Raj's Geeky Escapism Blog

Towers Of Midnight As We Read

2010-11-02T13:37:00.019-05:00

My friend Jon and I met halfway between our cities in Denver to go on a "reading retreat" -- immersing ourselves in the latest (and penultimate) installment of The Wheel Of Time series. We're discussing the book chapter by chapter as we read. Here are our notes.

SPOILERS for Towers Of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson be here!

Prologue: Distinctions

Hmm. Perrin's hammering flattened lumps of iron. I know this is metaphorical, but could one way for him to use the hammer to help, without killing with it, be to re-forge the seals, to be saidined/saidared into cuendillar?
Graendal, like Stringer Bell, ain't about no 40-degree days.
Can the unique True Power weaves defeat the Oath Rod somehow, for Mesaana?
Fain likes black and red, just like Moridin and Mazrim Taim...
Fain carries Mashadar, which makes undead Trollocs. Did he pass through Hinderstap, kill everybody, and make them undead?
Will Fain wait out the rest of this book at Shayol Ghul?
My dad never gave me a sword on my 14th birthday.

1: Apples First

Almen = All Men.
I like this new Rand, creating food instead of spoiling it. Will he have a role in this book besides being the funky Buddha?

2. Questions of Leadership

Perrin, stop being Hamlet.
To understand something, you have to figure out its parts. Like how the 3 ta'veren fit together? But he's on such a self-pity streak, it's hard to see how he'll recognize the big picture.
I'm glad that Galad didn't have to go through Egwene's trials to have his position acknowledged. The story is moving forward. He certainly didn't have to wrestle with being seen for who and what he was.

3. The Amyrlin's Anger

13 black towers. The Forsaken, right? The one who crumbled but became strongest of all -- Moridin? Or somebody else, a surprise?
Crystal sphere cracking -- the Dark One's prison seals? But what's the significance of the number 23? The biggest Circle that can be made? 23 = 21 Sitters + Amyrlin + Keeper?
I remember a prophecy, Rand sitting on a woman's chair, and the owner being murderously angry, and that Rand would face the Amyrlin's anger. This chapter title is telling. And Rand has just shown up.
Tarna's note mystifies me. We don't remember anything about a message. Is she of the Dark? Is she Mesaana?
We wonder if Rand has completed his character arc as of the last book, and is just being used as a plot pawn from now until the Last Battle. For Jon, this would detract from him, but I feel like there's enough Rand needs to figure out and do, that even if his character arc is complete, it's still interesting.
Confirmed! The crystal sphere represents the Seals on the Dark One's prison.

4. The Pattern Groans

The question recurs: how do the pieces fit together? What do you make of a flattened lump, rod and triangle?
Mat fighting versions of his self, an assassin with a bloody knife sneaking up behind. Not sure what this means -- all of Mat's memories? But who's the assassin? The gholam?
Wolves chasing sheep into the woods, where a beast awaits. Darkhounds? Or more metaphorical?
Faile, Grady, Elyas, Gaul leading an army off a cliff. We suspect this means that if Perrin doesn't use his abilities to plot a better course, he's going to doom all his followers.
Interesting how Galad's and Perrin's scenes are sharing chapters. They will probably converge, and we'll see the reckoning between Perrin and Bornhald/Byar, Galad and Morgase, Balwer and the Whitecloaks...
Huh. Did a portion of the Blight really relocate this far south? And who would make a village, however crude, except Trollocs? Or does the Blight recall Fain's blood on the plants, from the prologue?
Galad the wise zealot. Jon thinks he's too capable, and is heading for a fall.
The Whitecloaks are in search of a nation/ruler. Chubain is being described as borderline incompetent. Will the Whitecloaks become the Swiss Guard of the new Amyrlin?

5. Writings

Chubain is the first man we've seen sniff. To me, that proves he's not really a man, but Mesaana in disguise.
Interesting how sinister hook-nosed Sleet seems in this scene. In a chapter with a Forsaken icon.
Egwene's wrong about the assassins, I think. Not Black Ajah or Mesaana, but Seanchan Bloodknives. Jon points out, though, that a month or so has passed since the attack -- shouldn't all the Bloodknives be dead by now, because of their ter'angreal?
Whoah. Moridin is hearing the Dark One in his head now? Ishamael always thought he was all but the Great Lord...
Dark Prophecy! Perrin's gonna die! Dreamspike! It's too much to process! (Where have we seen weirdness in the World of Dreams lately? That could give us a clue where the other Dreamspike is being used. The man with two souls, of course, is Isam/Luc.
Is Moridin's bond with Rand still intact? Jon points out that if it is, he should have been able to catch Graendal's lie about Rand's mental state.
Graendal raises interesting notions about Ishamael's pre-Dark past. Was he a possible "candidate" for Dragon, but was corrupted? Was his soul, in another turning, a Dragon who fell to the Dark?
Oh very subtle, with the "apparent habit" of Graendal's. I didn't catch this the first time. I'm pretty sure, though, that I'd found a reason she couldn't be Asmodean's killer. But I guess she is, given the glossary.

6. Questioning Intentions

It's sad to see Morgase's talents wasted. But at least we have explanations for why she has been laying low for so long.

7. Lighter Than A Feather

I thoroughly enjoyed how the Borderlanders took Lan's dour rhetoric and used it to school him. Lan needs some lightening up, and the humor in this section was welcome.
Hmm. Galad will always do what's right, and if he has bad information, will that mean prosecuting Perrin? And what will happen when he meets Morgase? Will she force a crisis of what is "right"?

8. The Seven-Striped Lass

Letter with a red blob of wax... Tarna's letter to the Dragon Reborn was from Verin! Does that mean Tarna is Black Ajah? No -- Verin would have revealed her to Egwene. Verin just trusted Tarna.
Teslyn continues to be cool.

9. Blood In the Air

The gholam's verbiage -- and its up-to-date commands -- suggests that the one commanding (originally Sammael) is still around. So is Sammael dead? Moridin thought not. Waitaminute... Did the Dark One transmigrate Sammael's soul into Mazrim Taim's body??

10. After the Taint

Does all this happen before Tam visited Rand, or did Tam return to Perrin's camp?
Hey, just remembered that Berelain is supposed to fall madly in love with someone dressed all in white. And now her camp and Galad's camp are meeting up. Wuv... true wuv.
And... Jon was right. Galad's insistence to do what he perceives as right is leading him to folly. Who will stop the carnage in the 11th hour? My money's on Morgase.
Jon suggests that, with Grady, we'll have an excuse to check in on the Black Tower without it having to be the Big Final Blowout.

11. An Unexpected Letter

Whoah. Elayne is going for the Cairhien throne? I've always pictured Moiraine taking the Sun Throne. It doesn't seem like she has much of a plan.
Matt's letter just made my year.

12. An Empty Ink Bottle

Why wasn't Min more reassuring to Nynaeve and Cadsuane, that Rand is OK?
Verin gave Alanna a note. To protect her from being used by the Shadow?

13. For What Has Been Wrought

Viewings: An open cavern gaping like a mouth (Shayol Ghul, obviously), bloodstained rocks (his blood on the rocks of Shayol Ghul), two dead men on the ground surrounded by ranks of Trollocs (?), a pipe with smoke curling from it (?).
It seems that Rand's confrontation with the Dark One wasn't a certainty until now. The new viewings and Rand's words confirm it.
Rand is a whirlwind of taking-care-of-business. Too much to sort out for now.
Rand is visiting the Borderlanders... If there is a Forsaken among them, we should see that.
Rand's intention, it seems, was to stir the pot in the White Tower. His arrogance was premeditated, not just botched handling.
No idea who's missing in the hands of well-meaning allies in the Caralain Grass...
Can Rand see Darkfriends now??? Like Fain can? What other special abilities did his epiphany bring?
I think I needed that hug with Tam as much as Rand did.
Jon says he's enjoying Rand's energy and ceteredness and purpose. He's not dull at all after his epiphany; he's more vital than ever.
Rand is no longer "prey" and he is no longer letting circumstances dictate his identity. The last scene shows that the original character of Rand al'Thor has been restored in the books and is going to fight the Last Battle -- not the icon of the Dragon Reborn.
If Rand is not a sword, what is he? He's still planning on dying.

14. A Vow

Accepted training with Wise Ones... A fine idea. Egwene is being very subtle here.
Interesting window in Tel'aran'rhiod. But why are the Fang and Flame still separate, instead of fused into the yin-yang?
Egwene handled Nynaeve wonderfully. Of all the characters, Egwene has grown the most.
I wonder if the talk of taking the Oath Rod while pregnant is a clue, somehow, to how Mesaana defeated the Oath Rod (I don't think Mesaana is pregnant, but maybe there's a clue in there...).
Does Egwene's orders curtail Elayne's plans for the Sun Throne?
Elayne doesn't seem sympathetic to Egwene's plan to stop Rand from breaking the Seals. What does she know? Egwene seems to be operating without a better plan where the Seals are concerned.

15. Use A Pebble

I'm sort of inclined to believe Naeff's Talent for seeing Myrddraal isn't madness. Reading further...nope.
Did Rand go to fetch Callandor? Or did Rand go off to meet his toh?
Wow. What can't Nynaeve Heal? I think she will indeed be able to Heal someone (Rand) three days dead. We did NOT expect Nynaeve to be able to Heal madness.
It sounds like the Black Tower blowout isn't going to be in this book. Fair enough -- something to look forward to.
The Oath Rod theories sound like Internet speculation. Even the White Tower checks the boards, it seems.
Mesaana is an administrator who hates being relegated to that position. I feel like we should figure it out from this, but I can't think of anything.

16. Shanna'har

Administration! Faile is Mesaana!! (I kid. Though this might be meant to remind us of someone in Tar Valon...)
Food is spoiling again in Perrin's camp recently. The arrival of Graendal and her henchfolk?
Perrin's schooling continues. He needs it badly.
At last. This marital strife is DONE. A very nice anniversary scene. It put me in the same frame of mind as their marriage, which is for the good.

17. Partings, and a Meeting

The voice of the Mat chapters is very distinct. Clearly Sanderson had a great time writing him.
I'm impressed that the sul'dam are actually going to the Tower to learn. The times they are a'changing.
Mat actually wants to reclaim the Horn of Valere? The times really are changing.
Elayne's a little ruthless, though with cause. And apparently, she's a Socialist with aims at universal health care.
We wonder if Elayne's plans for the Kin will figure into the plot, or it's just seeds of how the world will evolve after the Last Battle. Either way seems fine.

18. The Strength of This Place

Interesting. Perrin acknowledges that his vision has been too narrow, a complaint we had of him in earlier chapters.
A translucent violet wall... Is this an effect of the Dreamspike? But what does it do?
Borderland battles... Will Lan arrive to save the day?
It looks like the Trollocs are attacking in force, following up on the prologue attack.
Why aren't the Saldaeans helping? Now that the rulers of the Borderlands are gone, has a Forsaken taken up residence and command?
Clever bloody Myrddraal... Draghkar bombs?
Faile's actions seem to reinforce the reality of Perrin's perception that the rumors of him and Berelain were shaming him. But how could anyone have had that perception, given Perrin's obsessive quest to free Faile?
It looks like Faile and Berelain's agreement, including "You'll find another man, as well" sets us up for the Berelain/Galad hook-up.

19. Talk of Dragons

I keep having the feeling the Olver is giong to stow away, despite all of Moiraine's warnings, and be instrumental in winning in 'finnland. The last few months of his life have been devoted to learning Snakes & Foxes, after all.
Elayne copying the foxhead medallion could be HUGE in the arms race of Travelers, channeler combatants and cannons. If both sides will eventually have cannons, will both sides also be able to negate channeling?
Both Elayne and Mat have blossomed in their political acumen. It's lovely to watch them dicker.

20. A Choice

Hooray! It's the Aes Sedai testing icon!
And at last, Nynaeve exposes the arbitrariness of tradition. She really is a dynamo in this series. The Aes Sedai and Accepted tests always bothered me in their insistence on single-mindedness. Apparently this is a valid objection.
Nynaeve's confrontation with Myrelle: perfect. Once more loose end tied up.

21. An Open Gate

Interesting how Perrin's and Ituralde's scenes are sharing a chapter. Will their stories converge? I can't see how.
What's behind the Saldaean reluctance to let Ituralde in? Forsaken? Darkfriend?

22. The End Of a Legend

I like how a small concept in the second book (theater) has been allowed to flourish and develop.
Called it: Bloodknives. So not enough time has passed yet, for them to die of their ter'angreal.

23. Foxheads

Wow. Elayne invented a way for a non-channeler to shield a channeler. The arms race takes a surprising turn.
Sylvase: Darkfriend or dupe? I vote Darkfriend, just because of the flashes of intelligence she shows when she's not being watched.
Elayne, you're an idiot. A pure, Light-blinded idiot. And I hope you get dressed-down severely. You botched capturing these women the first time; you botched interrogating them. And I can't believe that illusion worked.
Now the Shadow has channeler-proof bindings.
Lan, you protest too much. Stop behaving like... every other character in these books.

24. To Make a Stand

All the mutual suspicion and aggressiveness in Maradon looks like an effect of Fain's corruption. Did he pass through?
It looks like a theme of this book is accepting responsibility, which Perrin finally seems to be doing.
Finally, Slayer! But can Perrin really train enough in Tel'aran'rhiod to beat an old pro like Luc/Isam?

25. Return to Bandar Eban

Ah, St. Rand the ta'veren, mobilizing everyone towards the Last Battle. With compassion.
Even Rand is learning to take responsibility, and offer apologies when needed. He's fixing his mistakes... Will the Seanchan or the Black Tower be next?

26. Parley

The Traveling weaves are unraveling. Is this something from the wildness of saidin back where the Bowl of Winds was used? No, the other weaves work fine...
At last, the hammer/axe thing makes sense. It's a little Aiel-like, in their attitude towards swords.
At last, there's some sanity in all of this, but will the trial be a bore? Or will it bring to light something interesting, like the publicizing of Perrin's connection to the wolves?

27. A Call to Stand

Fool the Hall once, shame on Egwene. Fool the Hall many times, shame on the Hall.
Egwene seems terribly reactionary. Shouldn't she be having her best scholars research Rand's plan and coming up with counter-proposals? Granted, there's a precedent for not trusting Rand, but she already admitted she does.
It seems like Rand is manipulating Egwene into rallying his troops for him.

28. Oddities

The violet dome must be an effect of the dreamspike.
Who is channeling on the Trollocs' side? The Asha'man should be able to detect if it was someone strong enough to be Forsaken. It must be new Dreadlords. Plucked from Taim's men in the Black Tower?
Who will be coming to the rescue? Lan is already further east. Will it be Alannah, who Rand says is heading to the Borderlands? (Though she's going to Arafel...)

29. A Terrible Feeling

Oh. Duh. The gateways are failing because of the dome. The dreamspike. When Egwene discovered Traveling, it was linked to Tel'aran'rhiod, somehow.
Berelain was prophesized to be besotted with Gawyn, but this seems suspiciously extreme. But then, when you unite incredible hotness with incredible hotness...
Interesting. All of these Perrin/Galad chapters happen before Rand's epiphany in The Gathering Storm. I kind of want to pull apart the chapters and read everything chronologically.
With all the foreboding about cannons changing everything, I expect to see carnage at least on the level of Dumai's Wells. Is this such a big development when channelers are fighting in nearly every battle?

30. Men Dream Here

That tree is strong with the Dark Side of the Force. In you must go.
While it gives me warm fuzzies that Perrin witnessed Rand's epiphany, it feels like we're treading water instead of moving the plot forward.

31. Into the Void

What a great action-cinematic chapter!
Mat, with bands of assassins rushing him at every city block... Reminds Jon of the cult film The Warriors.
If the gholam's gonna go, that's a damn cool way. Bravo, Mat. You do everything with style.

32. A Storm of Light

It seems that as Moridin is getting more connected with the Dark One, Rand is getting more connected with the Creator. At least, that's how I explain his funky new powers.
He is becoming a bit saintly, though. I hope he isn't just a paragon of compassion and goodness who can overcome all evil with a wave of his hand.

33. A Good Soup

As with Elaida, so with Egwene, it seems: there's way too much "Aes Sedai versus Rand" attitude going on.
And now we reach the end of Perrin's training montage.
In addition to the "responsibility" theme, there seems to be a "casting off illusions" or "waking up" theme. Like Gawyn's going through.
Part of that "waking up" includes -- for once -- sharing information. Like the Seanchan intel on the Bloodknives.
Because of the limited timespan the Bloodknives have, they're going to attack very soon.

34. Judgment

Confirmed: the violet wall is blocking the gateways. Probably the dreamspike's effect. So why are they being penned in? For an ambush by Graendal's Shadowspawn?
Yup: all the truth comes out about Perrin. Probably for the best.
The verdict seems like another deferral of "justice", like when Siuan Sanche was tried by Gareth Bryne.
This chapter feeds in to the responsibility/transparency theme.
More than likely, Perrin's going to save the Whitecloaks when he needn't have interfered, and thus cement them into his own forces.

35. The Right Thing

Teleportation battles! This reminds us of The Matrix movies.
Jaret Byar: Darkfriend, or crazy and misled, like the Prophet? I vote crazy, because of his scent.
Bornhald seems to be seeing sense in the light of Byar's crazy. His father was a reasonable man, after all.
Jon and I are both pleasantly surprised by Galad having character evolution in this book. He has handled his growth better than most of the other characters.

36. An Invitation

At last, Egwene makes good on her plan to create a confederation of female channelers. With the Seanchan as a common enemy, it's a compelling idea.
Holy $@!+ -- the dreamspike and Slayer are going to be in the Tower when the Black Ajah, Mesaana and the Bloodknives strike?!

37. Darkness in the Tower

Now THIS is what we've been waiting for. A fabulously messy convergence of heavy-duty conflict!
I wondered if Graendal would join in, but Jon pointed out that with the dreamspike, there would be no way in.

38. Wounds

Nice. Jon points out that if Mesaana is alive, but a vegetable, the Dark One can't reincarnate her. No balefire necessary.
Hmm. Who does Graendal have in position? Someone in Perrin's camp, or Galad's?

39. In the Three-fold Land
Uh... Sound observations, but... WTF??

40. A Making

"No more complaining" FINALLY.
Could this be a Power-wrought hammer? (Yes!)
Mah'alleinir = Mjolnir (Thor's hammer)
Berelain is acting weird. She's beautiful enough to make a great pet for Graendal... Or maybe it's Alliandre...

41. An Unexpected Ally

Hmm. Is there a Portal Stone in the Blight?
Who was the weak male channeler using the Portal Stone? From the Black Tower? Or new channelers from continents unseen?
Yup, this is where Perrin does his Selfless Act.

42. Stronger Than Blood

Danelle was Mesaana. That fits most people's suspicions. So she must have had a way to partially disguise her strength in the Power.
Why is Gawyn collecting Bloodknife rings? If he uses one, will the Warder bond protect his life force?

Wheel Of Time Reading Retreat

2010-08-26T14:07:00.001-05:00

Cover of Towers of Midnight (Wheel of Time)

Some sports fans negotiate with their spouses for spans of time when they can indulge their obsession unfettered, immersing themselves completely and blotting out anything else. I was never a sports fan, and my wife was never a "football widow". But I can get just as intense about my geeky pursuits. In this spirit, I proposed the idea of a "reading retreat" to my friend Jon, anticipating the November 2nd release of Towers Of Midnight, by Brandon Sanderson (channeling the late Robert Jordan), the penultimate book in The Wheel Of Time fantasy epic.

Our wives do not read the books, and we would be poor company for the days and nights as we read, dissected and attempted to discuss the book. Much better, I told Jon, if we were to leave them in peace and meet in a city somewhere between Chicago and Seattle where we could read and discuss to the exclusion of everything else, for two solid days and nights.

The day Brandon Sanderson tweeted that he had completed his final draft, we set our plans in motion, booking cheap tickets to Denver via Southwest and four-star downtown hotel accommodations for $80 a night via Priceline. Our plan is to read the book lock-step, chapter-by-chapter, and blog our discussion on this very site. We're still searching for downtown Denver restaurants with Wi-Fi, from which we can eat, read and blog. I have my Barnes & Noble nook loaded with the reference materials we'll need to check our facts.

November approaches. Sports fans, I finally get it.

Sympathy For The Devil (Paradise LOST)

2010-05-12T13:51:00.003-05:00

SPOILERS for the May 11th episode of LOST follow...

I disliked the LOST episode "Across the Sea" on first viewing. From the American-accented Latin to the abrupt switch to English to the stiltedly "mythic" dialog, it bugged me. But when I ran with the mythic feel and tried to understand it in that context, I started to appreciate this glimpse into the legend as a worthy pen-penultimate episode of my favorite network television show.

If you believe Jacob and his followers, the Island is a stopper that prevents the evil of the Other (what I call Jacob's nameless twin, sometimes referred to as the Man In Black or Esau) from being unleashed on the rest of the world. The Island, in this view, is a sort of Pandora's Box, and Jacob (and eventually Jacob's successor), are charged with sitting on the lid. We lapped up this information like cream, eager to have some revelation of the Island's nature. But we didn't question it. "Across the Sea" gave us some reason to do so. At the heart of this is Mother, a Roman priestess or witch who, from the get-go, seems a shady individual. She's a staunch isolationist -- murderously so -- who charges her stolen "sons" to protect the mysterious glowing cave (presumably the future site of the Temple and its pool). She waves away the whys and wherefores by saying the explanation would just lead to further questions -- and the answers die with her. Jacob has been bringing people to the Island, putting them through trials and suffering, all in the hopes of naming a successor, eventually to do the same all over again. And he doesn't even know why.

In his origins, we see the Other's motivations for the first time from his point of view, and rather than the Bad Guy, he comes off as sympathetic. Clever and curious compared to his dully dutiful, morally infantile twin, the Other pushes at boundaries and explores his world. He uncovers Mother's great deception, and (with the nudge of his ghostly biological mother) justly rebels, seeking knowledge of his true origins and people. He resembles another mythological character -- Eve in the Garden of Eden -- who also disobeyed and partook of the fruit of knowledge. And was punished for it. The Other's only real crime to that point was a desire for knowledge over ignorance. In LOST themes, the Other is the Man of Science to Jacob's Man of Faith.

If his real mother's ghost played the role of Eden's serpent, it's interesting that in "death", the Other became a serpentine entity of black smoke, and (at least in the view of the Jacobins) "evil". I don't think the morality of this Island conflict is completely relative: Ben and Sayid were similarly "baptized" and came out colder and more ruthless -- "corrupted" in a way that certainly brought out the worse part of their natures. But this mythic interlude showed us that the conflict between Mother and the Other began with carnage on both sides. It's significant that first blood, from the murder of the twins' biological mother, to the Other's head slammed against a mine wall, to the massacre of the castaways, went to Mother. We still don't know why it was important for the Other to be kept on the island even before his "corruption", so the entire struggle could be seen as Mother's unjustified attempts to confine her son, and the Other's struggle for freedom. The people Jacob draws to the Island are pieces in the game, and the Jacobins have been responsible for a massacre or two of their own (witness the Dharma Initiative, among other strikes). If the Other doesn't seem particularly sympathetic to the protagonists, its because, in this battle of immortal demigods, they are no more than pieces on a board.

In the myth of Cain and Abel, Cain killed Abel because God rejected his offering but accepted Abel's. Jacob notes that Mother always loved the Other more than Jacob, calling him "special". As warring Titans, it's probable that both Jacob and the Other are separate from human morality, though they are not above human pettiness. Daddy Issues are pandemic among the characters of LOST; it seems the root of the story lies in serious Mommy Issues. Mankind is probably better off without both of these tragic demigods. It may be that the "sideways" timeline, where the Island sank and the Jacob-Other feud is presumably ended, is the best possible outcome for the Losties.

The True Identity of The Sentry

2010-01-21T01:08:00.001-06:00

In Dark Avengers #13, Brian Michael Bendis finally reveals the true nature of the Sentry! Or maybe not. But I know the answer. (SPOILERS for Dark Avengers #13 below...)

Since New Avengers #1, Bendis has doled out clues about the absurdly powerful, yet oddly ineffectual super-being called the Sentry, a hero whose every good work is counterbalanced by the villainy of his arch-nemesis (and alter-ego), the Void. In this latest issue of Dark Avengers, Robert's wife Lindy relates her own theory about the Sentry. She posits that Robert's abuse of "the serum" opened him to energy of "Biblical proportions", and her theory receives partial corroboration with a flashback to Old Testament times, showing the avenging angel of the Tenth Plague to be the Void-energy itself, possibly channeled by a Hebrew prophet. Lindy says that it's just her Sunday School perspective, but she's sure Robert became "a part of something larger and crazier than anyone has even considered." Even if Bendis made the ballsy move of introducing Yahweh into the pantheon of Marvel gods, the Void who taunts Lindy is no angel. He's sardonic, cruel and unabashedly evil -- and he finds Lindy's theories hilarious. He even quips that he is Galactus.

When writer Paul Jenkins introduced the Sentry, the standalone limited series could be read as a story within a story. Robert Reynolds could be seen as a character in the real world -- our world -- who escaped his psychological handicaps by imagining himself into a fantasy world: the Marvel Universe. There, he dreamed himself a hero, and inserted himself into Silver Age continuity as fast friends with the superheroes, he himself being the mightiest among them. He even married his all-American girl sweetheart with a similarly alliterative name. His nemesis, the Void, represented the nihilistic truth that Reynolds was really a powerless nobody. The limited series could be interpreted as a tale of the healing power of fantasy.

When Brian Michael Bendis brought the Sentry into Marvel continuity, he preserved the trope that Jenkins' Robert Reynolds imagined: that the Sentry was one of the original heroes, and the world had forgotten about him. There was, of course, a comic book device to explain the gap in memory (the Sentry's psionic powers), but in the first Sentry arc, writer Paul Jenkins appeared -- as a character -- in the pages of New Avengers, dumbfounded at how his fictional creation was standing before him in real life. Flashbacks to the Sentry's past, originally shown in campy Silver Age art and writing style, began to morph into a decidedly modern comic book style. A flashback about the Sentry's first encounter with the Skrulls mutated from a "Mars Attacks!"-style scene to a grim analogy to the 9/11 suicide plane attacks by religious fundamentalists. Marvel history was being re-written, almost as if a comic book writer was re-casting old stories to modern sensibilities. Or a childish fantasy was being upgraded in sophistication and made manifest. Perhaps the most concise description of the Sentry's nature was in this week's Mighty Avengers #33, when Stature describes the Sentry's clash with the Void as "a damaged psyche playing out the conflict of its dual nature through comic book archetypes."

Robert Reynolds' godlike powers aren't those of Yahweh; they're those of a writer with respect to a comic book universe. Robert Reynolds is a man who can retcon himself into comic book history and make himself a peer of the Earth's Mightiest Heroes. But he then becomes beholden to the rules of the comic book universe and its narrative flow, and keeps himself from over-influencing the course of the story by checking himself with special weaknesses and an arch-nemesis who can counter his every move. In Dark Avengers #13, the Void taunts Robert: "You should just take a step back and look at what you've accomplished as the sentry. Nothing. You want to do something? Allow me." Because that too is one of the rules of comic book stories: the heroes are reactive defenders of the status quo. It's the villains who drive the story forward by acting. By acting badly.

Bendis, in Avengers: The Illuminati #3, established the godlike Beyonder as a being interested in wiping his own memory and inserting himself into the lives of the superheroes. Doubtless, there will be a revelation that Robert Reynolds, the Sentry, the Void, Cloc, and even Lindy are all constructs of the Beyonder, playing his game. But I like to think that there is a hidden truth behind that revelation, one that Marvel will never show. Robert Reynolds' true power is that of authorship of Avengers continuity. And his true identity? Brian Michael Bendis.

Caprica, Put On Some Clothes!

2010-01-12T21:08:00.001-06:00

After Gattaca, the re-made Battlestar Galactica was the first filmed science fiction that my wife enjoyed. She liked that the focus wasn't on technology or aliens or the other sci-fi tropes; fundamentally, it was a drama about flawed human characters wrestling with weighty issues. Seeing SyFy's promotional imagery for the Battlestar prequel series Caprica, she'd never guess that the show followed in its predecessor's footsteps. In fact, she'd probably just roll her eyes before dismissing it entirely.

I've seen the Caprica pilot. I know it deals with religious fundamentalism, parental grief at the loss of a child, the politics of racial minorities and the nature of the human soul. But even I look at the Caprica poster and think "jail bait." Yes, the image of a pretty, nude teenager casting a come-hither gaze over her shoulder while biting a Forbidden Fruit could have a more symbolic meaning. In fact, for those familiar with the pilot, the symbolism is apropos; the character of Zoe Graystone does represent a forbidden fruit, though not in the sexual sense.

But come on. Science fiction isn't a genre known for its subtlety. It is known, however, for catering to the fantasies (sexual and otherwise) of teenage boys. This ad campaign makes Caprica look like more of the same. Mind you, this is certainly more of the same that worked on me -- I was a devoted follower of Catwoman, Princess Ardala and Leia's slave-girl outfit -- but my kind isn't the audience that needs winning over. The re-done Battlestar Galactica helped break ground in casting science fiction TV as serious, character-driven adult drama, and garnered a much wider audience than the usual SyFy fare. Along with shows like ABC's Lost, it made a compelling argument for studio investment in the genre. This success shows that science fiction needn't be an insecure little category that needs to show skin to get attention. Caprica has the goods; it should put on its clothes and invite audiences to take it seriously.

X-Factor - Nation X: PAD jabs at the X-Office?

2010-01-07T00:30:00.000-06:00

The following contains minor SPOILERS for X-Factor: Nation X #1.

Peter David loves metatextual commentary in his funny books. It's often as heavy-handed as his puns, but the man knows his industry as well as his characters, and has smart things to say about both. The X-Factor: Nation X one-shot can be read as a fun reunion of the X-Factor mutants with the X-Men. Or a critique of Matt Fraction's "Nation X" plot. Or even a musing by the X-Factor title on its place in the X-Men family of books.

Foremost, this one-shot plays as a fun reunion of old friends. Shatterstar's encounters with the X-folk of known and suspected alternate sexuality is played for laughs, as is Strong Guy's meeting with the other strong guys -- who spend the issue hitting each other for the simple reason that that's what they do. Darwin closes the loop on his original quest to find Professor Xavier, and Longshot's past relationship with Dazzler is acknowledged and left wryly messy. Even some past resentment between Moonstar and Monet (of which I wasn't aware) is duly noted. This montage of meetings spreads across several pages, leaving the reader the impression that all the necessary bases are being touched and stories are being swapped off-panel. The focus of the reunion is between Madrox and Layla -- who have seen the future since their last encounter with the X-Men -- and Cyclops, who has been busy plotting the course of mutantkind's future. Cyclops and Madrox are, interestingly, both framed as leaders with a vision for their people. Where Cyclops is steadfast in his resolve that his "Utopia" is the best hope for mutants, Madrox (in character) sees both sides, though in the end remains unreconciled with Cyclops.

Their debate, paired with a plot thread involving "Crone, Scribe of the Others", lays out an argument that could be between Peter David and Uncanny X-Men writer Matt Fraction. When Fraction took the X-Men from their Westchester mansion to San Francisco, he commented that the mansion was an easy target for their enemies, and living in a city famous for accepting the different was a tactical move by Cyclops. Bizarrely, the first thing they did on arriving was to buy up a secluded set of buildings and establish a quasi-military base. After a race riot, Cyclops took all the remaining mutants to an artificial island off the Californian coast, and dubbed it "Utopia". Despite their professed ideal to integrate man and mutant, Marvel writers always showed the X-Men as isolationist -- but at least most of the rest of the world's mutants lived among humans. Since the "House Of M" story whittled down the number of surviving mutants to fewer than 200, all of Marvel's mutantkind is isolated -- and ghettoized.

"The ghetto will burn," Crone writes. "They always burn. The blood is erased by the flames. But it will happen again. And again." And of course, it has happened, not only in human history but in X-Men history, with all the mutant sanctuaries. Xavier's mansion was repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt. Avalon crashed and burned. District X was consumed by flames. Genosha was annihilated. The Australian base was torn apart. Providence sunk. Too many mutants gathering in one place has been a consistent disaster throughout Marvel history. Cyclops, self-appointed leader of his race, risks the final fate of his race on "faith that this time, this place, is happening for a reason other than to be perverted by a future that may or may not occur." Alas, the X-Men franchise lives so long as its status quo of "persecuted minority fighting for survival" is preserved, so these characters may never escape their fate.

Peter David has kept his stories fairly separate from the rest of X-continuity, and it seems significant that this "tie-in" issue is a standalone one-shot. The freedom X-Factor has to address the larger issues surrounding its characters is constrained by what's happening in the flagship titles. When this iteration of the title was launched, its original mission statement was to investigate M-Day and how the "No More Mutants" curse could be lifted. The "mutant messiah" story took that plot away from X-Factor (it's interesting that X-Factor won't be a part of the upcoming "Second Coming" crossover), and it had to find new directions. I wonder if the discussion between Peter David and X-editor Axel Alonso was similar to the exchange between Madrox and Cyclops. Madrox: "...you've taken the survival of mutantkind onto your shoulders. The train's moving, and I'm asking: what's the plan?" Cyclops: "The train's going with or without you. Climb aboard or get the hell off the track. Your choice." Issues like this one make me wish Peter David were the conductor.

Ritual First Reading Of The Gathering Storm

2009-11-18T10:54:00.082-06:00

I have a ritual for reading The Wheel of Time books for the first time. It's in the same spirit as my ritual for uncorking a special bottle of wine: the entire experience is meant to be savored, carefully attended, and even held in reserve a bit, to sharpen the anticipation. After each phase, after each chapter, I like to pause to reflect on it. This blog post captures that experience, and will be updated as it unfolds.

This will contain spoilers for The Gathering Storm, by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson!

Opening the Book

I've do this for all books, large and small: lay the closed book on its spine, fold down the front and back covers to be at right angles with the pages, and then fold down equal size stacks of pages until the book lies flat, open to the middle page. It keeps the spine supple. Supposedly.

Scanning the Chapter Titles and Icons
The Wheel of Time chapter titles give tantalizing hints about the overall story, without really spoiling anything. So do the chapter icons. No Snakes and Foxes unfortunately, so Moiraine's rescue must come in Towers of Midnight. Oh look! A new chapter icon! It looks like broken webs, or shattered glass -- perhaps something to do with the Pattern unraveling under the Dark One's influence? Cadsuane icons -- this is good, it means that her "discussions" with Semirhage will be featured. I'm sure I've seen that mice icon -- maybe in New Spring? Oh no, the blacksmith's puzzle... I thought we were done with that. The Forsaken snake... "A Conversation with the Dragon" -- I hope we'll get some disclosure from Lews Therin in that one. "A Visit from Verin Sedai" -- with a Black Ajah icon! -- this one, I'm looking forward to the most. "Reading the Commentary"... Maybe here's where Min puzzles out Herid Fel's philosophy books.

Prologue
In Knife of Dreams, we learned that Aram wasn't a Darkfriend, just a dupe of Masema. Here, we learn that Masema wasn't a Darkfriend, just a dupe of someone claiming to be the Dragon Reborn. Was Masema Demandred's "proxy?" Or did Aran'gar's comment in Knife Of Dreams, that whoever was impersonating Sammael was playing her game indicate that she commanded Masema?

Chapter 1: Tears From Steel
There's a paragraph whose sole purpose is to end with the statement that Rand's habit of automatically reaching for his sword instead of the Power, now that he's missing a hand, would be the death of him. Looks like foreshadowing to me.

Chapter 2: The Nature Of Pain
Egwene's campaign of passive resistance reminds me of another fictional campaign, but I can't for the life of me remember what.

Chapter 3: The Ways Of Honor
Clearly, the Wise Ones want Aviendha to learn how to challenge authority, how to become an authority. She even alludes to Elayne's thinking like a ruler. I like how this chapter contrasts with the previous: Egwene endures punishment so as not to relinquish her authority while Aviendha endures punishment because she won't assert authority.

Chapter 4: Nightfall
Gawyn is at last realizing that everyone he cares about is on the other side. One thing Brandon Sanderson has done that has helped is to not shy away from short chapters or point-of-view sections. He's not padding the prose with extra description, and that is really helping The Gathering Storm move forward.

Chapter 5: A Tale Of Blood
I'm glad one of our three ta'veren is finally taking an interest in the swirling colors that let him see what the other two are doing. Seems like a useful thing. The Cadsuane/Semirhage confrontation is one of my most anticipated aspects of this book. Cadsuane's meditations on her tactics are going to show us what kind of a woman she is... I'm looking forward to the clash of titanic wills.

Chapter 6: When Iron Melts
I guessed right -- the new "broken webs" chapter icon deals with the unraveling of The Pattern -- of reality.

Chapter 7: The Plan For Arad Doman
Rand dressed in black and red and browbeating his allies... Is this Brandon Sanderson playing with our attention to detail, or is Moridin's influence coming through in fashion sense and demeanor?

Chapter 8: Clean Shirts
The chapter title dismayed me -- more of Siuan stamping around, doing chores for Gareth Bryne. But at last, we're moving past that. You know the series is gearing up to conclude when characters at last begin disclosing information to each other. And become honest with their feelings.

Chapter 9: Leaving Malden
Perrin is depressed to be directionless. This could very well be meta-commentary about a character who has ceased to fit cleanly into the larger story. Perrin used to be my favorite: the Wolfbrother, the Scouring of the Shire, er, mobilizing of the Two Rivers, Slayer and the Tower of Ghenjei... But then he got stuck trying to rescue his wife from Aiel for three whole books. I realize that Jordan was providing echoes of the Hindu epic, The Ramayan, spinning yet more mythology into WoT history, but the whole thing seemed irrelevant to the greater tale. This chapter, it seems that Perrin recognizes that fact, and is trying to find his way back into the plot.

Chapter 10: The Last of the Tabac
This Chapter was foreshadowed in the Knife Of Dreams prologue: "[Rodel Ituralde] always looked ahead, and always planned for every eventuality he could imagine, short of the Dragon Reborn himself suddenly appearing in front of him." So much for the best-laid plans.

Chapter 11: The Death of Adrin
It seems that Aviendha's character arc in this book is figuring out how to go from being a soldier to a general. Or more accurately, from a follower to a leader. And the manner of her instruction is the Aiel manner for everything: emotional and physical humiliation and torture. I'm guessing the Wise Ones want to see if she's break, or she stands up for herself and what's right. Hopefully she's figure out her lesson before the next book. The Bubbles of Evil are getting even more hazardous and intense.

Chapter 12: Unexpected Encounters
It seemed a little abrupt that the Tower Aes Sedai are now making veiled attempts to solicit Egwene's advice, but it's not a stretch to grand that time has elapsed and the seends Egwene has been planting are beginning to sprout. I like how Egwene is starting to embody being "of all Ajahs, and of none" like a good Amyrlin should. The best part of this chapter, though was the joining of Egwene's plot line to the Secret Inquisition.

Chapter 13: An Offer and a Departure

Though Gawyn's attitude towards Rand is explainable, it has been hard not to see him as an idiot, and it's nice to see him realize and articulate why he has been an idiot. And to re-join the larger plot with a proper sense of direction. Time to crawl over broken glass, Gawyn...

Chapter 14: A Box Opens
Cadsuane AND Sorilea tag-teaming Semirhage? The first line of this chapter had me grinning. It wasn't the explosive smack-down I'd hoped, but Sorilea did provide the key. Much like any Aes Sedai, Semirhage's pride of position is her weakness. And seeing how the Wise Ones dealt with their Aes Sedai "apprentices," Sorilea may know exactly how to break the Forsaken. I'm baffled how they're going to use the sad bracelets, though... unless Cadsuane and Sorilea are going to use them to leash Rand -- for his own good? Yikes.

Chapter 15: A Place to Begin
Whoah. Very cool. Rand returns to the dream-room where Ishamael toyed with him way back in the first three books, and confronts him as an equal. Moridin is the ultimate nihilist -- or the ultimate Buddhist, in a way. After all, what he wants is essentially moksha for everyone. Liberation from the Wheel. When Rand says he wants to remove the Dark One's effect on the Wheel forever, Ishamael delivers the priceless line: "I doubt you can understand the magnitude of the stupidity in your statement." I believe him, the Dark One is as essential to the functioning of the Wheel as entropy is to thermodynamics. Many years ago, I posted on a WoT forum a realization I had, while patching a punctured car tire. If you're going to seal a hole, you've got to clean out the hole first. That's what Herid Fel was trying to say: the broken Seals must be removed before the Bore can be closed. Min just confirmed my theory. But how does Balefire fit into the picture? Surely they can't make Balefire so powerful that it erases Mierin (who drilled the Bore in the first place) that far back in time.

Chapter 16: In the White Tower

Plot progress! Again, Egwene's provoking Elaida into destroying her own credibility came a little fast, but in fairness, Elaida has been a blind, tantrum-throwing idiot ever since she siezed the Tower. And now, she's finished. Now Egwene can deal with the Black Ajah, Mesaana and the impending Seanchan attack...

Chapter 17: Questions of Control
Yup, my guess in Chapter 14 was on-target, but it wasn't Sorilea who broke Semirhage, it was Cadsuane. Now I'm eager to know what Semirhage will reveal. Perrin, stop moping. You're boring when you mope. Everyone else has accepted their dharma, even Mat. You're a lord, and you're resurrecting Manetheren. Get over it, and go join an interesting plot line.

Chapter 18: A Message in Haste
Well, we're back to seeing Siuan carry around laundry, but at least we get some direct face-time with Sharina, and see what a great Aes Sedai she's going to make.

Chapter 19: Gambits
There's an interesting ambiguity about Tuon. She's a just (and even metrics-driven) ruler, but her cultural background sees no problem with slavery, and she's an imperialist to her toes. We finally get something out of Perrin's long-running plot thread: the Seanchan are beginning to understand that they could be allies with the Randlanders, and they finally believe that the Last Battle is nigh.

Chapter 20: On a Broken Road
Brandon Sanderson tells us, through Mat's mouth, that the Aelfinn and the Eelfinn will have to wait until next book. Well, thanks for letting us know, or I might have been let down.

Chapter 21: Embers and Ash
Perrin can be infuriatingly slow. He decides he's going to do something cool -- like learn how to use the Wolf Dream -- and then he gets skittish and accomplishes nothing all chapter. And he has to stew to "decide" to participate in The Last Battle, as though he thought a ta'veren has any choice. At least his wife gets things done.

Chapter 22: The Last That Could Be Done
WOW. My chin still hurts from my jaw hitting the floor. The Rand/Semirhage scene is among the series' best, all the better for being (for me, anyway) completely unexpected.

Chapter 23: A Warp In the Air
The mind reels. From the rules of sha'ra, we knew something like this was coming, but the way it happened calls everything into question. Is Elan Morin Tedronai/Ishamael/Moridin just a version of the Dragon who was turned? And has he just become obsolete? Just how corrupt has Rand become?

Chapter 24: A New Commitment
Gawyn has been nine kinds of fool, and richly deserved the upbraiding he got from Gareth Bryne. It was good to see him finally corrected on matters. It looks like Shemerin is going to be the flashpoint that will re-ignite the rebel Aes Sedai's motivation.

Chapter 25: In Darkness
This chapter almost read like it was a response to the FAQ. A major member of the Black Ajah is revealed, as are her motivations. The banality of evil, indeed.

Chapter 26: A Crack in the Stone
Aviendha finally gets it! (My theory war right.) Nice juxtaposition of Aviendha, who earns her place by not accepting imposed limits, and Shemerin, who earns her demotion by accepting it. This book has a lot of women who either challenge or resign themselves to others' assessments and expectations. Egwene, Aviendha and Siuan all became stronger by refusing to let others define them; Semirhage and Shemerin weakened by allowing it.

Chapter 27: The Tipsy Gelding
Mat and Thom fondly reminiscing about their times together in book 1? That gets me where I live. Because I can imagine myself in that conversation too. Something's seriously creepy in Hinderstap, the way people fear the night and keep to the middle of the streets. Maybe it's just the mention of Aridhol, but could Mashadar have escaped the destruction of Shadar Logoth?

Chapter 28: Night in Hinderstap
According to Thom, it was a "snag in the Pattern," but the undifferentiated mass of murderous arms sure did remind me of Mashadar. Maybe this was how it started in Shadar Logoth, until the bodies just dissolved away and the curse became Mashadar. Speaking of which, where is Padan Fain? Isn't he supposed to be speading the Shadar Logoth taint? Maybe he stopped here at some point, and was the cause of the curse. Whatever the case, very creepy, and a fine return to some of the best elements of the early Wheel of Time books.

Chapter 29: Into Bandar Eban
So Rand hasn't gone completely evil. Yet. Responding to demands with silence and challenges with questions sounds like good tactics for anyone, even those not sharing headspace with Moridin. It seems that Rand's ta'veren effects are becoming more destructive, now that he's touched the Dark One.

Chapter 30: Old Advice
Gareth Bryne has some pretty deep thoughts about choosing a side, and whom you entrust to decide how to use the deadly power you bring to the table. Otherwise, it seems Gawyn is treading plot-water until he can rescue Egwene during the Seanchan strike.

Chapter 31: A Promise to Lews Therin
Back in the first book, Rand al'Thor learned never to trust a skinny innkeeper. Let's see if that still applies. For the first time, we're seeing Cadsuane ruffled -- an indication of how dangerous Rand is getting. Rumors seem to support that Rand's ta'veren effects have become unbalanced and dark. It didn't occur to me that the theft of Cadsuane's Domination Collar and the access key could have been part of a plot to separate her from Rand. Could Shaidar Haran be acting directly?

Chapter 32: Rivers of Shadow
New kinds of "ghosts" -- these ones look more like the heroes summoned by the Horn. There are some chapters when Nynaeve shines. "The Golden Crane" in Knife Of Dreams was one. This is another. It's high time someone realized that maybe they could gain Rand's trust by trying to help him.

Chapter 33: A Conversation with the Dragon
Rand, in all his dark ruthlessness, sounds logical and sane. The dialog brings up Tam al'Thor -- I wonder if Tam could reach his son.

Chapter 34: Legends
Sanderson seems to be having a lot of fun with Mat, making his antics comedic in ways he hasn't been before. With all the darkness surrounding Rand now, this may not be a bad idea, though it's the most striking stylistic transition I've seen. Verin's back. Yay!

Chapter 35: A Halo of Blackness
Tuon is strong enough to shake ta'veren influence? Impressive. Most impressive. But Rand is at his most menacing yet. And it seems that his blurred vision from Semirhage's fireball wasn't the fulfillment of his bandaged-eyes prophecy -- Rand will be blinded. And he will weep over his own grave -- to live he must die? And maybe, just maybe, the Seanchan version of the Prophecies aren't corrupted, and Rand will kneel before Tuon before this is all over.

Chapter 36: The Death Of Tuon
At last, someone -- appropriately, Mat the Trickster -- is onto Verin's game. And she doesn't seem to mind. Wasn't there some detail in a past book about Verin's father being some sort of lucky trickster like Mat? "I figured you...you know, saidared it." Sanderson is having fun writing Mat. Another secret, prophetic, sealed note. Tuon is dead -- long live Fortuona!

Chapter 37: A Force of Light
Again... WOW. Rand is hard and dark and more ruthless than ever before. And it's hard to argue with his logic. That's two Forsaken balefired out of existence. I hope, by joining Cadsuane's plot, Nynaeve won't abandon her tactics of looking after Rand's well-being. At least Min is looking out for him. What do Cadsuane and Sorelia have planned? To reunite Rand with the people he once cared about, to help Rand remember himself?

Chapter 38: News in Tel'aran'rhiod
Egwene's need had her seeing the Tuatha'an camps... to remind her not to lose sight of the world beyond the Tower, or for more specific reasons? "By the way, that dress you are wearing is green." I sense some big revelations when I turn the page...

Chapter 39: A Visit From Verin Sedai
I bet Verin Mathwin and Severus Snape would have had a lot to discuss. My theories (and the theories of many) about her are confirmed, but the manner of delivering the revelation was great. I'd love to read the story of her life. Now I want to re-read every chapter in the series with Verin in it.

Chapter 40: The Tower Shakes
This is what I like about Sanderson's Wheel of Time: he's pounding out the long-awaited fulfillment of Prophecy quickly. Egwene's "heroic poses" were a little overdone, but this is where she will show the Tower her leadership. I wonder if Mesaana will rear her head before or after the battle...

Chapter 41: A Fount of Power
It's good to see at least a few other Tower Aes Sedai can be cool-headed and competent in the face of an attack. Another of Min's viewings checked off. And a Dream of Gawyn, presumably. Elaida, like Galina, gets her just desserts. Battle's over -- no Mesaana yet?

Chapter 42: Before the Stone of Tear
Rand's failure in Arad Doman seems to represent the failure that comes from trying to act alone. After all, common cause with the Seanchan isn't Rand's victory -- it'll be Mat's. Waitaminute... Rand is taking his armies WHERE? That's... sooner than expected.

Chapter 43: Sealed to the Flame
Egwene's having a little PTSD, and understandably so. I'm glad that Egwene and Gawyn's fated relationship is on hold. She has shot way past him in maturity and gravitas; I don't see how Gawyn can close the gap. Hey, aren't there still four Bloodknives hiding out in the Tower, waiting to do murder?

Chapter 44: Scents Unknown
Verin said that Rand has some misconceptions about the nature of his fight with the Dark One, but someone had better tell him that. The Borderlanders' behavior is mysterious. Maybe Demandred is among them. Or maybe that's just insane-Rand paranoia. Poor, poor Hurin. So much has changed since The Great Hunt. Yup -- Rand has gone off the deep end. Who are the people with Perrin vital to helping Rand remember himself? The Two Rivers folk. Who in particular? Oh, Light. Tam. It almost makes me want to skip ahead in the book. Almost.

Chapter 45: The Tower Stands
I don't remember who arranged the delegation to the Black Tower, containing Nisao, Myrelle, Faolain and Theodrin. I guess they will be part of the "Black Tower rent in blood and fire" Foretelling fulfillment.

Chapter 46: To Be Forged Again
Egwene al'Vere: Change We Can Believe In.

Chapter 47: The One He Lost
I'm glad that Hurin had some effect on Rand -- it was sad to see Rand so cold towards him. Did Cadsuane have something to do with the Borderlanders putting him forward? Lews Therin disapproves of the Choeden Kal. Maybe the "flaw" in Callandor was put there for a reason -- to make Rand rely on others. Okay, I'll admit it. I nearly cried during the scene with Tam. And for a moment, I really thought he would do it. Wow.

Chapter 48: Reading the Commentary
"He shall hold a blade of light in his hands, and the three shall be one." Does that mean Callandor and the two women linked to him, or it mean the integration of the three men in his head -- Rand, Lews Therin and Moridin? A viewing of Nynaeve, pieta-like -- with Rand in the Christ role? I wonder if this is how Rand will "die and live again" -- with Callandor, liked to Alivia who would "help him die" and Nynaeve, who would not rest until she had "Healed someone three days dead." I wonder if the black knife Min sees over Beldeine's head will mean an encounter with a Seanchan Bloodknife.

Chapter 49: Just Another Man
Rand's last tour of the world before deciding to destroy it. I'm glad that Tam got to him, even a little bit, but Rand is filled with so much darkness now, I honestly don't know how this book is going to conclude.

Chapter 50: Veins of Gold
Tam's question to Rand in Chapter 47 paralleled Bryne's question to Gawyn: who do you go to battle? And Rand's answer wasn't good enough. This is the first time he's had the chance to stop and think, here, poised to destroy the world, on the brink of Moridin-like nihilism. Is that what Ishamael/Moridin is? A Dragon who gave into despair, and just wanted moksha? Rand's realization, his new attitude towards reincarnation, is positively Hindu! Wow. Witht he exception of a little detail like the Last Battle, the series could end here. I wasn't expecting Rand's "dark arc" to come to a conclusion so quickly. But I like it. With all the bleakness, this was needed.

Epilogue: Bathed in Light
Mesaana remains unresolved and unrevealed, though there are suspicious candidates. A bit of text alludes to the title of the last book in the series: A Memory of Light.

District 9: Sci-Fi Substance AND Flash

2009-08-28T22:43:00.004-05:00

This post contains spoilers for the movie District 9.

Typically, science fiction movies -- even the good ones -- are summer popcorn fare. They're big, fun, splashy spectacles, and discussion about the film typically takes the form, "it was so cool when..." The deeper aspects of the genre -- the subversiveness and the social commentary -- are usually left to the print and small-screen incarnations. Occasionally, we'll get a science fiction film like Gattaca that goes for substance over flash. This year, we were lucky to get District 9, a science fiction movie that delivered both.

In the District 9 world, when the flying saucer came, it did not head for New York or Washington D.C. -- it hovered over Johannesburg, South Africa, where it stayed for twenty years while its dying crew were shuttled into a makeshift settlement camp below. The human protagonist, Wikus Van De Merwe, is an administrator in the bureaucracy charged with managing the alien refugees, which mainly means keeping the "prawns" (an epithet that both describes the aliens' anatomy and their perception as "bottom feeders") contained and out of the way of the humans, who are none too happy to have these visitors on Earth.

The first third of the movie is filmed in the style of a newscast or documentary, and the obvious parallel to apartheid comes to gritty life through the visuals. The alien ghetto is a slum, where the prawns (a race with technology superior to our own) live like animals and scavenge through garbage. It has all the problems of a slum as well, including gangs both human and alien, drugs (cat food, for the aliens) and random violence. Wikus is charged with leading a team of administrators -- backed by military men -- to force the aliens to sign consent papers (to pacify the "human" rights groups) before relocating them to another camp, away from Johannesburg. Most of the aliens don't understand what they're signing; when Wikus encounters one who does -- and refuses -- he threatens to have Child Services take the alien's offspring. As the camera follows him, Wikus cheerfully demonstrates how they deal with everything from illegal contraband to unauthorized breeding. The special effects are very good in that they are seamless: the aliens and technology blend into the general squalor of the landscape.

District 9 keeps the focus on the real, visceral details of its immediate setting, but gives us glimpses, through faux newscasts and interviews, of how the larger world has been altered by the aliens' arrival. There are "alien rights" watchdog groups just as there are groups trying to exploit the aliens. There are well-meaning bureaucrats who perpetrate atrocities through sheer negligence or overextension. But the slums could be slums anywhere, populated by any marginalized and downtrodden people.

The characters and plot are solid, but there is nothing new about the bureaucrat whose eyes are opened, or the course he takes once they are. And while the ending undoubtedly provided the groundwork for a "District 10", it was a satisfying ending on its own, showing that the problems depicted in the fim are never easily or cleanly resolved, and there ought to be a sense of foreboding about what has been wrought when an oppressed people find that their circumstances are poised to change.

District 9 is not a feel-good action movie that will leave you dazzled; but it is compelling science fiction that will make you think about how we treat each other.

Wolverine Origins 39

2009-08-27T13:42:00.024-05:00

This post contains spoilers for Wolverine Origins 39...

Wolverine Origins 39 pulls together a number of slowly spinning plot threads, and it finally feels like the title has built momentum towards a big blow-out conclusion. Read together (to overcome the slow issue-to-issue pacing), this story is more enjoyable than I would have expected -- given its roots in Jeph Loeb's rightly maligned Wolverine arc, in which all the feral mutants were revealed to be members of a splinter race of "lupines," with an immortal Alpha Lupine named Romulus pulling their strings since prehistoric times. Yeah. From this goofy premise, Daniel Way has managed to extract a compelling tale of subterfuge and control, spanning decades. He adheres to continuity, but adds depth and intrigue to old stories, like Wolverine's first appearance in Incredible Hulk 181.

Wolverine Origins 39 is the issue where Way spells it all out -- or some of it, at least. Romulus, hitherto seen as just a giant, shadowy figure, has formented rivalries and hatreds among a set of characters -- including Wolverine, Sabretooth, Wild Child, Omega Red, Cyber, Daken, and Nuke -- and pitted them against each other to find the last man standing. The reasons remain mysterious (the "contestants" believe that the one who can kill Romulus gets to become Romulus), but what's frightening is how Romulus has inflicted trauma upon trauma on his players -- since their childhoods, it seems -- to mold them into the killers they are today.

By the end of the issue, all the contestants except Wolverine (and Daken, off playing Dark Avenger) are dead. And in the final panel, we get our first clear look at Romulus, and it comes as a bit of a surprise. Up until now, the silhouetted depictions suggested a Hulk-sized Sabretooth. Instead, we see a Sabretooth-sized Wolverine, though an exaggerated one. Four curved adamantium claws adorn each hand, equipped with natural Sabretooth-like claws as well. Romulus is bare-chested but in vaguely Asiatic garb, and his face looks so much like Logan's, my first thought was that we were seeing Wolverine's long-lost older brother, hinted at in Wolverine: Origin and Wolverine: The End. It's a thought worth holding on to. After all, in legend, Romulus was but one brother raised by the she-wolf: he had a brother, Remus, whom he killed, as the story goes. Rather than being the prehistoric alpha dog depicted by Loeb, Romulus may be Logan's brother, and Weapon X may be tied very intimately to Wolverine's origin.

Star Trek's Reboot

2009-05-09T22:43:00.003-05:00

This post contains SPOILERS for J.J. Abram's 2009 Star Trek film.

I probably would have enjoyed J.J. Abrams' reinvention of Star Trek more, if early critical raves had not set such high expectations. So much had been made of the film's accessibility to people outside the Star Trek fan-cult -- and its creators' disdain for the techno-babble tropes of the original -- that I was expecting the sort of character-driven science fiction I had come to love in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica series. And for the first third of the movie, that promise was fulfilled. The scenes of Kirk and Spock's (revised) childhood and entry into Starfleet were flashy, dramatic, and fun, and defined the men they would become for this new generation of audiences. Longtime fans even got to see how Kirk beat the unbeatable "Kobayashi Maru" training simulation, and the resulting debate hinted at how a cowboy like Kirk could last in Starfleet, depicted as a by-the-book military operation. The scenes built up the characters with solid storytelling while simultaneously giving old fans some moments of glee -- a difficult and rewarding balance to strike.

Unfortunately, as the conflict with the movie's one-note villain took focus, and more classic characters made their debuts, the special effects and winking references to Old Trek catch-phrases began to dominate. As a Trek fan, I got several chuckles, but I could see my wife (a Trek newcomer) losing interest. I stifled a few yawns myself. The numerous space battles were boilerplate, and one plot-unrelated scene involving an alien monster chase seemed lifted out of Star Wars: Episode I. As the conflict progression increasingly relied on time-travel, "red matter" technology, trans-warp beaming, and a ridiculously long drill bit, the characterization began competing with techno-babble and special effects. For all that Abrams denied courting fans of the original Star Trek, much of the film's second half seemed exclusively directed at us. As much as I love Leonard Nimoy and seeing him as "Old Spock," the emotional resonance of his scenes was probably lost on Trek neophytes, and may have even seemed a cheap device to fiat the depth of the Kirk/Spock friendship.

There was a lot to like about the cast of this movie. Chris Pine as Kirk had exactly the necessary swaggar, moxie, and grace-under-fire, and Zachary Quinto was Spock, for all I feared I would see only Sylar. The elegantly pretty Zoe Saldana as Uhura was nice surprise, creating a strong, passionate, willful foil for Kirk -- and love interest and emotional anchor for Spock. Karl Urban had Dr. "Bones" McCoy's diction and curmudgeonly manner down perfectly, and Simon Pegg's comic take on Scotty was a joy. Personally, I had a hard time not seeing "Harold" in John Cho's Sulu, and Anton Yelchin's Chekov seemed only to be played for in-joke laughs ("nuclear wessels," anybody?) Eric Bana played disgruntled Romulan miner Nero with appropriate menace, but he wasn't given much of a role with which to work. The crew of this Enterprise has some good chemistry, and if this movie is seen as the foundation for a renewed franchise, that was the most important thing to get right.

Time travel is a well-worn device in both the Star Trek mythos and in Abrams' other property, Lost. And it turned out to be a servicable way to reboot Star Trek, simultaneously honoring the original stories while clearing a path to venture into new territory. The time-traveling Romulan enemy changes history in the very first scene, and unlike most "alternate timeline" stories, this one doesn't get erased by the end of the movie. This new Star Trek reality, one in which Kirk has never known his father other than by reputation, Spock is romantically involved with Uhura, the Vulcans are an endangered species, and the Spock from the original timeline is still hanging around -- this is the new Trek history and canon.

Will future installments take the Enterprise in new directions? (It appears that a plot concerning the Vulcans' search for a new homeland after their planet's destruction is in the works.) Or will it fall back on the old stand-bys? I was mostly entertained by the new Star Trek. But I didn't see much evidence of it going where no one has gone before.

Battlestar Galactica: Someone To Watch Over Me

2009-04-04T17:07:00.002-05:00

I’ve become fascinated with chords and melody after watching Battlestar Galactica, “Someone To Watch Over Me.” In the episode, two story lines braided together: a flashy one involving Boomer, with heartbreaking betrayal, violence, sex, and a kidnapping; and a quieter one, introspective and surreal, about Starbuck working through her daddy issues at a piano. The mood of the entire series is in all minor keys, but Boomer’s rampage through the emotional lives of Tyrol, Athena and Helo are a counterpoint to Starbuck’s melancholy reminiscence. Scenes cut between dramatic action and single-key fumbling towards a half-remembered melody. Then the left handed chords become urgent, the right-handed notes gain confidence, and the song becomes recognizable. By the time the music coalesces into “All Along the Watchtower” and Saul Tigh growls “what the frak?” we realize what we’ve seen. After four seasons of prophecy and mysticism, in the movements of the quieter story thread, we’ve gotten our most direct glimpse of the hand of God.

About the episode: http://www.scifi.com/battlestar/episodes/episodes.php?seas=4&ep=419&act=1