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This book has mostly been bad but for Marco's driving it's a price I'm willing to pay. The line about the police merely being surprised by elephant Rachel bursting out of the house was great too.
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# ? Aug 21, 2020 08:56 |
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# ? May 25, 2024 09:46 |
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The switching between POVs as the Veleek targets each one differently isn't bad.
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# ? Aug 21, 2020 17:20 |
Piell posted:"Do you just HATE TRASH CANS?!!" is my favorite line from the entire series. That's the line that got me to suddenly remember that I read this book.
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# ? Aug 21, 2020 20:51 |
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Megamorphs Book 1, Chapter 27 Rachel quote:The dust beast dropped me. I hit the road. I hit it hard. The concrete cracked and popped open, revealing gravel beneath. We learn that Rachel was in the Brady Bunch. quote:FLASH! A man's voice, from nowhere. "And now, next on the balance beam, Rachel . . ." So that's good. I haven't really liked this Rachel plot up till now, because most of it has been extremely repetitive, but I like the way she realizes she can trust Cassie. And I like that she's with somebody who can help her, even if she doesn't have all her memory back. Chapter 28 Ax quote:Yeerks put me in a box. Not a cage, a Ramonite box with seamless walls on all sides. I was in that box for a time that spanned many Earth hours. And I felt despair. The special despair that comes from dishonor. Ramonite sounds like a useful metal. quote:I could see the room beyond my cage: the bridge of Visser Three's Blade ship. Visser Three, as i've said before, is a cat person. quote:Suddenly, the tiger that was Jake shot up a tree. The Veleek was eating its way up the tree. Prince Jake leapt into the air. He is just, and I say it again, the worst boss. quote:<I guess it isn't going too well for you, Visser,> I sneered. So, Visser Three, as is his wont, gets murderous when things aren't going his way. The worst part about it is, you know he doesn't think he's a bad boss. If he had a mouth, he'd have a coffee mug that said "World's Best Boss" on it, and mean it. I'm just immensely frustrated on behalf of all the Yeerks who have to work for him. It raises sort of another thought, though, which is that in fiction, villains tend to be terrible at leadership. You have our Visser here. You have Darth Vader, who regularly force chokes his admirals who mess up, you have Voldemort, who his followers worship but are also terrified of. So, can people think of bad guys who are good bosses? Because I''d think that would make them more effective villains.
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# ? Aug 21, 2020 23:56 |
Hmmmm... Lord Humungus? He's brutal, yes, but he also has that moment where he grabs his follower and whispers "we all lost someone"
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 00:08 |
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Hank Scorpio, from The Simpsons. But he was explicitly written to tweak the whole “bad boss” cliche, so I don’t know if that really counts.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 00:12 |
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Hank Scorpio's entire joke in the Simpsons is that he's a supervillain who treats his workers with kindness and respect.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 00:20 |
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Epicurius posted:You remember Wipeout? Good game. Probably not great for driver training. Notable for appearing in classic 90s cultural touchstone film Hackers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0e8ZMVqVCc
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 01:45 |
Epicurius posted:
Grand Admiral Thrawn form the old Star Wars EU qualifies -but like Scorpo he was a deliberate subversion.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 02:53 |
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Starsnostars posted:This book has mostly been bad but for Marco's driving it's a price I'm willing to pay. The line about the police merely being surprised by elephant Rachel bursting out of the house was great too. In contrast, I thought the next Megamorphs book was unfocused and uninteresting, despite what sounds like an amazing premise.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 03:02 |
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SardonicTyrant posted:May I ask why you think it's bad? I thought it was a pretty strong book. There's an interesting conflict, it's got more action than the previous books, and the most memorable scene in the franchise. As someone who also thinks it's bad: Rachel's sidelined in the most cliche way, which makes it feel even more forced when she morphs at ~just the right times~ to be a distraction; the narrator-switching structure leads to a lot of needless repetition, and giving us Marco cracking wise about something Jake discussed seriously doesn't make it feel much less like boring padding; the unbalanced number of chapters each narrator gets hurts the book; and, IMO, the most interesting thing the narrator switching could do (give us insight into what character X thinks about an action/decision character Y took, instead of just a second viewpoint on external events; this is something that gets better in later Megamorphs) just doesn't really happen. I probably do still prefer it to the second Megamorphs, though.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 03:19 |
Does Magneto count? He was both antihero and villain, but he seemed to treat his subordinates relatively well.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 03:36 |
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John Marcone from the Dresden Files, though he's a "bad guy the hero reluctantly works with" instead of a straight up villain.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 04:28 |
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SardonicTyrant posted:May I ask why you think it's bad? I thought it was a pretty strong book. There's an interesting conflict, it's got more action than the previous books, and the most memorable scene in the franchise. For me it's the Rachel segments which are the huge weakness of the book as like Epicurius I've found the amnesia plot too repetitive and I'm disappointed every time it's time for a Rachel chapter. I'm glad that the narrator switching is happening though because a whole book of amnesia Rachel would be awful. On the plus side I do like the Veleek as a threat the team have to deal with and the recent Ax chapters have also been interesting.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 10:18 |
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I didn't realise at first that bit about "adding to their troubles" was the Visser continuing to speak and saying he knows morphing is tiring; I thought it was Ax saying he was about to morph, to draw the Veleek up to the Blade Ship. Also now I'm thinking about Andalite warrior culture, which unless it's developed suddenly in the last generation or two, suggests these horse folk have been warring among each other for most of their history.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 10:57 |
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SardonicTyrant posted:May I ask why you think it's bad? I thought it was a pretty strong book. There's an interesting conflict, it's got more action than the previous books, and the most memorable scene in the franchise. Something about it just feels "off' to me. It's not that the events themselves are bad exactly, but it feels like it just abruptly jumps from scene to scene. Kinda similar to the thing that bugs me in JJ Abrams films, where each individual part is fine but somehow the whole ends up feeling generic and disjointed.
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# ? Aug 22, 2020 23:06 |
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Megamorphs Book 1, Chapter 9 Marco quote:CRRRRUUUUNCHHH! SCRRRREEECH! BAM! WHAM! BUMP! Squuueeeeaall! A gorilla driving a car, ladies and gentlemen. Chapter 30 Rachel quote:I charged with trunk held high, trumpeting defiance. I ran toward the line of trees that hugged the housing development. I crashed heedlessly through yards and lawns. I was in a hurry. And lawns could be fixed. Pretty good summary right there. I'll be honest, I kind of like this....Cassie just sitting on Elephant Rachel's back, filling in backstory while Rachel is monologuing. quote:<No,> I said. <The beast couldn't lift me. I was too big. Stay on and morph where you are. I kind of think a flea would be better, honestly, although, as mentioned, a flea doesn't have much in the way of understanding besides "find blood, drink blood" Chapter 31 Marco quote:Aaaaaahhhhh! I thought, as the Veleek blazed after me. So this was how Visser 3 was going to make things harder. quote:Then, in my headlights: an elephant! Will Marco morph in time? Or will he be stuck as a gorilla? (You probably know the answer to that) Chapter 32 Cassie quote:I felt myself shrink. Rachel's elephant back began to grow and grow, spreading out from me like some heaving, wobbling gray blanket. So things got serious all of a sudden. Epicurius fucked around with this message at 00:40 on Aug 23, 2020 |
# ? Aug 23, 2020 00:38 |
Sorry, but this is proof positive that the multi narrator is The Best, because now we fully understand and appreciate why a gorilla crashed a truck into an elephant.
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# ? Aug 23, 2020 00:58 |
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Megmorphs Book 1, Chapter 33quote:I watched it all in the wavering, shimmering hologram. So we're seeing the same scene again from Ax's perspective. quote:My cage wall became opaque. I was alone again, unable to see out. I was left to imagine the fate of my human friends. I have never felt more worthless. More powerless. Typical Andalite arrogance!, Visser Three undoubtedly would have said if he were there. quote:I reached for the flea. Easier said than done. It hopped away. I found it again. Again it escaped. On the third try, I caught it. So some interesting hints about Andalite biology there....two hearts, can jump their own height, and so on, and Ax's escape was clever. Still, I can't help but feel this would be a shorter and better book if there was less "Show us the event from one perspective. Now show us the same event from another." Don't get me wrong. That can be good storytelling. Seeing the same event from multiple points of view can give you a deeper understanding of it, can reflect the narrator's biases, can be a good source for dramatic irony, when one character misunderstand's another's actions, and so on. Too much of this, though, is just showing us the even without analysis from the characters, and we're not really being told different things. I mean, I guess we know now that Visser Three is sending Yeerks to guard Rachel until she transforms back, but...There's just a real lack of something in the story, as much as I want to like it. Chapter 34 Marco quote:Despite the fact we had kind of figured out that the dust creature wasn't actually trying to eat us, I was still slightly worried as it wrapped me up out of the ditch and carried me away. Presumably who Ax is on. quote:Finally - and this was the worst part - instead of either Captain Kirk or Captain Picard, there was Visser Three. What I've been saying,.... quote:I felt a surge of hope. Ax was alive! I don't know why, but whenever I hear the Hork-Bajir talk, I always think about that one Hork-Bajir Controller who spoke for Visser One who spoke perfectly. quote:But Visser Three had already noticed. It would have been impossible not to. The Veleek was going totally tornado! A tornado with sharp teeth and slashing blades. Anything that wasn't bolted down was flying around the bridge. I don't think I've mentioned it before, but I do really like Marco and Ax together. They make a good team.
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 00:40 |
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Of course Marco and Ax go well together, they're the two best characters in the series and they form a perfect straight man/funny man duo.
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 01:27 |
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Yeah, that was a fun chapter. Incidentally, do we ever find our why Visser One's hork-bajir spoke English perfectly? (Is it attributable in some way to V3 being a terrible boss? Of course it is.)
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 01:49 |
Tree Bucket posted:Yeah, that was a fun chapter. Visser One is smart as all gently caress and sees the value in having her underlings speak human languages.
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 01:59 |
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Maybe she forces them to rotate, so they don't get attached to their hosts
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 04:25 |
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SirSamVimes posted:Of course Marco and Ax go well together, they're the two best characters in the series and they form a perfect straight man/funny man duo. I think my favourite mission of theirs is the disastrous attempt to recover the blue box from David's house.
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# ? Aug 24, 2020 04:31 |
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Megamorths 1-Chapter 35 Ax quote:I morphed out slowly. I had no intention of going all the way. My plan depended on my remaining a flea. Ax figured out the things weakness. Now they just have to not die. Sucks they can't just turn into animals with wings or something. Chapter 36 Rachel quote:The truck hit my back right leg. It must have shattered the bone, because the pain was incredible. So Rachel is getting her memory back, quote:<I can't stand up,> I told Cassie. <The elephant's leg is broken. I'm morphing back to human> Maybe I'm missing something, but aren't they still being monitored by the Bug Fighters? So can't they see them transform? quote:"Why didn't the dust beast attack us?" I wondered, as soon as my mouth could form speech. I guess that sort of answers that, but still, it's quite the coincidence. quote:"Cassie, I don't remember," I said. "Can we morph again so quickly?" Talk about timing. quote:Cassie blew past him. Look up? Chapter 37 Marco quote:<Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhh!> I like that. And people think Ax doesn't have a sense of humor. quote:Now, the problem we had was a simple one: You can't morph from one animal into another. I love those two. In case anyone is curious, this is an osprey, aka a sea hawk. And this is a harrier
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# ? Aug 25, 2020 01:28 |
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Living near ospreys I can confirm I'd freeze if one dive-bombed me
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# ? Aug 25, 2020 03:58 |
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The Marco and Ax stuff in the Yeerk ship was cool.
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# ? Aug 25, 2020 06:24 |
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Megamorphs 1, Chapter 38 Jake quote:We spent a bad night, Cassie and Rachel and I. Cassie and I went to our homes. Rachel spent the night at Cassie's house, because otherwise she'd have had to explain to her mom why she wasn't at gymnastics camp. Poor Jake. quote:The next thing I knew . . . I can't help but think Marco is downplaying his negotiation skills here, as Jake ALREADY had to clean the garage as a term of his grounding. Which means Marco was able to get him out of out of the house in exchange for Jake doing what he had to do anyway.. quote:"Me? Help clean the garage? As if." The team's back, as is, apparently, Rachel's memory, for some reason. Chapter 39 Cassie quote:<I can't believe you guys were doing all this while I was sleeping!> Tobias raged. <Playing tag with some dust monster from Saturn? Rachel having amnesia till Marco plowed into her with a truck? Escaping from Visser Three's Blade ship? And I'm sleeping the entire time? No way! I missed all the fun.> Tobias is as annoyed as I am that he's not in this book. quote:"You're the only one who can't morph," Jake said matter-of-factly. "So the Veleek isn't interested. Lucky you." It's always a good thing to do something because you're consumed by guilt. That leads to you making smart decisions. Chapter 40 Tobias quote:I caught a beautiful thermal rising up from the cliffs along the ocean. Just perfect! I spread my wings and felt the warm updraft grab me. It was like being fired out of a slingshot. I rose and rose and circled high above the ocean. I needed all the altitude I could get. Now, as you can see, Tobias is taking advantage of one of the three chapters in this book he has to complain he's not in the book more. quote:Normally a red-tailed hawk is not a water bird. We don't fly that well over water, because over water you don't get thermals. But I was way, way up, and with a little luck I could stay aloft long enough to find what I was looking for. (It's not Jesus Whale, unfortunately.)
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 00:21 |
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This just makes me wonder why they didn't acquire Jesus whale at the time.
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 01:54 |
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CidGregor posted:This just makes me wonder why they didn't acquire Jesus whale at the time. Yeah if I was them I would be acquiring every animal I came across and keeping some sort of list. I know we get into why that might not be a great idea in book 12 but I feel like the odds are low that I'd be allergic to the morph and have to get rid of it. I guess the kids don't know if there's a limit to how many morphs they can hold though. I don't even remember if that issue specifically gets addressed at any point.
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 02:07 |
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one morph per book guys cmon
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 03:13 |
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They did wonder if there was a limit to the number of animals to acquire at some point, but they probably should have asked Ax about it after he joined.quote:<Come stand over here, Marco,> Tobias said. <Stand under my branch.> The lines that stick with you... it's been close to twenty years since I've read this. I didn't remember a single thing about it. I did remember Marco driving after the fact. But the sentence before this, "stand under my branch" just popped right back into my head.
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 06:31 |
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Rochallor posted:They did wonder if there was a limit to the number of animals to acquire at some point, but they probably should have asked Ax about it after he joined. Yeah, it's been like that for me, too. I didn't really remember this book, but when the creature showed up I remembered bits and pieces, that it was a swarm of insects right away, and then something about morphing back and forth in a chase to draw its attention. But the one thing that always stuck with me from this book (I didn't even remember it was from this book; I thought it would show up earlier) was the pool party and its added backstory for Marco and the chocolate bar. Which just cemented how dumb Marco was to me
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 09:04 |
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Rochallor posted:They did wonder if there was a limit to the number of animals to acquire at some point, but they probably should have asked Ax about it after he joined. I learned all I know about thermals from these books
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# ? Aug 26, 2020 17:19 |
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Megamorphs 1-Chapter 41 Cassie quote:I'm just saying there are people who should be lying out on the beach, and there are people who shouldn't be," Marco said. "Do you see fat hairy old guys in Speedos on Baywatch? No. No. On Baywatch they have a law against it. David Hasselhoff kicks anybody off the beach who isn't good-looking. We need the Hasselhoff law here. That's all I'm saying." Awww. Happy little sociopath. quote:<Let's go find this whale!> Rachel said. More magic whale stuff. quote:He kept moving, not really caring whether we were there or not. The Veleek kept pace above us, not able to attack, but not drawn off, either. Chapter 42 Tobias quote:It was not my favorite kind of flying. Hawks are not like geese. We can't just power-fly, hour after hour. Personally, I don't know how geese do it. Let me tell you about hawks and their need for thermals.... quote:<Tobias?> Good advice for living, there, whether you're hawk or human.. quote:<Yeah. I guess that's true. Listen, Tobias, if I don't make it. . .> I really like the "It's amazing how people can just not know themselves at all" line. Ok, I'm ending this here. We have two more chapters and then we'll be done with the book. So we'll wrap this up tomorrow. I have some thoughts about the book, and I'm sure some of you do too.
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# ? Aug 27, 2020 00:14 |
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I think this book is an interesting experiment. Obviously a lot of the new things they were trying out fell a little flat. I’ll look forward to seeing how the character perspective switching is handled in future Megamorphs books, and whether they use it to better effect. I remember loving #2, excited to see how that holds up when we get there. But it wasn’t all bad — like others there were a few lines (mostly humorous) I instantly remembered, and the sense of awe at the size and mystery of the Veleek worked pretty well. If nothing else, it was likely good practice for writing the longer and less formulaic Chronicles books, which were great.
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# ? Aug 27, 2020 18:58 |
Thanks for posting this, these books have been such a blast from the past. I think I ended up fading out in the 20s, though I think I was also aging out too towards longer books. It's funny what you do and don't remember from these things, I remember most of the andalite and hork-bajir chronicles, but the last main one had something to do with oatmeal I think? I'm not positive but I remember it being a bit strange at the time, being a bit out of place but not sure why.
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# ? Aug 27, 2020 21:24 |
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Only the instant oatmeal, and only the maple and ginger flavor
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# ? Aug 27, 2020 22:45 |
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Megamorphs Book 1-Chapter 43 Cassie quote:I fell. Almost blind, with roach's eyes, I fell. So you see Cassie's big plan here....the Veleek's two weaknesses are its inability to lift very heavy things and water. So, combine the two..... Chapter 44 Rachel quote:At first I couldn't see her. But then, the cockroach grew and became larger. I could see her as a dot, way, way up in the sky. So, we're done It's been a long one, and thanks for your patience. I think I've expressed the reasons I don't care for this book, and I don't feel the need to go over them again now. So, instead, I wanted to talk about a few of the things I liked about the book and stuff I think it does right. First, and maybe this isn't a big thing, but after however many books, we actually get to hear Ax narrate a few chapters. And that's a joy to see. Second, Marco and Ax are adorable together. Third, the Veleek is actually, I think, a pretty cool idea for a monster. It strikes directl;y at the Animorph's strengths. Fourth, Marco driving. Fifth, the beginning of followup to the whole smash the Kandrona plan, with the crazy lady in the woods terrified of the Yeerks. In some ways, it was good to see that even the Animorphs' successes could have negative consequences. Sixth, the action was pretty frenetic there for a while with the animorphs all morphing and demorphing to lead the Veleek on a wild goose chase Seventh, Chapman at the mall and the Yeerk underlings complaining about Visser Three's new obsession. Eighth, the Animorphs's final plan to defeat the Veleek Anyway, that was the first Megamorphs. I realize I never showed you the cover, so here it is now: Tomorrow, we start Book 8, "The Alien", which I liked, and I think you'll like too.
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# ? Aug 28, 2020 00:10 |
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# ? May 25, 2024 09:46 |
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One obvious flaw, compared to the later three Megamorph books, is that this has a pretty stock monster of the week plot. The other three have "event" plots that benefit from multiple perspectives and more space, but you could retool this book to be from a single perspective without many changes to the plot.
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# ? Aug 28, 2020 01:22 |