Canavan’s Comments (group member since May 15, 2018)

Canavan’s comments from the Spells, Space & Screams: Collections & Anthologies in Fantasy, Science Fiction, & Horror group.

Just to be a bit of a naysayer, while I appreciated aspects of The Last Crusade (especially Sean Connery’s performance), my overall take was fairly lukewarm. I find the plot a rather pale imitation of the one in the original movie. And just as I tend to be less impressed than many with Crusade, I find that I actually like Dial of Destiny more than most. It’s by no means perfect, but I’ve always been bit flummoxed by the hate it seems to generate.

J. said: David Lynch, Visionary Director of ‘Twin Peaks’ and ‘Blue Velvet,’ Dies at 78

The first David Lynch I saw was Eraserhead. I recall being completely befuddled as to what Lynch was trying to do, but the images were mesmerizing.

I was recently talking to a friend about Lynch’s stab at filming Frank Herbert’s novel, Dune. That was a train wreck of a movie, but, again, one that was often visually stunning.

On a completely different note, yesterday also saw the passing of baseball legend Bob Uecker. This had a special meaning for me. I think for most people, Uecker was compartmentalized as the comedic ex-ball player. But to me he will always be the guy behind the mic for the Milwaukee Brewers, a job he performed with great distinction for over 50 years. I cannot begin to count the number of evenings spent listening to those radio broadcasts.

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year. 🍾🎉

Hope everyone is enjoying the holidays.

Wren said: I had it on hold, it was ready ,then got into a car wreck and lost my pick up.

Sorry to hear about the accident, Wren.

“The Dreamers”

(view spoiler)[This is the strongest story I’ve thus far encountered in the collection. (I’ve been skipping around a bit.) It’s an homage to H.P. Lovecraft’s 1919 story, “Beyond the Wall of Sleep”. Stephen King’s story is an odd mix of semi-modern and more vintage elements — we have, for example, a Vietnam vet consorting with a “gentleman scientist” (of the sort one would encounter in old pulp stories). Actually, the Lovecraft story “Dreamers” most reminds me of is “From Beyond” (1934), a tale which spawned a pretty decent B-movie of the same name directed by Stuart Gordon and released in 1986. (hide spoiler)]

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“The Turbulence Expert”

(view spoiler)[This story originally appeared in anthology Stephen King co-edited with Bev Vincent, Flight or Fright, a collection of plane-themed horror tales. The idea in “Turbulence” is one that might pop into the head of a nervous passenger during a rough flight. (hide spoiler)]

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“Red Screen”

(view spoiler)[At one point during this story reference is made to the classic film/movie Invasion of the Body Snatchers. I’m not sure there’s need to say much more… (hide spoiler)]

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“Finn”

(view spoiler)[My initial impression while reading this story was that King was revisiting ideas found in “In the Deathroom”, (2000), but then towards the end it veers off in a somewhat unexpected direction. There’s an explicit reference made to Ambrose Bierce’s famous tale, “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”. Finn’s actions in the final moments of the story made me think of Cobb’s totem in the film Inception. (hide spoiler)]

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“On Slide Inn Road”

(view spoiler)[Oldster must step in to save the day. Reminiscent of Stephen King’s 2012 story, “Batman and Robin Have an Altercation”. (hide spoiler)]

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“The Fifth Step”

(view spoiler)[A serial killer has joined AA and is working his way through the tweleve-step program. Once you understand that premise (and I figured out where this one was headed fairly quickly), there’s not much left to say. Well written, but not one I found particularly interesting. (hide spoiler)]

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“Weird Willie”

(view spoiler)[Competently written rehash of the author’s 1984 story, “Gramma”. (hide spoiler)]

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“Two Talented Bastids”

(view spoiler)[At one point during this story, the narrator’s father, Laird, makes mention of the folklore surrounding legendary blues guitarist Robert Johnson and his crossroads meeting with the Devil. Laird and Butch don’t actually meet the Devil, but, as we eventually learn, they meet someone very like the Devil in terms of the impact the encounter has on the subsequent course of their lives. I didn't particular care for this “E.T.” aspect of King’s story, but I did find interesting the author’s musings on the nature of artistic talent, a theme that crops up in a fair number of his tales. (hide spoiler)]

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I started watching Disney’s new Star Wars property, The Acolyte. No terribly firm opinions after only two episodes except to say it’s probably not going to be as good as Andor, but at least it’ll be better than Ahsoka. Ymmv.

Lena said: Definitely no ambiguity in The Tunnel Ahead, it was a liberal horror.

I would probably characterize the story as dystopic science fiction, but to each their own.

I’m okay with “The Lottery” being on this list, even if it is a somewhat predictable choice. I remember reading the Alice Glaser story many years ago. Good, but I personally wouldn’t put it in the same league as the Shirley Jackson tale. There’s something about the ambiguity in “The Lottery” that gives it an added emotional heft (in my opinion).

I was surprised by how many of the story’s on this best-of list I’ve read, although there were a few I’ve never even heard of.

I have a digital copy and I’ve read ahead a bit. Not bad so far.

I’ve responded to your email with my selection. As for this month’s book, I’ve read a few more selections…just haven’t gotten around to posting my thoughts on them.

Randy said (in part): Then I came across and read the Lin Carter edited Zothique and was kind of gobsmacked.

Maybe I’ll give this one a chance. I know I have it lying around somewhere. In fact, I think that the bulk of the Smith stories I’ve read were found in those old Ballantine fantasies published in the late 60s/early 70s. But I doubt I’ve read more than 15 or 20 total. My personal favorite of his might be rather atypical of Smith. It’s his 1931 tale, “Return of the Sorcerer”. It’s been anthologized quite a few times.

“The Last Hieroglyph”, Clark Ashton Smith

While he tossed out the odd pearl, for the most part I’ve never been a big fan of Smith’s stories. His prose is a bit too ornate for my taste. This is actually one of his better tales. (view spoiler)[In some ways “Hieroglyph” is oddly similar to George MacDonald’s “The Golden Key” — both are about religious journeys that culminate in death, although “Hieroglyph” is far more nihilistic than “Key”. Like “Key”, however, I found that “Hieroglyph” dragged on for far longer than necessary. (hide spoiler)]

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