Kingbeast's Lair

-== What is it? ==-

Asterios Polyp is a graphic novel that tackles some deep topics through the eyes of its eclectic main character. The book was written and illustrated by David Mazzucchelli and published by Pantheon Books. It was released in 2009.

Asterios Polyp has interior art that is comprised of only yellow, pink, purple, and blue shades. The cover has some black but it is predominately in the same color palette. The book is 10.5” x 8” in size and is 344 pages in length. I am reviewing a hardcover copy that I bought from Lee’s Comics in San Mateo.

-== What I Like ==-

The main story is comprised of deep layered topics which are explored through the life and beliefs of the main character, Asterios Polyp. Some of the major topics covered in the story include fate, death, art, and love. In each case Asterios brings light to these in his own analytically minded fashion.

Asterios Polyp is wonderfully intricate in its simplicity. The story is told through several threads that start and stop at various points in his life. After having described the narrative as jumping around through time you might think that this would make the book hard to read. In fact the narrative is so masterfully crafted that instead it feels fluid and natural.

Everything about the story, artwork, AND physical presentation of Asterios Polyp has meaning. in 344 pages there are no wasted panels. The way the scenes are drawn evokes Asterios’ state of mind at the time. For example, when someone is upset or fearful they may take on a shaky sort of outline. The dust jacket has Asterios Polyp on front cover facing the spine. On the back cover of the jacket is the ghost of his brother staring back across the spine. Also the dust jacket does not cover the front surface of the book. It leaves parts of the cover exposed which allows it to move around in a sort of disconcerting way. For some reason even the ill fitting cover reminded me of Asterios.

Asterios Polyp has many memorable moments which I can vividly recall months after reading it. The initial pages and last few pages are really memorable. These pages hook you into the story, make you read it to the end, then really makes you want to go back and revisit those moments with a reread.

The artwork in Asterios Polyp is comprised of simple lines with little shading but it is executed to perfection. I would stare at the simple lines trying to divulge some deeper meaning. It reminded me of the story…intricate in its simplicity.

-== What I Don’t Like ==-

Maybe my only complaint is that the story can be a bit “heavy” at times. If you want a quick read where you can turn your brain off at the door this is not the book you want to pickup.

-== Summary ==-

With Asterios Polyp David Mazzucchelli weaves a masterful tale that is detailed and utterly unforgettable. I need to give credit where credit is due. I found this graphic novel based on a recommendation from Blair Butler who hosts G4′s Fresh Ink. Here is a link to the video review that tipped me off that Asterios Polyp was something different and great. Boy Blair was right on this one. Please go buy Asterios Polyp and see how graphic novels can tell compelling stories. This might be the best graphic novel that I have ever read. Go buy this sucker right now and read it. When you get done come back here and thank me.

Amazon has Asterios Polyp for sale at this URL for a paltry $19.77.

I give it 10 out of 10 paws.

I think I may now have everything squared away on my new web host. During the process of moving everything to InMotion Hosting I needed help. Technical support was fast, friendly, and knowledgeable. Finally I have a web host that has better tech support. Excellent. (If you are looking for a new host please consider using the link above. That way I can get a kick back…I am an official InMotion Affiliate. )

Now that Kingbeast’s Lair is back expect some spiffy new content. I think the next entry will be the review of what could possibly be the best graphic novel that I have ever read! How is that for a teaser!?!

GAME ON!

Some of you know that I have been having terrible issues with my current web hosting company. I finally decided to bite the bullet and do something about it. I am switching web hosting companies. As part of the process I will be moving over my entire web site and email. During this process the blog, site, and email related to usandacat.com might be sporadic…especially since I have never tried moving my site when it was this complicated. Please bear with the mess during the move.

Date At Start Of Game: 2/8/207

[Author's Note: This is the log for the 30th session. Note that the order of the events in this record may not be in the exact order that they occurred during play.]

Vesh’s Last Mission

The adventure opens on the night of the Dragon Festival. Vesh has setup a mission and has asked Bilby to accompany him. The PC have also learned that Yotsu has hired Vesh to look for weaknesses in the palace defenses. When Bilby meets with the Rat Kin assassin Po is watching from a nearby building and Cillian is listening from under the street. Cillian hears Vesh tell Bilby that their target is the palace. Bilby follows Vesh to the palace walls as the rest of the PC wait in the palace.

Vesh leads Bilby to the palace walls then waits. A merchant with pans moves along the street getting his wheel caught in a rut. In the commotion it allows him to shoot a magical grappel across the gap and scale the walls. At this point Vesh and Bilby sneak into the palace and move up to the 5th floor. To reach an external window Vesh distracts a guard, touches some moonlight that is escaping from the window, then teleports outside! Once outside Vesh motions for Bilby to follow. Bilby sneaks out of a different window to join him.

The pair then reaches a balcony to a sitting room. Vesh says that he can see a trap on the door and asks Bilby for help. Bilby had scouted out the doors in the past and suggest cutting loose one of the window panes. Vesh uses his claws to cut the glass. Just before entering the room Vesh pauses. He tells Bilby that something is wrong. Bilby convinces him to wait for a bit then the other PC have Yotsu enter the room. Once Yotsu enters the room Vesh enters with a flourish. The two talk about the mission and Yotsu pays Vesh. At that point Yotsu asks Vesh about spying for him. Vesh agrees. As Vesh is ready to leave the rest of the PC enter the room. Sensing danger Vesh turns to flee out the balcony. From the shadows Bilby deftly grabs Vesh crushing him under his mighty arms! Vesh tells Bilby that the assassination they worked on has made him “soft”. With that Oren also grabs Vesh then Po drains away his luck. The PC then tie Vesh to a chair while Po drains him.

At this point the PC speak with Vesh. Oren takes the lead telling Vesh that he better give them some good information of he will be killed. Vesh says he knows a lot about their enemies and can relay that information to them. Oren thinks this is not enough and suggests executing him. After some conversation amoung themselves the PC decide that they must tell Empress Nokidara. First Cillin speaks with the Empress. He tells her that Vesh killed her husband and son. Cillian also explains that Vesh may also know about why he was spared. The Empress says that the reason for his being saved is not as important as killing the man who assassinated her husband and son. They are together now. When Cillian offers to “handle the situation” the Empress gets a bit nervous and asks to speak with Oren. The trio then decide that Vesh should be executed immediately.

The PC then retrieve Captain Ibara and deliver Vesh for execution. After Cillian rubs it in a bit with Capatain Ibara the PC make the delivery. The PC then escort Vesh to the chopping block. A few minutes later Vesh is beheaded. The PC ponder the meaning of the execution in their own way.

The Entry Chambers

At this point the PC prepare for their trip to the Racers Edge Mountains and the Vault Of The Dragon Kings. First they gather information from Meiji who is the only one who knows about the Vault and Dragons. He explains that many years ago the Dragon Kin were beset by a terrible “plague”. Leaders of each Dragon clan (i.e. fire, water, earth, air) became “kings”. As Dragons began to fall they decided to create the Vault as a way to preserve their race. Meiji believes that Cragspine may be a defender of the Vault but he is not sure. Meiji then gives a rough map of where he believes the entrance is to the PC. After gathering their gear the PC head to the Vault Of The Dragon Kings.

The Racers Edge range is treacherous but the PC manage to make it into the area. Once in the locale mentioned on the map Cillian spots a huge cavern at the top of a large sheet of ice. Sticking out of the cavern mouth is a massive stone Dragon sculpture. Cillian climbs up using the magical grappling hook then turns to raise up Bilby. As Bilby closes the head turn and breathes fire! Bilby jumps off the rope and avoids the attack. Once Bilby is away from the status it stops moving. With some careful digging by Oren the PC skirt the statue and move to a set of doors behind the statue.

The massive doorway has four levers with verbiage in Dragon Kin. After discussing the verbiage the PC pull some levers to see what happens. By carefully watching how the levers respond they solve the puzzle and the doors open.

The next room is a massive foyer. It is flanked by a stone guardhouse and watchtower. When Cillian enters the room he spots skeletal archers in the watchtower who are preparing to fire! He quickly dashes into the room dodging shots! The rest of the PC quickly follow. As they get to the base of the watchtower another door opens and a mummy that looks kind of like a Velociraptor Kin emerges with two clubs! As he nears Po cuts loose with his new Dead Can Dance spell. At first the mummy starts to dance but he quickly escapes. Using the skeleton finger necklace and massive force of will Po cuts loose again. This time the power of the spell is too much for the mummy and he starts to dance again…this time he is right in front of the other PC. Oren pounds on him. Cillian jumps over and using his fire hand sets the mummy into a pyre of flame! When the mummy falls the PC examine their situation to decide how to proceed…

Date At End Of Game: 2/18/207

While cleaning up some binders and such at home I unearthed some CD-ROMs that contain backups of the Checkered Demon BBS! By doing some poking around I was also able to construct a file list and recover many of the files that were posted as downloads in the RPG section. If you go to the Other downloads page on my site you can find this very list.

If you would like to have copies of some of these files available for download on Kingbeast’s Lair please shoot me an email and I will see what I can do. Note that SOME of these files appear to be corrupted. I can only offer to do my best to recover them.

There are some other benefits of this discovery. I will soon be posting EVERY issue of a newsletter that I published long ago called Mad Merc’s Gaming Gazette. These newsletter contain lots of RPG goodness and are a glimpse back into the early days of Hero. Watch for these to start appearing on this blog soon.