OT: Sci-Fi and Fantasy Thread - SPOILERS Part Three

[trostol]

It's like Deadpool in space

Space Team: A Funny Sci-fi Space Adventure https://a.co/d/dzoO0qD

 

[Surrounded By Ahos]

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter was a lot of fun. I loved the cyberpunk-ish setting of Painter's world.


I also read Consider Phlebas, which is the first book in The Culture series. It's like an inverse space opera. The protagonist is a shape-shifter who is perfectly willing to murder someone in cold blood and assume their identity and is fighting for the actual bad guys (religious zealots who have no problem genociding the lesser species). Pretty much none of what happens in the book actually has an effect on the wider setting (a decades long war where hundreds of billions die and dozens of planets are destroyed; and that is regarded as a short, small war). Even the main antagonist who is on the side of the explicit good guys is disillusioned with her cause to an extent.

For the first two thirds I was waiting for the plot to really get going, then the final third is just one gut punch after another. I highly recommend it for anybody who wants to feel totally empty inside.



Now I'm reading The Sunlit Man, the last of the Sanderson secret projects, and it also seems like it's going to be pretty grim. I'm only about a quarter of the way in, but this already feels like things are going to go sideways, extremely fast. I figured out the protagonist pretty quickly, and I'm dying to know what happened to Roshar in his (now) extremely distant past. Hopefully Sanderson drops a few more hints throughout the book. I'm also considering having myself cryogenically frozen until December so I don't have to wait too long for Stormlight 5.

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

Yumi and the Nightmare Painter was a lot of fun. I loved the cyberpunk-ish setting of Painter's world.


I also read Consider Phlebas, which is the first book in The Culture series. It's like an inverse space opera. The protagonist is a shape-shifter who is perfectly willing to murder someone in cold blood and assume their identity and is fighting for the actual bad guys (religious zealots who have no problem genociding the lesser species). Pretty much none of what happens in the book actually has an effect on the wider setting (a decades long war where hundreds of billions die and dozens of planets are destroyed; and that is regarded as a short, small war). Even the main antagonist who is on the side of the explicit good guys is disillusioned with her cause to an extent.

For the first two thirds I was waiting for the plot to really get going, then the final third is just one gut punch after another. I highly recommend it for anybody who wants to feel totally empty inside.



Now I'm reading The Sunlit Man, the last of the Sanderson secret projects, and it also seems like it's going to be pretty grim. I'm only about a quarter of the way in, but this already feels like things are going to go sideways, extremely fast. I figured out the protagonist pretty quickly, and I'm dying to know what happened to Roshar in his (now) extremely distant past. Hopefully Sanderson drops a few more hints throughout the book. I'm also considering having myself cryogenically frozen until December so I don't have to wait too long for Stormlight 5.

Yumi was the best of the four... Tress was the most fun.

Sunlit Man has the closest direct connection to characters in the Cosmere outside of Wit, but it might have been my least favourite of the four... even though the concept was intriguing.

 

[Surrounded By Ahos]

I finished The Sunlit Man this afternoon. I definitely enjoyed it, but it's probably my least favorite of the Secret Projects (I still need to read the non-Cosmere one, though). I was hoping to get a bit more info on what happened to Nomad between Stormlight Archive and The Sunlit Man, but I do get the need to keep things vague as to not spoil major parts of the last six books.


The setting is so cool though. Flying cities that have to outrace the sun? A villain who sacrifices his enemies to turn them into batteries? Sign me right the f*** up. I hope we get to visit the planet again in future books.

 

[Surrounded By Ahos]

I wanted to try something a bit different from my usual, so I picked up This Is How You Lose The Time War. It mostly consists of letters written between two agents on opposite sides of a conflict spanning all of time and space. It was okay. The prose was absolutely gorgeous, but I didn't really get too invested in the relationship between the characters.

I'm glad I read it though, it was a nice change of pace from the huge books I've read recently (Sanderson secret projects, First Law, Traitor Baru Cormorant).


Naturally, I decided to dive into another door stopper in Perdido Street Station. I don't really know too much about it, other than it's weird. I've only read the first chapter so far, but the main character is shacking up with a lady who has a bug for a head, so it's definitely living up to it's reputation on that front lol. I've got tomorrow off of work so I'm hoping to dive into it a bit more.

 

[trostol]

on book 2 of Space Team...love it

 

[Surrounded By Ahos]

I knocked out a decent chunk of Perdido Street Station this afternoon. I am loving the weird. It's got bird people, bug people, flying semi-intelligent dog things, and blob dudes who roll around in troughs of water. It's so nice to see more fantasy races than your standard Elves/Dwarves/Trolls stereotypes.

 

[JojoTheWhale]

@Chinatown88 I got algorithmed so hard. This guy rules. I thought I was going to bed last night and accidentally watched 2 hours of Dune rebinding.

Four Keys Book Arts

Hi everyone! My name is Dennis and I'm the owner of those unmanicured hands that keep getting in the way of the action in my videos. I'm a self-taught bookbinder and in May 2019 I filmed myself making a book and uploaded it to YouTube. I actually left the book unfinished for many months, until I...

www.youtube.com

 

[Chinatown88]

@Chinatown88 I got algorithmed so hard. This guy rules. I thought I was going to bed last night and accidentally watched 2 hours of Dune rebinding.

Four Keys Book Arts

Hi everyone! My name is Dennis and I'm the owner of those unmanicured hands that keep getting in the way of the action in my videos. I'm a self-taught bookbinder and in May 2019 I filmed myself making a book and uploaded it to YouTube. I actually left the book unfinished for many months, until I...

www.youtube.com

The algorithm comes for us all. Was gonna say it suggested the OG Iron Chef for me after I watched some Babish.

 

[Surrounded By Ahos]

I just finished the last 30% or so of Perdido Street Station in one sitting.


That was weird, horrifying gut-punch of a book. I don't even want to say more so I don't spoil anything, but if you've read it, you know what I mean. I've got a pit in my stomach right now. I think the only other that's caused this kind of visceral reaction in me was House of Leaves. I absolutely loved it, and I don't think I'd ever recommend it to anybody. China Miéville is a twisted, brilliant man.

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

First two Acolyte episodes were pretty meh. It also seems like my theory about Mae's master is a pretty common one online... which now makes me suspect it's incorrect.

Spoiler

I think it's her bumbling sidekick.

 

[PALE PWNR]

First two Acolyte episodes were pretty meh. It also seems like my theory about Mae's master is a pretty common one online... which now makes me suspect it's incorrect.

Spoiler

I think it's her bumbling sidekick.

Spoiler

I'm so pissed off that Carrie Anne Moss was used for like 45 seconds and ALL the advertisement. Also how does a Jedi Master get distracted enough to not be able to block or stop that knife? They literally FEEL deceit. Luke was barely a padawan and was reflecting lasers back at opponents while not even looking at them ever...

 

[Rebels57]

First two Acolyte episodes were pretty meh. It also seems like my theory about Mae's master is a pretty common one online... which now makes me suspect it's incorrect.

Spoiler

I think it's her bumbling sidekick.

Also...ridiculous

Spoiler

bait & switch by using Carrie-Anne Moss in marketing and then having her die 5 minutes into Episode

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

The mistake you guys made was paying attention to the marketing in the first place.

 

[eramosat]

The algorithm comes for us all. Was gonna say it suggested the OG Iron Chef for me after I watched some Babish.

OG Iron Chef is a pretty good rec for anyone at all interested in cooking for themselves. An original over-the-top cooking show, with no drama except the ingredient.

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

First two Acolyte episodes were pretty meh. It also seems like my theory about Mae's master is a pretty common one online... which now makes me suspect it's incorrect.

Spoiler

I think it's her bumbling sidekick.

This show is awful, but I'll watch until the end.

Spoiler

While I do think the bumbling sidekick is still a plausible theory, it now also seems plausible that her birth mother could be her master. This is the only thing keeping me interested in an otherwise borefest of a series.

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

Spoiler

Was the sidekick, after all. Lame.

 

[Flybynite]

This could either be really good or really odd. You take GREEN LANTERN characters who are probably in the top echelon of genre/fantasy/non-realistic in the DC universe and plop them onto Earth to investigate a murder?

From a producer of True Detective (and showrunner of Ozark)?

 

[CanadianFlyer88]

The Acolyte might not only be the dumbest Star Wars show ever created, it might the dumbest tv show ever created.

I have no idea what the point of this show was.

 

[Chicken N Raffls]

The Acolyte might not only be the dumbest Star Wars show ever created, it might the dumbest tv show ever created.

I have no idea what the point of this show was.

You tuning in was the point. Sorry dudebrah.

 

[Flybynite]

I watched the 2 episode or was it 3 episode? Whatever premiere of the Acolyte. Is it worth finishing it?

 

[trostol]

I watched the 2 episode or was it 3 episode? Whatever premiere of the Acolyte. Is it worth finishing it?

i have a friend who our group calls 90/10...because he generally likes everything...EVERYTHING...even he said it's awful lol

 

[BrindamoursNose]

I watched the 2 episode or was it 3 episode? Whatever premiere of the Acolyte. Is it worth finishing it?

I'm in a weird spot with Acolyte.

I think it's a terrible show with 2 pretty cool characters, pretty awesome lightsaber fighting (honestly), and it expanded some lore.

However, I can't reiterate enough: IT'S SO BAD. I roll my eyes constantly. I don't care *at all* about the 2 main characters of the show.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

I completely forgot the f***ing thing was on for a month - that's how awful the first two episodes are.

 

[Rebels57]

I'm in a weird spot with Acolyte.

I think it's a terrible show with 2 pretty cool characters, pretty awesome lightsaber fighting (honestly), and it expanded some lore.

However, I can't reiterate enough: IT'S SO BAD. I roll my eyes constantly. I don't care *at all* about the 2 main characters of the show.

The 2 main characters (the twins) are so incredibly boring and uninteresting. I like a lot of the side characters though.