Now, lately I've been making an effort to break out of shared world novel series like Star Wars and Dragonlance, and long book cycles (with excruciating wait times) like A Song of Ice and Fire (I am, however, guilty of beginning to dabble in Forgotten Realms). A while ago I read Tracy and Laura Hickman's excellent Bronze Canticles and recently finished Karen Miller's amazing Kingmaker-Kingbreaker duology. I've got loads of Forgotten Realms books in the queue, but I decided to check out Stackpole's Age of Discovery series, on the recommendation from a friend.
All-in-all, I thought it was a great book; it has a distinctly Asian flavor to it, which is a nice change of pace from the run-of-the-mill Tolkienesque medieval English setting. We even get a Central American motif later on in the book, which is pretty refreshing, and goes a long way in evoking our own Age of Exploration.
Now, I've had issues with Stackpole in the past; don't get me wrong, the man is a great writer, but I've always felt that his main Star Wars character, Corran Horn, was kind of a me-too of Luke Skywalker: Rogue Squadron pilot that has a R2 unit sidekick and eventually learns the ways of the Force to become a powerful Jedi Master. Still, the stories were good, so it was forgivable.
Fortunately there's no room for that here; Stackpole's taken great care to build an original, compelling world with its own rules and idiosyncrasies. So far I like it a lot; the ideas behind magic, the politics, and hell, the vocabulary, it's all really well thought-out. Unfortunately, this is where the book loses some of its charm.
Stackpole's created a world that's quite unique and compelling, but his world building is anything but subtle. Often there are chapters where characters will simply sit and spout expository dialogue about the political situations between the separate principalities. Of course, all the exposition is important to know, but sometimes it goes on and on and gets boring. The story finally got started in earnest around the halfway mark, which was a welcome change, but the dreaded exposition dialogue still cropped up here and there.
I suppose though, when writing Star Wars novels, the world is already built for you, and you can assume that the reader already is comfortable with the setting. Perhaps Stackpole tried to compensate for that by putting too much effort into the exposition? Who knows.
In the end though, it was a solid book, and I'm ready for more. There are two more books in the trilogy (obviously), one of which is sitting on my bookshelf. The other doesn't come out in mass market paperback format until June of this year, so I may hold off on reading them and grab some other books on my queue (and journey back to the Realms or the Galaxy Far Far Away).
I suppose it can get cold in the swamps of Dagobah. Staying warm is important though. That's why Master Yoda recommends Dagoba brand chocolate for your hot chocolate needs.
http://www.dagobachocolate.com/prodinfo.asp?number=0100%2E08
I'm a big Star Wars fan. Not the kind that dresses up like a stormtrooper and goes to conventions or any of that; more of a guy who's really into the story and the mythos and stuff. When I was younger, I started reading Star Wars novels, which introduced me to the Expanded Universe, which is the term used to describe all of the story-related media aside from the main six films. This includes novels, video games, and of course, comics.
I've been collecting comic books for years now, and while I mostly read DC Superhero stuff, I'm also a big fan of Star Wars comics published by Dark Horse. They've been publishing comics about the galaxy far, far away since the 90s (they weren't the first, however; Marvel, that comic book company that I don't read, ran Star Wars comics back the 80s), and as a result, there are a lot of Star Wars comics, including, but not limited to: Dark Empire, Crimson Empire, Rogue Squadron, Tales of the Jedi, Star Wars Infinities, Star Wars Tales, and of course, the massive amount of other miniseries that were published.
When the Prequel Trilogy first came out, starting with The Phantom Menace, Dark Horse started publishing the first ongoing monthly Star Wars title that didn't have any kind of subheading. It was just called Star Wars, and the first few story arcs followed the adventures of Ki-Adi-Mundi, the Cerean Jedi Councilman from Episode I. It was an amazing series, and quite successful. As it progressed, the series occasionally switched gears to follow and introduce other prequel characters, the most famous of which are probably Quinlan Vos and Aayla Secura. Thus began the phenomenon known henceforth as "excess badassery."
Quinlan and Aayla are badasses. There is no question of this. They're grim and gritty Jedi that skirt the edges of the Dark Side to get things done. Quinlan doesn't wear the traditional Jedi robes; more often, he's in deep cover, so he's wearing some kind of skin-tight tank top thing that shows off his biceps, triceps, and any other -ceps he happens to have. Combine that with a constant five o'clock shadow, dreadlocks, and some facial tattoos and you're set to kick some ass. Aayla doesn't wear the traditional robes either; as the token "sexy Twi'lek" she's usually showing off her midriff and wearing tight pants.
I never had any problem with these characters; Jan Duursema, the artist who gave them their look, really came up with something fresh and different from our normal brown robed Jedi Knights. George Lucas even liked Aayla's design so much he put her in Attack of the Clones. John Ostrander, the writer for the series, wrote them well enough too; lots of pontification about the nature of the Force, etc. etc. It was a great series.
After Episode II came out, the Star Wars ongoing series split in two and switched gears yet again: Star Wars Republic jumped ahead a few years to cover the Clone Wars, and Star Wars Empire was a new series that took place during the Original Trilogy era.
Star Wars Republic is where things started getting a little out of hand. We were treated to more and more characters who were essentially designed to be "badasses." Lots of Jedi who were taking to the war a little too well; not the Jedi Generals who commanded the Clone Armies; these were the ones in deep cover, double crossing the Separatists and doing other morally gray things. The series bridged Attack of the Clones with Revenge of the Sith, and by the time Anakin Skywalker put on the black helmet, I'm surprised other Jedi didn't follow him.
After Revenge of the Sith hit theaters, Dark Horse decided to retool their Star Wars line. Flash forward to today. Right now, there are four Star Wars ongoing titles that Dark Horse is running: Knights of the Old Republic, Dark Times, Rebellion, and Legacy. The first takes us back to the Tales of the Jedi era, the second is an appropriately dark look at what the galaxy went through after Palpatine took over, the third tells us stories about Luke, Leia, Han, and all of our other favorite Original Trilogy characters, and the last one takes place over a century and a half after Return of the Jedi, chronicling the tales of Luke Skywalker's descendant, Cade Skywalker.
Knights is probably my favorite of the bunch; the character designs are wonderful and the story is engaging and fun. But most of all, Knights has was every other Star Wars comic series is lacking these days: humor. Star Wars has always had those wonderfully ironic one-liners, and a million laugh out loud moments. Watch The Empire Strikes Back and you'll notice that practically everything that Han Solo says to anyone is a memorable one-liner. Knights really captures that light-hearted humor-in-the-face-of-doom spirit that characterized the Original Trilogy.
Not so much the case with the others. I can't speak towards Rebellion, as it's the one series I haven't gotten around to reading, but Dark Times is appropriately, well, dark. Not a lot of room for laughs when the Empire's taking over and enslaving non-human races.
With Legacy, however, I was really hoping for something different. Taking place so long after everything, it's really removed from what's going on in the Star Wars novels right now. There was so much potential there stemming from a fresh start. What we've got is--for better or for worse--more of the same.
Don't get me wrong: Legacy is an amazing series that every Star Wars fan needs to be reading right now, but you've got to keep in mind it's by Ostrander and Duursema, so it's subject to excess badassery. Generally speaking, you can tell when Jan Duursema designed a character: her men are chiseled, with wavy hair (or dreadlocks), unshaven, and usually have a few tattoos. Very Quinlan-esque. The women are also very Aayla-esque: sexy, usually showing midriff and wearing tight pants. In fact, we've even got another token "sexy Twi'lek" in the form of Darth Talon, who basically looks like the lovechild of Aayla Secura and Darth Maul. Great character, but still; she's basically a Sith-Aayla.
As for the story, Ostrander spins a great yarn. The different ideas brought to the table about the Jedi, the Sith, and the political stage of the galaxy are all great. My favorite would have to be the Imperial Knights, light-side force users that are sworn to the Emperor of the new Galactic Empire first, and to the service of the Force second. There's something very appealing and logical about them; the credo of the Empire has always been "order," and I feel like that's an ideal that a Jedi could definitely latch onto.
My only problem with Ostrander's writing is that like Duursema's character designs, he tries too hard to paint his characters as badasses. The one-liners that Cade, Syn, and Deliah utter are generally not quips like, "And I thought they smell bad on the outside," they're usually more in line with "Then I'll see you in hell." Now, Han Solo is the kind of guy who could get away with both of those lines, but the point is he balanced out "I'll see you in Hell" with a comment about taun-taun innards. No such luck with Legacy. The cast of characters is generally an angry bunch, are never given a chance to smile unless it's a grim one.
I just hope that as Legacy progesses, we get some more down time, some more laugh-out-loud moments. The series has been balls-to-the-wall since Issue 0, and I think that it'd be better if Ostrander took a step back and had a little more fun with his characters. But like I said: Legacy is an amazing series, so I'm not too disappointed by the lack of humor.
Dark Horse has always had an amazing track record with the Star Wars license; hopefully they'll continue that for years and years to come.
Quite update for now. Diesel Sweeties is one of my favorite web-comics, and it's always wonderful to see R. Stevens do a take on those "other" comics.
Poor poor Power Girl. :(
It's odd, isn't it? Most people are workin' for the weekend, but when Monday rolls around, I can't wait until it's Wednesday.
Obviously, it's because Wednesday is comic book day. Every Wednesday I head down to Steve's Comic Relief, near the Quakerbridge Mall, to pick up my comics. Always a pleasant experience, considering they almost always have everything I want, and if they don't, they're happy to order it for me. It also helps that I can buy back issues there without paying extra. Just cover price. Isn't that nice?
After grabbing my weekly haul and talking to the comics ship guy for a while, I head next door to the mall and scope out Borders Express, for manga releases and novels. Now, right now I've got a huge backlog of books to read, but manga is something I don't mind grabbing and saving for later. In any case, the lovely ladies who work at the bookstore are always quite nice and cheery, and actually seem genuine, which is a nice alternative to the canned "hello, how are you, have a nice day."
After a short trip home, I take some time to let my mind devour what I bought, eat some dinner, and then sit down to watch Pushing Daisies, a fantastic show about life after death...literally. It's such a quirky, whimsical show with smartypants writing; I can't get enough of it.
Then I read some more, sleep, and Lo and Behold, I've only got a few more days 'till the weekend, so I don't have to wait as long.
I can't wait 'till next Wednesday.
Anyone else agree with me that The Sinestro Corps War storyline is the best thing DC's got going right now? Don't get me wrong; I'm enjoying Booster Gold's time-hopping adventures and Paco wanting to help Blue Beetle out with his sexy fight as much as the next guy, but seriously, for sci-fi mayhem and badass dialogue, the Green Lantern titles are taking the cake.
We're into the thick of it now with the Sinestro Corps invading Earth, but the latest issue of GL ends with a few moments of badassery. Nice to see the 4 Earthmen together again, and John Stewart giving it to Parallax in the jaw while proclaiming his blackness has got to be eligible for some kind of awesome award. Yeah, I know some people give him crap for being the token "black guy" in the Justice League, but come on, he's way more than just the "Black Lantern." You know it, I know it, and Hal Jordan knows it. He's a Green Lantern, and last time I checked, Abin Sur was pink, okay? And the Guardians of the Universe? Baby blue. So lighten up.
I've definitely decided to continue reading Green Lantern after this is all over. The Alpha Lantern Project intrigues me, and for some reason reminds me of the ARC Troopers from Star Wars. Incidentally, Geoff Johns, the mastermind behind all this ring-slinging tomfoolery, recently compared the Green Lantern mythos with Star Wars; this is a great interview on Newsarama where he talks about everything Green Lantern. Give it a read.
DC Comics is doing a multiverse battle royale miniseries this December. Like almost everything going on in the DCU right now, it ties into Countdown. Three different, Alternate-Earth versions of a popular hero duke it out for a spot on Monarch's Army (whoever that is).
Fun part is, you can vote for which versions you want to win. So head on over and exercise your God-given right and vote for Red Son Superman.
That's right. Democracy and Communism, hand-in hand. Isn't it a beautiful thing?
I've been reading a lot of comics lately.
Every Wednesday after work I head down (as in south) to Steve's Comic Relief, near Quakerbridge Mall. I will invariably end up buying way more than I planned on buying, but I'm getting better at keeping tabs on what I get. That doesn't mean I'm buying less, oh no. It just means that I'm more away of what's coming out every week. I'll hit up DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics' Star Wars Zone before I go and have a list ready.
But sometimes I still end up spending more than I plan.
For example, this past Wednesday I was at Steve's, doing my weekly thing. I got some great titles: Star Wars Legacy #16, which had a great Obi-Wan Kenobi story; Green Lantern #23, which continues the awesomely amazing Sinestro Corps storyline; Booster Gold #2, guest-starring Sinestro as a GL, whose ego rivals if not exceeds Booster's own; Wonder Girl #1, where Tim and Cassie try to have a "talk" while battling hydras (of all things); Justice Society of America #9, featuring the return of Kingdom Come Superman; and the JLA Wedding Special, which featured DC villains at their finest. Oh, and I also picked up Countdown 33, which wasn't bad, but a little confusing considering it features Kyle Rayner as a good guy GL. Last time I checked he was Parallax in the Sinestro Corps war, but hey, who cares?
I was pretty pumped, considering the selection this week, when I decided to check out some of the Wildstorm stuff, maybe check if there was a trade out for Welcome to Tranquility, which I really want to read eventually. Now, I read massive amounts of DC, but I'm not much of a Wildstorm buff. Don't get me wrong, I like Wildstorm, it's a little edgier than DC, without being dark, and the artists they get for a lot of their titles are really good. It's just hard to find a continuing series to get into. I think I'll stick with trades, to be honest. Too much DCU to keep track of without getting into another universe. But I digress.
One Wildstorm character I really like is Mr. Majestic. He's that Superman archetype without the bleeding heart (okay, that was harsh; Superman still rocks). He's super strong, super fast, etc etc etc, but he doesn't have that Kansas farmboy mentality that Superman does; instead, he's a former warlord. Good thing he's a good guy. He had a great solo series years ago, for which the trade is ridiculously difficult to find online. Pencils were by Ed McGuinness, who's absolutely perfect for the character type; check out Superman/Batman:Public Enemies and tell me this man wasn't born to draw Superman. Imagine my delight when I saw it sitting on a shelf at Steve's. Hooray.
And that's how I ended up spending $15 more on comics.
Alright, so here I am. I decided to start this thing (I refuse to use the B-word). Why? I already have a LiveJournal, right? I do. But that's for personal stuff.
This thing right here is for thoughts about stuff that's not so personal.
Let me back up. My name is Shariq (SHAH-rick), and I have a lot of geeky interests, including comic books, video games, anime, manga, d&d, and a whole slew of other things. I'm going to try to post thoughts here every week about what I read and watch. The won't be reviews, just thoughts. Oh, and don't think or hope for just one second that anything I write here will be insightful. Sometimes my thoughts on these things can be superficial, and I'm not too difficult a person to please as far as entertainment goes; but I'll try my best.
In any case, I hope at least some folks read this.
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grantalias said:
[this is good]I'm enjoying the Legacy series also. read more
on A General Excess of Badassery -
Diego said:
[this is good]I think working for the wednesday is a good mentality. read more
on I Live for Wednesdays
on X Marks the Spot