Evan, Michael, Pax, and Rob reconvene to talk about what they’ve been reading, watching, and thinking about. As always with the After Dinner Lounge, the conversation meanders, but topics begin with:
- Books like Carthage Must be Destroyed: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Mediterranean Civilization by Richard Miles, Redwall by Brian Jacques, the Horatio Hornblower series by CS Forester, The Tournament by Matthew Reilly, and Storykiller by Kelly Thompson.
- Comics like The Eternals by Jack Kirby and Marvel’s Killraven series.
- Movies like Mank, the Schwarzenegger Conan series, and Legendary Pictures’ Godzilla and Kong MonsterVerse.
- TV shows like Ted Lasso.
- And real talk about Heist Stories, Separating Art from Artist, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Truffles.
Good day to ye, laddies, an’ I hope it finds ye well! I’m ashamed to say that I got away from your podcasts when they got so freakin’ long, and now I’m thinking maybe I’ve done myself a disservice. I just wanted to point out a couple of things bases on items you said that you enjoyed.
First, re. your “Mouseworld” books. Are you aware of a boardgame called “Mice & Mystics?” In it you are humans, prince, warrior, etc., who have been arrested by the evil usurper. They’re coming to execute you, and to escape, your wizard turns you all into mice with the full intelligence you had as humans. In the game’s several scenarios you have to collect potions, rescue the king, neutralize henchmen and so forth. There are expansions, and there are a wealth of YouTube videos you can check out to see if it might be to your liking.
Second thing you mentioned was a book about chessmasters. There is an old “sword & planet” series about a world called Gor. Book 5, Assassin of Gor, plays out against the backdrop of a chesslike game called Kaissa which uses the conventions of Gor. The author ties the game and the plot events together in fine fashion. The first part of the series is from the 1960s, and are carefully written to stand on their own as individual books; they can be had used for dirt cheap.
And that’s what I have for you this time out. Hope you find something of interest there. Be safe, and keep enjoying life!
Thanks, Jack! I just picked up Mice & Mystics last summer and my son and I *love* it. It took us several tries to complete the first level, but we got it done before he went to college. He’s back home now (waiting out COVID) and we need to get working on level 2, so thank you for the reminder!
I remember seeing the Gor books at the library when I was a kid, but never got around to checking them out. That sounds super fun. I’ve just added Tarnsman of Gor to my reading list. Thanks for that, too!
You stay safe too! It’s great to hear from you.
Ah, you like to start at the beginning, a man after my own heart! A warning about the Gor books: The first six are a fine adventure, something I’d call a cross between Barsoom and Conan. Somewhere between books 6 and 7, the author seems to have had a run-in with one of the early militant feminists, and the rest of the series becomes a misogynistic screed with whole chapters devoted to how women are natural slaves who aren’t happy or fulfilled unless they have a man to control their lives for them. In fairness, it was the sixties, and Germaine Helen, and their crowd had a lot of insecure men on the run!
Good to know! It’ll take me a while to get through those first six, but after that I’ll keep your comments in mind about book seven and beyond. If my eyes roll out of my head, I can stop there. 🙂