Sci-Fi and Fantasy Thread - SPOILERS

[trostol]

So, I just started watching the Mandolorian and something occurred to me. That armor that the storm troopers wear is basically the most worthless armor in history, right? I mean, it would probably protect against rocks or pointed sticks but it seems pretty useless against blasters or any other actual weapon. Mando even killed one of them with a knife. Heck, even the Greeks and Romans had armor that protected against knives.

my friends who is a far bigger SW nerd than i ..while watching it tonight said the trooper armor is meant to stop blasters and thats it

 

[Here4ThaLids]

So, I just started watching the Mandolorian and something occurred to me. That armor that the storm troopers wear is basically the most worthless armor in history, right? I mean, it would probably protect against rocks or pointed sticks but it seems pretty useless against blasters or any other actual weapon. Mando even killed one of them with a knife. Heck, even the Greeks and Romans had armor that protected against knives.

Don't they get their asses kicked by Ewoks with rocks and pointed sticks?

 

[mdm815]

So i grew up on Harry Potter but have found it hard to reread as an adult, and i really enjoyed the dark tower series by Stephen king. Anyone familiar w those have recommendations on a good fantasy or sci-fi series to check out?

 

[Jack Straw]

my friends who is a far bigger SW nerd than i ..while watching it tonight said the trooper armor is meant to stop blasters and thats it

But it doesn’t stop blasters.

 

[Jack Straw]

Don't they get their asses kicked by Ewoks with rocks and pointed sticks?

Yeah, I forgot about that. I guess it would protect against bee stings and other insect bites.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

So i grew up on Harry Potter but have found it hard to reread as an adult, and i really enjoyed the dark tower series by Stephen king. Anyone familiar w those have recommendations on a good fantasy or sci-fi series to check out?

There isn't really a comparable series to Dark Tower that I know of - it's pretty unique. The first time through the first four books I loved it - but then re-reading them, and the final three that he wrote years later, I couldn't really stand it. But I know what it is about and what you are looking for, and it's really hard to think of something comparable to the way he brought in Western elements, the Wizard of Oz, etc. The idea itself is a very cool mash-up, and I don't really know of anything too similar.

There are plenty of epic fantasy series, though. I'll list some off the top of my head.

Tad Williams - this one is quite similar to Tolkien

1. Dragonbone Chair
2. Stone of Farewell
3. To Green Angel Tower

(There is a follow-up series that isn't finished yet, but you can wait on that)

Piers Anthony - this one is kind of more similar to mythology (its own mythology) and is more cheeky/humorous, but it's great

1. A Spell for Chameleon
2. The Source of Magic
3. Castle Roogna
4. Centaur Aisle

(There are tons more in this series)

Robert Jordan - this one is so frustrating, because he lost control of the plot about seven books in and died without finishing, like we assume George RR will, but a lot of people like this one. The female characters are a total unmitigated disaster. I'm only mentioning it because my quibbles might not matter to you, and it is epic.

1. The Eye of the World
2. The Great Hunt
3. The Dragon Reborn
4. The Shadow Rising
5. The Fires of Heaven
6. Lord of Chaos
7. A Crown of Swords

(Plus seven more)

Brandon Sanderson - he is the guy who had to come in and finish the above series. He is great and has a bunch of different series. You could start with Mistborn.

1. The Final Empire
2. The Well of Ascension
3. The Hero of Ages

(Those are the ones in the series I have read, but there are more. I have liked everything I have read by him.)

The Song of Ice and Fire series that Game of Thrones was based on is awesome, obviously, but the stupid bastard is never going to finish them, and the TV series ruined them in many ways.

There are tons more, but these are some ideas of things you could try.

 

[BiggE]

So, here is what I suggest.

For all fantasy series of books, spoiler that ****. It is just too hard to read EVERYTHING, and keep up with everything, but we all have our lists which are a mile long and will get to them eventually.

For "The Mandalorian," spoil away in here - we will all know not to enter the thread until we have caught up with the episodes.

For Episode IX ... just have some decency. If the Mandalorian Season 1 is still going on, as it should be, spoiler your **** for the first few weeks Ep IX is out so we all have time to see it without spoiling, but can still come in here and talk about the Mando.

FWIW, my 5 favorite SF/Fantasy book series:

1. Dune
The follow ups by Herbert’s kid are mediocre, but the original series, especially the first 4 books, are magnificent. Movies and TV have never come close to doing Dune justice, hopefully the upcoming films will finally get it right

2. The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan
Epic fantasy on steroids. This mega series is worth the months it’s going to take you to read the multitude of massive tomes that make up this amazing series.

3. The Lord of the Rings
Tolkien’s original trilogy set the mold for epic fantasy and it’s a must read for all fans of the genre

4. The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant by Stephen R. Donaldson
Dark and disturbing and incredibly well written, the mind blowing journey of leper Thomas Covenant is a flat out amazing story. I have yet to read the follow up series, but hope to soon.

5. A Song of Ice and Fire by George R R Martin
Yeah, I know, get the next f***ing book out already!! That aside, this is a wonderful series with incredibly intriguing characters and unexpected plot twists. The HBO show was very good, but the books are better!

A couple more recent series that I’m enjoying:

The King Killer Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss and The Shattered Sea series by Joe Abercrombie (reading book 2 now)

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

FWIW, my 5 favorite SF/Fantasy book series:
A couple more recent series that I’m enjoying:

The King Killer Chronicle by Patrick Rothfuss and The Shattered Sea series by Joe Abercrombie (reading book 2 now)

I actually can't understand what people are raving about in that Rothfuss series - I really don't like it at all. I was waiting until the third one came out before I started it, but I misread something and thought it was finished, so I read the first two. I'm going to have to re-read them when/if he finishes, because of my garbage memory

 

[BiggE]

There isn't really a comparable series to Dark Tower that I know of - it's pretty unique. The first time through the first four books I loved it - but then re-reading them, and the final three that he wrote years later, I couldn't really stand it. But I know what it is about and what you are looking for, and it's really hard to think of something comparable to the way he brought in Western elements, the Wizard of Oz, etc. The idea itself is a very cool mash-up, and I don't really know of anything too similar.

There are plenty of epic fantasy series, though. I'll list some off the top of my head.

Tad Williams - this one is quite similar to Tolkien

1. Dragonbone Chair
2. Stone of Farewell
3. To Green Angel Tower

(There is a follow-up series that isn't finished yet, but you can wait on that)

Piers Anthony - this one is kind of more similar to mythology (its own mythology) and is more cheeky/humorous, but it's great

1. A Spell for Chameleon
2. The Source of Magic
3. Castle Roogna
4. Centaur Aisle

(There are tons more in this series)

Robert Jordan - this one is so frustrating, because he lost control of the plot about seven books in and died without finishing, like we assume George RR will, but a lot of people like this one. The female characters are a total unmitigated disaster. I'm only mentioning it because my quibbles might not matter to you, and it is epic.

1. The Eye of the World
2. The Great Hunt
3. The Dragon Reborn
4. The Shadow Rising
5. The Fires of Heaven
6. Lord of Chaos
7. A Crown of Swords

(Plus seven more)

Brandon Sanderson - he is the guy who had to come in and finish the above series. He is great and has a bunch of different series. You could start with Mistborn.

1. The Final Empire
2. The Well of Ascension
3. The Hero of Ages

(Those are the ones in the series I have read, but there are more. I have liked everything I have read by him.)

The Song of Ice and Fire series that Game of Thrones was based on is awesome, obviously, but the stupid bastard is never going to finish them, and the TV series ruined them in many ways.

There are tons more, but these are some ideas of things you could try.

I liked the Dark Tower, but some of it was chore to get through. King often seemed to go meandering off on tangents that honestly I found boring. I actually enjoyed The Talisman more than the Dark Tower.

And yeah, Jordan did meander some as well and he wasn’t the best at writing from a woman’s perspective but I just really dug the story and the world he built. I also like the fact that he actually wrote the ending sequence once he knew he was dying, it was the ending he wanted. That being send, I thought Sanderson did a very good job in relief.

And finally, yup, Martin is almost certainly going to keel over from a massive coronary before he finishes ASOIAF. I wish the chubby bastard would stop writing other stuff and visiting comicons and just get to work!

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

I liked the Dark Tower, but some of it was chore to get through. King often seemed to go meandering off on tangents that honestly I found boring. I actually enjoyed The Talisman more than the Dark Tower.

And yeah, Jordan did meander some as well and he wasn’t the best at writing from a woman’s perspective but I just really dug the story and the world he built. I also like the fact that he actually wrote the ending sequence once he knew he was dying, it was the ending he wanted. That being send, I thought Sanderson did a very good job in relief.

And finally, yup, Martin is almost certainly going to keel over from a massive coronary before he finishes ASOIAF. I wish the chubby bastard would stop writing other stuff and visiting comicons and just get to work!

Yep, he is wasting his life force peddling pewter figurines.

 

[BiggE]

I actually can't understand what people are raving about in that Rothfuss series - I really don't like it at all. I was waiting until the third one came out before I started it, but I misread something and thought it was finished, so I read the first two. I'm going to have to re-read them when/if he finishes, because of my garbage memory

LOL, I just liked the main character and the way Rothfuss slowly developed him, I find Qvothe to be fascinating. I do hope he gets the 3rd book out before Armageddon though.

 

[Chinatown88]

Obligatory Robin Hobb mention. Her Realm of the Elderlings series is a fantastic world that she built. Her books will make you emotionally invested with the characters.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

Obligatory Robin Hobb mention. Her Realm of the Elderlings series is a fantastic world that she built. Her books will make you emotionally invested with the characters.

I am reading that first Farseer in little nuggets while this GDT stuff is going on, but then I am going to get going.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

LOL, I just liked the main character and the way Rothfuss slowly developed him, I find Qvothe to be fascinating. I do hope he gets the 3rd book out before Armageddon though.

You're definitely not alone in this, nowhere near it. It's what makes finding the right recommendations in the genre hard sometimes - taste can vary, especially when it comes to the things that bother different people.

There is this series by Brian Ruckley that I love, but has gotten almost no attention. It's very basic, but I thought it was great.

1. Winterbirth
2. Bloodheir
3. Fall of Thanes

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like he is doing anything else anytime soon. The last update from his website was last New Year, and it said he was writing for a Transformers comic.

 

[wankstifier]

I liked the Dark Tower, but some of it was chore to get through. King often seemed to go meandering off on tangents that honestly I found boring. I actually enjoyed The Talisman more than the Dark Tower.

And yeah, Jordan did meander some as well and he wasn’t the best at writing from a woman’s perspective but I just really dug the story and the world he built. I also like the fact that he actually wrote the ending sequence once he knew he was dying, it was the ending he wanted. That being send, I thought Sanderson did a very good job in relief.

And finally, yup, Martin is almost certainly going to keel over from a massive coronary before he finishes ASOIAF. I wish the chubby bastard would stop writing other stuff and visiting comicons and just get to work!

King's material on kids and women is practically torture to read.

 

[Chinatown88]

I haven't read it yet. Been on my To Be Read list forever but Glen Cook and his Black Company series might give that same dark fantasy vibe as The Dark Tower series.

 

[Ghosts Beer]

Was never a big sci-fi or fantasy fan. But I’ve been reading Philip K. Dick lately & I’m enjoying his short stories.

 

[BiggE]

You're definitely not alone in this, nowhere near it. It's what makes finding the right recommendations in the genre hard sometimes - taste can vary, especially when it comes to the things that bother different people.

There is this series by Brian Ruckley that I love, but has gotten almost no attention. It's very basic, but I thought it was great.

1. Winterbirth
2. Bloodheir
3. Fall of Thanes

Unfortunately, it doesn't look like he is doing anything else anytime soon. The last update from his website was last New Year, and it said he was writing for a Transformers comic.

I’ll check it out, I always dig finding new authors.

 

[BiggE]

Was never a big sci-fi or fantasy fan. But I’ve been reading Philip K. Dick lately & I’m enjoying his short stories.

If you dig short stories, check out the work of Theodore Sturgeon, Harlan Ellison and Terry Blesson.

 

[BigToe]

Have any of you weirdos been watching His Dark Materials?

 

[freakydallas13]

If you like epic fantsy, check out Malazan Book of the Fallen.

Huge scope, fresh world creation, and very well written. Only downside is the author took almost a decade off after writing the first book in the series, so it's worse than the rest of them and hard to get into at first.

 

[kudymen]

Has anyone on here read Tuf's Voyaging by George R.R. Martin? I got it by complete accident when I was 15ish, way before "ZOMG GoT is so awesome show" times and loved it

 

[Jack Straw]

Have any of you weirdos been watching His Dark Materials?

Yeah. I haven’t read the books or seen the movie but to me the series is pretty “meh” so far.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

If you like epic fantsy, check out Malazan Book of the Fallen.

Huge scope, fresh world creation, and very well written. Only downside is the author took almost a decade off after writing the first book in the series, so it's worse than the rest of them and hard to get into at first.

I read the first 10 of them, and they are great, but it's a huge challenge to get settled in. He really cuts no corners at all in explaining where you are and who is who. Once you catch on, it's better, but still a challenge. Worth it, though.

 

[Captain Dave Poulin]

Have any of you weirdos been watching His Dark Materials?

Toe, I read the first book of that series and thought it was awful. I'm going to sound like a real whiner in here I guess