standback's review
5.0
Wonderfully strong issue; almost every story hits its mark -- and the variety of marks is dazzling.
"Shooting Iron," by Cassandra Khaw and Jonathan L. Howard, is the absolute standout in a very strong issue. A kickass protagonist in a pitch-perfect adventure story, that grabs tropes of East and Westerns and flips them on their head.
"The Memorybox Vultures," by Brian Trent, imagines living on in the cloud after one's death... and consequently, who might try to extinguish such lives. Fast-paced and memorable.
"Taste of Opal," by Yukimi Ogawa, follows a young girl, Kei, whose magical blood is precious commodity -- and an illict one. Gripping, and with excellent characters. At some point, the story pivots oddly from Kei's predicament, towards delving into an intricate system of magic -- but it remains compelling, and beautifully imagined.
"Emissaries From the Skirts of Heaven," by Gregor Hartmann, tells a space-opera story through a series of snapshots, from the hero's childhood to her old age. Vivid and artful.
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I enjoyed most of the other stories as well. I was somewhat disappointed by the cover story, "Powerless," by Harry Turtledove --where, in an alternate, communist America, one man decides he's had enough of propaganda. The story is horribly simplistic -- the threatened merciless slapdown for resisting tyranny never materializes, and the protagonist feels feted for some random feel-good victories, and that's pretty much as far as the story gets. It's entertaining -- but, at this moment in time, on the topic of resistance in the face of totalitarian regimes, shallowly "entertaining" feels very insufficient. I'm very happy to see stories of resistance -- but I'd like them to be more intelligent, better constructed, with more nuance. And casting communism for this one, at this time, feels like a deeply weird choice.
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I believe this is the first issue with Jerry Oltion writing the science column. I very much enjoyed the topic chosen for this one. It's science that's near to home indeed, although seldom given much thought: how blood tests work. Welcome aboard, Jerry!
"Shooting Iron," by Cassandra Khaw and Jonathan L. Howard, is the absolute standout in a very strong issue. A kickass protagonist in a pitch-perfect adventure story, that grabs tropes of East and Westerns and flips them on their head.
"The Memorybox Vultures," by Brian Trent, imagines living on in the cloud after one's death... and consequently, who might try to extinguish such lives. Fast-paced and memorable.
"Taste of Opal," by Yukimi Ogawa, follows a young girl, Kei, whose magical blood is precious commodity -- and an illict one. Gripping, and with excellent characters. At some point, the story pivots oddly from Kei's predicament, towards delving into an intricate system of magic -- but it remains compelling, and beautifully imagined.
"Emissaries From the Skirts of Heaven," by Gregor Hartmann, tells a space-opera story through a series of snapshots, from the hero's childhood to her old age. Vivid and artful.
---
I enjoyed most of the other stories as well. I was somewhat disappointed by the cover story, "Powerless," by Harry Turtledove --where, in an alternate, communist America, one man decides he's had enough of propaganda. The story is horribly simplistic -- the threatened merciless slapdown for resisting tyranny never materializes, and the protagonist feels feted for some random feel-good victories, and that's pretty much as far as the story gets. It's entertaining -- but, at this moment in time, on the topic of resistance in the face of totalitarian regimes, shallowly "entertaining" feels very insufficient. I'm very happy to see stories of resistance -- but I'd like them to be more intelligent, better constructed, with more nuance. And casting communism for this one, at this time, feels like a deeply weird choice.
---
I believe this is the first issue with Jerry Oltion writing the science column. I very much enjoyed the topic chosen for this one. It's science that's near to home indeed, although seldom given much thought: how blood tests work. Welcome aboard, Jerry!
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