Adrian Collins's Blog, page 143
January 14, 2022
REVIEW: The Expanse S6 E4: Redoubt
Redoubt is the first episode of The Expanse season six where I think the show has had a serious misfire because with only six episodes in the season, you’d expect them to be firing on all cylinders. Instead, the story feels almost like a clip show as everyone spends the episode discussing the events of the previous episode. The problem was that the previous episode didn’t actually have that much happen.
In the previous episode, Marcos Inaros (Keon Alexander) was almost killed by Holden and the Rocinante. The plucky heroes of the ship managed to come within inches of ending the biggest mass murderer of all time. Unfortunately, Holden pulled back at the last second and disabled the missile that would have killed Inaros but also Naomi’s son Fillip.
Needless to say, a lot of the Rocinante crew is less than pleased that Holden (Steven Strait) chose to potentially let the end of the war slip through their grasp. Even Naomi (Dominque Tipper), the person who Holden did this for, isn’t grateful because defeating Inaros is something she intellectually knows is more important than her son’s life. As she tells Holden, he’s put every life that Inaros takes on her shoulders whether he wants to or not.
Drummer (Cara Gee) continues to try to undermine the Free Navy and build up a coalition of Belters who hate what he stands for. Inaros benefits from the fact that all of his actions seems to be against the Inners (Earth and Mars) so that no matter how heinous, they will always look like those of a freedom fighter to certain groups. Fighting against his own people, though, will undermine everything that he stands for.
Her speech to Inaros is something that almost justifies the existence of the episode by itself as we see that he is a weak and cowardly man who isn’t the epic leader he’s set himself up to be. Indeed, Drummer is the kind of leader the Belters need and would have been if Fred Johnson had turned power over to her or another Belter earlier in his carer. This is a big change from the book but the series has done well in giving the actress much more to do.
We continue to get material about life on Laconia and the weird protomolecule technology present there, setting up something similar to Pet Semetary. We also get to finally meet the absolute dictator of Laconia in Duarte. I’m increasingly of the mind the Expanse will not end at the end of this season but perhaps be continued in television movies or some other medium.
In conclusion, with only two episodes to go, this episode felt extremely padded and suffered for it. We really should have been exploring the characters more and the events around Inaros’ Free Navy but it seems like we’re just killing time until the end.
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January 13, 2022
REVIEW: Legacy of Ghosts by Alicia Wanstall-Burke
Lidan and Ranoth dramatically return in Legacy of Ghosts, the second installment of the Coraidic Sagas trilogy. Four years has passed since the events in Blood of Heirs with Lidan and Ran’s worst fears nearing fruition. They must make crucial and life altering decisions. They will face more powerful enemies and fouler magic. At last, the fates of Alicia Wanstall-Burke’s beloved characters collide.
Despite the time jump from the first book, Legacy of Ghosts is a familiar return to the lives of Lidan and Ran. Ranoth Olseta remains a fugitive from his father, the duke of Orthia. While Ran is learning to accept and control his powers, his father’s intolerance for magic has only escalated with time. The keep that once provided solace to Ran and other magic users is no longer safe. For the first time in four years, Ran must venture across unknown lands. As first daughter to Daari Erlon, Lidan Tolak’s right to the throne is now strongly contested with the birth of her brother. As she struggles with the conflicting expectations set by her parents, she must ultimately choose between what her heart desires or her integrity.
Legacy of Ghosts is about the personal journeys of Ran and Lidan. Wanstall-Burke honored her maturing characters by intensifying their character arcs and intimate relationship dynamics. Compared to its predecessor, book two focuses more on the damaging effects of trauma. In the throes of loss, the bonds between friends and family become a focal point. I was delighted to learn more about Ran’s ghost companion and Lidan’s siblings.
While creatures such as the Ngaru continue to roam the lands, human enemies pose the real threat. It is time for the kingdoms to swear new loyalties and strengthen allegiances. In Legacy of Ghosts, new oaths will forge and be broken. Our characters learn that no bond is safe from treachery.
Wanstall-Burke amplified the action in Legacy of Ghosts. Between the political battles, we are introduced to new monsters and frightening curses. While there are plenty of visually stunning scenes and character growth throughout, the plot felt concentrated to the last quarter of the book. The ending left me all too eager for book three.
Legacy of Ghosts is a strong successor for the Coraidic Sagas trilogy. Wanstall-Burke held no reservations in challenging her characters. The battles are amplified. The risks are higher. The choices Ran and Lidan make will forever impact the lives of those they love.
Read Legacy of Ghosts by Alicia Wanstall-Burke
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Review: The Witcher Season 2 Episode 7: Voleth Meir
Voleth Meir is an entirely new character to the Witcher setting, not featured in the books or the games. Voleth Meir was a solid addition, a Baba Yaga-esque manipulating witch-goddess bound to a hut by the first witchers. She’s been manipulating everything all season, and we’re finally on our way to that confrontation.
Voleth Meir gave the elves their first pure-blood elf in a long time, and it gave Fringilla power, and then it took both away through the same event. The birth of the child makes the elves less willing to fight on behalf of Cintra; they’d rather rebuild, which puts Cintra and the elves back against each other.
We start with Jaskier having an amusing sequence in jail, absolutely tormenting his captor with his incessant singing, as well as having befriended the mice. Typical Jaskier stuff. Geralt comes in to rescue him. Yennefer had mentioned meeting him before she took Ciri and fled, so he’s come to get what information he can.
Jaskier reminds Geralt that he’d left him on a mountainside the last they’d spoken, and is still irritated, but gives up that anger for a fairly quick reconciliation. This is for the best, as keeping Jaskier and Geralt apart does nothing for the show.
Their travel also includes running into Yarpen Zigrin, last seen in Season 1, Episode 5, and his band of stab-happy dwarves, who join them on a mission Geralt won’t tell them about.
Yennefer and Ciri meanwhile keep fleeing, and Yennefer convinces Ciri that Geralt is likely a captive of Cintra. Ciri still believes Yennefer is trying to keep her safe and follows along. Yennefer dodges most questions or answers in half-truths, but saying Geralt is likely captured and in Cintra is a full-throated lie, intended to get Ciri to the shattered door so Yennefer can make her trade with Voleth Meir and get her magic back.
When they finally reach it, Ciri figures it out and Yennefer tells her she can flee. Yennefer can’t, but she can suggest that Ciri run away. Instead, Ciri screams and her uncontrollable magic breaks the ground all the way to Cintra, which alerts some guards who come after them. Geralt also shows up to rescue Ciri. The convergence of the plot-lines—three groups showing up in the same place at the exact same time—feels odd considering Yennefer and Ciri teleported and Geralt and Jaskier did not. That said, The Witcher has always been a show that puts drama over logistics.
But that’s a minor nuisance to see Geralt’s fury at Yennefer. His sword lingers at her neck. His growled ‘Mine’ to Yarpin is another example of just how well Cavill understands this character. He sends Ciri away with Jaskier, and Yarpin and his dwarves, without moving his sword from Yennefer’s neck.
He gets her to recite the incantation to get back into Voleth Meir’s hut, only for them to realize that she’s made enough chaos in the world that she can finally manifest in the real world once more.
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January 12, 2022
The artist making every indie cover glow: Felix Ortiz
A few years back, I was scrolling through the Grimdark Fiction Readers and Writers Facebook group when I spotted a post by an artist who was starting out and looking to get his first cover clients. That artist’s name was Felix Ortiz, and if you fast forward to present day his brilliant cover pieces consistently draw the eye on fantasy bookshelves and social media.
Often brought even further to life by designer Shawn T King‘s works, Ortiz has a style that breathes life into the frozen moment. His works create flow and breathtaking action, and even his more experimental fan art demands you stop scrolling and pay attention to what’s happening on his canvas. Zooming in on his works often reveals further details you missed on first view, making Ortiz’s works well worth spending a few quiet minutes admiring and unpacking the scene. I’m sure many of his clients also revel in his ability to depict the smallest detail of their worlds.
Having recently commissioned Ortiz to complete the artwork for The King Must Fall, join me for a few minutes to appreciate my favourite of his works.
The Madness of Herakles by Matt Larkin
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REVIEW: The Expanse S6 E3: Force Projection
Force Projection is the third episode of the truncated sixth season of The Expanse and continues the build-up to the final confrontation between Marcos Inaros and the Rocinante crew. In fact, this episode could have been such a confrontation and would have been a satisfying conclusion if not for the fact they pulled back at the last minute.
The premise is that Marcos has evacuated Ceres station and left them as a humanitarian crisis in the making. They’ve stripped the station of everything valuable and all of their food, leaving only what the people personally possess. Earth now has the decision to feed and clothe the Belters despite their own overstretched resources or leave them to starve, which will only play into Marcos’ cause.
I happen to like these moments in the Expanse because they reflect real-life terrorist strategies like provoking attacks in order to maximize civilian casualties on your own side. That is one of the best ways to “win hearts and minds” for extremists. Chrisjen Avasarala knows this and is desperate to find a way to break the cycle of violence because so many have died that, right now, it looks like the only solution is genocide to one faction or the other.
Drummer is working on her own attempt to turn the Belter nation against Marcos, which is becoming easier and easier the more the Free Navy proves itself to be a bunch of psychotic scumbags. You’d think the genocide of billions would have already proven that but Marcos’ incompetence and willingness to abandon anyone he doesn’t consider a “true Belter” (which is anyone not utterly loyal to him) is certainly helping her plan.
Filip Inaros continues to question Marcos and starts developing a spine. Unfortunately, it’s a bit late for this character development as he’s crossed the Moral Event Horizon numerous times. It’s a bit like trying to redeem Kylo Ren after he murdered Han Solo, participated in the destruction of Hosnian Prime, and rejected redemption multiple times. Yes, it’s still possible but it’s not nearly as dramatically satisfying as it might be.
The big highlight of the episode, though, is the space battle between Marcos’ flagship and the Rocinante. Marcos is obsessed with killing the man who took away his girlfriend, showed him up repeatedly, and has the audacity to be an Earther who claims to care about Belters. Marcos enters the battle with every advantage but still manages to come within inches of death due to his arrogant belligerance.
Fans are going to debate whether or not Holden made the right decision in sparing Marcos’ life given he’s proven to be an existential threat to not only Earthers but human life in general. However, Holden can’t bring himself to kill Marcos due to the fact it would also kill Naomi’s son Fillip. We’ll see if this act of mercy pays dividends in the end.
Oh and Laconia is now going to give Marcos some more gifts. Uh oh.
In conclusion, the Expanse continues to ramp up the tension as well as deal with the political fallout of the Marcos’ attack on Earth. There’s still a lot of build-up for dealing with the alien threat but there’s no way to handle that in three episodes.
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January 11, 2022
REVIEW: Disappearance of a Scribe by Dana Stabenow
Dana Stabenow’s latest, Disappearance of a Scribe, is a murder mystery set in Ancient Egypt. Which as the local Classics nerd I was very intrigued by from the get go – there are not many historical novels set in Ancient Egypt compared to other periods, and especially not murder mysteries. This is a follow-up to 2018’s Death of an Eye – and I should admit here that I haven’t read the first book, thinking that, like most murder mysteries, this would be fairly standalone. Disappearance of a Scribe is set in the reign of Cleopatra, and takes place in the famed city of Alexandria – though sadly the Great Library is already a relic of the past and not a centre of learning anymore.
It is a fairly slow-paced mystery, closer to the tradition of Agatha Christie than the ubiquitous James Patterson-type thrillers racing through plot at a breakneck pace. This means there is far more time to focus on characterisation and setting of the story rather than just on the case at hand. It did feel like this is very much settled as part of a series – I think I’d have gotten more out of it if I had read the first book which presumably sets up the central relationship between Cleopatra and her Eye of Isis (a sort of Pharao’s detective), Tetisheri, which goes in with the book’s general feeling of being character-focused, with the mystery being a sort of vehicle to display these characters and their relationships on.
I did feel like I would have preferred a bit more action – as a whole, Disappearance of a Scribe felt like it didn’t give me quite what it advertised itself as. I went in expecting an investigation, a case, and got a story that was more of a historical novel than anything else. I think this one may not be a great choice for the grimdark audience, as it ultimately does not go into enough depth to captivate an audience there for the plot and the gritty happenings. One thing I did enjoy very much was how far politics were ultimately intertwined with the murders that happen, and how the book refused to fall into stereotypes we expect from the period, especially when it comes to the treatment of women. Cleopatra isn’t an exceptional woman, she is merely one in power, and one who empowers her fellow women – and in this Ancient Egypt, women are more than capable of being antagonists as well.
Read Disappearance of a Scribe by Dana Stabenow
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Review: The Witcher Season 2 Episode 6: Dear Friend
Tensions are flaring between the elves and the Nilfgaardians in Cintra, or Xintrea, as the elves call it. Cahir seems intent on kickstarting hostility between them, even as the elves welcome the first pure-blood elf in some time. Rience portals in on Triss and Vesemir and is seemingly repelled, but has managed to swipe the vial that could make more Witchers, and contains Ciri’s blood.
But the real meat of the episode is at the Temple of Meletite. Geralt takes Ciri there while looking for answers. It’s the place he was taught how to sign. And it’s clear from his relaxed stance in there—different from nearly everywhere he’s been except, perhaps, Kaer Morhen—that this was always a place of comfort for him.
Nenneke, the woman who runs it, is the most benevolent, generous, and wise person we’ve seen on this show. It’s always great when a show so filled with sadists, schemers and scoundrels can bring in someone so good, as a counterbalance, without it feeling like we’ve stepped into a different show.
And then the show brings all three of our major characters together, for the first time since the show began. Ciri, Yennefer, and Geralt all meet—the former walking in on the latter characters kissing. Geralt had, until last episode, assumed Yennefer was dead after Sodden.
As was hinted at in the last recap, though, Yennefer’s not there for Geralt, or just by happenstance. The trade she offered to get her magic back is to bring Ciri to a shattered door outside Cintra. She had no idea who Ciri was, or that she was Geralt’s Child of Surprise, but she made a deal with a powerful entity and she cannot back out. She’ll happily play the long-lost lover to Geralt, and it’s genuine, but there’s always more behind the surface.
This is followed up with one of the best action sequences the show has done. Rience comes after Ciri in the Temple of Meletiti with a host of soldiers. Rience goes after Yennefer and Ciri while the soldiers delay Geralt. It’s not tense like the fight against the Bruxa in episode 1, or the Striga back in season 1. It’s just Geralt versus a lot of mooks, which the show has done before, but never to such excellent effect. It shows just how improved over regular humans a Witcher really is. The combination of signs and his improved speed and reflexes make it a brutal, perfect combat sequence.
He is, however, delayed just long enough for Yennefer to ‘rescue’ Ciri. Ciri trusts Geralt, Geralt trusts Yennefer, and Yennefer uses that to convince Ciri to flee with her, getting the young woman to open up a portal and step through just as Geralt reaches them.
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January 10, 2022
REVIEW: Shadow City by Anna Mocikat
Shadow City by Anna Mocikat is first volume of her Tales of the Shadow City chronicles that is a genre busting post-apocalypse adventure story. I can’t really think of any other novels like it with its mixture of monsters, cyborgs, the supernatural, and survival horror. If I had to make a comparison, it reminds me of both Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines crossed with the Fallout games. Except instead of 1950s Americana, Anna Mocikat draws from The Matrix-style Nineties antiheroes.
The premise is that an event called the Glitch occurred and caused the entire world to be bathed in a long hot night that never ends. The laws of physics and reality seem bent with much of humanity becoming mindless feral mutants under the control of body-hopping aliens called the Dark Ones. Thankfully, humanity has the benefit of vampires to protect them. Yes, vampires. Except the vampires are pretty lazy and are only doing this to protect their food supply. There’s also a mysterious “Academy” that provides advanced cybernetic soldiers to protect humanity’s few remaining strongholds despite the lack of resources affecting everyone.
This surreal environment is where naked and confused human (?) Colton finds himself. Stronger, smarter, and faster than any human, Colton is also completely unaware of anything that has happened since before the Glitch. He takes virtually everything in stride, though, and swiftly develops a bond with the local survivor community. The human survivors are sick of being forced to depend on vampires for protection and think a human defender would be good for morale.
The world-building feels like it could be a very good open-world RPG with lots of ruins, familiar sights, and horrible dangers lurking around every corner. Anna Mocikat’s background as a game developer shines true here and it definitely feels like the kind of place I would enjoy visiting with my fellow gamers in multiplayer. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t work as the basis for her action-horror-post-apocalyptic sci-fi fantasy, though. The world-building follows a surreal dream-like logic that makes everything make sense in its own internal structure even if you wonder why Robocop and Dracula are fighting with starving scavengers.
Of the many characters throughout the book, I think I prefer Eurydice the most. She’s actually one of the villains who is willingly working with the Dark Ones toward the extinction of humanity. With that kind of goal, you have to work hard to make a character still entertaining. Nevertheless, she manages to be sexy and entertaining the entire time. Probably because she absolutely does not care in the slightest about any of the humans surviving due to her own snarky misanthropy as well as somewhat suicidal nihilism.
There’s a nice mix of characters beyond Colton and Eurydice with everything from body swapping aliens to Bombshell the snarky cyborg enforcer. We also get a sense of how people are coping with the fact they have to be regular donors to the local vampires as well as live under their rule (answer: badly). I was, unfortunately, annoyed the only religious people in the post-apocalyse world are the usual fanatical morons who are just detestable fools. Even when actual demons and angels are fighting in the background.
In conclusion, Shadow City is a deeply entertaining dark fantasy horror setting that would make a very good video game. It has likable characters and a somewhat LIT-RPG-esque feel without the stats. I wouldn’t precisely call this cyberpunk but its definitely got cyberpunk elements and a little something for everyone.
Read Shadow City by Anna Mocikat
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REVIEW: The Expanse S6 E2: Azure Dragon
The Expanse remains one of my all time favorite genre shows and is easily the only one that stands up to Game of Thrones in any sort of artistic or production value capacity. It also seems to be sticking to the landing considerably better. Mind you, it’s stopping a couple of books short but the Expanse novels have always been more self-contained than the works of George R.R. Martin. They’ve also been completed with the recent release of Leviathan Falls. Either way, I think most fans will be content with the way the story is being set up to include.
Ironically, the weirdest thing about Azure Dragon is the fact it’s setting up a bunch of elements from the final two books that the remaining four episodes have no way of resolving. They are adapting the story of the novella “Strange Dogs” and that is meant to apply to the Laconia plot that is, bluntly, resolved in the two books they are not adapting.
In this case, we get a nice bio-physics lesson with the episode opening up with a young girl discovering that the animal life of Laconia can’t digest the food from Earth. Likewise, human beings are incapable of digesting the life found on Laconia. Really, the Protomolecule aliens gave us a bum set of goods since they gave us a bunch of inhabitable planets that are extremely hostile to live upon. Still, I’ve always liked these details as it means we’ll never have to worry about being invaded by aliens since our world is utterly uninhabitable to any differently evolved species.
We also get to see Marcos bail out his son, Filip, from murdering his best friend in a drunken rage. It’s one of the few times that we actually see the otherwise perpetually affable Marcos genuinely furious and disappointed with his son. It’s also one of the even rarer cases where he’s entirely justified. Filip is a character who has participated in the murder of millions, if not billions, and would be irredeemable if not for the fact he seems at least vaguely aware what he’s done is wrong. Still, he’s so repulsive that its hard to feel like he deserves a second chance.
Bobbie rejoins the Rocinate crew this episode and it’s hilarious to see the difference in her attitude compared to the ragged crew after months on the frontlines. Bobbie is suddenly the chipper one and having justifiable confusion at the presence of former archenemy Clarissa Mao onboard the ship. It also nicely foreshadows more plots that go beyond Marcos Inaros, which, again, is confusing given this is meant to be the last season. What is eating those colony ships? We may never find out!
The actual attack on the Azure Dragon, one of the Free Navy’s most powerful vessels, is thrilling and used for emotion as well as spectacle. Naomi being unable to deal with the memories of her last time on a Free Navy vessel while Clarissa picking up the slack is particularly notable. She is becoming a true member of the crew and that is great to see.
The episode is full of action, suspense, and character development but we’re still far from getting Marcos finally dealt with. He’s such a deliciously hateable villain that I am really looking forward to his end and things settling into a new status quo. The Expanse has made numerous changes from the books but, generally, has stuck to their spirit and they remain one of the few shows I think actually improved on their source material’s plot.
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January 9, 2022
REVIEW: Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
There is a lot of magic in Seanan McGuire‘s Wayward Children series and her newest addition, Where the Drowned Girls Go. Magic in the characters’ hearts and magic in the worlds and doors she has built. And that magic comes through in every lyrical word spoken by the characters. It is an impressive feat to be this far into a series, book 7 to be exact, and still be impressed by the story. But I very much am.
While novels have a long time to tell a story, it has a chance to zig-zag, twist, and curl around, coming to a climax that is 400 or 500 pages in the making; novellas aren’t like that. They do not have the luxury and word count to dance around. They need to be tight where every word is a choice, and every character’s action is exacting. This tightness is why this particular series is so powerful. McGuire tells a lot, builds whole worlds behind hidden doors with a short page and word count.
The seventh book of the series, Where the Drowned Girls Go, builds a world, but it isn’t behind a door but at a new facility. Instead, McGuire creates The Whitethorn Institute, A school that is the antithesis of Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children. There are old characters that readers of the series have gotten quite fond of and new ones to meet and get to know.
Cora, a girl who has gone through a door and returned, is desperate for change. She is desperate to move on. However, The Drowned Gods of the Moors have her number and torment her nightly, begging her to give herself over to them—something she will not do. Cora decides that the only way to get away from them is a drastic change. She leaves Home For Wayward Children to The Whitethorn Institute.
Mcguire was able to describe The Whitethorn Institute in very few words. For me, it resembled a “therapeutic” Boarding school for Problem Children that use questionable methods. Cora decides that she needs to go there and forget because The Whitethorn Institute teaches you to forget.
It is not what she imagined it to be. The school is much, much worse.
This story has many themes, very much like the other books in the series that adolescents and adults face in their lives. Where the Drowned Girls Go deals with self-image, weight, and bullying. And much like the other books, McGuire does not bash the reader of the head with the themes. Instead, she weaves them into the story, so they make up the story’s fabric. I left Where the Drowned Girls Go, remembering my issues with bullying as a child and an appreciation for Cora as a character.
In conclusion, check out Where the Drowned Girls Go but only if you have read the entire series. Reading the first six books gives you a full appreciation for the worlds McGuire has created and a heightened enjoyment of Where the Drowned Girls Go. There is true beauty in McGuires writing, and the Wayward Children Series can take you out of this world and through the doors into new ones.
Read Where the Drowned Girls Go by Seanan McGuire
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