Tannhäuser Tuesday - Upcoming Releases Update

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Here is the current set of announced releases and their status.


Rule Book Revised Edition - in for reprint.

Matriarchy Troop Pack - 4th Q 2011 - At the factory

Operation Hinansho - Campaign Expansion - 4th Q 2011 - On the boat

Natalya Figure Pack - 4th Q 2011 - On the boat

Mizu Figure Pack - 4th Q 2011 - On the boat

Itami Figure Pack - 4th Q 2011 - On the boat

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Pulp of the Week - Doc Savage #27

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May, 1935 - The Secret in the Sky

This is good quality Doc Savage adventure from the mid 1930s where Doc and crew encounter another scientific marvel that has been co-opted for nefarious purposes. For some reason, using superscience in the pursuit of criminal thievery is what is on the mind of every criminal mastermind in the 1930s.

In this supersaga, the invention is a spherical flying craft that can hover, take off vertically, and whiz across the country in around 2 hours.

It is that last aspect that gets Doc's attention at the start of the book. An acquaintance of Docs' is publicly killed in San Francisco and two hours later his body is found in New York.

Doc, Monk, Habius, and Ham again share the bulk of the action, but at least this time Renny, Long Tom, and Johnny are present. The capable woman is present again in the form of Lanca Jaxon, although she is a reduced presence from the usual.

The flying spheres are quite mysterious and Doc never does get a good look at the innards of them before they are destroyed.

For this review, I read my quite battered Bantam paperback - Nov 1967 - 3rd printing. I'll give The Secret in the Sky a 7.5 out of 10. My main criticism of these stories is that the set-ups are great, but the resolutions are rushed. The Paul Orban interior art presented is from Chris Kalb's Doc Savage fan site, The 86th Floor. The pulp cover is by Walter Baumhofer and the Bantam paperback cover is by James Bama.

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Pulp of the Week - Catching Fire

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Warning - if you have not read The Hunger Games there are spoilers for that book contained herein. Be warned...

Catching Fire is the second book in the Hunger Games trilogy and Collins really steps it up a notch, with nearly six months having passed since the end of Katniss and Peeta's extraordinary double victory in the brutal Hunger Games.

Now, we find the pair midway through the year visiting each district on the Victory Tour. But Katniss senses trouble in the districts. Trouble instigated by her gaming the Hunger Games system by forcing the double win.

After seeing open rebellion and realizing that her mocking jay is being used as a symbol for the rebels she is sent home to a very changed District 12.

The novel heightens the stakes and choices that Katniss must make as she comes to understand that she is the catalyst for rebellion. She must maintain her facade of romance with Peeta, despite her attraction to Gale. She must decide how far to push against the Capitol.

Finally President Snow has had enough and pushes back. Katniss, Peeta, and Gale are all shocked by the President's announcement regarding the upcoming 75th Annual Hunger Games. Every twenty-five years there is a special Quarter Quell, each one designed to be more bloody than the last. But when the President says, "On the seventy-fifth anniversary, as a reminder to the rebels that even the strongest among them cannot overcome the power of the Capitol, the male and female tributes will be reaped from their existing pool of victors," Katniss' life is changed forever.

This middle book of the trilogy moves like a blitzkreig, hammering through a terrific plot and causing massive damage to the heroes and villians alike. Collins has crafted another terrific book and there is good reason this trilogy was on the bestseller lists for months. I am eager to read the finale. I can't imagine the impatience that those who read the books as they were released must have experienced in waiting for the next part.

While these books are published by Schoolastic as Yound Adult novels (I know first hand how much that audience loves these books - my son is 12 and my daughter is 14) there is little that makes them "kids books." Yes, there is no overly profane language or explicit sexual action, but neither of those are the measuring stick for great books and as an adult and a life-long fan of science fiction, I can attest without reservation that these are great books that any adult can enjoy.

Sometimes books become best sellers simply because they are great.

I give Catching Fire a 9.5 out of ten. I am withholding that half point due to my kids saying the last really is best. The cover art is by Tim O'Brien and the cover design is by Elizabeth B. Parisi.

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Tannhäuser Tuesday - Four Player Mayhem!

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The upcoming map pack holds the promise of rules for larger games and 4-player madness. It is my hope that the rules provide for both 2 on 2 and a 4 player free for all. Two on two would be great (and a bit crowded - in a good way) on one map, but the two-map rules hinted at would be great for the big games.

Of course fans of craziness will want to play a massive battle using everything made so far.

Tannhäuser Tuesday - Matriarchy Troop Pack

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Troops for the Matriarchy are here! This pack of two troops will retail for about twenty bucks and will be out before the end of the year! The Fantasy Flight Games press release includes a bit of new info.

The first trooper is "The Boepripacy Soldat - The army of the Matriarchy is a well-oiled machine, kept in working shape due to the constant vigil kept by the Directorate and the Commissariat. A delicate balance of tradition, zeal, and fear keeps the soldati of the Matriarchy from giving up in the face of their determined enemies. Exceptional soldati, found to be utterly loyal to the gods and unwilling to flee in the face of danger, are made Boepripacy – ammunition soldati. These fearless warriors carry the majority of the ammo for their squadmates, who will do everything in their power to keep the boepripacy alive. The extra ammunition is held in specially locked cases that can only be unlocked by the Boepripacy. Thus, if a Boepripacy dies, the unit cannot hope to last long."

The second trooper is "The Zazigag Soldat - Armed with the Gnev Bogov Ognemet, a flamethrower capable of calling down the judgment of the Slavic gods, the Zazigag Soldati are elite warriors who have distinguished themselves in combat. Only by displaying the utmost faith and loyalty to the Matriarchy may a soldat be trusted with such a devastating weapon.

Attacks with the Gnev Bogov Ognemet bathe their target in agonizing flame, and the weapon’s explosive range is such that anyone standing nearby will likewise be engulfed. Such an attack damages mind at least as much as body, leaving witnesses in a state of shock and terror. It is no wonder, therefore, that Zazigag Soldati are among the most hardened of Matriarchy soldiers. Not only are they accustomed to war’s most horrific sights, but they thrive on them." 

So we get a flamethrower in Tannhäuser! That is awesome. Scorching an entire path will be great - and a little dangerous.

Looking forward to it!

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Pulp of the Week - Behemoth

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Written by Scott Westerfeld
Illustrated by Keith Thompson

There is something about finishing the middle book in a trilogy that is so satisfying. I've finished two in the last two weeks - Catching Fire (which you will read about soon) and Behemoth.

Behemoth is part two of Scott Westerfeld's steampunk trilogy following the adventures of Prince Aleksander and Deryn Sharp. In Leviathan, Deryn managed to not get caught in her deception by her own officers, and ends up playing a key role in saving the massive Darwinist bioengineered airship, the aforementioned, Leviathan. Alek, on the other hand has allowed himself to be captured, but only because it is serving his purposes.

Behemoth follows the Leviathan's crew as they head to Istanbul to deliver the reigning Ottoman monarch a gift in exchange for a vital strategic partnership. As Deryn and Alek take to the narrow streets of the crossroads city they find German soldiers in numbers they hadn't imagined, strange bazaars, mechanical elephants, prophets, and most oddly, some Clanker allies.

I attended Westerfeld's San Diego Comic-Con panel and he was as charming in person as his books are. There were no spoilers about volume 3, Goliath, but he did announce the Uglies movie! He also talked about making the choice to have the books illustrated and how that changed his writing process and the text of the book itself. It seems that many of Keith Thompson's drawings either informed the text or in some cases gave Westerfeld ideas of things to add it because of the art. The art also allowed some text to be eliminated because it would be repetitious considering that things were already represented in the art. I love the art and think that the books are far better for it.

As this is the second book, it ends with the promise of much more to follow - but in this case, part three is not out yet - but  it will be soon.

I give this alternate-history/sf/ steampunk trilogy the strongest possible recommendation. They are captivating stories with a solid pulp flavor. I am eagerly awaiting the final volume.

I give Behemoth an 8.5 out of 10.

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Tannhäuser Tuesday - First Shogunate Figures Release

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The first Shogunate figures (the ones pre-released at Gen-Con) are now available in stores.

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Pulp of the Week - Embedded by Dan Abnett

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Dan Abnett is most famous for his novels set in Games Workshop's Warhammer 40,000 universe, but here he sets forth with a science fiction original, and a good one at that. This is the first novel by Abnett that I have read, but I am looking forward to reading more.

Embedded follows reporter Lex Falk on frontier world Eighty-Six, a world rich in minerals and natural resources and devoid of an intelligent species. There are some thematic ties to Fuzzy Nation, but not an intelligent native species one. Corporate greed, political machinations, and the plundering of natural resources are the common ground.

There is conflict on Eighty-Six and things escalate while Falk is on a drive along with some ground troops that turns out to be far more eventful than the military had planned.

Falk does some digging and feels that he is on the cusp of a story, a big story. In order to get closer to that story he agrees to be part of an experimental program where his consciousness is embedded into the mind of a volunteer grunt. Falk can see and hear everything the soldier can.

The soldier is shipped out to the frontier and all hell breaks loose. At this point there are a few nice twists and Falk finds himself in deep shit and the scientists can't extract him. He is along for the battle and totally out of his element.

I liked many things in Abnett's book. Falk is a great character. The world is interesting and believable. He writes the combat extremely well and his scenes and characters are compelling. However, in the end I was a bit underwhelmed by the resolution of Falk's dilemma and of the BIG REVEAL. I would have liked another 30 pages following that reveal, but no. Book over. I'm not sure if Abnett is saving it for a sequel, or if he just chose to not say more.

 

I give Embedded a 7.5 out of 10.  The cover is by Larry Rostant.

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