THESE FELLOWS ARE BRAVE BUT NOT EXACTLY NICE
By Alex Ness
February 7, 2022
Contact me at alexanderness63@gmail.com
(Click to enlarge all pics. No copyright claim asserted, all rights go to the respective owners.)
This is going to be a brief piece, as time and life issues have taken a toll upon me and my ability to find the solitude needed to write. I am not complaining or blaming, this is simply an explanation and giving reasons for the brevity.
There is a trope or cliché found in fantasy that works well for me. A muscular, powerful warrior enters combat against the odds, and wins. Wherever the warrior comes from, whatever is his motivation, we see the events through his eyes and revel in his acts of heroism, and destruction. There are various authors who have tried to write anti fantasy, showing the cost of such events, revealing the dark motives, the selfish reasons for action, while doing all that the others do straightforwardly.
Michael Moorcock: Elric, Corum and Hawkmoon
The first images show three warriors as written by Michael Moorcock. His characters, Corum, Hawkmoon and Elric are detailed and described, portrayed in the anti Fantasy manner described. This isn't a complaint, Moorcock writes beautifully, has a wide variety in his lexicon, and he writes new tales in the worlds he considers. His main character truly is Elric of Melniboné. Perhaps he is an elf, but it isn't described as such, but he belongs to an elder ancient race, who is dying, compared with the rising power of the human races. He is so utterly selfish and malicious one might see him as evil, it wouldn't be out of bounds. I think, though, that evil is more a desire to do something than the act itself, because killing can be from many motives and the reason for those comes from many deeper held views. The reason I make this a point is that one can bomb a city in war, killing the innocent, slaying those for and against you, without distinction. As it contributes to the overall victory, it is forgiven, or even seen in the light of a righteous war having victims. Elric acts out of sorrow for his lost love. He acts to defend his kingdom, however much he does so with dark lust for slaughter.
I do not like the characters Moorcock writes, but I think that that is somewhat his point. We aren't meant to enjoy the bestial violence, we are meant to watch the story unfold and dive into a fantastical world of magic, dark curses, violence and dragons.
Karl Edward Wagner: Kane
Karl Edward Wagner was a writer who had a life outside of literature that had been aimed at a greatness unrealized, as a psychiatrist. He had intellect, a broad background of literary interest, and wrote in numerous formats and genres. There is a likelihood that he might have considered himself the reference for the character he became most associated with, Kane. A master of magic and warrior of renown Kane was an idealized male, using his intellect as well as brawn to solve issues faced. Wagner's writing is clear and concise, even cinematic. While Kane wasn't meant for the reader to like or love, it was clear that Wagner meant to present the reader with the character that one could or should aspire to be. It didn't work for me in that manner. However, Kane is well written, worth reading, and stands as an example of being written well enough for the reader to be entertained, while appreciating the story and lore.
Robert E. Howard: Conan, Kull, Bran Mak Morn and many more
Robert E. Howard had a career of a writer, in a time and place where such a life would be considered to be eclectic or exotic, perhaps even odd. But he was devoted to his writing and was talented in his imagination and his determination. What people don't usually know is that he had such a career and ability as a result of his own pursuits of knowledge and history, and the desire, perhaps, for himself to live in those past ancient worlds and places. He disliked the world of his own experience, and wrote the many magnificent examples of heroes, as a means of creating a world he'd like to be in.
Conan was just one of the many he created, and while they shared traits, RE Howard knew how to create meaningful interesting characters. That ability to create such is one important reason why a magazine and pulp writer of his day remains valid and interesting today. He might not have been wealthy, but he was able to support himself, by writing. Conan and other characters were more than intellectual properties, but perhaps a view into the man's mental outlook.
Fritz Leiber: Fafhrd & the Gray Mouser
Fritz Leiber's genius regarding writing, came not in the composition of words, but in creating a pair of friends who could use thief skills, or magic, or sword play to achieve their goals. In their story the two find love and lose it, fight gods and ancient dead guardians, they are cursed and defeat the magic user giving such a curse, and more. They are two men carved out of a time when manly pursuits included women only as ornamentation, and for that Leiber's works have been called sexist. I understand that, but as a historian I have always taken fiction as being born of the times it was written, and that goes from antiquity to the present. But the friendship and comradery presented are valid, whatever else is lost to the ages.
Frank Frazetta's Death Dealer
Death Dealer was originally an image that was popular, as created by Frank Frazetta. He did more than one image with the character, and eventually he allowed and desired others to develop a mythology regarding that character. The books written by James Silke are actually really evocative and worth reading. Some of the comics written about the character work well, but most, however great the art is, tend to pale compared to the look and aesthetics of that character. While that is understandable, Frazetta was a great artist, there remains a great deal interesting about the character. When he was an anti hero, an elemental, a being called into life by triggers of an epic and mythic nature, he is fun to watch. But there is much we do not know about him, and nothing written with him in it is definitive, and so, I wait for a final, and fully wrought version of him.
WHEN THE END COMES
I've been told by various people that I focus on the dark aspects of life too much. And they might be correct. But I'd argue that in a dynamic system the motion is created by the opposing forces. I am not saying we should revel in the darkness, only that it exists, and people who demand anyone pay more if not complete attention to the happy parts of existence don't realize that the darkness provides a context, and appreciation for the light. Martin Luther King Jr said "Only when it is dark enough can you see the stars." and he was absolutely correct.
I've discussed the possibility that we might be approaching the end of all we know. Authors have considered such an event for centuries. Below are covers to 50 or more books that consider the end, and that are worth reading. Some are better than others, and all have some value even if the subject matter is not unique. If you are able, you might click to enlarge them, and then compile the three images and use as a wallpaper.
FINAL WORDS
First off, I can be found on Facebook, Twitter or through email at Alexanderness63@gmail.com. I accept hard copies, so when you inquire at any of these places, I'll follow through by telling you my street address.If you send hard copies for review I will always review them, but if you prefer to send pdf or ebooks to my email, I will review these at my discretion. I don't share my pdf/ebooks, so you can avoid worry that I'd dispense them for free to others.
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