Rabbits - Episode 1 & 2

I posted earlier about how excited I was that I was going to be able to listen to a new podcast from episode 1.  I did a short post about the first episode, but it was pretty skimpy.  There wasn't much to go on, but now that there's a second episode, I'm going to go ahead and talk a little more about episode 1 before going into episode 2.  There will be spoilers here.

In episode 1, we're meet Carly Parker and learn a little about Yumiko Takata, her missing friend.  She disappeared shortly after getting involved in a game called Rabbits.  (Well, Rabbits isn't exactly its "real" name, but it's the name that it's known by.)  Rabbits is, apparently, related to a category of games called "ARG"s (alternate reality games).  ARG's rely on immersive storytelling and role-playing to progress, and can sometimes trek into "conspiracy theory" territory.  It's a little hard to understand the connection between ARGs and Rabbits, but it seems that Rabbits steers a little closer to "conspiracy theory" than "immersive role-playing game".  Because of the secretive nature of the game, it's difficult to find much concrete information about it, but here is what we know:

• If you play, you cannot tell anyone that you're playing.
• There are Wardens that make sure that you are following the rules and/or honoring the spirit of the game.
• Consequences of breaking the rules while playing can result in serious physical or mental harm.
• The modern version of the game has been played eight times, and this is iteration number nine.

Presumably, the prize for winning the game is worth the potential dangers, but no information about previous winners has ever surfaced.  If Yumiko is involved in this game, did she catch the attention of a Warden? Or is she caught up in the pursuit of clues?  Or could her disappearance be completely unrelated?

The first episode focuses on establishing the relationships and histories among the different characters and giving background information about Rabbits and people that may or may not be related.  At this point, the only things that are known about Yumiko is that she has gone missing, she started acting strangely shortly before her disappearance, and that she visited the Natural History Museum before she disappeared.  Before its ending, Carly receives her first clue about Yumiko - a pin-up girl style photograph of young woman from an escort website - from someone called Concernicus Jones. 

But even as you get that clue, you're left with so many questions:  Who is Hazel, and how were they involved with the previous iterations of Rabbits?  What is Concernicus Jones's angle? 

So, episode two starts with a snippet of a conversation with the mysterious hacker Concernicus Jones.  But, before we can dive into that tantalizing little chat, it's time for a bit more background on the Yumiko situation.

Apparently, before her disappearance, Yumiko had become obsessed with learning more about people who had died while playing video games.  Yumiko herself became so absorbed in her research that, had Carly not had plans to meet with her, she might have followed the gamers who died playing MMORPGs in Korea.  Clearly, something is not right with Yumiko, but she can't talk too much about it.

Carly also follows up on what exhibit Yumiko looked at when she visited the Natural History Museum.  She doesn't learn much, but apparently, passenger pigeons have something to do with Rabbits.  Perhaps it's a clue in the game?

Finally, we can get into Concernicus Jones and his information.  It turns out that he knows quite a bit about Rabbits, and he encountered Yumiko while he was "watching" someone else.  He provides Carly with another lead - a website devoted to reviewing escort services like the one that Yumiko's picture had been on.  This new lead eventually turns up a new clue - "How many steps to the lighthouse?".

The latest episode has made me wonder - is Carly now an unofficial player of Rabbits herself?  How long until the Wardens turn their eyes on her, and will she be in danger if they do?  Or, since she's following another player, would the Wardens just consider her one of the fans/observers that have always existed in the game?

So far, this podcast has been pretty top-notch and interesting.  I am a little concerned, though, that this is going to turn into TANIS 2.0, as it has a lot of the same elements: the Deep Web, conspiracies, a trail of clues that lead to more clues, and hackers that know way too much.  I am hoping that I'm wrong. Despite this, I am enjoying how stimulating this story is.  It's definitely something that I have to stop everything and pay attention to, but I don't mind because it's so absorbing.

So, is anyone else following Rabbits?  Any theories you'd like to share?

The Unwritten vol 1: Tommy Taylor and the Bogus Identity - written by Mike Carey, art by Peter Gross

Tom Taylor and Christopher Robin Milne have a lot in common.  They're both the inspiration for their father's greatest literary works. They both have quite a bit of resentment toward their father for that fame.  But, unlike Christopher Robin Milne, Tom Taylor may not be quite who he thinks he is.

Tom Taylor's father wrote the popular Tommy Taylor series, which follow the exploits of a boy wizard and his friends as they try to survive the rise of a powerful dark lord.  After writing the final Tommy Taylor book, Wilson Taylor went missing, leaving his son to grow into a rude, cynical slacker.  There's no love lost between Tom and his father - his father never seemed especially affectionate toward him and insisted upon drilling seemingly useless knowledge of literature and literary geography into his head at every available opportunity.  Although Tom has attempted to distance himself from his fictional childhood self throughout his life, he always finds himself returning to the convention circuit.

It's at one of these conventions that he encounters two people that throw his life into turmoil.  The first is a very eccentric man who believes himself to be Count Ambrosio, the villain of the Tommy Taylor novels.  He has been stalking Tom Taylor's convention appearances for a while, and his behavior has been getting increasingly erratic.  The second is a woman named Lizzy Hexam, who asserts that Tom Taylor is not the real son of Wilson Taylor - in fact, the boy known as Tom Taylor may not have ever existed at all.  There's no evidence of Tom's existence - no birth certificate, no real social security number, nothing.  So, who is he, really?  Before Tom can fully digest this revelation, "Count Ambriso" kidnaps him and attempts to livestream his villainous triumph over the boy wizard. And the "Count" isn't the only one that seems to be out for Tom's blood.

The Unwritten may sound like AU Harry Potter, but it's a lot darker and grittier than the beloved children's series.  It's kind of like what Harry Potter would have been like if it had been crossed with Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere.

The first volume's pacing fluctuates.  During the action parts, it's pretty quick, but then there's an entire chapter following the literary life of Rudyard Kipling that's pretty slow.  The Rudyard Kipling chapter isn't included just for giggles - there's important things being established in this chapter - but it's slow and hard to read because you're reading handwritten diary entries.  It was my least favorite chapter, but don't skip it or you'll be confused about the overall "shadowy cabal" stuff that's going on.

I can't say that any characters stood out as being "favorite character" material in the first volume.  Tom Taylor is an unlikable, self-centered jerk, and you don't really know enough about anyone else to really form a strong opinion of them.  Lizzy Hexam is interesting - why does she know so much about Tom, and why was she researching him in the first place?

The real star of this book is the world-building that's going on.  We may think we know what's going on in the modern world, and we may think that literature is just a form of entertainment, but the line between the two may not be as clear as we think.  Authors might be more than just spinners of fanciful tales, but just how much power do they wield if that's the case?

The art is pretty good - it conveys emotion and movement really well.  The action sequences are paced well enough that you can follow what's going on without having to study each panel for five minutes.  You should definitely take the time to study the cover art and alternate cover art gallery at the back, though.  I think that a couple of them would make nice posters.

I think that this would be good reading for older teens to adults who were fans of the Harry Potter series or like darker fantasy stories.  It's definitely not something you'd get for your ten-year-old Pottermaniac nephew for his birthday.  There is a lot of strong language, and it's pretty violent - they don't shy away from committing grisly acts of murder with, for instance, farm tools or nail bombs.  (Okay, your ten-year-old nephew might be mature enough to deal with this, but, y'know, full disclosure and all.)

The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living - Meik Wiking

Before I get started: it's pronounced "Hoo-ga", and you can listen to the pronunciation here. (Incidentally, Forvo is an excellent free resource for language-learners.)  This does not stop me from reading "hygge" every time as rhyming with "pig", and I apologize to Denmark and all Danish speakers in advance.

So, what is hygge?  It's pretty hard to explain, as the word doesn't translate very cleanly into English, but - picture yourself in an overstuffed armchair, your warm beverage of choice within reach, a fireplace crackling and popping before you, the scent of baking bread in the air, a snowstorm swirling beyond the windows, and your favorite comfort-novel in your hand.  That's basically hygge.  You can hygge alone or with a small group of close friends.

The purpose of this book was to explore hygge and give tips about how to add hygge to your everyday life.  After all, if the Danish are frequently ranked #1 in happiness, there must be something to this hygge thing, right?

The book is fairly short, and the chapters are typically only a few pages long.  As I read it, I couldn't help but be reminded of the Marie Kondo books I'd read earlier, as both talk about how changes in one's environment can help change one's mood.  They also both emphasize mindfulness as one of the secrets of being happier.  I got the sense that, once you've gotten rid of your clutter using the Konmari method, you can start introducing some hygge to your life using Wiking's tips.

I would be doing a disservice to the idea of hygge if I tried to break it down into a simple list, but some of the things that Wiking mentions as important to hygge is: candles, food, companionship, and comforting surroundings.    If it weren't for the fact that I don't speak Danish (yet...) and that winter last about eight months up there, I think I'd move to Denmark just so I could be among like-minded individuals.

Fortunately, you don't have to move to Denmark, or make a lot of money, to add some hygge to your surroundings.  In fact, Wiking maintains that the more humble and simple something is, the greater its hygge factor.  A home-made knitted pair of socks is more hygge than cashmere socks, especially if you made them yourself and can fondly recall the experience of learning to turn a heel or cast-on when you wear them.  A humble but hearty beef stew with home-made crusty bread is far more hygge than a gourmet meal at an expensive restaurant, especially when made and shared with friends.  Hygge is about simple pleasures.

I can't say that I see hygge catching on in a widespread fashion here.  We're too addicted to our toys, our noise, and our pursuit of "the next big thing" to slow down and appreciate the simpler things in life.  It would pretty much require a complete cultural overhaul to have a chance of catching on around here.  But, you can at least make your "down-time" more refreshing and pleasurable by taking a few tips from this book.  For introverts, this is basically a how-to book for building the perfect nest, and they might be the ones to benefit most from reading this book.  As for me, well, if you need me, I'll be in my hyggekrog.

Rabbits

It's rare that I get to post about a podcast from its beginning as it's being produced, so let's see how this goes.  So, I'll be following the podcast Rabbits and talking about it on the blog as new episodes are released.

My first blog-along! I feel like a real blogger now!

Carly Parker's best friend, Yumiko Takata, has gone missing.  Carly believes that she has gone missing because of her participation in a mysterious secret-society game called, in a roundabout way, Rabbits.  But, just what is Rabbits?  A recruiting tool for the CIA?  A super-secret club that runs the world from behind the scenes?  A method of uncovering the secrets of the universe?  No one has ever been able to track down previous winners since the game's first iterations in 1959, so it's difficult to tell what the aim of Rabbits is.  Whatever it is, the game has some pretty strict rules, and some apparently terrifying consequences for breaking those rules.

If you listened to TANIS or The Black Tapes, then you'll be familiar with the investigative-report-style used in this audiodrama.  The story is told through first-person narration of experiences and research and supplemented by interviews with other people  who are connected with the game or people who played it.  It's produced by the same group of people behind both, so the production is pretty high-quality.  Not only do you have some good voice acting, but there's background noise layered in under the narration to add audio-depth that emphasizes different parts of the narrative.  It's amazing what stock sounds can do for an audio production.

Since it's only the first episode, you only get a teasing taste of what's to come in the series.  Still, if it's anything like The Black Tapes and TANIS, you'll definitely want to subscribe to this one.

The Fireman - Joe Hill

Draco Incendia Trychophyton, better known as Dragonscale, is the hottest plague to sweep the nation - literally.  Once contracted, it's only a matter of months before the sufferer spontaneously combusts, sometimes setting off chain reactions with other Dragonscale victims and creating conflagrations capable of destroying entire city blocks.  The world has looked on in horror as civilization crumbles into a sea of flames and molten concrete, unable to trace the source of the infection or the method of its transmission.  Amidst the chaos and smoke, a mysterious man known only as The Fireman has emerged like an urban legend.  It's said that he can control the 'scale - bend its flames to his will - without being consumed. He comes to take the infected to a place where they can be safe from the threat of spontaneous combustion, or worse, execution by their frightened friends and neighbors.  Newly-infected Harper Grayson hopes that these rumors are true, if not for herself, than for her unborn child, who may yet be uninfected.

You may recognize Joe Hill from the movie Horns starring Daniel Radcliffe.  Or you may have read Locke and Key, a fantastic dark fantasy/horror graphic novel series.  My first exposure to Hill's work was through Locke and Key, and it wasn't until much later that I discovered that he was Stephen King's son.  (Although I guess if he'd kept his father's name, he'd be Joe King....)

The idea of a plague that not only kills you, but kills you in such a horrific and destructive fashion, was intriguing.  Sure, zombies are scary, but they are a threat that can be contained and dealt with given enough time.  Walking, contagious wildfires, however, are a different story.  I was fascinated by the level of detail and thought that had gone into the nature of the infection, its transmission, and its management.  If not for the whole possibly-ending-in-flaming-death-throes thing, Dragonscale sounds like a pretty cool thing to have.  Unfortunately, Dragonscale was about the only unique thing about this book.

When you get down to it, this book is just Lord of the Flies meets Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix while playing with matches.  People separate into tribes - infected/uninfected, those in the Bright/those outside of the Bright, with us/against us - and try to take over limited supplies for the good of their tribe.  Mother Carol, the eventual leader of Camp Wyndham, is basically Professor Umbridge without all of the pink, and Harper's plucky band of rebels is Dumbledore's Army - complete with its own traitor.

That wouldn't be so bad in itself if the author had just stopped trying to cram stuff into the book to compound the horribleness of the situation. And what would make things worse, you might ask?  Oh, a roadtrip from hell while pregnant and being pursued by your crazy ex-husband might qualify, I suppose.  Really, it's just absurd the amount of awfulness that happens to these people.  Even Lemony Snicket knew to spread the awful out across thirteen books.

Another complaint I had about this book is Hill's tendency to tell readers that a chance to discuss something would never come after all, or that a character was about to act really horribly toward another character instead of letting the action unfold on its own.  I seriously considered making a drinking game out of it.  Authors, for the sake of my liver, please don't do this.  Remember, show, don't tell.

Finally, there are the characters. The titular Fireman is actually only in about a third of the pages, and he spends almost all of his page-time recuperating from injuries or doing something that gets him injured.  I was kind of hoping for a cool superhero-like character, but instead I got an angsty Brit with broken ribs, so that was disappointing.  Harper is pretty bad-ass, but after a while her obsession with children's literature and movies got annoying. It seemed that she couldn't be on-page for a few paragraphs without making reference to Mary Poppins or some other sugary-sweet children's story.  The only characters I felt were even remotely believably written were Allie and Renee.  Everyone else, even the side characters and villains, felt like strawmen or caricatures rather than real people.

Fans of Stephen King may enjoy this book, if nothing else than for the shout-outs to King's works. I've only ever read It, so I couldn't tell you any specific references that I noticed, but I did feel like this book had a lot of the same pacing and ending issues that It had.  Around the second third of the book, everything slows to a crawl and it's really hard to keep up the desire to keep reading.  The action picks back up toward the final third, but then you get to the end and it sort of fizzles out like a wet match.  There is an afterword hidden in the author acknowledgements at the end that may be setting up for a second book, so if you do decide to read this one, make sure to read it all the way through.

Overall, I thought that the book had an interesting premise, but the execution was lacking.  It may just be that it was being executed in the wrong medium.  This story makes for a long and laborious read as a novel, but the visual language used to describe the ways the Fireman can manipulate fire, as well as the shoot-outs and car chases, make it ideal for making a graphic novel or t.v. series out of it.  I mean, with fire, it's more captivating to watch it than to read about it.

Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them: The Original Screenplay - J.K. Rowling

One of the most anticipated films of 2016, at least in my circle of friends, was Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.  It was the first Harry Potter universe film to be set fully outside of Hogwarts and the English countryside, and it gave fans another glimpse into the fantastic world of magic that might exist right beside them on the subway platform, on the street, or even in line at the local deli.  For those of you who were unable to get to the theater, or who just want to relive the movie before its home video release, the screenplay was published and released in an attractively-bound book just in time for the holidays.

It's a turbulent time in the 1920's magical community.  Notorious criminal Gellert Grindelwald has evaded authorities, Second Salemers roam the streets calling for the execution of witches and wizards, and Newt Scamander has accidentally unleashed a suitcase full of strange and fantastical creatures on the unsuspecting city.  With the aid of a No-Maj/Muggle named Jacob Kowalski, Newt must round up his wayward creatures before attracting more unwanted attention on the magical community and the ire of MACUSA (the American Ministry of Magic).  

The best part of this movie was the world-building.  J.K. Rowling has created a colorful world with its own culture and mythology, and I have wanted to ramble around in it ever since I read the first chapters set in Diagon Alley.   In this movie/screenplay, we get more exposure to different aspects of the wizarding world that Rowling didn't get a chance to explore in the Harry Potter series.  Sure, we know that magical creatures, mind-reading witches/wizards, and other magic schools exist, but this movie gives us more exposure to the magical-using world and culture outside of England.  

However, I felt like the darker part of the story involving the Obscurus wasn't developed very well.  There's this monster tearing apart parts of New York, but it's basically background noise for about two-thirds of the movie.  Gellert Grindelwald is mentioned at the beginning and in an argument later, but he doesn't seem to be too important until the very end, and even then it's unclear how Newt was able to figure out that he was there in the first place.  

I had hoped that the screenplay would have more detailed information, or even some "deleted scenes", that might help develop some of the characters and world a bit more.  I would have been happy if it had at least explained/developed Grindelwald's involvement a little better than the ending's "I would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for you meddling kids" moment.  Sadly, this is pretty much a direct transcription of the finished film, so you really aren't missing anything if you don't read it.  

If you're a film student, you might benefit from reading this because it has some pretty detailed information about the types of angles and directions used in the film, as well as some cues for the timing and delivery of certain parts of the script, and there is nice glossary of terms to explain some of the specialized vocabulary.  If you're a collector of Harry Potter books and memorabilia, I think you might like to add this to your bookshelf for continuity and collection's sake.  However, if you were hoping for a novelization or fleshing-out of the movie's skeleton, you should skip this one.  

Rune Factory 4

For the last few weeks, I've been totally wrapped up in playing Rune Factory 4.  I love games that incorporate role-playing and making stuff, so games like the Alchemist series by Gust and the Harvest Moon series are a slam-dunk for me.

The basic premise of any Rune Factory game is that you have to farm and kill monsters to save the world.  In Rune Factory 4, you are trying to save the land of Selphia by replacing the Guardians with Rune Spheres so that the land won't shrivel up and die.  Like any Rune Factory or Harvest Moon game, you can interact with the townsfolk, participate in events and competitions, farm, create and upgrade items, and start a family.  In Rune Factory 4, you can play as either a male or female protagonist - a departure from previous games.

As in nearly every game, your protagonist starts out as a blank slate, unable to remember his/her past or name.  In this one, you're amnesiac because you were attacked while enroute with a mysterious package that you were taking to Selphia, and then to add insult to injury, you were pushed off of your airship to drop to your death.  Fortunately,  you were saved by a lucky landing on top of a dragon - yes, a dragon.  This dragon is the ruler of Selphia, and is called Ventuswill, or Venti for short.

Venti decides that you're the visiting prince/princess that they were expecting, and promptly puts you to work promoting Selphia and farming vegetables to nurture your Earthmate powers.  However, Venti has a darker secret.  For generations, she has been the force keeping Selphia vibrant and living, but the years have taken a toll on her. In the past, Guardians had sacrificed themselves to keep Venti alive, but even their sacrifices and powers have limits, and it soon becomes apparent that if you, the heroic protagonist, don't do something, Selphia is doomed.

The game itself is a good balance between farming/life simulator and role playing game. You fight monsters, complete mini-quests, and save the world by degrees.  If you are constantly being defeated by the same dungeon, you can increase your stats by sleeping, farming, creating and upgrading equipment, and even eating dishes with specific properties that give you resistance to ailments or elements. You also build relationships with the residents of Selphia Town, which allows you to invite them on quests or start a family.  Some relationships need to be built to a specific point before the game allows you to progress, so make sure that you talk to residents daily, complete their tasks, and give them their favorite items.

The game has flaws, though.  The only way to learn most of the recipes for food or items is by consuming "breads", and after a certain level, you can't learn anything new from these breads.  You have to get access to the post-game activities to get full completion of your various recipe books.  Some of the recipes require rare item drops, or in some cases, oddly specific items (ex: medium size milk) to create.

Another flaw in this game is that you practically require a game guide in order to complete some of the main-line quests.  Some events don't trigger unless specific conditions are met, but it's not immediately obvious what sets them off.  There are three main story arcs, but the trigger for the third one seems to be especially difficult to set off.

It's also really challenging to find all of the fishing, mining, and drop items for some of the recipes.  You don't necessarily have to have those recipes to beat the game, but if you're a completionist, this game is going to be a bit of a grind-fest for you.  I still haven't managed to catch a sunsquid or a blowfish despite hours of fishing, and don't even get me started on trying to find light ore.  I beat the game, but I admit that the higher level equipment recipes and upgrades probably would have resulted  in less cussing and trips to the infirmary.

Some of the things I liked about this game is the adjustable level of difficulty.  If you're not sure about your coordination in the fights, or you are just tired of the same boss one-hit-k.o.'ing your party, you can easily bump your difficulty down to Easy, or you can set it higher if you want more of a challenge.  You also have a wide variety of weapons that you can master, and a ridiculous number of skills and spells you can use, so there's a weapon and skill-set for every gaming style.

The art and character designs are up to the usual standards of the Harvest Moon and Rune Factory games, making the game visually appealing as well as fun to play.  Finally, the characters in Selphia are fun to interact with.  I enjoyed going around town getting to know everyone and their favorite items, and the town events involving each character revealed a different side of everyone.

If you're new to Rune Factory series, I'd recommend this one as a starting point because of the adjustable difficulty level and more streamlined controls.  It's not a perfect game, but despite my complaints, I did enjoy my time in Selphia.  The three story arcs, and post-game Sharance Maze, give you hours of play-time and probably the most bang for your gaming buck.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some squids to catch.