Sherlock
Sherlock, for those of you haven’t been paying attention, is the BBC’s latest take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Set in the modern day, it re-casts the iconic British crime-fighting duo, with Holmes as a high-functioning-sociopath and Watson as a war-veteran turned blogger (Rather than the classic Gentleman Detective and bumbling doctor friend that has become the cliché.)
Each episode is a 90-minute mini movie and is at its best when it reworks classic Sherlock Holmes stories with a modern twist. Every show is laced with references to original works1, and all are clearly labours of love. Though the individual cases are intricate as well as interesting, and even though the weakest episodes have a strong detective story at their core, the show is actually about the relationship between a genius and the rest of the world.
There is a certain amount of cross-over appeal between Doctor Who and Sherlock. Though this is, in part, because Steven Moffat is involved in both, I’d like to think that it’s more to do with it being character-centred adventure drama. Both shows centre on a brilliant person who can perform miraculous feats of mental agility and yet has difficulty relating to other people, and though they are set in entirely different worlds with utterly different legacies and goals2 it is the lure of the brilliant maniac that compels us to keep watching.
Smaug and Bilbo Baggins, together at last
The true genius of Sherlock is the way it draws on the wealth of history surrounding the stories to create a unique tale every time. Though the show misses the mark on occasion3 , it avoids formula. Sherlock will never be a genius centred procedural drama such as House (which is also a re-imagining of Conan Doyles famous creation).
My only criticism is the fact that we only have a limited number of Sherlock stories left. The two main actors are now both much sought after by Hollywood and the shows producers are also involved with big budget projects. This is actually a good thing; like Fawlty Towers and The Prisoner it will stay on our screens long enough to enter the hall of fame. And quite right too.
1: So many references and nods, in fact, that you could probably write many scholarly papers on it. The love and care devoted to show is right there on the screen. The producers love the fans, and the fans love them right back. There’s even a shout-out to the fanfic community, if you know where to look.
2: For example, Sherlock’s cynicism has no place in Doctor Who . The Timelord’s adventures are romantic and impossible, whereas Sherlock goes out of its way to place us slap bang in reality. We can almost taste the smog and sweat that is unique to modern London.
3: The episode The Blind Banker is noted by many of the fans as the weakest episode. It isn’t weak, it just draws upon source material that is not as interesting as it once was.
The adventure-game magazines of the Eighties
Back in the mid-eighties, Fighting Fantasy1 books where everywhere; young geeks devoured them, and the bookshops where filled with a myriad of titles and their imitators. For the dedicated fan though, this wasn’t enough. The books painted a fantasy world, but the fans wanted more.
Cue Warlock, the short-lived Fighting Fantasy Magazine. For a fraction of the cost of one of the books, you could get a brief fix of your growing gaming habit. Better yet, you got to glimpse the development of these worlds. Warlock, featured maps, articles and monster profiles, and was pretty much a basic primer on how to build worlds. Many of these features would later be further developed into source books for Fighting Fantasy’s main setting. What made it stand out from the other fantasy gaming magazines of the era was the sense that things where being created before your eyes.
Smell the nostalgia. (Though it could just be the smell of old magazines.)
That and the mini-adventure stories. If you can have adventure books, then surely you can have adventure short-stories, and the idea that one can delve into a spot of gaming on a short bus trip has always appealed to me. I find that adventure books tend to be single sitting affairs, I open the book and try and finish it in one gulp. I may come back to it later to play other options, but if it’s any good then it should feel more like a thrilling fairground ride than watching a TV series.
The cool thing about short-form adventure games is that you can indulge and then leave them alone. They’re quick, fun and pretty much ideal for wasting time in those short moments. Even though the old Fighting Fantasy novels are now available as apps,2, I‘ve not seen short-story format adventures in the modern formats. Which is sad, as the appeal of the e-books is their portability. This is why I tend to read short stories on the train, after all. I’d much rather delve into a sword and sorcery game than play Angry Birds, especially when I’m in the mood for something a bit more interactive than a regular book, but I also want it to last the length of my journey and no longer.
Warlock, by the way, only lasted for 12 13 issues, but in that time developed two imitators. Proteus was filled with the contributions from fans, and some of these were very good. It was all about the adventure-game aspect, and lasted a little bit longer than Warlock. Also of note is the sadly very short-lived Dice Man. Edited by 2000AD legend Pat Mills, Dice Man was an adventure game anthology that let you play the characters form the 2000AD comic. The stories where told through comic panels, and this quirky little bit of comic book history was recently paid homage to in 2000AD’s Prog 2012 with a fun little Judge Dredd story.
I do wonder if this sort of thing will make a come-back. We have the technology, after all, and I recently discovered they’re as fun to write as they are to read. It would be nice, and I do get the feeling that they are due a glorious come-back. Time will tell.
1: Adventure Game books require the reader to make choices, rather than passively reading the story. All books draw you into a different world, but only Adventure Game books let you hit things once you’re in that world.
2: There is also a new generation of these games such as Jonathan Green’s Temple of The Spider God, exclusive to iPhone. Hopefully you’ll be able to read them on other things soon enough.
Empire State
Super hero stories tend to shine when they’re dipped in noir-style nostalgia; both genres lend themselves to tales of two-fisted fisted, and the grime and dirt of the post-war era balances nicely with heroism and rocket powered justice. So it should come as no surprise that Adam Christopher’s debut novel Empire State, a tale of rocket powered heroes and private detectives during the American prohibition, is pretty good stuff.
Empire State is the tale of two cities; one is New York in the 1950’s, the other is a mirror-universe version of the Big Apple, called The Empire State. Whereas New York is a big place, filled with possibilities, The Empire State is a claustrophobic, insular city at war with a shadowy foe. The story follows the life of Private Detective Rad Bradbury1, a good man in a rotten city.
Gas Masks, Rocket Packs and Zepplins. What's not to love?
As you’d expect, there’s a woman with a secret and a missing person to find. There’s also rocket powered heroes, super villains, robots, airships and dashing captains. It’s a skilful blend of two well-loved genres, and it’s a fun, pulpy, tightly written book.
The setting is not just an interesting backdrop; the author takes full advantage of the premise and fills in a lot of the details in way that keeps luring you. This makes for a dense story with a well realised world behind it. Like you’d expect in any good mystery story, every character has a past and a strange secret. These elements slowly fit together to create a world greater than the sum of its parts.
Empire State is a master class in world building, whilst still retaining a coherent and engaging story. It manages to keep the reader guessing all the way through, without losing itself in its own mythology.
Fans of Kurt Busiek’s Astro City , movies such a Sky Captain and the World of Tommorow and the The Rocketeer or any ‘Dark Mirror’ episode of Star Trek, this one is for you. Fan of pulp adventures and twisty, noir-style plots will find a lot to love here.
1: Oh yeah, and it’s full of lovely little references like that as well.
Verity Fair – Terry Wiley’s latest book
Way back in the early 90’s, UK independent comics seemed to be the next big thing, and there was a seemingly endless supply of new and trendy graphic novels. Most were very different from the mainstream, telling odd little stories about real things in unreal places, rather than the usual action-adventure hero fair. Sadly, the big British indie comic rush never really happened, and though a few creators moved onto bigger things, many more simply vanished, and many great stories just petered out, never to be finished.
So I was recently delighted to discover that comic book creator Terry Wiley is back. Wiley is perhaps best known “More Tales from Sleaze Castle”, a strange tale that puts an ordinary person in a surreal and extraordinary world (imagine Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy with a more surreal bent, and add an aardvark.) 1. Wiley’s latest work is called Verity Fair, and focuses on the everyday adventures of Verity Bourneville, a 40-something jobbing actress.
Great art mixed in with photo backgrounds lends a strong real world feel to the work
She’s had a good life, but one that has had more than its fair share of strange moments and quiet horror. Verity Fair, is an everyday tale, filled with humour, tragedy and well realised art. Though they are plenty of shout-outs to Wiley’s previous work, knowledge of obscure 90’s indie comics is not required.
I can firmly say that this is Terry’s best work so far; the art is strong, the characters are interesting and the plot, though slow, is fun and clever. The tale of one women’s journey through a tough world is never going to fly off the shelves; comic book fans aren’t famed for their love of domestic drama, which is a real shame as it means they’ll miss out on a great read.
Fans of the TV series Coupling , or those who just appreciate good pub inspired banter will probably get a kick of Verity Fair. Further samples of Wiley’s work can be found here and Verity Fair is currently available by bothering your local comic book dealer and getting him to stock it for you2.
1: The book generated a series of spin-offs: the everyday mystery story (and prequel) “Tales from Sleaze Castle” and the conspiracy theory parody “Surreal School Stories”. The latter was presented in a penny dreadful format, mostly text with key illustrations, with the occasional full length comic-strips appearing elsewhere. (For a good example, take a look here.) You may also want to check out Petra etc.
2: Travelling Man UK would probably be your best bet; the Newcastle store certainly has copies.
The Ballad of Halo Jones, The Stage Play
Manchester based pub and venue The Lass O’Gowrie is often on the cutting edge of nerd-cool, and plays host to a wide variety of geek friendly events1, so it was the natural venue of choice for the debut stage production of The Ballad of Halo Jones.
Halo Jones is a much-loved science fiction comic strip by notorious Northampton genius Alan Moore, and is famous for its epic, inter-galactic feel, domestic storyline, and social commentary. So adapting it into a stage-play was always going to be a feat, especially one designed for a small, intimate venue.
The limited space and obvious shoe-string budget have been skilfully turned into an advantage by the production company Scytheplays. A tale that takes us from the depths of a futuristic slum to the heights of space could easily have been achieved given a lavish budget, but is instead portrayed far more effectively through inspired acting and clever verbal cues in the script.
"Where did she go? Out. What did she do? Everything."
The actors are brilliantly cast. Those of you who fell in love with Halo in the pages of 2000AD should be prepared to be equally enchanted by Louise Hamer’s performance. Benjamin Patterson tackles the difficult task of playing the menacing robot dog2 Toby with great skill and care and clearly is having a ball doing so. For me, the most stand-out performance is by Danny Wallace, who plays the doomed, hopeless and sexless creature, The Glyph. It’s a role that requires comic timing, empathy and a gentle touch, and Wallace is perfect throughout.
The script strips the story down into two acts, each about an hour long and covers the first two books3. Fans of the original will be pleased to learn that no major changes to the storyline have been made, and the odder characters (Rats, Dolphins and TV newscasters) are handled in a believable sort of way. Those who’ve never read the book should brace themselves for strange future-speak and a bizarre, yet socially relevant story. The future-shock will pass as the play goes on, but I suspect the social commentary will stay with you.
The Ballad of Halo Jones is as important now as it was when it was first written in 1984, and is a tale that deserves to be heard by a wider audience. If you’re lucky enough to live in Manchester, and have a spare evening, do go and see the show.
1: “The Lass” has vintage video game nights, Doctor Who themed evenings and has played host to the likes of Professor Elemental and Mr B, The Gentleman Rhymer. If you’re lucky enough to live in Manchester, you should take advantage of The Lass.
2: In the graphic novel, Toby is a beautifully drawn robot dog. In the stage-play, they have more obvious limitations, and handle it through a carefully thought out interpretation of the source material. It also helps for Patterson’s performance is spot on.
3: The original work is in three books, the third being a strange, starship troopers style space war. It’d be hard to do well on the stage, and they wisely avoid it. This doesn’t detract from the production at all, especially when you consider that the original book was never properly finished.
Webcomic Roundup 2011
The internet is a fantastic tool for procrastination, and my preferred way to waste time is to browse the seemingly unlimited number of webcomics. Here’s a quick look at some (but not all) of the sites that have distracted me the most over 2011.
Dresden Codak is stunningly drawn with a seemingly vast and intelligent story at its heart. They aren’t many tales about a world overtaken by scientific dogma and the consequences of the singularity. It suffers slightly from the lead character being more interesting than the story. Needs to update more often, however.
Girl Genius on the other hand, also looks lovely and is updated three times a week. The ongoing story continues to twist and turn, and is epic in scale. The world, one of steampunk, mystery and monsters, and is lovingly described throughout the comic. It often suffers from being a graphic novel in serial format, and actually works better in paper format than on the screen. (I’ve got some of the paper and ink versions, they’re very nice.)
Gutters, Least I Could Do and Looking For Group are all ongoing projects by one Mr Ryan Somer. Least I Could Do is essentially a raunchy sit-com, and despite being one very
long cock joke, is never the less quite entertaining, though I do wonder about it’s long-term stamina. Looking For Group is an ongoing fantasy story (like Girl Genius or Goblins), with a stronger focus on humour rather than adventure. Gutters is the more interesting of
the three; it’s a series of one-shot gags about the comic industry, and is hilarious to the right sort of nerd. Somer has apparently received a few cease and desist letters about it, so he’s clearly annoying the sort of people he’s set out to annoy, whilst delivering the funny.
Myth versus Superscience tale Gunnerkrigg Court continues to ramble along at its usual pace, and this is its biggest problem. I’m not sure where it’s going, and I’m not entirely sure I care anymore.
Luke SURL is a regular gag comic which never fails to make me laugh or groan. I’m a sucker for puns, and for silly little flaws in narrative logic. Addictive, though something to binge on rather than read regularly.
Scenes from A Multiverse does what it says on the tin. It’s a surreal series of flights of fancy that never fails to entertain, and is far superior to the artist’s previous project, Goats. In many ways, it’s Goats without poorly thought out plot-arcs, and that suits me just fine.
Questionable Content continues to be a long, tedious sit-com with talking robots in it. It’s never been as funny as Diesel Sweeties, and yet I’m more likely to come
back to come back to QC time and again, because it’s so easy to pick up and get into.
XKCD continues to be fairly hit and miss. Randy’s best gags are those based on his personal experiences; heartwarming gags, often bitter-sweet. The strip is at its worst when it’s being clever for the sake of being clever, rather than yelling “Isn’t science awesome”. I can’t shake the feeling that XKCD is in slow decline, which is a pity, because when the author is celebrating romance, mathematics and language, it’s rather wonderful.
Finally, Zebra Girl has finally found it’s groove by dipping into the surreal and dreamlike. Which is good, because it never fails to be interesting, even at its most self-indulgent.
Dead Harvest
Dead Harvest is a detective horror story with a neat little twist; the lead character, Sam Thornton, is dead and damned, doomed to roam the earth as a ghost. His soul belongs to the powers of hell and he has been cursed to collect the souls of sinners and send them to the demons. Urban fantasy1 is tricky genre to get right; mix in too much of the supernatural and the tale becomes a clichéd creature feature, mix in too many mundane elements and the spooky parts seem gimmicky and false. Dead Harvest pulls of the rare feat of getting it exactly right; Sam’s power to possess the bodies of the dead (and the living) makes consistent sense, as does his doomed (and tear-jerking) backstory.
Like any good detective story, a young lady turns Sam’s world upside down, and the tale quickly becomes an action-movie inspired romp. As the main characters run from one dangerous situation to another, we grow to care about the supporting cast and learn more about this world where heaven and hell are so very close to an unknowing (and often uncaring) human race.
The retro styled cover tells us that the tale is hardboiled
It’s pretty rapidly paced; the peril is layered on pretty thick and it’s this sense of urgency that really draws the reader in. The story takes place over a few short days, lending a leanness and speed to the whole thing. A good mystery story keeps the reader guessing, and though some of the twists seem obvious, the devil is the details. (I’m not going to tell you if I mean that literally. Read it for yourself and see.)
Fans of the Harry Dresden series and those who like their modern-day fantasy with a twist of hardboiled detective story will love this (as will fans of Good Omens and In Nomine). I firmly expect this page-turner to do well, and am pleased to hear that a sequel is already in the works.
1: A clunky term that usually means ‘set in the real world, with supernatural elements’. Typically with a healthy dose of horror story staples like ghosts and werewolves thrown in for good measure.
Rare Exports
It is the season for Christmas related things, so let’s talk about Rare Exports, a rather charming action/adventure movie dealing with the true origins of Santa Claus. Unlike the usual Hollywood schmaltz starring some TV comedian, Rare Exports takes the clichéd ‘Santa Movie’ idea and puts a distinctly Finnish spin on the whole affair.
All the elements of the traditional Santa Movie are here; a little boy believes in Santa (despite no one else doing so), there’s a local bully causing said little boy a load of trouble and the whole thing is set in a bleak social setting, where only the true meaning of Christmas can save the day.
Sounds hum-drum so far, but Rare Exports is nothing of the sort; the little boy who believes in Santa does so because he realises the terrible truth about Father Christmas, and the dark and deadly secret that lurks in the nearby mountain. The bully is just another boy, looking out for his father, and the bleak setting is the border between Finland and Russia.
Jorma Tommila plays the ‘grown-up’ and does so very well. He also happens to look like several people I know.
In short, this is a mix of ‘secrets man should not know’ horror and ‘Christmas time fare’, and the blend works fantastically well. Imagine, if you will, what you would get if The Thing and The Santa Clause had a baby. Now imagine it with more white bearded, naked old men and you’ve got a good idea what this is like.
The father and son pairing that the movie hangs on works so well because the actors actually are father and son. The characters are believable and react to insane circumstances in believable ways, and though the bulk of the movie is in Finnish, the subtitles don’t get in the way of the action at all. In addition, the movie is filled with little gags and references that make it a joy to re-watch. The “Safety Instructions” are especially fun.
This little Finnish film has been around for a while; it started life as a series of internet shorts and has been doing the rounds in foreign language cinemas for some time now. With any luck, the recent DVD release will give this cracking little movie a much deserved following. I heartily recommend this to anyone looking for an antidote to overly sentimental seasonal entertainment.
Comic Conventions, 2011
This year I did something I never did before, not once, but twice. I went to a comic convention. This may come as a surprise to some of you, as you know I happen to be a massive nerd. But it’s something that had never really appealed, I like comics but waving my comic-fan-boy flag around seemed a little redundant.
That was until I found out about Thought Bubble and Canny Comic Con.
Thought Bubble has a steadily growing reputation of being the number one indie comics festival1, and I can see why. The sheer amount of creative talent, split across two halls, is incredible. In addition to the not terribly long queues of people waiting to get things signed by comic-book super stars the place was jam-packed with talented people from every level of the industry. I spent a chunk of time chatting away with indie creators such as Jess Bradley, Chris Webb and Huw Davies , and got a chance to grill more established types such as Graham McNeil1 and Andy Diggle.
Darth Vader, a Stormtrooper and the littlest bounty hunter at ThoughtBubble 2011
In addition to wandering the stalls, talking to cool people and spending my entire income on very pretty pictures, there were panels and cosplayers. The panels I found fascinating, and wished I had time to take in more. The cosplayers? Not as much of a distraction as I thought they might be, and I was incredibly impressed by the sheer level of detail involved in some of the costumes.
All in all a warm, friendly experience, dripping with talent and cool things. I’m definitely doing ThoughtBubble in 2012, hopefully for both days, though my bank account may not thank me for it.
My other convention was Canny Comic Con , a small, but perfectly formed event. In contrast to the festival at Leeds, this small, North East England based convention was all about encouraging the local talent, something that the region has by the truck-load. There was a strong focus of getting people into comics here; though it was aimed at the comics nerds, there was plenty to do for all the family and there was even a chap dressed as a Mega City Judge handing out old copies of 2000AD.
The focus seemed very much about raising awareness and encouraging local talent, and this is a good thing, there’s much more to Geordie comic-book creators than Viz and Bryan Talbot, though it was lovely to see both of those there. I really do hope to see it grow in size and popularity next year.
1: If San Diego Comic Con is the Cannes of Comic Books, Thought Bubble is steadily becoming the SunDance Festival, apparently.
2: Who’s a very nice chap, and was very tolerant of me being a raving fanboy.
The further adventures of Torchwood
Earlier this year, Torchwood: Miracle Day‘s launch was accompanied by a trio of tie-in novels1. Previous releases have included books written by the likes of genre favourites such as Dan Abnett and James Moran, so it came as no surprise that this batch featured work by some of the more notable and ‘upcoming’ authors.
Long Time Dead by Sarah Pinborough is the most intriguing of three, as it stars recurring villain Suzy Costello. Fans of the show will recall that Suzy is a girl who just won’t stay dead, and in this, she’s back again, raising hell. Pinborough delivers a nicely chilling story of murder, other-worldly horror and science-gone-wrong with some lovingly delivered moments of utter creepiness. Just enough is left to the imagination to be nicely chilling, and though the tale runs across fairly predictable lines, the characterisation of the confused yet completely crazy Costello is superb. One to pick up by an author who’s worth checking out.
First Born features the return of well known characters from the series
James Goss’s addition to the series, First Born is the best of the bunch. It features former Torchwood agent Gwenn, her husband Rhys and their new-born baby girl on the run. The small family swiftly finds itself in a remote welsh village with a sinister secret and twisted problems. The tale is told from multiple perspectives, and Goss makes the characters compelling and endearing. Fans of the show will find a lot to love here and it’s the sort of science-fiction horror that Torchwood does well.
Man who sold the World is the weakest of the three, and suffers from the fact that the main character, Rex, is the least established Torchwood hero. (He’s only been in the recent series.) It’s a neat little sci-fi thriller, but Rex comes across as unlikeable (rather than headstrong). Author Guy Adams is a very strong writer who seems to have had the toughest deal here, and though it’s a reasonable adventure, the main characters simply don’t carry the story far enough. I was quite disappointed by this, but I do hope we see Rex again, should they do another set of spin-off novels.
1: You may have noticed I like tie-in novels. This is because I’m a big fan of shared creative works, and I find the idea of being invited to play in someone else’s creative sandpit to be highly appealing. Creating a world from whole cloth is one thing, but telling original tales in a more established setting is something else entirely, and allows for a depth often missing from single-creator works. I do wonder if some people are snooty about tie-in fiction because they feel foreknowledge is required to enjoy them. This is rarely the case, as a good tie-in writer can cater to both new and experienced readers at the same time.
Ed Fortune 