I stumbled across this book in a Science Fiction Book Club mailer and decided to give it a try.  Here is the description from the Science Fiction Book Club:

Ohio farm boy John Rayburn is in trouble after beating up the high-school bully. But his petty problems fade when his doppelgänger, Prime, appears with a device that lets him travel across worlds. For John, the lure of seeing another universe is too strong: he tries it out…and learns to his horror that the device only works one way—forward—and that Prime stole his life from him! Unable to return home, he settles in a new universe to try and fix the device.

As Prime sets out to cash in on inventions he’s stolen from other Earths—including the Rubik’s Cube—John’s attempts to lie low backfire spectacularly when he inadvertently introduces pinball to his new universe. Unfortunately, both actions draw the notice of other travelers, dangerous people who are exploiting worlds for their own nefarious purposes.

The 2009 novel was expanded from a novella that appeared in the April/May 2006 issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction.  The novella was nominated for Hugo Award for Best Novella, Nebula Award for Best Novella, Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award, and won the Asimov’s Readers Poll Award.

The book is a real page-turner.  Give it a try!

THE BOOK

DC Comics: The 75th Anniversary Poster Book contains 100 of the most important, most beautiful, and most bizarre DC Comics covers ever.  These oversized covers span from the classic Action Comics #1 (1938) to modern tales such as Batman: RIP (2008).  One of the coolest features of this book are the perforated pages.  These 11″ x 14″ covers are ready to be torn out and hung up anywhere you like!

The backside of each poster features another two covers (each about trading card size) that relate in someway to the poster.  So you really get 300 covers with this book!  Also on the backside is commentary about the cover, and often quotes from the artists themselves.

THE COVERS

The covers in this book run the gamut from iconic to outlandish.  Here you’ll find the first Silver Age appearance of the Justice Society in Justice League of America #21.  Just a few pages earlier were sinister snowmen invading the Earth in Strange Adventures #79.  Below are few of my favorite covers from this collection.  Please note the images below were not scanned from the poster book.  These images came from the Grand Comics Database.  The poster book is so large, I couldn’t fit it on my scanner.  The images in the poster book are much cleaner than these.

Below is a great shot of Batman! Very impressive cover design for 1939!

This Wonder Woman/Miss Santa Claus cover will help you get in the spirit!

The Challengers of the Unknown were so friggin’ cool!  Great cover!

This next one definitely falls in the “outlandish” category!

Ahhh… romance comics!  Always the most ridiculous, but hilarious, covers!

This next cover is seriously bizarre.

Here comes some breathtaking Neal Adams artwork!  Looks even better on a poster!

Nothing says “awesome 80s” like Perez’s New Teen Titans!

Such a clever Wonder Woman cover by Adam Hughes!

Up next are a couple Brian Bolland covers.  He is truly a master!

The book features some Vertigo titles, such as: Fables, Preacher, Y: The Last Man, Hellblazer, 100 Bullets, and more!

THE REVIEW

I simply adore this book!  It was love at first sight!  The cover design cleverly focuses on the insignias (rather than the faces) of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, proving just how iconic their heroic symbols are.  The oversized format provides a fantastic opportunity to admire this truly gorgeous artwork.  It’s evident the publisher labored over each cover to ensure the reproduction was sharp and the colors vivid. Did the book contain every one of my favorite DC covers?  No, however, it had many of my favorites along with tons of excellent ones I wouldn’t have thought to include.  Finally, the commentary on the reverse of each poster is entertaining and informative.  It really is a complete package.

I highly recommend this book to any fan of DC Comics or comic-related posters.  It’s well worth the money.  It’s not too late to pick up this gem for the geek on your Christmas shopping list.  Alternatively, wait for the after-Christmas sales and pick up a copy for yourself!

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My thanks to Quirk books for sending me a copy for review.

Here is the description from Wikipedia:

The Forever War (1974) is a science fiction novel by American author Joe Haldeman, telling the contemplative story of soldiers fighting an interstellar war between humanity and the enigmatic Tauran species. The pithy, insightful explorations of the inhumanity of war and of bureaucracy, and of the psychological effects resulting from time dilation space travel (a soldier returns home after centuries away), won the Nebula Award in 1975, and the Hugo and the Locus awards in 1976.

Inside the book are two pages of quotes praising this novel.  And I’m not talking podunk newspapers, these are big time names such as: William Gibson, Greg Bear, Cory Doctorow, Stephen King, and more.  It may be a little while until I can start on this book, but I’m really looking forward to it!

The novel stars the current Doctor (as portrayed by Matt Smith) and his companion Amy Pond (as portrayed by Karen Gillan).  The BBC has previously published hundreds of Doctor Who books, but they are making a big deal about this novel as it’s the first special release in a lengthier hardback format.  Here is the description of the book.

There are dark tides runing through the universe… Miggea – a star on the very edge of reality. The cusp between this universe and the next. A point where space-time has worn thin, and is in danger of collapsing… And the venue for the grand finals of the competition to win the fabled Arrow of Law. The Doctor and Amy have joined the Terraphiles – a group obsessed with all aspects of Earth’s history, and dedicated to re-enacting ancient sporting events. They are determined to win the Arrow. But just getting to Miggea proves tricky. Reality is collapsing, ships are disappearing, and Captain Cornelius and his pirates are looking for easy pickings. Even when they arrive, the Doctor and Amy’s troubles won’t be over. They have to find out who is so desperate to get the Arrow of Law that they will kill for it. And uncover the traitor on their own team. And win the contest fair and square. And, of course, they need to save the universe from total destruction.

I’m really looking forward to reading this novel!  This will be my first Michael Moorcock book.  I’m aware of his Elric and Jerry Cornelius fame, but I’ve never gotten around to reading one of his novels before.

CURRENT SERIES

Here are my favorite companions in preference order from the current television series:

1. Donna Noble
2. Rose Tyler – During the first season with Christopher Eccleston. She was mostly forgettable with Tennant, with the exception of “Doomsday”.
3. Amy Pond
4. Wilfred Mott (Donna’s granddad)
5. Lady Christina de Souza (from the “Planet of the Dead” special) – Admittedly she didn’t travel in the TARDIS, but she was super-cool and would have been a fantastic ongoing companion. I’m glad she got the flying bus.
6. Captain Jack Harkness
7. Rory Williams
8. Martha Jones – She had amazing promise in her first episode, but it never played out.
9. Mickey Smith
10. River Song – Counting her as a companion is questionable.  I really don’t care for this actress, so liking the character is difficult.

CLASSIC SERIES

Here are my top ten favorite companions from the classic series. There are nearly 30 classic series companions to choose from.  One character that would probably have been my top choice, but never actually traveled with the Doctor was Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart.  He was absolutely brilliant, but was never really a companion.

1. Sarah Jane Smith (3rd and 4th Doctor)
2. Ace (7th Doctor)
3. Jamie McCrimmon (2nd Doctor)
4. Romana II (4th Doctor)
5. Zoe Heriot (2nd Doctor)
6. K-9 (4th Doctor)
7. Harry Sullivan (4th Doctor)
8. Ian Chesterton (1st Doctor)
9. Jo Grant (3rd Doctor)
10. Tegan Jovanka (4th and 5th Doctor) – very annoying character, but I liked her anyway.

EXPANDED UNIVERSE

I’m probably one of the few people to care about this category. There have been around 80 companions in the various expanded universe stories (i.e. Big Finish audios and books; Doctor Who Magazine comic strip; original novels by Virgin, BBC, and Telos; other comic strips over the years, and more).  Here are two links to lists of expanded universe companions for reference:

• Wikipedia list of companions in Doctor Who spin-offs, including some biographical info.
• Wikipedia list of companions in Doctor Who spin-offs, less biographies and more of a list layout.

Here are my top ten favorite expanded universe companions:

1. Professor Bernice Summerfield (Virgin novels, DWM comic strips, her own novels and audios from Big Finish – 7th Doctor) – possibly the most fleshed out companion of all time.  She started off as a companion to the 7th Doctor, but ended up with her own line of books and audio dramas.
2. Charlotte “Charley” Pollard (Big Finish Audio – 8th Doctor & 6th Doctor)
3. Fitz Kreiner (BBC 8th Doctor novels)
4. Dr. Evelyn Smythe (Big Finish Audio – 6th Doctor)
5. Anji Kapoor (BBC 8th Doctor novels)
6. Erimem (Big Finish Audio – 5th Doctor)
7. Thomas Hector “Hex” Schofield (Big Finish Audio – 7th Doctor)
8. Lucie Miller (Big Finish Audio – 8th Doctor)
9. Samantha Jones (BBC 8th Doctor novels)
10. Izzy Sinclair (Doctor Who Magazine comic strip – 8th Doctor)

Honorable Mention: Wolsey the cat (Virgin novels – 7th Doctor)

Great topic! I really enjoyed the exercise of compiling these lists.  Who are your favorite Doctor Who companions?  Post your thoughts over on THE UNIQUE GEEK or comment here!  Let us know!

To give you an idea of how well McDevitt’s sci-fi is received, here are a couple excerpts from reviews:

The logical heir to Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke. – quote from Stephen King

McDevitt is now being compared, quite legitimately, to Arthur C. Clarke, and not only because he has a similar kind of grand vision of the human future among the stars. He also has characters with amiable, or not-so-amiable, quirks, who in the middle of deciphering the secrets of lost races take time to worry about where to get a good meal in the next town.

Jack McDevitt won the Philip K. Dick Award for his first novel, The Hercules Text, and the first UPC prize for his novella, “Ships in the Night.” He has been nominated for the Nebula and Hugo for his novella, “Time Travelers Never Die”, The Engines of God was an Arthur C. Clarke Award finalist and his novel, Ancient Shores, was a Nebula finalist in 1998.

Good, mature science fiction.

So what’s a Fandex you ask?  A Fandex is actually called “Fandex Family Field Guide”. It is an approximately 10″ long stack of full-color, heavy stock, double-sided, die-cut cards.  They resemble bookmarks to some extent. This stack of cards is fastened together with a plastic bolt which serves as a pivot point.  This allows the cards to be fanned out so you can see the pictures at the top of each card and pick the one you would like to look at.  The top of each Fandex card has a large picture of the featured subject, and the card is cut around that particular shape. The cards state interesting information on each subject on both sides of the card.  Typically Fandex focuses on historical or factual subject matter (like famous painters or North American birds).  This particular one focuses on the heroes and villains of DC Comics.

Below is a shot of the Fandex spread out. Click to enlarge.

This field guide starts off with a pleasant introduction from Dan DiDio, Co-Publisher of DC Comics.  From there it jumps into the meat of the Fandex.  While the guide only contains 75 different entries, they’ve managed to squeeze in many more characters than that.  They accomplished this by listing teams and by combining heroic legacies onto a single card. For example, the Robin card covers the five different people to carry the mantle of Robin – Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Stephanie Brown, and Damian Wayne.

I really like the way they chose to order the characters.  Rather than the usual A-Z, they clumped together characters by which “family” they belong to.  The first batch of characters are all Batman-related (Batman, Batwoman, Scarecrow, Harley Quinn, etc), the second batch are all Superman-related (Superman, Lois Lane, Brainiac, General Zod, etc), and the third batch are all Wonder Woman-related (Wonder Woman, Hippolyta, Cheetah, Ares, etc).  Just those three “families” compose the first half of the Fandex.  The second half starts out with many of the remaining JLA members and their related characters, such as Aquaman and Black Manta.  Then they delve into the Fourth World, the JSA, the Marvel Family, the Legion of Super-heroes, the Teen Titans, some random characters, and ending with the Monitors.  All-in-all a very impressive roster of characters covered.  If you have a hard time finding your favorite character, there is an index in the back to help.

All the artwork is pre-existing from various comics, but they did an excellent job selecting some of the best – Gary Frank’s Superman, Brian Bolland’s Joker, Terry Dodson’s Wonder Woman, Art Adams’ Gorilla Grodd, George Perez’s Teen Titans, Tom Mandrake’s Martian Manhunter, Ethan Van Sciver’s Flash, Kevin Maguire’s Metal Men, and so on.  The content was meticulously researched by Randall Lotowycz.  I feel he did as good a job as the much-beloved Who’s Who series from the 1980s.  The information appears to be current through the conclusion of Final Crisis.  For example, Firestorm’s card doesn’t make any mention of the events that took place during Blackest Night.  … That’s right, Firestorm has his own entry!

Here is the promotional copy from the publisher:

Celebrate 75 years of DC Comics with an obsessive Fandex Deluxe: a supersized deck of 75 iconic heroes and villains whose power over the popular imagination has never been stronger (think The Dark Knight, last summer’s $1 billion blockbuster).

The gang’s all here: Batman, Robin, Superman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, the Green Lantern, Captain Marvel, Justice League of America, the Flash. So are their nemeses—the Joker, Catwoman, Mr. Freeze, Lex Luthor, Cheetah, Brainiac, Poison Ivy, Deathstroke. Meticulously researched, with layers of information covering origins, biography, back-stories, affiliations, motivations, weaknesses, and fascinating trivia, the deck adds up to an insider’s history of the DC Universe. And what better way to present it than in the format with super powers—Fandex and its die-cut cards perfectly capture the characters in one dynamic pose after another, with the art taken straight from the pages of the original comics.

From the essential—learn about the Crisis on Infinite Earths—to the improbable—discover how Lex Luthor became President of the United States—to the offbeat—did you know that Clark Kent and Lois Lane lived in a building owned by Wayne (i.e., Batman) Enterprises: it’s a handheld feast for newcomers and passionate comics fans alike.

I highly recommend this product to anyone that’s ever taken an interest in DC Comics, Who’s Who, the DC Comics Encyclopedia, or any of DK’s Ultimate Guide books. This Fandex retails for $12.95 and is available online through many sources. My thanks to Workman Publishing for sending me a copy to review.

Like many readers of the novels, my favorite Expanded Universe (EU) characters are: Mara Jade Skywalker, Grand Admiral Thrawn, and Corran Horn.  While reading the Legacy of the Force novels, I’ve really started to like Jaina Solo and Ben Skywalker.  Both characters were great in these novels and they proved themselves worthy of their parent’s legacy.  My favorite Star Wars writers are Michael Stackpole and Timothy Zahn.  They were the pioneers of the EU and helped forge the New Republic, a fascinating era for our heroes continued adventures.  I had the chance to meet both authors at Dragon*Con a few years ago.  What super cool guys!

You’ll notice there are very few prequel era novels above.  That time period just doesn’t hold much interest for me. However, I’m considering trying the Republic Commando novels based upon a review I heard on the Two True Freaks Monthly Monday Star Wars podcasts.  They did a good job explained why the Order 66 novel was a solid and and compelling read.  Might be worth checking out.

Here is a complete list of the books in the photo above:

• Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace by Terry Brooks
• Outbound Flight by Timothy Zahn
• The Approaching Storm by Alan Dean Foster
• Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones by R.A. Salvatore
• Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith by Matthew Stover
• Dark Lord: The Rise of Darth Vader by James Luceno
• The Han Solo Trilogy – Rebel Dawn by A.C. Crispin
• The Adventures of Lando Calrissian by L. Neil Smith – Combines: The Mindharp of Sharu, the Flamewind of Oseon, and The Starcave of ThonBoka
• The Force Unleashed by Sean Williams
• Han Solo and the Lost Legacy by Brian Daley
• Dark Forces: Soldier for the Empire by William C. Dietz
• Tales From the Mos Eisley Cantina edited by Kevin J. Anderson
• Star Wars Trilogy – A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi
• Allegiance by Timothy Zahn
• Splinter of the Mind’s Eye by Alan Dean Foster
• Tales of the Bounty Hunters edited by Kevin J. Anderson
• Shadows of the Empire by Steve Perry
• Return of the Jedi Marvel Illustrated Book
• Tales From Jabba’s Palace edited by Kevin J. Anderson
• The Truce at Bakura by Kathy Tyers
• Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor by Matthew Stover
• X-wing: Rogue Squadron by Michael Stackpole
• X-wing: Wedge’s Gamble by Michael Stackpole
• X-wing: The Krytos Trap by Michael Stackpole
• X-wing: The Bacta War by Michael Stackpole
• X-wing: Wraith Squadron by Aaron Allston
• X-wing: Iron Fist by Aaron Allston
• X-wing: Solo Command by Aaron Allston
• Tatooine Ghost by Troy Denning
• Heir to the Empire by Timothy Zahn
• Dark Force Rising by Timothy Zahn
• The Last Command by Timothy Zahn
• X-wing: Isard’s Revenge by Michael Stackpole
• Tales From the Empire edited by Peter Schweighofer
• Tales From the New Republic edited by Peter Schweighofer and Craig Carey
• Jedi Academy Trilogy: Dark Apprentice by Kevin J. Anderson
• I, Jedi by Michael Stackpole
• X-wing: Starfighters of Adumar by Aaron Allston
• Planet of Twilight by Barbara Hambly
• The Black Fleet Crisis: Shield of Lies by Michael P. Kube-McDowell
• The Black Fleet Crisis: Tyrant’s Test by Michael P. Kube-McDowell
• The New Rebellion by Kristine Rusch
• The Corellian Trilogy by Roger MacBride Allen – Combines: Ambush at Corellia, Assault at Selonia, and Showdown at Centerpoint
• The Hand of Thrawn Duology: Specter of the Past by Timothy Zahn
• The Hand of Thrawn Duology: Vision of the Future by Timothy Zahn
• Survivor’s Quest by Timothy Zahn
• The New Jedi Order – Vector Prime by R.A. Salvatore
• The New Jedi Order – Dark Tide I: Onslaught by Michael Stackpole
• The New Jedi Order – Dark Tide II: Ruin by Michael Stackpole
• The New Jedi Order – Agents of Chaos by James Luceno – Combines: Hero’s Trial and Jedi Eclipse
• Legacy Of The Force – Betrayal by Aaron Allston
• Legacy Of The Force – Bloodlines by Karen Traviss
• Legacy Of The Force – Tempest by Troy Denning
• Legacy Of The Force – Exile by Aaron Allston
• Legacy Of The Force – Sacrifice by Karen Traviss
• Legacy Of The Force – Inferno by Troy Denning
• Legacy Of The Force – Fury by Aaron Allston
• Legacy Of The Force – Revelation by Karen Traviss
• Legacy Of The Force – Invincible by Troy Denning
• Fate of the Jedi – Outcast by Aaron Allston
• Fate of the Jedi – Omen by Christie Golden
• Fate of the Jedi – Abyss by Troy Denning
• Fate of the Jedi – Backlash by Aaron Allston

Check back here tomorrow for more of my Star Wars Resume.

With all this Star Wars in my brain, I thought I’d do a week of posts displaying some of my Star Wars collection – we’ll call it my Star Wars Resume.  This past weekend I went up in the attic and dug out my vintage Star Wars action figures.  Growing up I had every Star Wars action figure released through The Empire Strikes Back.  I picked up quite a few of the Return of the Jedi figures, but that was about the time I started losing interest in the toys.   In the late 1990s I started buying some of the newer Star Wars figures.  Primarily I focused on figures that didn’t have a corresponding toy in the original Kenner line (like Biggs and the Sandtrooper).  I’ve got about 50 of those figures, but I’m not going to display them here since they’re fairly recent by comparison.  My step-son also has about 50 of the Star Wars Galactic Heroes figures which are lots of fun and super cute. For the photo below I was too lazy to match each and every gun with the appropriate figure (though I can probably still do it from memory), so the weapons are all in one big pile.  Click the image to enlarge.

If memory serves, the really jaundiced Stormtrooper was the victim of a sandbox Sarlacc pit.

Below you’ll find my remaining vehicles and playsets.  I used to have the Creature Cantina Action Playset, but I must have pitched it at some point.  Interestingly, the base from the Land of the Jawas Action Playset below was reused two more times by Kenner.  They used the same mold with white plastic to create the Hoth Ice Planet Adventure Set and the Rebel Command Center Adventure Set.  The coolest of my remaining vehicles and playsets has to be the Death Star Space Station.  It was friggin’ huge and provided hours of entertainment and adventures.  I’m pretty impressed with myself for not losing the tiny pieces all these years (i.e. the swinging rope). Click the image to enlarge.

If you are a fan of the vintage Star Wars figures, then I highly recommend Star Wars: The Action Figure Archive.  This book was produced in 1999 and covers every Star Wars action figure, vehicle, and playset produced from 1977 – 1997.  It’s very informative and has over 2,000 gorgeous pictures.  It’s not in print anymore, but you should be able to pick up a copy used.  Definitely worth your effort.

For my Star Wars Resume this week I’ll also cover my novels, comics, and RPGs.  Below are some things I don’t have time to feature this week, but have contributed to my Star Wars fandom over the years.  This certainly isn’t a complete list, but it includes some items that come to mind immediately.

Video

• Four different copies of the first three films – Original video release, 1995 video release, 2004 DVD Special Edition release, and the 2006 DVD Special Edition release that contained the original theatrical versions.
• DVDs of Episodes 1 through 3
• Clone Wars movie and animated series
• Star Wars Holiday Special (1978) – so painful to watch nowadays, even for a geek like me.
• The Ewok Adventure (1984) & Ewoks: The Battle for Endor (1985) TV movies
  
• Droids cartoon & Ewoks cartoon
• Various behind-the-scenes videos

Audio

• Original Motion Picture Soundtracks for each of the six films
• Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire soundtrack
• Cocktails in the Cantina
• Original Radio Dramas for Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi
• Numerous books on tape – primarily the New Jedi Order novels

Games

• Escape from the Death Star board game (1977)
• Star Wars arcade game (1983)
• Return of the Jedi arcade game (1984)
• X-Wing video game (1993)
• Tie Fighter video game (1994)
• Dark Forces video game (1995)
• Rebel Assault II video game (1995)
• Star Wars Collectible Card Game (1995)
• Monopoly: Star Wars board game (1996)
• Monopoly: Star Wars video game (1997)
• Star Wars Galactic Battle Strategy board game (1997)
• Rebellion video game (1998)
• Trivial Pursuit: Star Wars Classic Trilogy board game (1998)
• Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast video game (2002)
• Battlefront video game (2004)
• Trivial Pursuit DVD: Star Wars Saga Edition board game (2005)
• Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy video game (2006)

Reference books

• Star Wars Encyclopedia
• The New Essential Guide to Characters
• The Essential Guide to Droids
• The Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessels
• The Essential Chronology
• The Empire Strikes Back Sketchbook
• The Action Figure Archive

Other things that come to mind are: tons of trading cards, Happy Meal-style toys, posters, mousepads, kid’s books, drinking glasses & dinnerware, and so on.  I’m sure I’m forgetting about a zillion things.  While my house isn’t covered in Star Wars paraphenalia, there certainly is a bunch of it lying around.  Check back here the rest of this week for my continuing Star Wars Resume.

And yes, those are my original 1977 Star Wars bed sheets in the background!  My step-son sleeps on them nowadays.  Makes me proud.

It may be difficult to tell, but the hanging net above actually swings across the page as you open the book.  Very cool!  I love how the book refers to the second Death Star throughout as “Death Star 2″.  Makes me want to say, “Death Star 2: Electric Boogaloo” in honor of Chocotaco.

The pop-up engineering above is pretty neat.  As you open the page, the logs come up and then settle near the AT-ST’s feet.  Very nice way to capture the spirit of the film.

When I read the page above, I can’t help thinking, “Hey Chewie… it’s okay to love the Ewoks, just don’t love the Ewoks.” … or …”Theirs was a forbidden love.”

Cute book, but if you’re like me you can’t help wondering, “Was it better than the TV movies The Ewok Adventure and Ewoks: The Battle for Endor?”  And if you’re like me… then I feel pity for you that a question like that actually crossed your mind.

Here is a shot of the pattern on my 1977 Star Wars bed sheets.  In college, my roommate and I used these sheets to cover our ugly couch.  I tried that with my wife, but it didn’t work out so well.  She made me go and buy a new couch instead.