End-of-Week Elmore (5/8/15)

The dwarf hauling the loot wagon from the front is named Monty, of course.

End-of-Week Elmore (5/1/15)

Mayday! Mayday!

Heh, I am so funny!

In all seriousness, I hope 2015 isn't sucking the life out of you.

See what I did there, eh? EH?! If not, refer again to the illo above.

Anyway, have a great weekend, kids! I'm planning on getting me and the kids involved in some Free Comics Day action!

Delving into The Barrow

"They moved in the dark...Sharpened bone spears dipped in shit and poison, curved swords and wicked implements of pain and war, fierce masks of horn and brass, short horn bows pulled with fire-sharpened arrows..."

Sounds like a description of a small horde of orcs tracking a group of adventurers through a dungeon, doesn't it?

That's an excerpt from a novel I picked up recently called The Barrow. I'd read a couple reviews of the book that compared it, in some ways, to a D&D dungeon crawl. Several of those reviews didn't mean that as a compliment, or see that as a good thing.

Now, I know that dungeon crawls don't always translate to great fiction! I've (tried) to read some of the more questionable Wizards of the Coast fiction, trust me. So I know that trying to depict the dungeon crawl in fiction can come to very bad ends, from a fiction standpoint.

At any rate, as I dug further into the lore of The Barrow, I discovered the author, Mark Smylie, is also a visual artist. And when I saw his work, I realized he contributed greatly to one of the campaign setting books I own: Midgard. Here's an example of his work:

I wonder what sort of author he makes. I'll let you know when I read the novel! The illo above is from a comic series that Smylie created a while back. I haven't read those...

Anyway, as I usually do, I started wondering about his created world's viability as an RPG setting. You know, because I'm an insane person that can't seem to separate his fantasy novel reading from his RPG obsession. Nevermind that I haven't read the damn novel yet! Oy vey, my mind...

Well, sure enough, when I went to the website for The Barrow, I discovered that an RPG already exists! And, a second edition is in the works.

Sheesh, I don't have enough time at the moment to go deeper into this rabbit hole. But I intend to write more here as I read the novel and explore Smylie's world.

Note: go here if you want to read an excerpt from the novel.

End-of-Week Elmore (4/3/15)

Welcome to April! (could this be NSFW?)

I don't want to be another fool (see what I did there?) to screech in awestruck wonder that it's "already April 2015"! But come on, where is the time going this year, eh?!

 

Ah, spring! What red-blooded male doesn't start having images of fair maidens dancing in his head at this time, I ask you? Thus, the illo above, by a fine artist named David Palumbo that I just personally discovered. I find the image to be a mash-up of classical portraiture and modern art. What do you think? What pops into my mind is...this looks like something Rembrandt might have painted if he knew about cyberpunk.

 

I usually try to avoid serving too much "cheesecake" on this here blog, but then again, could the illo above actually be considered cheesecake? I find it tasteful, with a bit of eroticism thrown in. How about you? I guess it might be a bit NSFW.

 

Anyway, give Mr. Palumbo's site a peruse when you get a moment. Be warned, there are nekkid ladies in some spots, so his site I suppose should DEFINITELY be considered NSFW.

 

Well, my prudish musings are at an end! Enjoy!

Have I mentioned that I love Robotech?

Awww yeah! My childhood self would have crapped himself at this sight!

 

Note: If you can relate to this post, please comment below! I'd love to hear stories of your own Robotech nostalgia!

 

When I was a young teen, there was no Internet, no Netflix, no DVR. Heck, there were no DVD players. I guess there was laser disc. But there were VCRs. However, those things were clunky and not easy to program. And even if you programmed the damn thing, someone else in the house was going to mess things up. Because, you know, you're a kid. People don't respect your right to see your friggin' shows.

 

No, when I was a mere lad, there was none of the futuristic entertainment technology we take for granted today. Therefore, all TV was pretty much "appointment TV." Meaning, you got in front of that tube, or you didn't. And if you didn't, you missed that show you so desperately wanted to see. Too bad, so sad. Here's a tiny violin, playing just for you.

 

I'm about to get all "back in my day" right about now. Seriously, the kids these days (heh, I actually wrote that) don't know what it's like to be at the whim of the TV overlords. Nowadays, TV is all about "on-demand," of course. Now, we are the new rulers of our entertainment destiny.

 

But that's not what I had as a kid. Nope. As a kid, I had to book it home after school to catch the shows I loved.

 

One of those shows was Robotech. I loved the hell out of that show as a kid. I discovered the series at a tender young age, somewhere in the mid-80s. Robotech was something "new" back in the day. It was called "Japanimation" at the time, not anime. Wow, that sounds weird now. And maybe racist?

 

Anyway, there were only two times of day that Robotech came on back then. During the week, one channel showed it at 6 AM and 3 PM. Kid-me thought 6 AM was an ungodly time when no decent, sane person should be awake. And, school got out at 3 PM. You see my dilemma?

 

So, that school bell would ring, and I would force my chubby body to run as much as possible across town so that I could catch as much of the show as I could. I remember running through freezing cold, slipping on ice in my haste. I remember running through sweltering heat, until I arrived at home, chest heaving like a bellows and sweat pouring off of me.

 

I usually caught about 20 minutes of the show on a good day. But those were precious moments that made a huge impact on the burgeoning sci-fi fan in me.

 

On those rare serendipitous occasions when I actually got an episode on tape, I watched the hell out of it. Over and over, in awe of the sci-fi action, the giant robots battling, and the soap opera of the relationships between the characters. I mean, the show had a race of space giants that were as entranced as I was by the thought of kissing a girl. How could I not relate? How could I not love this show?

 

As time went on, as things happen, my interests moved on to other shows. I became absorbed with other pastimes, such as roleplaying of course. But my love of Robotech remained, lingering within me, and manifesting in an abiding passion for giant robots and space opera.

 

I even tried, once, to combine my love of roleplaying with Robotech. I bought a couple of the Robotech roleplaying books pumped out by Palladium...but never played the game. One of my big roleplaying regrets.

 

Recently, Robotech has made a resurgence in my mind. And, of course, I turned to the miracles of modern connectivity, and quickly found a certain 20-disc set. I bought it for a song. A gateway to hours upon hours of Robotech goodness that I never could have imagined as a kid!

 

 

I'm about to embark once again on a voyage into a space epic, one that will no doubt take me through time AND space. I give a nod to kid-me, to let him know that it's time to come home and enjoy one of his favorite shows in a way he never could. On his own terms, finally.

 

Come with me, young man. We have places to go, giant robots to pilot, and space ladies to woo!

End-of-Week Elmore (3/6/15)