, and I am surprised at the amount of attention given to Rik Mayall, of all people. And the preludes to each section are uneven, funny at times, and unfunny at others.

Even so, this is a highly informative book that may tickle the fancy of a fan, as well as surprise them. We learn of how perfectionist the cast and crew became, sometimes to mutual exasperation. We learn of where they met each other, as well as what projects influenced Blackadder, as well as hints of ideas that never quite came to fruition, but, albeit unlikely, may still yet come to be.

While more likely to appeal to a fan of the series, this is nonetheless an excellent book on the making of a TV dynasty. I hope to read many more like it in the future. And one has to like a decent book about everyone's favourite bastard family...


9/10

First words: History has known many great bastards, but it has been chronicled by almost as many.

Last words: 'Perhaps we should gfo back and do the series in a more responsible manner this time.'

Book 29...

REVIEW: Akira, volume 5 by Katsuhiro Otomo


With the penultimate volume of Akira, I find myself marvelling at the differences in the storyline between the original manga, and what came out on screen. While the film was a decent work itself, the manga is considerably more complex. And now, the beginning of the end is drawing near...

Kaneda is alive, having somehow been thrown out of whatever the explosion generated by Akira sucked him into. He soon joins Kei and the forces of Lady Miyako. But Tetsuo's forces are becoming stronger, as is Tetsuo himself. He is becoming ever more powerful, and even in control. Meanwhile, an international task force is gathered to study Akira from afar, and if necessary, kill him. But Akira and Tetsuo combined may be more than a match, and Tetsuo's newfound power comes with a price. As Lady Miyako and her fellow psychics plan to use Kei in their own assault on Akira and Tetsuo, Kaneda makes his own preparations to stop Tetsuo for once and for all...

Whoa. Perhaps the biggest complaint I have about this volume of Akira is that Kaneda's return has little explanation. And there's perhaps too many dull moments. Even so, there's some good revelations, and a clear galloping towards a climax. Certainly the international involvement adds a new dimension, and there's an awe-inspiring moment when Tetsuo, in order to show his followers a sign, blows a hole in the Moon.

Tetsuo seems to be one of the characters who got more development. The psychotic young man has been replaced with a (mostly) calmer and more calculating villain, who seems to have gained mastery over his abilities. But appearances are deceiving. Kei is changing too, as she becomes part of the plan to kill Akira and Tetsuo by Lady Miyako, and is becoming calmer herself. The Colonel has also received development, becoming more overtly heroic than before. But otherwise, not much change, although Akira gets an actual line of dialogue, funnily enough, and some explanation is given for his strange demeanour.

While not stellar, Akira is proving to be an enjoyable series, if not a superb one. I just hope the climax, sure to be explosive in more ways than one, brings things to a satisfactory close.


8.5/10

First words: Aircraft in view!

Last words: CHAAARGE!

Book 30...

REVIEW: Dead Space: Martyr by B.K Evenson


While I have never played the Dead Space games, I had heard of them. Indeed, it was hard not to. But while playing them may not be an option yet, I did find related media, in the form of a novel. Dead Space: Martyr is a prequel, taking place well before the events of the game, and showing the founding father of the cult Unitology, Michael Altman. But as it turns out, there is more than meets the eye...

In the far future, Michael Altman is considered the founding father of the Church of Unitology, a cult with a long reach, and which had a vested interest in the strange alien Markers. But Altman was once a man rather than a martyr, and two hundred years before the events that befell Isaac Clarke, Altman was a geophysicist working in Chicxulub, Mexico, only to discover a mysterious anomaly, one that began signalling. Meanwhile, mysterious forces working through DredgerCorp are also investigating the anomaly, an anomaly that those employing them seem to know much about. Soon, Altman, along with friends and colleagues, is dragged into a situation that will see the Black Marker excavated from the bottom of the ocean, the people assaulted by visions of the dead, and mutating corpses, and a mysterious conspiracy that seems all to determined to use the Marker for their own ends, no matter what the cost...

Although I haven't played the Dead Space games, I am familiar with the story, and I was intrigued by reading the prequel. The story is simple enough, and the horror is well paced. It is also surprising that, despite the villainous nature of the Church of Unitology, it's so-called founder actually opposed everything it stood for, and is in fact the hero of the story, albeit a tragic one. It's certainly not a book to read if you like happy endings.

Unfortunately, with the exception of Altman, the two main villains, and a few of the other characters (like Ada and Dantec), most of the other characters seem there only to be fodder for death and madness of all kinds. And I feel that the natives aren't quite developed as much as they could have been. There's definitely a story there that might work. Most of the rest of the characters, like I said, seem to be there to either go mad, or die horribly, or both, and possibly revive as a Necromorph.

Dead Space: Martyr is certainly not for the squeamish or faint-hearted, and it may work best for people who played the game. But it is still a pretty good science fiction horror novel, and can be read as a stand-alone work.


9/10

First words: The creature charged and he dived out of the way.

Last words: It roared, and then it charged.