The thousand autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell (not that one)

I had read Cloud Atlas, an earlier Booker-nominated novel by Mitchell.
Though I was slightly anxious about this book.
For starters, Cloud Atlas was a series of stories of a variety of genres and while Mitchell was clearly able to capture a variety of styles, at times they bordered on pastiches. And I seldom warmed to the characters.
But, no, this is an extraordinary book.
It depicts a Dutch East India Company settlement on the island of Dejima off Nagasaki, with the Dutch folk forbidden to step foot on any other Japanese land.
We see the culture clashes. Humorous misunderstandings as well as attempts to screw each other over.
We have seemingly ill-starred romance.
But it's fresh.
While the story is rooted in history and is inspired by real events, it almost feels like a fantasy novel, so alien does Dejima feel. This is meant as a compliment. And it's backed up that wonderfully mysterious title.
The title character, Jacob de Zoet, is a pastor's son and has been told by his fiancee's father to go and make his fortune in the east. So, unlike most of his compatriots on Dejima, he is not an out-and-out mercenary. He can be a bit holier-than-thou but he is a very sympathetic character to modern audiences. And, there is a rebellious streak as evidenced even in the early chapters by his smuggling scripture for his own personal use onto the island, in a time when Christianity was outlawed in Japan. That helps make him feel more human.

In many ways, it's a trilogy in one book with a strong story arc. An arc that twists and turns.
Also it's refreshing that the novel focuses on Dutch colonists. I've found myself reading too much historical fiction focussing on dodgy British colonial adventures, even if they're excellent like English Passengers.
We see the savagery and cruelty of the Dutch and Japanese and you know we'll go dark places though these are stunningly dark.
And yet, it's a very easy read. There's a lightness of touch but, good god, is it gripping.

Revamp : Thor

J. Michael Straczynski (JMS) has received a fair old amount of stick lately, particularly for starting two epic DC storylines and then bailing. I haven't read Grounded but the idea of a non-flying Superman reconnecting with America by walking across it reminds me very much of the crazy conditions imposed on Kevin Smith when he was working on a Superman film script in the 90s.

But JMS can create likeable characters that you can relate to as well as stories with depth.
Look at the start of his Amazing Spiderman run. It is a class above preceding writer Howard Mackie's material (though I also get the sense that JMS wasn't having to shoehorn in editorially mandated references to other characters/storylines)

When JMS took over Thor, the character had been out of use for three years, killed in the fan-fic-esque Norse god slaughter-thon that was Ragnarok.
Instead of just reviving all the gods and Asgard, JMS has Thor reappear in the sleepy town of Broxton, Oklahoma. This cuts away at some of the aloofness of the deity concept. Through vignettes we see the long-term residents' sense of wonder as they encounter the gods in town, especially when local lad Bill meets the enchanting Kelda in a run-down carpark. It also doesn't cheapen the Norse gods. We do see them in townhall meetings but we don't see them, say, take human jobs. When we see Hogun walking back from Texas, boar on his back, he refuses lifts as he tries to be Asgardian in this new framework.
There is almost a lyrical quality. (And a debt to Neil Gaiman's Sandman superficially at least)
Yes, there are pacing issues. That first issue has Thor in limbo wrestling with demons and not an awful lot happens. I bought it at the time but was underimpressed until reading the following issues a while later.
There is also litle interaction with the rest of the Marvel world in the first few issues bar a very personal fight with Iron Man. Whilst other characters' fans won't be brought into the book, this is wise as it enables Thor's new readers to learn their way through all the new (to them) characters as well as get to know the locals.
It is a refreshing more poetic take. I was particularly moved by the story of Thor's father Odin and its' theme of paternal responsibility, especially when you see the flashbacks to Odin succeeding his own father Bor.
JMS's dialogue is also mercifully free of the cod-Shakespeare that Thor has been associated with.
All told, it's a solid reimagining.

Revamp : Doctor Who

Ninth Doctor 

Eighth Doctor and Grace in
a cathedral-esque Tardis

I do love Doctor Who.
From reading this blog, you may have noticed this.
So with all the revamping elsewhere, I thought I would cast my mind back to the two relaunches of the show.
As much as I adore all the mythology, continuity and campness, I kind of knew they would have to strip back. You don't want to swamp the audience.
This is what the 1996 Paul McGann TV movie ends up doing but in the wrong moments. Leaving aside the inherent risk of Fox deciding on commissioning a series based purely on ratings for a pilot (and therefore relying on the strength of marketing rather than audience reaction once they had seen the actual product), the show needed to hook in anyone who had channel surfed. So starting it by focussing on the outgoing middle aged Doctor in the Tardis - not a great choice. The interior looks lavish but we need to explore the Doctor from a newcomer's perspective. It would make more sense to introduce your actual lead actor. Which is one of the smart moves of the 2005 relaunch, featuring a Doctor who has just regenerated off screen.
Another oddity of Who 96 is how it shows (in shadow) the Master being executed for his crimes by the Daleks. We don't know what the crimes are or, crucially, how come the Daleks seem to have evolved legal structures of any sort. This not only disorientates fans, it'll throw casual viewers as well especially as the tinpots and their genocidal rampages are part of popular culture in their own right.
Compare to the 2005 episode Dalek in which we see just the one Dalek. We feel, wonderfully, pity for it as it is tied up in an underground base, the last of its kind. And we also feel fear as we see it take on Henry van Statten's private army, especially the scene in which it electrocutes a squad using sprinklers.
This wonderfully sells the menace of Daleks to the new audience. And we learn more about the Time War and why this Doctor seems so grim in comparison to most other regenerations.
The show needed to have a slight departure from the upper-middle class eccentricity associated with the Doctor. What made sense in the 60s and 70s would have seemed very out of place in 05, especially coming out of Eccleston's mouth. The ninth also looks hard and street-wise with his close cropped hair and leather jacket. It doesn't take too long to get used to, mostly because it suits the character.
McGann's Doctor though is a Greatest Hits, but with a tendency towards Tom Baker, jelly babies, big hair and all. He's charming but not distinctive. Maybe that would have come in time.
However, one crucial mis-step of Who 96 isn't the Doctor kissing or single-serving companion Grace swearing but the revelation that his mother is human. Me, I don't have a HUGE problem with it but I just feel that we don't need it to relate to the character. Nor does it help the greater mythology any. (I adored all the Gallifreyan-ness of the novels, especially the time-looms from which Time Lords were grown. I didn't expect it to be referenced on-air but some wiggle room would have been nice.) Tony Lee, in his Doctor Who : The Forgotten story for IDW, rather wonderfully has the tenth Doctor pass all this off as a practical joke his eighth incarnation played on the Master.
Which is something that actually the TV Movie gets to work. I loved Eric Roberts's portrayal. Very High Gallifrey and very evil. Desperate to survive. Though it's a shame that the story descends to having two aliens wrestling with each other.
For all the talk of the Doctor's half-human side, this isn't a very human production. You don't get much of a flavour of Grace or of the threat.
Whereas Rose's focus is, well, it's there in the title. We meet her loved ones, explore her world first. It's this that the original show needed at times not car chases through the streets of San Francisco.
It also helps that Rose (pays homage to /rips-off ) the Auton invasion of Ealing Broadway, one of the more iconic moments of early 70s Who. It tells the older/more knowledgeable members of the audience that the production crew know the show's history, how it works and that there'll be more of this. (It's also good that the program doesn't continue re-telling classic stories though bar those that originally appeared in audio/novel form).
Crucially that first season is written by fans, who gave their a-game. Who knew that if this failed, the show would be dead forever.
So slowly introduce us to your lead. And re-think. Give an edge by all means (the loss of Gallifrey and the Time War was a shock but explains the dourness - and most rumoured revivals had involved Gallifrey's destruction so it was nothing that new to fans and, besides, the novels had alreaady done it).
Though make sure you're adding, not subtracting from the franchise's appeal (hello 80s Biggles time-travel movie). Yes, you need to pick up new fans but don't assume that you'll forever have the good will of the old ones.

Revamp : the late 80s Superman

So, those of us that care (and some that don't) know that in September DC is relaunching their universe.
Books by new creative teams (mostly) and a general desire to freshen things up.
Clearly it's too early to tell if it'll be any good. Whether we have Heroes Reborn (dire) or Ultimates (somewhat better but not flawless).
Though it's made me think back to the DC of the late 80s. In the UK, London Editions reprinted recent DC stories, often with articles explaining characters and storylines. It was through these that I first learnt of Crisis On Infinite Earths. Crisis (just in case you didn't know) was an epic story arc that allowed DC to tweak characters and their history in an effort to make the comic universe more accessible.
And few were more tweaked about with than Superman.
You know what? It excited me to know that I was reading about a fairly new Superman. (I did find myself looking down the nose at some pre-Crisis material as, for Supes, most of that stuff now hadn't happened.)
DC had entrusted John Byrne with reinventing the Man of Steel. And his version was very much of its time. Luthor was a corporate crook with underworld connections as opposed to a mad scientist. The sillier trappings like the Fortress of Solitude and Krypto the superdog were gone. And Supes was not all powerful. Also stripped back was a lot of the Kryptonianess. Supergirl no longer existed. Clark was on his own. And all the various different non-green colours of Kryptonite (and their different effects) were gone too.
Probably one of the strongest ideas was the doing away with Clark's time as Superboy (seriously, any crook with a brain would compare Smallville phonebooks of the Superboy era with those from Metropolis - yeah, it would take a while then but the rewards would pay dividends.)
Another strong idea was having Superman and Batman not get on. The grudging respect they showed made more sense given their vastly different attitudes and approaches.
But possibly the most crucial change was the overall grounding of Clark in his humanity. Ma and Pa Kent were now still alive, allowing us to see his human side. (Some of my favourite scenes were Clark hanging out back home.) Yes, this was a powerful being but he was relatable. See the issue of Man Of Steel when Clark comes home after his first heroic feat, saving a space-plane. He is overcome by the public reaction. "They all wanted a piece of me, Ma".
Byrne and fellow writer Marv Wolfman had modelled a fair bit on the Christopher Reeves films, to be sure. Though the paring back paid dividends. We were allowed to discover a hero who whilst morally strong could fail. And that could make for interesting reading.
The first issue of anything that I definitely remember having is Superman 9. It features the Joker attacking Metropolis. The Joker-smiles on his gassed victims scared my 8 year-old self but what really terrified me was the Joker's response when ultimately asked why he'd attacked another city. "Why ever not?"
That isn't the best part of that issue. The best part is a back-up story featuring Luthor appearing in a diner 900 miles from Metropolis. This is small-scale evil. He asks his waitress if she wants to give up her life, her husband and come with him for a month. She has ten minutes to decide.
There's no super-heroics at all. Just a moral dilemma and a great character-piece.
It's the characterisation that makes this era.
At the same time, over in Adventures of Superman, Marv Wolfman and Jerry Ordway created two of the more interesting recent additions to the supporting cast. Cat Grant (a bolshy single mother colleague of Clark's, who had designs on him) and Jose Delgado. Yeah, Jose's got a bit of a stereotypical name but his introductory storyline was great. Gang Wars focussed on turf wars between gangs and Superman's realisation that this was a problem that couldn't be punched into submission. Jose eventually becomes Gangbuster in an effort to help police his neighbourhood. Which led to another issue that I adored, Adventures of Superman 437. There are two narrators, on facing pages. Lois Lane and Luthor. Lois is discussing her date with Jose and how it is interrupted by a hired thug called Combattor. Luthor (who has funded said thug) tells his dinner-date of a hypothetical fight between Combattor and Superman and how neither are really the good guys. It's narratively daring (for a comic) and I remember being shocked that Combattor crippled Jose. It also made me hate Luthor even more.
To conclude, yes, this brave new world of 1986 had a few mis-steps in its first 2-3 years but it entertained the hell out of my kiddy self. And took risks when doing it.

Doctor Who and another split season

Another week, another press release from the Dr Who office.
This time, as reported by the Guardian, the show next year will start in the autumn.
I kinda predicted this. There's a school of thought that the programme works best in the long winter nights. (My personal feeling is that the weather outside's completely irrelevant - I fell love with the show whilst having a break from playing about in 36 degree heat).
However what the BBC seems to be wanting to do is not air all of next season's episodes in 2012. And instead stagger it around Christmas.
Some folks think this helps make the books balance a little easier (the show ain't cheap after all). The BBC denies this and instead cite narrative reasons.
But whatever the cause, I wonder if this action'll hurt sales abroad. Won't it be more helpful for schedulers to have whole seasons rather than piecemeal ones? (Hence why most UK broadcasters, Sky excepted, wait for an American import to complete its season rather than showing it close to transmission in case they have to have breaks for Labor Day, Christmas etc.)
I guess we'll see what the UK ratings are like this autumn.....

Graham Linehan v the Today programme

Graham Linehan's media profile has been steadily increasing recently.
I was surprised but delighted to see him on BBC 1's Have I Got News For You.
This week just gone, the Father Ted and IT Crowd creator has complained about his treatment by Radio 4's Today programme.
He believed that they wanted him to discuss the difficulties of transferring Ealing comedy film classic The Ladykillers to stage. (And also allow him to plug said West End production).
Instead it became what he feels to have been an ambush. Here's his version of events and here's the audio.
He has claimed it happens all too often on Today.
Sure for the politicians, bankers and other bogeymen, yes.
Though I haven't heard it happen too often to civilians.
Listening to the debate, yes, Justin Webb, the presenter is a tiny bit confrontational. And he does get it back on track once Linehan expresses his displeasure.
And Michael Billington (the Guardian critic) does have a point that there's an awful lot of West End shows based on movies. (Also, it's an interesting theory that The Ladykillers' gang of crooks are an analogy for the Labour post-war government)

As for the political debates on Today, well they sometimes talk over each other. But Today hasn't reached the aggressive heights of news parody The Day Today
Nor is the show a home to the rigid partisan shouting matches of say Crossfire, the show memorably demolished by Jon Stewart whilst on it.  Within a few months, Crossfire was dead (though last time I checked in on American news TV, Crossfire's spirit could still be felt).
But, this. Well what happened to Linehan must have been awkward and upsetting but it ain't a Crossfire moment.
Maybe Michael Billington just needed to go lighter on Linehan and his play. Maybe it was just that.
But I don't think this should change Today.

DC's revamp and the Oracle question

So DC are relaunching their universe.
This was always going to bring in some changes.
Most probably Clark Kent becoming unmarried (kinda like Spidey but without the whole deal with the devil).
Bruce Wayne being the sole Batman wasn't a surprise. Sad but not a surprise.
Though I was stunned by Oracle-gate.
In the 80s Barbara Gordon was shot by the Joker, crippling her. Whilst this meant she couldn't be Batgirl anymore, it wasn't the end of her as a character. Instead she became a tactician, showing that wheelchair bound characters can be just as heroic. And also be romantic.

And far from a saint. As Oracle, Babs became a great character.
Yes, deaths get undone but there was no way Babs would suddenly get better. That would be too tacky.


Erm, well.
We've got a new Batgirl series starting in September, starring a Babs able to swing over rooftops and all that jazz.
At least it's being written by Gail Simone who did such a good job writing Oracle in Birds of Prey. And maybe it will be good.

Change will always upset some and geeks can be conservative with a small c. And change can be beneficial.

But this particular change doesn't seem the smartest of moves by DC, especially when they have publicly stated that they are trying to make their universe more diverse.

Doctor Who : A Good Man Goes To War

This is an exceptional season finale.
Last year's didn't stick the landing but, yeah, this delivers.
And going from some friends, it can be enjoyed without having seen much of this season.

And now we delve into

spoilers

Looking back it was obvious that River would be Rory and Amy's daughter.
I had kinda suspected for a while.
But the reveal was still enjoyable. (Sure, some people twigged as soon as we learnt the baby was called Melody. But I was too caught up to notice.)

Yeah, there wasn't much to the villains as yet. Evil Christian fanatics in the future has been done before (even in Doctor Who - Mark Gatiss's St. Anthony's Fire ).
And there wasn't anything distinguishing about this mob.
However the temporary supporting cast more than made up for it. I loved the idea of the Doctor calling in his debts. And the Silurian adventuress and her housekeeper girlfriend were wonderful. Even if they don't reappear on the show, they'll be in the spin-off books and audios. A lot.
Also this was the best use of the Sontarans since that mid 90s Doctor Who Magazine story Pureblood (it had an ideologically flamed war between cloned Sontarans and pure ones - very awesome).

And "Let's kill Hitler" is the best episode title ever. I assume it'll be about time loops rather than actual Nazis but, hey, that title had me in hysterics.

Yes, some of the red herrings regarding Melody's parentage and River's origins didn't make an awful lot of sense.
But this episode had to put a cap on this half of the season, answer mysteries and whet the appetite for the autumn, as well as entertain.
And it did all of that.

Kaiser Chiefs - The future is web-driven

So you are an indie band that has slipped off the radar.
Suppose you think that you need to reach beyond the 6music daytime crowd.
Do you go into the jungle? Appear on the lottery?
Or do something innovative.
Now I am not saying Ricky Wilson and the boys were consciously thinking of this but Kaiser Chiefs have managed to pull off a masterstroke.
They have made their new album, the awesomely titled The Future Is Medieval, completely customisable online. You can choose ten out of twenty tracks, the running order and the artwork.
It is also a darker sounding album than I expected (but I only really paid attention to the first two albums)
The website let's you listen to sizeable samples of each track and the site is quite lively as you would expect from them.
So go and have a mosey....
It'll probably be quite a commonplace practice before long but I don't think it'll often be done with as much panache.
And it's a very fitting step for a band that has been so much about fun and youth...

Flashpoint : DC's bold gamble

DC comics is currently going through one of its universe shaking storylines as is its wont.
To be honest, I was only paying a little bit of attention as it is an alternative universe story and those are a hard sell for me as I find it hard to care if the giant reset button is going to be pushed.
Which is slightly ironic given one part of DC's announcement yesterday.
They are apparently relaunching all their titles with an issue one. (I say apparently as I doubt they'll reset the numbering on Detective or Action Comics which have run uninterrupted since the 30s - Action is 8 years off an issue 1000)
This is said to boost sales. It certainly acts as a jump-on point to buyers in the store.
They are also reworking some if not all of the characters. Clearing out some of the clutter will help. It worked a treat for Wonder Woman and Superman in the 80s who were controversially but brilliantly reinvented. It hasn't been done on this sort of scale before though.
And you have to be so careful with this. Witness the varied attempts to relaunch Hawkman in the 80s/90s with vastly different interpretations, turning the concept into a bit of a mess. Also if you lose some developments, in a bid to simplify the saga, it reinforces the notion that DC resets all too often back to the 1970s. It removes any sense of growth and also puts off those who grew up with the next-generation heroes. For me, The Flash is Wally West, who was the 80s/90s incarnation, rather than Barry Allen who was, ahem, dead but recently revived (Barry always seemed to be a more interesting character dead than alive and I've yet to change my opinion on that).
And it'll be an absolute shame if Dick Grayson is stripped of his joint-Batman-hood. (That depends on the whim of current Bat-writer Grant Morrison).

Another announcement of note was the creators, or specifically what has been announced for Superman. That Morrison man again.
Why so thrilled? Morrison wrote All Star Superman, an out-of-continuity tale of Kal-El that was stunning in both spectacle and emotional power. You must go sample it on Comixology now.
I am waiting to see where they put Paul Cornell though... And Chris Roberson.
The biggest thing though is that new issues will be available to buy online on the same day they reach the store. This is a bold move. Great for consumers but damaging for retainers. Especially British ones given that digital is cheaper than paying for printed copies to be shipping over. It was only this year that UK retailers got issues on the same day as the states. DC govern and DC gaiety away.
Yes the convenience could increase sales.
But, crucially, the new issues need to be good and genuinely feel fresh.
Here's hoping....