Into the Cosmos

 

I've been a fan of Decadence Comics for years now. I think I first encountered there work in 2017 or thereabouts. My first purchase of their products was Geopolitical Manipulation Through the use of Fungi Based Parasites on 186F, which I strongly recommend. Since then, I've picked up a variety of their works and never been disappointed. Most of their books feature art by Stathis Tsemberlidis or Lando, a pair of brilliant artists who, when one looks at their work combined, is loosely reminiscent of the work of Moebius combined with that of Pepe Moreno and Arnaud Dombre (better known as Arno, from his collaborations with Jodorowsky in what appears to be the now-defunct Heavy Metal Magazine), but in a more organic register. 

Now, one of my favorite movies of all time is 2001: A Space Odyssey. So, when I saw that 50 Watts Books was publishing a collection of illustrations from Tsemberlidis featuring work from his graphic novelization of 2001, Solaris, and Rendezvous with Rama, along with the comic "Protoconscious", I hit the buy button before I even knew what I was doing. Thankfully, sometimes my instincts are right. 

While the entirety of these stories are not contained herein (except for "Protoconscious"), those familiar with either the written or filmed versions of these science fiction staples will recognize the touchpoints. But Tsemberlidis, while providing gracious nods to the originals, makes the works his own with his distinctive (if not evocative of the aforementioned artists) style and impressionistic structuring of panels. 

I am particularly fond of the illustration of the black monolith of 2001:

Now, I might be playing a little favoritism here, as another black monolith of much larger dimensions, which I dubbed The Black Cliff, features in my newest published Mutant Crawl Classics adventure, At the Mutants of Madness. 

TTRPG nepotism aside, Tsemberlidis has provided here a panoply of compelling imagery and storytelling via illustration. If you're looking for surrealistic science fiction art that uses abstraction to trigger the imagination, you've found yourself a treasure. 

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Mus Mortuus Non Respirare

 I've probably written that sentence incorrectly. There are tens of thousands of people who could correct me if I'm wrong. At least I think there are. But now it's my turn to learn Latin.

Where does this poor dead mouse come in? Well, I have to admit, it's a long stretch from this erstwhile rodent to this page, but in my mind it's not far at all. 

I've been "studying" Latin for a year now. Meaning I've been doing Duolingo. Meaning, I haven't really been studying, but more . . . familiarizing myself with Latin. 

This winter, I intend to begin an honest attempt to learn some Latin. I understand, I'll probably die before I'm fluent. But I'm going to give it my best college try.

Meaning, I'm going to treat it like a class. Sort of. 

As you know, I recently finished I, Claudius. And I'm currently reading Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin. I have SPQR lined up to read, as well. And I've listened to a fair clip of The History of Rome podcast. And, of course, I've been trying to translate the little quips from Asterix and Obelix since my youth. 

So, I've read around the language and dabbled a bit. But now it's time to get a little more serious.

I've got a little thumb drive with something like 200 Latin primers. Nice pickup from Etsy. But only recently have I picked up some honest to goodness books. Physical books. Something I can sink my eyes and brain into. They are:

Lingua Latina per se Illustrata: pars 1: Familia Romana, because I hear that this is truly the best book to learn Latin from (Reddit told me so)

Winne Ille Pu, and this one for a couple of reasons, not least of which is that when I lived in Italy, my third grade teacher, Mrs. Wells, who was the best teacher I had until college, read us Winnie the Pooh with all the voices, just like in the movies and when the movie came out at the Air Force base we lived at at the time (San Vito de Normani, if you must know), I stood in line for an hour only to have the theater sell out as we were ten people back in line and I cried and I cried and I cried. Yeah, I was a sensitive kid. But now I get Winnie the Pooh in Latin, and I will always hear in my mind Mrs. Wells, who could have slotted in on any of those movies and given all those professional voice actors a run for their money. No, I'm serious. She was *that* good!

Perseus et Medusa, because I have this recent fascination about Medusa that I can't explain and I'm fairly certain she is going to creep into my next piece of fiction. Almost 100% certain, in fact. 

And, finally, Medieval Latin Lyrics, because I understand the language was very different during the Middle Ages than it had been during the Classical Era and I want a taste of them knights-in-shining-armor kicking but while poorly-quoting Cicero. 

I think I'm going to just dive into all four at once. And I might also give a shot at De Spectris Lemuribus et Magnis because who doesn't like books about ghosts in Latin? 

I'm curious how others have fared in studying Latin outside of the context of a formally-taught course in a bonified educational institution? I suspect that it would benefit me to try that. Maybe later. Much later. When I can take college courses for free because it's interesting to watch retirees march to their grave with their nose in a book. 

Did I mention a book about ghosts in Latin? 

By the way, yes, I laid those flowers by the dead mouse. He just looked so vulnerable there, and I wanted him to be remembered. Plus, it gave me a reason to practice what little Latin I do know, even if it's wrong. Besides, when the world is cold and dead outside and I'm trying to just survive the Wisconsin winter, I can look at this post and think back on the very hot day I took that walk and realize that there's always another spring coming. Well . . . almost always. 

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I, Claudius

I, Claudius by Robert Graves
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Why "I, Claudius"? It's a good question. I, Forrest, typically hate biographies, even historical biographies (and I am, by training, a historian). When I lived in Italy, as a young child, I was mostly ambivalent about the place, outside of the amazing food (which is only vaguely like 99.9% of "Italian" food served in America), some of the architecture (we found pillars to old Roman shrines out in the artichoke fields and WWII bunkers on the beach when out exploring), and my initial exposure to Asterix & Obelix. Later in life, as I reflect back on it through nostalgic glasses, Italy was alright. In fact, I'd like to go back and visit.

So, naturally, I should study some Italian, right?

No.

I'm studying Latin. Slowly and haltingly, much in the way Claudius spoke. And I find myself not just trying to learn the grammar and vocabulary, but poking around the language itself and exploring it's origins, it's metamorphosis over time, and the cultures which spoke and wrote it. That is reason number 1.

Reason number 2 is a little more banal. I really liked Robert Grave's book The White Goddess. It's not perfect, but it is compelling enough, warts and all, that I will revisit and reread it again in the future. I can't say that about a lot of non-fiction, if I'm being honest. I wanted to see what Grave's did with a fictional book, based strongly on historical accounts (many of them fictionalized, no doubt).

Reason 3 is Caligula. Who isn't interested in Caligula? If he doesn't at least pique your interest, I don't know if we can be friends. He's one of the more intriguing crazed megalomaniacs in the historical record and if even half the things that are claimed about him are true, he makes even contemporary crazed megalomaniacs (take your pick from any of the superpowers) look tame in comparison. Besides, I don't know if you know this, but Thomas Negovan has worked on a team that has re-done (not "restored," but actually "re-done") the titillating movie about Caligula into something coherent that showcases actor Malcom McDowell's greatest performance, the "Ultimate Cut".

Now, my assessment. It continually held my interest, which is not something I can say about most biographies (fictional or, ha-ha, "non-fictional"). I had listened to the History of Rome podcast some time ago and got to Diocletian or so, so I had a little bit of an idea of what was going to happen. Still, already knowing the end, Graves held my interest enough that I blasted through the last third of the book fairly non-stop. As is usual, I was reading two other books at any given time while reading "I, Claudius," but the lame, stuttering emperor kept me coming back for more, taking up more of my "spare" time than I'd care to admit. Most of the time the book read as smooth as butter.

I attribute this to the voice that Graves breathed into Claudius. Claudius comes across as very human, full of foibles and fears, but with a good sense of humor. Wise, witty, and clumsy as an oaf. I felt for the guy, or at least for his fictional representation. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised. After all, as he points out in the ultimate non-sequitur of an ending, he considered himself, first and foremost, a historian.

And were the Claudius parts juicy? If by "juicy," you mean bloody, yes. If you mean "sexy," there's nothing sexually graphic in the novel. Graves uses hints, allegations, and some colorful allusions to hint at the debauchery that was happening (mostly) behind the scenes. But if you're allergic to violence, you might want to reconsider. You think horror movies are violent? Brace yourself.

Overall, though the language was very straightforward (and I like my prose a little more stylized), this was an extremely satisfying read. Graves shows a light touch in the areas that are speculative and chooses to emphasize certain aspects of the historical record (which may or may not be factual, but are at least based on fact) in order to "wow" his readers.

I have to add that my copy of the book is a 1953 paperback that I bought on Ebay. This book has seen some years and, while it arrived in great condition (i.e., I got what I paid for), the thing literally fell apart in my hands as I read it. I can't think of a more apt representation of the slow crumbling of the Roman empire under a trio of despots, the broken chunks of which were put into the hands of the man who chronicled its decay, Claudius himself.
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If you're interested in more Latin language and history books, try SPQR: An Ancient History of Rome or Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin

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Dreamland RPG Preview

 If you know me, or if you've read my blog for any length of time, you'll know that three things that inform a great deal of my life are dreams, "weird" fiction, and tabletop roleplaying games. So when I learned, several years ago, that Jason Thompson, artist behind the amazing graphic novel version of The Dream Quest of Unknown Kadath & Other Stories was behind a TTRPG focusing exclusively on the dreamlands, I was very excited. 

Then, last year at Gameholecon, I had the privilege to play in a game and, frankly, was blown away. This is a game that rewards creativity, it is not a player's game, but a creator's game, and I am ALL in on it! The mechanics use word cards that players use to influence and create actions and even the environment itself (a malleable dreamworld where creation is the ultimate power). I had been prepared to be disappointed (just in case), but that preparation melted away as the game play far surpassed my cautious emotional hedging. It was one of the most fun games I've played at a convention (and I've played a few). 

So now, you can download the quickstart rules in preparation for the upcoming Kickstarter next year. I'll be saving my gold pieces to be able to splurge on this one. I only get excited about Kickstarter campaigns every few years - yeah, I'm a skeptic and a bit of a cheapskate at times - but 2025 is going to be the year I get excited. 

Go here to download the quickstart rules. And have a gander at this art! This is just a sample of the goodness that is and will be the Dreamland RPG

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The Book of Monelle

 

The Book of Monelle by Marcel Schwob
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"When Marcel Schwob published The Book of Monelle in French in 1894, it immediately became the unofficcial bible of the French Symbolist movement," claims the back-cover copy of the (always amazing and criminally under-rated - and, incidentally, publisher of one of my favorite books of recent years) Wakefield Press edition of The Book of Monelle. One can easily see the segue from the artistic themes of the Symbolists (particularly the Belgian contingent) to Schwob's work here. This might also have something to do with the mood and themes of his short story collection The King in the Golden Mask, so, perhaps my artistic synesthesia bleeds into one morass of mythicaly-ethereal dream oceans.

I ascertain that one of the main ways that Monelle fed the symbolists was through a sort of literary sleight-of-hand, in which the title of the book's sections intentionally put one in an emotional state, ready to "receive" what the title had to offer, only to be slipped a story that contrasted with the story's title, sometimes directly opposing it, at other times, skewing meanings in unpredictable ways. This is particularly true in the first section "The Sisters of Monelle". For instance, the story "The Voluptuous" is anything but sexually attractive, while "The Savage" ends on a note of purely innocent love. In some ways, I see this baiting as a very mild precursor to what the dadaists and surrealists would take to extremes later on.

The second section, the actual "Book of Monelle," is a logically-slippery slope, a time-less (meaning that time has become a sort of stew with bits and pieces of past, present, and future swirling before the reader) dreamstate or fugue. Only on reading the translator's notes did I realize that Schwob had written the book using his lover, Louise (surname unknown), a young woman, likely a prostitute, with whom he had fallen in love before she was riddled through and killed by tuberculosis, becoming, over time, a sort of saintly figure in Schwob's mythology. Of course, this was deeply affecting to Schwob, and one can feel the emotional tug of "Monelle" throughout. We can feel Schwob's sorrow and his longing, especially in the pleading of Monelle's suitor to stay with or return to him and the children (not their children, but any child that is trying to escape the entrapment of adulthood and its banalities). So, besides the intellectual and philosophical exercise of the symbolism herein, we are swept up in a powerfully-emotional, softly-turning whirlwind, pushed aloft, then dropped to the depths of sorrow. It is a moving journey, and not one to be soon forgotten.

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Bootleg Reverse

I believe the last bootleg vinyl I owned was a really crappy live recording of Metallica's "Creeping Death" I got back in 1986 or so. Since I've been bitten again by the vinyl bug, I've avoided bootlegs, but in this case, I couldn't pass it up. The reason is that I can't find any "legitimate" vinyl releases of Pink Floyd's Live at Pompeii, which I consider, along with Blue Oyster Cult's ETI Live and Heaven and Hell's Live at Radio City Music Hall, to be one of the best live performances ever recorded. This was before the Floyd burst into popularity with "Dark Side of the Moon". In fact, it was the year before that high watermark and many, many years before their next biggest hit, "The Wall". This is the Floyd I missed because I was so young and because before the days of the interwebs, one just couldn't find copies of this thing or, as in my case, one didn't even know such a thing existed. 

But now, thanks to a birthday gift from my wife (I'm incredibly surprised by this because she hates most rock music, though she is incredibly musical), I am back in the bootleg business. 

This puppy is soooo bootleg it doesn't even have a sleeve, just this printed piece of glossy in a mylar bag. Please excuse me while I go listen to some psychedelic wanderings. Don't worry, I'll be back. I'm not going to go Syd Barret on this one, tempting as it is.

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If you like my writing and want to help my creative endeavors, ko-fi me at https://ko-fi.com/forrestaguirre. Every little bit is seen and appreciated! Thank you!

Going to Gamehole 2024

 Alright! I just got into the following events for Gamehole 2024! I will see you there!

Thursday:

9 AM - 1 PM: Branches of Bone (Cthulhu Dark Ages)

2 PM - 6 PM: Into the Clouds (Empire of the Petal Throne)

7 PM - 11 PM: Catastrophe Island (Dungeon Crawl Classics)

Friday:

9 AM-11 AM: Resurrection Men (Achtung! Cthulhu)

12 PM - 4 PM: Death Station (Classic Traveller)

4 PM - 8 PM: Black Letter: Legacy (Call of Cthulhu)

8 PM - 10 PM: Intro to Warhammer 40K RPG: Rain of Mercy (Warhammer 40K RPG)

Saturday:

8 AM - 12 PM: Thicker Than Blood Part 1: Forgotten Island (Troika!)

2 PM - 4 PM: Classic Battletech Grinder (Battletech Miniatures)

4 PM - 10 PM: Black Sun Rising (Call of Cthulhu)

So, as usual, a preponderance of Call of Cthulhu-and-adjacent games, 1 DCC/MCC game, 1 minis game (Battletech), 1 game I've never played before (Warhammer 40K RPG). This is my preferred mix for cons, so I'm pretty happy with it. The only things I couldn't quite fit were a Vaesen game and Cthulhu Invictus session. Maybe next time around. 

I usually get in a Wednesday night off-the-books game, as well. Usually something incredibly stupid and over the top involving DCC. And, frankly, that's usually my favorite game of the whole con. We'll see what shenanigans happen then. 

I'm seriously thinking I will run something for Garycon: Taking the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons coloring album dungeon (which is absolutely ridiculous) and running it using DCC. Gotta work on 1st edition AD&D monster conversions to DCC this winter, though. 

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If you like my writing and want to help my creative endeavors, ko-fi me at https://ko-fi.com/forrestaguirre. Every little bit is seen and appreciated! Thank you!