I’ve started revisiting the pulpy fantasy novels that I read back in grade school. Say what you will about R.A. Salvatore, his writing gets the job done and his stories are paced fairly well. He’s placed his characters in the Forgotten Realms subset of Dungeons and Dragons, and his first novel, The Crystal Shard, is very quick reading. 15 years later, after watching the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, (still haven’t read the books) I am forced to admit that the story has more than a few, “similarities” with the source material. Then again, what doesn’t?
Nevermind that, I’m going to read the whole trilogy. It’s the origin of one Drizzt Do’Urden, one of the most popular characters, ever. Besides, Drizzt is the man. Er, drow. Whatever.
The constant combat and straightforward stories of the intellectual property almost begged to be turned into some form of electronic entertainment. Wizards of the Coast promptly did, and thankfully, they lucked out and got Black Isle Studios (may they rest in peace) and Snowblind to develop their PC and Console games, respectively. Of note is Drizzt’s appearance as a secret character in almost all of the video games (PC and console) that are based on the Forgotten Realms property. He’s a really popular guy.
After my fantasy kick, I’m probably going to head off into Sci-Fi, and I want to pick up some Asimov. I’ve got a two volume extremely heavy collection of his short stories, and I like his ideas, although his writing could be a little more exciting.
Speaking of excitement, (and being careful about what you wish for) there’s the Will Smith summer vehicle movie based on I, Robot. I have to say, I’m not looking forward to this as an adaptation. I’m expecting a “creative reimagining” * of Asimov’s work. Nice of them to mention him on the website, too.
* See also: bastardization