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I just found out over the weekend that Brooks has started writing more Landover books. I was so put out when he stopped writing those because there were so many unresolved issues. I just bought the next one from where the last once--way back when--left off. It's called "Princess of Landover". It'll be awhile before I get to read it. So, please, no spoilers... or at least warn me, okay?
Posts: 1320 | Registered: May 2008
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I don't think I have read Princess but I saw it listed on his web site.
Is it new?
I think I didn't read "Witch's Brew", I wasn't sure if I liked the plot as I recall.
But have you read his Word and Void books? As I recall they seem to be published mainstream. I've seen them but read any.
Posts: 5289 | Registered: Jun 2010
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quote:Originally posted by LDWriter2: I don't think I have read Princess but I saw it listed on his web site.
Is it new?
I think I didn't read "Witch's Brew", I wasn't sure if I liked the plot as I recall.
But have you read his Word and Void books? As I recall they seem to be published mainstream. I've seen them but read any.
The copywrite for "Princess" is 2008 or 2009. So it must be fairly new from what I can see. I bought it at Half Price Books used.
Posts: 1320 | Registered: May 2008
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I saw "The Avengers" last week, and it reminded me of the 1963 film "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World"; there's so many stars who have to be showcased there isn't much room for storytelling.
This is a character-driven story. Most of the movie is taken up with conflict between the heroic characters, and indeed these are the most compelling scenes. My 13 year-old son commented that this was the first movie he'd ever seen where the dialog was more interesting than the action.
Even so, there's not much room to explore characters and their interactions so this pretty much is a matter of lost opportunities. Take the antagonism between Tony Stark and Captain America. This is potentially interesting because Stark is an instinctively self-centered man and Captain America is by nature selfless. But there's not really any room to develop this.
Much more interesting is the comic conflict between Stark and Dr. Banner (The Hulk's alter-ego). They are intellectual peers, but the impulsive Stark is so fascinated with power that he can't help but goad the more mature Banner into losing his temper. This provides both comic relief and real suspense, something that's lacking in this story.
When the inevitable battle that forces the heroes to work together (I hope nobody here is so unsophisticated that this is a spoiler), it's kind of a let-down, despite being beautifully designed. When the heroes are on screen they are reduced to animated dolls that feel fake in a digital way. I think in part this is because the story is too cluttered for us to feel invested in any individual character's story. Even if we were invested in one, he'd only be one of six sharing the action finale, and there isn't enough time in a finale to showcase every hero.
Which is not to say the script is stupid. It's very intelligent and in places witty. I'd single out Tony Stark's brief moment of self-awareness as he analyzes Loki's narcissistic motives as a deft and subtle comic touch. Much less subtle but nonetheless satisfying is the crowd-pleasing moment later in the movie when Loki pays the price of making hubris-filled speeches.
The problem with this movie is that its very *concept* is broken from a storytelling perspective. It's as much a pageant as it is a dramatic story.
Posts: 1459 | Registered: Dec 2010
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Green Arrow isn't an Avenger, that's Hawkeye. Green Arrow is a DC character and is Hawkeye if he were Batman. (Ridiculously rich, dead parents, good with gadgets.) Really the only similarity between the two is they are both superhero class archers.
The show looks like they are trying for the Smallville crowd without actually building on the Green Arrow mythos from Smallville. (Not that I'm saying that's a bad thing.)
Posts: 1895 | Registered: Mar 2004
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I saw "Moonrise Kingdom" and thoroughly enjoyed it. It was totally artificial (on purpose), but was so engaging and charming that it had me at the first frame. Clever writing, purposeful camera work, stunning set design and costumes. And how could it go wrong with that cast? It is inspiring to see such quality filmwork. I love action films, but am getting tired of comic book after comic book brought to the big screen. (Don't get me wrong, if I got a ticket to Comic Con I'd be there with bells on!) This film was well worth seeing, so I highly recommend it.
Posts: 95 | Registered: Mar 2012
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I actually saw a couple of good ones over the week or so I was out. One was "The Descendants" the second, "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel". Both were well written and engaging.
Posts: 459 | Registered: Mar 2010
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