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Game of Thrones: Episode 3: The Sword in the Darkness review

April 18, 2015, 5:08 pm
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    The Telltale adaptation of the Game of Thrones television show, adapted from A Song of Ice and Fire, is perhaps its most ambitious undertaking yet. The Walking Dead remains the benchmark by which such things are judged. However, George R.R. Martin's work is infamous for its branching plotlines, deep storytelling, and fantastic subversion of fantasy tropes. I was a big fan of the first episode but significantly less so with the second. With the third episode, I think we've settled into a better pace which I hope will continue until the final episode.

    The premise for this section is to follow-up on a number of plots established in the previous episodes. The plot is only about halfway done but we're seeing some serious progress as well as a large amount of character development. The game nicely ties into several Game of Thrones show plots as well. The episode follows multiple storylines dealing with the Forester family members as they struggle to adapt to their new circumstances.

Drogon is animated beautifully in a particularly harrowing action sequence.
    Gared Tuttle adjusting to life on the Wall and swearing his vows before encountering two individuals from his past who change his perspective on the Night's Watch. Roderick must deal with being head of the Forester household despite being a cripple and their castle being under enemy control. Mira has to deal with the fact she's torn between Margaery as well as Tyrion for who will benefit her. Asher must try to figure out how to gain a mercenary army despite possessing coin and being on the run. Watching how these stories weave and intersect is the greatest appeal of The Sword in the Darkness.

    The game makes extremely good use of characters established in previous episodes. The daughter of the Whitehill family, Gared's friends in the Night's Watch, the Coal Boy ("Tom"), and others who became fully fledged characters here. We get to find out a number of secrets I never expected and this fits in with George R.R. Martin's Westeros. The game cuts down on cameos from the original series, instead using them only in select roles which fit their personalities. I appreciated that, even if I think they would have done well to not introduce so many in the first place.

Some of the most harrowing moments in the game are contests of words.
    There's some very satisfying scenes in the game, allowing the characters involved a sense of accomplishment even if nothing will be resolved for the final scene. Gared Tuttle gets a long-awaited rematch with a foe from Episode 1, Mira gets to make a firm alliance with either Tyrion or Margaery, and Roderick gets to show why House Forester is bowed but not broken. I also liked we got to see our first dragon this game.

    The Sword in the Darkness is also good with its moral decisions, an area I hadn't expected to be touched upon. You can choose to work for peace with the Whitehills or seek your revenge on your lord's betrayer. You can try to make peace with your friends or hang onto your grudges. You can attempt to keep your oath to the Night's Watch or work to save your noble friends.

    It's good stuff.
The swearing of the Nightwatchmen's oath is a powerful, moving scene.
     If I had to give kudos to the developers for one thing, it's how well they've established the tension between the Foresters as well as the Whitehills and Lannisters. The game does a wonderful job of making it clear the Foresters don't have any political, military, or financial capital to rely on. While I complained about Episode 2 not having much in the way of consequences, I retract that statement as we see how the characters are slowly building up their reserves again.

    This episode ties into the "Purple Wedding", which is something all fans of the books/television series should know as well as be grateful for. Honestly, I think they could have done it a little closer-to-the-action than the way they handled it in the game but the events are a political game-changer. They also felt more organic in throwing all of the plans of the Foresters into chaos, too, perhaps because we franchise fans knew it was coming. I do think it's a shame we never got to see a certain character who dies there meet with Mira, though, as I believe their interactions would have been quite entertaining.

    There is one very annoying moment where you are able to put your military power to use for one plan or another (either rescuing a member of your house or expelling the Whitehills) but this gets stalled by a revelation from a third party. While I'm sure this plotline will come up in later editions of the story, I felt cheated of not getting those results after so much set-up. Still, overall, I loved how things progressed. It was never too slow or two fast and I'm starting to feel the game taking shape for its finale.

The Foresters' suffering never ends.
    In conclusion, this is a solid entry into the franchise and I have no complaints. I'm anxiously awaiting the next installment. If they can keep up this balance of storytelling styles and give each protagonist something to do then I think it will be considered one of Telltale's best games when all is said and done.

10/10   
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The Dresden Files: Cold Days review

April 20, 2015, 12:56 am
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    I'm very pleased to say we're finally drawing to a close to my project to "catch up" to the (at the time of posting) latest release of The Dresden Files in Skin Game (reviewed here). Having had a chance to re-read and review all of these books has been a pleasure and I'm glad for all of my fans who have decided to stick by me as I did so. I'm looking forward to the next book on the list, "Peace Talks."

    So where were we?

    Ah, yes, Cold Days.

    Harry has gotten over his whole 'dead' thing and become the Winter Knight for the Queen of the Unseelie fae. This is a job which Harry has dreaded taking up since it requires him to be the assassin for the decidedly less-than-moral Mab. A sense of how things are go is given when Mab assigns him a physical therapist to recover from his brush with death and, as part of his training, she tries to kill him every day. Harry makes the obvious Princess Bride joke, for which I am very grateful.

    After recovering his full strength, in no small part due to the efforts of a attractive half-blooded fairy named Sarissa, Harry has a "coming out" party which presents him to the Winter Court. He gets to meet Santa Claus, a King of Winter, and the Cat Sith who is the inspiration for Alice in Wonderland's Cheshire Cat. During a slow dance with Mab, he receives his first assignment from her: to kill Mab's daughter Maeve.

    Impressive set-up, especially since Maeve has been a longstanding character in the series as well as Mab. It's also complicated by the fact that, despite having a body count in five figures, he's not the sort of man to serve as an assassin. He also isn't the kind to just accept an assignment like that since he knows Mab loves Maeve despite her, literally, cold-blooded nature. Harry can't just refuse the assignment, though, and Maeve isn't exactly his friend either.

    This moral dilemma is just a small part of a complex story of Harry trying to adapt to his new situation. Gone are so many constants of Harry's life like his apartment, his office, and even his business as a consulting wizard to the Chicago PD. Finding out where he stands with many of his friends and loved ones is a major thrust of the story and Jim Butcher handles it well.

    Sarissa is a fun new character and one I enjoyed. Given how crazy the majority of the cast has become after years of oddball adventures, it's nice to have someone perfectly sane to contrast them to. The fact she's Mab's BFF (as Harry says), also adds an interesting new layer to the latter's personality. I look forward to seeing more of Sarissa even if I don't hold out much hope we'll have any follow-up to Harry and her sexual tension but I also liked it for however long it lasted too. Harry needs a stable relationship and none of the women in his life can presently provide it.

    I also enjoyed seeing a softer side of Queen Mab. For years, we've been told she's the most ruthless and hate-filled being in the entirety of the series but this didn't always gel with her actions. Here, we get a nuanced portrayal which shows her hard-edged persona may just be what happens to a person who wants to do good in a world as soul-suckingly evil as the Dresden Files world. You don't just have to be ruthless to survive in the world of the supernatural, you have to be the most ruthless individual. The fact Harry has been steadily going down that road himself for over a dozen books now is an enjoyable bit of fridge brilliance.

    Longtime fans of the series will be pleased to see the return of Fix and Lilly from Summer Knight, characters who have been absent for the majority of the series. While they have made enough appearances to let you know they still exist, both have grown significantly since Harry last saw them. The fact they're familiar and friendly without being Harry's friends makes the twists very believable. Neither is particularly pleased that Harry is allied to the traditional enemy of the Summer Court and this fact bears in on the plot our hero is currently caught up in.

    I'm especially interested where the story involving Molly Carpenter, my favorite of all Dresden Files characters, goes. The twist at the end of the book regarding her future is one I did not see coming and I enjoyed being pleasantly surprised there. I hope we'll also get to see her and Harry have a few conversations about in the future. Harry has looked at her as someone less than himself, either in experience or age for a long time, and this has the potentially to finally reverse that dynamic.

   Cold Days also gives us some insight into the overarching story of the series. We meet a new enemy in "Nemesis" which seems to function as a contagious form of mind-control that is related to the Outsiders. I have no idea if this is responsible for the Black Council, is unrelated, or is related to it somehow. I won't lie to you, fellow Dresden fans, but I won't be happy if the Black Council plot is completely replaced by Nemesis. Nemesis is fine as a villain but the Outsiders are too one-dimensionally evil to be the powers behind folk like Cowl. I'm hoping the Black Council is able to give an explanation for its evil even if it's not one Harry would accept.

    In conclusion, this is another excellent entry into The Dresden Files. I liked the ending as well. It managed to make the loss of some characters meaningful while taking others into bold new directions.

10/10
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Prime Suspects: A Clone Detective Mystery review

April 21, 2015, 8:54 am
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    Prime Suspects is an homage to Ridley Scott's Bladerunner without being a rip-off. The premise is Dave Bagini wakes up in a genetics lab, hating clones and remembering he's one of the universe's greatest detectives.

    The problem is he's NOT Dave Bagini, or at least he's not the original. Dave is the forty-second clone of Dave Bagini. In the future, the best at any profession can have themselves cloned and live off the proceeds from taking a tithe from their offspring's salaries. In the three years from when the original Dave had his clone sample taken, he learned to get over his hatred of clones and learned to love money more.

    Which sucks for Forty-Two.

    Dave doesn't have much time to adjust to the fact he's the latest in a small army of clones before he's sent to solve his first murder. Someone has killed Dave Prime, the original Dave so to speak, and all indications are that it was one of the previous forty-one models. Dave has to outwit himself as many times as it takes to solve a case which, literally, endangers them all. After all, if a clone line is defective, there's nothing to do but cancel it.

    That is a premise.

    The definition of high concept.

    Clone Detective solves his own murder.

    Congrats to Jim Bernheimer for coming up with.

    There's nothing new about gritty Noir Detective stories set against a science-fiction backdrop. However, there's nothing new under the sun period and Prime Suspects manages to make a maximum use of its Chandler-meets-Dolly the Sheep premise.

    It's a good example of speculative fiction, which is something I don't get to say very often. It takes the premise of cloning technology, examines how it would impact society, and then draws much of the story from how it had radically altered the lives of people in society.

    We not only get the perspective of society on clones, which is to treat them as subhuman cheap labor, but also the perspective of how the clones feel about their situation. All clones are sterile from birth so they have nothing to spend their money on but self-indulgence. Clones also try to individualize themselves in ways both big and small. All of them are enslaved to their contracts, though, and every Dave is a police officer whether he wants to be or not. The fact all of them are genius detectives with some stuck behind desks or serving as patrolmen leave more than a few frustrated.

    There's always more clones than opportunities.

    Really, this is my favorite part of the book as we get plausible but wild changes in how society alters with such a set up. Forty-Two is unsettled, for example, by the fact one of his alternates is shacked up with a trio of female clones of the same model. The reverse being true for other clones of his. Also, that newborn clones often end up set up with clones from models the rest of them have gotten with because they "know" they get along. The clones all have a reverence for the Prime's wife and child, too, as if they're somehow all of their line's chief priority. Dave, due to having an earlier memory source than them, is less than convinced of this.

    I liked everything about this book, which is something I don't often say about works. The mixture of Noir and science-fiction just gells for lack of a better term, though. The fact Jim Bernheimer remembers to establish something like the fact the colony smells vaguely like rotten eggs and it coats everything comes up just often enough to remain a persistent setting detail. It's a seamy universe, this colony, and we get insights into how all of it works. We even get an understanding why revolts or civil rights campaigns don't happen often.

    But don't take my word for it, check it out yourself.
   
10/10
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Star Wars: The Old Republic: Bounty Hunter storyline review

April 22, 2015, 3:46 pm
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    No disintegations.

    Okay, maybe some disintegrations.

    These guys are jerks, after all.

    Boba Fett remains one of the most popular characters in the history of cinema for his relatively tiny appearance in the Empire Strikes Back and later Return of the Jedi (where he was utterly humiliated). The idea of an independent mercenary Darth Vader respected enough to take seriously and capable enough to capture Han Solo captured the imagination of young boys (and some girls) everywhere. So, really, it's no surprise there's a campaign for them on the side of the Empire.

    So what is it like?

Mako is one of the best companions in the game.
    Quite good, actually! It manages to take a concept which I wasn't really all that interested in and play it to the hilt. A Bounty Hunter, by nature, is not going to be someone necessarily interested in the Republic vs. Sith Empire Cold War so it was good they chose to treat it as an independent storyline which occasionally ties into the larger conflict.

    The bounty hunter begins his journey as a gifted newcomer to the world of hunting who wants to win the Great Hunt. The Great Hunt is hosted by Mandalore every year to seek out the greatest bounty-hunters in the universe and offer them a place at the big boy's table, so to speak. Whoever wins it will receive everlasting fame and fortune.

    This is my favorite part of the Bounty Hunter's story as your rival in the Great Hunter, Tarro Blood, is a delightfully hateable scumbag. A cowardly Mandalorian with the right connections, pedigree, and an inexhaustible supply of credits--he is going to buy his way to victory in the Great Hunt. It may seem strange that your initial archenemy is basically Draco Malfoy but I had a great deal of fun fighting him.

Being a bounty hunter is, in a word, fun. That's all there is to it.
    The final mission of the Great Hunt results in a satisfying ending for Tarro Blood but also creates all the problems which will hound the Bounty Hunter for the rest of the series. You are given a mission to bring down a Jedi Master for the "crime" of killing dozens of Mandalorians during a battle.

    This event goes horribly wrong thanks to Tarro Blood with the Jedi Master killed and a Republic cruiser destroyed. If you had Sith sympathies before, this is the crowning moment of your early career, but if you had plans of staying off the Jedi and Republic's radar--well, that's out the window now. Subsequent missions follow your attempts to deal with the Republic's frame-up job, the resulting scrutiny, and how a Sith Lord has become "impressed" with their abilities. My favorite part of the game is the Alderaan mission where you have to deal with a noble family's spoiled heirs who all want to use you to become head of their house.

Tarro Blood is a deliciously hateable villain. The perfect foil for the Bounty Hunter.
    The Light and Dark choices of the Bounty Hunter are better than most as they seem to be coming from the same sort of person. A Dark Side Bounty Hunter is a hired killer, nothing more or less, and is only in it for the money. A Light Side Bounty Hunter has scruples and dislikes it when he's treated as a monster rather than a professional lawman with flexible ethics. The ending is one of the best choices in the game as you can choose to become a Sith Lord's personal hatchet-man or show why no one, not even a Darth, should mess with you.

    The Bounty Hunter's companions are some of my favorite in the group. Most of this is due to Mako, who is just plain awesome. She reminds me strongly of Tali from Mass Effect, basically being your plucky Girl Friday. Sadly, the Bounty Hunter is also stuck with the character of Skadge who is, hands-down, the WORST companion in the whole of The Old Republic. This is made up for, though, by the fact you have a Jawa with a flame-thrower.

    Jawa.with.a.flame.thrower.

Blizz is awesome. BOOM!
    *thumbs up*

    The storyline gives player characters the opportunity to become Mandalorians but I always choose to turn down the opportunity. I'm not a big fan of the Mandalorians and I felt the Bounty Hunter was a more interesting character when he chose to handle things his way rather than through the codex of an ancient warrior race. Plus, turning down Mandalore's offer to join their society to his face at your initiation banquet is HILARIOUS.

    In conclusion, I heartily recommend the Bounty Hunter storyline as it feels very much like Star Wars. Which is hard to get from the "bad guy." Whereas the Sith Warrior, Sith Inquisitor, and Imperial Agents all gave you perspectives on being the villain (even when you're a Lightsider), the Bounty Hunter is a grayer character and I appreciated that. The fact you can choose to play a complete good guy at the end or a heinous villain also gives the storyline a satisfying emotional climax.

10/10
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Star Wars: Legacy (hardcover) volume 2 review

April 24, 2015, 6:00 am
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    Star Wars: Legacy is no longer canon thanks to the old Expanded Universe being removed from continuity. It's still one of the more coherent and well-crafted stories of the Legends universe, however, which means I heartily recommend it to people who are looking for an enjoyable alternate continuity Star Wars tale. I see no reason why you can't enjoy the Star Wars Legends stories anymore than the Marvel Ultimates series.

    The premise of Star Wars: Legacy is the Sith have returned one-hundred-and-twenty-years after the death of Emperor Palpatine. Led by the diabolical Darth Krayt, they have managed to seize control over the galaxy and install a ruthless draconian dictatorship over the whole of the universe once more. As before, a Skywalker may be the universe's last hope, but Cade Skywalker is the only one left alive and he's a drug-addicted bounty hunter who wants nothing to do with heroism.

The attack on Dac is the first real victory of the new Rebellion.
    In my review of the first hardcover, I mentioned how I wasn't very fond of Cade Skywalker asa a concept. I've never been a great fan of Chosen Ones in fiction and Cade is kind of an insult to his forebearers. Luke Skywalker wasn't a hero because of his high midiclorian count, he was a hero because he wanted to fight the Empire and make the galaxy a better place. The fact the central premise of Legacy is that Cade Skywalker is the only person capable of defeating Darth Krayt caused me extreme distress.

    Thankfully, this volume makes up for it in numerous ways.

    Cade Skywalker gets plenty of development, don't get me wrong, but the series takes a moment to step away from him by giving some focus to other characters. Whereas Cade Skywalker wants nothing to do with being the galaxy's savior, there are plenty of other people who do.

    My favorite of these characters is Gar Stazi, a Duros Admiral of the fallen Galactic Alliance, who is waging a never-ending campaign of resistance against the Sith-controlled Galactic Empire. Gar Stazi is an unquestionably heroic character and contrasts strongly with morally ambiguous characters like our current protagonist.

Darth Krayt proves himself a true monster, equal to Palpatine in evil, if not skill.
    Another character I liked was Cade's uncle, Nat, another Skywalker who has chosen to abandon the Jedi way. Unlike Cade, he hasn't allowed himself to sink into debauchery and depravity. A committed family man, he's a far more admirable figure even if he's decided saving the universe isn't for him. Still, I would have been much happier if there were Skywalkers who were interested in saving the universe.

    That would defeat the need for Cade, though.

    The moments spent between Cade and his uncle are some of the best in the series, in my humble opinion, and go a long way to humanizing our antihero protagonist. Nat gives him firm but practical advice about his situation as well as directs him away from the Dark Side without being condescending. Cade is never more likable than when dealing with his uncle and we get some hints as to how he became the way he did. Cade, much like Anakin, simply wishes people to live and his struggle to keep his loved ones from leaving is his greatest flaw rather than his drug use. I'm never going to like Cade but, after this volume, I understood him.

    Another character I came to enjoy was Azlyn Rae, Cade Skywalker's former lover and a Jedi padawan who left their order to become an Imperial Knight. She is a reminder of the better times of Cade's life while also a person who inspires him to be better. The fact she's a strong female character who chooses to do what's right over what's practical also helps cement her place in my fanboy's heart.

    Plus she's a ginger and they're a superior species (at least according to my wife).

    Hehe.

Azlyn Rae is awesome. What happens to her? Well, you'll just have to see but her story goes in surprising directions.
     We also get the set-up for the central conflict of the Legacy stories in the massacre of the Mon Calamari. Long champions of freedom and democracy, they badly underestimate how deep Darth Krayt's madness goes. When the Mon Calamari population is set for genocide, the rest of the galaxy can only look on in horror at the pure evil on display. As with Alderaan, the event galvanizes Darth Krayt's enemies to unite against him too. Some of my favorite moments from this volume are centered around the Mon Calamari defense, like watching Imperial Knight Treis Sinde choose his loyalty to the Force over his service to Emperor Fel.

    In conclusion, Star Wars: Legacy volume 2 is an excellent continuation of a great series. While I don't much care for its lead, the setting is evocative, the art is beautiful, and the characters are fascinating. While the storyline can be a trifle depressing, I think anyone who likes their Star Wars a bit edgy will enjoy this.

9.5/10
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My life as a writer in 2015

April 24, 2015, 10:55 am
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    Hey folks,

    I wanted to give people an update on my current writing situation and what's coming out in the coming months as well as what's contracted for the future. Last year, my contract with Permuted Press was cancelled due to "irreconcilable creative differences", I was left with an uncertain future in publishing. I had no less than five manuscripts with a sixth on the way and nowhere to publish them. I had been contracted for no less than nine books with Permuted Press and giving that up was the hardest choice of my writing career.

    Where would I go, what would I do?

    My first book and 'big' release is The Rules of Supervillainy in May. I don't know whether it is going to be released in mid-May or late May but it's coming out soon. I can't contain my excitement over this story. Gary Karkofsky is Merciless, a man who receives a magic cloak in the mail and decides to become a supervillain in a world already full of them. It turns out he's not all that good at evil, though, and may have to do something about his city being overwhelmed by it.

The symbol of our supervillain.
    Jim Bernheimer and Amber Cove publishing want this to be a full-fledged series and will be releasing The Games of Supervillainy this Winter. It's already completed and I'm already working on yet another Spring 2016 in Secrets of Supervillainy. I love Gary as he's a fantastically snarky character and

    Thankfully, Tim Marquitz (Demon Squad, Eyes Deep) and Joe Martin of Ragnarok Publications as well as Jim Bernheimer (Confessions of a D-List Supervillain, Prime Suspects) proved to be my salvation. Or, at least, they proved to be the sort of guys who liked my writing enough to want to publish my books. No disrespect to Permuted Press but I was happier with my contracts as well, getting excellent terms as well as a strong sense of where my new publishers wanted to go with my work.

    Esoterrorism, the first book of the Red Room series, will be coming out in July. It is the adventures of Derek Hawthorne, agent of the titular organization, and his partner Shannon O'Reilly. Spies vs. the Supernatural! They fight the weird and cover it up! It's an homage to all my favorite conspiracy fiction from the Nineties like the X-Files, Deus Ex, and Mage: The Ascension.
Love this cover.

    The fact it's coming out just as a new X-Files series is in the works is good timing. Ragnarok Publication isn't just interested in this single novel, though, and has already contracted me for the completed sequel of Eldritch Dossiers for release in March of 2016.

    I have already completed the third novel in the series, Operation: Otherworld, and hope it will be released in 2017. This is a series which is dear to my heart and I hope I'll get a chance to write it for years to come. I love the world, characters, and conspiracies--but I'll let you judge for yourself what you think of it.

    While these are my releases set for 2015 (and their sequels), I'm also contracted for 2016 s well thanks to my awesome publishers. In mid-2016, expect to see the release of Wraith Knight, the first book of the Wrath Knight Chronicles. Following the adventures of Jacob Riverson, the cursed undead champion of the King Below, we get to see a tail of both redemption as well as temptation.

    With the God of Evil destroyed, Jacob has a chance of regaining his lost honor as well as humanity--or gaining revenge on a world which condemned him in the first place. I love the characters in this fantasy novel and think of it as an adult Star Wars meets Lord of the Rings-esque tale.


    Ending up my contracted novels is Cthulhu Apocalypse, which is ironically the first novel I wrote for Permuted Press and the one which has been through the most rewrites. I wanted to get this one JUST write as it is an homage to Mad Max, Fallout, and the writings of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos. John Henry Booth is a survivor of a world destroyed by the Great Old Ones. Humanity is on its last legs and there is possibly no hope. Despite this, John trudges on and seeks his own meaning in the Wasteland.

    I hope everyone will check out my books this year and in the future. I've got quite a full plate for both this year and the next.

    Let's hope it continues for years to come.
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GnomeSaga: Cogweaver review

April 26, 2015, 5:37 pm
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    GnomeSaga is a high fantasy series designed to evoke the countless five dollar novels released by TSR and Wizards of the Coast in the Nineties. Dungeons and Dragons fiction was never the height of its genre but rarely failed to entertain as well. Set on an unnamed world, GnomeSaga invokes most of the tropes of a Dungeons and Dragons game while also putting its own spin on events.

    It also stars gnomes.

    Cogweaver is the third volume in the series and the climax of the series' initial plotline. One could easily consider this the finale of a trilogy but I'm pleased to say it is only the ending of the first batch of stories. Too many authors stretch out their plotlines without much in the way of progress and thus wear their fans to the quick. Kenny Soward is smart enough to give closure to a story which didn't need to be prolonged and I appreciate that.

    The series follows brother and sister Nikselpik and Niksabella as they attempt to deal with an invasion from another dimension. The evil Baron wants to control all of the ultraworlds and he has a near-unstoppable force to do so. Throwing the entire dynamic into whack is the pair's mother, a gnome who is close to becoming a goddess and opposes the Baron. Unfortunately, their mother is a complete psychopath who is more interested in controlling Niksabella than fighting tyranny.

    Cogweaver resolves the story between these characters in a surprising manner. Given the relatively sedate pace of the second volume, I was expecting the Baron arc to drag out five-to-seven books. As a result, Cogweaver has a fast-pace and rapid set of twists which make the book the best of the initial three. Really, they could have stretched things out a little more but I have no complaints about how fast they resolved things.

    Much of the novel follows the pair as they deal with the ultraworld invasion. This is a high fantasy war novel with Nikselpik serving as First Wizard while Niksabella struggles behind the lines to free the Stonekin from their slavery. Kenny Soward has a gift for PG-13 fantasy violence, never really getting grim and gritty but keeping things entertaining throughout.

    The characterization is enjoyable, too, with Nikselpik's failed relationship with priestess Fara contrasting nicely with Termund and Niksabella's love story. I also like the dose of realism the book provides: how does a Lawful Good priestess reconcile herself with her love of a Neutral (and evil-ish) Necromancer?

    The answer? She doesn't.

    Doomed relationship is doomed.

    And bravo to the author for that.

    The climax of the novel isn't the defeat of the Baron or his armies, though, but an ascension ritual which has been built-up for the past two books. I was, initially, skeptical of introducing a plot about the ascension of gods into an otherwise enjoyable war story but I think it works out well. I saw the ending coming a mile away but was still moved by the consequences of it. Plus, I was glad Nikselpik finally managed to confront his mother about the decades of abuse he'd suffered at her hands.

    The ending is both well-done as well as bittersweet. Not everyone survives to the very end of the story and even the greatest of triumphs comes at a terrible cost. I find the survival of one character rather eye-rolling, especially given how his death played an important role in the story. The fact his survival doesn't do anyone any good, however, was a nice subversion.

    In short, if you liked the previous books, buy this one. If you haven't read the series, I heartily recommend giving it a try if you love Dungeons and Dragons, high fantasy, or quirky adventures in general.

10/10
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Star Wars: Rebels: Spark of Rebellion review

April 30, 2015, 9:17 am
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    As anyone who has read this blog can tell you, I'm a long term Star Wars fanboy. I own most of the novels, comics, video games, and more. The decanonization of the Expanded Universe hit me hard but left me interested in where they were going to take the setting. One thing I knew, though, was that the television shows would be the focus of the setting until the release of the new movies.

    I was a big fan of The Clone Wars cartoon starring Anakin, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Ahsoka Tano. It was mostly very-good, accent on mostly. For example, as well-crafted as those episodes were, the survival of Darth Maul was just silly. There were also plenty of duds like when Padme goes to get a loan from the Banking Clan for the Republic only to discover a Ponzi scheme (because THAT'S what the series is about) or the misuse of David Tennant as a Jedi teaching droid. So I had trepidation about the new Star Wars: Rebels series.

James Earl Jones as Darth Vader's voice is an unexpected treat in the episode.
    Would it be good? Would I care about the characters? Would it just be a re-hash of the adventures of Han, Luke, and Leia traveling about the galaxy in the Falcon I've read literally hundred of stories about.

    Answer?

    This is really-really good. For both adults and children! It's family entertainment.

    As Star Wars should be.

    The premise is a group of rebels are operating on the planet Lothal. Lothal is a backwater planet in the Outer Rim territories which is unimportant to the Empire as a whole but, still, has an unusually high prevalence of Imperial soldiers. The populace is getting abused mercilessly by the Empire and it's the perfect place for a bunch of would-be revolutionaries to operate.

There is no greater danger to any Dark Lord than a ragtag band of misfits.
    While attempting to steal from the Empire, the rebels come across a precocious kid named Ezra who nearly ruins their plan in his attempts to steal the cargo from them. This leads to Ezra joining the crew and discovering that one of the rebels has an enormous secret.

    A secret involving a lightsaber and a Jedi holocron.

    Spark of Rebellion isn't a movie like The Clone Wars movie (which was awful, btw) but, instead, just the two-episode pilot for the television series. I'm not exactly pleased the two have been separated since there's no reason for this episode not to be included with season one. Indeed, I initially bought season one expecting it to be included with my purchase but was disappointed to find it wasn't there.

    The cast is a fairly likable bunch who will be familiar archetypes to long-term Star Wars fans. There's Hera, who is the calm and collected pilot of the group. There's Kanan, the Jedi-in-hiding, who subverts expectations by being anything but calm or collected. There's Zeb the Australian-sounding brutish thug. Then there's Sabine who is basically a punk skater-girl who just happens to be a Mandalorian. Wow, Sabine is like the incarnation of the girl I would have liked to have dated when I was a teenager.

    She also has explosive spray paint.

I was really fond of the relationship between Hera and Kanan. They're one of the most mature couples in television--which is sad in a way but still true. Very Walsh and Zoe.
    Ezra, the ostensible audience identification character, isn't as bad as many of the ones which I've seen over the years. Despite being a young teenager in a cast full of more-interesting adults, he's competent and cocky rather than annoying. He's a bit too-much like Aladdin but given said character is Disney's hands-down most likable boy character, that's not necessarily a bad thing.

    The show is aimed at a somewhat younger audience than The Clone Wars but they still kill Stormtroopers left and right. I also like the animation style, which seems smoother than The Clone Wars in many ways. I also like how they go out of their way to show the Empire's oppression in small and petty ways as well as grandiose ones. There's forced evictions from homes, abusing citizens over trivial offenses, and causal racism. This is the kind of thing to teach children about true tyranny and not the stuff they often see in the media.

    In conclusion, I really like Spark of Rebellion but viewers shouldn't have to buy it in addition to season one. I also think the show will not be to the tastes of some older fans. Despite this, it's funny with likable characters. The feeling of the original trilogy is captured well and I am interested where they take the characters.

9/10
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The Death of WCW review

April 30, 2015, 10:06 am
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    The Death of WCW is a mean-spirited book. This is the biggest problem with it. It's informative, sometimes hilarious, but fundamentally filled with a contempt for the sequence of events which led to the fall of Turner Broadcasting's wrestling promotion. Admittedly, reading through the book, it's not hard to see why the authors felt this way.

    Essentially, The Death of WCW is a book chronicling the rise and fall of World Championship Wrestling. Created by Ted Turner as an alternative to the World Wrestling Federation, it was the successor organization to the in-decline National Wrestling Federation. Ted Turner was already a very rich man with his own network when he noticed no one was watching the latter. He proceeded to start airing The Andy Griffith Show every day and wrestling, which created an audience for his programming. A very Southern audience to say the least.

    The book follows the rise of Eric Bishchoff, mid-level announcer, to the head of the company and how he used Ted Turner's billions to poach the top-talent of the WWF. Talent which had their heyday in the Eighties but which had been overlooked since then like Macho Man Randy Savage, Hulk Hogan, Ted Dibiase, and others. He also managed to get Kevin Nash (Diesal) and Scott Hall (Razor Ramone), two individuals who had received a great deal of attention from the WWF but smelled money in the WCW.

    They became extraordinarily successful in their new promotion before a combination of poor contracts, poor decisions, horrible wrestling, and outright bizarre angles resulted in the collapse of the company. The WCW went from being a ratings juggernaut to being almost unwatched. There's no greater illustration than the books mention that the WCW was originally worth so much that an offer of five hundred million for it was passed on, only for it to later be sold for three.

    The book suffers due to, mostly, being a repetition of events from the time the book gets to the "Monday Night Wars" portion of the book onward. We don't get a sense of what qualifies as good decisions in the wrestling business, only that WCW kept making extremely bad ones. It gets a little tiresome reading one horrific mistake after another. Though, to be fair, this is nonfiction and they really did appear to be run by a bunch of lemmings at the end (or Vince Russo, I'm not sure which is worse).

    The book argues no one thing brought down the WCW. Instead, they argued it was a consistent long-term series of poor management decisions. They overspent, they didn't tell good stories, they didn't let the wrestlers perform interesting matches, and they misjudged their audience terribly. No single change could have saved the WCW because it took a fantastic series of bad changes to end its viability as a brand. Worse, the book argues that the WCW's successor in TNA wrestling is more or less following the same road.

    Which is a shame.

    While the book is very informative, some of the events described within needed elaboration. I was particularly interested in finding out about the poor handling of Bret Hart as well as the "David Arquette becomes WCW champion" angle. Yes, the dorky sheriff from Scream and Courtney Cox's ex-husband, David Arquette. These two matters are skimmed over in the book and I felt cheated. Both events are mentioned but really needed longer explanations. The later, in particular, was a symbolic end to taking matches in the promotion seriously.

    By the end of the book, I was tempted to skim every page.

    Still, The Death of WCW was a pretty decent read for the first two hundred or so pages. You get a sense of what made the promotion great, what made it fabulous, and then are forced to watch it all get thrown out the window. For those familiar with the promotion and its matches, I recommend this book. Just understand it gets ugly toward the end and, more than sad, tragic.

7.5/10
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Star Wars: Rebels: Season One review

May 1, 2015, 4:09 pm
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    For those who want my reaction to the pilot, Star Wars: Rebels: Spark of Rebellion, then I suggest they go to this link here.

    The premise of Star Wars: Rebels is it is fifteen years after Revenge of the Sith and five years before A New Hope. The Empire has solidified its hold on the galaxy and started squeezing, abusing the Outer Rim territories worst. On the planet Lothal, a small band of resistance fighters works to liberate the world from Imperial oppression. They are aided by Kanan, a Jedi Knight, and his new apprentice Ezra. Opposing them is the erudite and evil Inquisitor along with his ISB henchman Kallus.

    Star Wars: Rebels is a lot of fun. It reminds me strongly of my old West End Games Star Wars roleplaying-game campaigns. Much like Dungeons and Dragons, they were about ragtag collections of misfits traveling around the galaxy fighting the Empire. While the travel part is missing, all of the characters are fun and well-rounded. Despite having only thirteen episodes, it manages to give all of them something to do. Kanan the former Jedi and Ezra get the majority of attention but they make the most of it.

The crew has an excellent dynamic.
    Rebels does a good job of recapturing the Original Trilogy feel. While there's no direct analogues for Han, Luke, Leia, Chewie, Obi-Wan, and the Droids, they manage to feel like the same sort of characters. The characters are also at their most enjoyable when they demonstrate how different they are from the Millennium Falcon's crew. For example, Kanan should be the Obi-Wan Kenobi of the group but he is brash and impulsive. Ezra should be the Luke Skywalker of the group but his interest is less in being a Jedi than helping others. Chopper the Droid is, by contrast to R2-D2, gleefully psychotic.

    I'm particularly fond of the characters of Sabine and Hera. Star Wars made a strong mark on American culture by creating the character of Princess Leia but has often floundered in trying to make strong female protagonists since. Both Sabine and Hera impressed me with their strength of character as well as intelligence. The fact numerous episodes passed the Bechdel Test is fairly rare in Star Wars spin-offs. I also like the fact neither Sabine or Ezra are Caucasian, showing the franchise  is moving to diversify itself.

The Inquisitor has an impressive presence throughout.
    The Empire's depiction is also enjoyable: highlighting how brutal and authoritarian it is the common people as opposed to just hunting the heroes or building superweapons. The majority of Stormtroopers get treated like jokes, unable to hit anything or survive the heroes running rings around them, but that's always been the case. I also like seeing the heroes win victory after victory over the Empire. The Inquisitor, Kallus, and Tarkin also make up for the somewhat comical treatment the regular troops get.

    A character I really warmed to was Minister Tua, who is the highest-ranking Imperial on Lothal but clearly the one who has the least knowledge about how the Empire is really run. A cheerful promoter of the Empire and its values, its clear she's unaware of just how bad it really is. Tua has a lot of really funny moments with my favorite being how honored she is by being chosen to host Empire Day (Imperial 4th of July) despite the fact it's obviously something no one else wanted to bother with.

Minister Tua is just an awesome character.
   The Inquisitor is a character I actually felt was somewhat underused. Voiced by Jason Isaacs and played with a cold, calculating relish--I wanted to see him as a major villain. Sadly, while he has focus in several episodes, he gets overshadowed by the appearance of Grand Moff Tarkin toward the end of the first season. We also never get any backstory for the Inquisitor, only getting his title for instance. Still, I enjoyed the confrontation between him and Kanan in the season finale.

    Suitably epic.

    The first season has a mixture of good and not-so-good episodes. My favroites being "Rise of the Old Masters", "Empire Day", "Path of the Jedi", and "Vision of Hope." I'm less fond of the guest-star episodes where the main characters take a backseat to ones from the OT. "Droids in Distress" misuses R2-D2 and C3PO while "Idiots Array" has a wholly unnecessary appearance by Lando Calrissian. Billy Dee Williams does an excellent job in the latter but I couldn't help think this was to the deterrent of the main characters. I also wasn't a fan of "Fighter Flight" and "Breaking Ranks."

Ezra's Jedi training is surprisingly evocative.
    I think the show is being marketed to a slightly younger age group than The Clone Wars, which is both a blessing and a shame. It's good to give the next generation a show they can really latch upon but I think they could have been slightly more mature. Stormtroopers and rebels get killed by the bucket-load in A New Hope without traumatizing me. I was like four when I first watched that movie too.

    Would I prefer there to be a bit more insight into the character's backstory and the Empire to be a bit tougher? Yes, I would. However, that's not really what Rebels is all about. It's a breezy, fun, adventure serial and I don't see any need for it to be beyond that. Besides, the show surprised me on a number of occasions by being darker than I expected. These moments are a welcome addition to the story and further enhance the OT relationship.

    In conclusion, I really liked this season and I recommend Rebels to any and all Star Wars fans. It may be a bit too immature for some jaded cynical types but it is good fun for the whole family. Which is, really, what makes Star Wars candy for all ages. As Tom Baker said, "there's a difference between a children's show and a childish show." This is most definitely the former and my inner child can appreciate it.

10/10
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The Wheel of Time: The Dragon Reborn

May 2, 2015, 4:40 am
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    The third book in The Wheel of Time series moves at a much faster pace than the previous volumes. Which isn't to say it moves quickly, mind you, but the main characters are firmly established and so is plot. The Wheel of Time still moves at a languid pace, however, with Rand al'Thor nowhere near close to fulfilling his destiny. Robert Jordan manages the feat of making you feel like you're moving forward, however, and that's all I require from this volume of the story.

    The book begins with Rand al'Thor having assembled an army of followers after defeating Baal'zamon over the skies above the Seanchan last volume. Heroes of legend joined him in battle and he announced to the world he was, in fact, the Dragon Reborn. Progress since then has been limited with Rand mostly sitting around his camp, struggling to deal with his madness. As a male channeler, he is doomed to insanity and there's nothing he can do about that.

    Well, nothing except decide to leave. In what is the least enjoyable part of the book, Rand decides to abandon his army and just go off somewhere else to do anything else. Thus, Perrin and Moraine are forced to track him down for an extended part of the book. I'm not a fan of this plotline since Rand is almost incoherent during the entirety of it, trapped in his tormented visions and self-pity.

    The other parts of the book make up for it.

    The best part of The Dragon Reborn deals with Egwene, Nynaeve, and Elayne dealing with their induction into the Aes Sedai. The Aes Sedai are the most powerful political movers and shakers in the land but are torn by infighting. On one hand, they have the Amyrlin Seat working covertly to support the Dragon Reborn while the majority of them believe it is their duty to prevent the Dragon from taking over the world. On the other, you have the Black Ajah which serves the Dark One and could be any member of the organization but our heroines.

    There's some genuinely strong passages during the Aes Sedai portions of the book like Egwene's trials to become one of the Accepted. These hint at likely story points in the future and also give her some serious character development. As bad as her trauma at the Seanchans' hands were last volume, it is nothing to what she suffers forging herself into someone capable of redeeming the Aes Sedai.

    We also get a lot more insight into the Aiel race who are noted for being the people who birthed Rand al'Thor as well as being fanatically loyal to him. Unfortunately, they are not Robert Jordan's best creation being little more than fantasy-ized version of Dune's Fremen. I'm not saying that he got the idea from them and they don't have their own character after awhile but the similarities were distracting.

    The big change in the book is the redemption of the character Mat. For two books, Mat has been nothing but an enormous load on the group. This is mostly due to the influence of a cursed dagger but it made me hate him to a ludicrous level and hope for his conversion to the Dark Side so Rand could kill him. Instead, the book managed to turn the character around completely and make him quite likable.

    I was also a fan of new character Faile, who is a hunter of the (already found) Horn of Valere. The fact she's desperate to find it only for the heroes to not reveal her quest is in vain is as much a part of her enjoyment as her saucy personality. I do think she's a bit too harsh on Perrin but being a fan of anime, I get that she's just a woman who doesn't know how to speak to people without berating them.

    In conclusion, The Dragon Reborn is a book which shows Robert Jordan settling into his role as a master storyteller. We don't need as much explanation as we did in previous volumes and this plays into his strengths. There's perhaps too many characters and too much foreshadowing (almost to the point of telegraphing) but more than enough for me to say this is my favorite book in the series thus far.

10/10
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Daredevil: Season One review

May 3, 2015, 1:59 pm
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    I was initially skeptical of the idea of giving Daredevil his own television series. I like Daredevil just fine but part of the problem he has is the same one was the Punisher. Daredevil is a very interesting character but he's not as flashy as other Marvel superheroes. He might wear a bright red costume but most of his opponents are ordinary thugs with the occasional ninja. Ben Affleck attempted to adapt the most famous Daredevil story of all time and it ran into quite a few problems getting audiences invested.

    Netflix's Daredevil, by contrast, devotes itself to establishing the character and his environment long before it gets into the more exotic elements of Matt Murdock's world. We see white slavers, muggers, hitmen, corrupt real-estate developers, and worse long before we see our first ninja. Even the Kingpin, the most recognizable of Daredevil's foes, doesn't make an appearance on camera until a number of episodes in.

It's a shame these two don't have more scenes together.
    The show is also gritty. I don't mean gritty like The Amazing Spiderman is sometimes claimed to be or even the Dark Knight Trilogy. I mean this is closer to The Wire than Agents of Shield. This is gritty grit with a side order of grit and a large-sized grit drink. Daredevil doesn't always succeed in trying to rescue those he's protecting, he suffers innumerable injuries which need medical treatment, and it takes six or seven punches to bring down a single foe.

    The New York City of Daredevil is almost unrecognizable from the gentrified Disneyland it's become today, instead being closer to the 1970s version of the city which was the basis for so many vigilante movies. The justification for this is the Chitauri invasion of New York from The Avengers, which doesn't get mentioned by name but it is a fun treat for Marvel Cinematic Universe fans.

    Charlie Cox presents an enormously conflicted Daredevil who struggles with his desire to cause violence and his desire to help people. In a rare display of the positive elements of faith, Matt Murdock's Catholicism is shown to serve as a tether for him. It ties him to look at his actions objectively rather than through the lens he wants them too.

The black costume is bound to be controversial but I warmed to it quickly.
    Matt Murdock would very much like to kill the scumbags he deals with but he knows it would remove the part of his soul which allows him to judge right from wrong. This version of Matt is emotionally isolated and deeply damaged, which works with only a few superheroes but Daredevil is one of them.

    The supporting cast is also amazing with Deborah Ann Woll giving not only the best version of Karen Page on screen but in any medium, including comics. Her character is given an equality to Matt Murdoch and Foggy Nelson she was rarely given at the legal firm and a sense of justice which is not easily denied.

    Elden Henson is excellent comic relief as Foggy Nelson and manages to convey a real person despite the fact he's a joker. The confrontation between him and Matt toward the end of the first season is one of the highlights of the show. Rosario Dawson plays a slightly-modified version of Night Nurse, a character I never expected to make it to any form of screen.

Vincent D'Onofrio is an amazing Kingpin.
    A hero is only as good as his enemies, though, and the Kingpin is handled in an unusual but interesting manner. Rather than starting him as the smoothe operator we know, the series gives Wilson Fisk a surprising pair of weaknesses.

    This version of the Kingpin remains in the shadows and manipulates New York from behind-the-scenes not because of a desire for wealth (or so he tells himself) or power (again, another lie he tells himself) but because he wants to help New York City's poor become wealthy.

    This, despite the fact he is one of the chief predators on the destitute and impoverished. He is also a socially awkward and emotionally volatile man who doesn't maintain a public persona because he's uncomfortable in the spotlight. I've never seen Wilson Fisk portrayed this way but I think it works well. Some of the best scenes in Season One are his attempts to court his future wife Vanessa, showing a softer side of the man which could have been the hero to the city he imagines himself to be.

Rosario Dawson plays a big role in the series but is still criminally underused.
    The supernatural and superhuman play a role in the series, just on a far more subdued level than you'd normally see in a Marvel series. Concepts like The Immortal Iron Fist's Seven Cities and the Hand play a role in the story but they are hidden behind things like the Triads and Yakuza. The show is established by the time they arrive so that their appearance is neither shocking nor expected.

    Kudos.

    My favorite character in the series has to be Karen Page. While it's a crime to have Deborah Ann Woll switch from red hair to blonde, her character has an effective arc throughout the season. She is a character with multiple conflicting emotions about crime, punishment, justice, and vengeance. Going from a murder suspect in the first episode to a legal assistant to someone neck-deep in Hell's Kitchen's politics is done with a deft hand. I also loved her chemistry with Elden Henson and hope we'll see her take on a role as Matt's love interest in season two (even if Elektra is a more famous romantic foil).

    In conclusion, this show is an accomplishment. I will never like Daredevil as much as I like some heroes but this is a show which can be appreciated by both comic book fans as well as fans of gritty urban crime drama--two groups which don't often go together.

10/10
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True Detective: Season One review

May 7, 2015, 5:53 am
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    I wrote an essay on this television series ties to the Cthulhu mythos and my opinion on whether or not it should be considered a part of it here. However, I haven't written a proper review of the series until now. With the second season coming up, I've decided it's a good a time as any to give my opinion on its initial eight episodes.

    The premise harkens back to the lurid trashy magazine articles of yesteryear, promising tales of sex and violence which really happened. It is also a play on words with the two leads, questioning whether either of them deserve the title of being a "true" detective. The plot is non-linear but boils down to two former detectives Rustin "Rust" Cohl (Matthew McConaughey) and Martin Hart (Woody Harrelson) being interviewed regarding a set of ritualistic murders they ostensibly stopped years ago.

    The majority of the story takes place in flashbacks which shows the two forming an uneasy partnership. Rust is a nihilist philosopher who puts down God, the world, and meaning while Hart is a staunch proponent of traditional Lousiana values.

Is he seeing this? Is it a hallucination? Or it just weird bird behavior?
    Neither man is comfortable in his stated philosophy as Rust has no true devotion to nihilism, only taking it up as a reaction to his daughter's death, and Hart being deeply uncomfortable with the patriarchal masculinity he's been raised to embody. The two butt heads constantly with the chief point of contention becoming Hart's adultery, Rust despising his partner for throwing away the kind of marriage he'd kill to possess.

    The show exists in the penumbra between the mystery and supernatural genres with nothing happening on the show which cannot be explained as the workings of a troubled mind. Nevertheless, the supernatural coats much of the plot with questions of meaning and justification for horrific acts being a major theme.

    The cultists, if cult there be rather than a single mad killer, are committing sexual assaults and murders under the guise of occultism to fill an inner need. Worse, it may be the murders are merely the latest acts in a much-much larger ring which has abused hundreds of children. Society doing the dirty work of the cult by refusing to believe it had failed to protect its children from such predators.

The murders are a major focus of the series but they're just the tip of the iceberg for a much larger, much nastier ring of criminals.
    I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that sex, sexuality, and society's relationship to such things are a major theme. Female nudity is common in the show with Alexandra Daddario and Michelle Monaghan both participating. Surprisingly, this serves a storytelling purpose as Hart's struggles with his own sexual desires.

    There is a rampant sexism in True Detective but the show demonstrates the line between depicting and condoning such attitudes. Both Daddario and Monaghan's characters have their own desires as well as reactions to the expectations of them as women. One of the more symbolic scenes is Daddario's character of Lisa turning around Martin Hart's attempt at handcuffing her to demonstrate who is really in control of their short relationship.

    Both Rust and Hart are fully-realized characters with a mixture of deep flaws as well as strong virtues. Rust appears to be the better man at the start of the series due to his lack of hypocrisy but we discover he is in every bit as much denial as Hart. They are, both, in their own way, terrible people. They are, however, great detectives.

The action sequences are where the men shine--even though both know such things bring them no closer to the true killers.
    The fact both men choose to continue investigating the case on a basis of pure desire to do the right thing shows they're stronger individuals than they appear as well--especially since so much of Louisana's authorities would just prefer the case disappear. Both McConaughey and Harrelson give the performance of their careers, making me sad we're only getting one season with them.

    True Detective is, at heart, a lurid but passionate series. It stares into the heart of mankind's grotesques and doesn't flinch. As mentioned, it manages to capture the spirit of H.P. Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos and Robert Chambers'The King in Yellow without ever needing a physical monster to attack. Surprisingly, despite this, the first season ends on a note which refutes many of these values. I leave it to viewers whether they think this is appropriate or not.

    Either way, I recommend this series to viewers who don't mind hard-R storytelling which deals with horrific subject matter in a masterful way. There are many-many uncomfortable moments but this is part of the story's message, which is powerful. I'll leave it to viewers to find out what said message is. It is a great character piece, mystery story, occult tale of the supernatural, and commentary on patriarchal masculinity.

10/10
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Interview w/ me this Friday (5/8/15) on Zombiepalooza

May 7, 2015, 6:22 am
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Hey guys,

    I'm very pleased to say the indomitable Jackie Chin has decided to have me on her show, Zombiepalooza, this Friday (5/8/15) from 10:00 til 11:00 PM Eastern. You can find her website here.

    I'm a big fan of her show and hope to be able to discuss my book at length. This will be my first podcast interview and I hope I don't screw it up.

    Hehe.


    I'll be discussing The Rules of Supervillainy, Esoterrorism, my relationship with Ragnarok Publications, and Jim Bernheimer's Amber Cover press. Best of all, the aforementioned Jim Bernheimer will be showing up as the interviewee after me.

    Now if I just get my headset to work *smashes it with a hammer*. See you there!

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Batman vs. Robin review

May 8, 2015, 5:33 am
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    Batman vs. Robin is an adaptation of the "Night of the Owls" story arc by Scott Snyder. It is not a straight adaptation, picking and choosing elements while also incorporating elements from other stories as well as Grant Morrison's highly successful Batman run.

    The movie is little more than an hour long so this is an extremely condensed adaptation, removing all side-characters but Nightwing and Alfred while inventing a couple of new ones. Fans of the original storyline will be disappointed to not see the full assault on Batman realized but I, actually, think Batman vs. Robin improves on the story in some ways. It removes some of the original story's fat and explains why Batman hasn't discovered the Court of Owls in a decade or more of detective work in Gotham City (answer: the Court of Owls has only recently returned to Gotham City rather than having been there the entire time under Batman's nose).

The Court of Owls is a well-realized secret society.
    The premise is Batman and Damien are not getting along. The new Robin is used to being treated as both a Prince who gets everything he wants as well as an adult. Batman, by contrast, treats him as a soldier expected to obey his every command and a boy in equal parts. Despite the assumption Batman would be the best father in the world, he offends Damien at every point and is suspicious the boy has been brainwashed too thoroughly by Ra's Al Ghul to be out in the field. This comes to a head when the Dollmaker, a villain who abuses children horribly, ends up dead and Batman's first suspicion is his son did it.

    For shame, Bruce.

    Much of the story follows the age-old story of a vigilante who kills showing up in Gotham to tempt either Bruce or one of his proteges into crossing the "no kill" line. In this case, it is Talon, who is the Court of Owls Master Assassin. The Court of Owls is, basically, an Owl-themed Illuminati or Hellfire club which has ambitions to take over Gotham from behind the scenes. Once very powerful in the city, they were driven out by an internal struggle and want to return. Talon admires Damien Wayne and sees much of himself in the boy. He offers Damien freedom and the respect he thinks he deserves at the mere price of helping him take over the city.

Talon's corruption of Damien (or attempts thereof) is one of the best parts of the movie.
    This is actually a pretty good plot. I know, color me shocked. For the longest time, I've been harping on the DC animated movies being complete failures. However, Talon works very much as the "cool older brother" which most kids from adolescence to their teenage years would prefer to their actual parents. It reminded me, of all things, the corruption of Danny in the 1990 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle movie. Like most street gangs and many drug dealers, they prey on the impressionable by giving them what they want but not what they need.

    The conflict between Damien and Bruce feels surprisingly organic, even if the comic book version of Bruce handles his son much better. This version of Bruce is more withdrawn and resentful of his situation, not yet a master of dealing with children. Damien is an entitled brat but he actually has some decent points.

    Bruce doesn't want to let Damien out to fight crime, for instance, but it's hard to argue this is a good idea when the young lad stops a rape-in-progress. Which, really DC, you didn't need to go there. It's ridiculous Damien can fight Batman like he's a miniature-sized adult but I'm just going to pretend he has super-strength for his size due to ninja alchemy or something. I can believe in glowing green rings from blue elves and super-speed, I can believe in this.

   Both sides have points and it's about the two coming to an understanding.

The actual fight between Batman and Robin is a short one but visually stunning.
    Truncated as their arc is, the Court of Owls is handled well too. We get a sense of who they are, what their motivations are, and what sort of threat they pose to Batman. Talon is almost to Batman's level, if not quite, and the zombie ninjas aren't to Batman's level at all but they're pretty powerful in their own right. Thus, when we have three of the zombie ninjas attack Batman and come close to defeating him, it doesn't feel cheap. I buy they're undead martial-arts masters who don't feel pain and that's a threat to our hero. Plus, Grey Delisle does a showing as Bruce's girlfriend with an agenda and I tend to like anything she shows up in.

    I'd also be remiss if I didn't say the big appeal of this movie is the fight sequences. Since Batman is fighting against zombie ninjas, he doesn't have to hold back the same way he does against living opponents. This allows the Dark Knight to really cut loose. Likewise, Damien displays a staggering amount of Yoda-in-Attack of the Clones-esque moves, jumping around in a dizzying display of acrobatic martial arts. The animation is fluid and well-done, really letting the fight sequences shine.

Damien must choose: the father he wants or the father he needs.
    There is a small sense that this movie doesn't quite know if it wants to make a program for all-ages or adults, however. Along with the aforementioned rape threat during a mugging, only implied but clearly enough, there's also children driven to madness by a psychopath as well as Batman swearing at one point. Another scene has a man's heart ripped from his body like Talon was frigging Kano from Mortal Kombat. It's nothing which moves the movie beyond PG-level but it was surprising.

    In conclusion, I actually recommend this movie to fans of Batman. It's not the perfect Batman movie but is really-really good. I didn't even miss Kevin Conroy as the Dark Knight, which I never expected to say. The action is good, the conflict believable, the villains competent, and the animation excellent. I can't think of anything to complain about which wouldn't be nitpicking and that's praiseworthy by itself.

10/10
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Avengers: Age of Ultron review

May 8, 2015, 11:32 am
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    I was never the huge-huge fan of Avengers every other geek on the planet was. I loved the Avengers film but I considered it to be an example of pure mind-candy with no real nutritional value. Loki is leading an army of aliens to invade the Earth, the Avengers assemble and stop him. To be fair, that's all the plot the majority of the fans wanted from the movie and I'm not sure it would have been improved by trying to tell something like Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

    Nevertheless, Avengers was a very tight movie.

    Avengers: Age of Ultron is fat.

    Jabba the Hutt fat.

Ultron is a fantastic villain--no if's, and's, or buts.
    Don't get me wrong, none of this fat is ever boring. It's mind-candy every bit as much as Avengers, especially for long-time comic book fans. Oh, look, there's the Hulkbuster armor! There's Ultron! There's Baron Strucker! Look, there's that guy we like from the comics who we totally didn't expect to show up here. The movie is doing its very best to entertain and it, for the most part, succeeds but I can't help it's throwing as much at the wall as possible in hopes some of it will stick.

    The premise of the movie is fairly simple: Tony Stark builds a A.I. (Ultron as voiced by James Spader) in order to help patrol the Earth and protect it from alien invasion. Having never, apparently, seen Terminator--the A.I. rebels and proceeds to try to kill the Avengers. The Avengers have to stop him. Along the way, they pick up Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor Johnson) and the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), who are originally enemies of the team but convert when it becomes apparent Ultron is insane.

The slow-motion in the movie nicely replicates comic book panels.
    The problem isn't the premise of the movie but the insistence of it trying to fit in everything it can to the deterrent of the story's progression. For example, the Black Widow and Hulk romance plot is widely criticized for coming out of nowhere. I don't think there's anything wrong with it, per se, but it doesn't really relate to anything regarding Ultron. Likewise, there's Thor's vision quest that does nothing but remind audiences about the ongoing Infinity Stone subplot.

    To give a general sense of the movie for me, there's an extended chase sequence toward the end of the movie where the Avengers are doing very cool stuff involving planes, trains, motorcycles, and automobiles as well as a truck-top fight. There's nothing un-enjoyable about the fight sequence but it's very much padding.

    Not even the character development sequences are perfect given there's an extended farm sequence which seems designed to slow down the plot to a crawl. I will, admit, I did like the subversion of a typical superhero cliche that every last one of them has to be a committed loner. I won't elaborate on that, you'll have to see the movie.

The Scarlet Witch is an impressive new character and rightly gets a lot of attention.
    There's a much-much tighter film here which would have been much more enjoyable to me. I would hate to see any of the sequences lost because none of them are BAD but they don't really make the film better, either, just longer.

    Enough with the bad.

    James Spader's Ultron is awesome. He manages to capture the quirky Whedon-esque humor of Tony Stark as well as the menacing child-like insanity of the comic book Ultron. He's never NOT entertaining when he's on screen and I really regretted his inevitable death. Ultron is an engaging character and the fact he's probably been warped by either Hydra programming or Thanos makes me sympathize with him perhaps before than I should. I certainly bonded with him more than any of the other A.I. in the movie, including the one I should have been happy to see appear.

    Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch play an excellent role as the moral counterparts to the Avengers in the film. Both portrayed as victims of American military aggression, they've found themselves allied first with Hydra then Ultron before finding themselves with the Avengers. I get the point Joss was attempting to make about how heroes can be on both sides, but I think he chose a poor group to ally them with. Given their comic book counterparts are biracial Jewish/Romani, I can't say it's the best idea to have them team up with a Nazi-derived organization against Americans.

    Sends the wrong message, y'know?

The Hulk is much more expressive this time around--having his own character separate from Banner.
    Nevertheless, I found both characters very entertaining and wished I could see more of them but they don't get much beyond, "we hates nasty Tony Starks forever" followed by trying to get their redemption. Their actors manage to make the most of their short number of scenes, though, which I salute them for. I liked them so much that later developments in the movie left me feeling quite cross with Joss Whedon.

    The arrival of a secret Avenger (pun intended) at the end of the movie was a welcome surprise but I can't talk much about them without spoiling their appearance. Even so, as much as I appreciated their depiction, it seemed like a bit too much. I would have preferred to focus on the existing number of characters versus adding yet another to the already-full roster. Nevertheless, I can't imagine anyone doing a better job capturing said character's majesty and grace. Longtime Avengers fans will love this character and I wouldn't mind a movie starring them.

    Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is the one I think who benefits most from this movie as Joss Whedon gives him plenty of chances to show off why he's awesome. In an unusual subversion of traditional gender roles, Hawkeye is portrayed as the "heart" of the team. As the sole mortal man who isn't repressing horrific trauma, he is the guy who keeps the group grounded. I'm not sure this is the best fit for the character with Captain America on the team but it worked for me. I also loved a delightful subversion of his backstory as a brooding loner--bravo, Joss.

Ultron's childlike humorous qualities are an addition to the character I'd like to see in the comics.
    What did I think of the Black Widow and Hulk in the movie? I think the two of them should have remained friends, oddly enough. I like their bonding over their shared tragedies and mutual self-loathing. The Black Widow hates the fact she's a product of a murderous super-soldier/ballet school murder-program and Hulk is the Hulk.

    Still, it seems like an odd sort of place to begin a romance and I found it annoying she was the one required to calm down the Hulk. I mean, part of what makes Natasha great is she's one of the least nurturing and gentle female characters in the history of film.

    Oh well, at least the movie goes in the right direction for it.

    The rest of the Avengers get okay scenes to show off their various personalities. Captain America gets to kick a lot of ass but has a running gag of everyone thinking he's lame and white bread. Iron Man is, as usual, always trying to out-think problems which don't exist yet. Thor is enjoying what amounts to an extended vacation on Earth which has blinded him to his responsibilities back on Asgard.

The Hulkbuster armor scene is entirely gratuitous--and yet pretty awesome anyway.
    I regret the fact neither Falcon or War Machine are full-time Avengers, which is something I would have loved to see on screen. War Machine, at least, gets a surprise showing at the end of the movie which was long overdue.

    Minor villains Baron von Strucker and Ulysses Klaue also give in entertaining performances before leaving the movie. I'm actually rather disappointed in the former since I think he could have been a much larger part of the story without distracting from the other character's development. Baron von Strucker could have been Ultron's second-in-command or chief henchmen or something.

    If you saw the original Avengers, you know what you're going to get from this movie. It's full of whiz-bang action, beautiful set pieces, funny character moments, quips, explosions, and the occasional warm fuzzy moment. Joss Whedon was perfect for these movies and I'm sorry he's leaving. It's not a great movie but it's entertaining and more than worth the price of a ticket to go see in theaters.

    But expect to have some scenes you want to go to the bathroom during.

    8.5/10
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My interview on Zombiepalooza Radio

May 9, 2015, 7:57 am
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Hey guys,

    I had an absolute blast on Zombiepalooza Radio and got to talk about my books, my publishers, my writing process, and more at length. It was a really fun interview and I had a lot of fun in the proccess. I got to discuss the mindset of getting into my characters, what my inspirations were, and what my characters were like.

    For those people who missed it, the interview is available on Youtube and my portion of it starts at 2:15:09 and lasts until 3:00:00. I definitely would enjoy being on that show again and recommend it to anyone else who wants to talk about indie horror.


    Check it out if you have the time.
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Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 2: Atlas Mugged review

May 9, 2015, 3:28 pm
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    As anyone who knows me can tell you, I am an absolutely huge fan of the Borderlands universe. I love the planet Pandora, space station Helios, the absolutely insane characters, and the weird Space Western/Post-Apocalyspe feel of the place. There's just something about the world and its characters which appeals to me.

    Oh yes, the fact they're absolutely crazy.

    Tales from the Borderlands manages to capture all of the appeal of the original games but makes the action a little less about guns and more about not dying horribly. Indeed, the characters only possess one gun between them and Fiona is the only one who knows how to shoot it. The first episode was reviewed here and I really liked it.

    So what do I think of the second episode?

    Also, really-really good.

I love parodying the Millennium Falcon's hyperdrive in a mobile home.
    Atlas Mugged is a bit shorter than Zer0 Sum but makes up for it with an excellent mix of action set-pieces and quiet character moments. We get to know a lot more about characters Rhys, Fiona, and their companions. This character development isn't limited to just the protagonists, either, as we get a bunch of insights into villains Vasquez and August.

    We get to find out Vasquez's origins, which are suspiciously similar to Rhys, and that August has a far softer side than I expected. Both of them are still pretty evil jerks but they aren't quite the cariactures they started off as. My only problem with them, really, is they're squarely Rhys and Fiona's respective villains. I'd like to see some August interaction with Rhys and Fiona with Vasquez--having them gel more into a single group. Seeing the two groups come together like Fiona's drag race with Vaughn and Rhys teaming up with Sasha in Episode One would be appreciated.

You get no less than THREE bullets this time around. WOAH.
    The premise is our anti-heroes have discovered the Gortys Project, a leftover experiment by the Atlas Corporation which can theoretically lead to a Vault. A joke is made how all things on Pandora ultimately tie to the Vaults but I didn't really think this connection was necessary. I rather liked the fact our protagonists weren't Vault Hunters. Either way, the conwoman and ambitious code-monkey are going to find it in order to make themselves filthy-stinking rich. They just have to survive the people who have put prices on their head in order to do it. Aiding them in this is, apparently, Handsome Jack.

    The episode wastes no time in reintroducing the breakout villain of Borderlands 2. I'm, honestly, suffering a little Jack fatigue since we've already had the Pre-Sequel devoted to his rise to power. Thankfully, they don't bring Jack back the dead. This is merely a computer reconstruction of his brain and memories. Despite this, Jack remains as insane as ever. One of the first interactions you have with him is the holographic reproduction try to strangle you to death. Even so, Jack is the only Vault Hunter you have at your disposal. You'll have to rely on him, as untrustworthy as he may be, in order to make it to the Vault.

Don't worry, he's STILL alive!
    There's a lot more continuity in this episode than in the prior one, which is both a good and bad thing. In addition to Jack, we also have the return of Athena and Janey Springs. I'm not the world's biggest Athena fan, so I was pleased to see her portrayed in a less-than-flattering light. The opportunity to steal her shield is also something which had me laughing aloud. We also get confirmation that Athena is a lesbian, which is good since there was still some minor controversy over this point. This, amongst other things, means that Athena is one of the few openly gay major characters in gaming.

    I also appreciated the return of Scooter, mainstay of the series. Oddly enough, my biggest complaint about Scooter is he's slightly "off" from the other Borderlands games. This version of Scooter is far too nice to be the one I remembered. The Scooter I remembered was a vulgar, half-insane, cretin of a man. This one is more of a lovable goof, which may just be Fiona's interpretation of the man.

More Janey Springs is always welcome, especially since the tragic closing of her studio.
    There's also some surprisingly touching moments in this episode too. My Fiona chose to kill Felix in retribution for his betrayal of the family. My interpretation was that Pandora doesn't produce forgiving sorts and everyone who lives there is hardened to some degree. Nevertheless, it was good to see the option to have her struggle with the act of patricide in Episode Two, even as Sasha was quick to judge Felix as worth killing. I also liked the moral dilemma born from a discovery about Vaughn.  One perfect for a Hyperion employee unused to violence.

    Bravo, Telltale.

    I will say that I regret the decision by Telltale to completely forgo puzzles this time around. I managed to get to New Haven and started fiddling around with some wiring but that wasn't so much a puzzle as simply putting item A into slot B. I think the episode could have been longer, too, but these are quibbling over details. The relatively short pace of the game is great for keeping the action flowing and enjoyable. Likewise, I never felt frustrated with the narrative either.

I'm not certain which would be worse: possession by Handsome Jack or the Devil.
    The illusion of choice was preserved this time around, too, even if they are only minor choices in the long run. For example, you can decide whether Felix dies or gets away scott free as well as whether or not you abandon your friends to go look for the treasure yourself. You can also make it clear whether or not your partner is your friend anymore.

    In conclusion, I loved this episode and can't wait for the next one. They may not have gotten Scooter "right" but if that's the biggest complaint I can come up with, they're well on their way to making a great series.

10/10
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The Breadwinner: All Good Things review

May 12, 2015, 1:26 pm
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    The Breadwinner Trilogy is a zombie series centered around a pair of survivors from disparate social classes who manage to find a luxury hotel which offers a brief respite from the struggle for life which defines the apocalypse.

    The books have numerous shocking swerves, unexpected deaths, and surprising twists. I admit, I would have preferred it to remain centered around the character of Samson and dealt more with his desire to serve as the "Breadwinner" for his fellow survivors but All Good Things wraps up most of the series plotlines in a satisfactory manner. We also get to see Veronica grow to become a heroine of quality.

    The premise is the group has a psychopath amongst then. Michelle is a character who is over-the-top but still a lot of fun. Michelle enjoys killing, relates to people only through what they can do for her, and racks up a large body count despite being part of a small group which doesn't like her. Despite this, she's entertaining and funny, which is worth its weight in silver.

    Much of the book is devoted to Michelle's activities and how they drive the group apart. This starts when Michelle kills a mentally unstable member of the group by throwing her over the side of the hotel. The group doesn't suspect Michelle but the act still backfires on her. Their friend's "suicide." inspires the group to try and do something with their luxurious lives by seeking out other survivors to take them in.

    All Good Things has a lot of good character development for its smaller role cast memners. We find out a great deal about survivors who had previously only been names. One is deeply religious, his brother is an atheist, another is suicidal without his love, and another is at her breaking point but no one notices because she's the psychologist. There's a several good bits like Michelle's poor attempts at seduction and a subversively cynical display of "humanity" where she helps a prisoner commit suicide.

    I was pleased by the books handling of religion as you rarely see anyone but crazy people have religious beliefs in the zombie apocalypse. The fact a man has gone deeper into his faith while others have lost it is only lightly touched upon but I found myself enjoying the contrast. I can't say I'm terribly fond of the villains, though. Neo-Nazis who keep female survivors as sex slaves are about as stock as you can get into the zombie apocalypse. Michelle, herself, is a far better villain and I find her silly as well as terrifying.

    Another flaw in the book is carried over from the first sequel, which is that Stevie Kopas never bothers to explain who any of these people are or how they relate to new readers. As such, this book is best read by people who are familiar with the previous two and isn't a good jumping-on point.

    Despite this, I think this is an effective end to the franchise. Those who enjoyed the previous Breadwinners will enjoy this entry. The ending was really well-written, fooling me several times into believing everyone was going to live or she was going to pull a "kill em all" ending. I'm not going to say what does happen at the end but it was surprising.

7/10
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Blackguards: Tales of Assassins, Mercenaries, and Rogues review

May 13, 2015, 11:22 am
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    Rogues are the best.

    This is my personal opinion on the subject. Some people prefer paladins and shining knights but just about everyone I know likes Han Solo more than Luke Skywalker. Now, I like Luke Skywalker just as much as anyone else but there's just something about antiheroes which speaks to me.

    A friend of mine said it was no coincidence that the nobility tended to favor stories of armored heroes fighting for noble causes while peasants liked clever people who used their wits to become rich. Blackguards: Tales of Assassins, Mercenaries, and Rogues is an homage to those sorts of heroes and the very origins of fantasy writing.

    Both Conan the Barbarian and Bilbo Baggins both share a common quality: they're both thieves. Modern fantasy is a house built upon those who work in shadows like Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser or countless other Sword and Sorcery heroes. Blackguards is an homage to these figures and what attracted me to Ragnarok Publications. Before I was a writer for them, I was a donater to their Kickstarter for this book and I hope you'll view my review in the context as a reader. If not, well, consider yourself warned.

    The book opens up with a foreword by Glen Cook of The Black Company series. Honestly. this is my least favorite part of the book since he sets the reader off on the wrong foot. His introduction is a ode to vicious killers, monsters, and nihilism. Which is pretty much NOT what the vast majority of these stories are about. He even cites how Norman Spinrad's The Iron Dream is a book about how even the most horrible evils can be heroes. Which is NOT what that book is about. It's a misinterpretation of its themes akin to A Fish Called Wanda's, "The central tenant of Buddhism is every man for himself."

    Oiye.

    Thankfully, Joe Martin proceeds to write his own foreword which is a bit more appropriate to the content. Joe Martin talks about his love of Bilbo Baggins, lovable rogues, and those who use their wits over brawn. This fits well with the stories within and put me in the proper mood for reading about the Blackguards within. He even helpfully defines the word.

    On my end, I don't like reading about the evil triumphing. The gray? Yes. The amoral? Certainly? The outright monstrous? Screw em. Even if the villains are worse than such heroes, all that makes me feel is that I'd like to see both jump off a cliff. Thankfully, Blackguards is full of many a Catwoman and Arsene Lupin while only a few Jokers.

    Now for a short critique of the many stories within:

    Mainon by Jean Rabe: The story of a beautiful Renassiance-esque fantasy assassin who is hired to protect a wedding feast from a killer prophecized to slay the groom. But, of course, things are more complicated than they appear. I love the protagonist and will have to check out any future works starring her.

The black and white art within is quite impressive. Each illustration shows something about the characters within.
    Irindai by Bradley P. Beaulieu: The story of a similarly attractive female pit fighter who gets caught up in a story of a vampish dream-dealer in an Arabic setting. I was surprised at the choice of making the villain a lesbian but it played very little role in over-the-top cruelties.
   
    The Subtler Art by Cat Rambo: A married couple goes to visit a luxurious retirement home populated by dictators, archvillains, and merchant princes in order to make a kill (or kills). The entire story is just a set up for a joke at the end but, thankfully, it's a funny joke.

    Seeds by Carol Berg: The story of a drug-addicted renegade wizard who wants to keep his hand long enough to continue doing drugs as well as prostitutes. I have to give credit to the author for managing to capture both the patheticness of an addict as well as making him an interesting lead protagonist.

    Jancy's Justice by Kenny Soward: I love GnomeSaga so I'm inclined to give Kenny props for this one, even though I don't remember the titular character all that well. This is a story of a thief with a soft-spot for children who goes to save a babe kidnapped millennium ago. My only complaint about this story is it ends abruptly before a proper climax.

    Professional Integrity by Michael J. Sullivan: My favorite story in the volume involves two likable thieves, a young woman paying them to kidnap her, a curse, a con, and a delightfully twist-ridden mystery. This is exactly the kind of rogue-ish story I love and I will definitely be checking out his other works.

    Troll Trouble by Richard Lee Byers: Another story I very much enjoyed due to its mostly-heroic scoundrel of a hero. The local Trolls have a problem with demonic possession, runaway brides, a evil witch, and an incubus. The way all of this gets resolved is just hilarious.

    A Better Man by Paul S. Kemp: A group of thieves get hired to thwart some more thieves but everyone is hustling everyone else. I love this story primarily because of its two protagonists but also because it provides one of the more impressive women I've read in a story story--I'd love to read more about her.

    The First Kill by Django Wrexler: An interesting story of intrigue, government action, and a submissive/dominant relationship between two killers. Django has an excellent handle on the leads and I had fun throughout.

    Manhunt by Mark Smylie: The story of a renegade guardsman Batman on a cursed city. The final speech about how serving the nobility sucks but you can do some small part for the peasantry was the best part of the story, even if it had lots of well-written action.
   
    Better to Live Than Die by John Gwynne: A rural take on a Robin Hood-esque band of forest bandits. Well, except for the fact they rob from the rich and give to themselves. The cynicism of the story shows that you don't need palaces for backstabbing on a scale similar to Game of Thrones.

    The Secret by Mark Lawrence: My second least favorite story in this volume (you'll read about the least later). A helpless young woman gets murdered by an assassin who gets close to her. I'm not a great believer a person has to be good to be heroic as bad people can do impressive deeds. There's nothing heroic about the protagonist and I hope he breaks his neck on his ride home.

    Friendship by Laura Resnik: A story of a secret order of killers on a place which reminds me of East Asia. The story has the uncomfortable subtext of the victim being the homosexual lover of the client, but I can't say it's not a believable motive in a homophobic society. It's also, mostly, about how people who get in (figurative) bed with criminals should not be surprised when they get diseased.

    The Long Kiss by Clay Sanger: A horror story masquerading as a roguish one. A thief purchases a night with a beautiful prostitute, only to find out she doesn't speak the language. He uses the time to relate his horrifying deeds in full, only to discover things aren't quite what they seem.

    The White Rose Thief by Shawn Speakman: A story about a retired thief turned bard. Rosenwyn is unique in this book since she finds being a thief as something to be ashamed of. However, that doesn't prevent her from getting caught up in the affairs of witches, nobles, druids, and dragons despite this. The story, seemingly, is a prelude for a longer one I would very much like to read.

    A Length of Cherrywood by Peter Orullian: My ACTUAL least favorite story in the book. This almost made me throw the book across the room. It's about a disgusting human trafficker who kidnaps an innocent woman (who doesn't even get a name) while her husband is helpless to resist. When I realized the story had the slaver get away afterward with no hint to the woman's fate, I tuned the rest out. A repulsive story about a repulsive character.

    A Taste of Agony by Tim Marquitz: A fascinating tale of survival on the mountaintops along with revenge, sorcery, and war. The fact the story stars an outlaw eunuch assassin is enough to get me invested just from the description alone.

    What Gods Demand by James A. Moore: I want to say I *LOVE* The picture which accompanies this story. The artist should be commended. The actual story is good, too, dealing with a woman who has reincarnated in a new body like the X-men's Psylocke and has to deal with the repercussions. I also liked she was a strongly religious character and how it influenced her actions.

Ragnarok's habit of illustrating their anthologies is one I wish more indie-publishers would do.
    Take You Home by David Dalgish: A vignette which is basically a Daredevil or Batman story. A city is controlled by a single Master Thief who enforces a code of conduct on all the various criminals in the city. When a young woman is kidnapped, it's up to him to rescue her against a small army of thugs. Short but sweet.
   
    Seeking the Shadow by Joseph R. Lallo: The story about how a blacksmith and an assassin form a pact for mutual advantage. It's a funny-funny story due to the blacksmith's dialogue and I wouldn't mind reading more about them.

    Sun and Steel by Jon Sprunk: A story which is more military than roguish. It's a tale of magic, force-of-arms, steel, honor, and bloodshed. I enjoyed it just fine even if it doesn't have much roguishness.

    The Betyar and the Magus by S.R. Cambridge: A Russian bandit during the Hungarian Revolution robs the wrong coach, finding himself in a very prickly situation. Hopelessly outmatched, the bandit has to use his silver tongue to convince said magus that he is more interesting alive than dead. Great story.

    A Kingdom and a Horse by Snorri Kristjansson: A pair of rather incompetent Norsemen find themselves try to rob some villagers with varying degrees of success. The story was quite funny and I enjoyed it a great deal. It, oddly enough, reminded me of Asterix.

    Thieves at the Gate by James Enge: A story which adapts the adventures of that original rogue, Odysseus. It's a perfectly entertaining and fine story but I can't say I find the attempt to liken piracy to conquest all that convincing. Still, it's worth it for the opening conversation about the importance of children to a dynasty.

    His Kikuta Hands by Lian Hearn: A Japanese-flavored bit of fantasy which, surprisingly enough, involves ninjas. The conflict between the Tribe, their code of honor, and the locals is impressively detailed. I also loved the shocking twist at the end.

    The Lord Collector by Anthony Ryan: A solid piratical fantasy tale on the high seas. It involves smugglers, priests, betrayal, codes of honor, Omerta (in its classical sense), and more. This is one of the best stories in the book and has a real meaty plotline to it.

    Scream by Anton Strout: A story which jumps out of classical fantasy to urban fantasy. Scream is about a psycometric private detective who is hired to steal back a painting for a museum. It has one of the most hilarious scenes I've read in a book involving, of all things, the restaurant from "When Harry Met Sally."

    If these stories weren't enough, purchasers of the ebook get a special bonus in an additional eleven stories. I've got to say this was an impressive gift by Ragnarok Publications and I loved every single one of them. Of special note are To the End by Rob J. Hayes, which is a chronicle of a character from his Ties that Bind series and The Lonesome Dark by Anthony Lowe. The latter is a tale about how revenge has its costs, even when you're just trying to be the one moral person in the world. Equally powerful is The Laughing Wind by Noah Hendrick which asks the question whether or not a single good deed can make up for a life of bad choices. Bloody Gratitude by Mike Theodorsson is just funny and depicts children as they truly are: complete monsters.

    In conclusion, Blackguards is an amazing book. One of, if not the, best anthologies I have ever read. It's well worth the price and provides an immense amount of entertainment for every page. With rare exceptions, I enjoyed every single story in this book and would recommend almost all of them to other readers.

10/10
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