First Impressions
Oct. 13th, 2007 12:05 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tealinJust finished Making Money ... that lasted, what, all of two days?
So ... what ... exactly ... was it about?
What do you mean 'what was it about?' Why does it have to be about something?
I dunno, it just kind of feels more ... whole, that way.
All right then, what was Going Postal about?
Um ... the Post Office? And the internet, kind of. Um ...
And wasn't this one about economics and banks and ... and golems?
I ... suppose ...
Wait, no, GP was really about Moist, because we spent most of it in his head, and it was his character arc that really sold the story as a whole.
You've already said you couldn't expect MM to be as good because there was no way it could have that sort of character arc again. So what were you hoping for?
I don't know, really. Something with one central plotline? Or for them all to meet up by the end?
Look, how often have you liked a new Discworld book the moment you put it down? You didn't much like The Truth when you finished it, and actually disliked Monstrous Regiment, but now you love both. You weren't even nuts about Going Postal until a few days after reading it! What makes you think this one will be any different?
Well ... nothing ... I suppose I just need to let my brain envelop this piece of grit with some mother-of-pearl before I judge it against the others which have had several years' accretion. I just ... something about where it's going, just doesn't feel right ...
You disliked the clacks until GP...
Touché. But ... in this ... the lighting was off, somehow. It was too stark.
You are a loony.
It was!
Just wait and see. You laughed uproariously several times, including when you were all alone in your apartment with no radio or TV on, which must have made the neighbours wonder; that must be worth something.
Right ... I just wish my occipital lobe was more ticklish, lately. And I can't help thinking it would all have been better if Moist had walked off with Drumknott's pencil one more time at the end.
So ... what ... exactly ... was it about?
What do you mean 'what was it about?' Why does it have to be about something?
I dunno, it just kind of feels more ... whole, that way.
All right then, what was Going Postal about?
Um ... the Post Office? And the internet, kind of. Um ...
And wasn't this one about economics and banks and ... and golems?
I ... suppose ...
Wait, no, GP was really about Moist, because we spent most of it in his head, and it was his character arc that really sold the story as a whole.
You've already said you couldn't expect MM to be as good because there was no way it could have that sort of character arc again. So what were you hoping for?
I don't know, really. Something with one central plotline? Or for them all to meet up by the end?
Look, how often have you liked a new Discworld book the moment you put it down? You didn't much like The Truth when you finished it, and actually disliked Monstrous Regiment, but now you love both. You weren't even nuts about Going Postal until a few days after reading it! What makes you think this one will be any different?
Well ... nothing ... I suppose I just need to let my brain envelop this piece of grit with some mother-of-pearl before I judge it against the others which have had several years' accretion. I just ... something about where it's going, just doesn't feel right ...
You disliked the clacks until GP...
Touché. But ... in this ... the lighting was off, somehow. It was too stark.
You are a loony.
It was!
Just wait and see. You laughed uproariously several times, including when you were all alone in your apartment with no radio or TV on, which must have made the neighbours wonder; that must be worth something.
Right ... I just wish my occipital lobe was more ticklish, lately. And I can't help thinking it would all have been better if Moist had walked off with Drumknott's pencil one more time at the end.
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Date: 2007-10-15 06:27 pm (UTC)I did enjoy reading it, I admit. It is not as high tense or dark as GP, but Pratchett also indicated he was going to be funnier in MM. The one major complaint I have is that there was no really solid villain or dangerous situations that made GP so thrilling. Moist's character arc is still there, but he is at a different phase in life, the ole What Do You Do When You Have Saved the World Already syndrome. It took a while to get started, but when it did it was fine. Not as good as Going Postal, but quite satisfying.
I will be re-reading it for sure. I usually have to do that to really appreciate the Discworld books.
BTW, this book actually was kind of therapeutic for me, especially regarding Moist's character. He is basically bored and resorts to doing some crazy things, including a rather funny send up on urban climbing as an extreme sport. In many ways he is our world's equivalent of an extreme sports guy. Many of them are succesful professionals, but they crave danger and excitement to balance the mundane every day life. I know I have been dealing with some questions about why people do that, especially when they have family and loved ones. In Aigust our young marketing manager's handsome husband died in a rock climbing accident in South Africa where they were on vacation. It has been so hard for her since she is the one left to go on, but she keeps stressing that rock climbing was his passion and he was loving life up to the end. In many ways, he lived more fully in his life than most people do in 80 years. He was not the type of guy to ever sit still and loved doing adventerous activities and helping people. It was a part of who he is. After reading MM it kind of drove home that some people's passion is living a life of potential danger and excitement. In a sense it is what keeps them alive.