tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7855076037924078503.post4556487072029736713..comments2023-09-28T08:56:57.955-05:00Comments on The Mighty Blowhole: A One And A Two...Igorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11857186835391466064noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7855076037924078503.post-44086298773882250432014-12-22T12:13:29.256-06:002014-12-22T12:13:29.256-06:00Interesting. So maybe Zelazny's Damnation All...Interesting. So maybe Zelazny's Damnation Alley was more of a homage to men's adventure than an original concept?halojones-fanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05473935330204075559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7855076037924078503.post-91511956898794592862013-09-15T09:57:38.825-05:002013-09-15T09:57:38.825-05:00Hi, Joe! Thanks for reading! :)
Yeah, Hellrider ...Hi, Joe! Thanks for reading! :)<br /><br />Yeah, Hellrider is pretty standard stuff. It's not bad, and it's definitely not lacking in action, but I'm into biker stuff and it's a bit of a letdown, considering how badass it could've been. I wish the guy had thrown a little more "spaghetti western" into it... I did pick up Circle of Steel after reading your review, but haven't read it yet.<br /><br />I read all the Outrider books back in the 80's, but forgot most of 'em so I'm working back through re-reading them. They're not bad, but I want more car-chase stuff, and it gets a little sci-fi wacky. All the post-apocalypse stuff tends to get wacky (Last Ranger's probably my fave... I need to re-read those). I used to write that kind of stuff, but my van was full of mostly females... it was kind of a crossover between Mad Max and Faster Pussycat Kill Kill. :) I started writing another one (but with a PLOT this time!) just for practice... I've been writing horror, so I wanted to see if I could still do car chases, gunfights, and Tarantino-style dialogue (which is the funnest thing to write). Can't find the kind of post-apocalypse stuff that's ideal, so I just write my own... :)<br /><br />I picked up a few Inquisitors just because I saw the prices climbing and figure it's now-or-never. I like Cruz's writing, but unless I see the two I'm missing at a pretty cheap price, I'll probably never complete that run. It's a pretty funny concept, though... somehow I can believe the Catholics have hit men on the payroll. :)<br /><br />The Nick Carters are variable... they had so many writers that you never know what you're going to get (you could even end up with a Rosenberger!) Most of 'em I've read have been good, though. Some have been believable, even... and others have giant clams or clones and stuff, but they're still entertaining.<br /><br />I read a lot of Hawker back in the 80's and am re-reading 'em... they hold up. Randy Wayne White's other vintage men's-adventure series, MacMorgan, is GREAT if the rest are as good as the first one I read. He thought enough of those to get them re-printed, so they hold up. I haven't read any of his Doc Ford stuff, but my mom and my cousin both swear by 'em.<br /><br />I didn't know that the Hard Corps was from Fieldhouse. Cool! I like that guy just from the letter he wrote you. Not many authors would take the time to do that. Hard Corps is kinda wacky with all the ninja stuff and high body counts, but I don't mind -- he's good at keeping things moving without it getting numbing.<br /><br />Hmmm, didn't know about the Operation Hang Ten TV project. They'd have to tone it down a lot for TV, because it was some surprisingly violent stuff. I was expecting goofiness out of it, but other than the food-service computer they oddly gave him, it's all pretty brutal.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Zwolfhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02364540771153476179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7855076037924078503.post-46391795135690189542013-09-09T16:16:37.941-05:002013-09-09T16:16:37.941-05:00Nick Carter – Man, I WISH this was the one I picke...Nick Carter – Man, I WISH this was the one I picked up in a bookstore the other year! The Nick Carter I did buy was a little too plodding and tame for me. This one however sounds right up my sordid alley, so I’ll look for it.<br /><br />COMINSEC and The Hunter – I’ve got a few of both of these series, but I still haven’t read them. In fact I’ve never read a Ralph Hayes novel. Of the two The Hunter looked more entertaining, mostly due to the bizarre storyline of volume #1. Your review though confirms what I expected the actual novel would be – pretty much standard men’s adventure pulp. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.<br /><br />Hawker – Never read one of these and don’t have a single volume, but the plot for this one sounds pretty good…jeez, too bad Bronson didn’t rip off the “make them think I can piss fire” idea for Death Wish 3!! And how can you not want to read a novel in which a John Travolta analog gets beaten up?<br /><br />The Hard Corps – Funny you should mention Phoenix Force, as “Chuck Bainbridge” was William Fieldhouse, aka the Gar Wilson who wrote Phoenix Force (and wrote me that letter when I was a kid back in the ‘80s). The “white ninja guy” is a dead giveaway, even Phoenix Force had one – John Trent, I believe his name was. As a ninja-obsessed ‘80s kid, he was my favorite member of the Force, even though he was an unofficial member and only sporadically appeared.<br /><br />Operation Hang Ten – Another obscure and outrageously-overpriced series I’d love to check out but just haven’t yet. Did you know there was a TV movie adaptation? Apparently the pilot for a series that wasn’t picked up. Tried searching for it online a few times, but no luck. <br /><br />Anyway, these are just my initial thoughts after my first reading of this post…I’m sure I’ll be re-reading and re-posting a few more times. Thanks again, this post was great!Joe Kenneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03285576322579808153noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7855076037924078503.post-52626361995743416362013-09-09T16:16:03.821-05:002013-09-09T16:16:03.821-05:00Man, I love these review round-ups! Just spent an...Man, I love these review round-ups! Just spent an enjoyable time reading through this post. Oh, and thanks for the comments on my blog! <br /><br />Hellrider – Still haven’t read these, but given they’re by Dan Schmidt I feel that I’ve ALREADY read them, if you know what I mean…his books are usually sort of repeats of one another. (I still say though that his Executioner novel “Circle of Steel” is awesome, my favorite non-Pendleton Bolan, and I know you’d enjoy it – hell, it even has a coke-snorting nymphomaniac Nazi she-devil!!) The biker deal makes Hellrider sound different, but I don’t doubt you when you say it devolves into a “numbing” action sequence. According to Mike Madonna, Schmidt was pals with Joseph Rosenberger, and indeed one of the “Rosenberger circle” of writers who I guess took guidance from the guy. I can just see JR taking a red pen to some character introspection/plot development stuff in Schmidt’s manuscript and admonishing, “No, no – more guns and guts!!”<br /><br />Outrider – I’ve got all of these, but haven’t read a single one. Chuckling about your description of the cover painting. What the hell were they thinking? These books have a good cred among post-nuke afficionados; a few people have emailed me about them, telling me I’d enjoy them. I read that the author did write the final installment, but it was never published, and he didn’t seem in a hurry to e-publish the series or anything.<br /><br />The Inquisitor – Man, I so know what you mean, these overpriced books not being worth it. I think the most expensive books I have are the Hitman novels by Kirby Carr, which go for outrageous prices. And yet neither of the two I’ve read so far are “holy grails.” (In fact they’re more along the lines, at times, of Jake Strait #2 – a little too goofy, to the point where you think the author is mocking you.) The Inquisitor is one I’ve wanted to read for a while, but then I came across somewhere that the hero tries his hardest not to kill his enemies, as you mention in your review. I mean what the hell kind of men’s adventure protagonist is that?? I was willing to overlook the whole “holy warrior” deal and all, but the “no killing” stipulation was sort of the final nail in the coffin, so I never shelled out the cash for one of these books.Joe Kenneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03285576322579808153noreply@blogger.com