Blood's a Rover by Harlan Ellison (Jason Davis, ed.)

Published by Subterranean Press on June 30, 2018

The introduction of Blood’s a Rover explains how Harlan Ellison’s brilliant novella, “A Boy and His Dog” (eventually filmed as a pretty good movie starring Don Johnson) was followed by some other stories in the same universe, and a treatment for a television show that NBC decided not to pick up, and an eventual full-length novel that Ellison started to write before suffering a stroke. This volume collects much of that material. The series is set in a post-apocalyptic world reduced to “radiation and rubble,” overseen by “the new masters of desolation: vicious roverpaks of parentless young boys … and their telepathic dogs.”

Placed in chronological order (as opposed to the order in which Ellison wrote them), the volume starts with “Eggsucker.” Blood, the dog who narrates the story, has been with Vic for about two years when the story starts. By the end, they’re thinking of splitting up, each blaming the other for an incident that will definitely require them to leave town. But they need each other even if Vic’s refusal to listen to reason (Blood being the reasonable one) sometimes impairs their partnership.

“A Boy and His Dog” sends Vic in search of a girl Blood found for him. After a harrowing experience together, the girl flees, and Vic pursues her over Blood’s objection. She lives in an underground version of Topeka, which Ellison uses to lampoon the notion that Midwestern Christian “values” make their adherents superior to people who are less judgmental and more open to experience (and I say that as someone who lived most of his life in the Midwest). The story is gripping from its inception until Vic makes his way out of Topeka with the girl, but the story saves its best moment for a gut-punch surprise in the very last sentence. One of the story’s themes involves the meaning of loyalty, and how true friendships are those that survive adversity (as opposed to plastic “use you and lose you” friendships). One of the story’s messages — a classic Ellison message — is, if you find security in living a dull and uneventful life, that’s your choice, but don’t force conformity to your social ideals on people who understand that freedom begins with the freedom to disagree. “A Boy and His Dog” might be Ellison’s best story. It’s certainly in the top three.

“Run, Spot, Run” takes place a few days after “A Boy and His Dog.” Vic is having some trouble coping with his actions, and Blood is having some trouble coping with Vic’s dreams. I don’t want to spoil the story so I’ll just say that it comes with the kind of gut-punch ending that was Ellison’s trademark.

“Blood’s a Rover” is the unproduced screenplay. The story brings back Vic and introduces a new character, a girl named Spike. Unsurprisingly, Vic doesn’t like Spike much, but Blood plays peacemaker because a girl and a boy and his dog have a better chance of survival than a boy and his dog — as Blood eventually proves. The screenplay doesn’t have the same bite as the original story, and certainly isn’t as compelling as Ellison’s best teleplays, but it would have been fun to watch.

Scattered throughout the volume are snippets of Blood’s wit and wisdom.

The volume was released shortly before Ellison’s death. It is something a true Ellison fan (in the sense of fanatic) will want to have. Other readers might be better served by picking up Ellison’s The Beast that Shouted Love at the Heart of the World, an excellent story collection that includes “A Boy and His Dog.”

RECOMMENDED

Night and the Enemy by Harlan Ellison

First published in 1987; revised edition published by Dover on November 18, 2015

Over the years, Harlan Ellison wrote several stories about the Earth-Kyba War. Five of those were eventually adapted to graphic format with artist Ken Steacey. A couple appeared, or were slated to appear, in magazines. All five were published as Night and the Enemy in 1987. The Dover edition (2015) adds new introductions by Ellison and Steacey and includes the story “The Few, the Proud” which was not in the original edition.

“Run for the Stars” first appeared in 1957. A drug addict who is forced to run or die at the hands of the Kyben might be Earth’s last best hope of preparing for a Kyben attack. The addict discovers himself as he runs, finds courage he did not know he possessed. As he explains in the introduction, Ellison wrote the original version of this story in his early days, when he was banging out stories as quickly as he could to keep food on the table. That explains why the prose has a first draft quality, but with Ellison it is the gut-punch power of the story that matters.

“Life Hutch” is a vivid account of a man who steers his disabled ship to a planet with a life hutch, only to be attacked and nearly killed by a dysfunctional robot. The story first appeared in 1956. Again, the prose is a little rough but the intensity is pure Ellison. There is almost no dialog in “Life Hutch” so this is more an illustrated story than a graphic adaptation.

“Untouchable Adolescents” (1957) is a “first contact” story with a planet whose inhabitants have already had an unfortunate contact with the Kyben. The kindly humans want to save the alien planet, which is about to crumble apart, but the aliens, having experienced “help” from the Kyben, aren’t interested. “Trojan Hearse” (1956) is a very short story about a Kyben attempt to invade Earth. These are both mildly interesting stories, but weaker than the others in the collection.

“Sleeping Dogs” (1964) is one of the volume’s highlights. Probably influenced by Vietnam, the story concerns the destruction of innocents in blind devotion to a cause. This is a subtler, more nuanced view of the Earth-Kyber war than the earlier stories portray. Not only is it one of the volume’s best stories, it is one of the most successful graphic adaptations of Ellison’s original text.

Another highlight, “The Few, the Proud” (1989), did not appear in the original edition of Night and the Enemy. It is an unillustrated addition to the 2015 edition. The story is basically a monologue, the statement of a man who is about to be sentenced for desertion, after being sold on the glory of military service, only to realize that killers aren’t heroes. No matter the cause for which they kill, no matter how hatefully the enemy is portrayed, they are still nothing more than killers.

This is a volume that Ellison fans will want to acquire, but any fan of graphic storytelling should also enjoy it.

RECOMMENDED

Harlan Ellison's 7 Against Chaos by Harlan Ellison and Before Watchmen: Nite Owl/Dr. Manhattan by J. Michael Straczynski

I don't usually review graphic novels, but I'm making an exception for two that were written by writers whose storytelling ability I particularly admire.

7 Against Chaos by Harlan Ellison

Published by DC Comics on July 16, 2013

Earth has been plagued by a series of disasters: people have spontaneously combusted or transformed into snakes, a harbor changed into a desert, a mountain of ice appeared from nowhere. To save the Earth from crisis, high level computers have directed a robed man to assemble a team from various colonies around the solar system. A slave who is a female version of Edward Scissorhands, a faceless cat burglar, a woman who can shoot fire from her fingers, a fellow who has been reengineered as an insect, a robot, and a technological whiz with telepathic tendencies join the robed man to "fight for the fabric of reality itself."

Harlan Ellison -- the best writer of short stories in the history of science fiction -- has given us a time travel story combined with a "humanize the robot" story combined with a some superheroism stories combined with a couple of love stories combined with a quest/adventure story combined with an alien invasion story, all wrapped around a good versus evil story, with evil personified by someone or something named Erisssa. And, of course, it's all ultimately an homage to Seven Samurai. You can't fault Ellison for lacking ambition.

Although the story is entertaining -- and the particular way in which Ellison combines the alien invasion with time travel is innovative -- I can't say that 7 Against Chaos resonated with me in the same way that Ellison's best work has done over the years. In fact, the authorial voice doesn't sound like Ellison to me, which makes sense, since Paul Chadwick not only did the artwork but wrote much of the dialog. Chadwick's art serves its purpose but it didn't stun me.

Maybe I'm a little disappointed because, like most of Ellison's eighty zillion fans, I expect to be blown away by every glob of spit that comes out of his mouth, and 7 Against Chaos just didn't grab me. Had this been developed as a twelve-issue miniseries, I'd probably be more excited about it. An awful lot happens in a limited number of pages, and that means an awful lot is sacrificed. The characters are strong but character development is too often rudimentary. The story comes across as the outline for an epic blockbuster but doesn't deliver a blockbuster punch, largely because it's too condensed to achieve epic status. None of this means I dislike the end result -- it's fun and clever and it displays flashes of the power Ellison so readily wields -- but I see a lot of potential here that wasn't maximized. I'd recommend it anyway (albeit with reservations) because ... well ... it's Ellison.

RECOMMENDED WITH RESERVATIONS

Before Watchmen: Nite Owl/Dr. Manhattan by J. Michael Straczynski

Published by DC Comics on July 16, 2013

I'm reviewing this because I'm a fan of Alan Moore's brilliant Watchmen series (the serialized graphic novel, not the movie) and of J. Michael Straczynski.  Straczynski shows his versatility in Before Watchmen: Nite Owl/Dr. Manhattan. This volume collects three stories. The first focuses on Nite Owl and his relationship with Rorshach. With Straczynski at the writing helm, you know there's a good chance that irreverent humor will balance the story's dramatic content. But Straczinski also excels at gritty, atmospheric noir, and there's plenty of that here. There's even a certain amount of sleaze, but it's poetic sleaze. Straczinski quotes Alan Ginsberg and he may well have relied on Ginsberg as inspiration for the raw earthiness of the story. When Straczinski is given license to do his best writing, you're going to get sex and hypocrites moralizing about sex. You'll see all sides of human nature, the pure and the damaged, and it will be delivered with unvarnished honesty.

The tongue-in-cheek tone that characterizes Nite Owl's story gives way to achingly serious writing when the story shifts to Dr. Manhattan. The blue guy, in all his quantum possibility, is a deeper character, given to philosophical introspection. Straczinski plays with time streams and potential realities to develop a heartfelt story about the difference (if there is one) between what is and what might have been, a story about the power of choice, including the choices we are powerless to make. This is really an impressive piece of writing, some of Straczinski's finest work.

Another shift in tone occurs in the third story, focusing on Moloch the Mystic (and, to a lesser extent, Ozymandius). This time the story is twisted, introducing elements of horror as Straczinsky explains Moloch's past. There isn't as much depth here, but it's just a two issue add-on that I regarded as a little treat, neither adding nor detracting from the two main features.

Straczinski stays true to Alan Moore's wonderful characters. Rorschach is as messed up as ever. Straczinski gives us some additional insight into the cause of his inner turmoil, but he doesn't alter the character in any fundamental way, and he's faithful to Rorschach's peculiar speech patterns. Dr. Manhattan is his brooding, enigmatic self. This is a dazzling display of storytelling. It isn't Alan Moore, but it isn't meant to be.

RECOMMENDED