Normal by Warren Ellis

Rating: WARTY!

Read decently by John Hodgman this was a slightly pretentious audio novel which I picked up from the library against my better judgment. The best thing about it was that it was very short, but even so I found myself skipping pieces which were boring to me.

The premise is that there is a retreat for people who are on the edge of losing it over their jobs. These people seem to be exclusively foresight strategists, which are "civil futurists who think about geo-engineering and smart cities, and who are paid by "nonprofits and charities", and strategic forecasters which are "spook futurists, who think about geopolitical upheaval and drone warfare" and who are "by global security groups and corporate think tanks."

These people are consigned to Normal Head in Oregon, where they're treated for depression. Normal head seems like it ought to be a great way to cure anyone's depression! Unfortunately the novel didn't cure me need for a god read. I never really got into it, and it was a lot of drivel in places broken only here and there by mildly interesting bits and one or two amusing incidents. I cannot recommend this.

Supreme Blue Rose by Warren Ellis and Tula Lotay

Rating: WORTHY!

In this beautifully illustrated futuristic time-travel graphic novel, Diana Dane, an investigative journalist who is out of work at present and not able to afford all the meds she believes she needs, has a weird dream in which she's informed that she should not trust Darius Dax. Curiously enough that's the name of the man she meets during her appointment the next day. Dax hires her for a considerable sum - with even more on offer should she succeed in locating what it is that Dax seeks.

It's not an object he wants as much as it is a time and place, but in ignorance of this, Diana is driven away in a stretch limo by an enigmatic chauffeur to investigate what as reported as an airplane crash. Dax doesn't believe the press. Diana, who looks strangely like talented artist Tula Lotay (who incidentally illustrated this novel!), is expected to unearth the truth. Her problem is that her dreams seem to be bleeding into her reality. Or vice-versa. Wait, is that Diana's dreams or Tula's? I honestly can't day! But maybe that's just a result of time being periodically revised?

This novel penned by Warren Ellis was entrancing and haunting with a bit too much mystery, but definitely an alluring lead-in to what is at least a seven volume series.

Global Frequency by Warren Ellis

Title: Global Frequency
Author/Editor: Warren Ellis
Publisher: WildStorm
Rating: WORTHY!

Illustrated by an assortment of artists).

This is a story reminiscent of Thunderbirds and International Rescue, but for grown-ups! The Global Frequency consists of a network of 1001 people, ordinary citizens each with one some special skill or another, who are committed to lending an immediate hand if some huge (and typically sci-fi or dystopian) threat looms. The network is led by the mysterious Miranda Zero, evidently very rich, because she has distributed special satellite phones (which sell at around $1,000 a pop) whereby anyone can summon the GF by means of a special emergency button.

The call is answered by a mohawked girl named Aleph, who seems always to be there waiting for a call even though we see her sleeping in one obligatory and gratuitous chick's ass graphic novel panel (see image on my blog).

Aleph then launches local representatives into action, who always seem ideally suited to the task at hand. The graphic novel I read was a compendium of several stories, and the first of these was a group of cyborgs called in to tackle a cyborg who was nearly all robot and who had run amok.

I loved this story because there were some admirably kick-ass and tough female characters, and because the writer clearly understood that you cannot put a robot arm on a person (a la Steve Austin, 'The Six Million Dollar Man') and have him perform feats worthy of Superman.

The reason for this is that no matter how powerful the robot portion of your body is, it's still attached to the relatively fragile human portion, and if you try lifting a truck for example, then while the robot arm might well manage it, the rest of your body would break and tear under the stress put on it by the robot portion! It's really nice to se a sci-fi writer recognize this and address it.

The other stories were a mixed bag which were, on balance, enjoyable. I particularly liked the back-story about Miranda Zero, and the parkour story featuring a young Indian girl (Indian, not native American). It's nice to see some variety of ethnicity in these stories, unlike the almost exclusively white man's world of Marvel and DC comics. I highly recommend this series. It's very well written, beautifully illustrated (admirable use of white space - no trees wasted here), eminently readable and - within its context - realistic.