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Faction Paradox

Started by The Corinthian, 31 August, 2010, 11:33:19 PM

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The Corinthian

Any chance of the Meg reprinting and/or finishing off the first six issues of Lawrence Miles's creator-owned Faction Paradox comics as (briefly) published by Image in 2003? Lawrence needs money to buy Lego, grudammit!

Grant Goggans

That's not a bad suggestion.  Miles could use the hand of a really strong editor to beat his ideas into something comprehensible.  If Tharg can do it for John Smith, he could do it for Miles, too.

Emperor

Dear Sir,

I find myself strangely moved by the news of this gentleman's plight and wonder if there is a way I could contribute in a way that would help alleviate his problems. I could, for example, have a rummage around in the attic for any discarded Legos that I would then forward on to him, in the hope that this will tide him over to better times.

I await further details. Your servant,
if I went 'round saying I was an Emperor just because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away!

Fractal Friction | Tumblr | Google+

The Doctor Alt 8

There are a number of novels and audio plays... at least 10 CD's available from "Magic Bullet"
Sorry


SmallBlueThing

I would be prepared to sacrifice small animals to cthulhu in order to see mr miles writing for the prog or the meg. The man is an absolute genius, and singularly the only commentator on modern dr who who makes any kind of sense. And naturally, dr who fandom, being self-delusional, bitchy and pathetic, hates him and berates him obsessively over his emotional issues. If you frequent such forums, youll be familiar with the venomous hatred he engenders in the rtd/moffat ring-lickers.
But the man is a shining beacon of ideas and a damn fine writer. His fiction is astonishing and his critical work fascinating and funny.
So yes, any Miles at the house of tharg would be most welcome.
SBT
.

James Stacey

Emperor, the plural of Lego is Lego. Don't make me whop you upside.

Emperor

You can always try I suppose ;)

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 02 September, 2010, 09:15:27 AM
I would be prepared to sacrifice small animals to cthulhu in order to see mr miles writing for the prog or the meg.

Would the fact that he already has head off this hecatomb? It would surely require a lesser sacrifice to get him back through the doors.
if I went 'round saying I was an Emperor just because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away!

Fractal Friction | Tumblr | Google+

SmallBlueThing

Quote from: Emperor on 02 September, 2010, 02:54:10 PM
You can always try I suppose ;)

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 02 September, 2010, 09:15:27 AM
I would be prepared to sacrifice small animals to cthulhu in order to see mr miles writing for the prog or the meg.

Would the fact that he already has head off this hecatomb? It would surely require a lesser sacrifice to get him back through the doors.

Ooh! I have obviously forgotten it! Enlighten please, oh many-angled one.

SBT
.

Emperor

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 02 September, 2010, 03:58:37 PM
Quote from: Emperor on 02 September, 2010, 02:54:10 PM
You can always try I suppose ;)

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 02 September, 2010, 09:15:27 AM
I would be prepared to sacrifice small animals to cthulhu in order to see mr miles writing for the prog or the meg.

Would the fact that he already has head off this hecatomb? It would surely require a lesser sacrifice to get him back through the doors.

Ooh! I have obviously forgotten it! Enlighten please, oh many-angled one.

Folding myself down into your paltry handful of dimensions, allow me to illuminate:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Miles

So it was becoming a droid that provided the momentum for him to go on to become a successful writer.
if I went 'round saying I was an Emperor just because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away!

Fractal Friction | Tumblr | Google+

SmallBlueThing

Quote from: Emperor on 02 September, 2010, 04:14:53 PM

So it was becoming a droid that provided the momentum for him to go on to become a successful writer.

Guess what I'm going to be digging out later!

And it won't be smoker-bogies from the black pits of my congested nostrils!

SBT
.

TordelBack

I like the sound of this guy.  We need to get him on here - maybe a rotating guest crank spot, like BoingBoing have?  It'll take pressure off the regulars.

Emperor

A rotating crank? In the Nerve Centre? I'm sure it has been done already ;)

Quote from: SmallBlueThing on 02 September, 2010, 04:51:38 PM
Quote from: Emperor on 02 September, 2010, 04:14:53 PM

So it was becoming a droid that provided the momentum for him to go on to become a successful writer.

Guess what I'm going to be digging out later!

Worth doing - it is quite a good tale, although of its time.
if I went 'round saying I was an Emperor just because some moistened bint had lobbed a scimitar at me, they'd put me away!

Fractal Friction | Tumblr | Google+

Goosegash

Miles really is a good writer, I might even say a great one, but I think he has some serious issues. Back when his online diary was still a diary, rather than an ongoing diatribe against all things Moffat-shaped, there were references to a breakdown and it sounded like a bad one. All deleted now, of course - he does that a lot. Whatever happened, it seems like he hasn't been quite "right" since.

I think he also has a huge ego and an unfortunate tendency to alienate himself from most of his peers, which might explain some of the reason he isn't better known outside Who fan circles.

I've never understood why's he's only interested in writing Dr Who, or things related to that universe(i.e. Faction Paradox). He clearly has more ideas in his head than both franchises can support, so why he isn't turning out more original properties I've no idea. Seems like such a waste of talent.

I think this was the interview in which he decided to sever all ties to the "fan community". It's quite entertaining actually, although his predictions of what would happen if the series came back couldn't have been further off the mark.

Maybe they could give him Gordon Rennie's old page in the Meg.

Grant Goggans

While I really enjoy some of Miles' novels (Alien Bodies, Down and Empress of Henrietta Street are my favorites), his goofball views on fandom and New Who are really entertaining just because he's so amazingly, shockingly, wrongheaded.  He's the Doctor Who equivalent of someone who started getting skeptical of what the Beatles were doing on Revolver, and lost his mind completely when he heard Sgt Pepper for the first time, screaming that they'd betrayed the core concept of four fellows in collarless black suits and matching haircuts writing two-minute pop songs and covering old King-Goffin numbers.

Actually, that's a pretty good analogy, especially if you read "sitar" every time you see Miles scream about the terrible influence that "cult TV" has had on Who.

But, and here's the difference between him and any other crank-with-a-blog, while Miles is approaching his hatred of Moffat-Who from entirely the wrong perspective and drinking from a big, steaming pot of jealousy juice, his criticisms of RTD-Who were always written really well and were always very entertaining.  It's a real shame that he deleted them as he went.  I saved a few of them and they're worth keeping.

SmallBlueThing

Quote from: Grant Goggans on 03 September, 2010, 01:49:09 PM
goofball views on fandom and New Who are really entertaining just because he's so amazingly, shockingly, wrongheaded. 
while Miles is approaching his hatred of Moffat-Who from entirely the wrong perspective and drinking from a big, steaming pot of jealousy juice,

Wrongheaded in what way? To me, Miles has it nailed spot-on. He's absolutly right about Moffat, just as he was absolutely right about RTD- and as he's absolutely right about Gatiss, Roberts, et al. And as for 'jealousy'- I don't think so. Miles is a legitimate commentator and critic of Moffat and more generally "modern tv". Moffat writes within the conventions of that which Miles loathes- and has been a cock to him in the past, so of course he's not going to get a decent write up.

If you haven't already, read Miles's 'About Time' series of critiques- you'll soon see that no one understands and contextualises Dr Who like he does. He's immensely pissed off that what was once a particular, unique, television programme is now generic throwaway trash. And that the same throwaway trash is lauded so highly by people who really should know better, just makes him furious. I can understand that, and he's totally correct.

What gets me is "fandom"s vicious, personal vendetta against Miles. He has emotional issues- which he has been very candid about. Fandom has leapt upon this like vultures on a warm corpse and made him the butt of every jibe going. Disgustingly, he is still routinely referred to as "Mad Larry" on the forums- and nothing is ever done about it. It's as if he's the only writer ever to suffer from such a problem. Mind you, this is the same fandom that turns on any critic who dares to criticise Dr Who in any form- as if any "negativity" is inherently bad and must be crushed, lest the show be cancelled again.

As the current tv version of Dr Who limps towards cancellation, the vitriol aimed at its critics just gets more shrill. Miles has all but ceased to have anything to do with it. And again, in that, he's to be much admired.

SBT
.