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The Compass Rose, Vol. 1, No. 1, Summer 2000 |
Linda A. Malcor,
Aliso Viejo, CA
| CD | Fiction | Film |
| Nonfiction | Renaissance Faires | Video |
Note: Links within reviews take you to pages where you can purchase the item that is being discussed. A portion of the proceeds from purchases made through the Dragonlords Bookstore goes toward funding the official Mercedes Lackey fanclub, Queen's Own.
Bob Kanefsky presents fifteen parodies on this new CD. Of particular interest to Mercedes Lackey fans is "Threes: Take 3". Bob Kanefsky penned the words to this delightful parody of one of Tarma and Kethry's most infamous adventures (the one where Kethry makes a bandit appera to be a woman by way of revenge). You can preview the words at http://www.songworm.com/lyrics/songworm-parody/ThreesTake3.html.
Fans of Heather Alexander will be thrilled to hear her performing the vocals on "December of Cambreadth" and "Something's Under the Bedt". Former Tempest member, Jon Berger, contributes on several of the songs as well. Also, Star Trek fans will find themselves chuckling at several choice pieces that poke fun at the venerable science fiction franchise.
Sample tracks are available online in MP3 format at http://www.mp3.com/songworm. To order the CD visit Prometheus at http://www.prometheus-music.com/store.html or call 1-888-434-FILK.
The story of Herald Lavan Firestorm, Brightly Burning is one of Mercedes Lackey's best novels in recent years. In the course of the tale we get to see a tremendous amount of Haven outside the Palace walls, and we tour various neighborhoods of Valdemar's capitol city. We also find out about the merchants and craftspeople of Velgarth (Lackey's world).
Lackey seems to be paying close attention to input from fans in this offering from her acclaimed Heralds of Valdemar series. In the course of the tale, she answers many questions that have cropped up in fan forums. Her attention to details is phenomenal. One of the most fascinating scenes is an elaborate description of how the Gift of Firestarting works and how Heralds with the Gift are taught to use it.
The pacing through most of the book is good, but things get more than a little rushed toward the end. I found myself wishing that Lackey had chosen to turn the stand-alone volume into a duology, such as the Vows and Honor duology that she composed for Tarma and Kethry. I wanted to know more about the time Lavan spent as a Herald and about the people he met in the palace. For instance, the reigning king, Theran, is by far one of the most fascinating monarchs Lackey has created, yet he received extremely limited "stage time" in the course of the tale. Still, if you are a Lackey fan, this is definitely one that you will want to own in the hardcover version.
Hundreds of images from the "Golden Age of Comic Books", the 1930s and 1940s, adorn this hefty volume. Some of the covers are reproduced here for the first time. The book features the art of Jack Cole, Will Eisner, Bill Everett, Lou Fine, Jack Kirby and Alex Schomburg as well as many lesser known artists.
Goulart clearly states in his introduction that this work is essentially a picture book. That is a very accurate description. This is not a text to go to if you want to learn a lot about the history behind the art or read in-depth discussions of various styles or anything like that. Each of the fifteen subsections contains a rather brief overview of what you will find in it, and the volume is otherwise given over to presenting the art.
If you are a comic fanatic, this is definitely a text that you will want to add to your collection. If you are just getting into comics, however, you may want to preview a copy of the volume first or spend some time researching the topic before you tackle this book.
Lavishly illustrated with art from magazine and book covers as well as movie posters, this survey is definitely something every science fiction fan should think about purchasing. The text is a little lightweight on details and scholarship, but it makes for entertaining reading. And the reproductions of the artwork more than make up for the lack of real meat in the commentary.
This is not a book that you would want to turn to for research purposes. The index is sparse and missing some rather well-known names, such as Spider Robinson. Also, there is little in the way of referencing and bibliography. (There is about one page of addresses that readers can use to contact various publishers and roughly three pages of acknowledgement for the artwork, but nothing on the order of a bibliography.)
The author's purpose, though, is to present a visual history rather than a textual history of his topic, and this goal he meets admirably. The volume is well worth looking at and makes an excellent coffee table book.
This well-researched piece features a cast that includes Richard Harris, Oliver Reed and Derek Jacobi. The movie tells the story of a Roman general who began his career during the reign of Marcus Aurelius and who wound up as a gladiator under the reign of Commodus, Marcus Aurelius's son.
A word of advice: Leave everything you know about geography outside the door when you see this one. The way countries fit together, travel times, and all that simply don't work. Other than those blatant errors, though, the film is surprisingly good on its research in the portrayal of Rome during the Antonine period. Weapons and armor are particularly accurate. The movie does open with Marcus Aurelius in the wrong place on the Danube and fighting against the wrong tribes. Also, wheeled vehicles were not allowed on the streets of Rome during daylight hours. But only someone with an in-depth knowledge of the period would notice such trivial glitches. The costuming and set decoration are superb, and the skill with which ancient Rome is recreated is unparalleled in any other movie set in this time period.
The script is tightly crafted, although a few liberties were taken with history for no apparent reason. For instance, Commodus really was killed by a gladiator. Why the writers chose to change the details surrounding that event so drastically is a bit mystifying when the actual history would have worked quite nicely. Still, the story is engaging and works on a variety of levels. If you get the chance, do see it on a theater screen; much of the effect of the cinematography will probably be lost when the film is transferred to video format.
Reviewed by Janelle Crane, Palo Alto, CA
When someone thinks of a Renaissance Faire (and they hopefully know what one is), they think of the largest faire in your area. The only problem I have with this is that the large commercial faires are only just a small tibit of the world of Renaissance Faires. What most faire-ignornant people don't realize is that there are mulititudes of small- and medium-sized faires to enjoy that are often much closer and plenty cheaper. As I see it, large faires have the glamour, the hundreds of things to do, and lots of more stalls than the small faires. Even though I miss the huge swings or five stages that you find at big faires, small faires have their own special unique pleasures.
I think the biggest relief at a small faire is that everything is so much cheaper, and you can find really good deals. For instance, the Renaissance Pleasure Faire of Northern California (RPFN) costs $17.50 to get in at the gate. The latest faire I went to, the Pittsburg Scottish Renaissance Festival in California, was free to get into.
Small faires are exciting because they have a more personable atmosphere. Yet still, they don't have as many activites as the big faires. They may have jousting or fencing or archery, but do they have all three? No, the big faire does. The big faires seem to be just about making money and having everything so more people will come. I think small faires are more focused on just having a good time than trying to shove their feathered masks, chocolate covered strawberries, or royal feasts down the faire-goer's throats. I am not in a guild, however, and I am not a vendor, so I'm sure they must have different opinions. I just go to every faire I can, and I'm planning on joining a guild really soon.
I enjoy the small faires better than the big faires, but each small faire has it's querks. Some are really good, and some just plain stink sometimes. The Pittsburg faire had hardly any activites this year, and there were very few vendors. The thing that made it fun, which makes any faire fun, is the people there. I ended up hanging out with wonderful people all day, and I went home happy. Yet, my city friends who didn't go dressed up and just stood around all day were bored. In order to enjoy Renaissance Faires, one must play the part. That's what they're all about. Enjoying yourself while acting the part of a lord/merchant/lady/peasant/etc in the faire. Yes, I love big faires, but to get the whole experience and be able to talk like an expert, you must dress and act the part, but most importantly, you must visit your local small faire and enjoy the atmosphere (and the cheaper goods!).
An intelligent and hilarious spoof of scifi TV shows and fandom. If you've ever been to a Con, you must own this one. (You'll love it, even if you haven't seen scifi fandom up close and personal.) The basic premise is that the cast of a Star Trek-like, 1960s-style sci-fi TV series gets entangled with real aliens who have no concept of actiong and who think that episodes of the show are historical documents of real events.
Allen reportedly followed William Shatner around at a con when prepping for this role. Sigourney Weaver's Gwen DeMarco (Lieutenant Tawny Madison) is the perfect foil for Allen's Jason Nesmith (Commander Peter Quincy Taggart). Wonderful special effects round out this brilliantly written yarn, which features many excellent performances (particularly by Alan Rickman as Sir Alexander Dane/Doctor Lazarus). The film is accessible to audiences of all ages (My three-year-old son adores it as much as I do.). You'll find yourself quoting the dozens of memorable lines and wanting to watch this one over and over again.
The DVD version includes outtakes and a version of the movie recorded in the Thermian language.
VHS
VHS: Spanish Subtitles
DVD
DVD with Stereo
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