Between Books - X-Force by Geoffrey Thorne Vol. 1: Fractures

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Let’s play Betweenland’s favorite game…IS IT GOOD DEADPOOL?

X-Force by Geoffrey Thorne Vol. 1: Fractures written by Geoffrey Throne and illustrated by Marcus To provides a post-Krakoa start to the paramilitary mutant special forces. The story follows Forge as he sets up a new X-Force team, with hardly any pre-Krakoa X-Force members, as he tries to save the world from armageddons. Forge uses a new toy to predict future fractures that will lead to the destruction of the world, and uses his secret team and custom devices to face off against the end of the world.

The book covers features Deadpool, a classic X-Force member, front and center. And the collection description notes, “Forge will recruit a specialist for each target: first up, that regenerating degenerate, Deadpool!” So we have to ask, is this good Deadpool.

• Community: Wade is a traditional member of X-Force, but you don’t get the sense that he’s joined up with the group for more than getting his bag. We never get to see our friend have a good hang with anyone.

• BetterUp: At no time does Wade attempt to become a better person. He’s along for slashing, shooting, and fighting.

• Laugh Away the Pain: Wade quips, we laugh. But it honestly covers no emotional development.

• Your Pal Wade: Deadpool does make a joke or two for us that reminds us that he knows he’s a multimedia giant. But he has so little page time, that we really don’t get to spend time with our buddy.

X-Force by Geoffrey Thorne Vol. 1: Fractures is bad Deadpool. Despite the cover and the marketing, Wade Wilson’s time in the story is truly a guest spot as he’s just not on the page a lot. It feels like Thorne was given an editorial note to add the Merc with the Mouth for sales, through his appearance and cover art. Maybe they thought his inclusion would connect the title with other runs. But, I have a hard time saying that Wade is featured here or that Wade grows in any meaningful character way in the middle of this cast. It’s bad Deadpool in the sense that he fights and jokes, and his impact, other than establishing that Forge recruits to fix individual problems, is not essential.

It is Forge that gets highlighted here. We learn that his power of creating solutions, usually through machines, is completely passive. He has the mutant gift to create a counter to what is coming. But he may not understand the future or how his solutions even work.

Along with not being the best Deadpool, I don’t think this is the best X-Force either. I am a fan of this team being the special forces of the mutant world as seen in its Cable-based origins or during the Daniel Way run. Honestly, this run feels like a superhero team that is somewhat secret but not gritty and grim. Again, did editorial order a book titled X-Force for the legacy title, but had really gotten a superhero book that could have been published under another X-Men or X-Factor title?

X-Force by Geoffrey Thorne Vol. 1: Fractures is a fine mutant or X-book. But it’s not great Deadpool or even strong X-Force in my opinion. 

 

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Between Books - Star Wars: The High Republic A Valiant Vow

Star Wars…YEAH.

The High Republic…MEH!

But, hey I can be kind towards a book not meant for Sith adults…right.

Due to time and my past engagement, I have been trying when I can to complete High Republic books through audiobooks. Spoiler, I feel like this plan has been solid for me.

Star Wars: The High Republic A Valiant Vow, a book meant for young adult readers, by Justina Ireland, follows two groups on the planet Eriadu. The first group, a pair of Jedi knights including Imri Cantaros, support the planet’s population as the Nihil Stormwall is opening, allowing refugees to flee if they want. They must balance the weather, the creeping Gray, and a crooked government. Meanwhile, three young friends in Jedi young Tep Tep, Churo the Hutt, and Zenny, a Senator’s daughter, try to stop a Hutt plot and free Churo from the clutches of his family. The two groups may meet together for a big climax.

I have to admit, I read an earlier volume with Tep Tep, Churo, and Zenny, and I wasn’t a fan. I found there was too much going on, too many characters, and the story failed to fill my imagination. But in this case, narrator Todd Haberkorn helps the reader by providing engaging voices and clear transitions between his narration and characters. I think that element helped keep me engaged, even if the story is not the big set-piece battle one would expect for a book written for a different audience, angry Star Wars fans. The story, actions, and character growth opportunities are all appropriate for the audience age group, and I think engaging for the intended group.

It’s Imri Cantaros that most interests me. We really get to spend time here with Imri and see his character develop. We saw in Ireland’s most recent Star Wars story that Imri is remembered nearly a hundred years later as a great Jedi thinker. We even have time for Imri and Vernestra to spend time together, putting him on that journey. Readers come to enjoy a Jedi who believes in compassion and empathy. And this makes it clear to us that the fan casting of Imri as Darth Arms just can’t be true! Ireland has been spending a lot of time thinking about Imri, and wow she’s putting out books quickly.

Science should be ethical. I like Churo, not spelled Churro, and his desire to be a scientist. But I do think that his science mentor is a little quesitionable in standards. And I think we would do a little better in showing kids that science and ethics should go hand-in-hand.
 

Star Wars: The High Republic A Valiant Vow by Justina Ireland is a young adult adventure, filled with moments of friendship and empathy. It’s a book that helps us learn our lessons by watching fictional characters on an adventure. And I think that narration by Haberkorn improves the experience, and keeps this grumpy old man from going negative.

Yoda…where are you at pal?

 

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Between Books - Walt’s Utopia: Disneyland and American Mythmaking Second Edition

If you read enough Disney books, there are a few different formats which you find recurring. One common format is the park walk around, where the author strolls from land to land sharing secrets and history. It is a familiar book type to Disney fans, where if you have read five Disney books you’ve read this format at least twice. Honestly, I have read the walkthroughs enough, I’m not sure one could add a new flair to it. But I am willing to give an academic version of this style a chance.

Walt’s Utopia: Disneyland and American Mythmaking Second Edition by Priscilla Hobbs provides a new take to a familiar format. Hobbs takes readers through Walt Disney’s original park, Disneyland, with a look not to fun facts, but discussions of myth making in the park. Hobbs declares that Disneyland is one of America’s most mythic spaces as a location where reality is often surplanted by imagination. Here the American myths of exceptionalism can be built out and explored by guests on a physical canvas, allowing guests to create their own connections and personal myths about the park. Hobbs adopts an interdisciplinary approach to explore Disney myths. Hobbs uses textual analysis to break down the stories that Disney offers guests to reach their foundations. Additionally, Hobbs relies on contextual analysis to better understand the symbols and metaphors that guests are immersed within. Often what Hobbs finds are stories that provide guests reassurance, not lost on me as a goal of Disney Legend John Hench. In a world that may not have always seemed orderly, Disneyland often bolsters the myth of human progress even going so far as allowing one to buy into the myth through the purchase of items tying guests back to the park. With an approach set to review the myths of Disneyland, Hobbs walks readers through the park from Main Street USA to Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, discussing not just the history of the attractions and lands, but also the myths the lands communicate to guests as they immerse themselves in the themed environments.

I found Hobbs’ discussions to be interesting and enlightening. I would remind us all that theme parks are often seen as a setting for children and play. Therefore, you may wonder if one really needs to analyze the messages an myths that the park is projecting. But Hobbs helps us to understand the power of the myths and why they are so attractive to audiences like Disney adults, who seek a more ordered world, let’s be honest working isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and why the parks are able to make individual connections that foster return visits and return spending. For example, I love the Adventureland’s of the world. I think of them as places where one can explore and have fun. Hobbs notes that placemaking here is attempting to establish a world that was seen as exotic by mid-century Americans. The plants, sounds, and smells all created a hyperreality of an unspoiled world. Where, myself and my own studies of the British Empire has made it clear that what I am seeing is fiction. But I find myself returning to enter the myth Disney storytellers have crafted for me.

Along with Hobbs’ argument, I also appreciate Hobbs’ viewpoint. I don’t feel like Hobbs is ever anti-Disney. We have all seen or heard about academic Disney books with only one goal, burn it all down! Hobbs is a Disney Parks fan and I believe quite comfortable in the explored lands. Hobbs is just able to separate from the placemaking to step outside and review the story being told. And while Hobbs may show some fandom, the author especially with this edition is still able to hold Disney accountable by noting the connections between their mythmaking and the consumption and consumerism it encourages. As I often say, Disney doesn’t leave a dollar on the table. So I think even the most ardent Disney defenders must admit that while we love the parks they are quite good at separating us from our money. I also appreciate that Hobbs is very transparent on their academic approach, not leading me to believe that I am reading a history book when I am really reading a literary deconstruction of a physical place.

Walt’s Utopia: Disneyland and American Mythmaking Second Edition by Priscilla Hobbs is a unique way to walk through a Disney park. Hobbs reminds us that Disneyland is a myth, one that creates reassurance about the world and human progress. Additionally, this created deep individual attachments to the park, even for adults playing in a land seen as childish by others. These attachments support Disney corporate goals as guests become consumers and consume beyond park tickets to further their personal attachment. Overall, I found Walt’s Utopia to be well-written and thought provoking, a good read for Disney fans who want to think about their park visits intellectually. 

 

Review Copy Provided for Review

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