A Week of Ellis

So good ol' Warren had four new books hit this week. FOUR. That's just really quite something. Of course, one was his new novel, Crooked Little Vein, and the other three were from Avatar. And Avatar probably wanted them all to hit at the same time to maximize sales, and the fact that they were all out in time for the San Diego Con didn't hurt I'm sure.
Crooked Little Vein is delightful. Delightfully short and dated actually. I hate to say it, but it really is. I enjoyed it, don't get me wrong, but much of the Ellis cool is being introduce to new things. And there just really wasn't anything new in there. Most of the "Holy Shit!" technology that he swings about is quite commonplace, where it might not have been a year or more ago. That's how fast technology is moving. Oh well. If you're a hardcore Ellis fan, you will enjoy it for what it is, a great three hour romp that leaves you feeling dirty and violent. If you're not a Ellis fan, and even if you are, try the new Warren Gibson book, Spook County.

Black Summer really turned around on me though. The preview left me feeling a little flat, probably because I had seen most of it through previews and such. Don't you hate that? Say you go to see a movie you've been waiting all summer for, watching trailers, listening to cast and crew interviews, all kinds of stuff. Then when you watch the actual movie, all you can think is "Oh, here's that spot from the trailer!", and you lose the next 10 seconds, and it ends up feeling like a bunch of scenes stuck together. That's how I felt about the Black Summer preview. The comic, on the other hand, was great. Good pacing, scenes of horrible violence, followed by the main character stopping, pausing, and then on again. It never slows, just lets off the throttle for a few seconds while it takes the corner.

I have not ready Cercy yet, so don't ask.

And as far as Doktor Sleepless? Well, it's Mek, Transmetropolitan, Future Stomp, Global Frequency, and all the rest thrown in a crock pot and simmered for six hours. Future Science Jesus indeed.

Oh, and apparently some madman let him in to sign at the San Diego Con. I think he infected himself with something. He already took out Grant Morrison. Read all about it!

-Dan