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Shenaniganator – or – Philcon 2015

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It’s been a week since I participated in Philcon 2015. I have held off a week in writing up my review partially because it was Thanksgiving week and that meant a busy schedule and partially because I wanted to take some time to consider how best to write up my thoughts on the whole venture. For anyone who has been with me for a while here at the Pretend Blog, I did remember my socks this year.

Last year was the first time I’d attended as an invited guest and I was a little surprised to have gotten another invitation this year ~ not through any misdeed or indiscretion, I just hadn’t really given it much thought. Thankfully I was able to secure a room and once again have the fantastic option of riding with my friend Mary. Travel and check in were smooth sailing.

There were a number of friends in attendance, but a more than significant number of friends that were not this year. The lack of attendance was palpable to me. There were empty seats in the lobby, empty seats at the hotel bar, empty seats in the gaming area and lots of empty seats in the panel rooms. I missed seeing many of my friends. I had commented last year on how the attendance felt really low to me, and this year seemed worse to me. Once again, I don’t have numbers to back me up or any kind of data for that matter. It’s just a feeling, but a feeling based on simple observation like: I could put my arms out to my sides and not hit anyone or anything in the dealers room. There wasn’t anything even vaguely resembling a crowd even in the middle of Saturday afternoon. Not encouraging.

Panels were totally up and down. I had six for the weekend and they all subjects I could speak to with some form of knowledge. I think that says good things about programming. Yes, the information about the panels arrived a little later than one might want (it was plenty of time for me as a non-moderator), but I did not ever encounter the “well I have no idea why I’m on this panel” person.

I really enjoyed the first panel called “Judging a Book By Its Cover” on Friday. Ray Ridenour was a good moderator and the panel was quite diverse. It was nice to have all the bases covered with Ray’s insight as an artist, a publisher and an author on the panel. I was really hoping to meet the editor that had been scheduled to be there, but he didn’t make it.

I also learned a great deal from the panel Military Culture In Science Fiction. It was easily the best attended panel of mine for the weekend. I did my best to have solid input to this panel but frequently found myself listening and getting caught up in what the others were saying.

I’d have to say the first was probably the best for the weekend for me. Most were decent. They did not all go well in my humble opinion. I’m not going to detail each panel, but when an audience member approaches you and another author after the panel and offers to buy you both a drink just for getting through I suspect the reviews wouldn’t be stellar.

The small panel attendance did have one big advantage. I had the chance to really chat with both the folks I was on the panel with and some of the folks in the audience. It was really good to meet others that are fans and genuinely interested in what others were working on. I might have even gotten folks to check out Watch The Skies so we can keep the connections rolling through the rest of the year.

Lastly, and I think somewhat sadly, I came to the conclusion over that convention weekend that I am no longer a Shenanigan-ator. I am not really even a good participant at this point. After really talking up and enjoying the memories of Defend The Pizza I know that Sawney HattonTheLoot was disappointed when nothing even remotely resembling a brawl happened on either Friday or Saturday night. The room parties on Saturday night were… not exactly what you would normally see as a party I think. We (and by we I mean the people I was with) decided we needed something to happen – and so the great game of Elevator Roulette was invented. I genuinely laughed the hardest at the convention goers that exited their elevator cab cane first much to Sawney’s chagrin. The details are fuzzy. I really enjoyed watching that, but was somewhat relieved it wasn’t my elevator that opened. I don’t think I would have carried things off as well as the others there. I am sure they would have been disappointed then and I know they were disappointed when they moved ahead with the “something needs to happen” concept. I will totally own the simple fact that I decided not to crash the reception that was sharing the hotel. I don’t know when I stopped being the shenanigans guy – but it was pretty clear this past weekend that I am no longer that guy. Maybe I’ll come back around to it some day.

Someday. As I typed that I had to genuinely wonder how many somedays Philcon has left. I don’t want to be the pessimist here, but this year didn’t convince me the downward slide has stopped. I do hope they pick up next year. I also hope they’re willing to invite me again and that I’ll have the chance to once again see friends and find out who the Shenanigan-ator will be.

Low Culture?

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Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture ManifestoSex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs: A Low Culture Manifesto by Chuck Klosterman
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I have to admit that hearing the author speaking in a radio interview about something completely different failed to improve my mental image of him… using his method of comparison, he strikes me as the kid who got bullied and developed his intellect to compensate. This alone wouldn’t be an issue. I had a great many fistfights with bullies in my distant youth. The problem is that he is now relatively successful and gives the impression that deep in his core he believes he is super witty and important. I use the term believes on purpose. It’s a position to be stated and defended much like the agent in the movie Serenity without the gravitas. My feelings on the author are only important because this book is his ‘manifesto’ (still no gravitas).

I don’t normally read the cover blurbs because they are either paid or from a friend of the author and don’t actually help anyone decide a book is worth reading. I should have read the back cover material this time ~ particularly the part about “exasperating”.

I can’t recall how this book ended up on my reading list but I do remember being interested. I’m not sure I should have been and I’m very glad this was a loaner and not something I purchased. One of my biggest issues with this book is that it is tied so directly to pop culture it becomes tied to (directed at) a specific generation by default. It is unlikely that my daughter will ever watch Saved By The Bell and IF she does it is even less likely it will mean anything to her. For a manifesto this is a major flaw.

One other big issue I have is that I frequently disagree with the position forwarded by the author. Example: The only reason ‘The Real World’ matter is because it exists as a clear, distinct signpost at the end of MTV being culturally relevant. It is the moment they became the punchline “…when they used to play music”.

I will say there are small parts of the book I found amusing and useful as conversation starters. These were offset by my own juxtaposition with other vaguely similar material. I suspect it’s that particular comparison that doesn’t help. I watched a war documentary. In that a soldier discusses the mind numbing boredom that was everything between the shattering adrenaline spikes produced by combat. During those quiet times the men had explored any and all ‘getting to know you’ bits of discussion and stretched to find something ~anything~ to talk about. This lead directly to a six hour argument about who would win a fistfight, Fabio or George Clooney. Who would find this important or engaging? People right on the edge of insanity or people truly desperate for something to do. This author was clearly desperate for something to do.

One of the most maddening aspects of this whole thing is the language of your high school English class being levered into a conversation about cereal and how that directly relates to the meaning of life. It’s bad cereal too (I’ve never liked Cocoa Puffs, even as a kid). There are statements like, “…well suited for conventional moralizing…” when connected to media seem to support his position. All I could remember during these parts was my heartfelt desire to scream out in class, “ALL OF THIS TERRIBLE BOOK IS ABOUT TRYING TO KILL YOURSELF BY SLEDDING INTO A TREE! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! This is the stupidest thing ever”.

I think that’s really it – if you’re looking for dated material that thinks it’s funnier than it is, this book is for you. I’m left with the ‘are you kidding me’ feeling and I’m more than a bit relived that I can give the book back.

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Spot On

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Dead Spots (Scarlett Bernard #1)Dead Spots by Melissa F. Olson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I tracked this book down based on a series of reviews I read praising the author’s work. I’m glad I did. It was fun and fast. I have seen the concept of a null in other places before (most recently in the work of Gail Carriger – if you don’t know her stuff, go look it up) but it was a very interesting take to use a null as a crime scene cleaner.

The main character, Scar as her friends call her, seems to be a very reactive person. It’s really the biggest weakness I see in her. I guess I see her as negotiating from a position of weakness and that is something that always troubles me with a protagonist. It didn’t slow me down much, but I worry that the next book (or books) will cause me to dislike her based on her not taking charge and causing things to happen. I know this is a personal thing for me – there are lots of folks out there that don’t have any trouble with a character like that – but it’s one of those things I have trouble getting around.

All in all I’d say if you’re looking for a light urban fantasy you’ll probably enjoy this one.

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The Grendel Review

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The Grendel AffairThe Grendel Affair by Lisa Shearin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book. It was a light, fun, and fast. There was plenty of action and the characters were engaging. I didn’t feel put off by them. I could give or take the setting – lots of books use New York City as a backdrop. The nice thing was that it felt like the author had a solid concept of distance and the time it takes to get places (and if she really didn’t know NYC then very well done faking it for somebody that doesn’t know the city at all).

I have spent some time trying to figure out how not to compare this book to Monster Hunter International by Larry Correa and failed. I can’t escape the comparison. This book is decidedly lighter on the weapons chat and leans more toward the relationships, but they are very close to each other. If you liked MHI then you will probably like this book. If you like secret monster societies and clandestine quasi government operations with lots of action this book is for you.

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Hindsight

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Writing is a lonely business. It is you and your words. Art is not necessarily the same and film making even less so. It’s very easy to look backward and see what might have been. It’s the sort of thinking that can lead down the dangerous path of tailoring your choices based on proposed outcome. I don’t want to think to myself, “If only I’d gone and done… then I’d have landed….” I want to focus on my work (such as it is) and keep moving it forward.

Having said that I am going to suggest you watch a documentary out there called Jodorowsky’s Dune. It is the story of a film that was never made. It is the story of a visionary. The story of somebody I don’t think I would ever be able to understand – or deal with. It gives you a glimpse into a place that feels like it was flat out bat shit insane. It shows us in hindsight that total failure isn’t always just that.

There was music. Magma (a band I’d never heard of until today) and Pink Floyd mixing up a sound track for a film.

There was art that – looking backward is the sort of thing to make your head rattle just a little – put Giger and Foss together for concept art. At this point most people recognize Giger from the Alien stuff, but you might not know Foss by name. IF you are a fan of science fiction at all, you know his art. Seriously – I love his work and I have for years. Go and see it at his site, I’ll wait. Yeah, his space ships and Gieger’s alien bio-tech looking stuff together as concept art.

Then there was casting. Actors – or people that would be actors. Envision this group; David Carradine (from around the time of Kung Fu), Mick Jagger (when the Stones were at the height of their popularity), Orson Welles and Salvador Dali. Can you imagine the insanity?

Combine all of the ingredients listed, along with a few others, and mix until you have DUNE. Yup, that Dune.

That is why I started by talking about looking backward. Jodorowsky’s movie was never made, but here we are forty years later talking about it and everything that might have been. You recognize the names of people involved, but you might not have recognized them if not for this project. Things could have been very different if Giger didn’t make the connections he did during that process. It really is a fascinating documentary.

There have been a number of other pieces talking about it if you’re interested. From the NY Times to Boing Boing this has captured a lot of attention. I would say it’s definitely worth watching if you’re any kind of creative or at all interested in the possibilities of what might have been (like many fans of science fiction I know).

I’m also going to slide this last thought in here for fans of the written word. I read a book called Night Film. The plot involves a film maker that has an almost cult like following that would actually move in to his mansion during filming. This film makes me think it is only genre (science fiction not horror) that keeps Jodorowsky from being that character.

So – creators out there – watch this and get inspired. Go with your vision. Try. Make it happen. To paraphrase something a friend of mine said to me, “You can’t epic fail if you don’t plan big”.

It has even joined a meme.

It has even joined a meme.

Weird Moon

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Chasing the MoonChasing the Moon by A. Lee Martinez
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

When I started reading this book all I could think was, “This is just weird…”. IF that sells a book for you, you’ll really enjoy this one. There are a large number of odd moments that sound like they’re directly from a nightmarish subconscious or a kids cartoon – and sometimes both at the same time.

“You wouldn’t happen to have any Monopoly money on you, would you, Number Five?”
She shook her head.
“Damn. The mole lords are not going to be happy about that.”
He withdrew into his room and shut the door without another word.

I want to sum the book up in some way that’s better than that, but I don’t think I can. The level of acceptance of those things changes throughout the book, but as I think about it there really isn’t much in the way of “action” at any point. There are lots of relationships and oddness, but this feels more like a character study than anything else.

Having said all that, I like the characters and the setting was amusing. The book moved at a smooth pace and was a very quick read. It was light and fun and if you’re into odd (hearing Winona Ryder as Lydia Deetz in my head, ‘I, myself, am strange and unusual…’) then this book could be for you.

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Risen

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Red Rising (Red Rising Trilogy, #1)Red Rising by Pierce Brown
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I was surprised to see this book on the Amazon list of 100 science fiction books for a lifetime. I wouldn’t have picked this book up on my own. I started it because it was one of the monthly selections from Watch The Skies. I’d say cover art would have helped, but I’m not sure what the picture would have needed to be (as it related to the story) to draw me in. There’s a lot that goes on inside the character’s head.

I bogged down in this book very early on. At the time of the meeting/discussion at the group I hadn’t made it past the main characters physical transformation. Many at the meeting said it became significantly more violent (and perhaps less interesting) after the transformation was complete.

I almost gave up, but I decided to see exactly what “more violent” actually meant. They were right – I’ve read some military fiction that didn’t contain the one on one kind of violence that was displayed later in this book. That didn’t bother me. The military / training exercise portions of the story are what carried me through to the end.

I understand why the book ended the way it did – and it is an end – but I’m not sure I’m drawn in enough to keep going in the series. I don’t overly like the character. The world building left me with questions that I’m sure would be answered but that alone won’t carry a series for me. It’s very important, but doesn’t stand alone.

In all I’d say the book was “OK”. I’m saying that here specifically because a 2 star rating (with the little pop up that says “It was OK”) makes it sound or feel like I actively disliked the book and that is not the case. In the end I think I was ‘whelmed’ – no over or under, just ‘whelmed’.

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The Last Witch Hunter + other movie news

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I had the chance to go and see The Last Witch Hunter on opening day, so I took it. Headed to the theater early, got a great seat and started munching pop corn. IF you want to munch pop corn and have some cool visual stuff up on screen, this movie is good for that. Very visual – and I’m a visual person so it really worked for me. This movie is not deep, nor does it pretend to be anything other than what you’d expect. Vin Diesel really seems to be enjoying this role and all of the other things attached to the movie by extension. I liked it and I will likely grab the DVD when it comes out just to be able to go back over the scenes at the witch’s bar. Very, very cool stuff in there. I won’t spoil anything here – but there is a small twist. It didn’t have much set up and wasn’t particularly meaningful because it lacked set up, but it still gave a gratifying result. I’m forced to agree with Charlie Jane Anders – this will be a guilty pleasure film. Check out her review here.

One thing this movie did negatively impact for me was how I felt about a heavily produced role playing session that Vin filmed (along with others) – vaguely related to the film. Shocker, he plays a witch hunter character. I initially passed it along to friends, but the longer I go the less I like it. The “production value” is what really puts me off to it. It’s way too produced to make me think it’s anything other than a half hour movie commercial and I hate that because I know Vin is a role player and has noted many times in many places that he has a soft spot for Dungeons and Dragons. It’s a commercial. There, I said it. Why did they cut the scenes where there was out of character conversation? That’s where the real joy of playing can be found.

Now – IF Vin were to take his love for role playing and the seriousness and visual style of Last Witch Hunter and combine that into a Dungeons and Dragons movie I’d go see it. There are rumblings of another D&D movie out there, but those rumors do nothing but worry me. I want it to be done as seriously as Witch Hunter and not put comedians in key roles.

Continuing with the “other movie” stuff, I saw a report that said Johnny Depp is in talks to produce and star in a movie version of “Fortunately The Milk”. All I can say to that is PLEASE DON’T. Don’t get me wrong – I like Mr. Gaiman’s work. I love that story and have read it to my daughter a bunch of times. She loves it and reads it on her own these days. The problem I have here is that it’s a very short story. IF they had said they were making a half hour animated special then I would be thrilled. It’s just the right length for something like that. Put it on every year in September or something (the same way we get the Great Pumpkin around this time of year) and it would undoubtedly live forever. It’s just not enough for a feature length film. Doing that ventures into “Grinch” land and that mess with Jim Carrey still makes me mad.

Get some pop corn. Go see Last Witch Hunter!

last-witch-hunter-trailer-poster-vin-diesel

Nobody

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Nobody Gets the Girl (Whoosh! Bam! Pow!, #1)Nobody Gets the Girl by James Maxey
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I don’t know that I would have picked this book up if it were not for WTS. I have stalled on a couple of things I’ve been reading lately but this book certainly didn’t have that issue. I bought it Thursday afternoon and had it finished by Friday afternoon. It was fast.

It actually felt like I wanted to see it as a graphic novel, not a novel. There were parts that felt like they were full page panels.

I came away from the story wondering if I liked the hero or not. I think he’s got a lot going for him, but he’s also got a lot going against him. He starts as a regular guy and ends up working with comic book style characters to “save the world” but he’s also a murderer. I look forward to a discussion about this one.

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Mars

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The MartianThe Martian by Andy Weir
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A friend of mine said she started this book one evening and couldn’t put it down. I should have listened.

I started and finished this book this morning. I’m actually giving it 4.5 stars. It was a super fast read. There was a lot of “science” in there, but I put it in quotations because I can’t confirm any of it. You know what? I’m OK with that. It all sounded reasonably plausible to me (even the parts that I figure aren’t could work, right?). In the end this I think the science could be substituted out for any inhospitable landscape and particular level of ingenuity. Don’t get me wrong, placing the story on Mars makes this what it is but that’s just the backdrop. The really wonderful part here is the characters. They’re all people. There’s no trouble at all believing all of them as real. I totally believe this story could happen in our near future.

You know what else? I hope this and other stories of people overcoming great odds to accomplish things that move us toward outer space exploration (ahem, Apollo 13) become the sort of thing that inspires people to push for more exploration. This book was a heck of a ride. I can’t wait to see the movie.

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