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A review by mayoroffailure
Mr. Robot: Red Wheelbarrow: (eps1.91_redwheelbarr0w.Txt) [With Removable Artifacts] by Courtney Looney, Sam Esmail
3.0
In universe novels are probably one of my biggest literary guilty pleasures. There is something about holding something that seems to, literally, be from another world that is just irresistible for me. Even better is when those books have inserts, it's like getting a small treat from the world your reading about.
Mr. Robot is probably the smartest, and overall best, TV show on right now. It's blend of actual technology, social commentary, psychological elements, and twists that all blend together for an hour of storytelling that is completely engrossing. If it hadn't been for USA releasing the pilot episode for free on YouTube I probably wouldn't be writing this review right now, and I certainly owe them a lot for that decision. It's a show that makes you think, and this world needs more and more of that type of content.
For much of the second season of the TV show the main character, Elliot,is in jail . There is a lot of lost time, however, as the viewers dont pick up until the tail end of Elliot's time there. To fill in those gaps Sam Esmail, the show's creator, decided to release the journal that Elliot kept while he was in jail .
The biggest issue this book has is that it doesn't necessarily provide any new information that is consequential to the overall narrative. It does, however, provide an interesting read to fans of the show. It really gives you a chance to see into Elliot's mental state far more than the show allows. Elliot is a character who is naturally reserved, and while his internal monologues in the show are speaking directly to the audience, this book would have you believe that he's holding a lot back.
Here in the journal, however, Elliot is free to say whatever he wants and there is a logical reason for him to do so. In attempt to keep his mortal enemy at bay,, Elliot establishes a routine to try and fill every moment of his time to keep his mind from wandering to the places that it shouldn't. Seeing the troubled mental state of one of my favorite TV characters was a really cool experience, and I can only imagine that it gives the second season of the show a fresh feeling and better context as the story moves into season three.
Additionally, the story itself isn't doesn't have much going on, its a lot of descriptions of eating, conversations about sitcoms, attempts to make friends, and attempts to stay away from enemies. I could very easily see someone setting the book down out of boredom, and it certainly doesn't provide the closure that a person who doesn't watch the show would need. I also had a hard time seeing Elliot speaking the way he does in his journal entries. When compared to the show he swears a lot more and speaks in a way that really seemed like it was coming from a different person, and that is probably the biggest issue I had with the book.
I think that Mr. Esmail fell into a little bit of a trap here, he had an opportunity to really dive deep into a character he had created, it was a creative space that wasn't restricted by air time or censorship, and he wandered a bit too far from the trail. With the ability to write anything he wanted and explore areas of Elliot that he couldn't in the show I think he ended up writing a version of Elliot that is little too different, and it isn't necessarily a bad version. I just had a hard time linking the Elliot of the show to the Elliot of the journal, and some of it is justified by the situation Elliot is in but I certainly can't explain other aspects of his decisions, they just seem too alien to his character.
I did ultimately enjoy reading an artifact from the world of my favorite TV show, but I also acknowledge that this book fails when it comes to providing a similar experience to someone that either has never seen the show, or has only passively watched it. If your a fan of the show then this is probably something that you would really enjoy reading. If you haven't seen the show then watch the pilot, you'll probably get sucked in.
Mr. Robot is probably the smartest, and overall best, TV show on right now. It's blend of actual technology, social commentary, psychological elements, and twists that all blend together for an hour of storytelling that is completely engrossing. If it hadn't been for USA releasing the pilot episode for free on YouTube I probably wouldn't be writing this review right now, and I certainly owe them a lot for that decision. It's a show that makes you think, and this world needs more and more of that type of content.
For much of the second season of the TV show the main character, Elliot,
The biggest issue this book has is that it doesn't necessarily provide any new information that is consequential to the overall narrative. It does, however, provide an interesting read to fans of the show. It really gives you a chance to see into Elliot's mental state far more than the show allows. Elliot is a character who is naturally reserved, and while his internal monologues in the show are speaking directly to the audience, this book would have you believe that he's holding a lot back.
Here in the journal, however, Elliot is free to say whatever he wants and there is a logical reason for him to do so. In attempt to keep his mortal enemy at bay,
Spoiler
who happens to be a mental projection of his dead father who can take over his body ala Tyler DurdenAdditionally, the story itself isn't doesn't have much going on, its a lot of descriptions of eating, conversations about sitcoms, attempts to make friends, and attempts to stay away from enemies. I could very easily see someone setting the book down out of boredom, and it certainly doesn't provide the closure that a person who doesn't watch the show would need. I also had a hard time seeing Elliot speaking the way he does in his journal entries. When compared to the show he swears a lot more and speaks in a way that really seemed like it was coming from a different person, and that is probably the biggest issue I had with the book.
I think that Mr. Esmail fell into a little bit of a trap here, he had an opportunity to really dive deep into a character he had created, it was a creative space that wasn't restricted by air time or censorship, and he wandered a bit too far from the trail. With the ability to write anything he wanted and explore areas of Elliot that he couldn't in the show I think he ended up writing a version of Elliot that is little too different, and it isn't necessarily a bad version. I just had a hard time linking the Elliot of the show to the Elliot of the journal, and some of it is justified by the situation Elliot is in but I certainly can't explain other aspects of his decisions, they just seem too alien to his character.
I did ultimately enjoy reading an artifact from the world of my favorite TV show, but I also acknowledge that this book fails when it comes to providing a similar experience to someone that either has never seen the show, or has only passively watched it. If your a fan of the show then this is probably something that you would really enjoy reading. If you haven't seen the show then watch the pilot, you'll probably get sucked in.