The Wild Card series

[DneColt]

The Wild Card Series

The Wild Cards books have been mentioned on this forum several times. They’re a terrific series of books not just for comics fans, but for sci-fi fans... and... wellll... mostly just comic and sci-fi fans, I guess.

The books are short stories or “mosaic novels” which are basically short stories revolving around a central theme and broken into parts. From my understanding, the books were born out a group of authors interest in role-playing games (series editor George RR Martin and Melinda Snodgrass primary among them.) The books are named for the Wild Card virus, the mechanism that grants the series heroes and villains with amazing abilities -- or horrible deformity. The effects of the virus are pretty straightforward: It re-writes the victim’s genetic code and tries to introduce amazing abilities. Of every 100 people infected, 90 die outright -- destroyed as their bodies try to accommodate the power being introduced (there's a Human Torch who burns to a crisp in a matter of seconds, or the Plastic Man who melts away, or the Human Bomb who simply blows apart -- it's pretty grim), of the 10 who remain, 9 are horribly deformed (some turn into human squids, or grow fur all over their body, or begin excreting mucus out of the skin). The remaining 1 out of 100 is gifted with an amazing power -- flight, super-strength, the ability to read minds, or warp them. The lucky 1 in 100 are called "Aces," the less-lucky 9 out of 100 are "Jokers," and the remaining 90 are said to have drawn the "Black Queen." (There's also a minor, fourth class or Wild Cards, "Deuces," Aces with a minor or ridiculous power such as the ability to turn green).

The books combine -- in a minor way -- some of the more interesting elements of the mid-80s grim 'n' gritty and deconstructionalist comics like Dark Knight and Watchmen. The grim and gritty stuff works a little better in a novel than on the comics page, in my opinion, because the author has a lot more room to explore complicated motivation and moral gray areas that a 22-page comic doesn't allow. While the Sleeper, for example, is without a doubt a villain (in addition to being a thief he has killed people), but I find myself rooting for him in a way I can't possibly imagine doing for, say the Punisher. On the other hand, when you've got a character like the Turtle, who's as good and noble as any mainstream superhero, and yet his "feet of clay" seem totally uncontrived and wholly convincing.

The series kicks off in post WWII New York and moves quickly (with the first two volumes) up the “present day” (1986, when the novel series kicked off) by the third volume. The books (mostly) tagged along with modern history until right at the very end when they took a sudden sharp turn into unreality. Some of the more amusing diversions from reality: The Dodgers stayed in Brooklyn (with Fidel Castro as their pitching coach), and Frank Zappa became a general in the US Army.

The first twelve volumes were published by Bantam books and form the first “cycle” of books. The basic idea is that a race of aliens called Takisians build device to alter their genetic makeup to give them enhanced powers (they're already powerful telepaths and telekinetics). Naturally, they'd like to test it out first, so they decide to test it out on a backwater, out of the way planet that just happens to have some creatures that resemble them genetically (in much the same way chimps resemble humans). That planet, of course, is Earth. The action opens in Volume 1, in post-war New York City...


V1: Wild Cards, 1986
“The Golden Age”
The first volume sets the stage and acts as the series “Golden Age” covering the period from 1946 to about 1979. V1 is really the only stand-alone book of the bunch -- you could read it, skip the rest, and still have a satisfying experience. The book calls itself a "mosaic novel," but it's really a collection of short stories interspersed with illuminating interludes which provide history and exposition disguised as dollops of pop culture (excerpts from a mythical Studs Terckel oral history, "Wild Card Chic" by Tom Wolfe, articles from the New York Times and Hunter Thompson's "Fear and Loathing in Jokertown").

The first story in the book, "Thirty Minutes Over Broadway," details the release of the virus and introduces the heroic Jet-Boy (the Wild Card version of Air-Boy). The rest of the  volume introduces many of the main players in the series: Dr. Tachyon (like most immigrants, this is -- of course -- a name assigned to him by the government official who found his real name too hard to pronounce) the alien who tried valiantly to stop the release of the virus and who now bears the blame for its introduction; The Great and Powerful Turtle, the mightiest of all the aces (a wild card cross between Superman and Batman), a powerful telekinetic who flies around in a shell made out of an old VW Bug; Fortunato, the wildcard's Dr. Strange with a twist -- he's an afro-asian pimp who also happens to be a powerful sorcerer (powered by tantric magic, natch. There's also Croyd Crenson, The Sleeper, who's days last for months (as do his nights), the catch is, every time he wakes up, he'd in a different body -- sometimes an ace, sometimes a joker. Croyd is pretty much a villain -- since he supports himself in his wakeful periods as a thief, and prolongs his Ace phases with amphetamines (which, of course, make him paranoid and psychotic -- not good qualities when mixed with superpowers).

We also meet Puppetman -- a true villain -- who manipulates people around him, feeding off their emotions and using his puppets to steal and kill for him;  Golden Boy, whose amazing strength meets its match in the HUAC hearings, and his associates in the Four Aces -- the first (and only) super-team in the wild cards universe). Finally, there's Yoeman: the non-powered archer with a mad-on for some asian drug dealers.

Not every one is a winner, though. There's Bagabond, the bag lady ace who talks to the animal and CC Rider, the folk-singing joker who turns into -- of all things --


This one is by far the weakest story in the book, and you won't miss anything if you skip it.  As you can tell, this book is my favorite of the bunch. I heartily recommend it to all of you.

V1 Featured Characters:
Jetboy
The Sleeper
Jack “Golden Boy” Braun
Dr. Tachyon
The Great and Powerful Turtle
Fortunato
Mark Meadows/Cap’n Trips/The Radical
Sewer Jack & Bagabond
Puppetman
Yoeman



V2: Aces High, 1987
“The Silver Age”
And if you like V1, go right on to Aces High. Aces High is almost of a piece with Wild Cards, telling -- as it does -- the story of the event that really galvanizes the aces and jokers: The Swarm invasion. The Swarm is a Lovecraftian space monster who sets its sights on Earth, and Earth's aces -- and jokers -- rise in defense. The Swarm is a wonderful amalgamation of two classic Silver Age comic threats, the Legion's Sun-Eater (gigantic interstellar blob bent on destruction) and Galactus (over-tall planet-eater). Even with the Lovecraftian twist, this volume -- more than any of the others I think -- really wears its comicbook heritage on its sleeve.

This book introduces one of my favorite Wild Cards, the Modular Man, a sentient robot built a by a mad scientist whose wild card virus manifested itself in his ability to create Modular Man, who is -- in fact -- a totally unworkable conglomeration of junk. Neat idea. This volume also introduces the first true, Dr. Doom-type villain, the Astronomer, a completely mad and totally evil version of Professor X. As bad as The Sleeper and Puppetman might be, the Astronomer makes them look like a couple of scrubs (hell, he makes Dr. Doom look like a piker).

Aces High continues the short story model of Wild Cards, though without the "additional material", and told over a more compact period of time (basically a couple of years) as the Invaders from Space are repelled. This book is a lot of fun in a B-grade monster movie kind of way, with a hefty dollop of horror pulp thrown in.

We get some more character development -- and one of my favorite stories involves the Great and Powerful Turtle, who's been living the life for over a decade and is now paying the price (imagine Bruce Wayne without the money, or the issues). The Turtle's story is both sad an inspiring; In the Wild Card's world of moral turpitude he remains -- at heart -- a good guy.

This is the book that really completes the Wild Card’s transformation from freaks of nature into Superheroes. After the initial disastrous foray into heroics (the Four Aces from V1), the appearance of the Great and Powerful Turtle signals the rise of Wild Cards as heroes -- in much the same way Flash or the Fantastic Four heralded the beginning of the Silver Age. Suddenly aces start dressing up in costumes and fighting bad guys: At the end of the book a “justice league” of sorts even forms to combat the Astronomer and the Swarm. Who says this isn’t the Wild Cards age of action? Not me, true believer.

V2 Featured Characters:
Fortunato
Jube
Modular Man
The Sleeper
Mark Spector/ Demise
The Great and Powerful Turtle



V3: Jokers Wild, 1987
“The Astronomer’s Revenge”
Again, if you liked Aces High, then you really need to read Joker’s Wild, as it deals with the Astronomer’s revenge. This is the first true "mosaic novel" in that the individual stories are broken up into segments and interspersed in a novel format. The action takes place over the course of the single day -- Wild Card Day, 1986. Wild Card day is the anniversary of the day the Wild Card Virus was released, and is a cause for wild and raucous celebration in New York. Against this backdrop, the evil Astronomer ("villainous" somehow doesn't do him justice) takes revenge for his defeat in "Aces High." As with most things in the Wild Card novels, his revenge is brutal and gory in the extreme -- reflective, I think, of the Wild Cards mandate to deal with superheroes more 'realistically.'

The featured players this time around are Fortunato, Yoeman, Dr. Tachyon, Hiram Worchester and another of my favorites, Jay "Popinjay" Ackcroyd, the 'projecting teleporter' who uses his power to facilitate his career as a private detective (comes in handy when some thug is muscling up on him and he can pop them into the local drunk tank). Another prominent character is James "Demise" Spector -- an assassin who can literally kill with a look. He also happens to be unkillable, which lends a certain amount of dark humor to his character as he gets badly abused over the course of the book and subsequently keeps "getting better." He's one of the most enjoyable murdering psychopaths you’re likely to encounter. Which brings to light what is undoubtedly one of the more troubling aspects of the books -- that the "bad guys" are almost always as interesting -- if not more -- than the good guys and, as such wind up being treated... well... I'm not sure sympathetically is the right word, but you definitely find yourself pulling for them -- and not believing you're doing it.

V3 Featured Characters:
Bagabond & Sewer Jack
Rosemary Muldoon
Fortunato
Wraith
Demise
Roulette
Demise
Hiram Worchester
Yoeman
Jay Ackroyd



V4: Aces Abroad, 1988
“On The Road”
If you got to the end of Joker’s Wild and still want more -- then buckle up, baby -- you’re in for a long ride. If, on the other hand, you found the premise wearing a bit thin...then don’t pick up Aces Abroad. AA is where the Wild Cards settle in for the long haul: This novel introduces a few subplots (the villainy of Ti Malice, the presidential aspirations of a pro-Wildcard Senator, and the redemption of Jack Braun, the “Judas Ace”) that will run through the next three novels (wrapping up in V7, Dead Man’s Hand). The plot of this mosaic novel revolves around a World Health Organization-sponsored trip around the world to see the effects of the Wild Card virus on the rest of the world. Featured characters in this novel include the jokers Chrysalis, Xavier Desmond, and Father Squid. On the Aces end, Peregrine, Jack Braun, and Hiram Worchester. Another interesting ace is Bill “Carnifex” Ray, the super-strong ace with and accelerated healing ability and a really bad attitude. Given the dystopian nature of the books, it comes as no surprise that while Ray works for the Justice Department, he’s just about one of the biggest scumbags in the series (no one who works for “the man” comes off very well in these books, frankly, so if that sort of thing bothers you, beware). One of the things I LIKE about Billy Ray, though, is how he illustrates some of the darker aspect of a “healing factor:” Basically, he can survive about anything -- but he has to get himself put back together rather quickly -- or he heals with -- say -- his intestines outside of his body. At one point much later in the series, Ray goes in disguise as a joker. To accomplish this he beats his face to a bloody pulp and lets it heal that way. Grim, but effective. And, like most of the scumbags in these books, you find yourself -- after awhile -- kind of pulling for the guy.

V4 Featured Characters:
Sara Morgenstern
Nur Al Allah
Xavier Desmond
Ti Malice
Chrysalis
Xablanque & Hunapu, The Hero Twins
Peregrine
The Great Ape (Mr. Nobody)
Cordelia Chaisson
Wynugare
Fortunato
Puppetman
Dr. Tachyon

[DneColt]

V5: Down & Dirty, 1988
“Gang War!”
Down & Dirty is the first of the Wild Card’s “Meanwhile... ” Novels. It takes place before, during and after the WHO trip chronicled in Aces Abroad, and fills us in on what was going on back in NYC while the rest of the gang was out hobnobbing. Turns out that three gangs (A Joker Gang, a Chinese gang, and the Mafia) decide to throw down, and New York’s Aces and Joker (and “nats,” as normal people are referred to) are caught in the middle. The Turtle and The Sleeper are featured prominently in this episode, with the Turtle facing a dark, Spider-Man-esque moment of the soul (“Turtle No More!) Also, in one of the more interesting turn of  events in the novel series, The Sleeper awakens with a contagious new mutated version of the Wild Card virus and -- in the course of his perambulations, infects and re-infects many of the series characters. The reinfection has a VERY interesting outcome for the Modular Man, the android ace (how can a machine be a result of the Wild Card? you may well ask. This finally spells out Mod Man’s origin for everyone who didn’t dope it out in Aces High.) In this volume we also really get to know Blaise, Dr. Tachyon's grandson and -- on the whole -- one of the most thoroughly unpleasant characters in the series: A greasy mixture of Dennis the Menace, the little girl from "The Bad Seed," and Wesley Crusher.

V5 Featured Characters:
Yoeman & Wraith
The Turtle
The Sleeper
Rosemary Muldoon
Rev. Leo Barnett
Quasiman
Dr. Tachyon & Blaise Andreiux
Sewer Jack & Bagabond
Water Lily
Modular Man



V6: Ace in the Hole, 1990
“Mr. Ace Goes To Washington”
It’s the 1988 Democratic convention, and a secret ace is positioning himself to run for President. Meanwhile, Jack Braun, the ace known as Golden Boy (and The Judas Ace) struggles to rehabilitate his image. In fact, the Four Aces (from V.1) figure prominently in this volume -- a tale of political intrigue lifted almost directly from the 1924 Democratic convention (9 days, 103 ballots), only with aces, jokers, psychotic assassins and an over-the-hill KGB agent in a Mickey Mouse T-Shirt. Jack Braun's path to redemption, embarked upon in Aces Abroad, continues here, as he's confronted with the daughter (Fleur Van Renssaeler) of the woman he betrayed to HUAC (Blythe "Brain Trust" Van Renssaeler), and given the chance to right a few old wrongs. Senator Gregg Hartmann, fighting for the nomination with the Rev. Leo Barnett, takes center stage -- leading to fight for "Jokers Rights." This book is an odd mix of the fiction an reality, as Jesse Jackson. Jim Wright and Walter Cronkite "appear" as themselves. Two characters come to very sticky ends (one deservedly so, another one somewhat disappointingly), and the final fate of the “secret ace” is as fitting as it is profoundly disturbing.

V6 Featured Characters:
Demise
Puppetman
Jack "Goldenboy" Braun
Dr. Tachyon
Mackie Messer



V7: Dead Man's Hand, 1990
“Meanwhile... ”
While the convention in Atlanta plays out convulsively in the background, back in New York, a prominent member of the Wild Card community is murdered (don’t look to closely at the cover art if you haven’t read V6 -- it’s a spoiler), and it’s up to Green Arrow...  er...  I mean Yoeman and Jay “Popinjay” Ackroyd to solve the crime. But what if the trail leads to another prominent Wild Card? F*ckety Sh*t! My chick organs! ID Crises before ID Crises was cool! This novel is also the first outright novel -- as opposed to mosaic novel -- written as it is by series editor George Martin and John J. Miller. The action covers the same time period as "Ace in the Hole" and -- in fact -- repeats many of the scenes as Jay Ackcroyd winds up following a trail of clues whjich leads to Atlanta. One of the nagging questions in the book is "who the f*ck is Doug Morkle?" when the name turns up on a list of suspects. The question is minor red herring , but is resolved in what, to my mind, is one of the funniest scenes in the whole series. The main villain of this book is Ti Malice (introduced back in V4), who is a Joker version of the villainous Puppetman (an ace who has the ability to mentally control others), save that Malice's method of control is more direct and... well... just plain disgusting. This volume is Jay Ackroyd's (a minor character introduced back in Volume 3) turn in the limelight, and he proves to be an interesting an engaging character. Daniel "Yoeman" Brennan, on the other hand, fares less well. His Zen-Buddhist-Punisher schtick, already wearing pretty thin after the Gang War in V5, wears out it's welcome here. He comes off as kind of a single-minded nutcase here.

V7 Featured Characters:
Yoeman & Wraith
Jay Ackroyd



V8: One-Eyed Jacks, 1991
“Might as well JUMP!”
A new decade, and a new story arc. This has to be my least favorite volume so far. Not only does it feature a story by one of my least favorite writers (Chris Claremont), it also has to be the darkest and most depressing volume of the series to date which -- with this series -- is really saying something. The writers seem to be trying to compensate for this darkness by doling out bucketloads of sex -- I haven't been counting, but it wouldn't surprise me to find out there were almost as many sex scenes in this volume alone than in the previous 7 combined. Anyway, what I liked: The unifying element to this volume are a series of stories featuring Jerry "Mr. Nobody" Strauss -- formerly the Projectionist -- who's trying to readjust to society after 30 years trapped as King Kong (he got better back in V4, Aces Abroad). Mr. Nobody is a shapeshifter -- though not as powerful as he once was, he can still make himself look like just about anyone. In true "Murder She Wrote" fashion, he decided to apply his skills to a bit of amateur detective work. Sadly for him (but to the delight of anyone who's ever rolled their eyes at amateur detective stories), he sucks at it. Jerry, sadly, is sort of a schlub -- a rich dilettante who does nothing but watch old movies and pine for a hooker (who -- in another refreshing change -- turns out NOT to have a heart made of gold). His success as a detective is.... limited, to say the least. The other good story featured Cap'n Trips, the Fabulous Furry Freak Brother of the Wild Card set. While the story might be a little emotionally overwrought (Mark Meadows, the Cap'n, is sort of a sap, too), it's nonetheless a pretty good story about a living 60s cliché who's quickly and cruelly jerked into Reagan's America of the 80s: The story of Cap'n Trips starts out like the Justice League by R. Crumb, and ends up LA Law by Frank Miller. As for the rest -- eh. We get a couple of stories featuring villains (the invisible Fadeout, and Lazy Dragon), Jokers (the Oddity, three people mashed into one body), and (seemingly) non Wild Cards (Dr. Cody Havero, and Veronica the Hooker). Veronica the Hooker's story ("Horses") is particularly cringeworthy: While I'm sure that lesbians might have been the height of fashion in 1990, and that this story might have been an attempt at being edgy and hip, it comes off like a ABC Afterschool Special from hell. Primarily, this book is significant for establishing an important location (the Rox, a joker squatter’s camp on Ellis Island) and the basic plotline for the next 4 books (the villainy of the Jumpers -- an ace-powered gang of kids who can jump from body to body). Also, Tachyon's grandson, Blaise, shows his true colors (it will come as no surprise to anyone who's been reading so far that he isn't a nice guy).

V8 Featured Characters:
Mr. Nobody
Cody Havero
Veronica the hooker
Lazy Dragon
Cap'n Trips
Oddity
Dr. Tachyon & Blaise
Yoeman & Wraith

[DneColt]

V9: Jokertown Shuffle, 1991
"Gritty, and Grim."
"More on the Jumpers and Rox," I said. Hoo boy. What an understatement. Volume 9 wades hip deep into the grim grittiness of George HW Bush's America (as perceived by a bunch of aging hippies). Jack-booted thugs from the DEA terrorize peace-loving stoners (remember the good old, pre-Ruby Ridge days, when the jack-booted thugs were after the left, not the right?), and there are rumors of Wild Card registrations and "Relocation Camps." The events of the previous storylines (the '88 convention and the murder of Chrysalis) converge to make life hard for the Wild Cards. Add to add to that, the body-stealing Jumpers are running wild across New York, jumping the rich and wrecking havoc across the city. Against this backdrop, poor old Captain Trips, who in the previous book was yanked, blinking, into the cold light of the 80s, now has to wrap his drug-addled, flower-powered mind around the "kinder, gentler" country that's currently busting his chops. I imagine this would be a tough book to read if you were anywhere to the right of, say, Tom Hayden, since the authors wear their agendas fixed pretty firmly on their sleeves. But, nonetheless, there are a few good moments. The highlights (such as they are) are the afore-mentioned Captain Trips story, and a nifty story featuring Black Shadow, an Ace who's a cross between The Shroud, Shadow Girl, and Sybil. Strung throughout the book are painful interludes featuring Bloat, the governor of the Rox, and Dr. Tachyon, who's undergone..... some changes. These interludes are dreary mostly because of their repetitive nature: Interlude opens with Bloat/Tachyon pining; Blaise shows up and is abusive; Bloat/Tachyon puts up a game fight; Blaise slaps Bloat/Tachyon down. OK, got it the fourth time. Things are definitely building to a conclusion, though, as the Army decides it's done putting up with such Joker nonsense as declaring the Rox a Joker homeland and seceding from the US. I didn't have fond memories of this book, and I can see why, it's depressing as hell.

V9 Featured Characters
Bloat
Yoeman
Dr. Tachyon & Blaise
Cap'n Trips
Black Shadow
Veronica the hooker
Mr. Nobody


V10: Double Solitaire, a novel by Melinda M. Snodgrass, 1992
“Dr. Tachyonne, I presume?”
OK, so the end of V9 found our old hero Dr. Tachyon in a very interesting position. I won’t spoil it here, save for saying he’s not himself, and needs to journey back to his home planet of Takis to recover his old body (currently in the possession of a jumper). Said jumper has fled with Tach’s grandson Blaise, who is now in full on, scenery-chewing, make-Jim-Carrey-look-like-Ben-Stein villain mode. He’s BAAAAD folks, make no mistake. I know you get tired of hearing me say this, but this book is better than I remember it. I mean, who knows, maybe my standards are lower, I don’t know. Sure, there was plenty of stuff I rolled my eyes at, but the book was fairly entertaining. As with most of these books, you have to swallow a lot -- the fact, for example, that two nearly genetically identical races (Humans and Takisians) somehow spontaneously developed on opposite ends of the galaxy. OK, you can buy that, the rest of the book shouldn’t give you much trouble. As you’ve no doubt guessed by now, the book focuses primarily on Tachyon, in all his whining, petulant glory (this is the Snodgrass version we’re talking about, here), but given his condition you can almost forgive it. Jay Ackroyd and Mark Meadows get some serious airtime as well, as they accompany the good doctor on his trip. My only real beef with the book is that, frankly, I got really tired of the sex. Well not the sex sex, but the, I guess, politics of sex. I think Snodgrass wants to show how advanced an enlightened the Takisian are by having them be totally blasé about sex (with your spouse, with a “toy,” with a man, with a woman, in a boat, on a train, yadda yadda yadda). At the same time, she depicts the Takisians as having very clearly drawn sexual roles, and being nearly feudal in a lot of regards. I think it’s totally OK for an advanced, enlightened alien race to be hung-up about sex. Might even be funnier that way. There are a lot of nice touches, though (particularly the bit about why there’s no air travel on Takis). All in all, another pretty enjoyable entry.

V10 Featured Characters
Dr. Tachyon
Blaise
Evil Cousin Zabb
Durg al Morahk
Cap'n Trips
Jay Ackroyd



V11: Dealer's Choice, 1992
“’They Say a Handful Still Survive’”
Dealer’s Choice acts as a “meanwhile, back on Earth… ” for Double Solitaire and closes out not only the saga of the Rox, but also the larger story of the Wild Cards in New York. And it closes it out with a bang. This novel features the final confrontation with the Jumpers and Bloat’s outlaw Joker community, the Rox, and it’s a humdinger. It’s really to bad that this was the last Wild Card novel to deal with the ongoing storyline in New York, because by the end of this book, the status quo (such as it was) which had existed since Volume 1 gets pretty much smashed to bits. And honestly, as much as some of the volumes in the middle of the series tended to drag a little, this book was fantastic. In part, I think it’s because rather than dealing with somewhat amorphous foes like Puppetman and Ti Malice, this volume finally gives the Aces and Jokers an honest-to-God, superhero-comic, world-in-peril problem. Bloat, the fantastically powerful teen around whom the Rox formed, gets even more powerful, pushing the limits of his little kingdom off of Ellis island and out to New Jersey, Liberty Island, and the southern tip of Manhattan. And, it turns out, his increasing access to, and use of, his power actually threatens the unconscious lives of every person on earth. The US decides to deal with the problem once and for all, and gathers the biggest bunch Aces together since the Swarm invasion way back in V2. All the stuff I love about the Wild Card books gets a lot of play here: The Wild Card world’s alternate history, for one -- Frank Zappa, in this world, transforms from hirsute avant garde rocker and social critic to crew-cut Army general, Buddy Holly’s not dead, he’s a shaman in East Texas, and by the end of the book, Ellis Island, Liberty island and the Statue of Liberty are gone, and the Brooklyn Bridge is a pile of rubble. Also, there’s a tremendous amount of thrash as the Aces storm the Rox, and while the Turtle takes point, my favorites in the ace assault have to be the Laurel and Hardy team of Detroit Steel and Snotman/Reflector -- who steal the show in their assault from the Jersey Shore. Lots of characters are featured (this book’s breakout star is government Ace Billy “Carnifex” Ray, who comes across as a cross between Wolverine and Guy Gardner), including Cyclone and Mistral, Elephant Girl, Wyungare (a character I barely recall from V4), Sewer Jack and Bagabond. But the book belongs to Modular Man and The Great and Powerful Turtle -- which -- given that these are two of my favorite characters -- is quite likely the reason I like the book so much. We finally get to see the Turtle cut loose in this book and, and it’s pretty damn impressive. All in all, this book makes the last 3 books worth reading, in my opinion: It’s a big, loud, Grand Guignol finale to the series.

As I said, this is the end of the road for the New York Wild Cards; The next volume, Turn of the Cards, only touches on a few of the characters and only mentions the events in New York in passing (as I recall), and the New Cycle books focus on events in the past. So essentially, it’s been 15 years since we’ve checked into Jokertown. I, for one, would love a return trip.

V11 Featured Characters
Bloat
Modular Man
Billy "Carnifex" Ray
Turtle
Wyungare
Bodysnatcher



V12: Turn of the Cards, a novel by Victor Milan, 1993
“’1-2-3, What Are We Fightin’ For?’”
Don’t ask me. I don’t give a damn. Next stop is Viet Nam. Up until now, the Wild Cards books had ridden a parallel track to our own reality, changing a few things here and there (Buddy Holly didn’t die, the Dodgers never left Brooklyn), and coming re-e-e-al close to changing things (their highly entertaining version of the 1988 Democratic convention), but always wound up sticking pretty close (Dukakis still got the nod). With this book, though, they take off and leave reality behind. When I first read the book, I thought of it as the last book of the “original series,” but I think it is more accurately the FIRST book of the Card Sharks trilogy of books. Whichever it is, its definitely a pivotal book in the series, which then spun back through it’s 40+ year history to examine a “conspiracy” out to eradicate the Wild Cards. Another odd thing about the book is that I remember is solely as this long, drawn-out Vietnam story. In fact, it doesn’t get to Vietnam until about halfway through the book. The whole book focuses on Mark “Cap’n Trips” Meadows, who was put through the meat grinder in Volumes 8-10, and his flight from the US Government which takes him around the world (starting in Amsterdam, then on to Greece, India, Afghanistan, and finally Vietnam). Vietnam is where the novel both gets interesting, and bogs down. The interesting part if that the government of Viet Nam has just announced that it is making the country a safe-have for those afflicted by the Wild Card -- an interesting notion, particularly after the whole debacle of The Rox declaring itself a “Joker Homeland” and seceding from the US. Trouble is -- it’s never really clear WHY the Vietnamese government chose to do this in the first place. Meadows gets sucked into the newly reformed Joker Brigade (one of the long-running off-camera references in the series), and suddenly finds himself thrust into a bad remake of Platoon. This is where the novel bogs down. Now, I understand that Milan needs something pretty weird and extreme to get Meadows from point A (the Fugitive Guy), to point Z (the place he winds up at the end of the book, which I’ll spoil way down below), but I just wasn’t all that fond of how he traversed the points in between. Milan really revels in the fine details of the Vietnam war -- guys “on point,” searching “hootches,” “fragging” their commanders -- it feels very much like a Vietnam novel -- except that it’s happening in 1993. Milan has to go through increasingly grim contortions to explain how this group of American Jokers, who were invited by the Vietnamese government, suddenly wind up terrorizing the Vietnamese populace again, a la 1968. And after suffering though a hundred pages of “young Joker Dogfaces on Patrol,” the rest of the book sort of falls flat -- in terms of plot, anyway. Where the book really works for me is in the development of Mark Meadows. During volumes 8-10, we saw a lot of character development on Meadows part, and this novel takes it further, offering insight into Cap’n Trip’s “friends” (where they might come from, what they might be, how they interact), and actual character development on their part. Mark is far from being the failure he imagines himself to be (due to his inability to bring back The Radical, his first “friend”) and, it turns out, is really is one of the most powerful aces on the planet, both figuratively and (at the end of the novel, for one hour) literally. This book introduces -- in such a throwaway fashion that I didn’t even notice it the first time around -- the conspiracy that will dominate the final three books. However, as much as I’ve grown to like Cap’n Trips over the last 4 books (he doesn’t appear in V11), this book still just gets an “eh” from me.

V12 Featured Characters
Cap'n Trips
Helen “Mistral” Carlyle
Croyd “The Sleeper” Crenson
J. Robert “the Mechanic” Belew
Billy "Carnifex" Ray

[DneColt]

V13: Card Sharks, 1993
“Deja vu All Over Again”

Finally. I’ve reread this book for the first time since 1993. Starting it hard on the heels of V12, I have to admit it flows a little better out of that book than I recalled (Robert Belew drops several hints in that volume about the ‘conspiracy’ that drives this book). This book and -- by extension -- the ‘new cycle’ it kicks off do have a different feel to them, though. In part, it’s due to the structure of this book, being filled with flashbacks that cut across the Wild Cards history and fill in some of the gaps in the history covered by the very first volume. In this book, we learn about the US space program (a very minor affair in the wake of the revelation of ACTUAL aliens from Takis), The Sleeper’s adventures in psycho-therapy (talk about self-actualization!), and Marylyn Monroe’s forbidden passions. While I liked the individual stories alright, I think what initially put me off about the book was the framing device, a ridiculous story about an NYC arson investigator who stumbles upon a global conspiracy to” I don’t know, either kill the Wild Cards or make them look bad, I’m not exactly sure which. Of course this plucky young arson investigator happens to be a cute babe (I’m guessing she’s the one on the cover with the impressive rack), and of course, even though she’s a simple Midwestern gal (from Wisconsin, no less!) who hates and fears the Wild Cards, she’s spunky and plucky and just won’t take “no” for an answer, and will follows this trail wherever it leads, yea, even unto the hallowed halls of the powerful! Blaaag. So the conceit of the books leads to a few awkward moments (each story is an interview and, therefore, is told in sometimes awkward first-person narration). I mean, would the 8th-grade educated Croyd Crenson REALLY say “I bade him goodnight?”

Highlights of this volume are "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitude" by Michael Cassutt, a sort of Wild Card version of "The Right Stuff." What happens to America's space program when Werner von Braun winds up in Russia and -- as a result of Dr. Tachyon's crash-landing in 1945 -- no one really even CARES about going into space any more? Well... this story. And it's pretty good. Another good one is "A Wind from Khorason," the story of the oft-referred to story of the abortive Iranian hostage rescue attempt. It's a little too contrived, but a pretty good story.

V13 Featured Characters
Hannah Davis
Quasiman
Chop-Chop
Dr. Finn
Edgar Thayer
The "Ace-tronauts" - Mike Sampson, Al Dearborn, Woody Enloe, Casey Guinan
The Mechanic (J. Robert Belew)
Jay Ackroyd
Carnifex
The Sleeper
Cameo/Will 'O' the Wisp
Lamia


V14: Marked Cards, 1994
“Xenovirus Takis 1 As A Metaphor”
Like V13, this was my first trip back to this book since 1994, and -- like V13 -- I liked it better than I recalled. The structure of the book was the same as the previous one: a series of self-contained short stories supported by string of connected short stories that move the “plot” along. The plot here is fairly simple, the Card Sharks from the previous book seek to limit the damage caused as a result of their discovery by plucky young arson investigator Hannah Davis, and most of the stories are move the characters along in “real-time” (as opposed to the stories in the previous volume, which were all flashbacks. Some of the stories are more involved in the plot than others (“My Sweet Lord’s” only connection is, hilariously, that someone watched a report on CNN about the Card Sharks), but most enable us to catch up on what the characters who survived the awful events of The Rox have been up to. Mostly, it’s nothing good. Life’s gotten a lot worse for out intrepid heroes in the last few years: Wild Cards are actively being ghetto-ized in Jokertown, Jerusalem, and South Viet Nam, and people are openly hostile not just to Jokers, but Aces and “latents” (carriers of the virus who have “turned their card.”)  The connecting tissue of this book (if you will) is the story “The Color of His Skin,” which follows the down-but-not-quite-out Gregg Hartmann as he struggles with the mess that plucky young arson investigator Hannah Davis has dumped in his lap (namely, the Card Sharks); Does he try to ride this scandal back to prominence? And if so, how? Other stories catch us up with Jay Ackroyd and his new partner, Jerry (Mr. Nobody) Strauss, Mark Meadows, Bagabond, Black Shadow, the Great and Powerful Turtle, and Dr. Finn. Standout stories include the aforementioned “My Sweet Lord” (in which Captain Trips gains a guru) and the two-part “Feeding Frenzy” (in which Black Shadow and the Sleeper go after the Card Sharks themselves). The Bagabond story, I’ll admit, is somewhat interesting (she’s a character that makes a lot more sense in a wild setting than an urban one), but the character still just doesn’t do a lot for me.

V14 Featured Characters
Hannah Davis
Quasiman
Greg Hartmann
Jay Ackroyd
Mr. Nobody
Captain Trips
The Mechanic (J. Robert Belew)
The Sleeper
Bagabond
The Hero Twins
Black Shadow
Zoe “Blowjob” Harris
The Great And Powerful Turtle
Dr. Finn
Clara Von Renssaeler
Lamia


V15: Black Trump, 1995
 “It’s The End of the World As Know It, And I Feel Fine (not!)”
Well… maybe not the END of the world, but pretty close to it. V15 brings not only the New Cycle to a close, but closes out the Wild Cards saga as a whole as the series went into hibernation until 2002. The series certainly goes out with a bang: The Card Sharks -- now exposed -- decide to put their version of the “Final Solution” into play in the form of the titular Black Trump, a virus design to kill only people infected with the Wild Card. Most of the characters from the last book are back, desperately trying to make sure that doesn’t happen. This final volume has some fine moments -- Gregg Hartmann’s struggle with redemption, Mark Meadows struggle for freedom, our introduction to the Wild Card world’s Winston Churchill (110-years-YOUNG, thangyewveddymuch!), and Billy Ray’s growth from brawling psycho to… to… a slightly more mature brawling psycho. It all comes down to an apocalyptic showdown in -- no kidding -- Jerusalem where the last centuries horseman of the Apocalypse (the A-Bomb), gives way the new century’s (biological terrorism). While the themes of global terrorism are almost painfully naive now, it’s not the writer’s fault: I think any novel with notions about terrorism and terrorists seems almost quaint in the post 9-11 world. But in the same way I cherish these novel’s infatuation with the cutting-edge technology of the day (Modems! Portable phones!), I find myself getting almost misty over the days when the IRA was the scariest thing around.

The one thing I noticed this time around is how characters I thought of as second-stringers -- Captain Trips and Carnifex in particular -- really became the center of the series once Dr. Tachyon, Fortunato, and the Great and Powerful Turtle moved off the stage. In fact, in the same way that the Turtle’s story arc (followed closely through V6 and culminating V11) traces the upward arc of the Wild Cards in the world, Mark “Cap’n Trips” Meadows story traces the downward side of the arc. Meadows, while introduced in the first volume of the series, was a minor character who’s role seemed to be primarily that of comic relief -- a nod to the underground comic heroes the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers in the same way that the Four Aces and the Turtle were nods to their above-ground brethren like Superman and the Fantastic Four. But with V8, and the beginning of the Rox storyline, Mark assumes center stage and -- as the Wild Cards world goes to hell in a bucket -- he rides down holding the handle. And by this final volume, when the Wild Cards have hit rock bottom, his story comes full circle back to V1. Maybe not the most uplifting ending -- but certainly a satisfying one.

Although, frustratingly, the book ends with the tantalizing hint of things to come -- a spectacular, revenge-fueled conflict  that, with the publication of V17 (Death Draws Five), has either already happened, or has been put on hold for over a decade.


V15 Featured Characters
Greg Hartmann
Captain Trips
Billy Ray
Zoe “Blowjob” Harris
Jay Ackroyd
Mr. Nobody
Hannah Davis
Quasiman


V16: Deuces Down, 2002
 “Forward, Into the Past!”

The somewhat triumphant return of the Wild Cards after a 7-year hiatus, Deuces Down is more like the very first Wild Cards volume than anything else -- a series a short stories, not connected by an overall plot. These stories deal with minor aces -- "deuces," in the parlance -- people affected by the Wild Card virus who avoided drawing a Black Queen or Joker, but who's ace power is of dubious value. In this volume, we meet a young Tommy "Digger" Downs, a prominent character in earlier volumes (as a writer for the People-esque "Aces" magazine), whose wild card talent enables him to detect Aces in an interesting way. There's also Cash Mitchell (who I'm calling The Lifter) who's ace is, basically, to lift things. One of my favorite characters is Father Henry -- who fills in for Father Squid while he's away on the WHO tour (Volume 4). Henry's ace allows him to change water into wine. The absolute best deuce in the book, though, is Gimcrack -- a member of the goth-rock band The Jokertown Boys. Gimcrack's ace makes him totally credulous (he flips when a friends remarks he's going to "die of embarrassment.") But with the total credulity comes total faith -- if he believes something, it happens. His Sea Monkey's actually LOOKED like the Sea Monkeys in the comic book. And when he gets ahold of a universal remote... well, read the story. All in all, this book was fun, but somewhat disappointing -- if only because it's the ONLY new Wild Cards book we've seen in 10 years. Had this book come out amidst the rest of the Wild Card books, it would have been an amusing diversion. But as the only thing in a decade... well... it makes the reader feel the series absence from the bookshelves that much more keenly.

V16 Featured Characters
Al Dearborn
Cash Mitchell (The Lifter)
Tommy "Digger" Downs
Bob"Flatman" Cortland
The Sleeper
Dr. Finn
Quasiman
Demise
Gary "Burning Man" Bushhorn
Topper
Swash
The Jokertown Boys


V17: Death Draws Five, 2006
“Apocalypse, Schmapocalypse!”

It’s 2006, and the fitful restart of the Wild Card series fires another cylinder, this time in the form of John J. Miller’s solo Wild Card novel. Where the previous entry, Deuces Down, was more of a holding action, DD5 actually gets it in gear and progresses the story: We check in with what’s left of the gang after 10 years (Mr. Nobody and Billy Ray are featured, while old favorites like Peregrine, Jay Ackroyd, and Yoeman check in). Notably, Fortunato (the “most powerful Ace in the world” we’re often reminded) makes his somewhat triumphant return to the scene after 15 years off. He’s changed quite a bit during his time away, transforming from Dr. Strange/Shaft the Super-Pimp into a much more interesting and complex character: A man coming home to find that his shoes have grown uncomfortably large in his absence (“You can’t be Fortuato, he’s 10 feet tall!”). The whole impetus behind his return, his son John’s incipient Wild Cards powers, power the plot: An engaging tale of theological conflict (“Q: When is the Anti-Christ not the Anti-Christ? A: When he’s ajar?”). In addition to Mr. Nobody, Carnifex and Fortunato, the 5 referred to in the title are rounded out by John Nighthawk and Midnight Angel -- servants of the factions competing over control of Fortunato’s son. As with V16, this book is a worthy addition to the series, but maddening in that it raises more questions than it answers. And while we get to catch up on characters we haven’t seen in a long while, we’re still left hanging on the fate of the rest.

V17 Featured Characters
Fortunato
John Fortunato
Mr. Nobody
Billy "Carnifex" Ray
John Nighthawk
Midnight Angel
Peregrine
Jay Ackroyd
Yoeman


V18: Inside Straight, 2008
“...pending...”

My copy is currently somewhere in Indiana.... stay tuned.


Wildcards Resources:

WildCardsBooks OnlineThe Official Wild Cards Site maintained by Tor Books.

Wild Cards Online The semi-official Wild Cards Site, with loads of cool artwork and much more detailed rundowns of each book than I offer here, a great character guide, and a bunch of really nifty extras (history, creator profiles, and links to other resources).

The International Catalogue of Superheroes also has s pretty decent character guide.

Wikipedia not suprisingly, also has a pretty good entry.

[Eric L. Sofer, the Silver Age Fogey]

These are definitely NOT for kids.  They are grown up themes, heavy duty violence and sex (well, mild duty sex, maybe...) and rather intense.  But they are fascinating, pretty good looks into a variety of lives that have been touched by super powers, and I will say that I really enjoyed them - some more than others, but I like them all.

But they tend to the deconstructionist.  Don't read these for happy endings... more like slice of life, where both good things and bad things happen.

[DneColt]

Absolutely right.

I ought to have pointed that out more strongly. These are definitely rated "R" in a lot of places.

If sex, drugs and violence disturb you, you'd do well to steer clear.

[Travis Herrick]

I've always found thesehard to find. I got to vol. 8 of the first series, and only found the first book of the new cycle Card Sharks, I still look for them from time to time at used book stores, but never see them.

I believe the series was based on a Villains & Vigilante campaign. I thought the premise was very cool, and overall well executed.

[Chris Fluit]

A few comments of my own:

1. Like Travis, I've discovered that it's not easy to find every volume.  I've read 1-3, 5-8 and 11, and if I was willing to pay full price, I could have both 4 and 16.  However, as much as I enjoy them, I enjoy them a lot more when I find them in used book stores for four dollars.  

2. I agree with Dne that some of the bad guys become as compelling if not more compelling than the good guys.  And I think that the authors share that interest which for me, leads to one of the big breaks for my disbelief.  The writers sometimes treat the bad guys as if they were equals with the good guys.  I find that this happens most often with The Sleeper.  For example, he has been seen and recognized hanging out in the ritzy Ace club called Aces High.  I'm not entirely sure how he's recognized, but I find it hard to believe that the heroic Aces would tolerate the presence of this notorious addict and assasin.  It would be like Captain America sitting down for a martini with the Punisher.

3. These books can be really fun and enyoyable which is why I've read so many of them.  But they are written by a variety of authors.  Some are really good, some just aren't my style, and some are really bad.  Personally, I can't stand the Melinda Snodgrass chapters.  She also happens to be the inventor and chief scribe of Dr. Tachyon.  All of the other writers treat Tachy as a noble, but flawed, hero and I really like him in those other chapters.  But when Snodgrass writes him herself, he tends to be overly self-indulgent, whiny and obnoxious.  I can't stand him.  For that reason, I may never complete my collection: I just can't see myself enjoying volume ten (the one she wrote) at all.

4. Another suspension of disbelief issue: I've heard this series described as realistic, but much like the later Ultimates and Authority, I have to dispute that description.  It can be pretty pessimistic.  Almost every character has major problems, from alcoholism to suicide attempts, and the villains get as much "air time" and win more often than the good guys.  In many ways, it's a darker fantasy than what was traditionally present in comic books, but it's certainly not realistic.  That's not to say I don't enjoy the series.  I'm just amused at the sheer number of drug dealers, pimps and prostitutes who get powers.      

5. The suspension of disbelief issues that I raised in #2 and 4 are some of the reasons why I consider this series to be my one guilty pleasures.  I really have a hard time recommending these books to other people.  But I still love them.  I've read 200 pages in a single sitting.  I complain the whole time and then right away pick up the next volume.  I do this because I find incredible and brilliant stories are still a part of the mix.  I want to read more about The Great and Powerful Turtle (one of George RR Martin's best characters), the Modular Man, Jack Braun and Jay Ackroyd.

[DneColt]

QUOTE(Chris Fluit @ Oct 15 2004, 04:42 PM)

1. Like Travis, I've discovered that it's not easy to find every volume.  I've read 1-3, 5-8 and 11, and if I was willing to pay full price, I could have both 4 and 16.  However, as much as I enjoy them, I enjoy them a lot more when I find them in used book stores for four dollars.

I was lucky enoug to be working in a bookstore in 1990 and 1991, when Bantam was re-issuing (and continuing) the series. It was the Tim Truman artwork they used on the covers that caught my eye in the first place. I loved getting 40% off, but truth be told, I would have paid full price (though I did wait until it was clear that Dueces Down wasn't coming out in paperback anytime soon before I bought it used off Amazon. I like this series, but not enough to pay hardback prices for).

QUOTE

The writers sometimes treat the bad guys as if they were equals with the good guys. I find that this happens most often with The Sleeper.  For example, he has been seen and recognized hanging out in the ritzy Ace club called Aces High.  I'm not entirely sure how he's recognized, but I find it hard to believe that the heroic Aces would tolerate the presence of this notorious addict and assasin.  It would be like Captain America sitting down for a martini with the Punisher.

I found that dissonace sort of jarring, too, until I realized that the one truly good ace, the Turtle, isn't the "hang out at Aces High" kind of guy. And even then, he's been fairly tolerant of Croyd Crenson. I think one of the points of the Wild Card books IS that there are no "good guys" and "bad guys" in the traditional sense. They took the Marvel Comics "feet of clay" ethos one step further. The Sleeper, as a character, makes sense: He's a guy with an 8th grade education, sometimes amazing powers, and the propentsity to sleep for months at a time (longer if he wakes up as a joker). All of these sort of preclude normal employment. Almost by necessity, he became a thief.

The Turtle, on the other hand, is the ultimate extension of Peter Parker, the guy who's so devoted to being a hero that he's more or less forsaken a normal life. This guy's got money problems in spades, yet he's never dream of robbing a bank. Unlike the Sleeper, he can maintain a fairly normal work schedule, and has a marketable trade under his belt.

Sometimes I think it does go a little far, though. James Spector is a totally reprehensible character, but it's clear that his author (John Miller?) enjoys him a great deal. And I really start to feel queasy when I find myself rooting for him.

QUOTE

3. These books can be really fun and enyoyable which is why I've read so many of them.  But they are written by a variety of authors.  Some are really good, some just aren't my style, and some are really bad.  Personally, I can't stand the Melinda Snodgrass chapters.  She also happens to be the inventor and chief scribe of Dr. Tachyon.  All of the other writers treat Tachy as a noble, but flawed, hero and I really like him in those other chapters.  But when Snodgrass writes him herself, he tends to be overly self-indulgent, whiny and obnoxious.  I can't stand him.  For that reason, I may never complete my collection: I just can't see myself enjoying volume ten (the one she wrote) at all.

Same here. As I've been re-reading these, I've found myself skipping over the Tachyon, Rosemary Muldoon, Bagabond and Sewer Jack chapters. I also discovered that the LAST time through the books, I skipped the Yoeman chapters in addition to these chapters (turns out I like them more than I thought I remembered). In Down and Dirty, for example, it's entirely possible to read only Turtle, Sleeper and Modular Man sections of the books and still get an enjoyable story.

QUOTE

Another suspension of disbelief issue: I've heard this series described as realistic, but much like the later Ultimates and Authority, I have to dispute that description.  It can be pretty pessimistic.  Almost every character has major problems, from alcoholism to suicide attempts, and the villains get as much "air time" and win more often than the good guys.  In many ways, it's a darker fantasy than what was traditionally present in comic books, but it's certainly not realistic.  That's not to say I don't enjoy the series.  I'm just amused at the sheer number of drug dealers, pimps and prostitutes who get powers. 

This might be a "to-may-to, to-MAH-to" thing. The books are realistic (slightly moreso than comics) in the way the powers are handed: Most powers are a funtion of some kind of mental projection -- the aces think it and it happens -- while the physical manifestions are far more prey to actual physics (giant characters fall prey to the inverse square law, for example). And yes, I agree the books have a mostly pessimistic outlook -- but at least I find the characters and their motivations plausible. As for the hookers and pimps thing, outside of Sleeper, Fortunato and Roulette, I can't think of any other drug addicts, pimps and hookers. Captain Trips, maybe. Though besides the drugs that enable his ace abiltiies, I don't think he's protrayed as actualy using (although he does talk like Tommy Chong).
 

QUOTE

I want to read more about The Great and Powerful Turtle (one of George RR Martin's best characters), the Modular Man, Jack Braun and Jay Ackroyd.

Hear hear.

[Chris Fluit]

QUOTE

DneColt Posted Today, 10:24 AM
I found that dissonace sort of jarring, too, until I realized that the one truly good ace, the Turtle, isn't the "hang out at Aces High" kind of guy. And even then, he's been fairly tolerant of Croyd Crenson. I think one of the points of the Wild Card books IS that there are no "good guys" and "bad guys" in the traditional sense. They took the Marvel Comics "feet of clay" ethos one step further. The Sleeper, as a character, makes sense: He's a guy with an 8th grade education, sometimes amazing powers, and the propentsity to sleep for months at a time (longer if he wakes up as a joker). All of these sort of preclude normal employment. Almost by necessity, he became a thief.

I think the Sleeper is a great character.  Who he is and what he does makes sense to me... in his own chapters.  It's just that when he shows up in other chapters and interacts with other characters that I find it implausible.  

Thinking about it, I have almost the opposite reaction to the Sleeper that I do to Tachyon.  I love reading the Sleeper's own chapters but I don't think he works in the others.  Whereas I don't like Tachyon in his own chapters but I love reading about him in the others.

QUOTE

This might be a "to-may-to, to-MAH-to" thing. The books are realistic (slightly moreso than comics) in the way the powers are handed: Most powers are a funtion of some kind of mental projection -- the aces think it and it happens -- while the physical manifestions are far more prey to actual physics (giant characters fall prey to the inverse square law, for example). And yes, I agree the books have a mostly pessimistic outlook -- but at least I find the characters and their motivations plausible. As for the hookers and pimps thing, outside of Sleeper, Fortunato and Roulette, I can't think of any other drug addicts, pimps and hookers. Captain Trips, maybe. Though besides the drugs that enable his ace abiltiies, I don't think he's protrayed as actualy using (although he does talk like Tommy Chong).

There's actually a number of different things in there, so let me try to sort them out and answer them.

First, you claim that the books are more realistic than comics in how the powers are portrayed.  I think that they are and they aren't.  

Comics were originally populated with pretty outrageous and unbelievable origins.  We now find it pretty ridiculous to think that hard water and mathemetical formulas are supposed to grant superspeed.  When Julius Schwartz revived superheroes in the Silver Age, he  brought his science-fiction background into play.  The heroes now had more plausible origins.  Lightning interacting with advanced chemicals granting superspeed instead of hard water is just one example.  Schwartz introduced scientific rationale to superheroes.  However, he was still working with science of the '50s and '60s, and still watering it down for a child audience.  

Since then, our society has made scientific advancements and the audience has aged.  A lot of the things that passed as good science for Schwartz are no longer as believable.  This isn't just a comic book phenomenon.  Star Trek treated space battles like it was naval warfare, working in mostly level planes.  Star Wars treated space battles like aerial warfare, expanding the fight in all directions but still not really considering the different environment of space.  Bablyon 5 has incorporated our more recent understanding of movement in space.  The crafts rotate and change directions in ways that aren't possible within an atmosphere.  So in that sense, Babylon 5 is more realistic than Star Wars which is in turn more realistic than Star Trek in terms of science.  And 20 or 30 years from now, some new sci-fi show will probably make B5 look outdated and silly.

Comic books have seen a similar progression.  I already noted the advancement from the Golden to the Silver Age.  That advancement has continued.  The lightning and chemicals have been augmented by a Speed Force and Elongated Man's glinko cola has been augmented by a metagene.   However, no matter how many slight changes are introduced, comic book superheroes are always going to be wedded to the science of the '60s the same as Star Trek.  And so their powers are always going to based on concepts that we now know are scientifically impossible.  

So yes, in some ways, Wild Cards is more scientifically realistic, as character's powers are subject to known physical laws.  However, even when it comes to science, I wouldn't claim that Wild Cards is wholly more realistic.  Now, this is probably getting into a pronouncing-tomato type of distinction.  Some comic book fans find Superman to be implausible.  It's impossible for a man to fly without a means of propulsion.  It's impossible for a man to lift an aircraft carrier.  And so on.  In the '80s, one of the solutions to explaining Superman's powers was that he didn't have a dozen different powers; he had one power, telekinesis, which enabled him to do all of these things.  He flew himself with his telekinesis.  He lifted heavy objects and kept them intact with his telekinesis.  

Wild Cards reflects this new way of thinking.  It is hinted that everyone's powers are truly mental in origin.  You developed the powers you thought you should develop.  And so, for example, a pimp develops powers based on tantric energy.  Wild Cards is certainly not the only series or concept to incorporate this new emphasis.  John Byrne used it to explain Gladiator, and indirectly, Superman.  Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett used it for the new Superboy.  The superhero role-playing game Aberrant used a similar idea.  

Now, some people do find this more realistic.  They embrace the new telekinetic explanations.  I don't.  A lot of the love for this set of ideas comes from our lack of understanding about the mind.  We know what is physically impossible but not what is mentally impossible, so we move powers that are physically impossible to the realm of the mind.  And we cite the 90% of our brain that is supposedly unused as a scientific rationale.  But I don't find these explanations to be satisfactory.  We're still dealing with something that is impossible.  

For me, it's just as simple to accept the physically impossible as the mentally impossible.  So I don't find Wild Cards to be more realistic in that way.  But as you noted, my feelings are not shared by everyone.

On to distinction number two: Dne, you also claimed that the characters and motivations are more plausible in Wild Cards than in comic books.  Again I answer, sometimes yes, sometimes no.  There are some truly excellent writers who worked on this series, and because of that, some of the characters are definitely better constructed than the majority of comic book characters.  But I do say the majority.  Almost anything by Alan Moore stands up well in comparison to the best of Wild Cards, as do other series like Starman.

Yet not every writer who works on Wild Cards is of the same caliber.  You admitted to skipping some chapters.  The motivations and depth of those characters doesn't match up to others within the confines of the series.  Wild Cards, unfortunately, has its share of poorly constructed characters.  One of the best examples actually comes from a character I like.  Throughout the series, the Yeoman is trying to bring down a criminal empire.  One of the main characters of the series, Chrysalis, is killed, and book VII follows Jay Ackroyd and the Yeoman as they try to track down her killer.  But here's the thing: the Yeoman has decided that Chrysalis was killed by the same organization that he's been shadowing all along.  So he goes after the people he's always gone after.  He successfully takes them down, only to find out that they had absolutely nothing to do with her murder.  And all along, he ignores hints and clues that point him away from his personal nemesis.  I like Yeoman, but for that entire book, I considered him an idiot.  Maybe you found it to be plausible.  I'm sure plenty of people make the same kind of mistakes.  But it didn't ring true to me.  

Furthermore, the best real life analogue for superheroes is to firemen and policemen.  In our world, there are good and bad policemen.  There are those that are corrupt and those who honestly do their best to protect and serve the people.  A good series reflects that.  I'm currently reading the series Otherland.  In that series, some cops kill runaways.  Yet we also follow a cop who is almost obsessively investigating the unsolved murder of a troubled teen.  We see both good and bad.  

I think any series that shows only one and not the other can make no claim to realism.  That's why I ridicule the claims that The Authority and the Ultimates are somehow more realistic than the JLA and the Avengers.  In Wild Cards, people didn't choose to have powers so the range of people with powers isn't restricted to the cop/fireman analogy.  Every type of person has powers.  However, Wild Cards is still pessimistic in its treatment of its characters.  It's not quite as one-sided the comic book examples I cited, but it can be.  

Now you can see why I dispute the claim that Wild Cards is more realistic than comic books.  It is more realistic than some comic books in some ways, but certainly not more realistic than all comic books in everyway, and Wild Cards does have some holes in its depiction of all of the human experience.

Oh, and I can think of other examples from the pimp, prostitute and addict clan.  At least one of the geishas that worked for Fortunato had powers of her own.  Rouge, one of Ti Malice's associates, was also a prostitute.  The Viet Namese gang that gets into conflict with Yeoman has at least one superpowered prostitute, as well.  Believe me, I didn't run into just one character and exclaim "This book is full of pimps and whores!"  

I feel bad because I spent this whole post discussing my problems with the Wild Cards series, when I really do enjoy them.  I like them, I just know they're far from perfect, and those imperfections are occasionally so obvious that they make me either cringe or bust a gut laughing.

[Andrew Lowe]

QUOTE(Chris Fluit @ Oct 19 2004, 06:33 AM)

QUOTE

DneColt Posted Today, 10:24 AM
I found that dissonace sort of jarring, too, until I realized that the one truly good ace, the Turtle, isn't the "hang out at Aces High" kind of guy. And even then, he's been fairly tolerant of Croyd Crenson. I think one of the points of the Wild Card books IS that there are no "good guys" and "bad guys" in the traditional sense. They took the Marvel Comics "feet of clay" ethos one step further. The Sleeper, as a character, makes sense: He's a guy with an 8th grade education, sometimes amazing powers, and the propentsity to sleep for months at a time (longer if he wakes up as a joker). All of these sort of preclude normal employment. Almost by necessity, he became a thief.

I think the Sleeper is a great character.  Who he is and what he does makes sense to me... in his own chapters.  It's just that when he shows up in other chapters and interacts with other characters that I find it implausible.  

Thinking about it, I have almost the opposite reaction to the Sleeper that I do to Tachyon.  I love reading the Sleeper's own chapters but I don't think he works in the others.  Whereas I don't like Tachyon in his own chapters but I love reading about him in the others.

Ditto.  I thought the idea of the Sleeper was an outstanding idea and I think he does work best in his own stories.

QUOTE

For me, it's just as simple to accept the physically impossible as the mentally impossible.  So I don't find Wild Cards to be more realistic in that way.  But as you noted, my feelings are not shared by everyone.

I believe a man can fly.  I also believe that someone can exert telepathy or telekinesis.

QUOTE

Yet not every writer who works on Wild Cards is of the same caliber.  You admitted to skipping some chapters.  The motivations and depth of those characters doesn't match up to others within the confines of the series.  Wild Cards, unfortunately, has its share of poorly constructed characters.  One of the best examples actually comes from a character I like.  Throughout the series, the Yeoman is trying to bring down a criminal empire.  One of the main characters of the series, Chrysalis, is killed, and book VII follows Jay Ackroyd and the Yeoman as they try to track down her killer.  But here's the thing: the Yeoman has decided that Chrysalis was killed by the same organization that he's been shadowing all along.  So he goes after the people he's always gone after.  He successfully takes them down, only to find out that they had absolutely nothing to do with her murder.  And all along, he ignores hints and clues that point him away from his personal nemesis.  I like Yeoman, but for that entire book, I considered him an idiot.  Maybe you found it to be plausible.  I'm sure plenty of people make the same kind of mistakes.  But it didn't ring true to me. 

I felt that this worked for Yeoman to emphasise his obsession with the renegade Vietnamese general who is the head of the criminal empire.  Yeoman was always more of a Punisher character than Green Arrow.  I recall he only got involved with the Swarm invasion because of his personal ties with the Mai character.

I think I had enough of Wild Cards after Down and Dirty.  I found the idea of the female character, who could control water, being mutated to cure Jokers, Aces, etc. by sexual intercourse snapping my suspension of disbelief.

[guttermouf5150]

"Wild Card Day, 1986, which -- ironically -- falls on September 11th. Wild Card day is the anniversary of the day the Wild Card Virus"

actually, i'm pretty sure it's sept. 15th

[Chris Fluit]

Guttermouf is correct (I went ahead and looked it up).

[guttermouf5150]

hey does anyone know where the hell jay ackroyd popped Ti Malice to in vol. 7?
he hints at the location as being somewhere from his dream, but i'm not sure if he meant the subway, or the forest, or what. anyone have an idea?

while i'm at it, i've got a few questions about the series.

[Chris Fluit]

I can't answer your question right now, but there is something I should've said in my last post:

"Welcome, guttermouf, we're glad you're here."  We hope you enjoy your time on this board.