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Saturday, 28 June 2008

Epilogue

And with this, we close out the second chapter in the saga of the Gray Death Legion.

Formed in the fires of one revolt, the Gray Death was tempered in the fires of another. From a unit that could have been generously referred to as a demi-company, they departed Verthandi stronger in spirit and body. Well on their way to a combined arms Battalion. The relationship of Kramer and Carlyse was cemented in the mutual saving of one another and demons were laid to rest by one and all.

Given the passionate nature Carlyse commands in, and the way the GDL becomes a part of the communities they protect, there is little confusion as to how they grew so quickly. They literally took a piece of every world they served on with them.

What Verthandi? Even in the final pages of the book, the fall of Verthandi is written in the stars. The GDL fought and died for their freedom, but politics were already in play to keep Verthandi a part of the Combinie. Though I am rather certain they welcomed the FRR happily when it came to be. I would also predict that Verthandi was probably much unchanged by the coming of the Clans. With a long cultivated history of "You can be in charge, just let us do our own thing" combined with the more liberal Wolf, then Ghost Bear rulership, I expect the University of Regis exists even in the days of the jihad.

But Verthandi was just a battlefield. The second one for the GDL and facing the same opponent. Once again facing Duke Hasid Ricol, the GDL shamed him and brought his people low. Given what we know of who Ricol really is and was, this had to have been a glaring and harsh wound for Ricol. One he would not let go lightly.

On a more personal note, we see that Grayson has traversed so far down the path of command, that vengeance is not even a passing though to him. When he captures the Marauder, he spends no real time thinking of the pilot. The man who executed his father, Grayson cares more for if the MAD was reset. It is only in a passing note, that we learn that Kevlavic lost his arm to the glancing LRM blow from Grayson in the battle that saw Lori captured. In many ways the ultimate revenge for Grayson, to ruin the mans career, never to pilot a Mech again. Kevlavic is destined to fade into the darkness of print, never to be seen again.

The book as a whole?
It is an 80's science fiction heroic epic. With in those boundaries the book is a marvelous jaunt through a plot that is nail biting and aggravating. Still even 20 years later I only found myself rolling my eyes a few times. When you read this book, one realizes that the GDL was never one of those 'blessed' units, like the Kells or the Dragoons. They fought for every scrap, every tooth and every nail. And they damned near were destroyed time and time again.

They didn't survive because they were big, they survived because they were to stubborn to lay down and die.

Tuesday, 24 June 2008

That was a good book...

Whew... Man that was a great book. Bit ketchy on the epilogue wrap up, but hey it's 80's genre science fiction, they are always a bit stereotypical.

Yeah, was nice to see how Grayson got his signature Mech, saved the girl and freed the world.

What?

Oh.....! Sorry about that, right you weren't actually sitting over my shoulder reading it. But come on you didn't see it coming?

Let's see if we can recap this-

- Lori's captured
- Rebel Commander won't help, after all Grayson didn't help save his girl.
- Grayson frets (he's good at this), but goes ahead with his commando raid. After all Lori knows where the Phobos is.
- Commando raids goes off spectacularly. Well what did you expect, Ramage organized it and hand picked the team, Grayson was just window dressing.
- Grayson saves the girl.
- The girl saves Grayson, curing herself of her fire bad fear schtick.
- And then everything does what I'm now calling the GDL Snowball effect.

The Snowball effect, when the GDL does some seemingly small thing, that just starts building, until it is a monumental event, that no one planned for.
That about sums up the commando raid to rescue Lori. Started as an in and out, rescue Lori and if we happen to find the Rebel Council, them too.
Hundreds of prisoners later, its a full blown battle in the University complex (Man some people are if for some serious detention here).
Grayson steals another Mech (Does this guy ever buy anything), but nearly dies cause Ramage things he's not who he is.
Hey no worries, did you know Marauders are convertibles? Grayson just popped the top on the MAD and drove it around RobotJox style. What kind of sunscreen do you need for passing PPC blasts?
And that's where the snowball just got out of hand, popular civil uprising, Rebel leader gets his head out of his butt and things just cascade from there. Mine you if helps Miss Red Shirt Traitor, Sue Ellen, hunts down Governor Nagumo and kills him, painfully and slowly.

And then it's over...

Yeah scary huh?

Wasn't supposed to be anything more then a quick commando raid, but with the GDL nothing is ever quick and nothing is ever ever simple.

One more Blog on Mercenary's Star, where I wrap up the epilogue and give my final thoughts on the book. Then it's on to the book of fame, Helm Memory core here we come.

Saturday, 21 June 2008

Cooking with SPAM, we're winning!

Well something has to be wrong... come on, just has to. Things are going to well.

The GDL is on a steady path of victory after victory. Even the bad things seem to be minor. What the heck is going on, did Murphy take a vacation to go mess with the FWL again?

So where are we?

They have just rescued the prisoners, which lead to the return of Sue Ellen and meeting a new Verthandi woman, who helps the GDL with information and "cultural" liaison work (Boy for a woman who doesn't trust Grayson, Lori sure is steamed at the thought of him shagging anyone else).

Off screen we have more rebel raids, workers of the 'salt' mines freed, and general good stuff for the rebels. Duke Ricol is very not happy with Nagumo. Our dear Nagumo goes from being the smart competent bad guy, to blithering syncopate, in the space of a page.

But Ricol is here, things will get better for the Snakes right?

Murphy? Paging Murphy, call on line 3... Where is that Murphy.

Grayson leads a daring double prong mission. Laying bait at Fox Island, he goes and stakes out the aerofield of Regis.
Not even the stupidity of the Rebel Colonel (I like to think of him as Cool Hand Luke), trying to rescue his girlfriend with 200 PBI, can put to much of a pall over the destruction of Kurita's last three planet bound ASF. (Mind you, we are made to fret, after all the other GDL red shirt dies dramatically, cockpit crushed by a Crusader).
And meanwhile, back at the island... This battle doesn't get page time, and more's the pity. 24 BattleMechs attack Fox Island. Ramage and his Anti- Mech boys take out nearly two lances of Kurita Mechs, forcing the rest to tuck their tails between their legs. To heck with Grayson, Ramage is the MAN!.

So now, Ricol is leaving the planet, a lost cause in his eyes already. The rebel army is in the tens of thousands. The Kuritans are hold up in their bases and things are looking bad.

Oh Murphy there you are! Man you look like hell... Too much partying on Spring Break? Well get to work man!

Nagumo gets smart finally. "Hey they keep hitting my supply bases... maybe"

Grayson on the other hand gets a dose of stupid pills.

Maybe... just maybe, if Nagumo shut down all his supply bases weeks ago. And then suddenly builds one in the middle of no where... Just maybe "ITS A BLOODY TRAP"

To Grayson's credt, he is not happy with the raid. He thinks something is wrong. But does he change his plan? Does he try and trip the trap safely?

Hell no! He's Grayson Death Carlyse, he laughs in the face of Murphy!

Go get me Murphy!

Um Murphy? Wow that looked like that hurt. You okay dude? Don't move, you just got run over by a Shadowhawk of doom.

So Murphy is definitely having a bad day. His perfect little trap didn't go off so well.

Course having a Shadowhawk do the equivalent of a WWF piledriver on your Crusader, is bound to be bad for you. Yeah, Grayson activated his jets, went up three meters and then cut me out, landing on poor mister Crusader.. .then he kicked in the cockpit..

Well he did kill Grayson's red shirt in the Aerofield battle...

Murphy? Man you don't look good, maybe you should lie down for the rest of the book.

Zammo!

Eww.... Man... Okay... Don't piss off Murphy... Just don't.

So he couldn't take out the entire GDL, with his little ambush. That's all right, this has been about Murphy vs Grayson from the beginning anyway.

So he just went and blew up his girlfriends Mech. Look at that, Kurita infantry arriving at just the right time to capture poor little Lori...

Murphy's back and he's pissed.

Friday, 06 June 2008

And back on the upswing...

Like the weight on a giant pendulum, the GDL is carried from one extreme to the other. Often screaming through the middle ground so fast, if you blink you miss it.

And as we pass the middle of the book, there is that inevitable artificial sense of tension and urgency. With each page you come closer and closer to the end of the book. Will they tie up the loose ends, will they prevail, at what cost?

It leads to a bit more scattered thoughts for me. I've been reading this one book for way to long now. I'm ready for it to be over and jump on ahead. I mean I've read this book before right? So I know how it ends, no need to finish it, the GDL wins, why keep going?
But at the same time my twenty year old memory is sparked with every page. Some little twist or nuance that I had forgotten. A fresh memory that takes me back into the heart of the universe. Sure I know the GDL survives for another forty years, but the destination is not the journey, and this is one dammed fine journey.

of course there are also the things that make me go Huh?

Colonel "You killed my Father" Marauder offered to resign and face court martial. Hmm... Keith still seems to have something of his own idea about the Draconis Combine. While we see him wholly embrace the TRO 3025, his own take on the Combine is decidedly different from the just published Handbook House Kurita.
Same goes for his Regiment, the 3rd Strike Regiment. Anyone ever hear of a 3rd Strike Reg? No? Didn't think so. It's of course also portrayed as Ricol's personal forces. Does this mean Ricol is supposed to have four regiments of his own? Probably not, but one wonders.

The Invidious- It's getting cramped here!
80,000 tons sounds big. Until you realize that the Invidious is supposed to be a Merchant or Invader class JumpShip. We know it can carry 2 DS and there are hints it can carry more. Not at 80Ktons it can't. :)

And one of the best goofs of all. The Invidious is sent back to Galatea to get 'reinforcements'. Galatea is half a border away, as close to Terra as Verthandi is to the periphery. Yet the arrival of the Diemos on Galatea is portrayed as happening very soon after the Invidious left Verthandi. Actually there are a lot of hints that Verthandi was supposed to be a lot closer to Galatea then it ends up. Now mind you, you could explain away the Diemos as having taken other JS in a semi circuit. But now were just making excuses.

Wolf's Dragoons, Eridani Light Horse, 21st Centari Lancers, Hansen's Roughriders and the Grey Death.
Just what do these units all have in common, other then being mercs? Why they are all part of the "Our dependants have been captured/killed/harmed" club.
You want a mercs achilles heal? Find their families and drop a cluster bomb on them...
On no wait, with the exception of the 21st, when you mess with a mercs family, it just tends to make them madder. If you're gonna mess with a mercs family, make sure you take out the mercs as well. Revenge is a gold plated XXXXXX.

Oh the story? Right the story!

We are moving to Book III, the end game of the book and we come full circle in many way.

Ricol is back and he's not happy that Grayson is around.
Nagumo is starting to look like a moron, hey have to make Ricol look smart.
Remember Sue Ellen? Traitor and sell out? Got tossed in a prison cell for her troubles? Yes well Grayson rescues her, along with a bunch of other women, destined to be shipped off planet.
Poor Sue, she's not had a good book. But she serves as an admirable plot device.
Let's see- She shows us another important leadership trait of Grayson's. Listening. he listens to her sob and cry and unfold her whole treacherous tale. Just holds her until she falls asleep on his shoulder.
Specter of Jealousy- Yeah baby! Lori may actually break out of that dang stupid shell of hers now. Seeing Sue all cuddled up on Grayson's shoulder, sure set off the fires of jealousy. Come on Lori!

So we're headed downhill with the book on fire. Ricol is on scene and ready to crank it up a notch. Grayson has momentum and ready for more, the Jungle's a rocking and plot threads are starting to converge.

But I'm sure that Murphy has some nasty surprises still in store, he's not that nice.

Thursday, 29 May 2008

I'm not dead yet!

On no yes I am... urk.

Ah to be a Redshirt. Literally if not figuratively. Remember when I said everyone dead or captured? So I was wrong, but only because Murphy wanted to twist the knife in a little deeper.
Good old Jaleg Yorulis, I knew him well. All right not really, his page time can be measured in two primary scenes and a few supporting roles in the cockpit of his Mech. Scene 1- Introduction, look at the wet behind the ears kids. Scene 2- "Maybe we should sign up with the Kuritans, we can't win after all."
So when Grayson leaves him behind, on the next mission, you can expect things are not going to end well for Jaleg.
They don't, really don't, but not before Murphy gets to twist the knife deeper. Nothing like a dying man in your arms to tell you that your base is captured, your Techs are prisoners, and oh right, there's a company of Mechs waiting for you.
Yeah for that kind of fun Murphy will let a man get up and walk away from being gunned down by a Phoenix Hawk's machine guns... twice.

Murphy is on an unholy tear now. Base wiped out, Red shirt dying in Grayson's arms, no where to go, no where to run... What else can go wrong?

Oh look, ambush!