The Quatermass Book-Reading Blog 9: On Cloud Nine...

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Book 60...

REVIEW: Wiped!: Doctor Who's Missing Episodes by Richard Molesworth

I am, as many of you probably know by now, a major Doctor Who fan. And yet, as many Doctor Who fans are aware, there is a multitude of episodes missing from the first years of the program. Even so, I thought I knew everything there was to know about the missing episodes, but Richard Molesworth proved me wrong...

Wiped! tells the story of how the various episodes of Doctor Who came to be missing in the first place. It tells how various reasons from rights contracts to the attitude towards television led to the BBC scrapping much of their archives, as well as how the show was marketed abroad. And it also tells the story of the recovery of many episodes, including the most recent discoveries of Galaxy Four: Air Lock and The Underwater Menace episode 2...

Now, this is a book that, to any Doctor Who fan with a decent enough interest in the missing episodes, must have. Immensely and exhaustively well-researched, Wiped! goes into detail about the whole story of the missing episodes, as well as the recovery of them. It is, at least to a Whovian or a TV historian, an immensely engrossing and fascinating work, which touches on some of the stories and myths around the recovery of the episodes.

Even so, the book, despite its excellent nature, isn't without its problems. It's unlikely to appeal to a mainstream reader, unless they enjoy reading about the history of television or about Doctor Who. And to be perfectly honest, the writing is rather dry. Okay, so we need facts, but I would've liked more anecdotes about the hoaxes, gossip, and rumours that are only really touched on in the final chapter. Shame, that.

Wiped!, while not for everyone, is a nonetheless excellent reference book about the missing episodes of Doctor Who. Not perfect, but certainly close to definitive.


9/10

First words: Doctor Who was an immense part of the British television landscape back in the 1960s and 1970s, despite the modern protests of Terrance Dicks in his introduction to this book!

Last words: And perhaps, one day I'll get to write a third edition of this very book, with wildly differing conclusions in the final chapter...

Book 61...

REVIEW: Monster volume 16: Welcome Home by Naoki Urasawa

As I reach the end of Monster, with only two more volumes to go after this one, I confess to a certain bittersweetness. After all, it's one of the best manga series of all time, and it'll be sad to finish it. But all good things come to an end, and the end is coming soon, with the sixteenth volume...

Tenma has fallen in with Milan Kolasch, a man who is determined to assassinate Petr Capek, who is a man with links to the conspiracy around Johan. But Milan fails, and Johan is beginning to take action against the conspiracy attempting to elevate him, killing off the Neo-Nazi leader known as the Baby. And when Eva Heinemann confronts Johan's protege, the spoiled and psychotic Christof Sievernich, she finds out more than she bargained for. Meanwhile, Capek is confronted first by Johan, and then by Nina, who now not only has regained all her memories, but has learned that her past holds far darker secrets than even her brother...

This volume of Monster is rather fragmented. Which is a shame, as right towards the end, we finally get a few answers as to Johan and Nina/Anna's past. Given that there are now only two volumes to go, I feel that the storylines haven't been wrapped up as well as they should, especially where the conspiracy and Sievernich is involved. Even so, we finally get a glimpse of the man behind it all, the mysterious Franz Bonaparta.

We get some development of Milan and Petr Capek, whose pasts are revealed to be intertwined, while one chapter focusing on the Baby actually gives him a mildly sympathetic bent, or as sympathetic as a Neo-Nazi could be. Sievernich, for all that he's made out to be Johan's apprentice, is ultimately nowhere near as interesting as him, though we get some insight into the past of the twins.

Ultimately, while not as good as some of the volumes, the sixteenth volume of Monster still manages to maintain the high standard of the series. And I can't wait for the denouement....


9/10

First words: You've come!

Last words: I'm back.

Book 62...

REVIEW: Iron Man: Extremis Novelisation by Marie Javins, from the graphic novel by Warren Ellis and Adi Granov

Some time ago, I watched the motion comic adaptation of Iron Man: Extremis, and bought the graphic novel. I certainly enjoyed it, and while not as ground-shattering as many other graphic novels, did leave a mark. Even so, I found out that a novelisation of the arc had been written, and I had to wonder whether novelising a graphic novel, even one as good as Extremis, was a good idea...

Tony Stark is Iron Man. But he is also the head of Stark Industries, which he is trying to transform from a weapons manufacturer into one of the top tech companies in the world. But he is also haunted by his past as a weapons manufacturer, and soon, that brings him back into contact with Maya Hansen, the developer of the Extremis process, a new super-soldier serum. Maya's boss has sold the Extremis process to a group of right wing terrorists, and their guinea pig, the bitter and fanatical Mallen, is determined to use his new powers to strike back at a government he believes is beyond redemption. And it may be that Mallen is too powerful, even for Iron Man...

Marie Javins could have taken the easy way out and done a straightforward novelisation of the graphic novel. She could easily have done so and written a lot of excellent background to the whole thing. But what she did do was enhance the novelisation, modifying the story so that it takes elements from both the movie continuity (to my knowledge) and the comics continuity. She also gives the story a more intriguing and ultimately more fulfilling conclusion. It's more thought-provoking than the average comic, but it's by no means perfect. There is a bit too much of Iron Man's other activities prior to the main plot, feeling slightly like (albeit good quality) padding.

The characters are fine enough. Not brilliant, but enjoyable. We get some further background to Mallen who, if not actually sympathetic, gains some depth at least. Tony and Maya also get some development, as does Sal, who gets an extra scene towards the end where he discusses the nature of morality.

The novelisation of Iron Man: Extremis was an enjoyable work, and certainly a very good novelisation. Not perfect by any means, but certainly great.


9/10

First words: Tony Stark, the invincible Iron Man, hadn't been much of an athlete as a kid.

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers)

Book 63...

REVIEW: Monster volume 17: I'm Back by Naoki Urasawa

The penultimate volume of Monster. Where it's the beginning of the end. I have waited so long to come to this point, so very long. But would I be impressed? Or would the various threads Naoki Urasawa spun throughout the series begin to unravel?

In a confrontation with her twin brother Johan, Nina realises the horrible truth: that she was the one at the Red Rose Mansion. But Dr Tenma saves her from suicide, and soon learns where he needs to go. But Johan is there already. So too is Inspector Lunge and Grimmer. It's a small town where Franz Bonaparta is in hiding, a town beginning to tear itself apart due to petty grievances exacerbated by Johan's machinations. It is a town where Johan Liebert will commit the perfect suicide. It is the town of Ruhenheim...

From strength to strength, the story goes, and while I'm a bit annoyed that the subplot involving Johan's 'apprentice' was dumped rather swiftly, this volume does make up for it. We have Johan, already scary in his manipulations, manage to bring a town to the brink of tearing itself apart by heightening the populace's paranoia and giving out guns. But we also see a Chinese of hope: both Lunge and Grimmer are there, and both Tenma and Nina are on the way too. It's building up to the climax, and while not quite perfect, with a few bum notes here and there, it's still thrilling.

There's actually not that much character development for a lot of characters, save for Nina. We learn a lot more about her past. We also get the surprising reveal of Franz Bonaparta, along with a number of other various inhabitants of Ruhenheim, the most interesting and sympathetic being Wim.

Ultimately, while not perfect, the penultimate volume of Monster is making its way to a great conclusion. Here's hoping for the last volume...


9.5/10

First words: The most horrifying thing about all of this, you say?

Last words: (Not recorded due to spoilers)