Book Review: Urshurak

Book Review: 'Urshurak' by The Brothers Hildebrandt and Jerry Nichols

3 / 5 Stars

In December 1979 I decided, as a Christmas present to myself, to get Urshurak (406 pp, Bantam Books, September 1979). It's hard to imagine this 40 years later, but at the time, Urshurak was a big deal. 

Back in those days, when you went to the 'fantasy' section of Waldenbooks, you saw The Lord of the Rings (LOTR), some Conan titles, Stephen R. Donaldson's Thomas Covenant books, and that was pretty much it. 

Urshurak, with its 16 full-color plates and 80 black-and-white drawings, signaled an effort by Bantam Books to take the genre seriously both in terms of marketing and book design.

Illustration from Urshurak used for a 1995 Bros. Hldebrandt trading card

The story goes that the Brothers Hildebrandt conceived of the project as a film treatment, and when that fell through, arranged with editor Ian Summers to incorporate their storyboards into a novel. 

Unsurprisingly, Urshurak borrows quite heavily from LOTR, which by '79 had become synonymous with the Hildebrandts due to the success of their Tolkein calendars. Many of the characters and settings in Urshurak are counterparts to those from LOTR, and the plot, as well, is derivative of Tolkein's work. Signifying an awareness of more Inclusive sensibilities, as well as an eye towards casting a variety of actors, Urshurak adds a female (the Amazon Zyra) and two black men (Ali Ben Kara, Shandor the Wizard) to the Fellowship, along with the standard-issue Ranger, Dwarves, and Elves.

Illustration from Urshurak used for a 1995 Bros. Hldebrandt trading card

After re-reading the novel for the first time in 40 years, I have to say that the narrative, which necessarily has a stripped-down, condensed character (it's recapitulating LOTR within the span of 406 pages), is passable. What gives the novel three stars is its illustrations, which, even in an era when digitally-composed fantasy art is a pervasive feature of the genre, remain pleasing in their bright colors and composition.

(I was unwilling to risk cracking the binding of my copy of Urshurak to make scans of the artwork; to see the art, I direct you to this Blog Post).

Advertisement for Captain Company, 1994, June 1980

Summing up, looking at Urshurak after the passage of 40 years it's best regarded as a progenitor of the Young Adult lineage of fantasy novels that is currently exemplified by the 'Harry Potter' and 'Golden Compass' franchises. I venture to say that kids who like those books likely will find Urshurak an entertaining read. In that spirit, I am retaining my copy of the book to bestow to my nephews, in another 8 years.........

Dirty White Boy

Dirty White Boy
by Foreigner
Fall 1979

As December 1979 unfurled there was a sense of relief in the air that the year, and indeed the entire decade, was ending. 

1979 had seen an oil shortage in the Summer that had further disrupted an already fragile U.S. economy, and the Iran hostage crisis of early November further had contributed to the feeling that the country had been going through a decided rough patch.

If you turned on the radio you were sure to hear Styx's 'Babe'. It was in Heavy Rotation and impossible to escape, the quintessential escapist song about love getting you through the hard times, as the decade dwindled away.

Luckily, Foreigner's 'Dirty White Boy' was still getting airplay and its hard rockin' served as a useful antidote to the insipidity of 'Babe'.

It's one of those classic rock songs from the 70s that sounds as good today as it did back then. It has a tongue-in-cheek tenor to it that likely wouldn't be detected by contemporary listeners, who no doubt are shocked by the cover art of the album Head Games. 

A great reminiscence of the album from the perspective of a thirteen year-old fan is available here.

Hey baby if you're feelin' down I know what's good for you all day Are you worried what your friends see Will it ruin your reputation lovin' me Cause I'm a dirty white boy, yeah A dirty white boy A dirty white boy Don't drive no big black car Don't like no Hollywood Movie Star You want me to be true to you Don't give a damn what I do to you I'm just a dirty white boy Dirty white boy Dirty white boy Dirty white boy Well I'm a dirty white boy Dirty white boy Dirty white boy Dirty white boy I've been in trouble since I don't know when I'm in trouble now and I know somehow I'll find trouble again I'm a loner but I'm never alone Every night I get one step closer to the danger zone Cause I'm a dirty white boy Dirty white boy Dirty white boy I'm a dirty white boy Dirty white boy C'mon c'mon boy White boy I'm a dirty white boy Dirty White boy Well I'm a dirty white boy Yeah I'm a dirty white boy Dirty white boy Yeah!!

Book Review: The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 6

Book Review: 'The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 6', edited by Lin Carter

3 / 5 Stars

'The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 6' (187 pp) was published in November 1980. The cover art is by Josh Kirby. This is DAW Book No. 410.

All of the entries in this anthology first saw publication in 1979, often in the pages of other anthologies (such as the Swords Against Darkness series), and sf digests and magazines.

My capsule reviews of the contents:

In his Introduction, editor Carter remarks on the steady rise in the number of paperbacks dedicated to fantasy, and how this signals a favorable future for the genre.

Garden of Blood, by Roger Zelazny: Dilvish the Damned and his talking horse 'Black' confront a long-ago atrocity brought back to life. Nasty little acts of violence give this sword-and-sorcery tale sufficient bite to make it one of the better entries in this volume. 

The Character Assassin, by Paul H. Cook: an aspiring writer has arguments with one of his characters, the odious Faraday, who can assume a material reality just so he can torment his creator. This story is not fantasy, but apparently had a 'literary' quality that led editor Carter to include it. It's one of the worst stories in the anthology.

The Things that are Gods, by John Brunner: The Traveler is Black must deal with a witch whose desire for power endangers the village of Stanguray.

The few Traveler in Black stories I've attempted to read struck me as pretty awful, and this novelette is no exception. In main part, its awfulness is due to Brunner's attempts to frame the story as 'literary' by the use of an opaque, elliptical prose that - presumably - leads less gifted critics to conclude that there is Something Profound going on. Here's an example of such writing from 'Things':

The granting of certain wishes formed an essential element in the conditions circumscribing him.......though it was true that the consequences of former wishes were gradually limiting the previous totality of possibilities. Some now were categorically unimplementable.

But even as he muttered formal confirmation- 'As you wish, so be it !' - he knew one thing beyond a peradventure.

This was not one of those.

Wading through this material was not easy......... 'The Things that are Gods' is another dud of an entry.

Zurvan's Saint, by Grail Undwin: slight fable about a priest enjoying a sojourn in a Celtic territory.

Perfidious Amber, by Tanith Lee: one of two entries in this anthology by Lee. In this entry, her recurring character Cyrion is drawn into a domestic melodrama involving a cursed ring. A competent, if not overly remarkable, tale from Lee. 

The Mer She, by Fritz Leiber: in his Introduction to this story, editor Carter exclaims that Leiber is '.....probably the finest single fantasy writer living.' Well, that's one way to ingratiate yourself........

This is a 'Fafhrd and Gray Mouser' tale. The Mouser is aboard a ship loaded with merchandise, sailing across the Outer Sea for Salt Haven, safe harbor, and home. Trouble ensues when a witch is found stowed away in a chest of fine linens..........

Even by the standards of 1979, the year this story was written, there is an old-man pervert-creepiness to 'Mer She', as Leiber almost salivates onto the page in describing the nude body of the thirteen year-old stowaway, and the Mouser's involved practice of tying the 'minx' up with fine scarves, before ravishing her in his cramped cabin.  

The story avoids the worst excesses of Leiber's fondness for pulp prose - the adjective 'yellowly' does slip in early on - but this story stands more as a testament to the non-Woke psychology of Ye Olde Tyme Fantasy Writers, than as one of 1979's best stories.

Demon of the Snows, by Lin Carter: a reasonably decent Thongor story from Carter.

The Pavilion Where All Times Meet, by Jayge Carr (the pseudonym of Margery Krueger): a sorceress coerces a man who cannot remember his past, to accompany her on a trek to a desert ruin. This tale has a downbeat tenor that makes its initial pages interesting, but the denouement doesn't hold up that well.

Cryptically Yours, by Brian Lumley: written in the unusual style of an epistolary exchange, this tale is about elderly wizards confronting a conspiracy that seeks to have them all eliminated. Clever, inventive, and one of the best entries in the anthology.

Red as Blood, by Tanith Lee: the other entry by Lee. This is her 'inaugural' retelling of an old fairy tale, a sub-genre Lee went on to work into the 1983 anthology Red as Blood, or Tales from the Sisters Grimmer. 'Red as Blood' recasts Snow White as a malevolent Goth Girl.....?! It's a contest to see if Lee's poetic prose can induce the reader to soldier on, even as the absence of any real plot becomes more evident with each succeeding paragraph......I called the contest a draw.

Sandmagic, by Orson Scott Card: Cer seeks vengeance on the race of the Nefyrre, even if it costs him his soul. Both offbeat, and downbeat, another of the better entries in the anthology.

Summing up, 'The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 6' is yet another DAW anthology that had its share of mediocre entries, along with some more worthwhile material. If you can find a copy for under $10, then it's worth picking up.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture premiere

Star Trek: The Motion Picture
premiere, Washington DC
December 6, 1979

On December 6, 1979, the movie Star Trek: The Motion Picture held its premiere in Washington, DC. 

The film had a very troubled developmental history, but Paramount was hopeful that nonetheless, the Trekkies would turn out en mass to see to the film, and by so doing bring in revenues equivalent to those being enjoyed by 20th Century Fox from Star Wars and Alien.

I saw Star Trek: The Motion Picture about a month after it premiered. By then, word had percolated around town that the film was something of a dud, so I wasn't too disappointed with it. Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan (1982) was markedly better.

Warrior magazine 1983 featuring Axel Pressbutton

Warrior magazine
issues 15 and 16
November - December 1983

It's surprising what you can find sometimes when you step into the smaller record and book shops.

Last summer, when I was in Horseheads, New York I stopped into a little record and book shop and saw, on a table in the back of the store, two issues of the UK comic book Warrior.

Warrior was founded by UK pop culture / comics mover and shaker Dez Skinn. It lasted for 26 issues, from March 1982 to January 1985. It was a seminal influence on comics in the UK, offering a showcase for what could come to be major talents: such Alan Moore, Alan Davis, Dave Gibbons, Brian Bolland, and John Bolland, among others.

My scans of some of the pages from these two issues should provide an idea of the layout of the magazine and its featured comics.

Since it's now December, I thought I would post an entire comic from Warrior No. 16: 'Christmas on Depravity', which first saw print in 1981 in the UK weekly magazine Sounds. 

'Christmas' features the homicidal cyborg 'Axel Pressbutton', a legendary figure in the UK comics scene.

Created in 1979 by Steve Moore and Alan Moore, Axel Pressbutton was sort of a British take on a US 'underground comix' strip. His adventures were republished in the U.S. in the mid-80s by Eclipse Comics.

'Christmas on Depravity' melds the comix art style (apparently Alan Moore illustrated this episode ?!) with a warped sensibility that seems uniquely British........................

A Matter of Vengeance from Epic Illustrated

A Matter of Vengeance
by Archie Goodwin (story) and Rich Buckler (art)
from Epic Illustrated (Marvel)
No. 29, April 1985

The striking cover painting for this April, 1985 issue of Epic Illustrated was completed by Steve Hickman in 1982. According to Epic's editor Archie Goodwin, the decision to use the painting for the cover of the April issue was paired with a decision to have an interior comic story accompanying the art. 

Hickman was unable to provide the story, so Goodwin hastily put together a plot, and enlisted veteran illustrator Rich Buckler to provide the artwork.

Showing that good things can come from basing a story on art (rather than art on a story), 'A Matter of Vengeance', which features manimals in a sword-and-sorcery setting, was one of the better comics to run in Epic Illustrated. I've posted the story in its entirety below. 

[Note that the ink-and-wash technique Buckler used was reproduced poorly in the printed magazine; I've had to tinker with my scans of the pages to bring out the details of his work.]

Frost and Fire: DC Science Fiction Graphic Novel

Frost and Fire
by Ray Bradbury
adaptation by Klaus Johnson
DC Science Fiction Graphic Novel No. 3
1985

For its third 'Science Fiction Graphic Novel', DC Comics adapted a 1946 short story, originally titled 'The Creatures that Time Forgot', by Ray Bradbury. 

Klaus Johnson was assigned to write and illustrate the graphic novel.

Without disclosing any spoilers, the premise of Bradbury's story is that a colony of Terrans has become stranded on a planet where time is speeded up and the human lifespan is only eight days in length. Winter and Summer - the Frost and Fire of the title - come as quickly as dawn and night.

Red-haired Sim grows up questioning this state of affairs, and the passivity of his tribe in the face of an ecology that renders them little better off than the flowers that bloom and die within the space of a single day. 

When he reaches adulthood, Sim - accompanied by his friend Lyte - sets off on a race against time to discover the truth behind rumors of possible salvation..........salvation in the badlands where the cliff-dwellers rain stones on interlopers, and from where no one ever has returned.............

This is not one of the better Science Fiction Graphic Novels released by DC. Johnson's artwork has a sketchy, hasty quality that fails to hold up well under the murky color separations in use back in 1985 comics printings.

As far as the story is concerned: as with most (all ?) of Bradbury's sci-fi tales, the scientific rationale underpinning the narrative is an afterthought, a simplistic fulcrum around which the story's drama unfolds. Readers hoping for a 'hard' sf narrative along the lines of a Hal Clement adventure will not find it in 'Frost and Fire'.

The verdict ? While some of the DC Science Fiction Graphic Novels are worth searching out, this one is not. It's strictly for those interested in completing their collections.

Book Review: The Leaves of Time

Book Review: 'The Leaves of Time' by Neal Barrett, Jr.

1 / 5 Stars

'The Leaves of Time' (205 pp) was published by Lancer Books in 1971.

Let me state at the outset: the best thing about this book is its cover, a brilliant piece of psychedelic art by the gifted New Zealand artist Mike Hinge (1931 -  2003).

Information about Mike Hinge is available at the Onyx Cube blog.

'Leaves' has an interesting premise: in the aftermath of a battle against a race of ruthless aliens known as the Gorgons, soldier Jon DeHaviland finds himself teleported to an alternate Earth, and the city of Vriesborg, in the country of Vinaskaland.

Vinaskaland, which occupies the same territory as Canada does in 'our' world, is analogous to Sweden of the early 70s: progressive, peaceful, forward-thinking, and chock-full of gorgeous 'liberated' women..........!

Just when DeHaviland is thanking the Fates for bringing him to a Socialist Wonderland, he receives unwelcome news: a Gorgon has followed him through the teleporter.

Bred to be the ultimate supersoldier, the Gorgon is capable of assuming the form of any human, and its high IQ allows it to be fluent in any language, as well as learning the cultural and social mores of the society within which it has chosen to operate. 

Once secreted among its foes, the Gorgon can manipulate politics to its own advantage - and world war is one such advantage. The Gorgon will use the chaos of conflict to place itself - and its clones - as the sole survivors.

Can Jon DeHaviland convince his new allies that their world is in peril from a quasi-invincible alien invader ? Or will the Gorgon succeed in turning those allies against DeHaviland........and engineer the destruction of Vinaskaland ?

'Leaves' was Neal Barrett Jr.'s second novel and it shows an author who is learning his way. Rather than a sci-fi novel, it's more of a late 60s spy novel / thriller with a sci-fi backstory. 

The narrative suffers from slow pacing and an overemphasis on dialogue; many chapters consist of nothing but conversations between protagonist DeHaviland, and various collections of alt-Earthers who are skeptical about his story of an alien supersoldier. 

The sub-plots and intrigues that burden the main plot pay yet more allegiance to the spy-thriller model, and lead to a denouement that struck me as having too many contrivances ('mind control' being one of them) to be effective. 

Summing up, I can only recommend 'The Leaves of Time' to Neal Barrett, Jr. completists.