Category: Books & Comics

Review: Jon Pertwee Book Of Monsters

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Now this is a disappointment. As everyone knows and agrees, Jon Pertwee’s version of the doctor was the best ever in all fifty years of Doctor Who. One may suppose therefore that the literary output of such a great man would be without reproach. Sadly, that’s not the case.

This, my dear readers, is a book for babies. Containing piffle such as stories about dragons hatching from eggs and befriending children, or man-eating fungus houses, or amorphous blob-creatures that rampage out of lakes and devour dozens of people, there’s nothing very… well now I think about it most of the stories in this book actually are quite monstrous!

But the way they are told leaves a lot to be desired. Many of them I suspect were written in minutes, and even as I read them I supposed I may have been able to do better myself. Let me try:

At last the fated hour had arrived. Kron-pirr viewed the battlefield from atop his Daedalus platform, watching the Void Gigas units assemble their time cannons. At his signal they would fire at the city, breaching the etheric defenses and opening the way for the final invasion. Victory was by no means certain, and the losses would be great. But if the Machine Brain was ever to be defeated, it must be here, and it must be now. Once more Kron-Pirr remembered the events that had led him here: the discovery of the artifact (back when he wasn’t even elevated), the human invasion in which Glork’fth was killed, the accidental reactivation and ultimately apotheosis of the dreaded alien technology. Kron-pirr had indirectly caused the machine revolution, and if his planet had any chance to survive, he must now end it. He noted the Gigases had completed their task, and the troops were ready for his signal. He raised his tentacle…

Hey, that’s not really anything to do with Monsters is it? It’s almost as if the saga of Kron-pirr has taken over these reviews!

At any rate, this book is hardly worth the Pertwee name. My advice: save your gold sovereigns.

A TITANIC ANNOUNCEMENT!

Can you hear it? That’s the sound of excitement…

Can you feel it? That buzzing in the air? That’s the sound of anticipation…

The moment foretold by history has (once again) arrived:

We’re going back to JAPAN!

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Yes my friends, it’s all booked and paid for. Japan trip #5 commences early June, and promises to be even more special than ever. Why is this?

My brother is coming with us!

Monster Hunter! Mizube! Manga! Yakitori! Futons! Apple Pies! Sentai! Circle-Heart-Star! Odaiba! Figma! Enoshima! Deer! Gashapon! 3DS Streetpass! Lopeway! Otaku! Yamanote! Gondoliers! Gundam! Dedicate Bronchus! Guyver! Monkeys! Bullet Trains! Kawaii! Spaghetti! Anime! Neko! Mount Takao! UFO Catchers! Chip Stars! Kit-Kats! Trading Cards! Mr Donut! Nendroid! Universal Studios! Idols! Arcades! Vending Machines! Rice! Crows! Fried Rice! Rilakkuma!

Bernard is going to be awestruck. And having him with us will make it like the first time all over again 🙂

I can, quite literally, hardly wait!

BioBoost!

OMG! Just the other day, Max Factory Japan announced a whole new series of Figma’s, which included such stuff as Avengers, Bruce Lee, Spider Man, dozens of new anime characters and… well, and this guy:

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Yes my friends, a new Guyver figure! And a Figma at that!

It’s like God came down from Heaven to give me an early birthday present 🙂

But the news doesn’t stop there! I also recently read that the long-delayed Alcanfel bio-fighter model kit has not been canceled and will one day be released. Here’s a shot of it, as displayed at Winter Fest 2008:

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He’s (one of) the ‘big bads’ of Guyver, and I’d love a good kit of him. Here’s what he looks like in the series:

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All this excitement makes me want to spring $270 for the Imakarum Miribalis kit, which is the only bio-fighter I don’t have. Here’s a shot:

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It’s available on Amazon right now. But $270?!?! That’s crazy isn’t it? It’s more than double what I paid for Pluqstahl (almost six years ago now!).

But my birthday is fast approaching…